Japanese and other East Asian artists and here primary school children often draw pictures from an elevated birds eye view (Masuda, Gonzalez, Kwan & Nisbett, 2008). Part of the reason for this is their there desire to show everything in their pictures, to the extent that in some of these pictures the viewpoint is from that of an all-seeing eye that can look downards in all directions. So as Masuda, Gonzalez, Kawan and Nisbett argue, part of the motivation for this is the desire to see the context of actions, events, and people. I argue that another motivation is that the internalisation of this viewpoint enables them to gain a self view in a similar way to that provided by George Herbert Mead's "generalised other." And as argued by Derrida they become addicted to this view of the world since they become libidinally involved in the self relationship that viewing themselves facilitates. Contra the Western self, there may be no sexual element to this self-viewing but rather an enjoyment of seeing themselves and their actions, as cute, from the point of view of an all seeing co-viewing mother.

This internalised other sometimes makes a reapparane in the horrible women that appear from images, television sets, developer fluid, lanterns and scrolls, or sometimes hiding in a mass of black hair on the ceiling, in Japanese horror movies and legends.

It is I believe the internalisation of this self-viewing intra-psychic Other that keeps the Japapnese as moral as their are and not any external sword (or bits of wire) as argued by Ruth Benedict.

Incidentally, my father's Art School Graduation picture was of a group of people around a table drawn from above. I believe that the auto-scopic eye in the sky is present in everyone to a degree, and felt more keenly by those of Scottish Descent such as Adam Smith (whose impartial spectator appears to be a mixture of both a linguistic and visual audience), my father, and myself.

Images Copyright their respective artists.

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Bibliography

Masuda, T., Gonzalez, R., Kwan, L., & Nisbett, R. E. (2008). Culture and aesthetic preference: Comparing the attention to context of East Asians and Americans. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 34(9), 1260-1275.

Benedict, R. (2006). The Chrysanthemum and the Sword (1st ed.). Mariner Books.

Lummis, D. (2007). Ruth Benedict’s Obituary for Japanese Culture. Japan Focus, 23. Retrieved from www.japanfocus.org/-C__Douglas-Lummis/2474

From the autumn 2016 trip to Vietnam:

If ever there were a good way to finish up a trip, this particular Sunday in October would be it. Before arriving in Hanoi, I honestly had exceptionally low expectations. A bit like Saigon, if you are to go online and try to look up a list of places to visit – basically a tourist’s stock photography checklist, as it may be – you don’t find much that’s appealing. Well…I didn’t, anyway, and as a result, I had pretty low expectations for Hanoi.

The charm and beauty of Hanoi, however, isn’t in any one particular place. It’s in the experience of the entire city. (I’d say the same for Saigon, but multiply that a few times for Hanoi.) On this day in the Old Quarter in particular, I kept finding myself thinking, “Oh, my God, I shouldn’t be this lucky as a photographer…” Today ended up being mostly about people, with a little food and historical locations mixed in.

As I mentioned in the last set of posting, today would start off a bit sad with Junebug leaving for China a day before I would. So, we were checked out of our room by 6:00 in the morning or so. The breakfast at the Art Trendy was wonderful. Buffet with a mix of made-to-order omelets mixed in. Strong work, Art Trendy, strong work…

When June left, I really had nothing to do since it was still six in the morning and I was temporarily homeless as I had to switch hotels. So…I sat around the lobby for about two hours (possibly slightly awkward for the poor girls working there, but oh, well; I had to sit somewhere).

Around 8:00, I finally dragged my old bones out of the hotel and walked the five to ten minutes down the street to the Aquarius, where I politely asked them to hold my non-camera bag until I come back around 1:00 in the afternoon to check in.

After that, I was finally off with my cameras to enjoy an early Sunday morning in the bustling Old Quarter. On the street where the hotel is situated are a number of restaurants where locals were jammed in to enjoy noodles, steamed buns, and the like. It was wonderful to be among that crowd (though someone tried to scold me ever so slightly for taking pictures of people eating).

Since this was right next to St. Joseph’s Cathedral – and it was Sunday morning – I found my way back into the church where we crashed the wedding the afternoon before and realized that I almost got locked into Sunday mass while walking around taking pictures. So…I stayed. I prayed. And my prayer was answered when I realized the side doors and even the back door were open. (Ok…I didn’t really think I was locked in a church, but it did feel like it a little bit.)

Upon exiting the church, a handful of frames under my belt, I walked along the lovely streets photographing shops and people. At Caphe, I piggybacked on someone else’s photo shoot – it looked like they were doing a promo for the place, or possibly just a personal shoot for five women, though I have a feeling it was the former. At any rate, I was quite pleased with that little set and am presenting quite a few of those here, even if they’re a little redundant.

My ultimate goal with this wandering was to find my way to the Hanoi Hilton. Now, I’m not taking about the hotel chain, of course, but rather the prison that U.S. prisoners of war sarcastically called the Hanoi Hilton during the Vietnam War. (This is the prison where Senator John McCain was interred while a POW, and there are one or two pictures to that effect here.)

This prison has a particularly interesting history (and morbid since…well…it’s a prison). It’s about a hundred years old and was founded by the French colonialists around the turn of the 20th century. During the first 50 years of its history, the French imprisoned Vietnamese insurgents and those who wanted independence. In the eyes of the French…renegades (hence the imprisonment). In the eyes of the Vietnamese – especially the current government – patriots and national heroes. If they were truly freedom fighters, then I would probably side with the current government on that one.

The French even had a guillotine installed here and overcrowding was a major problem. There were plenty of escape attempts, and more were successful than you may think, which is a little peculiar.

After the battle of Bien Dien Phu and the ejection of the French from the north (and before the U.S. got involved in the south), the prison changed hands and was under control of Ho Chi Minh. During the Vietnam War, it became one of the main prisons for U.S. POWs, as I alluded to above.

The propaganda claims that the Vietcong were absolutely humane and decent with U.S. prisoners, allowing them to observe their religious rites (Christmas celebrations, etc.), allowed prisoners to smoke and enjoy leisure (board games, basketball, etc.), and claimed they were well-fed.

This is certainly how it’s presented in the prison/museum currently. If you were to go online, though, and try to find a contrary report, you would find that this was all coerced and staged to make it appear as if things were on the up and up. (For anyone curious, per my Vietnamese friends, the general education in Vietnam today is how terrible the French and U.S. were for colonizing and torturing the country and keeping it from its independence.)

So, what’s the truth of what really happened? Who knows? Outside of firsthand accounts, it’s impossible to know for certain and even then, memory can be a tricky thing. I tend to like to say the truth is always somewhere between two opposing viewpoints, no matter what the topic may be.

From an impartial and purely photographic point of view, the prison, currently a museum/memorial, is an interesting place to spend an hour or two. Some of the exhibits seem a bit cheesy, but some are quite tasteful and well done. There’s also an informational video. You’ll have to see this with a bit of imagination (the prison, that is), as at least half of it has been leveled for high rise buildings. At least there’s some tangible piece of it left to visit, including the main gate (Maison Centrale).

After about two hours here at the Hanoi Hilton, I walked over towards the Opera House to get a few daytime shots but, really, to get lunch at El Gaucho. I was looking forward to a proper steak. The prices were astronomical (though justifiable based on what I ate), though I just opted for a steak salad. It was so good I contemplated going back for dinner, but had other plans.

With a happy stomach, I went back to finally check in at the Aquarius Hotel and got my workout huffing up six flights of stairs each time I went out. I relaxed here for a few hours until 4:00 when a dear friend of mine came to town to see me.

Ngan and I had an ice cream at Baskin Robbins right in front of St. Joe’s before heading over to the Temple of Literature. This is a temple dedicated to education and, bless my soul, it’s a place where university graduates come for graduation pictures.

On this particular day – a warm, sunny, late Sunday afternoon – it was packed with college students. And it was beautiful to see that many people happy, full of hopes and dreams, and dressed in either cap and gown or traditional Vietnamese clothes. In short…I had a field day shooting for an hour here.

Around 5:00, Ngan had to head back to school, and I went back to my hotel. I had one more meeting. Hoa, who traveled around Thailand & Cambodia with me in May, flew back to see me this evening. She picked me up at 6:00 on her scooter and rode me all around Hanoi by evening.

She started by taking me to Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum (which I consider a lot more photogenic in its setting than the Great Gangster’s Mausoleum on Tiananmen Square). This one, at least, was in a parklike setting. At evening, it’s well-lit and you can find people relaxing in the grass in front of it. During the day, you can visit and there are quite a few buildings behind the mausoleum that you can also see.

After a few minutes here, Hoa took me by West Lake – the largest lake in Hanoi, as I mentioned yesterday – and just drove me around for over an hour, it seemed. My impressions that Hanoi (even out of the Old Quarter) seemed to be a good place to live – though I’d be concerned about the air pollution – and people here seemed to be happy. Also…Vietnamese really love their coffee.

We finally returned to the Old Quarter for dinner at one of the famous restaurants she recommended and she treated me to a wonderful dinner. I can’t recall what we ate (the Vietnamese names of it, anyway), but it was nice.

After dinner, she drove me over towards the Opera House and then, finally, we stopped by Hoan Kiem Lake in the heart of the Quarter and walked around the lake. It was getting close to 10:00 by this time, and I wanted to get back to the hotel to get a few hours sleep before waking up for my early flight in the morning. Hoa came to the airport with me to see me off.

If ever there were a great way to finish a great trip, this was it. I absolutely loved Vietnam – honestly, a lot more than I imagined I would, even with every single person I know who’d ever come here saying what a fantastic country this is – and would gladly come back. This seems to be one of the kinds of countries that you would never get tired of or, if you did, it would sure take a long time. With that, I’ll bid goodbye to Vietnam for now with the hopes that I’ll someday return to this land of amazing food, landscapes, and people.

As always, thanks for dropping by and viewing these pictures. Please feel free to leave any questions or comments and I’ll answer as I have time.

Jeudi 27 Novembre 2008 > L’IMPARTIAL

GISORS

SAINT-CLAIR-SUR-EPTE > L’ATELIER DU POMMIER

Leurs pommiers ont du succès

Née seulement en février de l’an dernier, l’association de l’atelier du Pommier occupe déjà une place majeure dans la vie locale du secteur. L’association gravite autour de l’activité de Pierre Marcel, artiste-peintre implanté dans la région. La semaine passée, l’association tenait sa première assemblée générale depuis sa création devant une trentaine de membres.

Née d’une étroite coopération entre Pierre Marcel et la municipalité de Saint-Clair-sur-Epte, l’association s’est ancrée, en un an et demi dans le paysage associatif du secteur qui irrigue les trois départements, blottie aux confins de trois pôles géographiques et coincée dans des barrières administratives qui donnent du fil à retordre aux bénévoles du bureau. « C’est très difficile d’être situé aux frontières administratives : il faut se battre pour obtenir des subventions des uns et des autres qui se sentent peu concernés par un territoire en marge » a expliqué Pierre Marcel lors de la réunion. « Mais on va se battre, et Saint-Clair-sur-Epte sera connu sur la carte de la Normandie, grâce à nous ! » a-t-il promis aux adhérents de l’école de peinture qu’il orchestre avec l’enthousiasme communicatif. Des adhérents qui viennent de Gisors et de son canton, dans l’Eure, comme de l’Oise.

Plein de projets

L’ambition de l’association est de promouvoir le développement de l’école de peinture de Pierre Marcel. Son objectif es aussi d’étendre la connaissance de l’art pictural des adhérents-une visite au musée d’Orsay est prévue cette année- et de favoriser l’exposition des œuvres des élèves en dehors de l’école. Les mois écoulés ont été riches en évènements. Outre ses cours, l’association a lié un partenariat de choix avec le Parc régional du Vexin français. Le projet des désormais célèbres paraboles peintes en trompe-l’œil a remporté le premier prix du Parc à la rentrée 2007. Les adhérents de l’atelier ont également participé à différentes expositions et festivals comme Brin de culture ou Les jardins de Montagny. Outre les activités artistiques, l’association s’est impliquée dans diverses actions sociales notamment en échangeant un partenariat avec le Secours populaire d’Argenteuil (opération Ville à la campagne). Pour l’an prochain, les projets fourmillent : site internet, stages de peinture et expo à Crocky, Ville à la campagne en avril, participation à la fête de la peinture en juin sur le thème de l’eau et à la fête de la voie verte en septembre, fête annuelle du pommier en octobre. Surtout, les artistes vont s’attacher, durant toute l’année, à préparer les célébrations de l’anniversaire du traité de Saint-Clair-sur-Epte, fondateurs de la Normandie, en vue des festivités de 2011.

Site Internet : www.lepommier.net et renseignements applestrophe@aol.com

Noli Me Tangere

José Rizal

Manila, Tifo-Litografia de Chofre y Comp. , Escolta,

1899

First edition, Manila

Starting bid: P 100,000

Provenance: Private Collection, Madrid

First edition of copies printed in Manila in 1899. Manila, Tifo-Litografia de Chofre y Comp., Escolta, 1899

Leon Gallery presents an extremely rare first edition of Noli Me Tangere printed in Manila in 1899, probably one of the very few copies that have survived to this day, is being offered at auction.

The book was printed in 1899, two years after he died a martyr’s death by public execution. (Manila Tifo-Litografia de Chofre y Comp. Escolta)

As a backgrounder, the very first edition of Noli Me Tangere was printed outside of the Philippines, in Germany in 1887.

The Philippine National Hero, Dr. Jose Rizal, completed his most famous novel about the inequities of society, and the abuses of Spanish friars and the ruling colonial government in December 1886. After completing his studies in Madrid, Rizal sought to embark upon a project that would make a contribution to his countrymen. At first, he had planned to publish a book that the Circulo Hispano-Filipino could contribute to; but disagreements between its members meant that the project fell through. In the end, Rizal decided to set out on his own and write a novel: first in Madrid where he completed half of the manuscript, then in Paris, and finally in Germany. He called it "Noli Me Tangere" (Touch Me Not), a reference, it has been written, to the medical term for a festering, painful cancerous sore.

Jose Rizal finished writing the novel in December 1886. At first, according to one of Rizal's biographers, Rizal feared the novel might not be printed, and that it would remain unread.

He was struggling with financial constraints at the time and thought it would be hard to pursue printing the novel. Financial aid came from a friend named Máximo Viola; this helped him print the book at Berliner Buchdruckerei Aktiengesellschaft in Berlin. Rizal was initially hesitant, but Viola insisted and ended up lending Rizal 300 Pesos for 2,000 copies. The printing was finished earlier than the estimated five months. Viola arrived in Berlin in December 1886, and by March 21, 1887, Rizal had sent a German printed copy of the novel to his friend, Blumentritt.’ Rizal, himself, describing the nature of the Noli Me Tangere to his friend Blumentritt, wrote, "The Novel is the first impartial and bold account of the life of the tagalogs. The Filipinos will find in it the history of the last ten years…"

The firestorm that followed the publication of Noli Me Tangere was swift, with accusations of heresy, treason, and subversion being leveled against its author. At the end of 1887, Fray Salvador Font, the cura of Tondo and chairman of the Permanent Commission of Censorship ordered that the book be banned from circulation. This was followed by a pronouncement that reading the Noli was tantamount to committing a mortal sin. The effect, of course, was to be the reverse, with interest being piqued and copies being clandestinely distributed.

In dedicating the Noli to his countrymen, Rizal stirred up a Philippine national consciousness, leading to an awakening sense of self. The religious at that time, in particular, insisted that it was a mortal sin to possess the “Noli.” All of this adds to the rarity of this piece.

Lot 128 of the Leon Gallery auction on 5 December 2015. Please see www.leon-gallery.com for more details.

British postcard. Photo: Paramount. Richard Cromwell as Lieut. Stone in The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Henry Hathaway, 1935).

With his smooth, boyish good looks, American actor Richard Cromwell (1910-1960) had the makings of a Hollywood star in the early 1930s. The handsome actor became well known with The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (1935), sharing top billing with Gary Cooper and Franchot Tone. His film career reached its pinnacle with Jezebel (1938) with Bette Davis and Henry Fonda and John Ford's Young Mr. Lincoln (1939) also with Fonda. But soon after that, his meteoric career crashed and burned.

Richard Cromwell was born LeRoy Melvin Radabaugh in Long Beach, California, in 1910. he was the second of five children of Fay B. (née Stocking) and Ralph R. Radabaugh, who was an inventor. In 1918, when Radabaugh was still in grade school, his father died of the Spanish flu. Roy earnestly delivered morning newspapers to help out the family's budget crisis. on a scholarship, he attended the Chouinard Art Institute in Los Angeles, a precursor to the California Institute of the Arts. He continued to work part-time as a maintenance man, custodian and soda jerk. He set up a small art shop in Hollywood in the late 1920s and made masks and oil paintings there. He sold pictures, made lampshades, and designed colour schemes for houses. The handsome Cromwell made contacts with film stars of the time such as Anna Q. Nilsson, Colleen Moore, Beatrice Lillie, Greta Garbo, Joan Crawford and Tallulah Bankhead, some of whom he also immortalised in his paintings and masks. He painted scenery for community theatre productions and eventually took on acting roles. His first film appearance was an extra role in King of Jazz (John Murray Anderson, Walter Lantz, 1930), along with the film's star, Paul Whiteman and his orchestra. On a whim, his friends encouraged him to audition for the lead role in a Columbia remake of D.W. Griffith's silent classic Tol'able David (1921) starring Richard Barthelmess. Radabaugh won the role over thousands of hopefuls. In storybook fashion, studio mogul Harry Cohn gave him his screen name Richard Cromwell and launched his career. Cromwell earned $75 per week for his work on Tol'able David (John G. Blystone, 1930), which co-starred Noah Beery Sr. and John Carradine. Gary Brumburgh at IMDb: "the studio publicity machines worked overtime to promote both the film and their new leading man. Richard lived up to all the hype once the reviews came out, giving a terrific debut performance in a very difficult role. As the rather weak-willed young boy who finds the strength and courage to right the injustice done to him, he hit overnight stardom". Amid the flurry of publicity, Cromwell toured the country and was even invited to the White House to meet President Herbert Hoover. Cohn signed Cromwell to a multi-year contract based on the strength of his performance and the success at the box office of his debut. In the following years, Richard played several leading roles in smaller films, often in youthful, somewhat sensitive roles. Leslie Halliwell later described him in his Filmgoer's Companion as the "friendly hero of the early talkies". Cromwell maintained a deep friendship with Marie Dressler, which continued until her death from cancer in 1934. Dressler personally insisted that her studio bosses cast Cromwell on a loan-out in the lead opposite her in Emma (Clarence Brown, 1932), also with Myrna Loy. Dressler was nominated for a second Best Actress award for her portrayal of the title role in Emma. This was another break that helped sustain Cromwell's rising status in Hollywood. He was now much in demand and his next roles were in The Age of Consent (Gregory La Cava, 1932) co-starring Arline Judge and Eric Linden, Tom Brown of Culver (William Wyler, 1932), and Hoopla (Frank Lloyd, 1933), where he is seduced by Clara Bow, in her final film. He made an early standout performance as the leader of the youth gang in Cecil B. DeMille's unusual cult-favourite, This Day and Age (1933). To ensure that Cromwell's character used the right slang, DeMille asked high school student Horace Hahn to read the script and comment. Cromwell then starred with Jean Arthur in Most Precious Thing in Life (Lambert Hillyer, 1934). He had his definitive breakthrough when he co-starred with Gary Cooper and Franchot Tone in the adventure film The Lives of a Bengal Lancer (Henry Hathaway, 1935), which was nominated for seven Oscars. Cromwell played the son of a senior officer who is tortured by insurgents. His father refuses to rescue him in order to demonstrate his impartiality. After this promising start, Cromwell's career received a bump when he wanted more artistic independence.

Richard Cromwell's next pictures at Columbia Pictures and elsewhere were mostly inconsequential. Cromwell starred with Will Rogers in Life Begins at 40 (1935) and appeared in Poppy (1936) as the suitor of W.C. Fields' daughter, Rochelle Hudson. In 1937, he portrayed the young bank robber in love with Helen Mack and on the lam from Lionel Atwill in The Wrong Road (James Cruze, 1937). A challenge was his lead role in The Road Back (James Whale, 1937), a sequel to the classic All Quiet on the Western Front (Lewis Milestone, 1930). The film chronicled the story of young German soldiers readjusting to civilian life after WWI. Fearful that this film would not do well in Germany, the new regime at Universal Pictures severely edited the film before release, removing much of the strongly anti-Nazi slant that author Erich Maria Remarque included in the original novel, and which director James Whale had intended to retain in the film version. The resulting film was not well-received. Richard Cromwell took a detour in his career to Broadway for the chance to star as an evil cadet in an original play by Joseph Viertel, 'So Proudly We Hail!'. The military drama was directed by future film director Charles Walters, co-starred Edward Andrews and Eddie Bracken, and opened to much fanfare. The New York Herald Tribune called Cromwell's acting "a striking portrayal" and The New York Times said that he "ran the gamut of emotions" in the play. Cromwell had shed his restrictive Columbia contract and pursued acting work as a freelancer in other media. Cromwell guest-starred on the radio in 'The Royal Gelatin Hour' (1937) hosted by Rudy Vallee, in a dramatic skit opposite Fay Wray. Enjoying the experience, Cromwell acted in the role of Kit Marshall on the radio soap opera Those We Love, which ran from 1938 until 1942. On-screen, Cromwell appeared in Storm Over Bengal (Sidney Salkow, 1938), for Republic Pictures, in order to capitalise on his success in The Lives of a Bengal Lancer. He stood out in supporting roles as Henry Fonda's brother, who kills a man in a duel of honour, in the romantic drama Jezebel (William Wyler, 1938) starring Bette Davis and as defendant Matt Clay to Henry Fonda's title performance in Young Mr. Lincoln (John Ford, 1939). In 1939, Cromwell again tried his luck on stage in a regional production of Sutton Vane's play 'Outward Bound', co-starring Dorothy Jordan. Cromwell drifted into secondary features. He enjoyed an active social Hollywood life with friends including Barbara Stanwyck, Joan Crawford, Franchot Tone, George Cukor, Cole Porter and William Haines. For Universal Pictures, Cromwell starred as a draftsman who thwarts the Nazis in Enemy Agent. He went on to appear in marginal but still watchable fare such as Baby Face Morgan (Arthur Dreifuss, 1942), with Mary Carlisle. Cromwell enjoyed a career boost with Cosmo Jones, Crime Smasher (1943), the film adaptation of the hit radio serial. However, he was next up at Monogram Pictures, where he was cast as a doctor working covertly for a police department to catch mobsters in the forgettable though endearing Riot Squad.

During the last two years of World War II, Richard Cromwell served with the United States Coast Guard. Upon returning to California following the war's end, he acted in local theatre productions. He also signed on for live performances in summer stock in the East during this period. Cromwell's break from films due to his stint in the Service meant that he was not much in demand after the War's end. He failed to make a comeback as a film actor with a role in the Film Noir Bungalow 13 (Edward L. Cahn, 1948) and he retired from the film industry. All told, Cromwell's film career spanned 39 films. In the 1950s, he returned to his artistic roots and studied ceramics. He built a pottery studio on his property, becoming especially known and admired for his creative tile designs. Returning to the name Roy Radabaugh, Cromwell also wrote extensively, producing several published stories and an unfinished novel in the 1950s. Cromwell was married once, briefly (1945–1946), to actress Angela Lansbury, when she was 19 and Cromwell was 35. They were married in a small civil ceremony in Independence, California. Lansbury later stated in a 1966 interview that her first marriage was a mistake because Cromwell was gay. His homosexuality had been kept secret from the public and Lansbury had not known about it before the marriage. However, Cromwell and Lansbury remained friends until his death in 1960. She later described him as "charming with a good knowledge of jazz music". In 1960 he tried a second comeback in the film business. In July 1960, Cromwell signed with producer Maury Dexter for 20th Century Fox's planned production of The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come (Andrew V. McLaglen, 1961), starring singer Jimmie Rogers. Diagnosed with liver cancer shortly thereafter, he was forced to withdraw and Chill Wills replaced Cromwell in the film. Richard Cromwell was a heavy smoker for many years and at times advertised Lucky Strike. He died on 11 October 1960 in Hollywood, at the age of 50. He is interred at Fairhaven Memorial Park in Santa Ana, California. For his services to the film industry, Cromwell has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame (1627 Vine Street). Cromwell's legacy is preserved today by his nephew Dan Putnam and his cousin Bill Keane IV. In 2005, Keane donated materials relating to Cromwell's radio performances to the Thousand Oaks Library's Special Collection, "The American Radio Archive". In 2007, Keane donated memorabilia relating to Cromwell's film career and ceramics work to the AMPAS Margaret Herrick Library in Beverly Hills.

Sources: Gary Brumburgh (IMDb), Leslie Halliwell (Filmgoer's Companion), Wikipedia (English and German) and IMDb.

And, please check out our blog European Film Star Postcards.

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In Llanelli, a few people mentioned that there was a lack of impartial information available in the run up to the referendum in the media and most news items were leaning towards one outcome. One gentleman said that he felt that as the media was the only way some people could access information having only one view promoted meant that it was difficult for people to make an informed decision. He also said that it is up to individuals to seek out information and so having the bus out and about is a good thing. One woman said that many television programmes about the referendum were broadcast too late at night, which meant she wasn't able to see as much coverage as she may have liked. Health was an important issue for one visitor, who was unhappy that the people of Llanelli had to travel further afield to receive treatment for particular needs. One woman was concerned about the reduction in public funding and its effects on community partnership work. Another member of the public said that it would be good to see processes simplified to allow for people to engage in Assembly committee consultations; he was particularly interested in raising issues via the Committee on Standards of Conduct.

Roedd y refferendwm yn bwnc poblogaidd ymysg pobl ardal Llanelli pan aeth bws y Cynulliad Cenedlaethol i’w tref hwy ddechrau’r wythnos. Barn y mwyafrif oedd y diffyg gwybodaeth ddiduedd oedd ar gael yn ystod yr ymgyrch. Nododd ambell un bod gwneud penderfyniad un ffordd neu’r llall yn dasg gymharol anodd i lawer gan mai un ochr yn unig oedd y cyfryngau yn tueddu i bortreadu. Soniodd un dyn mai cyfrifoldeb yr unigolyn ydi dod o hyd i’r wybodaeth angenrheidiol a bod bws y Cynulliad yn syniad da yn hyn o beth. Barn ymwelydd arall oedd bod llawer o’r rhaglenni teledu oedd yn canolbwyntio ar y refferendwm yn cael eu darlledu’n rhy hwyr ac nad oedd modd iddi wylio cymaint ohonynt o ganlyniad. Iechyd oedd prif bryder un dyn lleol oedd yn anhapus bod rhaid i bobl yr ardal deithio ymhell i dderbyn triniaeth arbenigol mewn ysbytai. Soniodd un ddynes ei bod yn poeni’n arw am y toriadau mewn gwariant cyhoeddus a sut y byddai hynny’n effeithio gwaith rhai cymdeithasau a phartneriaethau yn y gymuned. Dymuniad un ymwelydd oedd galluogi aelodau o’r cyhoedd i ymwneud mwy mewn ymgynghoriadau pwyllgorau’r Cynulliad, yn enwedig gyda Phwyllgor Safonau Ymddygiad.

www.assemblywales.org / www.cynulliadcymru.org

The good grey guardians of art

Patrol the halls on spongy shoes,

Impartially protective, though

Perhaps suspicious of Toulouse.

Richard Wilbur

11 March 2021: Workshop 4: "Multidimensional approaches by Governments to promoting the rule of law by, inter alia, providing access to justice for all; building effective, accountable, impartial and inclusive institutions; and considering social, educational and other relevant measures, including fostering a culture of lawfulness while respecting cultural identities, in line with the Doha Declaration", during the 14th UN Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, held in Kyoto, Japan.

Photo: UN DGC

Noted Queensland novelist Rosa Praed was born at Bromelton on the Logan River in 1851. The daughter of Thomas Murray-Prior and his wife Matilda, Praed spent much of her childhood on her father’s pastoral properties in the Logan and Burnett River districts and at Cleveland. Through her father’s subsequent political career she was familiar with a number of important personages, many of whom would be fictionalised in her works. In 1872 she married Arthur Campbell Praed and spent two years on her husband’s property on Curtis Island near Gladstone, a miserable experience which she incorporated into her autobiographical My Australian Girlhood (1902) and two novels.

She accompanied her husband when he returned to England in 1876, and after the couple separated in 1897, she remained in England for the remainder of her life except for one brief visit to Australia in 1894-1895. Writing as Mrs Campbell Praed she produced 45 works over four decades, roughly half of which drew on her life in Australia and include many historical events in Queensland. Notwithstanding her obvious attempts at impartiality, Praed’s perspective was largely that of the elite society she knew so well.

A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism, a monotheistic religion which originated during the 15th century in the Punjab region. The term "Sikh" has its origin in the Sanskrit words शिष्य (śiṣya; disciple, student) or शिक्ष (śikṣa; instruction). A Sikh is a disciple of a guru. According to Article I of the Sikh Rehat Maryada (the Sikh code of conduct), a Sikh is "any human being who faithfully believes in One Immortal Being; ten Gurus, from Guru Nanak to Guru Gobind Singh; Guru Granth Sahib; the teachings of the ten Gurus and the baptism bequeathed by the tenth Guru". "Sikh" properly refers to adherents of Sikhism as a religion, not an ethnic group. However, because Sikhs often share strong ethno-religious ties, many countries, such as the U.K., recognize Sikh as a designated ethnicity on their censuses. The American non-profit organization United Sikhs has fought to have Sikh included on the U.S. census as well, arguing that Sikhs "self-identify as an 'ethnic minority'" and believe "that they are more than just a religion".

Male Sikhs usually have "Singh" (Lion), and female Sikhs have "Kaur" (Princess) as their middle or last name. Sikhs who have undergone the khanḍe-kī-pahul (the Sikh initiation ceremony) may also be recognized by the five Ks: uncut hair (kesh); an iron or steel bracelet (kara); a kirpan (a sword tucked into a gatra strap); kachehra, a cotton undergarment, and kanga, a small wooden comb. Baptized male Sikhs must cover their hair with a turban, which is optional for baptized female Sikhs. The greater Punjab region is the historic homeland of the Sikhs, although significant communities exist around the world.

HISTORY

Sikh political history may be said to begin with the death of the fifth Sikh guru, Guru Arjan Dev, in 1606. Guru Nanak was a religious leader and social reformer in the 15th-century Punjab. Religious practices were formalized by Guru Gobind Singh on 30 March 1699. Singh baptized five people from a variety of social backgrounds, known as the Panj Piare (the five beloved ones) to form the Khalsa, or collective body of initiated Sikhs. Sikhism has generally had amicable relations with other religions, except for the period of Mughal rule in India (1556–1707). Several Sikh gurus were killed by the Mughals for opposing their persecution of minority religious communities including Sikhs. Sikhs subsequently militarized to oppose Mughal rule. The emergence of the Sikh Confederacy under Ranjit Singh was characterized by religious tolerance and pluralism, with Christians, Muslims and Hindus in positions of power. The confederacy is considered the zenith of political Sikhism, encompassing Kashmir, Ladakh and Peshawar. Hari Singh Nalwa, the commander-in-chief of the Sikh army in the North West Frontier, expanded the confederacy to the Khyber Pass. Its secular administration implemented military, economic and governmental reforms. The months leading up to the partition of India in 1947 were marked by conflict in the Punjab between Sikhs and Muslims. This caused the religious migration of Punjabi Sikhs and Hindus from West Punjab, mirroring a similar religious migration of Punjabi Muslims from East Punjab.

The 1960s saw growing animosity between Sikhs and Hindus in India, with the Sikhs demanding the creation of a Punjab state on a linguistic basis similar to other states in India. This was promised to Sikh leader Master Tara Singh by Jawaharlal Nehru, in return for Sikh political support during negotiations for Indian independence. Although the Sikhs obtained the Punjab, they lost Hindi-speaking areas to Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan. Chandigarh was made a union territory and the capital of Haryana and Punjab on 1 November 1966.

Tensions arose again during the late 1970s, fueled by Sikh claims of discrimination and marginalisation by the Hindu-dominated Indian National Congress party and tactics adopted by the Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

According to Katherine Frank, Indira Gandhi's assumption of emergency powers in 1975 resulted in the weakening of the "legitimate and impartial machinery of government", and her increasing "paranoia" about opposing political groups led her to institute a "despotic policy of playing castes, religions and political groups against each other for political advantage". Sikh leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale articulated Sikh demands for justice, and this triggered violence in the Punjab. The prime minister's 1984 defeat of Bhindranwale led to an attack on the Golden Temple in Operation Blue Star and to her assassination by her Sikh bodyguards. Gandhi's assassination resulted in an explosion of violence against Sikh communities and the killing of thousands of Sikhs throughout India. Khushwant Singh described the riots as a Sikh pogrom; he "felt like a refugee in my country. In fact, I felt like a Jew in Nazi Germany". Since 1984, relations between Sikhs and Hindus have moved toward a rapprochement aided by economic prosperity. However, a 2002 claim by the Hindu right-wing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) that "Sikhs are Hindus" disturbed Sikh sensibilities. The Khalistan movement campaigns for justice for the victims of the violence, and for the political and economic needs of the Punjab.

In 1996, United Nations Commission on Human Rights Freedom of Religion or Belief Special Rapporteur Abdelfattah Amor (Tunisia, 1993–2004) visited India to report on religious discrimination. The following year Amor concluded, "In India it appears that the situation of the Sikhs in the religious field is satisfactory, but that difficulties are arising in the political (foreign interference, terrorism, etc.), economic (in particular with regard to sharing of water supplies) and even occupational fields. Information received from nongovernment (sic) sources indicates that discrimination does exist in certain sectors of the public administration; examples include the decline in the number of Sikhs in the police force and the military, and the absence of Sikhs in personal bodyguard units since the murder of Indira Gandhi".

Although Sikhs comprise 10 to 15 percent of all ranks of the Indian Army and 20 percent of its officers, they make up 1.87 percent of the Indian population.

During the 1999 Vaisakhi, Sikhs worldwide celebrated the 300th anniversary of the creation of the Khalsa. Canada Post honoured Sikh Canadians with a commemorative stamp in conjunction with the 300th anniversary of Vaisakhi. On April 9, 1999, Indian president K.R. Narayanan issued a stamp commemorating the 300th anniversary of the Khalsa.

DEFINITION

According to Guru Granth Sahib:

One who calls himself a Sikh of the Guru, the True Guru, shall rise in the early morning hours and meditate on the Lord's Name. Upon arising early in the morning, the Sikh is to bathe, and cleanse himself in the pool of nectar. Following the Instructions of the Guru, the Sikh is to chant the Name of the Lord, Har. All sins, misdeeds and negativity shall be erased. Then, at the rising of the sun, the Sikh is to sing Gurbani; whether sitting down or standing up, the Sikh is to meditate on the Lord's Name. One who meditates on my Lord, Har, with every breath and every morsel of food – that Gursikh becomes pleasing to the Guru's Mind. That person, unto whom my Lord and Master is kind and compassionate – upon that Gursikh, the Guru's Teachings are bestowed. Servant Nanak begs for the dust of the feet of that Gursikh, who himself chants the Naam, and inspires others to chant it.

Simran of the Lord's name is a recurring theme of Guru Granth Sahib, and Sukhmani Sahib were composed to allow a devotee to recite Nam throughout the day. Rising at Amrit Velā (before sunrise) is a common Sikh practice. Sikhism considers the spiritual and secular lives to be intertwined: "In the Sikh Weltanschauung ... the temporal world is part of the Infinite and partakes of its characteristics." According to Guru Nanak, living an "active, creative, and practical life" of "truthfulness, fidelity, self-control and purity" is superior to a purely contemplative life.

FIVE Ks

The five Ks (panj kakaar) are five articles of faith which all baptized Sikhs (Amritdhari Sikhs) are obliged to wear. The symbols represent the ideals of Sikhism: honesty, equality, fidelity, meditating on God and never bowing to tyranny. The five symbols are:

- Kesh: Uncut hair, usually tied and wrapped in a Dastar

- Kanga: A wooden comb, usually worn under a Dastar

- Katchera: Cotton undergarments, historically appropriate in battle due to increased mobility when compared to a dhoti. Worn by both sexes, the katchera is a symbol of chastity.

- Kara: An iron bracelet, a weapon and a symbol of eternity

- Kirpan: An iron dagger in different sizes. In the UK Sikhs can wear a small dagger, but in the Punjab they might wear a traditional curved sword from one to three feet in length.

MUSIC & INSTRUMENTS

The Sikhs have a number of musical instruments: the rebab, dilruba, taus, jori and sarinda. Playing the sarangi was encouraged in Guru Har Gobind. The rubab was first played by Bhai Mardana as he accompanied Guru Nanak on his journeys. The jori and sarinda were designed by Guru Arjan. The taus was made by Guru Hargobind, who supposedly heard a peacock singing and wanted to create an instrument mimicking its sounds (taus is the Persian word for peacock). The dilruba was made by Guru Gobind Singh at the request of his followers, who wanted a smaller instrument than the taus. After Japji Sahib, all of the shabda in the Guru Granth Sahib were composed as ragas. This type of singing is known as Gurmat Sangeet.

When they marched into battle, the Sikhs would play a Ranjit Nagara (victory drum) to boost morale. Nagaras (usually two to three feet in diameter, although some were up to five feet in diameter) are played with two sticks. The beat of the large drums, and the raising of the Nishan Sahib, meant that the singhs were on their way.

DISTRIBUTION

Numbering about 27 million worldwide, Sikhs make up 0.39 percent of the world population; approximately 83 percent live in India. About 76 percent of all Sikhs live in the north Indian State of Punjab, where they form a majority (about two-thirds) of the population. Substantial communities of Sikhs (more than 200,000) live in the Indian states or union territories of Haryana (more than 1.1 million), Rajasthan, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh Assam and Jammu and Kashmir.

Sikh migration from British India began in earnest during the second half of the 19th century, when the British completed their annexation of the Punjab. The British Raj recruited Sikhs for the Indian Civil Service (particularly the British Indian Army), which led to Sikh migration throughout India and the British Empire. During the Raj, semiskilled Sikh artisans were transported from the Punjab to British East Africa to help build railroads. Sikhs emigrated from India and Pakistan after World War II, most going to the United Kingdom but many to North America. Some Sikhs who had settled in eastern Africa were expelled by Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in 1972. Economics is a major factor in Sikh migration, and significant communities exist in the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, Malaysia, East Africa, Australia and Thailand.

Although the rate of Sikh migration from the Punjab has remained high, traditional patterns of Sikh migration favouring English-speaking countries (particularly the United Kingdom) have changed during the past decade due to stricter immigration laws. Moliner (2006) wrote that as a consequence of Sikh migration to the UK "becom[ing] virtually impossible since the late 1970s", migration patterns evolved to continental Europe. Italy is a rapidly growing destination for Sikh migration, with Reggio Emilia and Vicenza having significant Sikh population clusters. Italian Sikhs are generally involved in agriculture, agricultural processing, the manufacture of machine tools and horticulture.

Primarily for socio-economic reasons, Indian Sikhs have the lowest adjusted growth rate of any major religious group in India, at 16.9 percent per decade (estimated from 1991 to 2001). Johnson and Barrett (2004) estimate that the global Sikh population increases annually by 392,633 (1.7 percent per year, based on 2004 figures); this percentage includes births, deaths and conversions.

REPRESENTATION

Sikhs have been represented in Indian politics by former Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh and the deputy chairman of the Indian Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia. Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is also a Sikh. Past Sikh politicians in India include former president Giani Zail Singh, Sardar Swaran Singh (India's first foreign minister), Speaker of Parliament Gurdial Singh Dhillon and former Chief Minister of Punjab Pratap Singh Kairon.

Politicians from the Sikh diaspora include the first Asian American member of the United States Congress, Dalip Singh Saund, British MPs Piara Khabra, Parmjit Dhanda and Paul Uppal, the first couple to sit together in a Commonwealth parliament (Gurmant Grewal and Nina Grewal, who requested a Canadian government apology for the Komagata Maru incident), former Canadian Shadow Social Development Minister Ruby Dhalla, Canadian Minister of State for Sport Baljit Singh Gosal and Legislative Assembly of Ontario members Vic Dhillon and Jagmeet Singh. Ujjal Dosanjh was the New Democratic Party Premier of British Columbia from July 2004 to February 2005, and was later a Liberal frontbench MP in Ottawa. In Malaysia, two Sikhs were elected MPs in the 2008 general elections: Karpal Singh (Bukit Gelugor) and his son, Gobind Singh Deo (Puchong). Two Sikhs were elected assemblymen: Jagdeep Singh Deo (Datuk Keramat) and Keshvinder Singh (Malim Nawar).

Sikhs comprise 10 to 15 percent of all ranks in the Indian Army and 20 percent of its officers, while making up 1.87 percent of the Indian population. The Sikh Regiment is one of the most-decorated regiments in the army, with 73 Battle Honours, 14 Victoria Crosses, 21 first-class Indian Orders of Merit (equivalent to the Victoria Cross), 15 Theatre Honours, five COAS Unit Citations, two Param Vir Chakras, 14 Maha Vir Chakras, five Kirti Chakras, 67 Vir Chakras and 1,596 other awards. The highest-ranking general in the history of the Indian Air Force is a Punjabi Sikh, Marshal of the Air Force Arjan Singh. Plans by the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence for a Sikh infantry regiment were scrapped in June 2007.

Historically, most Indians have been farmers and 66 percent of the Indian population are engaged in agriculture. Indian Sikhs are employed in agriculture to a lesser extent; India's 2001 census found 39 percent of the working population of the Punjab employed in this sector. The success of the 1960s Green Revolution, in which India went from "famine to plenty, from humiliation to dignity", was based in the Punjab (which became known as "the breadbasket of India"). The Punjab is the wealthiest Indian state per capita, with the average Punjabi income three times the national average. The Green Revolution centred on Indian farmers adopting more intensive and mechanised agricultural methods, aided by the electrification of the Punjab, cooperative credit, consolidation of small holdings and the existing, British Raj-developed canal system. According to Swedish political scientist Ishtiaq Ahmad, a factor in the success of the Indian green revolution was the "Sikh cultivator, often the Jat, whose courage, perseverance, spirit of enterprise and muscle prowess proved crucial". However, not all aspects of the green revolution were beneficial. Indian physicist Vandana Shiva wrote that the green revolution made the "negative and destructive impacts of science [i.e. the green revolution] on nature and society" invisible, and was a catalyst for Punjabi Sikh and Hindu tensions despite a growth in material wealth.

Punjabi Sikhs are engaged in a number of professions which include science, engineering and medicine. Notable examples are nuclear scientist Piara Singh Gill (who worked on the Manhattan Project), fibre-optics pioneer Narinder Singh Kapany and physicist, science writer and broadcaster Simon Singh.

In business, the UK-based clothing retailers New Look and the Thai-based Jaspal were founded by Sikhs. India's largest pharmaceutical company, Ranbaxy Laboratories, is headed by Sikhs. UK Sikhs have the highest percentage of home ownership (82 percent) of any religious community. UK Sikhs are the second-wealthiest (after the Jewish community) religious group in the UK, with a median total household wealth of £229,000. In Singapore Kartar Singh Thakral expanded his family's trading business, Thakral Holdings, into total assets of almost $1.4 billion and is Singapore's 25th-richest person. Sikh Bob Singh Dhillon is the first Indo-Canadian billionaire. The Sikh diaspora has been most successful in North America, especially in California’s fertile Central Valley. American Sikh farmers such as Harbhajan Singh Samra and Didar Singh Bains dominate California agriculture, with Samra specialising in okra and Bains in peaches.

Sikh intellectuals, sportsmen and artists include writer Khushwant Singh, England cricketer Monty Panesar, former 400m runner Milkha Singh, Indian wrestler and actor Dara Singh, former Indian hockey team captains Ajitpal Singh and Balbir Singh Sr., former Indian cricket captain Bishen Singh Bedi, Harbhajan Singh (India's most successful off spin cricket bowler), Bollywood actress Neetu Singh, Sunny Leone, actors Parminder Nagra, Neha Dhupia, Gul Panag, Mona Singh, Namrata Singh Gujral, Archie Panjabi and director Gurinder Chadha.

Sikhs have migrated worldwide, with a variety of occupations. The Sikh Gurus preached ethnic and social harmony, and Sikhs comprise a number of ethnic groups. Those with over 1,000 members include the Ahluwalia, Arain, Arora, Bhatra, Bairagi, Bania, Basith, Bawaria, Bazigar, Bhabra, Chamar, Chhimba, Darzi, Dhobi, Gujar, Jatt, Jhinwar, Kahar, Kalal, Kamboj, Khatri, Kumhar, Labana, Lohar, Mahtam, Mazhabi, Megh, Mirasi, Mochi, Nai, Rajput, Ramgarhia, Saini, Sarera, Sikligar, Sunar, Sudh, Tarkhan and Zargar.

An order of Punjabi Sikhs, the Nihang or the Akalis, was formed during Ranjit Singh's time. Under their leader, Akali Phula Singh, they won many battles for the Sikh Confederacy during the early 19th century.

IN THE INDIAN & BRITISH ARMIES

Sikhs supported the British during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. By the beginning of World War I, Sikhs in the British Indian Army totaled over 100,000 (20 percent of the force). Until 1945 fourteen Victoria Crosses were awarded to Sikhs, a per-capita regimental record. In 2002 the names of all Sikh VC and George Cross recipients were inscribed on the monument of the Memorial Gates on Constitution Hill, next to Buckingham Palace. Chanan Singh Dhillon was instrumental in campaigning for the memorial.

During World War I, Sikh battalions fought in Egypt, Palestine, Mesopotamia, Gallipoli and France. Six battalions of the Sikh Regiment were raised during World War II, serving in the Second Battle of El Alamein, the Burma and Italian campaigns and in Iraq and receiving 27 battle honours. Around the world, Sikhs are commemorated in Commonwealth cemeteries.

In the last two world wars 83,005 turban wearing Sikh soldiers were killed and 109,045 were wounded. They all died or were wounded for the freedom of Britain and the world, and during shell fire, with no other protection but the turban, the symbol of their faith.

—General Sir Frank Messervy

British people are highly indebted and obliged to Sikhs for a long time. I know that within this century we needed their help twice [in two world wars] and they did help us very well. As a result of their timely help, we are today able to live with honour, dignity, and independence. In the war, they fought and died for us, wearing the turbans.

—Sir Winston Churchill

IN THE WEST

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Sikhs began to emigrate to East Africa, the Far East, Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. In 1907 the Khalsa Diwan Society was established in Vancouver, and four years later the first gurdwara was established in London. In 1912 the first gurdwara in the United States was founded in Stockton, California.

Since Sikhs (like Middle Eastern men) wear turbans, some in Western countries have been mistaken for Muslim or Arabic men since the September 11 attacks and the Iraq War. Several days after the 9/11 attacks Sikh Balbir Singh Sodhi was murdered by Frank Roque, who thought Sodhi was connected with al-Qaeda. CNN suggested an increase in hate crimes against Sikh men in the United States and the UK after the 9/11 attacks.

Since Sikhism has never actively sought converts, the Sikhs have remained a relatively homogeneous ethnic group. The Kundalini Yoga-based activities of Harbhajan Singh Yogi in his 3HO (Happy, Healthy, Holy) organisation claim to have inspired a moderate growth in non-Indian adherents of Sikhism. In 1998 an estimated 7,800 3HO Sikhs, known colloquially as ‘gora’ (ਗੋਰਾ) or ‘white’ Sikhs, were mainly centred around Española, New Mexico and Los Angeles, California. Sikhs and the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund overturned a 1925 Oregon law banning the wearing of turbans by teachers and government officials.

In an attempt to foster Sikh leaders in the Western world, youth initiatives by a number of organisations have begun. The Sikh Youth Alliance of North America sponsors an annual Sikh Youth Symposium, a public-speaking and debate competition held in gurdwaras throughout the U.S. and Canada.

ART & CULTURE

Sikh art and culture are nearly synonymous with that of the Punjab, and Sikhs are easily recognised by their distinctive turban (Dastar). The Punjab has been called India’s melting pot, due to the confluence of invading cultures (Greek, Mughal and Persian) from the rivers from which the region gets its name. Sikh culture is therefore a synthesis of cultures. Sikhism has forged a unique architecture, which S. S. Bhatti described as "inspired by Guru Nanak’s creative mysticism" and "is a mute harbinger of holistic humanism based on pragmatic spirituality".

During the Mughal and Afghan persecution of the Sikhs during the 17th and 18th centuries, the latter were concerned with preserving their religion and gave little thought to art and culture. With the rise of Ranjit Singh and the Sikh Raj in Lahore and Delhi, there was a change in the landscape of art and culture in the Punjab; Hindus and Sikhs could build decorated shrines without the fear of destruction or looting.

The Sikh Confederacy was the catalyst for a uniquely Sikh form of expression, with Ranjit Singh commissioning forts, palaces, bungas (residential places) and colleges in a Sikh style. Sikh architecture is characterised by gilded fluted domes, cupolas, kiosks, stone lanterns, ornate balusters and square roofs. A pinnacle of Sikh style is Harmandir Sahib (also known as the Golden Temple) in Amritsar.

Sikh culture is influenced by militaristic motifs (with the Khanda the most obvious), and most Sikh artifacts - except for the relics of the Gurus - have a military theme. This theme is evident in the Sikh festivals of Hola Mohalla and Vaisakhi, which feature marching and displays of valor.

Although the art and culture of the Sikh diaspora have merged with that of other Indo-immigrant groups into categories like "British Asian", "Indo-Canadian" and "Desi-Culture", a minor cultural phenomenon which can be described as "political Sikh" has arisen. The art of diaspora Sikhs like Amarjeet Kaur Nandhra and Amrit and Rabindra Kaur Singh (the "Singh Twins") is influenced by their Sikhism and current affairs in the Punjab.

Bhangra and Giddha are two forms of Punjabi folk dancing which have been adapted and pioneered by Sikhs. Punjabi Sikhs have championed these forms of expression worldwide, resulting in Sikh culture becoming linked to Bhangra (although "Bhangra is not a Sikh institution but a Punjabi one").

PAINTING

Sikh painting is a direct offshoot of the Kangra school of painting. In 1810, Ranjeet Singh (1780–1839) occupied Kangra Fort and appointed Sardar Desa Singh Majithia his governor of the Punjab hills. In 1813 the Sikh army occupied Guler State, and Raja Bhup Singh became a vassal of the Sikhs. With the Sikh kingdom of Lahore becoming the paramount power, some of the Pahari painters from Guler migrated to Lahore for the patronage of Maharaja Ranjeet Singh and his Sardars.

The Sikh school adapted Kangra painting to Sikh needs and ideals. Its main subjects are the ten Sikh gurus and stories from Guru Nanak's Janamsakhis. The tenth Guru, Gobind Singh, left a deep impression on the followers of the new faith because of his courage and sacrifices. Hunting scenes and portraits are also common in Sikh painting.

WIKIPEDIA

Japanese and other East Asian artists and here primary school children often draw pictures from an elevated birds eye view (Masuda, Gonzalez, Kwan & Nisbett, 2008). Part of the reason for this is their there desire to show everything in their pictures, to the extent that in some of these pictures the viewpoint is from that of an all-seeing eye that can look downards in all directions. So as Masuda, Gonzalez, Kawan and Nisbett argue, part of the motivation for this is the desire to see the context of actions, events, and people. I argue that another motivation is that the internalisation of this viewpoint enables them to gain a self view in a similar way to that provided by George Herbert Mead's "generalised other." And as argued by Derrida they become addicted to this view of the world since they become libidinally involved in the self relationship that viewing themselves facilitates. Contra the Western self, there may be no sexual element to this self-viewing but rather an enjoyment of seeing themselves and their actions, as cute, from the point of view of an all seeing co-viewing mother.

This internalised other sometimes makes a reapparane in the horrible women that appear from images, television sets, developer fluid, lanterns and scrolls, or sometimes hiding in a mass of black hair on the ceiling, in Japanese horror movies and legends.

It is I believe the internalisation of this self-viewing intra-psychic Other that keeps the Japapnese as moral as their are and not any external sword (or bits of wire) as argued by Ruth Benedict.

Incidentally, my father's Art School Graduation picture was of a group of people around a table drawn from above. I believe that the auto-scopic eye in the sky is present in everyone to a degree, and felt more keenly by those of Scottish Descent such as Adam Smith (whose impartial spectator appears to be a mixture of both a linguistic and visual audience), my father, and myself.

Images Copyright their respective artists.

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Bibliography

Masuda, T., Gonzalez, R., Kwan, L., & Nisbett, R. E. (2008). Culture and aesthetic preference: Comparing the attention to context of East Asians and Americans. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 34(9), 1260-1275.

Benedict, R. (2006). The Chrysanthemum and the Sword (1st ed.). Mariner Books.

Lummis, D. (2007). Ruth Benedict’s Obituary for Japanese Culture. Japan Focus, 23. Retrieved from www.japanfocus.org/-C__Douglas-Lummis/2474

► LIVE YOUR LIFE

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Just living my life (ay), my life (oh), my life (ay), my life (oh)

at the wake of bp. ramento at the philippine independent church nat'l cathedral

Statement on the Killing of Bp. Alberto Ramento

BY THE IGLESIA FILIPINA INDEPENDIENTE

Posted by Bulatlat

“I KNOW THEY ARE GOING TO KILL ME NEXT BUT NEVER WILL I ABANDON MY DUTY TO GOD AND MY MINISTRY TO THE PEOPLE”

-- A statement of Bp. Alberto B. Ramento to his family

The Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI) has once again made a precious offering in the continuing task of proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ with the brutal killing of the Most Reverend Alberto B. Ramento, the 9th Obispo Maximo of the church.

The good bishop was slain by faceless assassins who broke through the rectory where he was staying at around four o’clock in the morning of October 03, 2006 in the Parish of San Sebastian, Tarlac City. He was awakened in his sleep when the assassins had entered his room and stabbed him seven times to death. We denounce in the strongest possible terms this barbaric and dastardly act against a man of the cloth within the premises of his own church.

Initial police investigation reports point to the incident as a mere case of robbery with homicide. However, the Ramento family, the clergy and the faithful of the Diocese of Tarlac believe that the motive is much deeper than what has come out from the spot investigation. There are glaring indications that Bishop Ramento’s murder was thoroughly planned and politically motivated. We believe that the brutal killing was the inevitable consequence of his principled engagement with the people and their struggle for the fullness of life.

Bishop Ramento, aside from being a well-loved pastor by his clergy and faithful, has earned the reputation as a social prophet, and an icon in the nationalist struggle of the Filipino masses with his uncompromising stand for national sovereignty and patrimony. He was a true advocate of just peace. As a matter of fact, Bishop Ramento is part of the monitoring group in the peace talks between the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the National Democratic Front Philippines (NDFP).

He was a known figure in the ecumenical movement in and outside the country. Bishop Ramento has served as the chairperson of the National Council of Churches in the Philippines (NCCP). He was also a co-chairperson of the Ecumenical Bishops Forum (EBF) which is composed of bishops from the various churches in the Philippines.

Bishop Ramento, as the Chairman of the IFI Supreme Council of Bishops (SCB), has strongly condemned the state of political repression and grave situation of human rights violation in the country. He has particularly denounced the unabated extra-judicial killings of militant leaders, social activists, lawyers, journalists, church people and innocent civilians under the watch of the current administration. As an outspoken critic of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, he has consistently questioned the legitimacy of her presidency, and urged her to step down from office. In the last pastoral letter he signed as Supreme Council of Bishops chairman, Bishop Ramento had urged the faithful “to find courage and confront the darkness that is engulfing the very soul of the nation and continue to thread the path towards the establishment of a just society under a government that genuinely serves the interest and welfare of the Filipinos.”

Honored as the “Bishop of the Poor Peasants and Workers,” Bishop Ramento has earned the love and respect of the farm workers at Hacienda Luisita, a vast sugar plantation in Tarlac, as he rallied support to their cause and advocated for their struggle.

The people behind his death might think that they have silenced him and maimed the prophetic voice of the church. They are mistaken. His death has become like a candle in a burning incense, sparking more fire, enflaming the hearts of the clergy and faithful of the IFI to remain faithful to her pro-people and pro-labor heritage. Indeed, we grieved over his death, yet we celebrate his life.

They may have taken his life by opening his body with wounds – but these wounds have become the doorway from which Bishop Ramento’s valiant spirit has been poured out and shared to many.

Truly, the death of Bp. Alberto B. Ramento is a great loss not only for the IFI but also for the ecumenical movement and peoples’ organizations. The IFI strongly urges the authorities to immediately conduct a thorough and impartial investigation on the murder of Bishop Ramento and bring the perpetrators of this heinous crime to justice.

We ask the prayers of the faithful for Bp. Alberto B. Ramento, a fatherly pastor, a social prophet, an uncompromising nationalist, a peacemaker, and a champion of the people's cause, who now joins his Creator. As we mourn the death of a beloved member of the IFI family, may we find inspiration from his life and death even as we commit to stand firmly for what he believed in and fought for. Let his death find meaning in our continuing resolve to live-out the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ upon which Bishop Ramento dedicated his life.

Pro Deo et Patria,

† THE MOST REVEREND GODOFREDO J. DAVID

11th Obispo Maximo

04th October 2006

Obispado Maximo

City of Manila

A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism, a monotheistic religion which originated during the 15th century in the Punjab region. The term "Sikh" has its origin in the Sanskrit words शिष्य (śiṣya; disciple, student) or शिक्ष (śikṣa; instruction). A Sikh is a disciple of a guru. According to Article I of the Sikh Rehat Maryada (the Sikh code of conduct), a Sikh is "any human being who faithfully believes in One Immortal Being; ten Gurus, from Guru Nanak to Guru Gobind Singh; Guru Granth Sahib; the teachings of the ten Gurus and the baptism bequeathed by the tenth Guru". "Sikh" properly refers to adherents of Sikhism as a religion, not an ethnic group. However, because Sikhs often share strong ethno-religious ties, many countries, such as the U.K., recognize Sikh as a designated ethnicity on their censuses. The American non-profit organization United Sikhs has fought to have Sikh included on the U.S. census as well, arguing that Sikhs "self-identify as an 'ethnic minority'" and believe "that they are more than just a religion".

Male Sikhs usually have "Singh" (Lion), and female Sikhs have "Kaur" (Princess) as their middle or last name. Sikhs who have undergone the khanḍe-kī-pahul (the Sikh initiation ceremony) may also be recognized by the five Ks: uncut hair (kesh); an iron or steel bracelet (kara); a kirpan (a sword tucked into a gatra strap); kachehra, a cotton undergarment, and kanga, a small wooden comb. Baptized male Sikhs must cover their hair with a turban, which is optional for baptized female Sikhs. The greater Punjab region is the historic homeland of the Sikhs, although significant communities exist around the world.

HISTORY

Sikh political history may be said to begin with the death of the fifth Sikh guru, Guru Arjan Dev, in 1606. Guru Nanak was a religious leader and social reformer in the 15th-century Punjab. Religious practices were formalized by Guru Gobind Singh on 30 March 1699. Singh baptized five people from a variety of social backgrounds, known as the Panj Piare (the five beloved ones) to form the Khalsa, or collective body of initiated Sikhs. Sikhism has generally had amicable relations with other religions, except for the period of Mughal rule in India (1556–1707). Several Sikh gurus were killed by the Mughals for opposing their persecution of minority religious communities including Sikhs. Sikhs subsequently militarized to oppose Mughal rule. The emergence of the Sikh Confederacy under Ranjit Singh was characterized by religious tolerance and pluralism, with Christians, Muslims and Hindus in positions of power. The confederacy is considered the zenith of political Sikhism, encompassing Kashmir, Ladakh and Peshawar. Hari Singh Nalwa, the commander-in-chief of the Sikh army in the North West Frontier, expanded the confederacy to the Khyber Pass. Its secular administration implemented military, economic and governmental reforms. The months leading up to the partition of India in 1947 were marked by conflict in the Punjab between Sikhs and Muslims. This caused the religious migration of Punjabi Sikhs and Hindus from West Punjab, mirroring a similar religious migration of Punjabi Muslims from East Punjab.

The 1960s saw growing animosity between Sikhs and Hindus in India, with the Sikhs demanding the creation of a Punjab state on a linguistic basis similar to other states in India. This was promised to Sikh leader Master Tara Singh by Jawaharlal Nehru, in return for Sikh political support during negotiations for Indian independence. Although the Sikhs obtained the Punjab, they lost Hindi-speaking areas to Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan. Chandigarh was made a union territory and the capital of Haryana and Punjab on 1 November 1966.

Tensions arose again during the late 1970s, fueled by Sikh claims of discrimination and marginalisation by the Hindu-dominated Indian National Congress party and tactics adopted by the Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.

According to Katherine Frank, Indira Gandhi's assumption of emergency powers in 1975 resulted in the weakening of the "legitimate and impartial machinery of government", and her increasing "paranoia" about opposing political groups led her to institute a "despotic policy of playing castes, religions and political groups against each other for political advantage". Sikh leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale articulated Sikh demands for justice, and this triggered violence in the Punjab. The prime minister's 1984 defeat of Bhindranwale led to an attack on the Golden Temple in Operation Blue Star and to her assassination by her Sikh bodyguards. Gandhi's assassination resulted in an explosion of violence against Sikh communities and the killing of thousands of Sikhs throughout India. Khushwant Singh described the riots as a Sikh pogrom; he "felt like a refugee in my country. In fact, I felt like a Jew in Nazi Germany". Since 1984, relations between Sikhs and Hindus have moved toward a rapprochement aided by economic prosperity. However, a 2002 claim by the Hindu right-wing Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) that "Sikhs are Hindus" disturbed Sikh sensibilities. The Khalistan movement campaigns for justice for the victims of the violence, and for the political and economic needs of the Punjab.

In 1996, United Nations Commission on Human Rights Freedom of Religion or Belief Special Rapporteur Abdelfattah Amor (Tunisia, 1993–2004) visited India to report on religious discrimination. The following year Amor concluded, "In India it appears that the situation of the Sikhs in the religious field is satisfactory, but that difficulties are arising in the political (foreign interference, terrorism, etc.), economic (in particular with regard to sharing of water supplies) and even occupational fields. Information received from nongovernment (sic) sources indicates that discrimination does exist in certain sectors of the public administration; examples include the decline in the number of Sikhs in the police force and the military, and the absence of Sikhs in personal bodyguard units since the murder of Indira Gandhi".

Although Sikhs comprise 10 to 15 percent of all ranks of the Indian Army and 20 percent of its officers, they make up 1.87 percent of the Indian population.

During the 1999 Vaisakhi, Sikhs worldwide celebrated the 300th anniversary of the creation of the Khalsa. Canada Post honoured Sikh Canadians with a commemorative stamp in conjunction with the 300th anniversary of Vaisakhi. On April 9, 1999, Indian president K.R. Narayanan issued a stamp commemorating the 300th anniversary of the Khalsa.

DEFINITION

According to Guru Granth Sahib:

One who calls himself a Sikh of the Guru, the True Guru, shall rise in the early morning hours and meditate on the Lord's Name. Upon arising early in the morning, the Sikh is to bathe, and cleanse himself in the pool of nectar. Following the Instructions of the Guru, the Sikh is to chant the Name of the Lord, Har. All sins, misdeeds and negativity shall be erased. Then, at the rising of the sun, the Sikh is to sing Gurbani; whether sitting down or standing up, the Sikh is to meditate on the Lord's Name. One who meditates on my Lord, Har, with every breath and every morsel of food – that Gursikh becomes pleasing to the Guru's Mind. That person, unto whom my Lord and Master is kind and compassionate – upon that Gursikh, the Guru's Teachings are bestowed. Servant Nanak begs for the dust of the feet of that Gursikh, who himself chants the Naam, and inspires others to chant it.

Simran of the Lord's name is a recurring theme of Guru Granth Sahib, and Sukhmani Sahib were composed to allow a devotee to recite Nam throughout the day. Rising at Amrit Velā (before sunrise) is a common Sikh practice. Sikhism considers the spiritual and secular lives to be intertwined: "In the Sikh Weltanschauung ... the temporal world is part of the Infinite and partakes of its characteristics." According to Guru Nanak, living an "active, creative, and practical life" of "truthfulness, fidelity, self-control and purity" is superior to a purely contemplative life.

FIVE Ks

The five Ks (panj kakaar) are five articles of faith which all baptized Sikhs (Amritdhari Sikhs) are obliged to wear. The symbols represent the ideals of Sikhism: honesty, equality, fidelity, meditating on God and never bowing to tyranny. The five symbols are:

- Kesh: Uncut hair, usually tied and wrapped in a Dastar

- Kanga: A wooden comb, usually worn under a Dastar

- Katchera: Cotton undergarments, historically appropriate in battle due to increased mobility when compared to a dhoti. Worn by both sexes, the katchera is a symbol of chastity.

- Kara: An iron bracelet, a weapon and a symbol of eternity

- Kirpan: An iron dagger in different sizes. In the UK Sikhs can wear a small dagger, but in the Punjab they might wear a traditional curved sword from one to three feet in length.

MUSIC & INSTRUMENTS

The Sikhs have a number of musical instruments: the rebab, dilruba, taus, jori and sarinda. Playing the sarangi was encouraged in Guru Har Gobind. The rubab was first played by Bhai Mardana as he accompanied Guru Nanak on his journeys. The jori and sarinda were designed by Guru Arjan. The taus was made by Guru Hargobind, who supposedly heard a peacock singing and wanted to create an instrument mimicking its sounds (taus is the Persian word for peacock). The dilruba was made by Guru Gobind Singh at the request of his followers, who wanted a smaller instrument than the taus. After Japji Sahib, all of the shabda in the Guru Granth Sahib were composed as ragas. This type of singing is known as Gurmat Sangeet.

When they marched into battle, the Sikhs would play a Ranjit Nagara (victory drum) to boost morale. Nagaras (usually two to three feet in diameter, although some were up to five feet in diameter) are played with two sticks. The beat of the large drums, and the raising of the Nishan Sahib, meant that the singhs were on their way.

DISTRIBUTION

Numbering about 27 million worldwide, Sikhs make up 0.39 percent of the world population; approximately 83 percent live in India. About 76 percent of all Sikhs live in the north Indian State of Punjab, where they form a majority (about two-thirds) of the population. Substantial communities of Sikhs (more than 200,000) live in the Indian states or union territories of Haryana (more than 1.1 million), Rajasthan, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh Assam and Jammu and Kashmir.

Sikh migration from British India began in earnest during the second half of the 19th century, when the British completed their annexation of the Punjab. The British Raj recruited Sikhs for the Indian Civil Service (particularly the British Indian Army), which led to Sikh migration throughout India and the British Empire. During the Raj, semiskilled Sikh artisans were transported from the Punjab to British East Africa to help build railroads. Sikhs emigrated from India and Pakistan after World War II, most going to the United Kingdom but many to North America. Some Sikhs who had settled in eastern Africa were expelled by Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in 1972. Economics is a major factor in Sikh migration, and significant communities exist in the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, Malaysia, East Africa, Australia and Thailand.

Although the rate of Sikh migration from the Punjab has remained high, traditional patterns of Sikh migration favouring English-speaking countries (particularly the United Kingdom) have changed during the past decade due to stricter immigration laws. Moliner (2006) wrote that as a consequence of Sikh migration to the UK "becom[ing] virtually impossible since the late 1970s", migration patterns evolved to continental Europe. Italy is a rapidly growing destination for Sikh migration, with Reggio Emilia and Vicenza having significant Sikh population clusters. Italian Sikhs are generally involved in agriculture, agricultural processing, the manufacture of machine tools and horticulture.

Primarily for socio-economic reasons, Indian Sikhs have the lowest adjusted growth rate of any major religious group in India, at 16.9 percent per decade (estimated from 1991 to 2001). Johnson and Barrett (2004) estimate that the global Sikh population increases annually by 392,633 (1.7 percent per year, based on 2004 figures); this percentage includes births, deaths and conversions.

REPRESENTATION

Sikhs have been represented in Indian politics by former Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh and the deputy chairman of the Indian Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia. Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal is also a Sikh. Past Sikh politicians in India include former president Giani Zail Singh, Sardar Swaran Singh (India's first foreign minister), Speaker of Parliament Gurdial Singh Dhillon and former Chief Minister of Punjab Pratap Singh Kairon.

Politicians from the Sikh diaspora include the first Asian American member of the United States Congress, Dalip Singh Saund, British MPs Piara Khabra, Parmjit Dhanda and Paul Uppal, the first couple to sit together in a Commonwealth parliament (Gurmant Grewal and Nina Grewal, who requested a Canadian government apology for the Komagata Maru incident), former Canadian Shadow Social Development Minister Ruby Dhalla, Canadian Minister of State for Sport Baljit Singh Gosal and Legislative Assembly of Ontario members Vic Dhillon and Jagmeet Singh. Ujjal Dosanjh was the New Democratic Party Premier of British Columbia from July 2004 to February 2005, and was later a Liberal frontbench MP in Ottawa. In Malaysia, two Sikhs were elected MPs in the 2008 general elections: Karpal Singh (Bukit Gelugor) and his son, Gobind Singh Deo (Puchong). Two Sikhs were elected assemblymen: Jagdeep Singh Deo (Datuk Keramat) and Keshvinder Singh (Malim Nawar).

Sikhs comprise 10 to 15 percent of all ranks in the Indian Army and 20 percent of its officers, while making up 1.87 percent of the Indian population. The Sikh Regiment is one of the most-decorated regiments in the army, with 73 Battle Honours, 14 Victoria Crosses, 21 first-class Indian Orders of Merit (equivalent to the Victoria Cross), 15 Theatre Honours, five COAS Unit Citations, two Param Vir Chakras, 14 Maha Vir Chakras, five Kirti Chakras, 67 Vir Chakras and 1,596 other awards. The highest-ranking general in the history of the Indian Air Force is a Punjabi Sikh, Marshal of the Air Force Arjan Singh. Plans by the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence for a Sikh infantry regiment were scrapped in June 2007.

Historically, most Indians have been farmers and 66 percent of the Indian population are engaged in agriculture. Indian Sikhs are employed in agriculture to a lesser extent; India's 2001 census found 39 percent of the working population of the Punjab employed in this sector. The success of the 1960s Green Revolution, in which India went from "famine to plenty, from humiliation to dignity", was based in the Punjab (which became known as "the breadbasket of India"). The Punjab is the wealthiest Indian state per capita, with the average Punjabi income three times the national average. The Green Revolution centred on Indian farmers adopting more intensive and mechanised agricultural methods, aided by the electrification of the Punjab, cooperative credit, consolidation of small holdings and the existing, British Raj-developed canal system. According to Swedish political scientist Ishtiaq Ahmad, a factor in the success of the Indian green revolution was the "Sikh cultivator, often the Jat, whose courage, perseverance, spirit of enterprise and muscle prowess proved crucial". However, not all aspects of the green revolution were beneficial. Indian physicist Vandana Shiva wrote that the green revolution made the "negative and destructive impacts of science [i.e. the green revolution] on nature and society" invisible, and was a catalyst for Punjabi Sikh and Hindu tensions despite a growth in material wealth.

Punjabi Sikhs are engaged in a number of professions which include science, engineering and medicine. Notable examples are nuclear scientist Piara Singh Gill (who worked on the Manhattan Project), fibre-optics pioneer Narinder Singh Kapany and physicist, science writer and broadcaster Simon Singh.

In business, the UK-based clothing retailers New Look and the Thai-based Jaspal were founded by Sikhs. India's largest pharmaceutical company, Ranbaxy Laboratories, is headed by Sikhs. UK Sikhs have the highest percentage of home ownership (82 percent) of any religious community. UK Sikhs are the second-wealthiest (after the Jewish community) religious group in the UK, with a median total household wealth of £229,000. In Singapore Kartar Singh Thakral expanded his family's trading business, Thakral Holdings, into total assets of almost $1.4 billion and is Singapore's 25th-richest person. Sikh Bob Singh Dhillon is the first Indo-Canadian billionaire. The Sikh diaspora has been most successful in North America, especially in California’s fertile Central Valley. American Sikh farmers such as Harbhajan Singh Samra and Didar Singh Bains dominate California agriculture, with Samra specialising in okra and Bains in peaches.

Sikh intellectuals, sportsmen and artists include writer Khushwant Singh, England cricketer Monty Panesar, former 400m runner Milkha Singh, Indian wrestler and actor Dara Singh, former Indian hockey team captains Ajitpal Singh and Balbir Singh Sr., former Indian cricket captain Bishen Singh Bedi, Harbhajan Singh (India's most successful off spin cricket bowler), Bollywood actress Neetu Singh, Sunny Leone, actors Parminder Nagra, Neha Dhupia, Gul Panag, Mona Singh, Namrata Singh Gujral, Archie Panjabi and director Gurinder Chadha.

Sikhs have migrated worldwide, with a variety of occupations. The Sikh Gurus preached ethnic and social harmony, and Sikhs comprise a number of ethnic groups. Those with over 1,000 members include the Ahluwalia, Arain, Arora, Bhatra, Bairagi, Bania, Basith, Bawaria, Bazigar, Bhabra, Chamar, Chhimba, Darzi, Dhobi, Gujar, Jatt, Jhinwar, Kahar, Kalal, Kamboj, Khatri, Kumhar, Labana, Lohar, Mahtam, Mazhabi, Megh, Mirasi, Mochi, Nai, Rajput, Ramgarhia, Saini, Sarera, Sikligar, Sunar, Sudh, Tarkhan and Zargar.

An order of Punjabi Sikhs, the Nihang or the Akalis, was formed during Ranjit Singh's time. Under their leader, Akali Phula Singh, they won many battles for the Sikh Confederacy during the early 19th century.

IN THE INDIAN & BRITISH ARMIES

Sikhs supported the British during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. By the beginning of World War I, Sikhs in the British Indian Army totaled over 100,000 (20 percent of the force). Until 1945 fourteen Victoria Crosses were awarded to Sikhs, a per-capita regimental record. In 2002 the names of all Sikh VC and George Cross recipients were inscribed on the monument of the Memorial Gates on Constitution Hill, next to Buckingham Palace. Chanan Singh Dhillon was instrumental in campaigning for the memorial.

During World War I, Sikh battalions fought in Egypt, Palestine, Mesopotamia, Gallipoli and France. Six battalions of the Sikh Regiment were raised during World War II, serving in the Second Battle of El Alamein, the Burma and Italian campaigns and in Iraq and receiving 27 battle honours. Around the world, Sikhs are commemorated in Commonwealth cemeteries.

In the last two world wars 83,005 turban wearing Sikh soldiers were killed and 109,045 were wounded. They all died or were wounded for the freedom of Britain and the world, and during shell fire, with no other protection but the turban, the symbol of their faith.

—General Sir Frank Messervy

British people are highly indebted and obliged to Sikhs for a long time. I know that within this century we needed their help twice [in two world wars] and they did help us very well. As a result of their timely help, we are today able to live with honour, dignity, and independence. In the war, they fought and died for us, wearing the turbans.

—Sir Winston Churchill

IN THE WEST

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Sikhs began to emigrate to East Africa, the Far East, Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. In 1907 the Khalsa Diwan Society was established in Vancouver, and four years later the first gurdwara was established in London. In 1912 the first gurdwara in the United States was founded in Stockton, California.

Since Sikhs (like Middle Eastern men) wear turbans, some in Western countries have been mistaken for Muslim or Arabic men since the September 11 attacks and the Iraq War. Several days after the 9/11 attacks Sikh Balbir Singh Sodhi was murdered by Frank Roque, who thought Sodhi was connected with al-Qaeda. CNN suggested an increase in hate crimes against Sikh men in the United States and the UK after the 9/11 attacks.

Since Sikhism has never actively sought converts, the Sikhs have remained a relatively homogeneous ethnic group. The Kundalini Yoga-based activities of Harbhajan Singh Yogi in his 3HO (Happy, Healthy, Holy) organisation claim to have inspired a moderate growth in non-Indian adherents of Sikhism. In 1998 an estimated 7,800 3HO Sikhs, known colloquially as ‘gora’ (ਗੋਰਾ) or ‘white’ Sikhs, were mainly centred around Española, New Mexico and Los Angeles, California. Sikhs and the Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund overturned a 1925 Oregon law banning the wearing of turbans by teachers and government officials.

In an attempt to foster Sikh leaders in the Western world, youth initiatives by a number of organisations have begun. The Sikh Youth Alliance of North America sponsors an annual Sikh Youth Symposium, a public-speaking and debate competition held in gurdwaras throughout the U.S. and Canada.

ART & CULTURE

Sikh art and culture are nearly synonymous with that of the Punjab, and Sikhs are easily recognised by their distinctive turban (Dastar). The Punjab has been called India’s melting pot, due to the confluence of invading cultures (Greek, Mughal and Persian) from the rivers from which the region gets its name. Sikh culture is therefore a synthesis of cultures. Sikhism has forged a unique architecture, which S. S. Bhatti described as "inspired by Guru Nanak’s creative mysticism" and "is a mute harbinger of holistic humanism based on pragmatic spirituality".

During the Mughal and Afghan persecution of the Sikhs during the 17th and 18th centuries, the latter were concerned with preserving their religion and gave little thought to art and culture. With the rise of Ranjit Singh and the Sikh Raj in Lahore and Delhi, there was a change in the landscape of art and culture in the Punjab; Hindus and Sikhs could build decorated shrines without the fear of destruction or looting.

The Sikh Confederacy was the catalyst for a uniquely Sikh form of expression, with Ranjit Singh commissioning forts, palaces, bungas (residential places) and colleges in a Sikh style. Sikh architecture is characterised by gilded fluted domes, cupolas, kiosks, stone lanterns, ornate balusters and square roofs. A pinnacle of Sikh style is Harmandir Sahib (also known as the Golden Temple) in Amritsar.

Sikh culture is influenced by militaristic motifs (with the Khanda the most obvious), and most Sikh artifacts - except for the relics of the Gurus - have a military theme. This theme is evident in the Sikh festivals of Hola Mohalla and Vaisakhi, which feature marching and displays of valor.

Although the art and culture of the Sikh diaspora have merged with that of other Indo-immigrant groups into categories like "British Asian", "Indo-Canadian" and "Desi-Culture", a minor cultural phenomenon which can be described as "political Sikh" has arisen. The art of diaspora Sikhs like Amarjeet Kaur Nandhra and Amrit and Rabindra Kaur Singh (the "Singh Twins") is influenced by their Sikhism and current affairs in the Punjab.

Bhangra and Giddha are two forms of Punjabi folk dancing which have been adapted and pioneered by Sikhs. Punjabi Sikhs have championed these forms of expression worldwide, resulting in Sikh culture becoming linked to Bhangra (although "Bhangra is not a Sikh institution but a Punjabi one").

PAINTING

Sikh painting is a direct offshoot of the Kangra school of painting. In 1810, Ranjeet Singh (1780–1839) occupied Kangra Fort and appointed Sardar Desa Singh Majithia his governor of the Punjab hills. In 1813 the Sikh army occupied Guler State, and Raja Bhup Singh became a vassal of the Sikhs. With the Sikh kingdom of Lahore becoming the paramount power, some of the Pahari painters from Guler migrated to Lahore for the patronage of Maharaja Ranjeet Singh and his Sardars.

The Sikh school adapted Kangra painting to Sikh needs and ideals. Its main subjects are the ten Sikh gurus and stories from Guru Nanak's Janamsakhis. The tenth Guru, Gobind Singh, left a deep impression on the followers of the new faith because of his courage and sacrifices. Hunting scenes and portraits are also common in Sikh painting.

WIKIPEDIA

Finally saw this movie on one of my movie channels. I was impartial about even renting it from what I had been reading. This movie isn't as terrible as everyone makes it out to be. Granted yes you DO have to sit through the whole thing or you may miss something and not understand what is going on. But it is very good. GO OUT AND RENT IT IF YOUR NOT SURE OR WAIT FOR IT TO BE ON TV!!!! For More 5 Star Reviews Babylon AD starring Vin Diesel, Michelle Yeoh, Melanie Thierry, Gerard Depardieu, Charlotte Rampling

Deadwood became known for its lawlessness; murders were common, and justice for murders not always fair and impartial. The town attained further notoriety when gunman Wild Bill Hickok was killed on August 2, 1876.

Lucille demonstrates her impartiality by endorsing rival brands.

EVASION – PHASE I - LOUIS XVII ET ROBESPIERRE - « UNE TENTATIVE » D’ÉVASION - 23 au 25 mai 1794

Il a toujours été très difficile pour les historiens d’élucider le comportement indéchiffrable de Robespierre quant au rôle de ce personnage pendant la Révolution de 1789 à 1794. Mais une précision pour mieux saisir ce caractère, éclaire notre sujet. En effet, voici ce que dit le Conventionnel Edmé Bonaventure Courtois (1754-1816) dans son « Rapport à la Convention » lors de la séance du 5 janvier 1795 (16 nivôse, an III)». Courtois avait été chargé de dépouiller les papiers saisis chez Robespierre après la mort de ce dernier le 28 juillet 1794. (ARCHIVES NATIONALES carton F7-4775-10 et F7- 5198).

Il écrivit : « Robespierre se fit républicain sous la monarchie et monarchiste sous le gouvernement républicain ». Et encore : « Si Robespierre fût né avec du génie, peut-être vivrait-il encore. … Il se fit tyran par impuissance d'être autre chose. » Mais, précisons que Courtois détestait Robespierre et son rapport ne fut pas impartial ; il subtilisa même des pièces…

Monarchiste, Robespierre le fut pour plusieurs desseins dans certains desquels la survie de Louis XVII étai indispensable : il envisageait d’épouser Madame Elisabeth, sœur de Louis XVI, et devenir ainsi le Régent pendant la minorité du jeune Roi. Ce projet fut rapporté par Maret, Libraire au Palais Royal et ami de Robespierre qui livra ce « secret » au Conventionnel Barère de Vieuzac (« Mémoires de Barras » tome 1, p. 204).

Toutefois, dans la tournure que prenaient les évènements pendant cette époque de grands périls, il a correspondu secrètement avec Louis XVIII, émigré à Coblenz, pour s’assurer un avenir politique dans l’éventualité d’un retour sur le trône du frère de Louis XVI (correspondance retrouvée dans les papiers saisis et donnés à Courtois).

Dans ces perspectives d’avenir (devenir Régent et donc maintenir Louis XVII en vie) Robespierre organisa l’enlèvement de l’enfant royal du Temple. On a dit (après le retour de Louis XVII au Temple, comme on le verra) que ce fut un « essai », prévoyant une évasion définitive ultérieurement. Cependant, aucune pièce d’archive ne peut nous éclairer sur ce retour brusque du jeune Roi dans sa prison. Pourquoi le faire revenir ainsi alors qu’il fut si difficile de le faire sortir ? Toutes ces peines et précautions pour un simple « essai » ? Il est à augurer que des fuites sur ce projet eurent lieu et que, dans les circonstances terribles de cette époque où le couteau tombait pour une vétille, il fallut vite se raviser, bien montrer, si nécessaire, que l’enfant était bien dans la tour et déjouer ainsi els soupçons.…

Considérons les étapes de tout ce procédé appuyé sur des documents.

PHASE I DE L’ÉVASION : ROBESPIERRE – 23 au 25 mai 1794

1° Le projet – printemps 1794 : « faire un essai »

- « MÉMOIRE » rédigé par Marie-Thérèse Charlotte alors qu’elle était encore au Temple :

« Il vint un jour un homme que je crois qui était Robespierre… sa visite fut un secret et les gens de la Tour ne surent pas qui il était. Il vint chez moi, me regarda insolemment, et après avoir chuchoté avec les Municipaux, il s’en alla ». Cette visite eut lieu en mai 1794. Certainement après le 10 de ce mois où fut exécutée Madame Elisabeth; venait-il alors pour voir la nouvelle "fiancée" qu'il se réservait?

- « LE MONITEUR UNIVERSEL » du 14 vendémiaire an III (5 octobre 1794), donc deux mois et une semaine après l’exécution de Robespierre-).

On apprend qu’un Comité secret avait été institué, bien avant mars et avril 1794, sous l’instigation de Robespierre avec la participation de Danton, Pache et Chaumette pour « proclamer le jeune Capet Roi de France ». Pourquoi ce Comité secret avait été institué bien avant mars et avril 1794 ? Parce qu’en ces deux mois Robespierre poursuivit ses complices d’un temps et les fit condamner et exécuter, les uns le 24 mars 1794 et les autres les 5 et 13 avril 1794. Ce Comité se réunissait à Charenton.

Ceci fut révélé par Cambon dans son intervention que le « Le Moniteur » sus-cité rapporte : « Il est temps que je dévoile des secrets qui ont dû être ensevelis jusqu’ici…IL EXISTE UN REGISTRE SECRET QUE 6 MEMBRES DU COMITÉ DE SALUT PUBLIC EURENT LE COURAGE DE SIGNER. Ces membres étaient Guyton, Lindet, Bréard, Delmas, Barère et moi-même. Robespierre y était, en accusé » (car on avait eu vent qu’il voulait libérer Louis XVII).

Il est précisé aussi, toujours dans ce même « Moniteur », qu’ « on nous apprit que Danton allait à Charenton avec Robespierre pour y combiner des mesures… dans le même temps on nous dénonçait que dans des conciliabules IL ÉTAIT QUESTION DE PROCLAMER LE JEUNE CAPET ROI DE FRANCE. »

2° Exécution du projet : 23 -24 mai 1794

François Héron (1746-1796), membre du Comité de Sûreté Générale, était l’agent secret de Robespierre. Il adressa un rapport à Sir Francis Drake, diplomate britannique à Paris, pièce qui fut retrouvée dans les papiers de Lord Grenville, Ministre des Affaire Étrangères de l’Angleterre, et qui se trouve en copie dans les Archives de ce Ministère à Londres (Cf. The manuscripts of J.B. Fortescure. Francis Drake to Lord Grenville. T.2, pp. 574 à 582 ; le texte est en français).

Voici ce qui est y est dit : « DANS LA NUIT DU 23 AU 24 MAI 1794 ROBESPIERRE ALLA CHERCHER LE JEUNE ROI AU TEMPLE ET LE CONDUISIT A MEUDON. Le fait est certain quoi qu’il ne soit pas connu du Comité de Salut Public. On croit être assuré qu’IL A ÉTÉ RAMENÉ AU TEMPLE LA NUIT DU 24 AU 25 MAI ET QUE CECI ÉTAIT UN ESSAI POUR S’ASSURER DE LA FACILITÉ DE S’EN EMPARER ».

3° Louis XVII est ramené au Temple

Dans la nuit, donc, du 24 au 25 mai 1794, le jeune Roi revint au Temple. On allait réorganiser l’évasion mais Robespierre ne prévoyait pas le sort qui l’attendait deux mois plus tard. C’est ce que confirme un papier, griffonné à la hâte dans la première semaine de juin 1794, qui fut trouvé deux mois plus tard (28 juillet 1794) dans un carnet appartenant à l’agent national Claude François Payan (1766-1794) et contenu dans les documents trouvés chez Robespierre et confiés à Courtois que nous avons sus cité. Dans cette note est mentionné ce qui suit :

« Meudon… nommer un cuisinier.. Nicolas, pour instruire et employer Villiers, ami de Saint Just.. Opium… médécin… ».

L’organisation de cette évasion prévoyait de conduire le jeune Roi à nouveau à Meudon, en l’endormant avec de l’opium, un médecin étant requis pour veiller sur lui, un cuisinier (probablement Gagnié, cuisinier au Temple pour la famille royale et mis dans le complot, comme le déclarera plus tard, dans son interrogatoire de 1816 la veuve Simon) devant le servir, des gens fidèles à Robespierre devant être placés près de lui (Nicolas, garde du corps de Robespierre et Guislain-François Villers, domestique de Saint Just).).

Rien de cela n’arriva, comme on le sait. La loi scélérate du 22 prairial an II (10 juin 1794) approchait. La France était en ébullition. La Terreur fut « à l’ordre du jour »… La chute de Robespierre empêcha ce projet et l’enfant royal se vit relégué dans sa chambre, abandonné et devant vivre pendant deux mois, de ce 25 mai au 28 juillet 1794, dans l’obscurité. Ce fut Barras qui le délivra de cet abandon le 28 juillet 1794 lorsqu’il donna l’ordre d’un meilleur traitement et qu’il plaça auprès de l’enfant royal un gardien dévoué à la cause de l’évasion, Christophe Laurent, ami de Joséphine de Beauharnais, venant de Martinique comme celle-ci. (ARCHIVES NATIONALES. Cote - A.F. 47-363 – Arrêtés nommant les gardiens des enfants de Capet – 10 thermidor an II - 28 juillet 1794)

Nous abordons maintenant la PHASE II : L’ÉVASION ORGANISÉE PAR LE GÉNÉRAL VENDÉEN LOUIS DE FROTTÉ, AIDÉ DE BARRAS ET DE JOSÉPHINE DE BEAUHARNAIS entre novembre 1794 et juin 1795.

Voir nos posts intitulés dans l’ordre qui suit:

2 - L’Évasion Phase II – Barras et général d Frotté

3 - Enlèvement de l’enfant Roi et la double bière – 12 juin 1795

4 – Traité de la Jaunais

© Cercle Royal Légitime -2019-2020

Vegetarian tuna (imilar to canned tuna, not similar to fresh tuna steaks) with some kewpie mayonaise, cilantro, spring onion, worcestersauce, limejuice, salt and pepper. With some cucumbercubes and sriracha.

I'm not a vegetarian and I'm quite indifferent to the meat-or-no-meat-dilemma, so I like to think I'm pretty much impartial in this matter. So trust me when I say this vegetarian "no-tuna" is pretty decent to eat. It tastes a little different from the cheap canned tuna we normally have, but you could actually say it tastes a little better!

It didn't look better though. It looked a bit "split". But the taste was wonderfull. No reason (apart from the price) not to use this vegetarian option.

Available in the Netherlands at The Vegetarian Butcher

08 August 2012- Deputy UN Special Envoy for Afghanistan Nicholas Haysom visited Kunduz where he engaged the Governor, Mohammad Anwar Jegdalak, and well other groups on political and security concerns in that province.

Of primary concern was the Security Transition, the Afghan Peace and Reintegration Program and the coming election.

“The biggest challenges facing Afghanistan now is how it is going to experience the transition both the security transition and the political transition,” said Mr. Haysom in his meeting with Kunduz elders.

“If the election goes badly it seems to us, it may provoke the crises,” said Mr. Haysom

Haji Aman Utmanzai, a member of High Peace Council, believes the UN can play an impartial vital role in these processes.

“The UN is our hope and we have a lot of expectations from the UN,” Utmanzai added.

At these meetings officials expressed some of their ideas for and anxieties about Afghanistan’s future.

“Afghans is capable of the securing their country if the terrorists entering from other countries can be stopped,” said Governor Jegdalak.

Ms, Muslima Waliji, a member of Kunduz Provincial Peace Committee, raised a concern of women regarding the possibility that Afghan women might lose some of their hard-won gains after 2014.

“We want the UN to continue supporting Women and not to stop advocating for them,” said Ms. Waliji.

Asadulla Omerkhil the chairman of Kunduz Provincial Peace Committee said that the the international community should stay true to their promise to defeat Al-Qaeda and terrorism and should not leave Afghanistan too early.

Photo: Shamsuddin Hamedi / UNAMA

The Washington Monument at Washington, DC is seen on April-9th-2022.

The Washington Monument is an obelisk within the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate George Washington, once commander-in-chief of the Continental Army (1775–1784) in the American Revolutionary War and the first President of the United States (1789–1797). Located almost due east of the Reflecting Pool and the Lincoln Memorial,the monument, made of marble, granite, and bluestone gneiss, is both the world's tallest predominantly stone structure and the world's tallest obelisk,[A] standing 554 feet 7+11⁄32 inches (169.046 m) tall according to the U.S. National Geodetic Survey (measured 2013–14) or 555 feet 5+1⁄8 inches (169.294 m) tall, according to the National Park Service (measured 1884).[B] It is the tallest monumental column in the world if all are measured above their pedestrian entrances.[A] Overtaking the Cologne Cathedral, it was the tallest structure in the world between 1884 and 1889, after which it was overtaken by the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on

October 15, 1966.

George Washington (February 22, 1732[b] – December 14, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the 1st president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of the Continental Army, Washington led the Patriot forces to victory in the American Revolutionary War and served as the president of the Constitutional Convention of 1787, which created the Constitution of the United States and the American federal government. Washington has been called the "Father of the Nation" for his manifold leadership in the formative days of the country.

Washington's first public office was serving as the official surveyor of Culpeper County, Virginia from 1749 to 1750. Subsequently, he received his initial military training (as well as a command with the Virginia Regiment) during the French and Indian War. He was later elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses and was named a delegate to the Continental Congress. Here he was appointed Commanding General of the Continental Army. With this title, he commanded American forces (allied with France) in the defeat and surrender of the British at the Siege of Yorktown during the American Revolutionary War. He resigned his commission after the Treaty of Paris was signed in 1783.

Washington played an indispensable role in adopting and ratifying the Constitution of the United States. He was then twice elected president by the Electoral College unanimously. As president, he implemented a strong, well-financed national government while remaining impartial in a fierce rivalry between cabinet members Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton. During the French Revolution, he proclaimed a policy of neutrality while sanctioning the Jay Treaty. He set enduring precedents for the office of president, including the title "Mr. President", and swearing the Oath of Office on the Bible. His Farewell Address is widely regarded as a pre-eminent statement on republicanism.

Washington was a slave owner who had a complicated relationship with slavery. During his lifetime he controlled a cumulative total of over 577 slaves, who were forced to work on his farms and wherever he lived, including the President's House in Philadelphia. As president, he signed laws passed by Congress that both protected and curtailed slavery. His will said that one of his slaves, William Lee, should be freed upon his death and that the other 123 slaves must work for his wife and be freed on her death. She freed them during her lifetime to remove the incentive for hastening her death.

He endeavored to assimilate Native Americans into the Anglo-American culture. However, he waged military campaigns against hostile Native American nations during the Revolutionary War and the Northwest Indian War. He was a member of the Anglican Church and the Freemasons, and he urged broad religious freedom in his roles as general and president. Upon his death, he was eulogized by Henry "Light-Horse Harry" Lee as "first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen".

Washington has been memorialized by monuments, a federal holiday, various media depictions, geographical locations, including the national capital, the State of Washington, stamps, and currency, and many scholars and ordinary Americans alike rank him among the greatest U.S. presidents. In 1976 Washington was posthumously promoted to the rank of General of the Armies of the United States, the highest rank in the United States Army.

Composing a Ange Kagame biography for a person is both a great gesture and a fantastic gift. In case the biography composing project is for a family member or guest, and you do not believe you do not believe you have the needed writing experience, bear in mind that there are bio writing services around to aid you out. As a biography is an account of one more person's life, in a way it is less complicated to write, because you being the outsider could write Kagame's Daughters impartially without having the psychological attachment.visit our www.hope-mag.com/news.php?option=lnews&ca=1&a=1157 site for more information on Ange Kagame photos

Looks like the impartial advice was to throw the flowers in the litter bin...and move on. By the great Super-Multi-Coated Takumar 50/1.4.

‪Chris Kelly (Dudley South) (Con):

The Secretary of State is talking about energy-intensive industry and there is still a great deal of that in my constituency. Does he agree we do not want these industries going offshore where environmental legislation may not be as stringently enforced as it is in the UK? We need to keep those industries here in the UK, and yesterday’s Budget helps us to achieve that. [Interruption.]

Madam Deputy Speaker (Mrs Eleanor Laing):

Order. Before the Secretary of State answers the intervention, I should say that there are far too many conversations on the Back Benches. The House is getting restless. If the House does not calm down and let the Secretary of State get on with it, he will never come to the end of his speech.

Vince Cable:

I am trying very hard, Madam Deputy Speaker, to take as many interventions as Members wish to throw at me.

In relation to Dudley and manufacturing, my hon. Friend is right that it is not sensible to lose manufacturing overseas as we will get carbon leakage and lose the production and the jobs. It is very much in our interests to stop that happening and we are doing so. There is a lot of evidence of the reshoring of production, including to the industries in the west midlands to which my hon. Friend refers.

...

3.13 pm

Chris Kelly (Dudley South) (Con):

I welcome the Budget statement. It is a Budget that will help us build a resilient economy and is part of the Government’s long-term economic plan to put this country back on the path to sustained growth, a path that was deviated from by the Labour party with the debt-fuelled politics of the final decade of its time in office.

I commend my right hon. Friend the Chancellor who, since coming to office, has been proved right on all the big calls of the past four years. He correctly identified the problems and was right to set out a clear plan to address and then overcome them and equally right continually to stress that there was no alternative to plan A if Britain were to turn the corner. The deficit is down by a third, and in the coming year it will be down by a half. But it is still one of the highest in the world, so the Government are right to be taking action to bring it down further.

I will now deal with some of the detail of the Budget, but in the light of the number of Members who wish to speak, I will limit my remarks to three or four main areas. First, this was a Budget for savers. Social media has been awash with the hashtag ‪#‎savingsupported‬, and with good reason. The reforms to individual savings accounts and raising the limit to £15,000 could benefit up to 513,000 ISA holders in the west midlands alone. Cutting the savings income tax to zero on up to £5,000 could benefit up to 131,000 savers in my region.

The Budget will help more of my constituents to save for a home, save for their retirement and save for their family. I welcome the additional support for savers, so that more people can provide a secure future for themselves and their families. Although we are getting on top of our debts as a nation, for many decades Britain has borrowed too much and saved too little. It is therefore right that hard-working people keep more of what they earn, and of what they save. Support for savers is, rightly, at the centre of the Budget.

The personal tax changes will also be widely welcomed in my area. The increase in the personal allowance in 2015-16 will lift 27,000 people out of income tax altogether, and 2,120,000 people will see an average real terms gain of £62. Again, these are west midlands numbers and the national figures are, of course, even more impressive.

The next area I want to deal with, after help for savers and cutting taxes, is the welcome news on pension flexibility, particularly with the fundamental reform of the taxation of defined contribution pensions. As the hon. Member for Somerton and Frome (Mr Heath) has just said, from April 2015, the Government will legislate to remove all remaining tax restrictions on how to access defined contribution pension pots, which means that no one will have buy an annuity if they do not want to. Those who still want the certainty of an annuity, as many will, will be able to shop around for the best deal. There will be no punitive 55% tax rate for those who take more than their tax-free lump sum. It will still be possible to take 25% of the pension pot tax free on retirement, but what is taken above the tax-free lump sum will be taxed at normal marginal rates, not 55%, as at the moment. We will have a new guarantee, enforced in law, that everyone who retires on a DC scheme will be offered free, impartial, face-to-face advice. As economist Ros Altmann summarised:

“No more annuity will be required. No 55% tax charge, only marginal rates. Everyone will get access to face-to-face advice to make the right choice for themselves and their family.”

As the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills said earlier, we now know that manufacturing halved under Labour, with all bets effectively being on the City of London, and look where that got us. Now manufacturing is growing again, and jobs are being created in Dudley and the black country, and across the country. Week in, week out, I visit businesses, often in manufacturing or engineering, or connected to those industries, and the optimism I am finding is reflected in the figures, with 1.7 million new private sector jobs having been created since May 2010. Investment and exports are also up. But we have 20 years of catching up to do, so the Government are right to be backing businesses that invest and export. With the help of the British people, the Government are turning the economy around. The reward is economic security for the families of Britain. The Budget is part of the long-term economic plan—a plan that is delivering economic security for families in my constituency and throughout the country.

dudleysouth.com‬

dudleyconservatives.com

nypost.com/2022/07/31/senate-gop-argues-data-shows-schume...

Schumer-Manchin deal raises taxes on earners under $400K, study shows

The energy and health care deal from Sens. Joe Manchin and Chuck Schumer would raise taxes on millions of Americans earning less than $400,000 annually, Senate Republicans say, citing nonpartisan data.

The Congressional Joint Committee on Taxation found that taxes would jump by $16.7 billion on American taxpayers making less than $200,000 in 2023 and raise another $14.1 billion on taxpayers who make between $200,000 and $500,000.

During the 10-year window, the average tax rate would go up for most income categories, the Senate GOP said, citing the data from the joint committee. And by 2031, new energy credits and subsidies would have people earning less than $400,000 pay as much as two-thirds of the additional tax revenue collected that year, the release said.

“Americans are already experiencing the consequences of Democrats’ reckless economic policies. The mislabeled ‘Inflation Reduction Act’ will do nothing to bring the economy out of stagnation and recession, but it will raise billions of dollars in taxes on Americans making less than $400,000,” said Sen. Mike Crapo, an Idaho Republican who sits on the Senate Finance Committee as a ranking member, and who requested the analysis.

“The more this bill is analyzed by impartial experts, the more we can see Democrats are trying to sell the American people a bill of goods,” Crapo added.

But Democrats are objecting to the GOP’s assertions, with a spokesperson for Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) stating families “will not pay one penny in additional taxes under this bill,” according to Politico.

The spokesperson, Ashley Schapitl, also said the JCT analysis isn’t complete because “it doesn’t include the benefits to middle-class families of making health insurance premiums and prescription drugs more affordable. The same goes for clean energy incentives for families,” Politico reported.

The plan from Manchin (D-WV) and Schumer (D-NY) would spend $369 billion on energy and climate initiatives and another $64 billion to continue federal health insurance subsidies.

The measure would raise $739 billion over a 10-year span, with much of that money coming from a 15% corporate minimum tax, the West Virginia Democrat and the Senate majority leader said.

Manchin, in touting the bill, said it “would dedicate hundreds of billions of dollars to deficit reduction by adopting a tax policy that protects small businesses and working-class Americans while ensuring that large corporations and the ultra-wealthy pay their fair share in taxes.”

He said on CNN Sunday the bill is “not putting a burden on any taxpayers whatsoever.”

On “Meet the Press,” he said, “I agree with my Republican friends, we should not increase and we did not increase taxes.”

www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/democrats-inflation-reduc...

Democrats' Inflation Reduction Act would RAISE taxes on Americans making less than $400,000: GOP

Senate Democrats' Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 would raise federal taxes for Americans in every income bracket, according to a study shared by Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee.

If the projection proves true, it would cast doubt on President Joe Biden's promise to not raise taxes on Americans making less than $400,000 per year.

The study by the Joint Committee on Taxation found that taxpayers bringing in less than $200,000 per year would see their taxes raised by $16.7 billion over a decade.

But the study speculates about the effect of the package's 15 percent minimum corporate tax rate, which it suggests could be passed off onto workers and shareholders.

It also factors in possible effects on the stock market that would affect company shareholders and people who rely on pensions and other similar funds.

Positive effects of green energy and healthcare tax credits, as well as lower prescription drug costs, were not factored into Republicans' calculations.

The JCT states that the minimum corporate tax would bring in more than $300 billion over a decade.

While the bill is not directly hiking the tax rate for Americans making less than $400,000, the indirect increases that the JCT anticipates has been enough for Republicans to heap criticism on the White House.

GOP lawmakers also cited a budget model by the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton business school that the legislation 'would very slightly increase inflation until 2024 and decrease inflation thereafter.'

West Virginia Democratic Senator Joe Manchin, a key player in negotiating the bill, said he would 'agree to disagree' with the JCT's predictions.

Manchin told reporters at the US Capitol on Monday that 'there's not one penny of change in taxes' in the bill for Americans making less than $200,000.

'We looked at taking everything out that could be looked at to fanning the fires of inflation or inflaming it. And there's nothing there,' he said.

The package is Democrats' latest attempt to usher a significant budget bill through Congress without Republican support before the November midterm elections.

It provides more funding for the IRS, green energy subsidies, expansion of Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies, and lowers prescription drug costs among other measures.

The Penn Wharton Budget Model estimates that the $740 billion bill - which includes roughly $433 billion in new spending - would reduce the deficit by $248 billion.

Details on the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022

Senators Joe Manchin and Chuck Schumer's new bill would raise $739 billion in new revenue through a variety of proposals:

$313 billion by implementing a 15-percent corporate minimum tax

$288 billion from empowering Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices

$124 billion from strong IRS enforcement of tax law

$14 billion from closing the carried interest loophole for money managers

It also includes $433 billion in new spending:

$369 billion on energy security and climate change

$64 billion to extend health care subsidies for the Affordable Care Act

All this would leave $300 billion to reduce the deficit

But a projection that includes making ACA subsidies permanent would shrink that deficit reduction to just $89 billion.

'The more this bill is analyzed by impartial experts, the more we can see Democrats are trying to sell the American people a bill of goods,' said Senator Mike Crapo, ranking member on the Senate Finance Committee.

'Non-partisan analysts are confirming this bill raises taxes on the middle class and produces no meaningful deficit reduction when gimmicks are removed and the full cost is accounted for.

'It’s no wonder this bill, which was drafted behind closed doors, is being rushed through the Senate at record pace.'

In addition to raising taxes on Americans making less than $200,000, the JCT estimates that it would increase taxes on the $200,000 to $500,000 income bracket by $14.1 billion.

Americans making more than that would see a tax hike equivalent to $23.5 billion.

After 2031, Republicans claim Democrats' green energy tax credits would force Americans bringing in less than $400,000 to 'bear as much as two-thirds of the burden of the additional tax revenue collected that year.'

But the JCT study, which the GOP commissioned, omits the effects that healthcare and green energy credits as well as lower prescription drug costs have on everyday Americans.

The bill was negotiated behind closed doors by Manchin and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

Manchin, who tanked multiple previous attempts by his party to pass a budget bill via reconciliation, appeared on all five major news networks' Sunday shows to promote the legislation.

The reconciliation process would allow Democrats to pass the bill with just their razor-thin majority in the Senate plus Vice President Kamala Harris' tie-breaking vote.

But that means every member must vote in lock-step for it to pass.

'I agree with my Republican friends,' Manchin told NBC's Meet The Press on Sunday morning. 'We should not increase taxes, and we did not increase taxes.'

He also denied that his support for the bill would undermine future efforts at bipartisanship.

'You can walk and chew gum, you have a balanced approach. These are solutions Americans want. We were able to provide these solutions. Let's not make them political,' Manchin said.

11 March 2021: Workshop 4: "Multidimensional approaches by Governments to promoting the rule of law by, inter alia, providing access to justice for all; building effective, accountable, impartial and inclusive institutions; and considering social, educational and other relevant measures, including fostering a culture of lawfulness while respecting cultural identities, in line with the Doha Declaration", during the 14th UN Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, held in Kyoto, Japan.

Photo: UN DGC

11 March 2021: Workshop 4: "Multidimensional approaches by Governments to promoting the rule of law by, inter alia, providing access to justice for all; building effective, accountable, impartial and inclusive institutions; and considering social, educational and other relevant measures, including fostering a culture of lawfulness while respecting cultural identities, in line with the Doha Declaration", during the 14th UN Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, held in Kyoto, Japan.

Photo: UN DGC

The Wheel of Fortune is the tenth card in the Major Arcana in most traditional Tarot decks.

Depiction

In nearly all Tarot decks, this card is depicted as a large wheel with people traveling around it.

In the Rider-Waite Tarot, artist Pamela Colman Smith does not use the traditional wheel and instead replaced it with a circular sigil around which mythical creatures are in motion.

Symbolism

The wheel has seven radii standing for the perpetual motion of a fluidic universe and for the flux of human life. Behind the general notion expressed in the symbol there lies the denial of chance and the fatality which is implied therein. The transliteration of "Taro" as "Rota" is inscribed on the wheel, counterchanged with the letters of the Divine Name—to show that Providence is present through all. But this is the Divine intention within, and the similar intention without is exemplified by the four Living Creatures.

The four Living Creatures of Ezekiel occupy the angles of the card. In the eighteenth century the ascending and descending animals were really of nondescript character, one of them having a human head. At the summit was another monster with the body of an indeterminate beast, wings on shoulders and a crown on head. It carried two wands in its claws. These are replaced in the reconstruction by a Hermanubis (Hermes and Anubis combined as one, the genius of good) ascending with the wheel, a Sphinx at the summit is the equilibrium of the wheel balancing good and evil with the sword in its lion claws, and Typhon (the Greek god of all the monsters, the genius of evil) in his serpent form is descending with the wheel.It seems that everything is confused now. You do not understand anything anymore even in your house. But everything repeats itself in life – thoughts, feelings, and events. The Wheel of Fortune is gaining speed, so beware of interfering in the course of events, do not make unnecessary movements, otherwise it will blow you! Strive for the center of the wheel, for its only fixed point – your own “I”. Stop and observe. Look at your problems with the eye of an outside observer. This is the only way you will find the right solution.

Your future is being decided NOW. Take control of your life or get kicked out when blind destiny picks you.

All events, good or bad, do not depend on what you deserve. They just happen. If you like, let them do it. If you don’t like it, fight, but you will not be punished or rewarded in this situation. In fact, nothing depends on you.

We are all connected with the Wheel of Fortune. Some of us make our way up, others fall down. Some sit at the top, apparently unaffected by the vicissitudes of fate. But the Wheel of Fortune turns for everyone, whether he knows it or not. For everyone, the result is pure chance, which does not depend on the individual in any way. The idea of ​​the card is the exact opposite of Justice.

On both cards, the person is treated absolutely impartially. However, in the case of Justice, the result is legitimate as you are rewarded with what you deserve. The Wheel of Fortune gives you what you need – no matter what you deserve. Even worse, the forces that dominate your life do not reckon with you or anyone else, they do not even notice you. Basically, you find yourself as an object on the magician’s table, who throws you at random, since he does not care about anyone but himself.

The Tarot card Wheel of Fortune (wheel of happiness) teaches that there are things in life that no one can influence. You must be aware that the Wheel is constantly revolving and your life depends on it.

If you want to succeed, you will have to struggle to master the uncontrollable in order to force Destiny to give you a choice, whether you deserve it or not.

The secret of luck lies in the ability to use your psychic, or internal, energy to control fate, and not let yourself be carried by gusts of wind. Blind Fate does not care who won, who lost. It just turns the Wheel. If you want to be at the top, you must observe what happens to you in order to take control of the Wheel of Fortune.

The symbols of the four fixed signs are holding the four quarters of the card. The four fixed principles are indeed generally accepted as the basis of the material or concrete world. Compare the visions of Ezekiel and St. John of Patmos. The mid-heaven in the horoscope sees the eastern half of it rising and the western half on the other hand declining. See the right hand as the East and the left hand as the West, and you have the illustration of the horoscope more accurately still. As we know the East is standing for the source of spiritual force and inspiration, the West for the end of it and dying out.

Divinatory meaning

In divination, this card usually indicates destiny, fortune, success, elevation, and luck.

In reversed position, it means: Increase, abundance, an overly large amount.

www.occult.live/index.php/Wheel_of_Fortune

Joan demonstrates her impartiality by endorsing rival brands.

11 March 2021: Workshop 4: "Multidimensional approaches by Governments to promoting the rule of law by, inter alia, providing access to justice for all; building effective, accountable, impartial and inclusive institutions; and considering social, educational and other relevant measures, including fostering a culture of lawfulness while respecting cultural identities, in line with the Doha Declaration", during the 14th UN Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, held in Kyoto, Japan.

Photo: UN DGC

11 March 2021: Workshop 4: "Multidimensional approaches by Governments to promoting the rule of law by, inter alia, providing access to justice for all; building effective, accountable, impartial and inclusive institutions; and considering social, educational and other relevant measures, including fostering a culture of lawfulness while respecting cultural identities, in line with the Doha Declaration", during the 14th UN Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, held in Kyoto, Japan.

Photo: UN DGC

The Erawan Shrine was built in 1956 to appease the supposed evil forces that were taking the lives of construction workers and causing other calamities in the construction what is now the Grand Hyatt Erawan. The misfortunes were caused, it seemed, by starting the construction on an unfavorable date. After the shrine was erected, construction deaths stopped and the hotel grew very prosperous.

The apparent effectiveness of the monument made the shrine one of the most revered spots in Thailand.praying people 4801_exposure

The Washington Monument at Washington, DC is seen on April-9th-2022.

The Washington Monument is an obelisk within the National Mall in Washington, D.C., built to commemorate George Washington, once commander-in-chief of the Continental Army (1775–1784) in the American Revolutionary War and the first President of the United States (1789–1797). Located almost due east of the Reflecting Pool and the Lincoln Memorial,the monument, made of marble, granite, and bluestone gneiss, is both the world's tallest predominantly stone structure and the world's tallest obelisk,[A] standing 554 feet 7+11⁄32 inches (169.046 m) tall according to the U.S. National Geodetic Survey (measured 2013–14) or 555 feet 5+1⁄8 inches (169.294 m) tall, according to the National Park Service (measured 1884).[B] It is the tallest monumental column in the world if all are measured above their pedestrian entrances.[A] Overtaking the Cologne Cathedral, it was the tallest structure in the world between 1884 and 1889, after which it was overtaken by the Eiffel Tower in Paris.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on

October 15, 1966.

George Washington (February 22, 1732[b] – December 14, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the 1st president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of the Continental Army, Washington led the Patriot forces to victory in the American Revolutionary War and served as the president of the Constitutional Convention of 1787, which created the Constitution of the United States and the American federal government. Washington has been called the "Father of the Nation" for his manifold leadership in the formative days of the country.

Washington's first public office was serving as the official surveyor of Culpeper County, Virginia from 1749 to 1750. Subsequently, he received his initial military training (as well as a command with the Virginia Regiment) during the French and Indian War. He was later elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses and was named a delegate to the Continental Congress. Here he was appointed Commanding General of the Continental Army. With this title, he commanded American forces (allied with France) in the defeat and surrender of the British at the Siege of Yorktown during the American Revolutionary War. He resigned his commission after the Treaty of Paris was signed in 1783.

Washington played an indispensable role in adopting and ratifying the Constitution of the United States. He was then twice elected president by the Electoral College unanimously. As president, he implemented a strong, well-financed national government while remaining impartial in a fierce rivalry between cabinet members Thomas Jefferson and Alexander Hamilton. During the French Revolution, he proclaimed a policy of neutrality while sanctioning the Jay Treaty. He set enduring precedents for the office of president, including the title "Mr. President", and swearing the Oath of Office on the Bible. His Farewell Address is widely regarded as a pre-eminent statement on republicanism.

Washington was a slave owner who had a complicated relationship with slavery. During his lifetime he controlled a cumulative total of over 577 slaves, who were forced to work on his farms and wherever he lived, including the President's House in Philadelphia. As president, he signed laws passed by Congress that both protected and curtailed slavery. His will said that one of his slaves, William Lee, should be freed upon his death and that the other 123 slaves must work for his wife and be freed on her death. She freed them during her lifetime to remove the incentive for hastening her death.

He endeavored to assimilate Native Americans into the Anglo-American culture. However, he waged military campaigns against hostile Native American nations during the Revolutionary War and the Northwest Indian War. He was a member of the Anglican Church and the Freemasons, and he urged broad religious freedom in his roles as general and president. Upon his death, he was eulogized by Henry "Light-Horse Harry" Lee as "first in war, first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen".

Washington has been memorialized by monuments, a federal holiday, various media depictions, geographical locations, including the national capital, the State of Washington, stamps, and currency, and many scholars and ordinary Americans alike rank him among the greatest U.S. presidents. In 1976 Washington was posthumously promoted to the rank of General of the Armies of the United States, the highest rank in the United States Army.

.

.. .

.

~ .

8.09.2004.

STUDENTS' FEDERATION OF INDIA .

FIGHT FOR A MORE DEMOCRATIC CAMPUSI FIGHT FOR BETTER FACILITIES! .

For a number of months now the students of this university have been waiting for a response from the .

Administration on the Charter of Demands that the JNUSU had submitted to the Administration in the last semester..

Friends, .

Yet, apart from a few verbal assurances, the Administration has failed to give any firm commitment on the Issues .

same time trying to divide the student community by openly encouraging organisations like the NSUI to carry out this Insensitivity, the Vice-Chancellor had refused to have a sustained dialogue with the Students' Union while at the parallel union activities. Since then too the Administration has been completely silent on the matter..

contained in the Charter. Last week, when a large number of students had gathered at the Ad. Blockto protest against .

university. For the past decade and more, the fighting students of JNU have thwarted attempts by successive central The demands that the Administration is trying to resist so obstinately concern the basic character of our .

F1 .

they have forced the Administration and the Government to provide necessary academic and infrastructural facilities governments to impose the policies of prlvatisation and commercialisation In our university. Through their struggles .

for our universities-whether it be more hostels, computer and internet facilities or university-run messes. Yet, in many .

s· .

other important areas we continue to suffer from the resource cuts imposed under the nee-liberal policy regime. .

c Foremost among them is the university Library. There has been a steady decline in the funds for the acquisition of f1.

t .

( .

new books and periodicals· in the Library. In the last semester the JNUSU with the help of the students of different .

Centres had compiled a list of the most essential textbooks and demanded that an adequate number of copies ofeach .

of these books be bought in order to allow them to be issued to students for long durations, in contrast to the system ot ~v~might issue now prevalent in the textbook section. However, the Administration has failed to procure even these .

b~ic textbooks. Not only this, the Administration has also not conceded so far the demand for an extension of library .

timings. The Administration has been equally apathetic regarding the demands for better sports facilities in the .

Together with demands for better facilities, the student's Charter also raises the issue of the decision-making .

university-whether it be in terms of the improvement of facilities like basketball and badminton courts orthe provision process in our university. Despite explicit provisions in the statues and ordinances of our university, the Administrationfor more funds for sports at the hostel level. .

which are the highest decision-making bodies at the university and School level respectively. As a result, the continues to deny representation with full voting rights to students in the Academic Councilor the Boards of studies .

Administration has the ability to unilaterally take policy-decisions that affect the student community,_including those on .

immediately addressed by implementing the statutory provisions for the direct elections of student representatives fee structure, admission policy or course content, without allowing students to have any say. This anomaly must be .

from each programme and each School to the AC and the Board of Studies. Student representation is also essential in the process for the redressal of academic grievances of students. .

Evaluation in our university being entirely internal, there have been repeated instances of academic harassment and .

victimization This semester itself there were cases of unusually low grades being awarded to a number of students in .

CIUSLL&CS and unjustified delays in providing registration to students in different Centres or SIS. Similar instances of .

faculty members against whom they are directed. We demand that an institutional mechanism in the form ofvictimization in grading, passing of synopsis or the change of guides continue to occur in other Schools and Centres .

as well. At present, complaints against such harassment are heard in a completely ad hoc manner, often by the same .

Grievance Redressal Committees be set up for redressing such academic grievances-a mechanism which gives .

adequate representation to students including members from SFCs and the JNUSU-so that complaints are heard in an impartial and transparent manner. .

back.grounds can join JNU, the lack of adequate financial support often constraints the ability of students from .

d~pnyed sections to pursue their academics. Such students must be provided adequate financial assistance by.

While the progressive fee structure of our university has ensured that students from diverse social bnngmg the amount of the MCM scholarship at par with the mess bill and improving the Implementation ofthe 'Earn as .

Along with its insensitivity on all these demands, the Administration has also been completely irresponsible .

You Learn' scheme. .

when it comes to the allotment of hostel facilities to new students. It has refused to provide any commitment to the .

student community regarding the allotment of Lohit-Loni hostels which has been long overdue. The Administration .

must take the responsibility for expediting the construction of these hostels and ensure that they are allotted at the .

protest demonstration In large number to force the insensitive and irresponsible Administration listen to these We appeal to all members of the student community to boycott their classes on Friday and join JNUSU's earliest. .

.

legitimate demands of the student community. ON 10TH SEPTEMBER, 2004 (FRIDAY) JOIN JNUSU'S CALL FOR A .

STRIKE AND PROTEST DEMO AT 12 NOON .

DEMANDING THE FULFILLMENT OF THE STUDENTS' CHARTER OF DEMANDS .

Sd/-Parlmal M. Sudhakar.

President, JNU-SFI Sd/-Jyotirmoy Bhattacharya.

Secretary, JNU-SFI .

.., .

.

.

via

Fired FBI director James Comey and Special Counsel to the Russian collusion investigation, Bob Mueller, are best buddies? That is a clear conflict of interest!

By Roger Stone

When acting Attorney General Rod Rosenstein recommended that president Trump fire FBI Director James Comey, he set the stage for a stand-off between the two men, and also for the appointment of Special Counsel Robert Mueller to lead an investigation into Russian meddling of the 2016 U.S. presidential election. But instead of finding any campaign collusion with foreign agents and Trump campaign officials, the FBI has only found proof of the Clintons collusion to send 20% of America’s uranium to the Russian Federation.

When former FBI director James Comey admitted during his testimony before Congress that he had intentionally leaked details of his conversations with Trump so that he could provoke an independent investigation and the appointment of a special prosecutor, he triggered an investigation into himself that has so far proven that partisan politics is behind the Russian Collusion Delusion.

President Trump has repeatedly represented his displeasure at the appointment of former FBI Director Robert Mueller, who is a known close personal friend of James Comey whom the president recently fired and who is now a witness in the investigation. Trump shared his feelings about the appointment of Mueller to Fox News, stating, “He’s very, very good friends with Comey, which is very bothersome.”

Robert Mueller was appointed by President George W. Bush and served as the director of the FBI from 2001 to 2013, and then turned the reins over to his protege, James Comey who was appointed by President Obama in 2013 and who ran the spy organization until he was fired by president Trump in May. Both Mueller and Comey are confidants of Trumps most ardent enemy’s. National news networks and politicians across the country have called for the recusal of Robert Mueller due to the obvious conflict of interest of him investigating the man who fired his friend.

Former Assistant FBI Director James Kallstrom believes that Bob Mueller and former FBI Director James Comey are the best of friends and have been for over two decades. Kallstrom stated in a recent interview, “the relationship presents a conflict of interest which is hampering the Russia probe. How do you appoint a special counsel who is a longtime friend? It’s a massive conflict of interest.”

Politico journalist Garrett Graff wrote a book about former FBI Director Bob Mueller that described the close relationship between Mueller and Comey as that of a protege and mentor. He said, “While Mueller technically reported to Comey as deputy attorney general, Comey, two decades his junior, treated Mueller as a close friend and almost mentor. The men had known each other for years as each rose into the small, elite fraternity of prosecutors at the top of the Justice Department.” Graff reported in the Washingtonian four years ago that “there was only one person in government whom Comey could confide in and trust.”

In the 2013 Washingtonian article, Graff noted: “The two men are deeply alike, sharing a background and core principles. Both educated at Virginia universities with a strong public service tradition (Mueller at the University of Virginia; Comey at William & Mary). They both achieved early success in the Justice Department and found subsequent life at private law firms lucrative but unfulfilling. Just years apart in the 1990s, they both gave up their top-tier private law firm jobs to return to the trenches of prosecuting criminals—Mueller as a junior prosecutor in Washington, DC, and Comey in Richmond, Virginia. Both men were rising stars mentored and guided by Eric Holder in the 1990s during Holder’s time in the Justice Department under the Clinton administration.”

Comey attorney David Kelley claimed that the two men know each other from working together as former U.S. Department of Justice colleagues but are hardly considered “best friends.” He said, “They’ve had lunch together once, dinner together twice, once with their spouses and once after.” But Arizona Congressman Trent Franks, a member of the House Judiciary Committee, believes Mr. Mueller’s relationship with Mr. Comey should make him ineligible to be the Special Counsel.

Representative Frank said, “Those who worked under them have attested to the fact that Mueller and Jim Comey possess a close friendship, and they have delivered on-the-record statements effusing praise of one another. No one knows Mr. Mueller’s true intentions, but neither can anyone dispute that he now clearly appears to be a partisan arbiter of justice. Accordingly, the law is also explicitly clear: he must step down based on this conflict of interest.”

Fox News legal expert Gregg Jarrett reported that the U.S. Special Counsel statute mandates that Counsel cannot serve if they have a personal relationship with someone central to the case, and a Justice Department statute states that recusal is necessary when there is the “appearance” of a “personal” conflict of interest.

Civil rights attorney Alan Dershowitz said that President Donald Trump was right to raise questions about special counsel Robert Mueller’s objectivity in the Russia probe because of his longstanding friendship with fired FBI Director James Comey. Dershowitz said “Comey was determined to get revenge on the president by getting a special counsel appointed.

FBI Code of Conduct:

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Ethics and Integrity Policy Guide, FBI agents must not act in any manner that would give the appearance of a conflict of interest.

The FBI ethics guide states: “‘Public service is a public trust,’ underlies all aspects of Government service. The many ethics statutes and regulations discussed in this guide have one fundamental purpose: to ensure that every U.S. citizen can be confident in the integrity of the Federal Government and those in its employ.”

Former FBI Director James Comey wrote the introduction page to the ethics manual so he must be familiar with it. In his opening letter, Comey wrote: “The rules are based on one fundamental precept: Public service is a public trust. Those of us lucky enough to serve the public in and through this great organization must adhere to that principle in everything we do.” – James Comey.

The FBI Ethics and Integrity Program Policy Guide stipulates that “FBI employees shall endeavor to avoid any actions creating the appearance of unethical activity.”

According to section 45.2 of the FBI Ethics and Integrity Program Policy Guide, Under the heading “Disqualification arising from a personal or political relationship,” subsection (b) states: “no employee shall participate in a criminal investigation or prosecution if he has a personal or political relationship with:

(1) – Any person or organization substantially involved in the conduct that is the subject of the investigation.

And subsection (b) states that an FBI or government employee must not participate in an investigation “that would create an appearance of a conflict of interest likely to affect the public perception of the integrity of the investigation or prosecution.”

Additionally, FBI Director James Comey broke Federal Bureau of Investigation rules when he provided his friend and the New York Times with documents related to the Russian investigation, in an effort to get a special counsel appointed.

In section 4.9.4, on the FBI’s policy on agents speaking and writing to the media, it states, “The work that employees perform for the FBI is frequently of national importance and is, therefore, the subject of great public attention and interest. Nevertheless, each employee has the responsibility to maintain the confidentiality of information learned by virtue of his FBI duties. Sensitive law enforcement information must not be disclosed in any form without specific prior authorization. Information is not releasable merely because it is attributed to an unidentified “Federal law enforcement official.” Such disclosures cause serious damage to our investigation and risk unfairly tarnishing the reputation of those involved in these investigations who enjoy the presumption of innocence and are entitled to the due process of law.”

Former special counsel for President George H.W. Bush, Bill Otis said, “Mueller is compromised by the close professional — and I would sure think personal — relationship with Comey, That is an encompassing standard…that should be interpreted broadly so that the public will have maximum confidence in the outcome of the special counsel’s work.”

Hana Callaghan, the director of the Government Ethics Program for Santa Clara University believes that the Mueller/Comey connection could hinder the investigation and cause the public to lose faith in their government. She said, “A friendship could give rise to the appearance that Mueller was acting out of loyalty to his friend as opposed to the public’s best interest in finding out what happened.“

The purpose of having a “special counsel” is to find an impartial prosecutor from outside of the normal government chain of command because conflicts of interest already exist. Robert Mueller and James Comey have a longstanding friendship and clear conflict of interest which precludes them from collaborating on the special counsel investigation.

The most ethical and honest approach for Robert Mueller to take is for him to recuse himself from the investigation due to his close professional and personal relationship with fired FBI Director James Comey.

If he does not recuse, then he must be removed.

from Roger Stone – Stone Cold Truth stonecoldtruth.com/best-buddies-the-mueller-comey-connect...

rogerstone1.wordpress.com/2017/11/28/best-buddies-the-mue...

11 March 2021: Workshop 4: "Multidimensional approaches by Governments to promoting the rule of law by, inter alia, providing access to justice for all; building effective, accountable, impartial and inclusive institutions; and considering social, educational and other relevant measures, including fostering a culture of lawfulness while respecting cultural identities, in line with the Doha Declaration", during the 14th UN Congress on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice, held in Kyoto, Japan.

Photo: UN DGC

Without judges there would be no competitions - may they all be honest and impartial, always.

KABUL, 16 October 2019 - UN envoy Yamamoto and other members of the int'l community met with presidential candidates for #Afghanistan’s election – all stressing importance of

@AfghanistanIEC

and

@ECCAfghanistan

carrying out their work transparently, impartially and with full support of all stakeholders.

UNAMA Photo / Fardin Waezi.

On Dec. 13, 2011 at 6 p.m., the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, Fairfax County constitutional officers, and the Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District directors all took their oath of office in the Government Center forum.

Fairfax Circuit Court Judge Jan L. Brodie administered the oath of office to 15 elected officials, who each swore to support the Constitution of the United States, and the Constitution of the commonwealth of Virginia, and to faithfully and impartially discharge all the duties incumbent upon them as officials of Fairfax County.

All elected officials will take office on Jan. 1, 2012.

More information:

www.fairfaxcounty.gov/opa/inauguration/

An aid worker offers comfort to a young child who survived the recent earthquake in Northwest Syria. The country continues to face a string of crises that have left millions displaced and facing hardship. Despite the overwhelming challenges, the EU remains committed to providing impartial aid to those in need.

©CARE

An aid worker offers a comforting presence to a young child who survived the recent earthquake in Syria. The country continues to face a string of crises that have left millions displaced and suffering. Despite the overwhelming challenges, the EU remains committed to providing impartial aid to those in need.

©CARE, 2023.

Japanese and other East Asian artists and here primary school children often draw pictures from an elevated birds eye view (Masuda, Gonzalez, Kwan & Nisbett, 2008). Part of the reason for this is their there desire to show everything in their pictures, to the extent that in some of these pictures the viewpoint is from that of an all-seeing eye that can look downards in all directions. So as Masuda, Gonzalez, Kawan and Nisbett argue, part of the motivation for this is the desire to see the context of actions, events, and people. I argue that another motivation is that the internalisation of this viewpoint enables them to gain a self view in a similar way to that provided by George Herbert Mead's "generalised other." And as argued by Derrida they become addicted to this view of the world since they become libidinally involved in the self relationship that viewing themselves facilitates. Contra the Western self, there may be no sexual element to this self-viewing but rather an enjoyment of seeing themselves and their actions, as cute, from the point of view of an all seeing co-viewing mother.

This internalised other sometimes makes a reapparane in the horrible women that appear from images, television sets, developer fluid, lanterns and scrolls, or sometimes hiding in a mass of black hair on the ceiling, in Japanese horror movies and legends.

It is I believe the internalisation of this self-viewing intra-psychic Other that keeps the Japapnese as moral as their are and not any external sword (or bits of wire) as argued by Ruth Benedict.

Incidentally, my father's Art School Graduation picture was of a group of people around a table drawn from above. I believe that the auto-scopic eye in the sky is present in everyone to a degree, and felt more keenly by those of Scottish Descent such as Adam Smith (whose impartial spectator appears to be a mixture of both a linguistic and visual audience), my father, and myself.

Images Copyright their respective artists.

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Bibliography

Masuda, T., Gonzalez, R., Kwan, L., & Nisbett, R. E. (2008). Culture and aesthetic preference: Comparing the attention to context of East Asians and Americans. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 34(9), 1260-1275.

Benedict, R. (2006). The Chrysanthemum and the Sword (1st ed.). Mariner Books.

Lummis, D. (2007). Ruth Benedict’s Obituary for Japanese Culture. Japan Focus, 23. Retrieved from www.japanfocus.org/-C__Douglas-Lummis/2474

Photo by Marco Quezada

4/30/05

Bear Mountain (results, map, etc.) was the first big race for me this year, one I had been training for and looking forward to since last fall. I had been hoping for a top 10 finish, which I just missed, but it was still a good and fun race. When you’re tired of the park races at the end of the season, upgrade if necessary and start looking forward to Bear Mountain.

The race started off with some bad news, that Tony was late due to problems out of his control and couldn’t get his number, so he wasn’t allowed to race. I know Tony is in good shape and has been working on climbing; I missed him in the pack, where all the usual suspects were up to there usual tricks.

I’d reconned the course 3 times over the previous month, but not in the rain and fog. This turned out to be a major gap in my familiarity with the course. We started out in a neutral 30mph descent to the hairpin turn at the bottom of the hill. Nevertheless, this was the most dangerous descent, with at least one rider going down. As his bike started shimmying he aimed right for the ditch where he flipped onto his back and slid for 20 yards. I’m not sure what kind of bike it was, but I hope I never own one.

The first climb was uneventful and a good warm-up. Coming around Tiorati circle at the top of the climb I was happy to hear a few impartial Synergy marshals cheering for me. On the straightaway the Foundation guys launched a few attacks, but it was still far too early.

The second descent wasn’t much faster than the first, maybe 35mph, as the field was still pretty crowded, and the climb was uneventful. I have to say that if not for the racing, the fog on the lake at the top, which was really quite beautiful, deserved more of my attention. Again, nothing doing with attacks.

Finally some action as Metro solo artist Norbert O’Reilly rolled off the front and literally disappeared into the fog. The third descent was faster at 40mph with the pack unwilling to grant Norbert much time, but he had 30 seconds when I took the corner near the front. The climb was harder, but to no end. Cheers of relief and schadenfreude drifted back as we passed Norbert on the side of the road with a flat. The pace immediately relaxed.

More nothing and nonsense attacks. The final descent was the fastest, and I was near the front, up to about 45mph. Coming around the corner I decided to try to split up the pack a little and attacked, kind of, up the first steep part of the hill, pulling a single file line up with me. I thought maybe someone would come and take up the pace with me after I eased off on the flat before we ascended again, but it didn’t happen. I had to slow down to get anyone to go by. In retrospect, I think I had the legs to keep pushing it up the hill, but the last climb was still the fastest, if not the hardest. Again, no one would attack with enough surprise or speed to get away, and the teams had nothing going.

As it turned out, there were only 20 riders left in the lead group as we made the last right turn onto the homestretch. I went to the front to push the pace up the slight incline, and again no one would do anything thing. I may have even developed a gap, but it was a gap I didn’t want. So I dropped back and focused on my form and resting my legs for the sprint. This may have been a mistake—if I could do it again I would have attacked at this point. So as we came through the feed zone I had forgotten I had been marking Pavol Samko for the last few miles. (Pavol wins almost every race he is in. The only time I beat him was last year at Prospect Park—I think he was hungover or sick.) He was on the right and I was on the left, trapped by the yellow line and riders in front of me. In the fog I didn’t see the 200m to go sign, so I hesitated when the road opened up to two lanes and started sprinting too late, but good enough for 12th.

Lessons learned: I have the fitness to stay with the leaders. I need to be more aggressive, and I need to make sure I know where the finish line is.

Okay. So I'm a little bored. And I've had a couple of beers. And feeling silly (see: couple of beers). So I want to settle this, The Great Debate of our Time, once and for all.

So. Red Vines, or Twizzlers?

(do not take the discrepancy in the size of the pictures and any kind of vote on my kind. They are just the first ones I found of each type of candy. I am an impartial judge in the matter, an equal-opportunity candy consumer)

Justice (Tarot card)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Justice (XI)

Justice is a Major Arcana Tarot card, numbered either XI or VIII, depending on the deck. This card is used in game playing as well as in divination.

Description

A. E. Waite was a key figure in the development of modern Tarot interpretations. However, not all interpretations follow his theology. Please remember that all Tarot decks used for divination are interpreted up to personal experience and standards.

Some frequent keywords are:

* Impartiality ----- Distance ----- Coldness ----- Justice

* Objective mind----- Criticism ----- Being clever ----- Insensitivity

* Decision ----- Intellect ----- Analysis ----- Realism ----- Severity

* Responsibility ----- Rationality ----- Clear vision ----- Logic and reason

Article on wikipedia

Another neat article

Bearing Witness in the Case of Mumia Abu-Jamal

SAT, MARCH 11, 2023 2-4PM

First United Methodist Church of Germantown, Philadelphia

Evidence of Abu-Jamal’s innocence was illegally withheld by prosecutors at his trial and subsequent appeals

Will Judge Lucretia Clemons have the impartiality and independence to make a decision that reckons with the long history of racism in Philadelphia?

The case of Black journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal, falsely convicted in 1982 of the murder of police officer Daniel Faulkner the year before is now back in court. Newly discovered evidence, previously withheld by prosecutors, a clear violation of law, makes it clear that Abu-Jamal should be freed or given a new trial. Abu-Jamal has endured over 40 years of wrongful imprisonment and almost three decades on death row.

Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas Judge, Lucretia Clemons, is expected to rule by March 16, 2023, on whether newly-found documents pointing to Abu-Jamal’s innocence are worthy of an evidentiary hearing where they can be properly reviewed and examined.

The court is reviewing three sets of documents that the prosecution withheld from Abu-Jamal’s attorneys for more than 36 years: 1) Handwritten notes by prosecutor Joe McGill that show that he tracked the race of potential jurors during the jury selection process; 2) A handwritten letter by star witness, Robert Chobert, in which he asks prosecutor Joe McGill for money “owed” him, an indication that Chobert’s testimony was bribed, and 3) A series of memoranda between prosecutors and officers of the judicial system in and outside of the state of Pennsylvania, indicating that the prosecutor’s other main witness, Cynthia White, was also bribed. Just months after her testimony at Abu-Jamal’s trial, all of White’s pending prostitution charges were suddenly dismissed.

Failure to release Robert Chobert’s letter and the series of memoranda between the prosecutor and numerous officers of the court across state lines is a flagrant violation of the 1963 landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the case of Brady v. Maryland. Brady established that prosecutors MUST turn over to defense attorneys, all potential evidence pointing to a defendant’s innocence.

Prosecutors in District Attorney Larry Krasner’s office who are currently litigating Abu-Jamal’s case today are arguing, against all reason, that Robert Chobert’s letter demanding money owed to him as well as all the memoranda seeking favorable treatment for Cynthia White are not “materially important” and that, therefore, the Brady claim is not merited in Abu-Jamal’s case. They argue that Abu-Jamal would have been convicted with or without the testimony of these witnesses.

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But the other “evidence” used to convict Abu-Jamal mainly consisted of a made-up confession allegedly heard by police and their claim that Abu-Jamal’s gun was found next to him at the scene, but which police failed to test to prove it had been fired. The alleged confession was “remembered” two to three months after the fact by police, among them one who wrote in his report about Abu-Jamal the night of the shooting, “the negro male made no comment.” Both claims were made by the very same police officers who beat Abu-Jamal brutally, within an inch of his life, shouting “Kill the Black motherfucker, beat the shit out of the Black motherfucker,” and lied on the stand about having properly handled the crime scene, while in fact the police did the opposite.

DA Larry Krasner’s office is, thereby upholding the perjured testimonies and theory of the case put forth by the same homicidally violent police officers whose behavior, according to an investigation of the Philadelphia Police by the U.S. Department of Justice in 1979, “shocks the conscience.”

The narrative of what happened on the night that Office Faulkner was killed promoted by Larry Krasner’s office and the racist Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) is false.

In fact, the original prosecutor in the case had to bribe the testimonies of key witnesses, Chobert and White, because they did not see what happened that night, as long-standing evidence shows. The newly discovered evidence is “material” because the original trial court heavily relied on their bribed testimony to convict Abu-Jamal. If jurors would have known that Chobert and White were, respectively, paid and relieved of prison time in exchange for their testimonies, the jury would have doubted the prosecutor’s theory of the case. And the fact that this new evidence of bribery was withheld for almost four decades by Philadelphia prosecutors requires throwing Abu-Jamal’s conviction out, or at the very least, holding an evidentiary hearing.

Before a crowd of well over 150 people, in addition to livestream watch parties in the US and overseas, our event brought together eminent scholars, experts, and activists who bore witness to constitutional violations in a case that is emblematic of how the prosecutor’s office operates and disfigures the lives of Black people, their families, and communities in Philadelphia. Participants included Cornel West, who testified to the cruel and inhumane nature of death row’s solitary confinement and death by incarceration; recently retired Arkansas state judge, Rev. Wendell Griffin, who addressed Brady; professor and social critic, Dr. Marc Lamont Hill; Abu-Jamal’s friend and defense team liaison, Dr. Johanna Fernandez; and Michael Shiffmann described photographer Pedro Polakoff''s photographs which, among other things, documents the absence of cab driver Robert Chobert from the crime scene.

The evidence that justice was not done in Mumia’s case and that federal law was violated is overwhelming. Will Judge Clemons of the CCP listen to it and do the right thing?

Drug Dealer And Development Deceiver Equally Human Resource Killer

Development Deceivers’ Defined Civil Society

Omnivorous Entity NGOs Promote New Version of Slavery

The very emergence of NGO (Nurturing Grim openly) in Bangladesh aimed at robbed up the spirit of Bangladesh Freedom Fight 1971. The NGOs targeted the youth aged 15 to 35 those who stirred up the love, friendship, fellow feelings and sacrifice by the 1971[that they inherited from the Sufi, Dervish, Alem, Ulama and Sheikh since 12th century. Where it was the righteousness, spirituality, honesty, modesty, integrity, impartiality, morality, civility, sincerity, love, fellow feelings, friendship, care and service for all indiscriminately.]

The crook tried lot against the freedom of a nation shamelessly. The complete failure of 1971 instigate them to put a vicious trap ie the NGO to mitigate their pain, sobs, sorrows etc or create a new version of slavery.

Local and international crook jointly generate this disaster for the nation and spread it subcontinent. Yes we must say there were some good souls merged here on good faith and those also converted to the crook created main stream follow the trend of criminals’ traps. This is the time to assess and reassess the contribution NGO, INGO and UN body in the subcontinent.

Development Deceivers’ Defined Civil Society

Omnivorous Entity NGOs Promote New Version of Slavery

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Omnivorous ICS CSP Created NGO Disaster for the Mass

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Rani Shaheba

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Khushi Kabir is Simply NGO owner in Bangladesh and she will do that other NGO owner do

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NGO owner cannot establish Justice

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Sultana Kamal is Simply NGO owner in Bangladesh and she will do that other NGO owner do

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Natural Disaster Means Business for Riches and so called leader and their Chamchas

NGO Owner and their staffs enjoy lot

So called foreign expert (?) come „mw advice so many things

Impact none on Poorers' life.

Poorers are Looser and the Rich are gainer in many Way.

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The Story of so called Civil Society that Defined by the Monstrous Devil

Vampire, Monster for the Bangladeshi Poorer

Most Ruinous Havoc in Bangladesh NGO and Peer Business

NGO omnivorous monster Cheat of Sudhkhur of Bangladesh

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Haitians Protest Outside Hillary Clinton’s Office Over ‘Billions Stolen’ by Clinton Foundation

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Truth from Trump

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Visite clin d'oeil au "International UFO Museum and Research Center" de Roswell (NM) et à sa boutique regorgeant de surprises...

Mon complice de vie saisie le présentoir à casquette, et même son bras s'enfilant dans le cadre de mon objectif indique un "J'aurais ta tête !" impartial... qui s'agence parfaitement à l'expression étrangement surprise de l'extra-terrestre de plastique sans corps :o