Latest Fashion For Men Styles Knowledge Base
Do you know of any websites, blogs or discussion groups that has the latest style and fashion for men? I like modelling and fashion. I like dressing myself up in the latest style. I like seeing other people's sense of style and of course like to be the stylist for my friends when on vacation or hanging out with them. Though many guys are getting stylish these days, it seems difficult to find an existing avenue for men to discuss and get updated with the latest styles and tips on dressing up maturely and with style. Any help from you stylish people out there? I like modelling and fashion. I like dressing myself up in the latest style. I like seeing other people's sense of style and of course like to be the stylist for my friends when on vacation or hanging out with them. Though many guys are getting stylish these days, it seems difficult to find an existing avenue for men to discuss and get updated with the latest styles and tips on dressing up maturely and with style. Any help from you stylish people out there? Please recommend some nice fashion sites for young adults in the 20's or later, with styles ranging from street wear, casual wear, formal evening wear all the way to funky "clubbing" attire.
wut the latest fashion hair style for men or teenagers? if u could plz gv me any links or sum pics, so i could hv sum idea cuzz i need a naircut , but i want to try sum different style i hv already done mushrooms, spike, mohawk, simple haircut, gv sum dats simple yet looks kool, i tried #3 on top, # 1 on side, bin dere, done dat. i hv gone through the book the barbers usally carry, wen i ask dem wut looks gud on me in ur prof. experiecnce , all i get iz it ur choice. Thanks
What styles look good on men according to women?? I suck at dressing and looking nice. I either look to dressed up or like a total bum. I need some advice about what to wear like at college or when I go to just hang out. I don't want to look like a pretty boy, nerd, or like a homeless person either. I see some men and when they dress they look half way decent but I look at me and I think man I look like an idiot. Also can you point me to a place to look up the latest fashions for men my age(32)?
Mens Fashion (Alternative)? What are your views on the latest fashion for men that involve "man purses", and longer wearing shirts that look like 'dresses' over pants? ((I personally find that men who wear nailpolish or eye makeup - like some rock bands - a bit odd, but to fit the men's style into what is considered a 'woman's' apparel???)) To each their own, I suppose, but I'm just wondering what your thoughts are on this - especially from a guy's point of view!
Popular guy, creative girl... just read!? Ok, I'll give you a "real-life example"... Once upon a time there happened to be a very handsome, popular guy who got along with everyone (meaning, he was not a jerk. He also was nice to the "unpopluar kids" on the block.). He loved to laugh and joke around with his friends, he wasn't toooo concerned about dressing perfectly, but he had cool clothes. He was good at every sport he played, and he helped around at home by mowing and helping with the family buisiness. Let's just say he was an all around cool guy! BUT! No one knew who he liked. You see, he was friendly to girls (he was the only boy in his family!) and everything, but he usually hung with his guys. Not that he totally ignored girls, but... well... even his best friend didn't know who he liked! Of course, that didn't mean girls didn't like HIM. They complimented him, gave him their school photos, gave him nicknames....yeah, girls liked him. So here he is. Well, there also happened to be a girl. She was his older sister's good friend. Their families were also good friends, so he saw this girl quite a bit. In fact, he'd known her since she first came to his church... 8 years ago! She was a friendly person. She always made his family laugh. Sometimes she'd mess up a joke, or she'd come up with something witty, or she'd simply slip and fall! His sisters laughed, his mom and dad laughed, he laughed. She was also creative. She played guitar at church alot, and wrote some of her own songs even. She liked to try out the latest fashion styles! She wasn't a prep, but sometimes she'd come up with some new outfit custom designed. Like that pair of jeans she'd bleached herself. She was good at sports (not the best, but good). She was also into film, and loved making movies and putting on plays. Yes, she was different. But she wasn't weird. She fit right in. She was content. She carried herself well. She wasn't a crazy rebel girl. Infact, she was quite shy at times. Not usually too much, but there were times she'd be silent and take it all in. She was different. Now, I'm sure you've used your clever little minds, and guessed that I'M THE GIRL. Yes yes, it's all true. And you know what? I totally adore this guy. More than anyone else I've ever EVER liked. I mean... I... really... adore him. Anyways, so, his sister told me this once: "Amy, if I ever thought he liked anyone, it would definetly be you." Whoa... really? Well, I guess I've seen the signs. We make fun of each other. I suck at video games, and one day me and him were over at or friends house, and we were all playing a 4 person game, and I kept dying (he kept killing me!) and he was like "you're like, the funnest person to play with!" (yeah... cuz i rarely WIN!) We play backyard basketball with friends. Once we were in an elevator alone at this really ritzy place. Sometimes, he just ask me "So how was your day today?" But then, DANGIT! there are times when I want to... ARGHH! Like, this one time, I went to camp where, at the end of camp, there's this party. ANd so the guys ask the girls to the party, like, as dates you know? Long and short of it... he never asked me. One our friends (a guy) was like "why aren't you going to ask Amy??" and He was like "Well, she's like, OLDER than me!" and I dunno, I wish my guy friend wouldn't have said anything, cuz that whole week was awkward. Except for the second to last day, after the party. Once time, we had a church cookout, and afterwards, in the evening, all me and his friends we just sitting on the sand volleyball court talking. He plopped down between me and his sister. Some little girl had a crush on him an was trying to steal his shoes, so I was hiding them under my legs. Everyone else was talking, and me and him were just laughing about the shoes. Then one of my friends ws like, "Man! You're sure sitting close to Amy aren't you!" So then he like, got up real quick and plopped by one of his guy friends! Silly. Sometimes we ignore eachother (I do it cuz he's so dang handsome, it hurts to look!) but then sometimes its a laugh fest. He's totally computer incompetent, so no email, IM or facebook :( . I actually bought him a phonecard for his phone for his birthday, but I didn't sign my name, so he does'nt know i gave it to him. Actually, his sister says he suspects I gave it to him. His phone is activated, but he's not even really the phone type, so yeah. I didn't really expect him to call, but... maybe a text? Pleeaase! Nope. I can be patient for him. But sometimes I worry he likes other people. I catch myself thinking, whenever I see him laughing or having a conversation with another girl, "Oh... man, what was I thinking? He probably likes her." And I'm sad, because this is my last year of school. Next year is college, and I really want to keep in touch. I tried to stop liking him when I first felt this way, but the next day he was all talking to me and everything and I just felt this great joy like "Yes! He likes me!". I just want to be his friend for now, but he's always with his guy friend it seems like, and yeah, he is a bit younger. I know later it won't matter, but it still kinda does now. OK! Anyways, sorry this was so long, but... what should I do? I want to build him up and get him to realize I'll always be his friend, but I don't was him to feel weirded out. Patience... that's what I need. But it's killing me. Oh gosh, he's so beautiful. Sometimes I feel like I'm not good enough. I think I'm pretty... but I struggle with a little acne, and I see these flawless girls and I'm like "that's the girl he would like." Anyways, sorry it was so long. What do you think of this situation? -A. Again, I love to write, and I'm sorry it's soooo long!
Where should I (male, mid-20s) look for fashion tips? Which websites/magazines/etc will show me what's the latest in the catwalks of Milan, London, New York and Tokyo? I'm specifically interested in accesorizing and hair styles as well as casual clothes because I'm in an office most of the time anyway. Women are lucky that way, you at least get to wear something interesting all days of the week. We men only get to do that on weekends.
What to get the man who has everything? My husband is a man of extravagant taste and wonderful style. He is a computer "geek" as well. He has all the latest gadgets and fashions, and gift cards are so impersonal. This is our first Christmas together, and I have no clue what to get for him. I want to make it special, but I am on a budget as well.
Are bell bottoms going out of style again? I know that during the 60's and 70's bell bottoms were a huge fashion trend for both men and women and then they went out of fashion for a while. Then, in the late 90's they came back into style for women only. I've heard that straight leg jeans are coming back again, although so many women are still wearing bell bottoms.
Who lives like the the Rappers? You know them. You love them. And they are living large! What are some of the hall marks of the rapper lifestyle? 1. "Cribs" Big time rappers love to show off what they have done to their homes... This is called interior design. 2. "Style" Rappers love to wear the latest styles and want to create their own fashion trends. 3. "Bling" Rappers love shiny jewelry and lot's of it. 4."Busting a move" or "Getting jiggy wid it" Rappers love to dance with their shirts off with just a little baby oil to accent how "cut" their "abs" are. 5."Throwing rhymes" Rappers express their inner most feelings with poetry. What other flamboyant minority lives for fashion, and interior design? What other group loves to party and dance with their friends? What other group of men would wear that much jewelry? Here's a clue... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AO43p2Wqc08 Hey Kids, check out Krazy Z's response. He wrote a response to a joke he didn't get and even bothered to read my profile. Do you think his Mom ever REMEMBERS he's down in the basement? Thug life is just mad because I told everyone about this baby oil trick. this is for you http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cx9UBivevS8&feature=related Thug life is just mad because I told everyone about his baby oil trick. this is for you http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cx9UBivevS8&feature=related
Do u like how Mc Cain dresses ?? Versace politics Donatella Versace's latest men's collection was inspired by Sen. Barack Obama, she said Mc Cain needs to more cool , his style is hilibili..... http://edition.cnn.com/video/#/video/politics/2008/06/26/eccleston.italy.obama.fashion.cnn?iref=videosearch
Is Bush REALLY this bad? For all the liberals with their outrageous complaining about Bush taking away "ALL" their rights, has anything this bad been done? http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071216/wr_nm/iran_crackdown_internet_dc 24 internet cafes have been shut down by Iranian police in a crackdown on immoral behavior. So my question is...putting aside all the hype, can you imagine this? "The action in Tehran province was the latest move in a campaign against fashion and other practices deemed incompatible with Islamic values, including women flouting strict dress codes and barber shops offering men Western hair styles." Again, put aside the outrageous statements.
Are You Suffering From The "LEMMING EFFECT"? The power to fit in with one's social peers can be irresistible. To a human lemming, the logic behind an opinion doesn't count as much as the power and popularity behind an opinion. Man, like lemming, behaves collectively. And it could be no other way. Naturally, the individual must be equipped with this trait. Otherwise, the smallest steps toward civilization could never have been made. Lemminghood is a survival trait, an inborn instinct in the majority of people. However, as with all natural phenomena, this tendency can be manipulated and used for harmful purposes. It is this lemming effect which enables entire segments of a society to lose their sense of judgment all at the same time. This research paper will likely be wasted on many lemmings. For lemmings, denial is a basic psychological defense mechanism used to not only shield themselves from unpleasant realities, but also to reassure themselves that they will still fit within the acceptable range of opinion held by their peer group. Lemmings are absolutely terrified at the thought of being labeled as an "extremist" or a "conspiracy theorist". At all costs, their beliefs must always be on the "right" side of the issue and conform within the boundaries of their lemming peers. Lemmings simply cannot bear the burden of responsibility, or the discomfort, which comes with thinking independently. They'll resist any efforts to change their misguided beliefs with all their mental energy. We can try to open their closed minds and free them from their self-imposed blindness, but it’s not easy fighting the force of human nature. The chains of ideological conformity have too strong of a grip, and breaking them is a difficult task. With the limited resources at our disposal, it is next to impossible to compete with the media lemming-masters. Nevertheless, some of us must make the meager attempt, and thus lay the foundation upon which the truth might one day rise again. There are of course those who have fallen under the hypnotic spell of the TV talking-heads and "experts" whom they worship as authority figures. Unaccustomed to thinking for themselves, no amount of truth can sway them from their preconceived prejudices. They will even deny that which they see with their own eyes. They are victims of a psychological affliction known as "the lemming effect". Lemmings are small rodents who have been known to follow each other as they charge to their deaths into raging rivers or off of cliffs. Lemminghood is an innate psychological phenomenon, present in most mammals and observable in common people as well the most sophisticated and educated elites. Lemminghood is not an intellectual phenomenon - it is psychological. As such, no socio-economic class is immune to its strangulating effect. A grant- seeking university scientist can be a lemming just as much as a fashion obsessed teen-age girl. One blindly follows the latest trendy theory while the other blindly follows the latest trendy clothing style. What's the difference? Neither can resist the force of nature. There are those among us who do have the courage and intellectual capacity to break free of the shackles of lemminghood and accept the truth when it is presented in a clear and logical sequence. To those open minded and independent thinkers I wish to state clearly and unequivocally. I intend to set forth in this paper an overwhelming body of evidence which should forever destroy the notion that a Saudi Arabian caveman and his band of half-trained, nerdy Arab flight school attendees, orchestrated the most sophisticated terror operation in world history. The idea is utterly laughable. And yet, due to the blithering barrage of bullshit dished out by the government/media complex, "patriotic" Americans have accepted this ridiculous fairy tale with a religious conviction. As a public service to my fellow Americans, I have published the results of my research in the hopes of liberating as many people as I can from the oppressive yoke of media brainwashing and state sponsored lies. Do you have what it takes to break free?
How about a return of the 70s style cat suits? Ok lads who would like to see a fashion return of 70s style spandex (not sure shiny lycra silk like material) cat suits as in like Buck Rogers on Bravo TV... as in skin tight? Also popular in early 70s bond movies... Also older guys who were young lads in late teens in those days... Good girl Colonel Wilma or bad girl Princess Ardala. Anyone unfamiliar see it day time Bravo (er student) or record Looking back at the old TV show and thinking man I need a cold shower after that... And ladies would you like to see us guys in something like that...? Only problem I can see there is the guys may have somewhat of a problem after snogging a fit babe or seeing one... As said skin hugging shiny lycra like material... Also can someone identify said material... Also the other outfits were cool too. So stuff the sci fi aspect this one is on the fashions?
Liberal "new york times" is changing it opinion of the war, are democrats changing their mind too? ________________________________________ July 30, 2007 Op-Ed Contributor A War We Just Might Win By MICHAEL E. O’HANLON and KENNETH M. POLLACK Washington VIEWED from Iraq, where we just spent eight days meeting with American and Iraqi military and civilian personnel, the political debate in Washington is surreal. The Bush administration has over four years lost essentially all credibility. Yet now the administration’s critics, in part as a result, seem unaware of the significant changes taking place. Here is the most important thing Americans need to understand: We are finally getting somewhere in Iraq, at least in military terms. As two analysts who have harshly criticized the Bush administration’s miserable handling of Iraq, we were surprised by the gains we saw and the potential to produce not necessarily “victory” but a sustainable stability that both we and the Iraqis could live with. After the furnace-like heat, the first thing you notice when you land in Baghdad is the morale of our troops. In previous trips to Iraq we often found American troops angry and frustrated — many sensed they had the wrong strategy, were using the wrong tactics and were risking their lives in pursuit of an approach that could not work. Today, morale is high. The soldiers and marines told us they feel that they now have a superb commander in Gen. David Petraeus; they are confident in his strategy, they see real results, and they feel now they have the numbers needed to make a real difference. Everywhere, Army and Marine units were focused on securing the Iraqi population, working with Iraqi security units, creating new political and economic arrangements at the local level and providing basic services — electricity, fuel, clean water and sanitation — to the people. Yet in each place, operations had been appropriately tailored to the specific needs of the community. As a result, civilian fatality rates are down roughly a third since the surge began — though they remain very high, underscoring how much more still needs to be done. In Ramadi, for example, we talked with an outstanding Marine captain whose company was living in harmony in a complex with a (largely Sunni) Iraqi police company and a (largely Shiite) Iraqi Army unit. He and his men had built an Arab-style living room, where he met with the local Sunni sheiks — all formerly allies of Al Qaeda and other jihadist groups — who were now competing to secure his friendship. In Baghdad’s Ghazaliya neighborhood, which has seen some of the worst sectarian combat, we walked a street slowly coming back to life with stores and shoppers. The Sunni residents were unhappy with the nearby police checkpoint, where Shiite officers reportedly abused them, but they seemed genuinely happy with the American soldiers and a mostly Kurdish Iraqi Army company patrolling the street. The local Sunni militia even had agreed to confine itself to its compound once the Americans and Iraqi units arrived. We traveled to the northern cities of Tal Afar and Mosul. This is an ethnically rich area, with large numbers of Sunni Arabs, Kurds and Turkmens. American troop levels in both cities now number only in the hundreds because the Iraqis have stepped up to the plate. Reliable police officers man the checkpoints in the cities, while Iraqi Army troops cover the countryside. A local mayor told us his greatest fear was an overly rapid American departure from Iraq. All across the country, the dependability of Iraqi security forces over the long term remains a major question mark. But for now, things look much better than before. American advisers told us that many of the corrupt and sectarian Iraqi commanders who once infested the force have been removed. The American high command assesses that more than three-quarters of the Iraqi Army battalion commanders in Baghdad are now reliable partners (at least for as long as American forces remain in Iraq). In addition, far more Iraqi units are well integrated in terms of ethnicity and religion. The Iraqi Army’s highly effective Third Infantry Division started out as overwhelmingly Kurdish in 2005. Today, it is 45 percent Shiite, 28 percent Kurdish, and 27 percent Sunni Arab. In the past, few Iraqi units could do more than provide a few “jundis” (soldiers) to put a thin Iraqi face on largely American operations. Today, in only a few sectors did we find American commanders complaining that their Iraqi formations were useless — something that was the rule, not the exception, on a previous trip to Iraq in late 2005. The additional American military formations brought in as part of the surge, General Petraeus’s determination to hold areas until they are truly secure before redeploying units, and the increasing competence of the Iraqis has had another critical effect: no more whack-a-mole, with insurgents popping back up after the Americans leave. In war, sometimes it’s important to pick the right adversary, and in Iraq we seem to have done so. A major factor in the sudden change in American fortunes has been the outpouring of popular animus against Al Qaeda and other Salafist groups, as well as (to a lesser extent) against Moktada al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army. These groups have tried to impose Shariah law, brutalized average Iraqis to keep them in line, killed important local leaders and seized young women to marry off to their loyalists. The result has been that in the last six months Iraqis have begun to turn on the extremists and turn to the Americans for security and help. The most important and best-known example of this is in Anbar Province, which in less than six months has gone from the worst part of Iraq to the best (outside the Kurdish areas). Today the Sunni sheiks there are close to crippling Al Qaeda and its Salafist allies. Just a few months ago, American marines were fighting for every yard of Ramadi; last week we strolled down its streets without body armor. Another surprise was how well the coalition’s new Embedded Provincial Reconstruction Teams are working. Wherever we found a fully staffed team, we also found local Iraqi leaders and businessmen cooperating with it to revive the local economy and build new political structures. Although much more needs to be done to create jobs, a new emphasis on microloans and small-scale projects was having some success where the previous aid programs often built white elephants. In some places where we have failed to provide the civilian manpower to fill out the reconstruction teams, the surge has still allowed the military to fashion its own advisory groups from battalion, brigade and division staffs. We talked to dozens of military officers who before the war had known little about governance or business but were now ably immersing themselves in projects to provide the average Iraqi with a decent life. Outside Baghdad, one of the biggest factors in the progress so far has been the efforts to decentralize power to the provinces and local governments. But more must be done. For example, the Iraqi National Police, which are controlled by the Interior Ministry, remain mostly a disaster. In response, many towns and neighborhoods are standing up local police forces, which generally prove more effective, less corrupt and less sectarian. The coalition has to force the warlords in Baghdad to allow the creation of neutral security forces beyond their control. In the end, the situation in Iraq remains grave. In particular, we still face huge hurdles on the political front. Iraqi politicians of all stripes continue to dawdle and maneuver for position against one another when major steps towards reconciliation — or at least accommodation — are needed. This cannot continue indefinitely. Otherwise, once we begin to downsize, important communities may not feel committed to the status quo, and Iraqi security forces may splinter along ethnic and religious lines. How much longer should American troops keep fighting and dying to build a new Iraq while Iraqi leaders fail to do their part? And how much longer can we wear down our forces in this mission? These haunting questions underscore the reality that the surge cannot go on forever. But there is enough good happening on the battlefields of Iraq today that Congress should plan on sustaining the effort at least into 2008.
What has become of our society when articles like this one are published on yahoo, and in vapid magazines? Things Not to Get Your Sweetie for Valentine's Day Posted Wed, Feb 06, 2008, 11:45 am PST POST A COMMENT » Valentine's Day is almost upon us. For help navigating the chaos, we went to those smart, witty and oh-so-cute girls at DailyCandy.com who keep us in the know on all things fashion, food, and fun. Dany Levy, founder of the free daily email delivering the insider scoop on the latest and greatest in 12 cities nationwide, shares her thoughts on what NOT to get your lovey-dovey this season. For Him: 1. Avoid soaps, lotions, potions, anything that smells like candy. Unless it's actually candy. 2. Flowers. He just doesn't understand why you would buy him something that he has to a) nurture and b) nurture. If you simply must, a cactus might pass--but remember, he wants a gift that can take care of itself. 3. Unfun tools. Yeah, he gets it. You want him to shovel the snow. Do not buy him a shovel to drive the point home. (Large noisemaking power tools excluded.) 4. Dinner. It's a blatant cop-out. Saving him the 80 bucks does not a romantic gesture make. A gift should come in a box. (Unless it is a kitty or a pup, which are other things you should not get him. See rule #2). 5. An electric razor. If he wanted one, he would have bought it for himself (and of all the gadgets, this is not likely one he's coveting). Ask yourself: Do you want him to buy you a razor? 6. Boxer shorts. To men, they're truly utilitarian. No frills. No styles. (Same goes for socks.) 7. A tie. Dude, he's not your dad. So unless you plan to tie him up with it and give him his real present, ditch the old standard. For Her: 1. Anything that even remotely implies that she is not physically perfect: gym memberships, Botox, diet plan subscriptions, self help books and the like. 2. A bathing suit. Unless it comes with a trip to the Bahamas, she does not want your input on this personal matter. What's more, you're likely to give her an anxiety attack when she thinks about trying it on (especially after the great binge/food fest with the in-laws that were the Holidays 2007). 3. Toys. Women usually do not want video games. We might occasionally like to kick your butt in Wii, but that does not mean we want Street Fighter II (or whatever game it is you're playing). Also, your avatar is lame. 4. Homemade coupons. Whether they're for dish duty, garbage duty, dinner, or something else, she's not likely to be impressed. Did your high school girlfriend even use hers? 5. A gift certificate. Step it up with something a little more personal--unless it's for 300 dollars and you can't wait to take her to the store and shop. All. Day. 6. Food. Unless you're the Iron Chef or Francois Payard, skip anything home-baked. When her friends ask what you got her for V-day, she does not want to have to regurgitate. Literally. 7. A magazine subscription. Bo-ring. 8. Tickets to the "big game." Hate to break it to you, but when she said she loved football, she was lying. Save the sports stuff for your buddies. 9. A DVD box set of your favorite show. You've both already seen every episode. It will just accumulate dust with the rest of the collection. 10. Same goes for CDs. Hello, iTunes. 11. Appliances. Every man has made this guffaw. Just because she says, "I need a new vacuum" does not mean you should buy her a vacuum. 12. Any gift you once bought for an ex-girlfriend. She will find out--and punish you. Does that sound like a Happy Valentine's Day to you?
Is this any good?/novel? BETTER THE DEVIL YOU KNOW Chapter 1 Wow, that was some story thought Joan as she placed the paperback onto the coffee table. The novel, Chick Lit, was not really intended for her age group, mid sixties, but she’d thoroughly enjoyed it, and why not? The elderly were just teenagers in old skin. Joan sat back on the shiny, leather sofa and sipped her coffee. Sparked off by the contents of the book, she reflected on the fifty years she deemed wasted on two dead leg husbands. Jeez, that’s half a century! The first, fat, flawed and futile, the second and current one, well, yes, the second and current one… She lit a cigarette, drew heavily on it and made her mind up there and then that she was going to get a life, not just any old life, a young life, a sort of Chick Lit life, a life she’d missed out on all those years ago. Three kids before ones twenty first birthday had been far from a good starting point. Joan hadn’t been in love with him but a sexual ‘experiment’ had led to an unwanted pregnancy and society at that time made sure there were to be no single mothers. A man-child for a so called husband and an even worse mother-in-law, the type you could gladly drop into an acid bath so all trace had gone, well except for dentures. She glanced at the calendar and pondered on a date from when her new life should begin. But where to begin? Botox, Crystal-blast, Face-lift? I need something. It’s ok to think chick but when your skin thinks hen…there’s more lines on it than a Rhode Island road map. Dvorak’s Humoresque belted out from the phone and penetrated Joan’s thoughts. ‘Help the aged,’ she answered. ‘Hi, it’s me.’ ‘Jules! I was going to ring you but I thought you’d still be zedding it. How’d it go?’ Joan perked up at the sound of her best friend’s voice, and then realised, that her voice sounded wary. ‘You’re not going to like this Joan, are you sitting comfortably?’ For Jules to say that, the news had to be big. Joan leant against the arm of a chair. ‘Go on, what happened?’ ‘She’s blonde, tubby… and wait for it…about twenty five years old.’ Joan was silent for a moment. So it was true beyond a doubt, Pete had a bit on the side. She slid down the arm of the chair to the seat. Maybe Jules had seen the evidence, but Joan herself hadn’t. ‘Get her address?’ ‘Yeah, rough district, look, I’ll come across and we can chat at length. Ok?’ Joan replaced the receiver and went to the drinks cabinet. At least she’s fat. She mused. Selecting the most expensive red, she uncorked it and poured a large, no, a very large glass. Her friend liked red too, as she always said, ‘at our age it’s good for the old arteries.’ Jules arrived in her brand new Smart car; it had made a good disguise the previous evening for tracking Peter, Joan’s husband. ‘I suspected some time ago he was playing around Jules, although, really I can’t imagine who’d fancy a clapped out eighty two year old. He’s recently invested in some new Y-fronts too, what sort of woman shags a man who wears Y-Fronts? The mind boggles.’ The second bottle of red was having a pleasant couldn’t-care-less attitude on Joan’s grey matter. She giggled along with Jules imagining Pete getting his leg over. ‘Perhaps he makes a better sugar-granddaddy than a sugar-daddy,’ she laughed. For all the mirth, Jules could see a deep sadness behind her friend’s eyes. Pals from school days they’d stuck together over the years. They’d become more like sisters than their own sisters. ‘This isn’t the first woman Pete’s shagged but this time I want facts, enough’s enough. besides, this new sex-on-legs-cow’s had a profound effect on him.’ Basically a kind person, in recent years he’d become retaliative, sarcastic and decidedly cold in his manner towards her. ‘In the early years my ‘fiery’ nature turned him on and he even admitted that to this end he sometimes goaded me! What really bugs me as well, he used to love the way I flounced off when we rowed, he loved watching my long, dark hair swinging about. Now, he says I’m aggressive or I need anger therapy, cheeky sod, he obviously thinks silver hair isn’t good enough for him. Jeez, he doesn’t even have looks. Mind you, he has some charm and a good sense of humour.’ ‘Joan, you’re getting morose, have another glass.’ Jules uncorked another bottle. ‘The only saving grace in all this is that he’s fifteen years older then you.’ ‘And?’ ‘Well, odds are that he’ll die before you.’ Joan held her head back and laughed, it was a long drawn out belly-laugh. ‘Don’t make me laugh; he’s like a fucking robot. Do you know the only thing wrong with him is that he’s got a corn?’ She laughed out loud again then gulped her wine. She became morose again. ‘Do you know what the experts say in the scientific world? They say if one is fit by the age of eighty, there’s no reason, as to why one won’t reach ninety.’ She began to sob. ‘I can’t go another shite decade with him’ ‘The booze is making you miserable Joan. You know, it’s not all it’s cracked up to be, being a widow. Ones income’s halved for starters.’ ‘You’re right, I’m always bloody moaning, aren’t I? The only thing is, in ten years time, I don’t want to be sitting here wishing I’d got a life, and just crocheting antimacassars. Anyway what do you think of this idea?’ Joan lit yet another fag. ‘Let’s have a bite to eat and a nice black coffee first, don’t forget I have to drive home.’ ‘Good idea.’ She glanced at the clock, ‘Pete’ll be at least another hour yet.’ Whilst they both tucked in to ham sandwiches and sipped black coffee, Joan explained a few ideas she’d come up with to enhance both hers and Jules’ lives. Her friend listened intently, eyes widening from time to time. ‘I’ll get back home now and I promise that I’ll have a good think about what we’ve discussed.’ The two women bade their goodbyes and Jules drove off, back to her bungalow a few miles away. Joan tidied up the lounge then washed the dishes. She liked everything to be neat and tidy. The bungalow was a new build when they had bought it. Three bedrooms, a large lounge, the kitchen wasn’t small either. The gardens front, back and side were extensive and over the years the many plants and shrubs they had planted together now gave the garden a colourful, mature look. Joan’s favourite spot was where the swing seat was positioned. Under a pagoda, covered with purple and white Clematis, it gave shelter from the hottest sun and a peaceful haven away from neighbours prying eyes. She was proud of her achievements for someone stemming from a childhood of poverty; you’ve not done bad lass. She often told herself. She heard Pete coming in after his visit to his daughter’s, well, after his night of passion rather. ‘Hi,’ she greeted him all smiles. ‘Hi,’ was his response. ‘Have a nice evening?’ She continued dusting the furniture, trying to be as nonchalant as possible. ‘Oh, it was ok, she wasn’t well enough to make us a meal so I went out for a take-away.’ Oh, yeah, a blonde-tubby-about-twenty-five-year-old one, she wanted to say but desisted. ‘When she feels better, she wants me to take her to her old school friend’s for a weekend, she lives in Newcastle.’ ‘That’ll be nice for you both,’ said with just a tad of sarcasm. ‘You don’t mind, do you?’ Pete side glanced at Joan and waited for her reaction. ‘Who? Me? I’ve never restricted your movements, of course I don’t mind.’ Great stuff, she thought, now my plans can come into being, how could he moan about me travelling now? Ha. She laughed to herself, some men are so stupid. Pete went off into his study, no doubt reliving the night of passion he’d had with his lover and dreaming about the forthcoming weekend with the slag. Joan continued with the housework whilst plotting her new life, well, he was being economical with the truth and what’s good enough for the goose is good enough for the gander, but in this case surely that should be what’s good enough for the gander is good enough for the goose. Who wrote these proverbs? Dvorak’s Humoresque rang out. ‘Orphaned widows,’ she answered. It was her friend Mo, crying down the phone, should she get a divorce from her lying, cheating husband. Jeez, that’s all I need. Why can’t others deal with their own nightmares? I’ve got plenty of my own to be going on with thanks. Mo’d found a packet of condoms again in the pocket of his best suit. Think yourself lucky he’s got the sense to use ‘em, she wanted to say but thought it too cruel. The husband in question was six feet four, drop-dead-gorgeous and had women just drooling and dropping at his feet. Joan had wondered how long it’d be before he strayed when he took Mo to the registrars…well, it was her third marriage, (church was out of the question) but at least the ceremonies had been that close together, Joan had been able to wear the same outfit for each one. ‘Best not to worry Mo, why don’t you go out and go mad with his credit card.? That’s good therapy.’ ‘You’re right Joan; I’ve seen a gorgeous leather coat and boots I like.’ ‘Good, hurt his pocket. I’ll see you next week then.’ Joan replaced the receiver. Women just can’t win. Here’s an ugly old fool shagging around and there’s a handsome young fool doing the very same. Or was it the women? Why do women shag others husbands? Sex with Pete that night was as boring as ever even though she suspected he was practicing various methods to try when screwing his tart. Besides Joan had other things on her mind, she had dinner to cook tomorrow for four friends…vegetarian friends. What the hell can I make? Pete turned her over. Perhaps a Soya spag bol could be the answer. Where to get Soya though? Pete’s hand was wandering. I could get some humus and tortillas, yes, that’d be nice as a starter. Pete was reaching his climax now. Jeez, planning dinner for four is damned harder than having sex. The following evening, Joan served up the spaghetti bolognaise. It had been simple to make and she was most impressed with the taste of the Soya meat. Pete poured out the wine for their friends. Joan had a head start on the others; she’d partaken of a few glasses whilst preparing dinner. The strange mixture of characters seated themselves at the table. Sebastian and wife Isabel, not their real names but they liked the sound of them. Both retired civil servants they were quite boring and staid. Joan had thought long ago that their real names were probably Cyril and Ethel or the likes. John and Anne, real names, he was great fun and an extravert, how he came to be married to her was always a mystery to Joan. He was still quite shaggable. John was a lawyer; she was a barmaid when they met. She sure knew what she was doing having got pregnant a couple of weeks later. They had more money than sense. Nevertheless, they were good fun and Joan liked them both, she sat with her guests. ‘Help yourselves to Parmesan and get stuck in.’ ‘So, what are your plans for this summer, each and all?’ asked John. ‘Jules and me are going for a month to a nudist complex in Jamaica,’ she blurted out. The others didn’t know whether to believe her and reacted with guffaws. ‘I’m serious. Then we plan on going to Bali for a further month, lots of nightlife there apparently.’ ‘I’ve always wanted to try nudism,’ offered Sebastian. ‘You’ve never mentioned that.’ Isabel looked horrified. Joan viewed Seb from the corner of her eye, hmm, more to him than he lets on. Dark Horse, eh? ‘When was all this arranged then?’ Pete’s eyes flared. Oh here we go; there’ll be a few days of sulky silence now, the cheeky two-timing bastard, don’t get mad…get everything Joan, she smiled back at him. ‘Oh, it’s not been arranged yet, me and Jules were just talking about it, when you were at your…’ ‘I would never go anywhere without John.’ Anne butted in. Joan sipped her wine and eyed up John this time, I bet you wouldn’t, now if my husband was as gorgeous as him…..’More garlic bread anyone?’ ‘Why don’t we all go to Jamaica?’ John took the proffered bread. ‘Sounds great fun.’ Joan bit into a chunk of bread, yeah, right; your wife’d look gorgeous nude….not. Anne was at least eighteen stones but only five feet two. She’d had a weight problem as long as Joan could think back, well a stuffing-your-face-with-food problem more like. She had a copycat problem too, constantly clocking the clothes Joan wore and racing down to the shops to buy duplicates. This amused Joan greatly and took it as a compliment. Sometimes and just for devilment, she would tell Anne a different shop to where she’d bought her clobber and watch her friend’s frustration when she couldn’t find replicas. Even if she did, there was no way they ever looked as good on her as on the five feet ten, slender Joan. ‘I need a facelift or something before I travel, either of you tried that crystal-blasting treatment?’ Anne looked indignant, ‘My skin doesn’t need any treatment whatsoever, and I haven’t even got any wrinkles yet.’ Oh yes you do, it’s just that the fat puffs your face out, wrinkles with it. Joan smirked to herself. Lose ten stone and your skin’d look like a bloody pachyderm’s. ‘Yes, you have beautiful skin,’ commented Isabel. ‘For her age,’ quipped John at which Anne’s face became decidedly ugly. John’s and Joan’s eyes met, she quickly looked away and bit on a gherkin to stop her bursting into laughter. That would have been the end of her and Anne. The trouble with Anne was that if she wasn’t the centre of attraction, she wasn’t playing but this sort of attention wasn’t the type intended. Joan waited for her to explode and wasn’t disappointed. ‘You’re a shit a friggin’ shit. Do you know that?’ Isabel blushed to the roots of her hair and chomped on a gherkin. These gherkins were coming in handy. Seb looked at his watch. John didn’t react; he was as used to these outbursts as were the hosts. There were a few moments silence. ‘We’re going to the Festival Hall next weekend,’ announced Seb. ‘What’s on?’ Pete asked. ‘A Beethoven concert, it should be excellent.’ ‘Indeed,’ said John. A conversation about the classics ensued. Anne went into a sulk but Joan was accustomed to that and knew that she would soon ‘come round’. Apart from the one fracas the evening went well and it was three am before the guests left. John had still seemed keen on the nudist holiday, as did Seb but Joan didn’t want any hangers-on, not at the launch of her new life. Pete’s hands began to wander. Oh, no, puh-lease not at this time in the morning, does he never stop it? This time there was no dinner for four to plan so she lay back and thought of her session at the gym and pool the next day. The four friends relaxed in the Jacuzzi, a white wine each. This was their time to be together once a week; an hour in the gym followed by forty lengths in the pool and then a dip into the hot bubbling water for a natter. Privately owned the complex was luxurious never crowded and suited the quartet perfectly. Anne was still reeling from the night before, ‘I’m going to really go mad with the credit card now,’ she sipped her wine. ‘Not another Prada bag, how many’s that you’ve got?’ asked Brenda. ‘Do I give a shit? I’ll buy matching shoes an’ all.’ ‘He was only joking Anne,’ said Joan. ‘Yeah, well I’m teaching him not to give sly digs even in jest.’ ‘Why, what did he say?’ Brenda leaned forward; she liked nothing better than a bit of gossip and others’ disharmony with one another. ‘He implied that I looked alright for my age.’ Jules glanced at Joan and they both smirked. Anne lacked self esteem and they all recognised this, it did get tiresome sometimes though, always trying to reassure her that she was a loved and treasured friend. She had more clothes in her possession than the whole of Debenham’s put together, or should that be Christian Dior or the likes, only exclusive stuff was good enough for Anne. ‘Have you seen Newbloom’s new range?’ asked Brenda enthusiastically. ‘They’ve got some gorgeous tops in.’ ‘I haven’t been in recently,’ replied Joan. Newbloom wasn’t her style but did agree that the stuff was enough to pay for fashion items that were out of style within weeks. Brenda didn’t look nice in anything, at sixty four, she’d no fashion sense but none of the others had the heart to tell her. Today she’d mixed a trendy top with a 1970s skirt, and a pair of 1980s shoes. The top as usual was way too young for her and bordered on the ridiculous, she preferred sleeveless too and Joan thought there was nothing worse than having wrinkled old arms on display. Brenda and husband were vastly rich and so she got away with any look according to her, and not giving a damn for what anyone thought. ‘Anyway, I’m more interested in face treatment at the mo,’ said Joan. ‘A friend of mine has just had that…that…er, is it crystal-blasting or something?’ ‘Round here, Brenda?’ Joan was keen to find out. ‘No, in London somewhere.’ ‘Fancy a trip to London Jules?’ Joan and her friend chuckled. ‘I’m up for anything these days,’ she replied. ‘I’ll come with you an’ all.’ ‘You said last night that you’d never go anywhere without John.’ ‘I know but that were last night and I’d had a few jars,’ Anne sipped her wine. ‘Any road, I’ll be able to shop at Harrods, that’ll piss him off.’ The four left the complex and went to the nearby pub for lunch and to discuss their plans for a weekend in London. Mysteris...don't you ever read books????????!!!!!!!!!!
Does this explain all the vague points and secrets about Iran to you? I believe that if you spend 10 minutes reading this essay, you will be better informed than if you listen to a lifetime's worth of Major Media news. This article has two parts: 1. Cultural and general info 2. Political info. Note: I've explained everything.Any answers before reading the whole thing will prove to be wrong.Specially the political part.I've provided evidence for whatever I say.It's just the way it is. **** Part 1: Cultural and general info Hi. I'm a 19 year old Iranian who has spent his life in Iran.I study English.When I chat with people from other countries, I am shocked to see how totally wrong their ideas are about Iran. I wrote this article in an attempt to help correct those ideas.Fisrt some interesting things: A few months ago Iran uncovered the most effective anti-H.I.V medicine. I searched for news of that on the internet, but there was no single sign of it.Now, I found it among the English news: "The medicine is produced from herbs using nano technology" The link to read about it is: http://www.payvand.com/news/07/feb/1032.html The Media are unjust. They never talk about facts! Some interesting facts: Iran is a pioneer in medicine and genetics, and Iranian surgeons have found lots of new methods for treating spinal defects, and many diseases (mainly the treatment for different types of cancer) and the best brain and heart surgeons are Iranian.The pioneer in heart transplants and artificiall hearts, "artificial vessels" using nano-technology (Reported a few days ago) and so on and so! (I've put two websites below) The head of the Mars Mission in NASA is Iranian. One of the best designers of sports cars working in Germany is Iranian. Some of the best 3D animators are Iranian. Iran is one of the best countries in counter-engineering. Holds the second place in building dams and in loads of other things! It's one of the top countries in bio-technology and nano-technology. The 4th highest tower in the world (Milad tower) is in Tehran (visit it at this link from wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Milad.jpg ) 51 of the top 100 universities in the Mid-East are in Iran, and they're among the top universities of the world as well. The champion weight-lifter, a woman the nobel peace prize are Iranian. The 6th top movie director in the world is Iranian.(Abbas Kiarostami) http://arts.guardian.co.uk/fridayreview/story/0,12102,1084266,00.html These are just small samples.If the media told you about Iran's achievemens everyday and didn't hide them, your news would be full of Iranian news!Iranian girls are famous for being terrific. We have Persian rugs and Persian literature, many Persian poets, artists and scientists that are world famous. Iranian culture is now westernized and only a little of the ancient culture has survived. According to statistics Tehran is the cheapest capital city in the world (one Dollar =about 950 Tomans) There are many other things. How many pages would you need to describe a country? Iran has nearly all the industries and technologies found in 'developed' countries. Oh, and we have four seasons! We get a lot of snow and there are skating rinks! lol The list is endless. I'm gonna introduce Iran's international news website to you (Press TV) which was established recently. It's fully in English. In the "Sic / Tech" section you'll always see Iran's discoveries. The address is: http://www.presstv.ir/news.aspx Press TV news: Iranian scientists have registered more than 4800 inventions during the last Iranian calendar year of 1385 (April 21 2006-April 20, 2007). 4800 inventions in just one year! The list of highly-respected Iranian scientists and engineers in the world: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modern_Iranian_scientists_and_engineers#T The list of notable Iranian figures and pioneers: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contemporary_Medicine_in_Iran An extract: Iranian medical community is a significant part of medical community in US and Europe Enough evidence? Some people think Iran is a desert! Well, it is, if you consider California a desert. We share the same latitude. Iran is a modern country with breathtakingly beautiful nature and lots of historic places to visit. Please take a look at the following links to see if Iran looks like what you think or not! This is a photo of Tehran (Awesome, Isn't it?): http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Tehran-2-1600.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tehran If you like you can visit these too, hundreds of pretty photos from the cities, nature and historic places: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Hills_south_west_of_Sanandaj_near_the_village_of_Kilaneh.jpg http://www.pbase.com/k_amj/throughout_iran&page=all http://www.pbase.com/k_amj/throughout_iran&page=2 http://www.pbase.com/k_amj/throughout_iran&page=3 http://www.bigsoccer.com:80/forum/showthread.php?t=199709&page=4 http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=199709&page=3 http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=199709&page=13 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran Some people think music is forbidden in Iran. "Music of Iran and Iranian musicians have received countless awards in the course of history. Every year from 1977 to 2007.Evidence? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_of_Iran I send Iranian music to my American and Canadian chat friends and they all say they're some of the best songs they've ever heard. Here's a sample of the latest hits from two official Iranian music websites.You can just right click on the links below and choose "Save Target As" to download them. Iranian music is just modern pop which is based on electronic stuff.Experience how awsome music can be produced by electronic Trance drums instead of DJ music! 1.(You know this: 2007) http://download.bia2music.com/Music/Irani/Top33/128/Neorin%20-%20To%20Ino%20Miduni.mp3 2.(Hold my hand: 2007) http://www.sarzaminmp3.com/Sarzaminmusic/Persian/128KB/Mansour%20-%20Beautiful/09_%20Dastamo%20Begir.mp3 3.(The wetness of your eyes: 2006) http://download.bia2music.com/Music/Irani/Top33/128/Ehsan%20Gheibi%20-%20Khisie%20Cheshmat.mp3 4.(I just want you: 2003) http://download.bia2music.com/Music/Irani/Mansour/Crazy/Delam%20Faghat%20Toro%20Mikhaad(www.Bia2Music.com).MP3 5.(The rain: 2007) http://download.bia2music.com/Music/Irani/Siavash%20Ghomayshi/Sunset%20to%20Sunrise/64/Siavash%20Ghomayshi%20-%20Sunset%20to%20Sunrise%20-%2005%20Baroon%20(www.Bia2Music.com).wma 6.(The window: 2005) http://www.sarzamin.org/Sarzaminmusic/Persian/128KB/Siavash%20Ghomayshi/03_%20Panjereh.mp3 7.(Keep me in your memory: 2005) http://www.sarzamin.org/Sarzaminmusic/Persian/128KB/Siavash%20Ghomayshi/07_%20Yaade%20Man%20Baash.mp3 8.(Farangis "A female name" 2007) http://download.bia2music.com/Music/Irani/Siavash%20Ghomayshi/Sunset%20to%20Sunrise/64/Siavash%20Ghomayshi%20-%20Sunset%20to%20Sunrise%20-%2001%20Farangis%20(www.Bia2Music.com).wma 9.(The distance: 2007) http://www.sarzaminsong.com/Sarzaminmusic/Persian/128KB/Siavash%20Ghomayshi%20-%20Sunset%20to%20Sunrise/03_%20Faseleh.mp3 10.(Sunrise: 2007) http://www.sarzaminsong.com/Sarzaminmusic/Persian/128KB/Siavash%20Ghomayshi%20-%20Sunset%20to%20Sunrise/04_%20Tolou.mp3 11.(Stop world:2006) http://www.sarzaminmusic.com/Sarzaminmusic/Persian/128KB/Reza%20Sadeghi%20-%20Vaysa%20Donya/01_%20Vaysa%20Donya.mp3 12.(You can't: 2007) http://www.sarzaminmp3.com/Sarzaminmusic/Persian/128KB/Mansour%20-%20Beautiful/06_%20Nemitooni.mp3 And so on and on! The first thing the West accuses our government of is that we don't allow personal freedoms. Actually, Iranians disobey laws they don't like as much as anyone.There are only a few restrictions.It's cool over here. People here do whatever they wish to! Many strict rules in other countries don't even exist in Iran. Also, you should understand that what may seem so normal to you, may be a nightmare for us and vise versa.Some of Iran's laws are based on OUR culture. You look at our country from "your own point of view"! In Iran most houses have a sattelite dish. Sattelite television has a serious influence on our people, and Iranians wear very fashionable clothing. Maybe it is a kind of imitation, but we still have our own unique Iranian style. A visitor might wonder if this is a country or a fantasy pageant of beauty queens! Make-up and fashionable clothing are everywhere.I ignore a few fuddy-duddies though! In my view, everything is great, if you ignore unemployment, drugs, inflation and air pollution. Also, you can't compare Iran today with the Iran you remember. The Shah and the Iatollah Khomini are both some 30 years in the past! 70% of Iran's population is a new generation (Under age 30) without the biases of the past and we've transformed everything. Ever heard Iranian girls are terrific?I've collected some photos showing Iranian girls! Look! Poeple are like this! http://www.salijoon.ir/bazigar/hedye%20tehrani/30nema4251159.JPG http://www.30nema.com/images/gallery/30nema4252403.jpg http://i10.tinypic.com/4clk3us.jpg http://tinypic.com/2d0nfao.jpg Is that enough?! Some people think women don't have any rights in Iran. But in my view, women are overrunning the place. They're very respectful, and they've been the winners in so many cases: Most of them get into the best universities because they're very smart. And they get the best jobs because of their high university degrees. They've got Islamic rights, and that has in some cases made it difficult for men to marry them, because husbands are supposed to buy them expensive things and treat them very well, otherwise women have the right to ask a great amount of money (called Mehr) according to the law, which most husbands cannot afford, so men will be imprisoned.The only thing that women are not allowed to do in Iran is getting into public football stadiums and that's because such places are full of cheeky guys. They do anything from taking part in rallies to singing pop songs.Anything! I've put a sample here. Another funny thing: Your footage about stoning the women who have committed adultery. Have you ever asked yourselves how many years ago that footage related to? But in one case the thing that had happened was incest not adultery. Most of those footages relate to the early days just after Iran's revolution! Otherwise you'd get new footages at least once a month!What exactly makes you think women are treated differently?The way they are treated in Saudi Arabia? Try to think of the racism in your country too.I found a BOOK of the U.S problems and it got me dizzy! Iran has its own problems too. Each country has its own problems. I know the freedom of speech in political field is so limited here, but does that really affect ordinary people? Those who are not involved in politics? You give me some dark examples which I already know of, but that doesn't mean Iran is not a good country.I can give you a long list of the violation of human rights in all countries not just here. http://web.amnesty.org/report2006/usa-summary-eng It's like MERELY talking about Guantanamo and C.I.A's secret prisons and some unjustified death penalties in the U.S, but does all that mean Americans don't have good lives? Certainly not. America is a great place.Please don't look at everything from one dimention.There's so much to see. Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan are --------- SEPERATE COUNTRIES! --------- Even within Iran, 60% of us are Persian and 30% are Turkish! Iran is a normal country like any other in the world. The Media are very good at creating really scary stuff: "IRAN BEHIND THE CLOSED DOORS!!!" "IRAN UNDERCOVER!!!" Some of that garbage would be enough to scare ME away! But in truth, Iranians are far more open-minded than you have been led to believe. There are lots of Iranians today who are geniuses and scientists, and are all under age 25. For instance a 17 year old boy has invented 72 amazing inventions. Every year a special scientific compeition is held here and students assemble to show off hundreds of inventions. Iranian students and sportsmen win gold and silver medals in different competitions in the world all the time, in robotics, biology, maths, physics, sports, anything! Why don't the Media talk about them? Please don't summarize our nation and culture with the single word "nuclear". Although we're proud of this achievement because we believe that having nuclear energy means that a country is developed. It's now 2007 and most people still think we are uneducated people living in deserts and riding camels! Part 2: Political info. Let's clarify some political issues as well: Some of the Americans think that president Ahmadinejad hates the U.S and Israel and wants to nuke them!! The Media are good at putting lying comments out there. I really don't get the point why our politicians defame themselves by talking about things that have got nothing to do with us. The thing is that they occasionally make some statements that the media would make them controversial topics to interest its viewers! For example they pick up some specific phrases of a long speech (without refering to the main points and reasons for that speech) and put so many bad comments on that. First of all, Iranians don't hate anyone.We hate neither Jews nor Americans. How would our guys dream of America, want to be like them as much as possible, and hate them at the same time?! The truth us that Iranians are the only people in the Mid-East that are pro-American! Being agaisnt the U.S policies is a different story! We live basically the same lives.Don't look at the way women dress in public places! You've got to see them in other places!I've got to say that for Iran, Israel is not equal with Jews! Israel is a gov't. Jews are faithful people! 20,000 Jews and lots of Christians live here equally with Iranians and two of Iran's parliment members are Jews. Who says we want to force others to convert to Islam? Have you ever found a Moslem knocking at your door asking you to do so? Christians and Jews are both God-believers and respectful to us. I wonder who Iran is really a threat to. Is it logical to say someone's guilty because we THINK / PREDICT that he's going to do something wrong? And they repeat the same "nuclear weapons" tosh over and over and brainwash people! Correction! It's "nuclear energy". Besides, how many "nuclear weapons" do they have themselves? Hundreds of thousands? Has Iran ever attacked any countries? No. Has it developed any nukes? No! That's what nuclear agency says. Only Iran's opponents are pulling Iran's leg and what they say is just based on political conflicts. What we're doing is legal. Iran is a peaceful country. Why? It's the regional super-power and if she wanted, she could easily invade the countries in our neibourhood just like what Saddam did to our country, but as you see Iran has peaceful relations with all of them. Some people say he said: Israel should be wiped off the map! the thing is that he exactly said: "The Imam "Khomeyni" said this regime occupying Jerusalem must vanish from the page of time."They've only told you this phrase not the whole thing and it's mistranslated intentionally. Besides, they've been saying such things for a long time.It's their habit.Here's an article."Wiped off the map....The roumor of the century.Read how the media and the U.S newspapers have twisted it into a controvertioal topic. http://www.antiwar.com/orig/norouzi.php?articleid=11025 Now you see that you were wrong.Iran has always defended itself, but it's not an offensive country. Some say he's said: "The Holocaust is a myth!" Again, this is a single phrase taken from a long speech and there are totally logical reasons for saying so. If 6,000,000 Jews were killed, that's terrible, but 300,000 Shiite Moslems killed by Saddam aren't important at all? Over 650,000 Iraqi people are killed and that's not important?! When Fox News simply says that America and Israel are capable of destroying and killing Iran's population of 69,000,000 within two weeks, it's OK and no one says they're threatening other countries to nuke them (I saw this with my own eyes on the Fox News website) Millions of people killed in Afghanistan, Hiroshima & Nagasaki and the Vietnam war are not considered human beings at all! And that they misuse this event to justify their atrocities towards Palestinian people.Do they ever show you how they get into houses and open fire on innocent children, women and oldmen? Do they? It's funny that they're portrayed as the good guys while anyone trying to stand up against them (For example Palestinians whose land is OCCUPIED by Israel) are labled terrorist / insurgent /etc etc.Did you know the reason for that? Because many American politicians are Israeli Jews and that's why your media is pro-Israeli and anti-Moslem and that's why they never tell you the truth and portray a distorted picture of anything Islamic.Now I think you'd get the point why he's IRONICALLY said it's a myth. Moreover, don't you believe in freedom of speech/mind? Also, I see some people using the two terms "Jihad" and "Infidel" to insult Islam.I'll tell you what they mean: Jihad: An Arabic word meaning "effort".It means defending your country when it's attacked by the enemy or serving your country in any way (i.e by teaching, curing, helping others etc etc) Infidel: An old fashioned Arabic word which reffers to the tribe of Qureysh which lived 1400 years ago and fought prophet Mohammad.It doesn't mean non-Moslem, athiest etc etc.(I checked the English dictionary and it gives totally wrong definitions for both terms) Some countries are using Iran as a scapegoat to put the blame (for their own faults) on. This part is just for Americans: Those of you who say why Iran says "Death to America": 1. 'America' to us means the U.S govt, not the people. How do you expect Iranians to mean "American people" when our media admires Americans for marching and holding up "no war" placards?! Also, I see a lot of "Let's nuke Iran"s on YA.Isn't that a kind of "Death to Iran"? 2. The new generation don't say such things and if some of them occasionally march in the streets that's because some of the stupid guys enjoy making noise and they mainly go out there to meet their girlfriends/boyfriends! Strange. Isn't it? 3. Such mottos are not just said in Iran and as you know whatever you hear is a response to the U.S govt's terrible actions which has made life for many people hell (You wouldn't deny that attacking countries is a mistake. Would you?) 4. U.S. companies assistance in developing Iraq's chemical weapons facilities during the Iran-Iraq war which killed over a million Iranians 5. USS Vincennes shooting down Iran Air Flight 655 with many civilian fatalities 6.U.S. Support for anti-Iranian terrorist organisations (i.e. the MKO); 7. Economic damage caused by U.S. sanctions and political pressure; U.S. UAV overflights over Iran violating Iranian airspace since 2003. When you call Ahmadinejad a nutcase for what he's said, what do you call Bush for his war crimes? To those who are upset with American hostages taken for 444 days: 1. Firstly, It's related to so many years ago and it's almost a part of history, and don't forget that when there's a revolution, there'd be chaos and people may do things that they should not, moreover they're all alive and healthy. Aren't they? 2.The U.S has arrested Iranian diplomats in Iraq and had tortured the one who was freed. Now you decide who has the right to be upset with whom. How do you believe in their lies about politics when they hide both the most and the least important things from you considering the fact that politics is the world of lies in its nature?!!! If you like to insist on your theory of attacking Israel, I'll tell you our logical theory: "The moment that Iran attacks Israel, Iran will be wiped off the face of the earth by the U.S and its allies and Iran is far more logical than doing such a stupid thing" So, forget about it.I'm quite sure you know that all the events and lies in the world are a part of a pre-planned scenario by major world-powers (Iran as an important country has always been a part of their plans)And the first step is to brainwash people.They excactly know what will happen even 50 years later! I think Iraq is such a good example.Attacking it with the excuse of removing Saddam while they'd put Saddam there themselves and had supported him for years! They said they had W.M.Ds and you believed them.Now they say Iran (a member of N.P.T) has nukes / is developing nukes and you believe them wilhe the nuclear agency hasn't found any sign of illegal activities.Time to wake up! Isn't it better for both countries to forget past conflicts and to have peaceful relations? Our two gov'ts are like 10 year old children playing a stupid, harsh, rhetorical game. They don't care about hurting people's feelings. They just try to make our two peoples enemies to achieve their own goals. We, as the people of these countries, MUST NOT allow these conflics into our hearts. Now, what do you think? I can't wait to see both nations in peace. It'd be marvelous! Did you find my article informative? : ) Thanks for your time Look Brayn I know what you say, but this is being prejudice.Assuming that Iran is after nukes (It's not) it's not illegal.As you see Israel posesses 200 nuclear warheads illegally.If you explain it on this logic that it needs them to defend itself, then Iran too needs something to prevent others from attacking it and as you see many countries are after attacking it and that's all because of taking the control of it's enery resources.In one word: All these wars are because of oil.Fighting against terrorism and stuff are exuses to justify their actions. to pointless: Read the plitical part.Obviouse;y you all answer this question without reading it, so your answers are prejudice.Besides Iran has co-operated I.A.E.A too much.The U.S and some British countries don't get satisfied and talk nonsense, so Iran would retaliate it by lessening its co-operation.Also, if you've read the news recently, Iran allows their agents to come and visit its facilities and I.A.E.A's cameras are all over the place.Isn't that called making confidence?
Funny quotes!! Truer words never spoken!! Not so much of a question, as a request?? 2? Income tax has made more liars out of the American people than golf. --Will Rogers If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun. --Katherine Hepburn Never take a reference from a clergyman. They always want to give someone a second chance. --Lady Selborne Laugh and the world laughs with you. Snore and you sleep alone. --Anthony Burgess It's true hard work never killed anybody, but I figure why take the chance. --Ronald Reagan Death is the most convenient time to tax rich people. --David Lloyd George Anyone can get old. All you have to do is live long enough. --Groucho Marx "I think there is a world market for maybe five computers." ---Thomas Watson, Chairman of IBM (1943) "My parents were glad to see that my new husband looks like a 'regular guy'--no earring or anything. But really I think a man with an earring is better prepared for marriage. I mean, he's already experienced pain and bought jewelry." -- Rita Rudner "We all live in the twentieth century. Well, I don't live in the twentieth century. --Dan Quayle "Ron White was not one of the very first original members of the Motown staff, but eventually he was." --Smokey Robinson "I'm for a stronger death penalty." --President George Bush "Some people think football is a matter of life and death...I can assure them it is much more serious than that." --Bill Shankly "Those beelhops in Miami are tip-happy. I ordered a deck of playing cards and the bellboy made fifty-two trips to my room." --Henny Youngman "I could come back to America..to die..but never, never to live." --Henry James "There is nothing wrong with Southern California that a rise in the ocean level wouldn't cure." --Ross MacDonald "The French will only be united under the threat of danger. Nobody can simply bring together a country that has 265 kinds of cheese." --Charles de Gaulle Hollywood: "A place where they shoot too many pictures and not enough actors." --Walter Winchell "Hollywood is the only place you can wake up in the morning and hear the birds coughing in the trees." --Joe Frisco "Adam and Eve had many advantages, but the pricipal one was that they escaped teething." --Mark Twain "Met a guy this morning with a glass eye. He didn't tell me-it just came out in the conversation." --Jerry Dennis On opening a new annex at Vancouver City Hall: "I declare this thing open - whatever it is." --Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh "It usually takes me more than 3 weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech." --Mark Twain "I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me." --Fred Allen "I am extraordinarily patient, provided I get my own way in the end." --Margaret Thatcher "I can resist everything except temptation." --Oscar Wilde "Some people pay a compliment as if they expected a receipt." --Frank McKinney Hubbard "My wife is a light eater; as soon as it's light, she starts eating." --Henny Youngman The hardest task in a girl's life is to prove to a man that his intentions are serious. --Helen Rowland It is better to waste one's youth than to do nothing with it at all. --Georges Courteline The trouble with women in an orchestra is that if they're attractive it will updet my players and if they're not it will upset me. --Thomas Beecham Writing to a magzine that had published his obituary: I've just read that I am dead. Don't forget to delete me from your list of subscribers. --Rudyard Kipling If you steal from one author, it's plagiarism; if you steal from many, it's research. --Wilson Misner No self-respecting fish would be wrapped ina Murdoch newspaper. --Mike Royko The play was a total success but the audience was a total failure. --Oscar Wilde A verbal contract isn't worth the paper it's written on. --Sam Goldwyn Shoot a few scenes out of focus. I want to win the foreign film award. --Billy Wilder (attrib.) You can pick out actors by the glazed look that comes into their eyes when the conversation wanders away from themselves. --Michael Wilding It's amazing how many people see you on TV. I did my first television show a month ago and the next day five million televison sets were sold. The people who couldn't sell theirs threw them away. --Bob Hope Television: A medium. So called because it is neither rare nor well done. --Ernie Kovacs If a woman hasn't met the right man by the time she's twenty-four, she may be lucky. --Deborah Kerr She doesn't not understand the concept of Roman numerals. She thought we just fought World War Eleven. --Joan Rivers High heels were invented by a woman who had been kissed on the forehead. --Christopher Morley Women's styles may change but their designs remain the same. --Oscar Wilde An archaeologist is the best husband a woman can have: the older she gets, the more interested he is in her. --Agatha Christie Burt Reynolds once asked me out. I was in his room. --Phyllis Diller When he is late for dinner and I know he must be either having an affair or lying dead in the street, I always hope he's dead. --Judith Viorst Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable that we have to alter it every six months. --Oscar Wilde It's not an optical illusion, it just looks like one. --Phil White "You'll never know until you try it" works pretty well for most unknowns, but "I wonder if it hurts to saw off the tip of my tongue?" is probably not one of them. --Doug Rendall We are all here on earth to help others; what on earth the others are here for I don't know. --W.H. Auden If two men agree on everything, you may be sure that one of them is doing the thinking. --Lyndon Baines Johnson I don't like spinach, and I'm glad I don't, because if I liked it I'd eat it, and I just hate it. --Clarence Darrow Millions long for immortality who do not know what to do with themselves on a rainy Sunday afternoon. --Susan Ertz A banker is a fellow who lends you his umbrella when the sun is shining and wants it back the minute it begins to rain. --Mark Twain Life was a lot simpler when we honored father and mother rather than all the major credit cards. --Robert Orben "Whenever I watch tv and see those poor, starving kids all over the world, I can't help but cry. I mean, i would love to be that skinny, but not with all those flies and death and death and stuff." --Mariah Carey "I haven't commited a crime, what I did was fail to comply with the law." -- David Dinkins, New York City mayor answering accusations that he failed to pay his taxes. "Smoking kills. If you are killed, you have lost a very important part of your life." -- Brooke Shields, during an interview to become spokesperson for an anti-smoking campaign. "Outside the killings, Washington has one of the lowest crime rates in the country. -- Mayor Marion Barry, Washington D.C.
is long hair wrong in christianity? I've been reading up on long hair on men and how it is seen in christianity. the main verse seems to be from corinthians in which it says in a certain fashion that nature tells us it is wrong for men to grow their hair long but not women. i've seen many different viewpoints as to what it means from it referring to men crossing over to a certain point of becoming feminine as women are said not to dress like men and have short hair to it refering to a later verse in corinthians talking of it being done for reasons of rebellion which relates to witchcraft. i do not want to grow my hair for reasons of masculinity or to show myself as soom sort of punk rebel, it's more of a comfort issue. i feel more comfortable with hair that is longer on my face as i feel it suits me better than short hair and i feel more confident with my hair in this style. i am not trying to work my way around what the bible says but i would not be doing it for the reasons described as being wrong. thanks everyone.
What is your horoscope sign...? I am a Leo. I love automated opening doors and nothing would give me more pleasure than to have Clappers applaud me when I enter a room. I must admit I am an attention seeking person. ENJOY!
What is the colonized mindset? The colonised mindset: The enemy within the African communities. SendMeYourNews Jul 23, 2006 07:12 PDT =+= Get on TheBlackList: http://www.topica.com/lists/TheBlackList "Men who are in earnest are not afraid of consequences", Marcus Garvey. =+= ----- Original Message ----- From: Cheryl Sanchez mailto:sanchez-@hotmail.com To: sendmey-@earthlink.net Sent: Sunday, July 23, 2006 8:48 AM The colonised mindset: The enemy within the African communities. The writer is going to put forward an argument that unless the slave/colonial mindset is recognised as the active enemy, within the African communities world-wide, attempts to understand the social and economic problems will be useless. This mindset has been affecting the individual/family /organisations/community and nations alike. From an early age, adults have been referring to people as having "being colonial or slave minded" in a most benign way. It as if having this mindset is like having a flue. You treat the symptoms and eventually, it should go away, if the immune system is acute and alert. In reality, it is the most virulent psychological condition prevalent amongst African communities. The damage is too enormous to consider in this essay. It has and is still destroying from individuals to revolutions to states eg Patrice Lumumba-Congo, Thomas Sankara-Bukina Faso, Walter Rodney-Guyana, Cabral, Malcolm X and Bantu S Biko to name a few. When foreign money, the lust for power and the colonial mindset met-destruction is sure to follow. Mineral rich DRC remains the most tragic example today. Also Angola before the timely death of Savimbi, " Washington's kept man". Failure to confront and systematically deal with this enemy is equivalent to failure to live and or thrive. HISTORY The disastrous effects of slavery and colonialism on the physical aspect of the Africans in the Americas, the Caribbean and on mainland Africa have been well documented by a host of European and African-American historians including Basil D Davidson, Walter Rodney and Professor Jeffries. Few writers have focused on the debilitating effects of the mindset on the emotions and the psychology as Carter G Woodson( 1875-1950)was probably a pioneer when he addressed this condition in his book - The Mis-Education of the Negro. Later, Dr Na'im Akbar painstakingly outlined the psychological effects in his book- Chains and Images of psychological slavery. Professor Joy Leary recently attempted to put the psychological trauma concept in the public domain during a recent lecture tour in London but, few Africans wanted to even contemplate this concept as an explanation for some of their behaviour towards each other. It is of paramount importance to understand the disastrous reality of the sate accurately described by Woodson and take action to treat it. "When you control a man's thinking you do not have to worry about his actions. You do not have to tell him not to stand there or go yonder. He or she will find his "proper place" and will stay in it. You do not need to send him to the back door. He will go without being told. In fact, if there is no back door, he will cut one for his special benefit. His education makes it necessary". Woodson showed a lot of foresight in his early detection of the destructive side of the slave/colonial mindset. It is a pity that, most Pastors and self-appointed "community" leaders do not recommend this book to the many families who come through their doors. They do not even bothered with a plan of action to treat this mindset. Examples This mindset certainly has a blindfolding effect eg African girls aspiring to be like their "blonde Barbie dolls". African men dream of marrying "a Barbie doll" type of woman as soon as they arrive in Europe and or UK/USA/Canada, so as not to have "too black" children. Michael Jackson's obsession with his costly body- altering project. It also causes US Africans/Afrikans to focus on the body, material gadgets, short cuts. The physical environment of the homes is often out of balance with the people who inhabit the space. Their homes always have a blonde type Jesus on the walls but no other famous Africans like Bantu Biko, Thomas Sankara etc. The African educationalist and parents both on the mainland, Caribbean and the Americas have avoided including or making the early and middle years curricula more relevant to our developmental needs. This opportunity to change our course of history is missed again and again. At organisational level, colonise minded but the super qualified committee members are often afraid to put decolonisation strategy and or Pan-Africanism into the constitution of their organisation. This also affects the type of name or identity they take on. Eg the NAACP-The National Association for the Advancement of "Coloured" people. One would have thought that aparthedist South-Africa racial policies would have caused this organisation to re-think it's chosen but, they not change from NAACP to NAAAP. One could only guess when you start your organisation with white liberals/ or jews in leadership roles, the de-colonisation agenda never became a priority for this organisation. The OAS/AU is no different. It has been in existence for over 50 years and still cannot bring itself to be known as a Pan-Africanist organisation thus, it remains a toothless nationalistic organisation. Even when organisations put Pan-Africanism at the forefront eg PAC in South-African, the de-colonisation process and project, which is necessary for health and longevity of the organisation is not a priority either. Well meaning or naïve activists continue to take a gamble by hoping against hope that, a few committed and reliable people could suddenly change 400 years of psychological damage facing the African worldwide. Things could have been different if, the PAC was able to capture the interest and support of the majority of the 24 million native South-Africans and their rands, to keep the movement financially buoyant and turn it into a political powerful force in South-African society. The mindset nutures self-hating , self- destruction and confidence lowering . This is evident in the practice of self- harming through bleaching the skin, straigthening the hair and looking to Europe and European institutions as saviours. It also makes killing each other almost acceptable. The eminent African-American Bobby E Wright (1984) explained in his book "we have never been trained to kill Europeans" but, we seem to be able kill each other (black on black) violence instinctively. It also makes us have a warped and unrealistic view of our reality. It may cause some, like Dr Kenneth B Clarke to say," race is irrelevant". Even African-America Dr Alvin Poussant, who used his qualification avoid addressing the current colonisation condition. He used his stint in Ebony Magazine to deal with the a few middles class anxieties. What a shame! The Slave/Colonial mindset-the Trojan Horse The Europeans understand how important the psychological warfare project is to their continued hold on Africa, which is why they got their missionaries to influences chiefs and other leaders in Africa, to send their young children to their missionary schools. At these missionary/faith-based schools, young children were indoctrinated on a grand scale. These young children come from cultures where, almost all adults are feared and or certainly not questioned, made the work of the European teachers easier. This is why it should not alarm us or surprise us that, Mobutu, Savimbi and their cronies behaved in the way they did to their own people and their own resources. The mindset, the lust for power and foreign money-from the USA mainly kept them destroying their respective countries, in the name of capitalism and the other G6 powers. The USA officials who paid Savimbi through Mobutu millions and millions of American tax-payers money to literally destroy a revolution and 2 countries, have never been brought to justice. If both of these colonial minded individuals did not die, they would be still destroying the country and squandering their resources for self-aggrandisement, with Washington's approval. The foreign powers/handlers knew millions of people were being tortured, kill, maimed, punished and starved of food and other life necessities, in their interest. Whilst all this was happening in full view of other Africans, many of them in the Caribbean and continued going to the states" to make it". Meanwhile Africans affected by these individuals and American money and foreign policy, eventually started heading for the UK and the USA seeking "refuge". It should not surprise us at the way the Europeans view certain individuals. The American state had to get rid of Malcolm X by any means necessary. The Belgian/USA/UK governments saw Patrice Lumumba as an uncompromising character when it came to his understanding of independence. France could not stomach an independent minded Thomas Sankara who wanted to transform Bukina Faso in the interest of it's people. The apartheid South-Africa did not dare allow Bantu Stephen Biko to live-he was too clear about his position and his understanding of the social/economic/political situation. He wanted all or nothing. Walter Rodney exposed the hypocrisy of Europe's role in Africa-it became a real annoyance in European academic circles. The under-development was the strategy and the means to achieving this outcome was to nurture their own "loyal Africans". Off course the "loyal Africans" are another name for the colonial minded. Rich men and women often have their "kept women" Well, so to rich Europe has their "kept men". France has Francoise Compoare of Bukina Faso. The USA has theirs in the form of Paul Kagame. Spain/USA has Obiang Nguema of Equatorial Guinea- Africa third largest producer of oil. Shell and the UK and other oil companies operating in Nigeria have been keeping the Hausa dominated army and government since 1970. The CIA/USA/France had army man Hissen Habre- a man who was less than friendly to USA's imagined enemy Gadaffi. Chadian named him, "Africa's Pinochet". USA supported the Duvalier family for 30 years and off course Savimbi in Angola. See William Blum(2001) Rogue State. Chapter 17. The Consequences If African thinkers and educationalists alike continue to neglect the content of early and middle years curricula, they would be fighting a losing battle against the slave/colonial mindset, capitalism, fashion and mass-media. The same way, one cannot expect to put new wine in an old wineskin so to, one cannot expect the slave/colonial minded to suddenly change his or her learnt behaviour. This behaviour has been around for the last 350 years. It might have started as, a means of coping in strange and often hostile societies in the Caribbean and America in the late 17th century. Joy Leary would argue African communities must admit the existence of post traumatic syndrome before, the treatment could be sought. No admission means that, this major debilitating psychological condition would linger and fester away. Off course when a few like, Thiongo'o(1938-) changed his behaviour in his adulthood, by going back to his Gikuyu name and writing in his own language rather than English only, is inspirational to rest who remain in this regressive state of mind. He used his book-Decolonising the mind: the politics of language in African literature(1986) as a platform to encourage African challenged about their attitude towards Africa and or NJAC. Ngugi wa writers to write in their own language to make their books more meaningful to Africans on the continent. It is not only about writing in one's own language although, that is a positive start. It is about having a core teaching curricula that could be used world-wide. Even if people write in their own indigenous language but continue to see Europe as the solution to their problems-the colonised mind remains untouched. The writer applauds the work of Haki Madibuti and Dr Karenga and Molefi Asante. The African need more people like the above, if we are to be taken seriously. Why are members of NJAC( National Joint Action committee) and their 36 year old organisation in Trinidad, still viewed as not worthy of support from the majority of African-Trinidadians? The slave/colonial mindset, which makes people ridicule members for re-claiming their African heritage via taking on African names. One can often hear African-Trinidadians and other Africans born abroad saying in a most offensive voice, "I am not African" when asked about their identity. Thai is the colonial mindset expressing their ignorance. What do we begin? The logical place for decolonisation to begin is in the home, with parents taking the lead. The early years 0-11 is the crucial time to inculcate the Afrocentric values. It means that, we have to be prepared to build our own nurseries and create our own culturally inclusive and sensitive curricula. The parents must be re-educated. It is almost pointless waiting until a child becomes an adult, when he may or may not be exposed to Pan-Africanism. All the research available would agree that, the pre-natal and early years are the most important educating years. Ideally, the decolonisation ideals should be embedded in the early years curricula, The Community leaders and families should make attempts to discuss post trauma syndrome and it's effects openly and proactively put into place some short term and long term remedies. 3 African American writers who wrote the The Black Parenting Book did not pursue the de-colonisation project in their book either. There are 17 chapters in this book yet, Pan-Africanism and or the issue of the slave/colonial mindset were not addressed in a very active way. There chapters on Family Traditions and Spirituality without making mention of the importance of Kwanzaa. There was a chapter on " Black and Proud" not African and proud. There should have a chapter on how and why Africans came to self hate and hate all things African. Where did it all begin? The book tackled particular parenting approach, which was used by African American parents but, they did not attempt to give the psychological or economic reasons why most African parents worldwide use the authoritarian model rather than the authoritative model. Authoritarian- powerful, assertive/aggressive (verbally or physically adult leads or makes all the decisions, which are imposed on child. May be highly critical. Parents may be likely to use shouting and hitting. Parents may even talk about "I want you to fear me". Authoritative- Parents use reciprocity and a democratic style, which allows child to lead but establishes safe limits and boundaries. Parents are likely to use encouragement, provide choices and highlight consequences and positive feedback and use time-out and put penalities in place, as part of their disciplining package. It might have been helpful to explain why some African parents use the former than the latter? It would have been more useful to write the book in some African languages and use a work -book with exercises to involve all members of the family. This book could be described as the product of a well meaning qualified but, obviously apolitical professionals. The writers tackled all the symptoms but never ventured near the core causes. They missed an opportunity to focus on the link between the type of the society, which produces such parents focusing on a post-colonial/slave/capitalist, racist society such as the USA. Conclusion. The Decolonisation project and treating post trauma syndrome are as necessary to Africans, as oxygen and water are to humankind existence. Neither can be avoided any longer due to it being "too sensitive" an issue. The message to all the Pan-Africanists/Humanist individuals, families and organisations , which are always short of committed, reliable and discipline foot soldiers is this, put some of your efforts and money into the 0-11 years olds and an African Parenting project, based on an Afrocentric model and treatment for psychological trauma and other self-harming behaviour. If any individual/family or organisation is interested ion the guture well being of Africans- the aforementioned approaches are vital. Otherwise, a plethora of colonial minded and dishonest Pastors from diverse Christian sects, the mass-media, fashion, cars and short term attractions and whatever other European cultural left-overs would grab the minds of the majority of Africans. The slave/colonial mind is dangerous to Pan-Africanist and African humanist alike. Those African "kept men" or Europe's trojan horses will continue the pauperization policies of a very rich continent. They will repeat policies and slogans without even analysing them. They will like the major obstacle to progress, changes, self-empowerment and unification of African peoples. Instead of enabling and building capacities and re-skilling people, they will disable, de-skill and pauperize people. The colonial minded knows nothing else. The Europeans using their white skins as authority continue to pamper and encourage their "kept men" to the detriment of the majority of Africans, who continue to suffer and to be killed with the weapons made in the USA/UK/Israel and other European countries. References: Akbar Na'im(1992) Chain and Images of psychological slavery- Winston-Derek, Nashville, TN Blumm W (2003) Rogue State: Chapter 17. Zed Books London UK Brittain V (1998) Death and Dignity: Angola's Civil War. Chapter 2. Pluto Books. London UK Woodson C.G (1937) The Mis-education of the negro. Africa World Press NJ USA Wright B.E (1984) The psychopathic racial personality and other essays. Third World Press Chicago, Ilinois USA
Please have the liberty to help me??? Well, my mom just started a make-up course and she already has a new project: a biography on a celebrity make-up artist. She needed my help on it so I helped her. I just finished typing it up. But I have a problem both my mom and I don't have a source to go to help for. I mean, we both aren't very good when it comes to english grammer. So, if you're kind enough please correct the grammatical errors, commas, run on sentences and just anything out of place. Please help me because I have no where else to go to get help for this. So here is the biography Kevyn Aucoin was a wonderful makeup artist who saw natural beauty in many and helped accentuate their features. He was born on February 14, 1962 in Shreveport, Louisiana at a Catholic Charities Home for un-wed mothers. His mother, Nelda Mae Sweat, was a scared, pregnant sixteen-year-old with strict Baptist parents. His father, a handsome football player named Jerry Burch, didn't believe that the baby was his. He was only a month old when he was adopted by an Aucoins family name. Kevyn grew up in a small town Lafayette with three other adopted brothers and sisters. At the age of eleven he began making up his little sister Carla into a disco diva. While Carla was his source of inspiration, Barbara Streisand was his subject for painting and sketching. Kevyn realized he was gay at an early age. It was hard fitting in a small town like Lafayette. Kevyn instantly became a target for his classmates. He was tormented physically and verbally. At the age of 16 he moved out with his friend Glenn. Since neither of them had a job, they relied on their parents for food and other necessities. One night Kevyn and his friend Glenn met a drag queen. Kevyn became mesmerized by the power of makeup he had seen on this drag queen. Soon enough, Kevyn started inviting more drag queens over to his apartment to do their makeup. That September, Kevyn had to start junior high again. As soon as he began, the tormenting physically and verbally began again. Kevyn received death threats at school and he was also beat with rocks. One time two teenagers even tried to run him over with a truck. Finally, he dropped out of high school at the age 15. After he dropped out of high school he thought he would definitely fit in beauty school. 1978-1981. Kevyn asked his father for $900 to cover the tuition but Kevyn soon discovered that it turned out to be a waste of time and money because he knew way more than the teachers when it came down to makeup and hair both combined. Soon, he found a job behind a cosmetics counter at a local department store. Following Kevyn’s break up with his boyfriend Glenn, he moved to New York. In New York, Kevyn found work doing make-up for a porn magazine called Cheezy. Within a year, Kevyn was hired to work with Meg Tilly on a Vogue shoot. It was a milestone for Kevyn because he started working with models such as: Cindy Crawford and Kate Moss and celebrities including Tina Turner and Cher. Over the next couple of years, Kevyn did make-up for 18 covers of Vogue and 7 for Cosmopolitan. During the 1990s, Kevyn refused to promote products for Vincent Longo and Laura Mercier because he was only going to receive 5% of the profits. Instead, Kevyn launched a new line of beauty products, the Kevyn Aucoin collection, which he was going to launch on his own web site--keyvnaucoin.com. Kevyn’s make-up style truly defined the nineties. He brought out the beauty with classic touches. Kevyn had a unique vision that was completely transformational. He could completely "erase" someone’s features, and create a new face. He could glam up anyone, turn men into women, bring back faces from the past, and add shadow, texture, and features that were non-existent. Kevyn’s advertising work for Ultima was the result of ‘Naked‘ a line he helped to design and he also had been hired to revamp for Shiseido. 1994. Kevyn wrote three books: The Art of Make-up, Making Faces, and Face Forward. 1995-1998. In 1995 the Council of Fashion Designers gave him the only award that they had ever given a make-up artist. In 1997, his book: Making faces made it to number 1 on the New York Times best-seller-list. In 2001, he played himself in the film The Intern, he also played the part of a make-up artist in the film The Zoolander, (2001). Later on in 2001, he played himself in two episodes of the t.v. show The Sex and the City. October 2001, just a month before launching his own cosmetics line, Kevyn was diagnosed with a brain tumor. He died May 2002 due to kidney and liver failure. i'm pretty sure most of it's ok. Thanks so much.
please someone help have nobody else to help me??? Well, my mom just started a make-up course and she already has a new project: a biography on a celebrity make-up artist. She needed my help on it so I helped her. I just finished typing it up. But I have a problem both my mom and I don't have a source to go to help for. I mean, we both aren't very good when it comes to english grammer. So, if you're kind enough please correct the grammatical errors, commas, run on sentences and just anything out of place. Please help me because I have no where else to go to get help for this. So here is the biography Kevyn Aucoin was a wonderful makeup artist who saw natural beauty in many and helped accentuate their features. He was born on February 14, 1962 in Shreveport, Louisiana at a Catholic Charities Home for un-wed mothers. His mother, Nelda Mae Sweat, was a scared, pregnant sixteen-year-old with strict Baptist parents. His father, a handsome football player named Jerry Burch, didn't believe that the baby was his. He was only a month old when he was adopted by an Aucoins family name. Kevyn grew up in a small town Lafayette with three other adopted brothers and sisters. At the age of eleven he began making up his little sister Carla into a disco diva. While Carla was his source of inspiration, Barbara Streisand was his subject for painting and sketching. Kevyn realized he was gay at an early age. It was hard fitting in a small town like Lafayette. Kevyn instantly became a target for his classmates. He was tormented physically and verbally. At the age of 16 he moved out with his friend Glenn. Since neither of them had a job, they relied on their parents for food and other necessities. One night Kevyn and his friend Glenn met a drag queen. Kevyn became mesmerized by the power of makeup he had seen on this drag queen. Soon enough, Kevyn started inviting more drag queens over to his apartment to do their makeup. That September, Kevyn had to start junior high again. As soon as he began, the tormenting physically and verbally began again. Kevyn received death threats at school and he was also beat with rocks. One time two teenagers even tried to run him over with a truck. Finally, he dropped out of high school at the age 15. After he dropped out of high school he thought he would definitely fit in beauty school. 1978-1981. Kevyn asked his father for $900 to cover the tuition but Kevyn soon discovered that it turned out to be a waste of time and money because he knew way more than the teachers when it came down to makeup and hair both combined. Soon, he found a job behind a cosmetics counter at a local department store. Following Kevyn’s break up with his boyfriend Glenn, he moved to New York. In New York, Kevyn found work doing make-up for a porn magazine called Cheezy. Within a year, Kevyn was hired to work with Meg Tilly on a Vogue shoot. It was a milestone for Kevyn because he started working with models such as: Cindy Crawford and Kate Moss and celebrities including Tina Turner and Cher. Over the next couple of years, Kevyn did make-up for 18 covers of Vogue and 7 for Cosmopolitan. During the 1990s, Kevyn refused to promote products for Vincent Longo and Laura Mercier because he was only going to receive 5% of the profits. Instead, Kevyn launched a new line of beauty products, the Kevyn Aucoin collection, which he was going to launch on his own web site--keyvnaucoin.com. Kevyn’s make-up style truly defined the nineties. He brought out the beauty with classic touches. Kevyn had a unique vision that was completely transformational. He could completely "erase" someone’s features, and create a new face. He could glam up anyone, turn men into women, bring back faces from the past, and add shadow, texture, and features that were non-existent. Kevyn’s advertising work for Ultima was the result of ‘Naked‘ a line he helped to design and he also had been hired to revamp for Shiseido. 1994. Kevyn wrote three books: The Art of Make-up, Making Faces, and Face Forward. 1995-1998. In 1995 the Council of Fashion Designers gave him the only award that they had ever given a make-up artist. In 1997, his book: Making faces made it to number 1 on the New York Times best-seller-list. In 2001, he played himself in the film The Intern, he also played the part of a make-up artist in the film The Zoolander, (2001). Later on in 2001, he played himself in two episodes of the t.v. show The Sex and the City. October 2001, just a month before launching his own cosmetics line, Kevyn was diagnosed with a brain tumor. He died May 2002 due to kidney and liver failure
Can you proof read this please?? Kevyn Aucoin was a wonderful makeup artist who saw natural beauty in many and helped accentuate their features. He was born on February 14, 1962 in Shreveport, Louisiana at a Catholic Charities Home for un-wed mothers. His mother, Nelda Mae Sweat, was a scared pregnant sixteen-year-old with strict Baptist parents. His father, a handsome football player named Jerry Burch, didn't believe that the baby was his. He was only a month old when he was adopted by an Aucoins family name. Kevyn grew up in a small town, Lafayette, with three other adopted brothers and sisters. At the age of eleven, he began making up his little sister Carla into a disco diva. While Carla was his source of inspiration, Barbara Streisand was his subject for painting and sketching. Kevyn realized he was gay at an early age. It was hard fitting in a small town like Lafayette. Kevyn instantly became a target for his classmates. He was tormented physically and verbally. At the age of 16, he moved out with his friend Glenn. Since neither of them had a job, they relied on their parents for food and other necessities. One night Kevyn and his friend Glenn met a drag queen. Kevyn became mesmerized by the power of makeup he had seen on this drag queen. Soon enough, Kevyn started inviting more drag queens over to his apartment to do their makeup. That September, Kevyn had to start junior high again. As soon as he began, the physical and verbal tormenting started again. Kevyn received death threats at school and he was beaten with rocks. One time two teenagers even tried to run him over with a truck. Finally, he dropped out of high school at the age 15. After he dropped out from high school he thought he would definitely fit in beauty school. 1978-1981. Kevyn asked his father for $900 to cover the tuition but Kevyn soon discovered that it turned out to be a waste of time and money because he knew way more than the teachers when it came down to makeup and hair both combined. Soon, he found a job behind a cosmetics counter at a local department store. Following Kevyn’s break up with his boyfriend Glenn, he moved to New York where he found work doing make-up for a porn magazine called Cheezy. Within a year, Kevyn was hired to work with Meg Tilly on a Vogue shoot. It was a milestone for Kevyn because he started working with models such as Cindy Crawford, Kate Moss, and celebrities including Tina Turner and Cher. Over the next couple of years, Kevyn did make-up for 18 covers of Vogue and 7 for Cosmopolitan. During the 1990s, Kevyn refused to promote products for Vincent Longo and Laura Mercier because he was only going to receive 5% of the profits. Instead, Kevyn launched a new line of beauty products, the Kevyn Aucoin collection, which he was going to launch on his own web site--keyvnaucoin.com. Kevyn’s make-up style truly defined the nineties. He brought out the beauty with classic touches. Kevyn had a unique vision that was completely transformational. He could completely "erase" someone’s features, and create a new face. He could glam up anyone, turn men into women, bring back faces from the past, and add shadow, texture, and features that were non-existent. Kevyn’s advertising work for Ultima was the result of “Naked”, a line he helped to design and he also had been hired to revamp for Shiseido. 1994. Kevyn wrote three books: The Art of Make-up, Making Faces, and Face Forward. 1995-1998. In 1995 the Council of Fashion Designers gave him the only award that they had ever given a make-up artist. In 1997, Making faces made it to number 1 on the New York Times best-seller-list. In 2001, he played himself in the film The Intern, he also played the part of a make-up artist in the film The Zoolander, (2001). Later on in 2001, he played himself in two episodes of the t.v. show The Sex and the City. October 2001, just a month before launching his own cosmetics line, Kevyn was diagnosed with a brain tumor. He died May 2002 due to kidney and liver failure
The coon caricature? The coon caricature is one of the most insulting of all anti-Black caricatures. The name itself, an abbreviation of raccoon, is dehumanizing. As with Sambo, the coon was portrayed as a lazy, easily frightened, chronically idle, inarticulate, buffoon. The coon differed from the Sambo in subtle but important ways. Sambo was depicted as a perpetual child, not capable of living as an independent adult. The coon acted childish, but he was an adult; albeit a good-for-little adult. Sambo was portrayed as a loyal and contented servant. Indeed, Sambo was offered as a defense for slavery and segregation. How bad could these institutions have been, asked the racialists, if Blacks were contented, even happy, being servants? The coon, although he often worked as a servant, was not happy with his status. He was, simply, too lazy or too cynical to attempt to change his lowly position. Also, by the 1900s, Sambo was identified with older, docile Blacks who accepted Jim Crow laws and etiquette; whereas coons were increasingly identified with young, urban Blacks who disrespected Whites. Stated differently, the coon was a Sambo gone bad. The prototypical movie coon was Stepin Fetchit, the slow-talking, slow-walking, self-demeaning nitwit. It took his character almost a minute to say: "I'se be catchin' ma feets nah, Boss." Donald Bogle, a cinema historian, lambasted the coon, as played by Stepin Fetchit and others: Before its death, the coon developed into the most blatantly degrading of all black stereotypes. The pure coons emerged as no-account niggers, those unreliable, crazy, lazy, subhuman creatures good for nothing more than eating watermelons, stealing chickens, shooting crap, or butchering the English language.1 The coon caricature was born during American slavery. Slave masters and overseers often described slaves as "slow," "lazy," "wants pushing," "an eye servant," and "trifling."2 The master and the slave operated with different motives: the master desired to obtain from the slave the greatest labor, by any means; the slave desired to do the least labor while avoiding punishment. The slave registered his protest against slavery by running away, and, when that was not possible, by slowing work, doing shoddy work, destroying work tools, and faking illness. Slave masters attributed the slaves' poor work performance to shiftlessness, stupidity, desire for freedom, and genetic deficiencies. The amount of work done by a typical slave depended upon the demands of individual slave owners and their ability to extract labor. Typically, slaves worked from dawn to dusk. They were sometimes granted "leisure time" on Saturday or Sunday evenings; however, this time was spent planting or harvesting their own gardens, washing clothes, cooking, and cleaning. A slave owner wrote: "I always give them half of each Saturday, and often the whole day, at which time...the women do their household work; therefore they are never idle."3 Slave owners complained about the laziness of their workers, but the records show that slaves were often worked hard -- and brutally so. Overseers were routinely paid commissions, which encouraged them to overwork the slaves. On a North Carolina plantation an overseer claimed that he was a "'hole hog man rain or shine," and boasted that the slaves had been worked "like horses." He added, "I'd ruther be dead than be a nigger on one of these big plantations."4 After the closing of the African slave trade, the price of slaves went up, thereby causing some slave owners and their hired overseers to be more careful in their use of slaves. "The time had been," wrote one slave owner, "that the farmer could kill up and wear out one Negro to buy another; but it is not so now. Negroes are too high in proportion to the price of cotton, and it behooves those who own them to make them last as long as possible."5 Slaves are generally associated with the harvest of cotton; however, slaves worked in many industries. Almost every railroad in the ante-bellum South was built in part by slave labor. Slaves worked in sawmills, fisheries, gold mines and salt mines. They were used as deck hands on river boats. There were slave lumberjacks, construction workers, longshoremen, iron workers, even store clerks. Slaves monopolized the domestic services. Some slaves worked as skilled artisans, for example, shoemakers, blacksmiths, carpenters, mechanics, and barbers. These artisans were generally treated better than the slaves in the cotton and tobacco fields; therefore, it is not surprising that the artisans did better work. They included "many ingenious Mechanicks," claimed a White colonial Georgian, "and as far as they have had opportunity of being instructed, have discovered as good abilities, as are usually found among [White] people of our Colony."6 The supporters of slavery claimed that Blacks were a childlike people unequipped for freedom. Proslavers acknowledged that some slave masters were cruel, but they argued that most were benevolent, kind-hearted capitalists who civilized and improved their docile Black wards. From Radical Reconstruction to World War I, there was a national nostalgia for the "good ol' darkies" who loved their masters, and, according to the proslavers, rejected or only reluctantly accepted emancipation. In this context, the conceptualization of the coon was revised. During slavery almost all Blacks, especially men, were sometimes seen as coons, that is, lazy, shiftless, and virtually useless. However, after slavery, the coon caricature was increasingly applied to younger Blacks, especially those who were urban, flamboyant, and contemptuous of Whites. Thomas Nelson Page, a White writer wrote this in 1904: Universally, they [White Southerners] will tell you that while the old-time Negroes were industrious, saving, and when not misled, well-behaved, kindly, respectful, and self-respecting, and while the remnant of them who remain still retain generally these characteristics, the "new issue," for the most part, are lazy, thriftless, intemperate, insolent, dishonest, and without the most rudimentary elements of morality....Universally, they report a general depravity and retrogression of the Negroes at large in sections in which they are left to themselves, closely resembling a reversion to barbarism. 7 At the beginning of the 1900s many Whites supported the implementation of Jim Crow laws and etiquette. They believed that Blacks were genetically, therefore permanently, inferior to Whites. Blacks were, they argued, hedonistic children, irresponsible, and left to their own plans, destined for idleness -- or worse. It was not uncommon for Whites to distinguish between Niggers (Coons and Bucks) and Negroes8 (Toms, Sambos, and Mammies), and they preferred the latter. Racial caricatures are undergirded by stereotypes, and the stereotyping of Blacks as coons continued throughout the 20th Century. The pioneer study of racial and ethnic stereotyping in the United States was conducted in 1933 by Daniel Katz and Kenneth Braley, two social scientists. They questioned 100 Princeton University undergraduates regarding the prevailing stereotypes of racial and ethnic groups. Their research concluded that Blacks were consistently described as "superstitious," "happy-go-lucky," and "lazy." The respondents had these views even though they had little or no contact with Blacks.9 This study was repeated in 1951, and the negative stereotyping of Blacks persisted.10 The Civil Rights Movement improved Whites' attitudes toward Blacks, but a sizeable minority of Whites still hold traditional, racist views of Blacks. An early 1990s study conducted by the National Opinion Research Center found that the majority of the White, Hispanic, and other non-Black respondents displayed negative attitudes towards Blacks. For example, 78 percent said that Blacks were more likely than Whites to "prefer to live off welfare" and "less likely to prefer to be self-supporting." Further, 62 percent said Blacks were more likely to be lazy; 56 percent said Blacks were violence-prone; and 53 percent said that Blacks were less intelligent than Whites.11 Stated differently: the coon caricature is still being applied to Blacks. Martin Gilens, a Yale University political scientist, argued that many White Americans believe that Blacks receive welfare benefits more often than do Whites and that "the centuries old stereotype of blacks as lazy remains credible for a large number of white Americans." He claimed that opposition to welfare programs results from misinformation and racism, with Whites assuming that their tax money is being used to support lazy Blacks. Gilens blames, in part, the media. "Pictures of poor blacks are abundant when poverty coverage is most negative, while pictures of non-blacks dominate the more sympathetic coverage."12 The coon caricature was one of the stock characters among minstrel performers. Minstrel show audiences laughed at the slow-talking fool who avoided work and all adult responsibilities. This transformed the coon into a comic figure, a source of bitter and vulgar comic relief. He was sometimes renamed "Zip Coon" or "Urban Coon." If the minstrel skit had an ante-bellum setting, the coon was portrayed as a free Black; if the skit's setting postdated slavery, he was portrayed as an urban Black. He remained lazy and good-for-little, but the minstrel shows depicted him as a gaudy dressed "Dandy" who "put on airs." Unlike Mammy and Sambo, Coon did not know his place. He thought he was as smart as White people; however, his frequent malapropisms and distorted logic suggested that his attempt to compete intellectually with Whites was pathetic. His use of bastardized English delighted White audiences and rea