Kuwait's 'gay-o-meter,' 'women who drive risk damaging their ovaries' and other strange news from the Middle East...

1. 1. Kuwait 'gay-o-meter'? Clinical screenings to 'detect' and ban - RT.com

      1. rt.com/news/homosexuals-kuwait-banned-gays-887/‎

         Oct 8, 2013 - Routine clinical screenings may be used to 'detect' homosexuals and bar them from entering Kuwait and other Gulf member states, according ...

      Saudi cleric says women who drive risk damaging their ovaries ...

      1. 1. www.reuters.com/article/.../us-saudi-driving-idUSBRE98S04B20130929‎

            Sep 29, 2013 - RIYADH (Reuters) - A conservative Saudi Arabian cleric has said women who drive risk damaging their ovaries and bearing children with ...

            
            

            The above stories are true (as odd as they may seem), but now for a bit of satire:

            
            

      The Pan-Arabia Enquirer - Satire From The Middle East

      1. 1. 1. www.panarabiaenquirer.com/‎

               As the Middle East's premier source of made up news, The Pan-Arabia Enquirer attracts more than 200,000 page views a month. And, according to research, ...

Kuwait dissolves parliament (again!)

Kuwait's top court on Sunday ordered the dissolution of parliament and called for fresh elections, officials in the U.S.-allied Gulf Arab said.

Pic by Prasad (on Kuwaitup2date)

The Constitutional Court made its ruling after throwing out an opposition challenge to changes to the electoral system decreed by the emir, hereditary ruler of the oil-exporting country, head judge Youssef al-Mutawa told reporters.

The case has international importance because political stability in Kuwait, owner of more than six percent of global oil reserves, has traditionally depended on cooperation between the government and the elected parliament, the oldest and most powerful legislature in the Gulf Arab states.

Kuwait sits in a strategic position between Saudi Arabia and Iraq and across the Gulf from Iran.

The opposition case had questioned the constitutionality of a change to the voting system ordered by the emir, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmed al-Sabah.

Mutawa said the hearing had decided not to make a ruling on the challenge, in effect leaving the emir's decree unchanged. 

(Reporting by Sylvia Westall, Editing by William Maclean)

HAPPY NEW YEAR from BERLIN 2013

“A bridge of silver wings stretches from the dead ashes of an unforgiving nightmare to the jeweled vision of a life started anew.” 
― Aberjhani, The River of Winged Dreams

The Holocaust Memorial, Berlin, Germany

The mirrored cone at the center of the Reichstag building dome, Berlin, Germany

The Reichstag building dome, Berlin, Germany

HAPPY NEW YEAR from BERLIN, GERMANY 2013

What Sandy Hook taught us about teachers

Link to original post by Chan Lowe (click here)

The cartoonist Chan Lowe created this image and wrote the following: "As the nation wades into parallel and interconnected discussions about gun rights, mental illness and the culture of violence in this country, we should also be considering a topic no less related to the Connecticut school tragedy: Are we doing right by our teachers?

Never has the dedication of the people who practice the teaching profession been spotlighted in the way it has over the past few days. We were shown, in dramatic terms, to what lengths teachers are willing to go to fulfill the crucial mandate they have been given: the education and welfare of the most precious members of our society. Yet they are so often treated with disdain.

Teaching is a calling. Not everyone has the will or the stamina to do it well. It takes love, pride, and an almost sacred commitment that can't be explained in words. In America, teachers have traditionally been underpaid, because in America's early communities, "schoolmarms" were always spinsters who were not expected to support families.

In other countries, the teaching profession is considered so noble that it is well paid in comparison to many other professions, as it should be. In this country, politicians—acting as proxies for taxpayers—haggle with, lowball, denigrate and harass teachers as if their demands for job security and decent pay are unreasonable and selfish.

A teacher invests in the future, student by student, and his or her legacy consists of the product of those students' fertile minds. Occasionally, teachers are even called upon to throw themselves into harm's way to protect the lives of their charges as if they were their own children—and last week six of them demonstrated most profoundly that they do not shrink from the task. About this, no one can argue.

So, who deserves to be paid more, and what does the reality tell us about our priorities?"

Crazy Guy + Gun = 26 Dead vs. Crazy Guy + Knife = No Dead

So many right wingers have been trying to use the example of the school attack in China as a reason to say, "Attacks will happen anyway, so what difference does it make whether or not we have stricter gun laws?"

I guess they don't see any difference between children who are alive and children who are not.

Demonstrations in Kuwait – October 21, 2012

Subject:           Security Notice for U.S. Citizens 13-2012

Demonstrations in Kuwait – October 21, 2012

Please circulate the following message without additions or omissions immediately to all U.S.  Citizens within your area of responsibility.

According to press reports, there will be demonstrations in multiple locations and a march towards the Seif Palace dubbed “National Dignity March” this evening starting at approximately 1930 hours, Sunday, October 21, in downtown Kuwait City.  An increased police and security presence is expected in and around the capital.  The Ministry of Interior states the demonstrations and National Dignity March are unauthorized and that they will respond to participants according to the law.

Spontaneous and/or planned demonstrations take place in Kuwait from time to time in response to world events or local developments.  At times, even demonstrations intended to be peaceful can turn confrontational and possibly escalate into violence.  Avoid areas of demonstrations and exercise caution if within the vicinity of any demonstrations.  Please stay current with media coverage of local and regional events. U.S. Mission personnel have been advised to continue to practice personal security awareness and we advise the U.S. citizen community to do the same.

The below Arabic language map, obtained from the internet, purports to indicate where the organizers intend to demonstrate and march.  The map has been translated to English.

U.S. citizens traveling and residing abroad should enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) at the following website: https://step.state.gov. U.S. citizens without internet access may enroll directly at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate at their destination.  By enrolling, U.S. citizens make it easier for the Embassy to contact them in case of emergency.

Updated information on travel and security may be obtained from the Department of State by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll-free in the United States and Canada or, for callers outside the United States and Canada, a regular toll line at 1-202-501-4444.  These numbers are available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays).   For further information, please consult the Bureau of Consular Affairs Internet website at http://travel.state.gov where the Worldwide Caution and Country Specific Information can be found.  In addition, the Embassy encourages U.S. citizens to review "A Safe Trip Abroad," which includes valuable security information for those traveling or living in foreign countries.  You can also follow the Bureau of Consular Affairs on Twitter and on Facebook. 

The U.S. Embassy is located at Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa Street, Block 6, Plot 14, Bayan, Kuwait.  If you are a U.S. citizen in need of emergency assistance in Kuwait, you may reach the U.S. Embassy by calling +965-2259-1001 and requesting the duty officer. 

This message may be accessed on the Embassy website, http://kuwait.usembassy.gov.

Please note that the Consular Section is closed for U.S. and most local holidays.  The current holiday schedule for 2012 is posted onhttp://kuwait.usembassy.gov/holidays.html.

This email is UNCLASSIFIED.

Kuwait emir dissolves parliament again, the fifth time since 2006.

Protesters in front of the Kuwait Parliament Nov. 28, 2011. Photo by William Andersen

Kuwait emir dissolves parliament

www.bbc.co.uk

Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah dissolves the country's parliament, paying the way for snap elections, state media say.

Who are the 47% freeloaders Romney speaks of at a $50,000-a-plate dinner?

"The people who receive the disproportionate share of government spending are not big-government lovers. They are Republicans. They are senior citizens. They are white men with high school degrees." -Conservative Columnist David Brooks

Thurston Howell Romney - NYTimes.com

www.nytimes.com/.../brooks-thurston-howell-romney.html

Kuwaiti MPs Propose Bill Banning Female Judges

Kuwaiti women:  you now have the right to vote, so what do you think of this proposal?

Kuwaiti MPs Propose Bill Banning Female Judges

insidethemiddleeast.blogs.cnn.com

From the Kuwait Times newspaper: Five lawmakers proposed amendments to the current law that governs judiciary work in Kuwait, which if implemented, will disqualify female citizens from being appointed as judges or prosecutors.

niqāb sellers at the Friday Market, Kuwait

Open season on sandhills? Send our crazy legislators home!

 Sandhill Crane parent with child maybe four weeks old.  http://www.birdphotos.com

Lawmaker wants hunting season for sandhill crane - m.JSOnline.com

m.jsonline.com

Plain Talk: Open season on sandhills? Send our crazy legislators home

host.madison.com

Here's still another reason why we've got to return to a part-time Legislature and get these people out of town...