tHE oTHER sIDE

(via Bahrain: Nailing the Lie in Washington’s Rhetoric on...

Sun, 13 Nov 2011 10:31:34 -0500

(via Bahrain: Nailing the Lie in Washington’s Rhetoric on “The Arab Spring”) US ally Bahrain continued its crackdown against popular calls for democratic rights with the illegal arrest and detention this week of prominent journalist and commentator Jaffar Al Alawy.

(via War Clouds Form over Iran)

Fri, 11 Nov 2011 09:14:04 -0500

(via War Clouds Form over Iran)

(via America’s Death Pornography Culture: Celebrating brutal...

Sat, 05 Nov 2011 11:04:33 -0400

(via America’s Death Pornography Culture: Celebrating brutal deaths of Qaddafi and Saddam)

By word and action, the U.S. military and its NATO underlings have discarded thousands of years of chivalric military tradition, common practices, and law against a backdrop of ghoulish and pornographic behaviour.

(via RUNNING OUT OF TIME: Arab business forum urges reform to...

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 10:35:00 -0400

(via RUNNING OUT OF TIME: Arab business forum urges reform to stem unrest)

Arab rulers have responded to popular uprisings with handouts and subsidies, but time is running out for the fundamental reform needed to meet the aspirations of millions of young people for economic security and political freedom.

At the World Economic Forum in Jordan, there was a general sense of urgency regarding the need for reform amongst the businessmen and politicians. Some also argued that old business models based on nepotism and crony capitalism must be abandoned to satisfy a younger, tech-savvy generation driving unrest in the Arab world.

The two-day weekend meeting explored new economic options for a region gripped by one of its biggest upheavals since colonial powers carved up the old Ottoman Empire in the 1920s.

“You feel the influence of the Arab Spring and the lack of time. There is a prevailing impression that the private sector is tied with the regimes. So we are seeing an effort to show that it is independent and serious about building ties with the youth,” Palestinian businessman Kamel Husseini told Reuters.

“Public commitments are being announced to support entrepreneurship and help solve the unemployment crisis. We have to give youth a platform,” he added.

Unusually, this World Economic Forum meeting tried to do just that, inviting 19-year-old Yemeni activist Nidaa al-Qudsi to address the assembled executives and politicians.

“Since I was born I’ve had the feeling that I have no future because I’m not the daughter of someone important in government or business. We have a right to be patient no longer,” said Qudsi, whose impoverished country has been racked by months of protests demanding the removal of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Bassem Awadallah, a former Jordanian finance minister whose economic liberalisation policies helped promote a decade of growth, said reforms across the region had proven flawed because they were not accompanied by democratisation.

“YOUTH BULGE”

He said Arab revolts had “brought into sharper focus the profound implications of the region’s youth bulge” — people aged under 30 form 75 percent of the population in many nations.

A report on Arab competitiveness, released by the Forum on Sunday, said only structural reform could remedy “root causes for the current events” — and create work for an estimated 2.8 million youngsters entering the region’s job market each year.

Proposed reforms range from improving infrastructure and education to creating transparent capital markets and ending ethnic or religious discrimination in labour markets.

Even in oil-rich Saudi Arabia, whose royals have embarked on a $130 billion spending spree to head off discontent, 30 percent of youngsters under 25 have no jobs, the report said.

This is on par with Tunisia, the cradle of Arab unrest. Revolts have toppled the leaders of Tunisia, Egypt and Libya this year and threaten to unseat those of Syria and Yemen.

Youth underemployment stands at 25 percent in 14 Middle East and North Africa nations, versus 17 percent in high-income OECD countries, the report said. The gap was much wider for women.

Arab economies are also plagued by “high levels of undue influence and corruption”, it said.

“Sustainable job creation is further hampered by the disproportionate weight of the public sector in the region’s economies,” the report said, adding that Egypt’s public sector accounts for 70 percent of non-agricultural jobs.

It said the region only has 0.6 new firms per 1,000 working age people, compared to about four per 1,000 in the OECD.

“Reducing unemployment will have to focus on three groups that are disproportionately affected — the young, the educated and women,” the report said.

Mohammad al-Barwani, chairman of an Oman-based holding company, said governments should assume a solely regulatory role, including in state-dominated sectors such as oil.

“A young, Facebook-carrying generation is asking, ‘What are you going to do to create jobs for us?’,” he said.

Middle East peace envoy Tony Blair, one of a number of international statesman at the conference, said that unless ordinary Arabs see tangible progress in their daily lives over the next three years, “there will be a huge popular backlash”.

By Khaled Yacoub Oweis
(Editing by Alistair Lyon)

(via Islamic markets seen leading global trade volumes) Emerging...

Tue, 25 Oct 2011 10:32:00 -0400

(via Islamic markets seen leading global trade volumes)

Emerging and Islamic markets are expected to lead a growth in global trade volumes over the next fifteen years as non-traditional markets in Asia and Latin America drive demand, said a senior executive at HSBC’s Islamic arm.

Global trade volumes are expected to jump 73 percent to $49 trillion with Malaysia, Indonesia and the UAE emerging as major trade players, according to HSBC Amanah’s recent trade forecast, said Romy Buchari, senior manager of global commercial banking, in an interview with Reuters on Sunday.

Muslim countries will account for 5 percent of the world’s trade by 2025, with Egypt projected to play a larger role in Islamic trade finance as the regulatory environment improves in the country.
“We see 88 percent growth (in trade volumes) in Malaysia. In more nascent markets, that is even higher,” he said. “In Egypt, we see 270 percent growth, Indonesia is 144 percent and the UAE is 126 percent.”

The commodity-based exports of emerging and Islamic markets, which include coal, steel and various types of oil, are in high demand from trading partners in India, Brazil and China, driving future growth in trade activity.

“The big markets have an insatiable appetite for these products,” Buchari said. “These will be continuing to grow as a bigger part of Islamic trade routes besides American and European nations.”

Asia to Middle East trade flows more than doubled between 2005 and 2008, according to the World Trade Organization.

Buchari expects 2 percent trade volume growth over the next four years, as the market struggles with concerns over potential buyer defaults, risk that suppliers may be unable to deliver on goods and exchange rate fluctuations. Growth is expected to accelerate after 2015 to 7.1 percent until 2020, he said.

Demand for Islamic trade finance products are likely to increase as trade relationships strengthen and are expected to be a growth driver for the overall Islamic finance industry.
In Islamic trade finance, a bank will provide a letter of credit, guaranteeing import payments using its own funds, for a client based on sharing the profit from the sale of the item.

Buchari said sharia-compliant hedging instruments to hedge against currency fluctuations are also among increasingly sophisticated tools being created to tap into demand and secure trade deals. (Reporting by Shaheen Pasha, Editing by Dinesh Nair)

futuramb: The Myriad Uses Of The iPad In The Operating Room -...

Wed, 12 Oct 2011 16:20:38 -0400

futuramb:

The Myriad Uses Of The iPad In The Operating Room - Better Health

An exploratory article which mentions a number of areas where the multi talented iPad could be used in surgery is discussed and exemplified with a number of existing apps:

Communication - communicating and sharing images, data and knowledge between patients and specialists

Intraoperative visualization - visual presentation of vital signs and images that can increase the overview of the situation or add specific crucial details

Intraoperative measurement - supporting measurements and navigation during the operation

Augmented Reality in the Operating Room - supporting situation by adding complementary views (3D X-ray et al), information and specialist knowledge and advice as well as providing visual tools directly in the visual field of the surgeon in action

The article concludes by saying:

The iPad has the potential be a game changer in surgery because of its small size, built in sensors and wireless networking capabilities. The only restriction is the imagination of future surgical innovators. Even if the above predictions fail to materialize, it is safe to say what the future holds is only barely imagined today.

(via Why the Occupied Wall Street Movement Scares the Democratic...

Wed, 12 Oct 2011 16:06:09 -0400

(via Why the Occupied Wall Street Movement Scares the Democratic Party)

(via The World in Crisis: Time for responsible decision-making)

Wed, 12 Oct 2011 16:02:19 -0400

(via The World in Crisis: Time for responsible decision-making)

Speculation in Agricultural Commodities: Driving up the Price of Food Worldwide and plunging Millions into Hunger

Thu, 06 Oct 2011 09:22:12 -0400

Speculation in Agricultural Commodities: Driving up the Price of Food Worldwide and plunging...

Steve Jobs: Goodbye to an Icon

Wed, 05 Oct 2011 22:36:20 -0400

Steve Jobs: Goodbye to an Icon: It felt like I’d been slapped in the face. There it was: On...

(via Speculators and Banksters Exposed: Mainstream Media Thrown...

Thu, 29 Sep 2011 17:59:15 -0400

(via Speculators and Banksters Exposed: Mainstream Media Thrown into Tailspin)

The Recolonisation of the Arab world

Thu, 22 Sep 2011 19:18:00 -0400

Despite vast financial wealth, natural and human resources, the Arab World remains underdeveloped...

War is Good for Business: Rebuilding Libya with Stolen Money

Thu, 22 Sep 2011 19:04:03 -0400

War is Good for Business: Rebuilding Libya with Stolen Money: “There is no tomorrow”...

"Charities needed to start treating the public like adults. There is a con, there is an unrealistic..."

Tue, 06 Sep 2011 22:50:49 -0400

“Charities needed to start treating the public like adults. There is a con, there is an...

thepoliticalnotebook: Libya: The International Response This is...

Tue, 30 Aug 2011 23:23:15 -0400

thepoliticalnotebook:

Libya: The International Response

This is the list of countries that currently recognizes the NTC: Albania, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Belgium, Britain, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, France, Gambia, Germany, Greece, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kuwait, Latvia, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Maldives, Malta, Montenegro, Morocco, Netherlands, Nigeria, Palestinian Authority, Panama, Portugal, Qatar, Senegal, Slovenia, Spain, Tunisia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United States. /Al Jazeera Live Feed

China has not recognized the NTC, but essentially sends its best wishes, saying: “We have always attached significance to the important role of the National Transitional Council in solving Libya’s problems, and maintain contact with it.”/BBC Live Feed

Russia’s Dmitry Medvedev has said that they would consider formal relations if the NTC proves that they can provide a “new democratic start.”/Reuters

The European Union is working to unfreeze Libyan assets and remove sanctions, and is pursuing a UN resolution in the initial stages to do so./Al Jazeera Live Feed

The US is also working to unfreeze the Libyan assets they hold./US Dept of State

NATO’s Admiral Giampaola di Paolo says that “ the game is not over yet. Therefore we will continue the mission to uphold the UN resolution” And also that ”there may be other boots on the ground, but not Nato.” /BBC Live Feed

NATO, which has been striking in and around Tripoli today, also says that it is not their job to find Gaddhafi. /BBC Live Feed

Photo: Libyan children celebrate in Janzour. Photo Credit: Ismail Zitouny/Reuters

An initial Libyan scorecard - Opinion - Al Jazeera English

Mon, 29 Aug 2011 23:34:00 -0400

An initial Libyan scorecard - Opinion - Al Jazeera English: The post-Gaddafi transitional period...

UN 'plan for post-Gaddafi Libya' leaked

Mon, 29 Aug 2011 15:34:12 -0400

UN 'plan for post-Gaddafi Libya' leaked : Document appears to reveal plans for UN’s role in...

futurejournalismproject: As Libyan rebels entered Tripoli...

Mon, 29 Aug 2011 00:57:47 -0400

futurejournalismproject:

As Libyan rebels entered Tripoli yesterday, Sky News reporter Alex Crawford appeared to be the only Western broadcast reporter on the scene.

How’d she do it? How’d she broadcast from the capital?

According to the Daily Telegraph “the astonishing footage from the streets of Tripoli was produced using an Apple Mac Pro laptop computer connected to a mini-satellite dish that was charged by a car cigarette lighter socket.”

Somewhere MacGyver is smiling.

pulitzercenter: An aerial view of the largest refugee camp in...

Sun, 28 Aug 2011 14:37:10 -0400

pulitzercenter:

An aerial view of the largest refugee camp in the world.

“With the stream of news reports and images showing the Somali refugee crisis in Kenya and Ethiopia getting worse by the day, as thousands of people flee the famine in their war-torn country, it is easy to forget that the refugee situation is not new.” -Samuel Loewenberg reporting from Kenya.

"Let me tell you a story. Before MSF opened its hospital in Marere [in southern Somalia] in July..."

Sun, 28 Aug 2011 14:36:29 -0400

“Let me tell you a story. Before MSF opened its hospital in Marere [in southern Somalia] in...