10/31/2014

Personal Notations From the "Grid": On the Eve of #Elections in the United States.....



Mike Pouraryan
58 mins · YouTube ·
It is Election Eve--I spent the day at a training/Debrief at the Orange County Registrar of Voters as I will serve as an Elections Coordinator...marvel at the wonderful team led by the pride of OC, @Neal Kelly, on the immense logistical feat before us (1135 Polling locations//thousands of poll worker volunteers//) All who's stepped to run must be commended for being brave and putting themselves out there...I especially wish my friends @Fred Minagar & @John Mark Jennings all the best as I had the pleasure to vote for both of them for Laguna Niguel City Council...notwithstanding what may happen on Nov. 4, a great place to be to be witness to Democracy in Action--As I wish all a fab Halloween W-End, I wish all a fab week..and urge all to vote if you haven't..and hope you all enjoy this "virtual token"  
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  • Mike Pouraryan ...and as we gear up for this exercise in Democracy in the United States, I again want to remember and honor all who strive for human rights and justice around the World including Souad Hamour Al-Shammary (who I just saw based on my review from Global Secular Humanist Movement &Muslims for Progressive Values) was arrested by Saudi Arabia for simply wanting women to be free & Alaa Abdel Fattah, 32 and his 20 year sister, Sanaa who I honored (and will continue to ) who are currently in detention in #Egyptand all others who are vying to be free....
We also wanted to share these resources courtesy of the team @ the National Priorities Project on the eve of the Elections.  We here @ "Outsiders" join the team @ the National Priorities Project to Urge all not to be a Pumpkin & Vote:

Dear mike,  

In honor of Halloween, and with Election Day just four days away, we bring you a "monster mash-up" of tools and resources to help you connect how hot-button federal budget and spending issues play into this election. Read up before you vote and share with your friends!

Return of the Living Deadline
On December 11, the bill Congress passed to fund the government will expire. That means that shortly after the election, lawmakers must find a way to continuing funding the government by this deadline, or the nation will be faced with a government shutdown. We've laid out what different groups in Congress and the President have said they would prioritize for future spending.

Thriller
Election Day promises to be a nail-biter across the political spectrum, with several states seeing very close races. If you're in a swing state (or any state, really) and want an overview of the landscape before voting, find out how federal spending is already affecting your state using our new State Smart website.

It's Alive
Our live counter tracking how much we've spent to date on military action against ISIS quietly ticked past the $1 billion mark this week. If what we spend on war and military is important to you, check out our military and war voter's guides, too.

Frights & Fears
The government's handling of the Ebola scare has become an important issue this election. What has the U.S. spent fighting Ebola? It seems nobody really knows. One thing we do know: it's not a lot.

No Tricks, All Treat
For a one-stop bag of treats, visit our Voter's Guides to read up on 13 key election issues related to federal spending and revenue. We cover everything from debt and deficit to education to Social Security.
Don't Be a Pumpkin: Vote!
Don't forget to make time on Tuesday to vote. The new crop of legislators will be responsible for decisions that affect all of us, for building and maintaining public systems we all rely on every day, and for making investments that carry America firmly into the 21st century. Your vote counts. Find your polling place here.





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10/30/2014

Thought For the Week: On the Need to #Laugh & Be Ever So Thankful

It is Halloween in the United States.       As we get ready to go "dark" for the Week-End here in #Outsiders and gear up for the elections, we hope this courtesy of - Jonathan Lockwood Huie- will be enjoyed by all.    The need to laugh and be grateful for life is ever more important.   We also urge all in the United States to vote in the elections that is coming up on November 4.

Onward!!!!
The human race has one really effective weapon, and that is laughter.
- Mark Twain

 Laugh at yourself and at life.
Not in the spirit of derision or whining self-pity,
but as a remedy, a miracle drug, that will ease your pain,
cure your depression, and help you to put in perspective
that seemingly terrible defeat and worry
with laughter at your predicaments,
thus freeing your mind to think clearly
toward the solution that is certain to come.
Never take yourself too seriously.
- Og Mandino

Become more and more innocent,
less knowledgeable and more childlike.
Take life as fun - because that's precisely what it is!
- Osho

Consciously adopt the mindset of a young child,
to whom all of life is a grand adventure.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie
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View of the Week: On #Israel, #Palestine & Other Thoughts

It has been another challenging day throughout the World.        Israel just recalled its' Ambassador from Sweden after Sweden recognized Palestine.     This happened after Mr. Lieberman, the Israeli Foreign Minister, noted that Sweden did not understand the Middle East because it is a lot more complex than an IKEA furniture.   The ever eloquent Swedish Foreign Minister responded in kind and we commented on it earlier on Facebook:


Post by The Daily "Outsider".


As someone who has built out IKEA furniture, the Swedish Foreign Minister is absolutely dead on.   The lessons of IKEA is a lesson to be learnt by all.    

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An #outsiders Newsflash From #Iraq & #Egypt: On the Plight of the Refugees

***Updated with a brief clip from the Daily Show****

The Tragedy of #Iraq is ever more as this heart wrenching report from @Al Jazeera's  Jane Araf underscores.   How a 110-Year man was beheaded by the sub human mutant scum of Dayesh (Also known as ISIL/ISIS/Islamic State) defies all sense of decency.  As #Iraq and #Syria continue to burn, #Israel also is on the edge as well with the attempted assassination of an Israeli Right Wing Activist by a suspected member of Islamic Jihad: 

 Iraqi refugees forced to live under ISIL - Middle East - Al Jazeera English

 In the meantime, #Egypt has begun creating a buffer zone to combat militants by blowing up homes on the border with #Gaza.   The fight in #Kobane is continuing and we here @ #outsiders welcome how leading US Officials--including the US Special Envoy General Allen referring to the sub human mutants scums as Dayesh.   We are also continuing to assess the role of Turkey as we reviewed an interesting Washington Post report on the rift with Turkey on this subject.

 Beyond the immediate ravages of the Middle East, we here @ #outsiders  have been assessing this report from +Oxfam GB: 




It is compelling reading that should be a wake-up call to all.    This is as the US is leading into the midterms which we hope to comment on.   The Daily Show has been on the road and shared once again a very colorful  perspective on the state of Politics in the United States Today--it speaks for itself:





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10/28/2014

Notations on Our World: A Challenging 24 Hours in the Middle East

It has been a challenging 24 hours yet again in the Middle East.


A prominent Egyptian Blogger,  Alaa Abdel Fattah, has been sent to jail for being accused of organizing illegal protests.    His Sister, Sanaa, was also tried and sentenced to three years for  organizing illegal protests.      This is as Egypt declared martial law in the lawless Sinai and declared intentions to create a buffer zone supposedly to fight  militants  The true realities, though, were laid out here:




It is clear that The Egyptian President is one paranoid  leader as he believes that the youth are as much a danger as they are.     As Egypt  struggles so does  #Israel.    It is ever so interesting observe how the true realities on the ground in Israel is becoming. ever so evident.     The new session of Israel's Parliament, the Knesset , has begun and the choices before Israel are ever so challenging in the aftermath of the Gaza War.   The Israeli Prime Minister has essentially killed off any further chances for negotiations by deciding on further settlement constructions in East Jerusalem as early elections loom.       This is fueling a silent Intifidah in Jerseulaum that #Abbas warned against:





Iraq continues its' journey to the edge of the abyss as the latest reports shows continued daily bombings in the capital and beyond with no apparent end in sight.   There  is also Saudi Arabia with this shocking news:


It seems as if criticism has no place in the Middle East today as exemplified by the continued detention of the Al Jazeera staff in Egypt.    



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10/27/2014

Notations on Our World: Remembering a Victim of Injustice

It has been a challenging week-end around our World as we begin another week here throughout the Channels of #outsiders.   As we will be commenting on the latest from Israel, Syria, Iraq and all the other key focal points, the shameful episode on the injustice in Iran was ever so as this young girl was hanged in Tehran.   Her letter to her Mother is heart wrenching as reported in key Digital Media outlets around the World including the Huffington Post, Slate and others--and working its' way around the "Social Grid".    We have also decided to publish this as reported in Slate.com in its' entirety.    There are two key points that is worth noting: 
  • She notes that "The World did not Love us".    The World did love her--unfortunately she was the victim of a hateful and vengeful system that defies humanity and compassion who latest manifestations reflect the horrific acid attacks in the City of Isfahan.
  • She will live on because she made the courageous decision to donate her organs--many will remember her.   
It was also  gratifying to see that despite the pressure from Government Security Forces, some 300 people attended her funeral.  May her soul rest in peace and grant her family the solace to underscore that her spirit will live on with the lives of all whom she will make a difference for her final courageous act of courage and defiance.
Nic6319065

A picture taken on July 8, 2007, shows Iranian Reyhaneh Jabbari standing handcuffed at police headquarters in Tehran after she was arrested for the murder of a former intelligence official.
Photo by Golara Sajadian/AFP/Getty Images
The 26-year-old Iranian woman who was executed on Saturday for murdering a man she said tried to rape her sent a final message to her mother, asking her to make sure her organs would be donated. Reyhaneh Jabbari is largely calm in the voice message she recorded for her mother in April; in it she seems resigned to her fate after being on death row for five years. Iranian activists distributed a translation of the message, equating it to Jabbari’s will.
Jabbari was convicted of killing a former intelligence officer who had called her claiming he wanted her interior design advice. He then allegedly tried to rape her, and she stabbed him with a pen knife, although she denies murdering him. In her last message, she says her fate would have been death regardless.
That ominous night it was I that should have been killed. My body would have been thrown in some corner of the city, and after a few days, the police would have taken you to the coroner’s office to identify my body and there you would also learn that I had been raped as well. The murderer would have never been found since we don’t have their wealth and their power. Then you would have continued your life suffering and ashamed, and a few years later you would have died of this suffering and that would have been that.
However, with that cursed blow the story changed. My body was not thrown aside, but into the grave of Evin Prison and its solitary wards, and now the grave-like prison of Shahr-e Ray. But give in to the fate and don’t complain. You know better that death is not the end of life.
Jabbari then asks for one final favor from her mother: “Once again you have to suffer because of me. It is the only thing that if even you beg for it I would not become upset although I have told you many times not to beg to save me from being executed.” She did not want her organs to go to waste:
I don’t want to rot under the soil. I don’t want my eye or my young heart to turn into dust. Beg so that it is arranged that as soon as I am hanged my heart, kidney, eye, bones and anything that can be transplanted be taken away from my body and given to someone who needs them as a gift. I don’t want the recipient know my name, buy me a bouquet, or even pray for me.
Read the full text of the message after the jump.
Dear Sholeh, today I learned that it is now my turn to face Qisas (the Iranian regime's law of retribution). I am hurt as to why you did not let me know yourself that I have reached the last page of the book of my life. Don’t you think that I should know? You know how ashamed I am that you are sad. Why did you not take the chance for me to kiss your hand and that of dad?
The world allowed me to live for 19 years. That ominous night it was I that should have been killed. My body would have been thrown in some corner of the city, and after a few days, the police would have taken you to the coroner’s office to identify my body and there you would also learn that I had been raped as well. The murderer would have never been found since we don’t have their wealth and their power. Then you would have continued your life suffering and ashamed, and a few years later you would have died of this suffering and that would have been that.
However, with that cursed blow the story changed. My body was not thrown aside, but into the grave of Evin Prison and its solitary wards, and now the grave-like prison of Shahr-e Ray. But give in to the fate and don’t complain. You know better that death is not the end of life.
You taught me that one comes to this world to gain an experience and learn a lesson and with each birth a responsibility is put on one’s shoulder. I learned that sometimes one has to fight. I do remember when you told me that the carriage man protested the man who was flogging me, but the flogger hit the lash on his head and face that ultimately led to his death. You told me that for creating a value one should persevere even if one dies.
You taught us that as we go to school one should be a lady in face of the quarrels and complaints. Do you remember how much you underlined the way we behave? Your experience was incorrect. When this incident happened, my teachings did not help me. Being presented in court made me appear as a cold-blooded murderer and a ruthless criminal. I shed no tears. I did not beg. I did not cry my head off since I trusted the law.
But I was charged with being indifferent in face of a crime. You see, I didn’t even kill the mosquitoes and I threw away the cockroaches by taking them by their antennas. Now I have become a premeditated murderer. My treatment of the animals was interpreted as being inclined to be a boy and the judge didn’t even trouble himself to look at the fact that at the time of the incident I had long and polished nails.
How optimistic was he who expected justice from the judges! He never questioned the fact that my hands are not coarse like those of a sportswoman, especially a boxer. And this country that you planted its love in me never wanted me and no one supported me when under the blows of the interrogator I was crying out and I was hearing the most vulgar terms. When I shed the last sign of beauty from myself by shaving my hair I was rewarded: 11 days in solitary.
Dear Sholeh, don’t cry for what you are hearing. On the first day that in the police office an old unmarried agent hurt me for my nails I understood that beauty is not looked for in this era. The beauty of looks, beauty of thoughts and wishes, a beautiful handwriting, beauty of the eyes and vision, and even beauty of a nice voice.
My dear mother, my ideology has changed and you are not responsible for it. My words are unending and I gave it all to someone so that when I am executed without your presence and knowledge, it would be given to you. I left you much handwritten material as my heritage.
However, before my death I want something from you, that you have to provide for me with all your might and in any way that you can. In fact this is the only thing I want from this world, this country and you. I know you need time for this. Therefore, I am telling you part of my will sooner. Please don’t cry and listen. I want you to go to the court and tell them my request. I cannot write such a letter from inside the prison that would be approved by the head of prison; so once again you have to suffer because of me. It is the only thing that if even you beg for it I would not become upset although I have told you many times not to beg to save me from being executed.
My kind mother, dear Sholeh, the one more dear to me than my life, I don’t want to rot under the soil. I don’t want my eye or my young heart to turn into dust. Beg so that it is arranged that as soon as I am hanged my heart, kidney, eye, bones and anything that can be transplanted be taken away from my body and given to someone who needs them as a gift. I don’t want the recipient know my name, buy me a bouquet, or even pray for me. I am telling you from the bottom of my heart that I don’t want to have a grave for you to come and mourn there and suffer. I don’t want you to wear black clothing for me. Do your best to forget my difficult days. Give me to the wind to take away.
The world did not love us. It did not want my fate. And now I am giving in to it and embrace the death. Because in the court of God I will charge the inspectors, I will charge inspector Shamlou, I will charge judge, and the judges of country’s Supreme Court that beat me up when I was awake and did not refrain from harassing me. In the court of the creator I will charge Dr. Farvandi, I will charge Qassem Shabani and all those that out of ignorance or with their lies wronged me and trampled on my rights and didn’t pay heed to the fact that sometimes what appears as reality is different from it.
Dear soft-hearted Sholeh, in the other world it is you and me who are the accusers and others who are the accused. Let’s see what God wants. I wanted to embrace you until I die. I love you.
Reyhaneh
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10/24/2014

On the Eve of the Week-End: A Thought 4 the Weekend

As we here @ "Outsiders" Go "dark" for the Weekend here in the United States, we wanted to leave all w/this "Thought 4 the Weekend"--Enough Said:

We wish all a beautiful W-End.  We look forward to "seeing" all in the channels of "Outsiders' Throughout the final week of October.

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