HAPPY MOTHERS DAY
May 11, 2008 1 min. read

Happiness is… Being able to share your love with a child you created out of love. To hold a life in your hands, and know it needs you and loves you unconditionally. Nothing more could you ask for than to see eyes shine and smiles brighten as you enter the room. Happiness truly is to […]

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Attitude Trends in Iran and the United States
May 11, 2008 2 min. read

  (Photographed by Karin Esposito, 2004, Tehran) The organization Search for Common Ground (SFCG), on April 7, 2008, published the results of a second poll that it took of 710 Iranian adults , both in rural and urban areas. The first extensive survey it took of Iranian citizens was published in January 2007. SFCG has […]

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Terrorism cases pending before Supreme Court
May 10, 2008 1 min. read

Lyle Denniston has this summary of pending Supreme Court litigation dealing with the Combatant Status Review Tribunal process. In brief, the high Court will issue a decision in the next month – in the Boumediene and Al-Odah cases – which will address the CSRT's. In both, the court will be asked to determine whether Guantanamo […]

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World Fair Trade Day, May 10th
May 10, 2008 2 min. read

This year Saturday, May 10th marks World Fair Trade day, the theme of the year is “Fair Trade for the Planet, for the People”, which follows last years theme of “Kids Need Fair Trade”. For more information see the World Fair Trade Day 2008 Official Website. Fair Trade is everyones issue, it is more than […]

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Europol Helps Define Islamist Terrorism
May 10, 2008 2 min. read

In March 2007, Europol published its first annual report on terrorism in the EU. The "EU Terrorism Situation and Trend Report” is also known as TE-SAT. With respect to the subject matter of this blog, what useful information about supposedly "religiously motivated" terrorism can we find in the TE-SAT? "Islamist terrorists aim at mass casualties." […]

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Best and Worst Place to be a Mother
May 10, 2008 2 min. read

Save the Children has released it's 9th Mother's Day Report Card: The Best and Worst Countries to Be a Mother, this year's list leaves Sweden as the best place for motherhood and Niger as the worst. The United States Ranked 27th out of 146 countries. “A mother's well-being is connected to her children's well-being,” said […]

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Should the US Give More Female Condoms?
May 10, 2008 2 min. read

This report from the Center for Health and Gender Equity actually came out in April, but it just appeared in my Google Alerts today. The report argues that the US government – still one of the world's largest providers of condoms through foreign aid – should send more female condoms. They are currently 2% of […]

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The "Stop-Go" Conflict in Yemen
May 9, 2008 2 min. read

Many Muslims see Yemen as a sanctuary , a tranquil home of Islam that stays close to tradition. This positive image for the faithful persists despite the conflict that broke out in 2004 between the government and Shi'ite rebels. Young Muslims, who want to study Arabic and religion, in a more authentic environment, often take […]

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"Light tomorrow with today!"
May 9, 2008 1 min. read

-Elizabeth Barrett Browning Children are the light of the future, let us care for them today, so that we may see clearer in the future.

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Interested in Becoming a Diplomat?
May 8, 2008 3 min. read

The Washington Post's job section ran a story this Sunday on tips for getting a job with the US Foreign Service. The author dispelled a few common myths about the FS. Here is an excerpt: “Myth: The Foreign Service — the nation's diplomatic corps — is made up exclusively of State Department staff. Fact: The biggest branch of […]

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Drug Trade Fuels Forced Marriages in Afghanistan
May 8, 2008 3 min. read

Afghanistan has yet to find a strategy to cope with the growing practice of “loan brides,” young girls traded into marriage as a result of the opium trade. While traffickers get rich by loaning money to impoverished poppy farmers, the families are often are unable to pay the debt. Families are thus forced to give […]

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Obama for President, 'Mon!
May 8, 2008 2 min. read

[kml_flashembed movie=”http://www.youtube.com/v/tnjKmpIlFn8″ width=”425″ height=”350″ wmode=”transparent” /] Senator Obama has inspired yet two other musical cultivations, both coming from the Caribbean. The Mighty Sparrow, a Caribbean-American of of Grenadian/Trinidadian origin known as the “Calypso King of the World,” composed a song praising Obama. In the song, titled “Barack the Magnificent,” Sparrow sings: "Barack! Barack! He is fighting for openness […]

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