Big Akhi

Karachi Biscuits in Madhapur, Hitech City Hyderabad

2011-12-01T08:57:00.000-08:00

Most of us working/living in the Hitech city area love to take some Hyderabadi souvenir back home to our family & friends. We mostly choose from the Biryani, Haleem or Karachi biscuits. It is difficult to go to Banjara Hills to grab a pack of Karachi biscuits at short notice and it’s too costly to get one from airport outlets.

My friend Shonita, while exploring the Madhapur area, stumbled across this wonderful supermarket that stocks Karachi biscuits, and they are original. According to Shonita, the supermarket is in the small lane just besides Dominoes Pizza outlet on Madhapur Main road.

So next time you gotta grab a pack of Karachi biscuits, don’t you worry. Just rush to this supermarket near dominoes in Madhapur and ye shall not disappoint thy family.

Thanks Shonita for this useful piece of information!

Chishti Mehfil Sama - Na Janay kya ye jadoo hai

2011-01-19T03:38:00.000-08:00

101 Most Useful Websites - Worth a Bookmark!

2010-12-23T03:39:00.000-08:00

01. screenr.com – record movies of your desktop and send them straight to YouTube.
02. bounceapp.com – for capturing full length screenshots of web pages.
03. goo.gl – shorten long URLs and convert URLs into QR codes.
04. untiny.me – find the original URLs that’s hiding behind a short URLs.
05. localti.me – know more than just the local time of a city
06. copypastecharacter.com – copy special characters that aren’t on your keyboard.
07. topsy.com – a better search engine for twitter.
08. fb.me/AppStore – search iOS app without launching iTunes.
09. iconfinder.com – the best place to find icons of all sizes.
10. office.com – download templates, clipart and images for your Office documents.
11. woorank.com – everything you wanted to know about a website.
12. virustotal.com – scan any suspicious file or email attachment for viruses.
13. wolframalpha.com – gets answers directly without searching – see more wolfram tips.
14. printwhatyoulike.com – print web pages without the clutter.
15. joliprint.com – reformats news articles and blog content as a newspaper.
16. isnsfw.com – when you wish to share a NSFW page but with a warning.
17. e.ggtimer.com – a simple online timer for your daily needs.
18. coralcdn.org – if a site is down due to heavy traffic, try accessing it through coral CDN.
19. random.org – pick random numbers, flip coins, and more.
20. mywot.com – check the trust level of any website – example.
21. viewer.zoho.com – Preview PDFs and Presentations directly in the browser.
22. tubemogul.com – simultaneously upload videos to YouTube and other video sites.
23. truveo.com – the best place for searching web videos.
24. scr.im – share you email address online without worrying about spam.
25. spypig.com – now get read receipts for your email.
26. sizeasy.com – visualize and compare the size of any product.
27. whatfontis.com – quickly determine the font name from an image.
28. fontsquirrel.com – a good collection of fonts – free for personal and commercial use.
29. regex.info – find data hidden in your photographs – see more EXIF tools.
30. tineye.com – this is like an online version of Google Googles.
31. iwantmyname.com – helps you search domains across all TLDs.
32. tabbloid.com – your favorite blogs delivered as PDFs.
33. join.me – share you screen with anyone over the web.
34. onlineocr.net – recognize text from scanned PDFs and images – see other OCR tools.
35. flightstats.com – Track flight status at airports worldwide.
36. wetransfer.com – for sharing really big files online.
37. pastebin.com – a temporary online clipboard for your text and code snippets.
38. polishmywriting.com – check your writing for spelling or grammatical errors.
39. awesomehighlighter.com – easily highlight the important parts of a web page.
40. typewith.me – work on the same document with multiple people.
41. whichdateworks.com – planning an event? find a date that works for all.
42. everytimezone.com – a less confusing view of the world time zones.
43. warrick.cs.odu.edu – you’ll need this when your bookmarked web pages are deleted.
44. gtmetrix.com – the perfect tool for measuring your site performance online.
45. imo.im – chat with your buddies on Skype, Facebook, Google Talk, etc. from one place.
46. translate.google.com – translate web pages, PDFs and Office documents.
47. youtube.com/leanback – enjoy a never ending stream of YouTube videos in full-screen.
48. similarsites.com – discover new sites that are similar to what you like already.
49. wordle.net – quick summarize long pieces of text with tag clouds.
50. bubbl.us – create mind-maps, brainstorm ideas in the browser.
51. kuler.adobe.com – get color ideas, also extract colors from photographs.
52. followupthen.com – setup quick reminders via email itself.
53. lmgtfy.com – when your friends are too lazy to use Google on their own.
54. tempalias.com – generate temporary email aliases, better than disposable email.
55. pdfescape.com – lets you can quickly edit PDFs in the browser itself.
56. faxzero.com – send an online fax for free – see more fax services.
57. feedmyinbox.com – get RSS feeds as an email newsletter.
58. isendr.com – transfer files without uploading to a server.
59. tinychat.com – setup a private chat room in micro-seconds.
60. privnote.com – create text notes that will self-destruct after being read.
61. flightaware.com – live flight tracking service for airports worldwide.
62. boxoh.com – track the status of any shipment on Google Maps – alternative.
63. chipin.com – when you need to raise funds online for an event or a cause.
64. downforeveryoneorjustme.com – find if your favorite website is offline or not?
65. example.com – this website can be used as an example in documentation.
66. whoishostingthis.com – find the web host of any website.
67. google.com/history – found something on Google but can’t remember it now?
68. errorlevelanalysis.com – find whether a photo is real or a photoshopped one.
69. google.com/dictionary – get word meanings, pronunciations and usage examples.
70. urbandictionary.com – find definitions of slangs and informal words.
71. seatguru.com – consult this site before choosing a seat for your next flight.
72. sxc.hu – download stock images absolutely free.
73. imo.im – chat with your buddies on Skype, Facebook, Google Talk, etc. from one place.
74. wobzip.org – unzip your compressed files online.
75. vocaroo.com – record your voice with a click.
76. scribblemaps.com – create custom Google Maps easily.
77. buzzfeed.com – never miss another Internet meme or viral video.
78. alertful.com – quickly setup email reminders for important events.
79. encrypted.google.com – prevent your ISP and boss from reading your search queries.
80. formspring.me – you can ask or answer personal questions here.
81. snopes.com – find if that email offer you received is real or just another scam.
82. typingweb.com – master touch-typing with these practice sessions.
83. mailvu.com – send video emails to anyone using your web cam.
84. ge.tt – quickly send a file to someone, they can even preview it before downloading.
85. timerime.com – create timelines with audio, video and images.
86. stupeflix.com – make a movie out of your images, audio and video clips.
87. aviary.com/myna – an online audio editor that lets record, and remix audio clips online.
88. noteflight.com – print music sheets, write your own music online (review).
89. disposablewebpage.com – create a temporary web page that self-destruct.
90. namemytune.com – when you need to find the name of a song.
91. homestyler.com – design from scratch or re-model your home in 3d.
92. snapask.com – use email on your phone to find sports scores, read Wikipedia, etc.
93. teuxdeux.com – a beautiful to-do app that looks like your paper dairy.
94. livestream.com – broadcast events live over the web, including your desktop screen.
95. bing.com/images – automatically find perfectly-sized wallpapers for mobiles.
96. historio.us – preserve complete web pages with all the formatting.
97. dabbleboard.com – your virtual whiteboard.
98. whisperbot.com – send an email without using your own account.
99. sumopaint.com – an excellent layer-based online image editor.
100. lovelycharts.com – create flowcharts, network diagrams, sitemaps, etc.
101. nutshellmail.com – Get your Facebook and Twitter streams in your inbox.

Jobs in Hyderabad

2010-11-09T08:27:00.000-08:00

The jobs in Hyderabad City, especially in the IT industry can be broadly classified into the following:

BPO jobs in Hyderabad: There has been an immense opporutnity and lot of vacancies or jobs have come up in this sector after the Chandrababu Naidu government's special attention and MNC companies finding it favorable to setup their offices here for their back office operations.

Data Entry jobs in Hyderabad: While there are genuine players in the market, a word of caution here, this sector is full of fraudsters. If you are looking to work from home for a data entry job, please give up this idea. Alternatively, I suggest you do not pay any upfront deposits or make any other kind of payments to get the jobs. Do not pay any middlemen also who promise they will direct you to data entry clients or companies. They are all fraud.

HR (recruitment) jobs in Hyderabad: The Human Resources Recruiter is responsible for delivering all facets of recruiting. If you are looking fly high in the corporate corridors, this one is for your. you will need to put in a lot of hardwork, but you will see the results too.

IT jobs in Hyderabad: There a lot of fly by night IT companies that keep opening by the day and are shut by the night. Please do not fall for them. Check the standing of a company before joining it. You are putting your future at stake. Also, jobs in IT sector are specifically categorized as Software Testing jobs, .Net jobs, and PHP jobs.

Call Center jobs in Hyderabad: The call centers have provided a great opportunity to undergraduates to earn while they learn. If you have got good communication skills and would like to make the best of your spare time, you should try applying at some of the reputed MNCs.

Finding part time jobs in Hyderabad in the above sectors while not easy, is not difficult either.

101 Things To-Do in Hyderabad

2010-10-14T06:12:00.000-07:00

Discover the acoustics of Golconda fort and Seven Tombs. Find the rooms with whispering walls in Golconda and the Echoing tomb in Seven Tombs complex. Also, explore the hamams in Seven Tombs and the very deep well.
Feel the four hundred years of Charminar, Climb up on the Charminar and try locating High Court, Osmania Hospital, and Golconda Fort from the top.
Count the seven Qutub Shahi tombs from a roof top in the western suburbs or from the Hyderabad Golf Course
Climb the steps of Maula Ali and enjoy the view.
Spend a day at Salar Jung Museum. Don't miss the Nizam's jewelry collection - it's bound to make heads spin.
Listen to the silence of Mecca Masjid in a congregation of hundred thousand. Also, view the Mecca Masjid from the Nizamia Unani Hospital campus right opposite the Masjid. At the entrance courtyard of the mosque, a rectangular, arched and canopied building houses the graves of the Nizams who ruled Hyderabad, aka, Asaf Jahi rulers.
Enjoy the cityscape from Birla temple
Explore the Osmania University, the vast campus are green-lungs of the city
Discover the Paigah tombs
Visit the Hyderabad Public School, a school campus fit to be a palace
Drive through the Mecca Darwaza, a Qutub Shahi era gate in Golconda fort that is still manned by army jawans. This got its name as it is apparently in the direction of the Mecca City where Muslims face to offer their prayers five times a day.
Stroll through the Public Garden and see the Mosque beside Assembly building within the garden, Archaeology Museum, Jubilee Hall and Bal Bhavan
Visit the Ramoji Film City. Hyderabad churns out more Tollywood films than Bollywood every year
Osman Sagar and Himayat Sagar were once retreats outside the city. With rapid urbanization, find remnants of yesteryear holiday spots caught in between new development and ring-roads
Drive through Hi-Tec City - an IT hub that could have been so much more - till you find the Durgam Cheruvu
Trace the Shaikhpet Sarai built by the Qutub Shahi kings
Go for a swim in the Mir Alam Tank and also locate the Nizami Observatory, a Space Observatory established in 1907 in the area.
Circumcircle the roller coaster roads around KBR National Park, home to the Chiran Palace
Look for the statues of Telugu literature trio Nannayya, Thikkana and Errana on the Tankbund
Walk the bridges across Moosi - Purana Pul, Muslim Jun Pul, Naya Pul, Salar Jung Pul, Chaderghat Pul
Trace the palaces of Nizams - Chowmahalla Palace (being restored by the grand daughter-in-law and great grandson of Nizam VII), Purani Haveli, King Kothi (now a hospital), Falaknuma Palace (being converted into a Taj hotel), Mahboob Mansion, Chiran Palace (now under Forest Dept), Hill Fort Palace (now Ritz Hotel), Bella Vista (now Administrative Staff College), Basheer Bagh Palace (now dismantled); the palace of Salar Jungs - Dewan Devdi (now houses GHMC); the palaces of Paigah nobles - Paigah Palace (now houses US Embassy; earlier HUDA), Asman Garh Palace (now an archaeology museum) and numerous others
Listen to qawwali at Yousufain dargah, walk the almost magical streets around it and taste Chakna at a cheap restaurant
Buy Laak ki Choodiyaan in Laad Bazaar
Get lost in a black sea of burqas while shopping at Madina on Chaand Raat (eve of Eid-ul-Fitr)
Admire the stone buildings of Patherghatti and haggle for some fine pearls in Char Kaman, Gulzar House
Catch a cultural program or two at Ravindra Bharti
Admire the Nizam era architecture - the High Court, Osmania Hospital, Unani Hospital, City College, City Library, Assembly Building, Jubilee Hall, Osmania Medical College, Osmania Arts College, Moazamjahi Market, Pathergatti
Go boating (sailing if you are a pro) in Hussain Sagar lake and catch a glimpse of largest monolith statue of Buddha
Walk through the Mahboobia school, Nizam college to All Saints school - educational institutions that are 100 to 150 years old
Hunt for books (used) in Abids' roadside book bazaar on Sundays
Walk through some neighborhoods - Red Hills has some fading art deco buildings, Humayun Nagar had some decent bunglows and villas now giving way to commercial projects, Banjara Hills and Jubilee Hills houses the city's elite
Exchange old cut notes and buy attar in the vintage Moazamjahi Market and while you are there, give the kulfi (Rs. 7 only) at Famous Ice Cream a try
Discover kahwa, suleimani, harees and football in the Little Arabia of Barkas - erstwhile colony of Nizam's army and a corruption of the word 'barracks'
Count mosques and tombs as you pass through the main street in Karwan
Walk the bylanes of Hussaini Alam to discover oddities like Deccan Button Factory, surprises like Jamia Nizamia and shockers like Khursheed Jah Palace
Drive down to mango farms in Kandi on Bombay Highway in summer for some great mango varieties - Benishaan, Rasaal, Malika, Langda, Dusseri, Shakkar Gutli, Himayat. Enjoy the arid boulders of Deccan plateau of your return drive
Get yourself a Sherwani stitched at Silver Jubilee, Abids. The master tailor may be a little fussy but what else do you expect from a guy who's doing Sherwanis for several decades now?
Shop for some fine silks at Handloom House, Nampally
Catch a movie at Santosh Sapna - a 70mm-35mm combo theatre - before it is torn down to build a multiplex
Walk through British era markets - General Bazaar and Tobacco Bazaar - now wholesale cloth markets
Meet the city's rich and young on a pub crawl - Ahala, Liquids, Touch, Poison, Dublin, 10D - where the party doesn't stop at 11p
Understand the Khada Dupatta, Sharara, Gharara, Laancha and other wedding dresses
Climb up to the roof of a 300 year old mosque and listen to five adhaans at a time in the muslim quarters of old city
Discover a whole world of spices, herbs and dry fruits in the yellow drawers of Dawasaaz stores
Attend a Hyderabadi Muslim wedding and listen to the teen-maar of a marfa band
Enjoy Irani chai, Osmania biscuit and Onion samosa in a street-side cafe with bent-wood chairs, marble table tops and open shutters
Hog Biryani at Paradise (Paradise Circle); Mandar, Banne Nawab (Salarjung Colony); Nayaab, Shadaab (Madina). Nayaab and Shadaab may have more atmosphere of old city but the taste is as good as it gets at other places too
Understand Hyderabad's naan (oval and square shaped). They sell it hot from the earth ovens on most street corners in old city. Uzbeki Naan of ITC Hotels comes closest in bread family to the Hyderabadi Naan
Feast on some spicy Boti Kababs from the grill and hot Rumaali Roti tossed directly in your plate
Wake up early for some steamy greasy Paaya Nahari and Kulche
Enjoy the road side Pani Puri (or Gup Chup as it is sometimes called)
Buy dry fruit biscuits at Karachi bakery
Savour the fiery Andhra meals (full/plate) and tiffins
Find the spicy and tangy Mirchi ke Pakode on roadsides
Fill up yourself with the Chicken 65 cooked in red color and seasoned with fried curry leaves. Usually served in brown melamine bowls on roadside Chinese eateries.
Indulge yourself with the delicious Hyderabadi cuisine - Biryani, Bagare Baigan, Luqmi, Haleem, Dalcha, Pasinde, Pathar ka Ghost, Khubaani ka Meetha
Eat Haleem and Dahi bade from shacks on street corners during the month of Ramadan
Offer Eid-ul-Fitr / Eid-uz-Zuha prayers in an eidgah
Catch a film festival at the Lalitha Kala Toranam
Watch world cinema at Hyderabad Film Club, Sarathi Studios
Listen to the city's literati at the annual Urdu Academy mushaira in Numaaish grounds
Enjoy the Deccani Urdu. There are fine nuances which make it structurally more similar to Telugu than to Lucknowi Urdu. But what the heck, enjoy "naan ki roti khao ji" and "paani nahane jaaroon"
Enjoy the night-view of the City from Dargah Hakeem Shah Baba, Hakeempet (Behind Apollo Hospitals, Jubilee Hills)
Try the awesome fruit salad at International Juice Center Mehdipatnam, or Ice N Spice Tolichowki OR Fruit Juice Center on ChowMahalla Palace road near Charminar.
Visit the 800 year old Kalpavriksha tree in Golconda Fort, which is supposedly 80-feet in circumference, hollow in the middle and can accommodate up to 12 people.
Try the mutton achar (pickle) at Nampally
Trace the ‘overhead canal’ near Shaikpet the brings drinking water from Manjeera river to Hyderabad.
Spot peacocks at Chiran Palace (now, KBR Park) early morning
Trace the 105-year old beautiful Spanish Mosque in Begumpet, the one of its kind in India.
Spot the Saidanima’s Tomb Near the Hussain Sagar Sailing Club (Towards Mariott Hotel)
Explore the Mir Chowk Bazar (after Laad bazaar near Charminar) for antiquities and pets.
Hog on some awesome hand-made ice-cream at Famous Ice-Cream Center Moazam Jahi Market (Near Abids)
Trace the Aladin Mansion on Begumpet Road (right beside Shopper’s Stop)
Hog on awesome beef cuisine like boti kebab, seekh kabab, tala hua gosht, and beef biryani at spots like Alhamdulillah Hotel (Nampally), Prince Hotel (Mehdipatnam) and Rumaan Hotel (Tolichowki)
Buy a pair of Saleem Shahi shoes at Chatta Bazar (near Salar Jung Museum on Charminar road)
Trace the Central State Library, the biggest library in Asia. The library is located at Afzal Gunj on the bank of the River Musi. It houses 500,000 books and magazines including some rare palmleaf manuscripts. This library is at the apex of the library system in the state.
Explore the Begum Bazar market, the hub of wholesale commercial activity in Hyderabad.
Explore the Jagadish Market, the hub of Mobile and Electronic stores in Hyderabad
Trace the Koti Women’s college. The area's name comes from the word because of Koti Residency. This was later converted to house the British resident James Achilles Kirkpatrick and which was, in 1949, converted into the campus of the Osmania University College for Women.
Explore the Annual Industrial Exhibition aka Numaish held annually for 45 days starting 1st of January every year.
Trace the Taramati-Baramati Baradari on the other side of Golconda fort
Trace the Dargah of Shaik Ji Hali near Gulzar Houze for its unique marble work.
Trace the Dargah of Hazrat Shah Mohammed Hassan Qibla (RA) Abul Ullai near Bhoiguda Kaman (near Aghapura) for its amazing architecture.
Trace the Ghode ki khabar (apparently the grave of a warrior’s horse) this again is near Nampally, Aghapura. If traveling by Auto, just tell him to take you to Ghode Ki Khabar Nampally.
Explore the Hyderabad Zoological Park.
Trace the Lal Bahadur Stadium, aka Fateh Maidan.
Trace the house, Golden Threshold, of Sarojini Naidu, which currently houses the Hyderabad Central University’s office at Nampally.
Visit the SudhaCar’s Museum, BahadurPura, which has a good collection of modified vehicles which are in different shapes and sizes. It houses the world’s tallest tri-cycle, shortest double-decker bus and the smallest bike, apart from a bedcar etc.
Enjoy the evening breeze at People’s Plaza Necklace road.
Enjoy the awesome North Indian chaats at Sindhi Colony, Behind Paradise Hotel.
Trace and count the number of Tombs you will find in Nampally and surrounding areas.
Explore the ‘Secret Lake’ and the beautiful rocks in the adjacent park aka Durgam Cheruvu in Jubilee Hills
Try the famous hyderabadi breakfast spread: Kichdi, Khatta, Kheema and Papad at one of the Hotels like Prince, Rumaan or Alhamdulillah.
Try the Arabian Cuisine blended with Hyderabadi flavors at Dine Hills Masab Tank.
Explore the Khowa/Mawa market near Shah Ali banda Charminar and try some plain khowa with sugar.
Try some Chicken Shawarma and Murgh Tabak at Tolichowki Food Courts
Explore the imported stuff market at Shahran (Behind Shahran Hotel, near Charminar)
Try Camel riding on the Necklace road
Trace the Gulzar Houz Fountain near Charminar
Trace the grave of the last Nizam, Osman Ali Khan at Judi Mosque in King Kothi area.
Explore the Mir Alam Mandi on Pathergatti road near Charminar.

Tala Al Badru Alaina - Urdu Version MP3 download

2010-07-14T21:57:00.000-07:00

Tala‘ al-Badru ‘Alaynā (Arabic: طلع البدر علينا) is a traditional Islamic song (Nasheed) that the Ansar sung to the Prophet Muhammad upon his arrival at Yathrib after completing the Hijra[1][2] in 622 CE.[3] The song is currently over 1400 years old, and one of the oldest in the Islamic culture.

Click here to Download MP3 for Tala ul badru alaina urdu version

Life described in a programming language

2010-07-13T01:18:00.000-07:00

script type="life endless loop">
Early morning, wakeup alarm
open eyes see and feel around
If alive and kicking Then
perform.action("get ready to go to work!")

ElseIf alive and sick Then
perform.action("call up your manager to inform you are OOO!")

ElseIf alive and frustrated
perform.action("pull the quilt over your face and get back to sleep!")

Else
perform.action("Rest in Peace!")

End If

An Honest Indian Politician!!!

2010-04-29T00:24:00.000-07:00

Yeah! Ms. Mayawati , Chief Minister of the largest state of India, has promised to ensure interrupted power supply in a one page ad in one of the leading National dailies Times of India. Keep it up Madam... we need honest people like you :P

My Name Is Khan - My review

2010-02-13T08:09:00.000-08:00

A short sweet review of the movie My Name is Khan. SRK is an autistic guy, who falls in love with a hindu girl Kajol and marries her. But as a result of the marriage, Kajol's son from earlier marriage is killed due to the surname Khan after 9/11 attacks. Kajol tells SRK to go tell President of US that "My Name is Khan, and I am not a terrorist." The rest of the movie about SRK's journey to get to the president and his adventures including helping a community affected by hurricane, running out of money and walking loong distance doing repairs on the way and taking free rides. Its a bit dragging, needn't be three hours long. Could have been shorter. But a good movie. would give 3 stars.

What does Sajda mean

2010-02-01T19:30:00.000-08:00

Sajda or Sajdah (Prostration, Worship, Adoration) has an important part in Islam. There is also a chapter in Quran Surat As-Sajdah (Arabic: سورة السجدة‎) it is the 32nd Surah of the Qur'an with 30 verses.

Prostration is also found in the Torah, Bible, Zen Avesta, Bhagvad-Gita etc which were before the Quran, and it is important in many other religions.

Gaza's Reality - Children at the receiving end.

2010-01-14T23:03:00.000-08:00

Kid you touched my heart....
I pray that one day you enjoy your life...
I pray that god makes your life and our lives happier
I am feel so sorry for you kid,
I hope the world will one day live in peace

Ibn-e-Batuta

2010-01-07T03:41:00.000-08:00

Lyrics of a recent bollywood movie go something like Ibn-e-Batuta, bagal mein joota which means ibn e batuta, shoe under the arm.. which is meaningless and has been used just for the rhyming words. I take this opportunity to talk a bit about Ibn-E-Batuta, the great traveler.

A Moroccan Berber Muslim scholar and traveler who is known for the account of his travels and excursions called the Rihla (Voyage) in Arabic. His journeys lasted for a period of nearly thirty years and covered almost the entirety of the known Islamic world and beyond, extending from North Africa, West Africa, Southern Europe and Eastern Europe in the West, to the Middle East, Indian subcontinent, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and China in the East, a distance readily surpassing that of his predecessors and his near-contemporary Marco Polo.

The name of such a legendary traveler who has documented the times of most of the countries in his travels. It is disrespect to him and shame to all associated with the song.

You may read more here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ibn_Battuta

THREATENING MINARETS

2009-12-31T03:11:00.000-08:00

From Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad's page on Facebook
1. Switzerland has decided that Muslim mosques in that country would not be allowed to have minarets. It seems that minarets would overwhelm the Swiss.

2. I wonder what would happen in Malaysia if Hindu temples are not allowed to have statues, for example. I think there would be an explosion. The whole world will condemn us as being undemocratic, not respecting human rights, not upholding religious freedom etc.

3. But when the Swiss bans minarets (there are only four minarets in the whole of Switzerland) and the French ban headscarves, these are very democratic. Always double standards and unfortunately the discrimination is always against Muslims.

4. Mr Obama, the Nobel Laureate President of the United States of America who promised to get out of Iraq and Afghanistan and close Guantanamo Detention Camp, have not honoured even a single word of his promises.

5. In fact more soldiers have been sent by him to Afghanistan and Iraq. He is now preparing to attack Iran together with his ally, Israel.

6. There will be excuses of course. They will show evidence that Iran is making nuclear bombs and is about to launch nuclear war against the world.

7. But after the evidence that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction to justify the invasion of that country, can we believe that the attack against Iran is due to the imminent nuclear attack by that country???

My brother forgot Windows XP administrator password

2009-10-06T10:42:00.000-07:00

Today, when I came back home in the evening, I was in for a surprise. My younger brother, Nazeer, changed the login password for his system (Windows XP) and forgot the password. Fortunately for non-tech guys like us, I was able to locate these simple steps to reset windows XP password at wikihow.com

Reboot your machine.
Press F8 before the Windows boot screen appears. Do not press F5 as used on the NT/9x series of Windows. You will be be prompted with a boot options menu.
Select the Start Windows in Safe Mode option.
Click through several self-explanatory screens until your reach the familiar 'Welcome' screen.
- Note that this welcome screen is limited to 256 colors and 640x480 resolution because the primary graphics will have been set to the Windows Safe Mode software VGA adapter. You will not be able to change this mode even in Display options, while Windows is running in Safe Mode.
Find the icon for the Administrator user. If the default settings of your system haven't been changed, there should be no password for this account.
The Safe Mode Welcome screen might display some of the other users on your system.
Login as the admin.
Press Yes at the prompt asking if you would like to continue using Safe Mode.
Continue on to the User Settings control panel. Here you can change any of the other passwords for user on the machine. Make any changes you want.
Reboot your computer. As long as you don't press any keys (i.e. F8) during the boot-up the computer will startup normally.
Login as the user for which you set the password.
If it doesn't work above, you can try to use professional support recommendation -- Windows Password Reset to crack your windows password without erasing anything.

Thank you wikihow!

Beautiful Rainbow

2009-10-05T10:43:00.000-07:00

This beautiful rainbow was shot today evening by my colleague Navin from our office terrace. It was a beautiful evening after some rains. Its been raining cats and dogs now for over a week. Most of the surrounding districts have been flooded killing over 200 people. Anyways, may their souls rest in peace.

Hyderabad in 1948 (i.e. About 61 years ago)

2009-10-05T05:41:00.000-07:00

I recently came across some really old pics on Hyderabad, from about 60 years ago. Sharing it with you all. I will try and post the pictures from current days for the same locations.

1. This pic is of the famous Moazam Jahi Market, a kind of shopping complex at that time.

It was constructed in 1935 during the reign of the last Nizam, Mir Osman Ali Khan. It was named after his second son Moazzam Jah.

This building is a great landmark of Hyderabad even today and the main landmark is built entirely in stone.

PS: Please click on each pic to get a larger view.

Effect of H1N1 flu on an Indian Wedding

2009-08-27T03:18:00.000-07:00

Shahrukh Khan Detained at Newark Airport

2009-08-19T00:11:00.000-07:00

Shahrukh Khan's press conference in India after he was detained at Newark Airport for more than two hours because of his surname 'Khan' and being a Muslim. In the interview, he said that he is more than happy to abide by the security rules of any country, but there shouldn't be any racial profiling. The rules should be same for all people, they shouldn't be discriminated based on color, religion, race, country of origin or surnames.

Ramadan Glossary

2009-08-17T04:04:00.000-07:00

Ramadan time is around, i thought its the right time to share some of the words frequently used during ramadan. Ramadan kareem to all

RAMADAN GLOSSARY

Adhaan/Azaan: Muslim call for Prayer

Duaa/Du'aa: Supplication

Eid al Fitr: Muslim Festival at the end of Ramadan

Fajr: The morning prayer that marks the starting of the fast for the day

Iftaar:The time when Muslims break their fast as the sun begins to set, coincides with the Maghrib prayer

Leylatul Qadr: The night of power, Falls under the last ten days of Ramadan. A night in which the first verse of the Quran was revealed

Maghrib: The evening prayer that marks the ending of the fast for the day

Masjid: Mosque, muslim place of worship

Mubarak: Blessed

Ramadan: The holy month of fasting

Salat/Namaz: Prayer

Sadaqah: Charitable giving (not obligatory like Zakat)

Sehri/Suhor: The pre-dawn meal

Taraweeh: Evening prayer only in the month of Ramadan where 1/30 of the Quran daily is read until completion at the end of the month

Zakat: Almsgiving, one of the five pillars of Islam

Indian Independence Day - August 15th

2009-08-12T23:14:00.000-07:00

August 15th we're gonna celebrate our independence day. The independence from the British rule of over 200 years. There were two Kings who early on resisted the British rule and fought till their last breath. Nawab Siraj Ud Daulah and Tipu Sultan.

Siraj-Ud-Daulah
The Battle of Plassey (or Palashi) is widely considered the turning point in the history of India, and opened the way to eventual British domination. After Siraj-Ud-Daulah's conquest of Calcutta, the British responded by sending fresh troops from Madras Chennai to recapture the fort and avenge the attack. A retreating Siraj-Ud-Daulah met the British at Plassey, but betrayed by a conspiracy hatched by Jagat Seth, Mir Jafar, Krishna Chandra, Umi Chand etc, he lost the battle and had to escape. He went first to Murshidabad and then to Patna by boat, but was eventually arrested by Mir Jafar's soldiers. Siraj-Ud-Daulah was executed on July 2, 1757 by Mohammad Ali Beg under orders from Mir Jafar.

Tipu Sultan
The Sultans of Mysore, Hyder Ali and Tipu proved much harder nuts to crack. They defied the British and their allies. They fought four valiant wars. In the fourth war British gold effected what British guns had so far failed to accomplish. The ministers betrayed the master. Tipu refused to surrender and died bravely fighting in defence of his fort.

---- Tara Chand, History of the Freedom Movement in India,
revised edn., Delhi, 1965, I, pp.226-27.

Must Watch Video of a movie made on Tipu Sultan

Reaction of British after seeing Tipu dead
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p2R60xM1lwA (unable to embed, so please click to watch :) )

Hyderabad Gearing up for Ramadan

2009-08-10T23:52:00.001-07:00

There is a lot of hustle justle going on around the city. Its like the silence before a storm. Very soon the roads are going to witness a sea of people around the city. The faithful are awaiting the sighting of the moon to begin fasting. Shops have renewed their stocks and awaiting customers. People are awaiting their paychecks. Businessmen are expecting an explosive turnover and a windfall of profits.

Foodies are awaiting haleem, the traditional flavour of Hyderabadi evenings. Brightly illuminated hotel fronts, buzz of a gathering, clanking spoons and a rejuvenating haleem disappearing in minutes from bowls is a common sight at almost every nook and corner.

The lip-smacking delicacy which has the city restaurants and eateries set up special counters and stalls to dish it out is the most popular draw for denizens during the month of Ramzan

People do not hesitate to travel from one end of the city to other to try different outlets around the city. Some people make it a point to have haleem every day at a new outlet and do not repeat the outlet.

Even the parcel service at most places has become popular and at times, those manning the counters can be seen struggling to manage the orders of packing and delivering.

Some of the most popular haleem spots of the city include hotels such as Naayab, Madina, Shaadab, Niagara, Rainbow and Paradise apart from other outlets such as Pista House and Kababish (the MD of Kababish is my friend :) ). Clusters of eateries at Punjagutta, Nampally, Madina and other places too have a good daily evening clientele that stretch till late hours.

Taraweeh, is the special prayers performed through the month of Ramadan. It begins about two hours after breaking the fast. It is the Sunnah prayers and the Huffaz (reciters of Quran) recite complete Quran at least once during the month of Ramadan in the Taraweeh. There are 30 chapters in the Quran and mosques have schedules according to the convenience and the schedules of nearby mosques. For example, if there are three mosques in a locality, one mosque would have a schedule of 3 chapters per day, second would have a schedule of 5 chapters per day, and the third would have a schedule of 1 or 1.25 chapters per day.

During the last 5 days of Ramdan, there would be special Taraweeh organized at certain mosques and community places where they would recite the whole Quran in one night in the prayers.

Last but not the least, the rich and well to do families become very generous during the month of Ramadan and distribute clothes, food, and sometimes even help poor relatives in building a home from the Zakat fund.

This month of Ramadan comes as a blessing for one and all. The rich get an opportunity to earn good deeds while the poor get their needs fulfilled. The faithful dedicate themselves to the prayers. The businessmen finish the month with swollen bank accounts. The kids would be happy too with the holidays and fun through the holy month. I wish all my readers a very happy and blessed Ramadan. Ramadan Kareem to all.

PS: I am gonna try to post pics of Ramadan in Hyderabad whenever I find time to.

World AirTraffic - A beehive from outerspace

2009-08-10T03:37:00.000-07:00

Stay with the picture. You will see the light of the day moving from the East to the West, as the Earth spins on it’s axis. Also you will see the aircraft flow of traffic leaving the North American continent and traveling at night to arrive in the UK in the morning. Then you will see the flow changing, leaving the UK in the morning and flying to the American continent in daylight. It is a 24 hour observation of all of the large aircraft flights in the world, condensed down to about 2 minutes.

You could tell it was summer time in the north by the suns foot print over the planet. You could see that it didn’t quite set in the extreme north and it didn’t quite rise in the extreme south.

With this 24 hour observation of aircraft travel on the earth’s surface we get to see the daylight pattern move as well.

PS: The yellow dots are airplanes in the sky during a 24-hour period.

Taslima Nasreen back to India again

2009-08-06T01:54:00.000-07:00

Back again on the diplomatic dilemma of the Indian Foriegn affairs ministry. Controversial Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasreen, who was dramatically bundled out from West Bengal in November 2007, returned to New Delhi on Thursday to seek an extension for her visa, which is ending on August 17. More news here

I have earlier posted about Rebiya Kadeer being denied a visa to enter India.

People are just getting bad bad bad

2009-07-30T02:21:00.000-07:00

A woman in Worcester killed her friend, tore open her tummy and took away the baby she was carrying. She later claimed that she had delivered the baby. It is such a gruesome act that she's put the humanity to shame. This heinious act could be unearthed only because of the common friends of the victim Darlene Haynes and the murderer Julie A. Corey. The murderer told friends in recent days that she had delivered a baby some. The claim piqued the suspicions of friends, who did not know she was pregnant. Those friends alerted Worcester detectives after the Haynes slaying became public.

It is disheartening to see that we are just getting bad bad bad at micro and macro levels. We as nations do not hesitate to go occupy others lands nor we as individuals are hesitating to steal our own friends of their lives and kids. I feel these are just the signs of the end of the world.

World eBookfair. Free eBooks for free until Aug 4!

2009-07-28T03:23:00.001-07:00

The 4th annual e-book fair is on www.worldebookfair.com fromJuly 4 to August 4.

About 2 million pdf books are available for free download in this fair,

After Aug4 the same collection will only be available for an annual membership fees of $8.95.

So, grab the opportunity.

Dual standards of Indian Diplomacy

2009-07-27T03:40:00.000-07:00

Again, it is the story of two women and how different treatment was meted out to them. But this time, it is the Indian diplomats who are in the spotlight.

India has denied a visa to Rebiya Kadeer, the Uighur matriarch exiled by China, on the advice of Beijing which accuses the 62-year-old of inciting the recent violence in Xinjiang.

In stark contrast to this, India has been sheltering the controversial author Tasleema Nasreen from the neighboring Bangladesh. India's External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee assured Nasreen a "shelter" in India, but urged her to "refrain from activities and expressions" that may hurt the sentiments of Muslims in India and harm relations with friendly countries.

It was very well known that India follows a diplomacy of appeasement of the external superpowers. That does not mean that they ignore the internal powers. Muslims are the second largest population in the country and their feelings cannot be fiddled around by sheltering somebody who the community does not see in good light and denying entry to a freedom fighter who is globally well known.

This act has definitely hurt the sentiments of the masses. Not just muslims but all peace loving citizens of the nation.

Googlized

2009-07-22T00:05:00.001-07:00

A Google Saree displayed in a Indian fashion event

Ice Cone vendor in India....

A small convenience store on the Washington side of the Columbia River (Oregon)

A Laundry in Kuwait

A Lebanese Grocery Store

Explore the moon in Google Earth

2009-07-21T02:47:00.000-07:00

Coinciding the anniversary of Man's landing on the Moon, Google has provided with an option to explore moon using the Google Earth. I have always been fascinated by space, starts, planets, universe, extraterrestrial bodies, aliens, UFOs. I always wondered if humans could ever get to know any living beings outside Earth. Checkout more details at Official Google Blog: Explore the moon in Google Earth

Hyderabad International Auto Show 2009

2009-07-20T07:37:00.000-07:00

As the name suggests this happened in Hyderabad, its the first time that an International Auto Show was held at Hyderabad.

The event was the first of its kind in the south India spread over 6,400 sq. mtrs of Air-conditioned facility, where all the major automobile manufactures, finance companies and insurance companies participated. Biggies like Hyundai, Maruti, Ford, Tata Motors, General Motors, Mahindra, Renault, Fiat, Toyota, Honda, Skoda,Mercedes, Volvo, BMW, Audi, Volkswagen, Porche, Land Rover and Rolls Royce. Two Wheeler manufacturers like Hero Honda, Honda Motor Cycles, TVS Motors, Bajaj Auto, Yamaha Motors, Kinetic and Suzuki Motors also participated.

Apart from these, there were stalls of selected manufacturers/importers of automobile accessories like Sony, JBL, Panasonic, etc.

My nephews liked the Toys for Big Boys.. where radio controlled airplanes and copters were on display and yea they were affordable in the range of $100 to $1000 :)

I'll post a few pics of the vintage stuff that was on display outta there... I liked them the most.. There were the BSAs, Nortons, Red Indians....wooohoooo

Music Knows no Barriers

2009-07-14T07:20:00.001-07:00

Chinese contestant singing a Indian Bollywood song in a Chinese contest. Amazing

Rockscape of Hyderabad

2009-07-13T06:07:00.001-07:00

Hyderabad is blessed with a unique landscape: spectacular ancient rock formations - though almost extinct in the centre of the expanding metropolis - still dot its suburban expanses: Granite ridges and hillocks weathered into picturesque balancing forms, part of the Deccan Shield area. Geologists date these rocks to 2,500 million years back, amongst the oldest and hardest rocks in the world.

Uncontrolled quarrying and destruction for the sake of building material and more building space threatens to make these rocks a thing of the past. But do we have to destroy a unique asset that other cities would be proud to possess? We should realise that our rocky hillocks lend themselves to great nature and adventure parks. Nature is recreation for the body and the soul - and we are sorely in need of more recreation areas for the increasing millions of our city.

Hyderabad is growing its concrete monuments at a crazy pace. But every visitor to Hyderabad admires the balancing boulders of our landscapes with awe. The indiscriminate cutting down of the rocks is seen with dismay. We need to protect rock formations as natural monuments. They cannot be reproduced by man. They are simply priceless!!!

Rockscape pics from Hyderabad!

2009-07-13T06:02:00.000-07:00

Riot-Hit Western China Allows Friday Prayers

2009-07-10T07:45:00.000-07:00

Glad to know that Friday prayers were allowed in few mosques in Urumqi. Quoting ABC News

"Boisterous crowds turned up at mosques in riot-hit parts of this western Chinese city, ignoring orders canceling Friday prayers due to the ethnic violence and forcing officials to let them in.

About 100 men argued with guards, demanding they be let in for prayers at the White Mosque — near the Muslim Uighur neighborhood that saw some of the worst violence after angry protests Sunday spiraled into a riot that left at least 156 dead, many of them from China's Han majority.

A Uighur policeman guarding the mosque, who would not give his name, said: "We decided to open the mosque because so many people had gathered. We did not want an incident."

Nearby, on Liberation Road, a group of about 40 Uighur men and women began to march, shouting, crying and pumping their fists in the air as they walked.

Madina Ahtam, a woman in a multicolored headscarf, begged foreign reporters to stay with them as they walked."

The rest of news and source of this post here

China bans Friday prayers - Not Fair

2009-07-10T00:06:00.000-07:00

After the recent riots in Urumqi, China has ordered the mosques to be closed for Friday prayers. Quoting Al Jazeera: "Under instructions from superiors, normal prayer will be suspended from today," said a notice dated Wednesday posted at the gateway of the nearby Guyuan mosque.

"Anybody wishing to pray … please do so at home."

This is not fair. It is an important aspect of Islam and it is obligatory for all Muslims.

Jumu'ah (Arabic: جمعة‎) (also known as jum'ah, Friday prayer, etc.) is a congregational prayer (salat) that Muslims hold every Friday, just after noon in lieu of dhuhr. It is mentioned in theQur'an as:

O you who believe! when the call is made for prayer on Friday, then hasten to the remembrance of God and leave off trading; that is better for you, if you know. (Qur'an 62:9)

And when the prayer is ended, then disperse in the land and seek of Allah's bounty, and remember Allah much, that ye may be successful. (Qur'an 62:10)

China please allow the East Turkestan people to pray freely.

Rant: Oppression suppression at its best. World over Muslims are alleged of oppressing others in their society... the reality is something else.. Muslims are being targeted and hated.

2009-07-09T23:53:00.000-07:00

Random colorful pictures I came across.. Have a great day.. Keep smiling :)

Tribute to Marwa Sherbini

2009-07-08T21:56:00.000-07:00

Two women were killed in two distant countries: Neda Agha Sultan was shot during a protest in Iran while Marwa el Sherbini was stabbed 18 times inside a courtroom in Germany. Each death, of these women who stood up for what they believed in, tells a larger story. Neda in Iran became a world icon, Marwa in Germany was simply disregarded.

I feel sorry for the family, especially the kid, who will now be deprived of his mother's love, the most beautiful thing to happen on earth. I appreciate that she did not take the racist attacks on her lying low and instead took to the court of law and won the case. Unfortunately, she had to pay with her life in the same court of law. Women like these, who have such strong Character and Faith turn out to be essential assets of the Muslim Ummah. Allah grant her peace, highest level of Jannah, and grant patience to her innocent child and family. Ameen

Thanks for visiting, please leave your tribute as a comment

Google Chrome OS - Various Reactions

2009-07-08T20:14:00.001-07:00

I couldn't stop myself from sharing various reactions I came across after the launch of Google Chrome OS. Here’s a sampling of the reaction, positive, negative and in-between:

The fans, boosters and generally positive takes:

TechCrunch, BetaNews, Computerworld, Mashable, BuzzMachine, Ars Technica,Bloomberg, ArsTechnica, Google Watch, MediaMemo, Linux-Watch.com, Google Operating System, The Register, TheNextWeb.com, Black Web 2.0, BloggingStocks, Gadget Lab,Computerworld Blogs, ContentBlogger, Lockergnome Blog Network, About Mobility . . .

The critics and skeptics:

PC World, CNET News, Search Engine Watch, AllThingsD, ZDNet, InformationWeek, Techdirt,Traffick, SlashGear, MacDailyNews, SmoothSpan Blog . . .

The “wait and see” or “he said/she said” pieces:

BBC, TheStreet.com, eWeek, GigaOM, Venture Capital Dispatch, The Microsoft Blog,IntoMobile, Between the Lines, Mercury News, Seattle Times, ReadWriteWeb, TG Daily,Googling Google, New York Times . . .

Some verbatims:

This is Google dropping the mother of bombs on its chief rival, Microsoft. It even says as much in the first paragraph of its post, “However, the operating systems that browsers run on were designed in an era where there was no web.” Yeah, who do you think they mean by that? And it’s a genius play.
–TechCrunch
The privacy implications are, of course, horrendous. And while Google will inevitably dismiss such concerns as paranoid and argue that any data the company might collect at the OS level will be used only to improve its services and benefit users, it should still give us all pause. Because when it is finally launched, Chrome OS will be yet one more deep well of consumer data to which Google will have access
– Digital Daily
If Google wants to succeed in its boldest product launch to date, the Chrome OS, the company needs to focus on its success with the same intensity it once dedicated to search. If it doesn’t, Chrome OS will end up just like Chrome: yet another irrelevant skunkworks project used by a handful of digerati and Microsoft-haters and ignored by everyone else.
–Silicon Alley Insider

Mirza Ghalib's Movie

2009-07-05T22:11:00.000-07:00

For those who don't know, Mirza Asadullah Baig Khan was a renowned classical Urdu and Persian poet of the subcontinent. Most notably, he wrote several ghazals during his life, which have since been interpreted and sung in many different ways by different people. He is considered to be the most dominating poet of the Urdu language.

For Ghalib's fans, I found a complete movie on him with beautiful ghazals at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMb9quUSAls&feature=related

Also, it is worth visiting his page on wikipedia

About 37 poems (Ghazals) translated to English can be found here http://www.yagmin.com/ghalib/joy.cgi

Hyderabad's favorite Irani Chai

2009-07-02T22:12:00.000-07:00

There are a few things which can be called quintessentially Hyderabadi and of those is the Irani chai. In fact, it is so popular that even film songs have a mention of it.

Tea cafes became a part of the Indian culture when Persian traders visited the country. The Irani Chai that came with it is known to be a great blend of brewed tea leaves, boiled milk and sweetened condensed milk.

This kind of tea is available at small and old cafes and is usually served with tempting sweet and salty Osmania biscuits (see pic). And the price surprisingly still ranges from Rs. 2.5 to Rs. 5 per cup. Do not forget to ask for the Khade Chammach ki chai if you have a sweet tooth. It is so named because the cup has so much sugar that the spoon stands upright when inserted to mix!

A mosque desacrated - 3 killed in related violence

2009-07-02T21:35:00.000-07:00

An unfortunate incident of desacration of a Mosque resulted in clashes between two communities in the city of Mysore in South India. Three people were killed and According to the police, the victims have been identified as Mubarak (25), Junaid Pasha (15) and Tirupathi (46).

The trouble started following the desecration of a Mosque where a carcass of a slaughtered animal was found. When the news spread, a large number of people gathered outside the school.

Communal frenzy knows no sentiments and relations. In incidents of communal violence, the victims are the innocent people whose only commonality is poverty. Thursday's communal violence in Mysore starkly brought this out.

All the three killed in the violence were poor and innocent. Communal feelings made no sense to them. Whether it was truck driver Mubarak or Tirupathy, they had never imagined they would meet a gory end.

A crestfallen Hasina, mother of Mubarak, 22, says though she urged her son to have breakfast, he told her he would meet his friend and come back. "I waited for him till 12.30 pm, only to learn from my neighbours that he was stabbed to death," she said.

More tragic tale was that of Junaid, 14. When he died, his father, plastic goods hawker, was roaming in the same area, unaware of the tragedy. His mother Munzira Banu, who rushed to the spot on hearing the news of her son's death, initially said he was killed in the police firing. But police denied it saying he was stabbed.

Big Akhi - The namesake

2009-06-30T00:53:00.000-07:00

Literally translating from Arabic Akhi means Brother. I am fondly referred to as Big Brother, big akhi etc as am the eldest among the siblings... when I decided I wanted to blog, I could not come up with a name better than Big Akhi :)

Ana hina (Am here..)

2009-06-30T00:48:00.001-07:00

Back after a long unexpected weekend due to flu. I had to take Monday off with complete bed rest. Now am doing good. Back to normal mechanical routines..The day starts at 6:30am and ends post 11:00pm... lots of things happen between these two time intervals and sometimes looks like it was two different days...the weather is relatively pleasant, but monsoon is delayed unexpectedly. There have been prayers at various places for rains. The economy and well being of thousands of farmers in the country depends on rains. If rains fail, there would be a series of suicides by the farmers whose crops fail. There would also be severe shortage of drinking water in the urban areas and also the electricity supply due to hydropower shortage. In a nutshell, we better pray for some good rainfall.

Iran, Israel and India

2009-06-25T07:28:00.000-07:00

The Ministry of Broadcasting, India, probably does not encourage any news coverage of the Muslim world in general and Middle East in specific. We have hundreds of news channels spanning across almost all the languages and states. (India is divided into states based on languages) but none of them bother to cover any news related to the sufferings of Palestenians, Israel's aggression against its neighboring Arab countries, nor the protests happening in Iran. The Indian media does not care to cover the brutal killings of the Iraqis by Americans (who btw, are there for restoring democracy.)

The most favorite punching bag for all the news channels in India is Pakistan and Taliban. They run stories of how Taliban is at the gates of India and how the sovereignty of India is at stake. They don't bother to cover the killings of the innocents, nor do they bring any positive stories from the Muslim world. Their only agenda has been to propogate that all muslims are terrorists. Any muslim with a beard, kurta is a terrorist. Any muslim going to pray is a terrorist. Any muslim following his faith religiously is a terrorist. Any muslim wearing a veil is a terrorist.

I beg to differ with the Indian Media and I urge them to honestly cover all the stories around the world. The world is not just limited to India, Pakistan and America. There are other countries, Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Bahrain, UAE, Saudi, Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia...rest of the world. We want to hear news from all these places. We have our friends and loved ones living there. We are emotionally related to our brethern. Please do not keep the world's second most populated country ignorant of the reality in the world.

My heart pours out for Palestenians never ending sufferings....

2009-06-25T06:16:00.000-07:00

A comment on an article about Palestine. I especially like the questions in the comment...about the faith, its personal for her.

kipkip,

My grandmother gave up her faith in 1948 because of Zionist agressions in Palestein.

She said "no one in the true faith would do what the zionist did to the Palastinians".

40 years of occupation?

Stealing of lands?

Killing of children?

Building a wall like the Communist did? On stolen land?

Throw a rock and we will kill you?

Be an Arab and we will punish you?

What ever happened to compassion?

What ever happened to understanding?

What ever happened to the true faith?

You obviously have lost it!

You enjoy the occupation and the stealing of land to further your settlements at the costs of Palestinians.

Enjoy your fruits, because eventually the world will go against you!

Palestinians fight illegal settlements in Montreal Court

2009-06-24T02:18:00.000-07:00

I am happy that Palestinians are considering other options of preventing Israel from expanding their setllments. Otherwise, it has been a nonending cycle of violence. Pray the innocent people of the Middle East get peaceful days soon.

2009-06-22T01:07:00.001-07:00

A few months back I co-penned this poem with my friend Afrah :)
Make a Difference

I sit here wondering in awe
At the clear blue sky when I saw
With its sparkle that instills a ray of hope
But with a reality that I have to cope

I see the vehicles below polluting this beautiful sky,
To reach their destination they try
For them to think about nature is a far cry

Is this the world we want to live in?
While we see the dear ozone go thin
With our gruff behavior and nonsensical approach,
Natural balance we encroach

I beg to differ and need to plead,
Please stop this pollution and take the lead.
Mother Earth is in a state of seethe
Save it, protect it, and let it breathe

Feeling peaceful and calm within,
I breakdown on others’ sin
With the thoughts of a serene, clean sky
I just start to pray and let out a huge sigh.

Why turn deaf to something as critical as this?
When we all can live in bliss
Why choose to escape
When we can beautify the landscape

Get rid of smoke and these obnoxious gases
Let’s start to educate the masses
Don't make this world so toxic
It belongs to all the classes

The morose, lonely sky cries for help far away
So does the fresh breeze that blows past your way
You and only you alone can stand up for it,
Indian, Pakistani, American or Brit
You alone can make a big difference
Encroachment on nature, please don’t permit

**************************

You can also visit my other blog with collection of funny emails and videos http://havuseenthis.blogspot.com/

Climbing the Mt. Sinai in pics - II

2009-06-16T00:50:00.000-07:00

Climbing the Mt. Sinai in pics

2009-06-16T00:46:00.000-07:00

Climbing the Mt. Sinai

2009-06-16T00:38:00.000-07:00

On the second day of my stay (March 12, 2008), when I got back to my hotel, there was a Bedouin, Hamdy, from St. Katherine in the lobby. I sat down with the other guys and he started talking about the Gabl al Mousa (Mt. Sinai or Mt. of Moses) and St. Katherine monastery. He offered to accompany me to the camp and arrange for me to climb the mountain. I was excited about the opportunity, but was not sure about my schedule for the next day. I told him that I would get back to him the next day morning. Next day morning when I woke up, I had nothing more interesting on hand and was excited about the opportunity to travel down south along the coast of the red sea to St. Katherine, the tourist city.

I found the Bedouin waiting in the reception and I confirmed to him that I would be joining him to St. Katherine and made the payment for the bus tickets. The bus would leave Cairo at 11:00 am and it was already 9:30. Ticket was arranged for me by 10:30 am and I had to rush to Torgoman square, about 6 kms away, to catch the bus in 30 minutes during the peak hour. I rushed and paid 20 pounds to the driver instead of 5 pounds and found the Bedouin, Hamdy, waiting for me in the bus station. The bus station was no less than an airport. It was very well built and the security was as good as an airport. It was a pleasant surprise to see such facilities and arrangements for bus passengers. The bus left station at 11:00 am and reached St. Katherine by around 8:00 pm. About 30 kilometers from St. Katherine, the weather began to change and it was getting colder and colder. When I got down the bus at St. Katherine it was spine chilling cold and we had to walk a distance to reach the camp.

When I reached the camp, luckily there was campfire and Hamdy took me to the tent and I sat by the fire. When I asked Hamdy what are the next plans, he said, you will have to start climbing the mountain by 2:00 am to be able to reach on the top by dawn and see the sunrise. Because of the cold, I had given up on climbing. I was wearing four garments, and yet it was very cold. I had roasted chicken and rice for dinner and went to sleep. I met a Swiss national, Oberson Daniel, who had traveled to Egypt on a bike.

When I got to the room to sleep, there was no fire and it was like a huge deep freezer and Daniel advised me to ask for a second blanket so that I can cover myself with two blankets. But I didn’t and jumped into the bed with one blanket. And it was as good as sleeping in water. Past 1:30 am Hamdy began knocking on the door. He said the guide is waiting. I told Hamdy that I didn’t think I was going and I wanted to sleep and think about climbing in the morning. Hamdy came back again after five minutes and started knocking and said that the guide is already here and he is waiting for me. I told him that it was too cold and that I would not be able to climb, but I jumped out of the bed and he got me an extra jacket. He also handed me a torch light. When I set off from the camp, I was wearing five garments on my body, two T-shirts, a shirt, a blazer, and the jacket that Hamdy gave me. And I took my towel to wrap it around my head and Hamdy gave me an additional cloth to wrap around my head.

We started walking out of the camp slowly. I had never seen so many stars in my life as I saw in St. Katherine. Pitch dark sky and millions of stars. The mountains stood like giants poking their nose into the skies, it was an amazing sight. We slowly moved away from the settlements, lights, the road, and started upwards on the mountain. I was shocked to know that the guide had not got his own torch and we were going to climb in absolute darkness had I not brought the torch that Hamdy gave me.

After climbing for an hour or something I started feeling thirsty and I started bugging the guide with “water, water, water” every few steps. I would pause and would get angry on him for not getting water, he would say there are 6 cafeterias on the top and we would reach there soon. After climbing, I started to feel hot and I unbuttoned my jacket and kept walking. My legs began to ache and my heart began to beat fast. My throat was going dry, my pulse was beating fast. Of all the things in the world, what I wanted at that moment was just water, I just wanted a few drops of water to wet my throat and I was getting angry on the guide for not getting it. I suddenly saw a light in distance. Excitedly I asked the guide about it, he told me that it was the house of a Bedouin. I felt happy that I can find some water in there. We kept walking and when we reached there, the guide told that we cannot wake the Bedouin as it was late in the night and he asked if I wanted to drink from the tank from which the camels drink. I just moved ahead without even thinking about drinking from there.

After walking for 15-20 more minutes, I again saw a group of lights flashing high up on the mountain. Guide told me that it was another group of tourists climbing the mountain ahead of us and that if we walked faster we may be able to catch them and get a sip or two of water from there. I forgot all my pain in the legs and the dry throat and kept walking briskly to reach the group. But they were walking at a faster pace and it was difficult to reach them, but the hope of being able to catch them kept me going and I was moving inch by inch closer to the top of the mountain.

Finally, after a long ordeal and tiring journey we reached a middle point where there was a cafeteria and I was going to get “water” the precious drink that I had been dying to have a sip of for the last 3-4 hours. I bought a bottle of water and drank half of it during the 10 minute break in the cafeteria and we restarted our journey.

After getting out, it was cold again and I started to feel the water inside me freeze. I was feeling tight in my chest and was having difficulty breathing. The water that I was dying to have was going to kill me now. I realized that water wasn’t the right drink in this cold weather and at this high altitude. After walking for about another half hour I spotted another cafeteria and I rushed in to have a tea. After the tea, we set out for the final climb on the mountain. Taking even a single step was a heavy burden. The legs would not move, but what fun if I couldn’t climb the last 5% of the mountain after having climbed the 95%. And I kept pushing myself up, up, and upwards. My hands in my pockets, my head wrapped with a towel and a cloth and five garments on my body, yet I felt I was standing in chilled water. I could hardly take a picture or two due to the cold. My fingers turned blue and would freeze if I took my hands out of the pockets. I could take a few pictures, but couldn’t gather courage to take video with the handycam that I had carried with me. I took some shots of the sunrise and we started our return journey.

I had hardly come down a few steps, I got a call from India. It was my uncle calling and my mom was on conference. I could hardly speak and was scared as to why my mom had to come on the conference call, what did she have to tell me. When I left for Egypt, dad wasn’t feeling well and I wanted to call back to find out whey they called. But there wasn’t any credit left in my mobile and no recharge coupons available on the mountain.

The journey back was 3 hours and those 3 hours were the most anxious moments that I ever spent in my life. I was so helpless, I couldn’t call India back nor did I get any call back from them. The next possibility to call back was only after three hours and every minute was like an hour for me. I told myself that no matter what I am going to beat the time and cover the distance in as short time as I can. I started moving faster and faster and I forgot all the pain in my legs. I made the guide carry the remaining water from the bottle that we had bought on the top because I didn’t want to slow down due to want of water.

After a painfully anxious three hours when I reached the camp, I looked around but couldn’t find any shops that had the recharge coupons. I told the guy in-charge of the camp that whatever the price maybe I want to make a call to India or at least recharge my mobile. He said he could help me recharge the mobile by transferring credit from his. He asked for my number and did it. I called India and spoke to my mom. Everything was fine, she was just checking on me. I was relieved. I ordered a breakfast and relaxed for an hour.

I offered the Friday prayers at a mosque in St. Katherine and boarded the bus at 1:00 pm. I reached Cairo by about 9:30 pm. On way back, almost 100 km from Cairo the bus broke down and we rushed into a microbus which dropped us at El Marg. The co-passenger was helpful enough to guide me to the metro station and we boarded a metro together. I was in the metro for the first time. He was getting down at Ramses, the Mubarak station, and I was to get down at Tahrir, Sadat station. It was quite an interesting journey way back and very helpful, as I learnt about the metro and that I could take a metro from the first station till the last station for just 1 Egyptian pound.

Yamaha FZ 16 - Latest heart throb

2009-06-15T01:37:00.000-07:00

The all muscle FZ16, the latest heart throb of young Indian bikers. THe youngsters are goign ga-ga over the bike. They're all droooooooooling at the killing looks. Dumping their present bikes for this new chic. Happy Biking guys..

Jama Masjid - Delhi

2009-06-15T01:27:00.001-07:00

This is one of the oldest mosques in Delhi. I love visiting this place whenever I go to Delhi. The food at the eateries around this place is yumm! There's the famous Red Fort right opposite to the Mosque. More details http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jama_Masjid,_Delhi :)

Funny Email Fwd - Bush's Cartoon

2009-06-12T07:17:00.000-07:00

Funny Porn Star Registration

2009-06-12T07:11:00.000-07:00

Hyderabadi Pearls

2009-06-11T21:37:00.000-07:00

The famous Hyderabadi pearls at a pearl store near Charminar. (it's my friend's, feel free to contact me if you need any)

Giza Pyramids - Egypt

2009-06-11T03:10:00.000-07:00

Another pic from my trip to Egypt :)

The Taj

2009-06-10T00:39:00.001-07:00

The day so far has been good but busy. We're just two of us working in a team of 12. The rest are out. Killing boredom by uploading various pictures of Hyderabad and other places that I have been to in India :) Have a great day :)

Kill Time - signboard :)

2009-06-10T00:37:00.000-07:00

Charminar at Night

2009-06-10T00:36:00.001-07:00

Antiquities in a bylane

2009-06-10T00:34:00.001-07:00

The Royal Dining Table

2009-06-10T00:32:00.000-07:00

Furniture inside Chowmahalla Palace Hyderabad

2009-06-10T00:31:00.000-07:00

A ceiling fan in the Palace - Hyderabad

2009-06-10T00:30:00.000-07:00

Gigantic 500 year old tree in Hyderabad Fort

2009-06-10T00:27:00.000-07:00

Chandelier in Hyderabad Palace

2009-06-10T00:23:00.001-07:00

Tarzan Jilele jilele.mp3 (Bollywood)

2009-06-09T21:52:00.000-07:00

Funny bollywood song..

Chimpanzee riding on a segway

2009-06-09T03:07:00.000-07:00

Lolspeak Roflcopter - The movie

2009-06-09T03:03:00.000-07:00

ROFLCOPTER: The Movie - The most popular videos are here

Pussy Doodles

2009-06-09T03:00:00.000-07:00

Pussy Doodles skit from the Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job! No plugins :P

Obama's Address to the Muslim world in Cairo

2009-06-07T22:52:00.001-07:00

Obama's address to the Muslim world in Cairo is a good start. What needs to be seen is will his words translate into action anytime soon. The only doubt in the Muslim world is that will there be an honest effort from the Obama administration for peace or will it further the Israel's interests in the region as usual.

In 1948 when Israel was founded, it took over 75% of Palestine's land and forced the Palestinians into refugee camps without any alternative. As if that were not enough, Israel continued to steal a good part of the remaining 25%. The military occupation by Israel has created a nation of homeless, angry, resentful, deprived, desperate for peace people. I hope Obama and Israel can see through the helplessness of a person whose home, land and childrens lives are stolen without any mercy whatsoever.

For success of Obama's initiative, it is important that he recieves support from all the stakeholders including Israel and Palestine. It is only going to get worse, if it cannot get better now.

Racist Attacks on Indians - Boycott Oz Universities and Educational Institutes

2009-06-07T22:31:00.000-07:00

The recent spate of racist attacks on Indian students in Australia are shameful, full of hatred, and expose the tall claims of so-called equality in the developed nations. Indian students should seriously think about giving a miss to the Oz universities and institutions. There are better universities in the other parts of the world which can be considered. It is very bad because Indian students pay a lot of money to get admissions and stay far away from their homes and families without basic protection. When the host nation doesn't care about the security of the people coming in there, then it does not deserve to be considered as a host for the next intake season. Not at the cost of our own lives.

Hyderabad: How and where to spend 24 hours

2009-05-20T03:29:00.000-07:00

Hyderabad the 450-year-old historical city founded by the Qutub Shahi dynasty is a great city to visit for a day; there's a lot you can do within the span of 24 hours, from visiting historical sights to sitting by the Hussain Sagar lake and dining on delicious Hyderabadi biryani.

Sightseeing

Wake up early in the morning and head to Golconda Fort and Seven Tombs -- spend some time soaking in the local culture and climb to the top for a view of the bustling city if you're feeling adventurous.

Then you can set off for Charminar, Mecca Masjid, and Salar Jung Museum for a glimpse of the Veiled Rebecca, a sculpture by Italian artist Giovanni Maria Benzoni -- it's a must-see. Then finish off with a visit to the Hussain Sagar in the evening before hitting those bars. It's also worthwhile to get a sense of Tollywood by either visiting Ramoji Film City or catching a Telugu flick in the city's posh multiplexes.

Eating Out

Truly a food lover's paradise, Hyderabad has something for every palate and wallet. The city's local cuisine is a blend of Persian and Mughlai culinary styles. Try the legendary Paradise Hotel that is said to serve the best Hyderabadi biryani in the city or the consistently good Hyderabad House. There's also the Three Cheers Restaurant behind Amrutha Castle at Saifabad. Not to miss the authentic hyderabadi restaurant Shadab at Charminar. If you're up for a bit of adventure, stroll down the streets of the Old City, especially the Charminar area and settle down at one of the eateries there.

Shopping

If you have some time on your hands, I would recommend the markets around Charminar for cheap steals. This is also where you will find the famous bangles and pearls of Hyderabad. Or, for a less local experience, you could head for the expensive malls around the Banjara Hills and Jubilee Hills areas. If it's value for money you want, you should visit the Ameerpet, Abids and General Bazaar areas.

Nightlife

When the sun sets and its time to clink those glasses, remember that Hyderabadis change their loyalties every two weeks. This is not just because of the city's limited and interconnected social circuit but also the constant influx of new clubs in town.

Currently, the most happening spots in town are Excess (Hotel Novotel), On Lounge, Touch, 360 Degrees and Ahala (Taj Krishna), subject to change depending on the number of new clubs launching this weekend!

Popular old-time favourites are Bottles & Chimney, 10 Downing Street and Firangi Paani which offer more of a pub experience, one that is greatly lacking in an otherwise party-loving city.

Getting around

To get around the city, I would suggest you use the auto rickshaws, since public transport (except for the local metro) is undependable, not well-connected and is always jam-packed. You can usually ask for the metre rates, but sometimes it is worthwhile to pay 5 or 10 bucks over and above.

Man with no bad habits

2009-05-17T21:12:00.000-07:00

Once a man was waiting for a taxi.
A beggar came along and asked him for some money.
The man ignored him.
But being a professional, the beggar kept on pestering him.
The man became irritated when he realized that the beggar would not leave him alone unless he parts with some money.
Suddenly an idea struck him.
He told the beggar, "I do not have money, but if you tell me what you want to do with the money, I will certainly help you."
"I would have bought a cup of tea", replied the beggar.
The man said, "Sorry man. I can offer you a cigarette instead of tea".
He then took a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and offered one to the beggar.
The beggar told, "I don't smoke as it is injurious to health."
The man smiled and took a bottle of whisky from his pocket and told the beggar, "Here, take this bottle and enjoy the stuff. It is really good".
The beggar refused by saying, "Alcohol muddles the brain and damages the liver".
The man smiled again. He told the beggar, "I am going to the race course.Come with me and I will arrange for some tickets and we will place bets. If we win, you take the whole amount and leave me alone".
As before, the beggar politely refused the latest offer by saying, "Sorry sir, I can't come with you as betting on horses is a bad habit."
Suddenly the man felt relieved and asked the beggar to come to his home with him.
Finally, the beggar's face lit up in anticipation of receiving at least something from the man.
But he still had his doubts and asked the man, "Why do you want me to go to your house with you?".
The man replied, "My wife always wanted to see how a man with no bad habits looks like."

Social Networking in the times of recession

2009-05-13T06:26:00.000-07:00

Use social networking efficiently in these tough times to your benefit. Use services like LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Orkut to market yourself. Actively participate in group discussions and give your valuable inputs. They might impress a prospective employer watching the discussion. Tweet your achievement, get recommendations from your present and past colleagues on LinkedIn. Recession is not the end of the world, slowing down of economy is not the death of economy. Be creative, believe in your strengths and sell your skills. Do remember always, do not love a company, love the job. You never know when the company might stop loving you. Grab an opportunity that's coming your way, do not skip it for the present employer. He might not skip your name from the list of layoffs.

Networking tips in tough times:
1. Get on to the social networks
2. Have your complete professional profiles up there
3. Scream about your achievements at the top of your voice
4. Get in touch with everybody in your contacts list
5. Get in touch with your ex-colleagues and long forgotten friends
6. Get recommendations on your public profiles at these social networks
7. Let them know if you are looking for a change
8. Actively participate in forums and give your expert inputs
9. Do not love your company, love your job. Do not skip any opportunities for the company
10. A bird in hand is better than two in the bush.

Blogging for the sake of blogging is not blogging

2009-05-13T06:16:00.000-07:00

Yeah! Thats the tip for most of the bloggers who are out here in the blogosphere. Few tips for the bloggers:

1. Be unique and creative
2. Create your identity
3. Create your fan following
4. Write at the right time
5. Do not copy paste from other blogs
6. Make a point in your posts
7. Write about anything under the sky, but write meaningful stuff
8. Promote your blog in your circle of influence
9. Ensure you have return visitors
10. Give value to the visitors

Janay kab hongay kam

2009-05-07T21:27:00.000-07:00

A song wondering when there would be an end to all the violence and terrorism and when there would be peace all over the world. When there would be and end to the sufferings of the common people across nations.

Janay kab hongay kam
Is duniya kay ghumm
Jeenay walon pe sadaa
Be jurm khataaaa
Hotay rahain hain sitaaaam
Janay kab hongay kam
Is dunya k ghum
Kiyaaa jis nay gilaa milii orr sazaaa
Kaee baar hua yahan khoon-e-wafaa
Koi aaaas nahe ye saaaans nahee
Deryaaa bhi mila bujhi pyaas nahe
Ek hum he nahe jisay dekho yahaan
Wohe aankh hai numm
Janay kab hongay kum
Is dunyaaa k ghum
Jeenay walon pe sada
Be jurm khataa hotay rahay hain sitaam
Janay kab hongay kam is dunyaa k ghum !

Modi abruptly ends TV interview after being quizzed

2009-04-13T21:53:00.001-07:00

Varun Gandhi's venomous speech - What can YOU do?

2009-03-23T07:10:00.000-07:00

Folks, you might have seen time and again the venomous speech by Varun Gandhi on various news channels. The only impression that I get after seeing it is that it was a two in one attempt by the BJP.

One, it shot Varun Gandhi out of nowhere into the headlines. Otherwise, he was lost in the oblivion.

Two, BJP tested the hindutva card again.

Fortunate for the Indian Democracy that this was not recieved in good sense at all. The public in general and muslims in specific need not panic about such speeches. They are the short-cuts to fame. Has the nation forgotten the thackreys of Mumbai who have used North-South divide to secure their vote banks.

Look forward to more of such attempts by various leaders from various parties, who would be switching loyalties. If you want to keep the Indian politics clean, do use your vote effectively. Donot vote for such morons.

Disgusting YouTube videos that promote hate against ISLAM and Muslims

2009-02-17T00:58:00.000-08:00

I found these videos in youtube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVr7fqsK9Uk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93DRAkH3phM&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxCXCx1zWZ0&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m5GNhn6rhNg&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZIUo2yAWz0&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DFZbr5bWrI&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VxCXCx1zWZ0&feature=related

It is really disgusting to see videos around. These videos are not only offensive to all Muslims in the whole world but also promote hate and violence. Me and many of my friends flagged the videos but all requests are ignored so far. Please blog, protest and flag these and similar videos to bring the attention of concerned.

Work from home???

2009-02-03T02:44:00.000-08:00

Working from home has become an attractive option. However, more than opportunities there are fraudsters out in the market to cheat the gullible. One of the most reliable jobs that can be done from home is "Medical Transcription." Medical transcription, also known as MT, is an allied health profession, which deals in the process of transcription, or converting voice-recorded reports as dictated by physicians and/or other healthcare professionals into text format.

There are no "formal" educational requirements to be a medical transcriptionist. Education and training can be obtained through traditional schooling, certificate or diploma programs, distance learning, and/or on-the-job training offered in some hospitals, although there are foreign countries currently employing transcriptionists that require 18 months to 2 years of specialized MT training. Working in medical transcription leads to a mastery in medical terminology and editing, MT ability to listen and type simultaneously, utilization of playback controls on the transcriber (machine), and use of foot pedal to play and adjust dictations - all while maintaining a steady rhythm of execution.

If you're looking for a reliable "work from home" option, go for Medical Transcription.

How Israel brought Gaza to the brink of humanitarian catastrophe

2009-01-13T04:13:00.000-08:00

(Oxford professor of international relations Avi Shlaim served in the Israeli army and has never questioned the state's legitimacy. But its merciless assault on Gaza has led him to devastating conclusions.)

The only way to make sense of Israel's senseless war in Gaza is through understanding the historical context. Establishing the state of Israel in May 1948 involved a monumental injustice to the Palestinians. British officials bitterly resented American partisanship on behalf of the infant state. On 2 June 1948, Sir John Troutbeck wrote to the foreign secretary, Ernest Bevin, that the Americans were responsible for the creation of a gangster state headed by "an utterly unscrupulous set of leaders". I used to think that this judgment was too harsh but Israel's vicious assault on the people of Gaza, and the Bush administration's complicity in this assault, have reopened the question.

I write as someone who served loyally in the Israeli army in the mid-1960s and who has never questioned the legitimacy of the state of Israel within its pre-1967 borders. What I utterly reject is the Zionist colonial project beyond the Green Line. The Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in the aftermath of the June 1967 war had very little to do with security and everything to do with territorial expansionism. The aim was to establish Greater Israel through permanent political, economic and military control over the Palestinian territories. And the result has been one of the most prolonged and brutal military occupations of modern times.

Four decades of Israeli control did incalculable damage to the economy of the Gaza Strip. With a large population of 1948 refugees crammed into a tiny strip of land, with no infrastructure or natural resources, Gaza's prospects were never bright. Gaza, however, is not simply a case of economic under-development but a uniquely cruel case of deliberate de-development. To use the Biblical phrase, Israel turned the people of Gaza into the hewers of wood and the drawers of water, into a source of cheap labour and a captive market for Israeli goods. The development of local industry was actively impeded so as to make it impossible for the Palestinians to end their subordination to Israel and to establish the economic underpinnings essential for real political independence.

Gaza is a classic case of colonial exploitation in the post-colonial era. Jewish settlements in occupied territories are immoral, illegal and an insurmountable obstacle to peace. They are at once the instrument of exploitation and the symbol of the hated occupation. In Gaza, the Jewish settlers numbered only 8,000 in 2005 compared with 1.4 million local residents. Yet the settlers controlled 25% of the territory, 40% of the arable land and the lion's share of the scarce water resources. Cheek by jowl with these foreign intruders, the majority of the local population lived in abject poverty and unimaginable misery. Eighty per cent of them still subsist on less than $2 a day. The living conditions in the strip remain an affront to civilised values, a powerful precipitant to resistance and a fertile breeding ground for political extremism.

In August 2005 a Likud government headed by Ariel Sharon staged a unilateral Israeli pullout from Gaza, withdrawing all 8,000 settlers and destroying the houses and farms they had left behind. Hamas, the Islamic resistance movement, conducted an effective campaign to drive the Israelis out of Gaza. The withdrawal was a humiliation for the Israeli Defence Forces. To the world, Sharon presented the withdrawal from Gaza as a contribution to peace based on a two-state solution. But in the year after, another 12,000 Israelis settled on the West Bank, further reducing the scope for an independent Palestinian state. Land-grabbing and peace-making are simply incompatible. Israel had a choice and it chose land over peace.

The real purpose behind the move was to redraw unilaterally the borders of Greater Israel by incorporating the main settlement blocs on the West Bank to the state of Israel. Withdrawal from Gaza was thus not a prelude to a peace deal with the Palestinian Authority but a prelude to further Zionist expansion on the West Bank. It was a unilateral Israeli move undertaken in what was seen, mistakenly in my view, as an Israeli national interest. Anchored in a fundamental rejection of the Palestinian national identity, the withdrawal from Gaza was part of a long-term effort to deny the Palestinian people any independent political existence on their land.

Israel's settlers were withdrawn but Israeli soldiers continued to control all access to the Gaza Strip by land, sea and air. Gaza was converted overnight into an open-air prison. From this point on, the Israeli air force enjoyed unrestricted freedom to drop bombs, to make sonic booms by flying low and breaking the sound barrier, and to terrorise the hapless inhabitants of this prison.

Israel likes to portray itself as an island of democracy in a sea of authoritarianism. Yet Israel has never in its entire history done anything to promote democracy on the Arab side and has done a great deal to undermine it. Israel has a long history of secret collaboration with reactionary Arab regimes to suppress Palestinian nationalism. Despite all the handicaps, the Palestinian people succeeded in building the only genuine democracy in the Arab world with the possible exception of Lebanon. In January 2006, free and fair elections for the Legislative Council of the Palestinian Authority brought to power a Hamas-led government. Israel, however, refused to recognise the democratically elected government, claiming that Hamas is purely and simply a terrorist organisation.

America and the EU shamelessly joined Israel in ostracising and demonising the Hamas government and in trying to bring it down by withholding tax revenues and foreign aid. A surreal situation thus developed with a significant part of the international community imposing economic sanctions not against the occupier but against the occupied, not against the oppressor but against the oppressed.

As so often in the tragic history of Palestine, the victims were blamed for their own misfortunes. Israel's propaganda machine persistently purveyed the notion that the Palestinians are terrorists, that they reject coexistence with the Jewish state, that their nationalism is little more than antisemitism, that Hamas is just a bunch of religious fanatics and that Islam is incompatible with democracy. But the simple truth is that the Palestinian people are a normal people with normal aspirations. They are no better but they are no worse than any other national group. What they aspire to, above all, is a piece of land to call their own on which to live in freedom and dignity.

Like other radical movements, Hamas began to moderate its political programme following its rise to power. From the ideological rejectionism of its charter, it began to move towards pragmatic accommodation of a two-state solution. In March 2007, Hamas and Fatah formed a national unity government that was ready to negotiate a long-term ceasefire with Israel. Israel, however, refused to negotiate with a government that included Hamas.

It continued to play the old game of divide and rule between rival Palestinian factions. In the late 1980s, Israel had supported the nascent Hamas in order to weaken Fatah, the secular nationalist movement led by Yasser Arafat. Now Israel began to encourage the corrupt and pliant Fatah leaders to overthrow their religious political rivals and recapture power. Aggressive American neoconservatives participated in the sinister plot to instigate a Palestinian civil war. Their meddling was a major factor in the collapse of the national unity government and in driving Hamas to seize power in Gaza in June 2007 to pre-empt a Fatah coup.

The war unleashed by Israel on Gaza on 27 December was the culmination of a series of clashes and confrontations with the Hamas government. In a broader sense, however, it is a war between Israel and the Palestinian people, because the people had elected the party to power. The declared aim of the war is to weaken Hamas and to intensify the pressure until its leaders agree to a new ceasefire on Israel's terms. The undeclared aim is to ensure that the Palestinians in Gaza are seen by the world simply as a humanitarian problem and thus to derail their struggle for independence and statehood.

The timing of the war was determined by political expediency. A general election is scheduled for 10 February and, in the lead-up to the election, all the main contenders are looking for an opportunity to prove their toughness. The army top brass had been champing at the bit to deliver a crushing blow to Hamas in order to remove the stain left on their reputation by the failure of the war against Hezbollah in Lebanon in July 2006. Israel's cynical leaders could also count on apathy and impotence of the pro-western Arab regimes and on blind support from President Bush in the twilight of his term in the White House. Bush readily obliged by putting all the blame for the crisis on Hamas, vetoing proposals at the UN Security Council for an immediate ceasefire and issuing Israel with a free pass to mount a ground invasion of Gaza.

As always, mighty Israel claims to be the victim of Palestinian aggression but the sheer asymmetry of power between the two sides leaves little room for doubt as to who is the real victim. This is indeed a conflict between David and Goliath but the Biblical image has been inverted - a small and defenceless Palestinian David faces a heavily armed, merciless and overbearing Israeli Goliath. The resort to brute military force is accompanied, as always, by the shrill rhetoric of victimhood and a farrago of self-pity overlaid with self-righteousness. In Hebrew this is known as the syndrome of bokhim ve-yorim, "crying and shooting".

To be sure, Hamas is not an entirely innocent party in this conflict. Denied the fruit of its electoral victory and confronted with an unscrupulous adversary, it has resorted to the weapon of the weak - terror. Militants from Hamas and Islamic Jihad kept launching Qassam rocket attacks against Israeli settlements near the border with Gaza until Egypt brokered a six-month ceasefire last June. The damage caused by these primitive rockets is minimal but the psychological impact is immense, prompting the public to demand protection from its government. Under the circumstances, Israel had the right to act in self-defence but its response to the pinpricks of rocket attacks was totally disproportionate. The figures speak for themselves. In the three years after the withdrawal from Gaza, 11 Israelis were killed by rocket fire. On the other hand, in 2005-7 alone, the IDF killed 1,290 Palestinians in Gaza, including 222 children.

Whatever the numbers, killing civilians is wrong. This rule applies to Israel as much as it does to Hamas, but Israel's entire record is one of unbridled and unremitting brutality towards the inhabitants of Gaza. Israel also maintained the blockade of Gaza after the ceasefire came into force which, in the view of the Hamas leaders, amounted to a violation of the agreement. During the ceasefire, Israel prevented any exports from leaving the strip in clear violation of a 2005 accord, leading to a sharp drop in employment opportunities. Officially, 49.1% of the population is unemployed. At the same time, Israel restricted drastically the number of trucks carrying food, fuel, cooking-gas canisters, spare parts for water and sanitation plants, and medical supplies to Gaza. It is difficult to see how starving and freezing the civilians of Gaza could protect the people on the Israeli side of the border. But even if it did, it would still be immoral, a form of collective punishment that is strictly forbidden by international humanitarian law.

The brutality of Israel's soldiers is fully matched by the mendacity of its spokesmen. Eight months before launching the current war on Gaza, Israel established a National Information Directorate. The core messages of this directorate to the media are that Hamas broke the ceasefire agreements; that Israel's objective is the defence of its population; and that Israel's forces are taking the utmost care not to hurt innocent civilians. Israel's spin doctors have been remarkably successful in getting this message across. But, in essence, their propaganda is a pack of lies.

A wide gap separates the reality of Israel's actions from the rhetoric of its spokesmen. It was not Hamas but the IDF that broke the ceasefire. It di d so by a raid into Gaza on 4 November that killed six Hamas men. Israel's objective is not just the defence of its population but the eventual overthrow of the Hamas government in Gaza by turning the people against their rulers. And far from taking care to spare civilians, Israel is guilty of indiscriminate bombing and of a three-year-old blockade that has brought the inhabitants of Gaza, now 1.5 million, to the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe.

The Biblical injunction of an eye for an eye is savage enough. But Israel's insane offensive against Gaza seems to follow the logic of an eye for an eyelash. After eight days of bombing, with a death toll of more than 400 Palestinians and four Israelis, the gung-ho cabinet ordered a land invasion of Gaza the consequences of which are incalculable.

No amount of military escalation can buy Israel immunity from rocket attacks from the military wing of Hamas. Despite all the death and destruction that Israel has inflicted on them, they kept up their resistance and they kept firing their rockets. This is a movement that glorifies victimhood and martyrdom. There is simply no military solution to the conflict between the two communities. The problem with Israel's concept of security is that it denies even the most elementary security to the other community. The only way for Israel to achieve security is not through shooting but through talks with Hamas, which has repeatedly declared its readiness to negotiate a long-term ceasefire with the Jewish state within its pre-1967 borders for 20, 30, or even 50 years. Israel has rejected this offer for the same reason it spurned the Arab League peace plan of 2002, which is still on the table: it involves concessions and compromises.

This brief review of Israel's record over the past four decades makes it difficult to resist the conclusion that it has become a rogue state with "an utterly unscrupulous set of leaders". A rogue state habitually violates international law, possesses weapons of mass destruction and practises terrorism - the use of violence against civilians for political purposes. Israel fulfils all of these three criteria; the cap fits and it must wear it. Israel's real aim is not peaceful coexistence with its Palestinian neighbours but military domination. It keeps compounding the mistakes of the past with new and more disastrous ones. Politicians, like everyone else, are of course free to repeat the lies and mistakes of the past. But it is not mandatory to do so.

• Avi Shlaim is a professor of international relations at the University of Oxford and the author of The Iron Wall: Israel and the Arab World and of Lion of Jordan: King Hussein's Life in War and Peace.

Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jan/07/gaza-israel-palestine

The Electronic Wasteland

2008-11-12T03:57:00.000-08:00

Watch CBS Videos Online

Cash your blog with plugins

2008-09-25T21:54:00.000-07:00

I found this fascinating Post today:

Have you ever wondered about all of those plugins that you use every day to extend and monetize your WordPress blog? As we all know plugins are very popular with bloggers especially WordPress users. I know that every day when i login to my WordPress blog the first thing i do is check the dashboard for any highlighted issues that need attention. If you have a lot of plugins then you are more than likely going to have to upgrade on more than one occasion. Here then lies an opportunity for you to earn some residual cash from someone who is more than a little familiar with WordPress plugins.Max, Plug Your Blog for Cash, Sep 2008

You should read the whole article.

New US Presidential Candidate

2008-07-16T23:36:00.001-07:00

Farahbad Viewpoint -3

2008-05-27T05:31:00.001-07:00

Farahbad Viewpoint -2

2008-05-27T05:29:00.000-07:00

Farahbad Viewpoint -1

2008-05-27T05:24:00.000-07:00

Earthquake in China

2008-05-12T06:10:00.000-07:00

Folks, there was a massive 7.8 earthquake in China today. Let all the mankind join under one religion i.e., Humanity for the victims of the earthquake today. Please forget religion, caste, creed, and various other isms and support the victims and do whatever every single of us can do to help the victims of the disaster.

Earthlings plant saplings - your siblings

2008-05-12T05:30:00.000-07:00

Earthlings that we are and the global warming that's being faced by us, needs a little bit of attention from the esteemed ourselves. This would not only ensure a fresh breathe for us in our last moments about 40-50 years down the line, but also would ensure an atmosphere with enough oxygen for your grandkids and their kids to breathe to survive without having to carry oxygen tanks on their backs like the heavy schoolbags that they already do.

How great would it be if every earthling decides to plant a tree and take care of it like a sibling. That tree would be more helpful to the mother nature and to the earthlings than a real sibling. All the statistics and sciences aside, adopt a greenling and make our earth a better place to live for our generations to come. Lets give them a safer, greener earth and make them happier earthlings. So earthlings, go plant a sapling, your new sibling...

PS: Original post at http://cleangreenearth.blogspot.com. Posting here for a greener earth.

Distance between a problem and a solution

2008-05-07T06:35:00.000-07:00

Recently, I came across a lovely SMS which read "The Shortest Distance between a Problem and it's Solution is the Distance between your Knees and the Floor. The one who Kneels to Allah (SWT) can Stand Up to Anything." No problem in the world is too big for Allah (SWT). Have faith in the Almighty Allah and be steadfast in all the phases of life. Do not give up on life or the good things that the life has for you. Try to look at the good things that the life is offering to you and not at the bad phase that you are passing through. Life is not a bed of roses and its not real life without challenges in it. Challenges helps a person develop and grow. Getting into a comfort zone leads to lethargy and stagnation. No matter what challenges the life, the world throws at you, just pull up your socks and be ready to face the situation. No phase in the life is permanent. Every stage in life, good or bad, has to pass and its going to be over sooner or later.

KHWAJA MOINUDDIN by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan

2008-04-25T05:54:00.000-07:00

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Qawwal - Tanam Farsooda

2008-04-16T07:49:00.000-07:00

Soft Crow

2008-02-25T22:06:00.000-08:00

Plugin to the joke :P

Q: What did Kate name her pet crow that had very soft feathers?
A: Mycrowsoft (Microsoft)

Sinning Crow

2008-02-20T22:55:00.000-08:00

Q:Wat would a crow do when he commits a sin?
A: It would take a CROCIN

Dost

2008-02-18T04:08:00.000-08:00

Chup rahoon toh kehti hai attitude
Baat karoon toh kehti hai shut up
Ya Khuda ye kaisi dost hai meri
Kehti hai chit bhi meri pat bhi meri

Saath

2007-12-25T21:50:00.000-08:00

khoobsurat ho ya bholi soorat
deta nahi koi saath waqt zarurat
karna ho jo bhi kar apne haath
Allah ki madad hogi tere saath

Buying iPod - Think again

2007-11-15T19:15:00.000-08:00

A 14-year-old area girl twice found rocks rather than rock-and-roll when purchasing an iPod at local Target stores. Regan Ritter discovered the rock-filled iPod packaging after seeking to buy the digital media device for her birthday.

At Forth Worth, Ritter used her mom's $350 Target credit card. After returning it, the store offered a credit at a Grand Prairie Target. At the Grand Prairie store, Ritter and her mom opened an iPod video package in front of store personnel and again found a package full of rocks.

http://www.wayodd.com/texas-girl-finds-rocks-when-buying-ipod/v/8230/

Jama Masjid Delhi

2007-11-08T23:03:00.000-08:00

Trip2Delhi

2007-11-08T04:15:00.000-08:00

The Strong Silent Type

2007-07-03T07:46:00.000-07:00

cecen zikr

2007-05-09T21:35:00.001-07:00