Odds and Sods - Special year-end edition!

Left: Mr Natural, by R. Crumb.

A round-up of interesting reading to round out 2007. An idea that I gather is common for bloggers... but I just decided to do it when reading Natalia.

*One of my very favorite bloggers, Kiya, writes in a post titled I'm too nerdy for my love:

I was too smart to ever be pretty. It shapes a lot of things.

It wasn't allowed, you know, for the likes of me to be attractive. I could be either attractive or smart, and smart was something I clearly was before the dichotomous choice came up as a visible fork in the road, so I was off down one branch before I realised I was well past the place I could maybe have decided about it.

Because it was forbidden for me to be pretty, it was forbidden for boys to like me (unless they were social rejects beyond the bounds of The Rules). It wasn't forbidden for them to treat me as some kind of sex toy, but kind attraction was forbidden. Crude comments, breast-grabbing and other unwelcome touch, and mockery were acceptable; those didn't depend on me being pretty, just on being female. Perhaps some of that was an outlet for taboo attraction. Perhaps they were just assholes who knew they could play with me with impunity. There's no way to know.
...

When I met someone who told me I was beautiful it broke me inside, a little. I didn't know how to deal with it, how to live with it, how to untangle the mess around this boy who broke the taboo for me.

*Here is Irish blogger Silly Old Twit introducing a video clip of U2 at Dublin's Croke Park:

This is a classic piece of Stadium Rock. But that’s all it is. The culture of the full belly as I like to think of it. Affluent white youth killing time while they take their turn to become landlords….A generation which has sold itself cheap. After 50 years of clerical abuse this generation stampedes to get it’s place in a good Catholic university… , and then a place on the property ladder……there’s little to respect here……like the proverbial good book say’s , “You cannot serve two masters”. ……

This is the generation which handed over Irish airports to the US military ………..this is the generation that wants unlimited immigration ( after they have left the neighbourhood that is )……

Bono reflects this generation well…..they look at him and see themselves……

*Irshad Manji writes provocatively on CNN.com about the death of Benazir Bhutto:

Writing to me through my Web site, American feminists say they are "aching" over the loss of "our dear, sweet, brave Benazir."

I understand the sentiment. But "brave" is not the word used by Pakistani women from whom I've also heard. They're hurting more over Bhutto's "self-imposed" conformity.

"She never realized her potential," a woman from Karachi tells me. "And not because she was killed but because when she had the chance, she did not effectively challenge the backward mindset that has now led to her demise."

For example, during Bhutto's time in office, Pakistan didn't defy the anti-female rape and adultery laws. Those notorious ordinances, known as Hudood, took their inspiration from tribal politics masquerading as Islam.

Imagine the opportunity: Bhutto could have championed a purer faith by tackling corrupt cultural practices.

In so doing, she might have created allies among conservatives, who can be persuaded that although Islam is God-given, culture is man-made.

Last year, a media campaign to strike down the Hudood Ordinances achieved this fine balance. But not because of her. And that, say many progressive Pakistanis, amputates Bhutto's legacy.

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Check out Ren's posts on Creepy Dudes and Creepy Chicks. Adult content, please be forewarned. But you'll recognize them all, in some shape or form!

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ZipcodeZoo is an awesome service that allows you to create a nature-based home page, determined by your zip code. ZipcodeZoo guesses your location according to ISP, although they do make errors. (I had to manually enter my zip code and email address for the information, but that's it.) You can see all invasive species, as well as a list of threatened species, and all species that live in this zip code! ZipcodeZoo visitors from the USA will also see their zipcode demographics, local attractions for naturalists, and the local weather. It's terrific, and is particularly recommended for the busy hippie-moms of homeschooled tykes who worry about the plants and animals! (yes, you know who you are!)

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And don't forget to have a Happy Deadhead New Year! :)

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Listening to: Grateful Dead - China Cat Sunflower
via FoxyTunes

Benazir Bhutto 1953-2007

Photo from Southwestern University Magazine (2005)

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As everyone knows by now, she is gone.

Please see ProblemChylde's excellent post, which contains copious links.

I hardly think it's any coincidence that www.help-pakistan.com is also down, which was the link to the "Don't Block the Blog!" graphic on my blog. The link disappeared shortly after she was murdered.

I am leaving the link up as an act of hope that the blog will someday return.

Pakistan anger sparks civil war fear

by Zahid Hussain in Islamabad | December 28, 2007, THE AUSTRALIAN

THE assassination of Benazir Bhutto has triggered a wave of violent protests, raising fears of a full-blown civil war in Pakistan.

Within hours of Ms Bhutto's death, angry mobs took to the streets, attacking police patrols and government buildings.

At least five people were reported killed in Karachi, the southern port city and Ms Bhutto's hometown, where thousands of protesters fired shots, blocked roads with burning cars and torched government buildings.

Two more people were shot dead in the eastern city of Lahore and two people were killed in smaller towns in the eastern province of Sindh.

A mob set fire to a passenger train in Hyderabad in Ms Bhutto's political stronghold of Sindh province, and police fired teargas into crowds in Peshawar, in the country's volatile northwest.

The mood was tense in the Sindh town of Larkana, where crowds set two banks on fire.

In the central city of Multan some protesters fired shots into the air and many shouted slogans, including "Long live Bhutto" and "Musharraf is a dog", in reference to the President.

Paramilitary forces were put on red alert and ordered to clamp down on any violent protest. "There is trouble almost everywhere," a senior police official said.

Hundreds of Ms Bhutto's supporters had gathered outside the hospital in the garrison town of Rawalpindi where she was taken.

On hearing of her death, some just wept but many turned violent, smashing the glass door at the main entrance of the emergency unit and throwing stones at nearby cars.

They then clashed with the police, shouting: "Killer, killer, Musharraf".

Leaders of Ms Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party fanned the flames by accusing the Government of a fatal security lapse.

"We repeatedly informed the Government to provide her proper security and appropriate equipment including jammers, but they paid no heed to our requests," said Rehmani Malik, a PPP spokesman.

Ms Bhutto had been the target of a twin suicide attack in October but had decided to continue campaigning for elections scheduled for January 8.

That attack in Karachi had resulted in the deaths of more than 140 people.

In her last address Ms Bhutto, who was tipped strongly to become prime minister, called on Pakistanis to fight against Islamic militancy, which she described as the biggest threat to the country's security.

Her pro-Western views had made her a target of Islamic militants, who had gained strength, particularly in provinces in the northwest.

Please pray for the people of Pakistan.

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Listening to: Bob Marley & the Wailers - Redemption Song
via FoxyTunes