Friday, August 14, 2009
Afghanistan’s presidential candidates
KABUL, Afghanistan — Whether wrapped in a shawl for a televised debate, sitting on a dirt floor with a shopkeeper, or thundering over speakers in a dust storm, Ashraf Ghani, the most educated and Westernized of Afghanistan’s presidential candidates, is shaking up the campaign before Thursday’s election in unusual ways.
A former finance minister with a background in American academia and at the World Bank, Mr. Ghani, 60, says he is trying to change politics in Afghanistan. Using television and radio, Internet donations and student volunteers, as well as traditional networks like religious councils, he is seeking to reach out to young people, women and the poor, and do the unexpected: defeat President Hamid Karzai.
Mr. Ghani’s national support is hard to gauge — one recent poll put it at just 4 percent — and he probably remains an outsider in the race, trailing Mr. Karzai and his main challenger, Abdullah Abdullah, both of whom have much larger power bases.
Yet Mr. Ghani is elevating the debate with a focus on policy and a detailed plan for reform, challenging the Afghan electorate to think beyond the status quo.
“The people, the nature of mobilization, the talk has changed, anyplace I go,” he said in an early morning interview at his home in Kabul before setting off by helicopter to campaign in the provinces. “Afghans have a very different expectation of leadership today than they have ever had.”
A two-hour live television and radio debate between Mr. Ghani and Mr. Abdullah on July 23, watched and heard by over 10 million people, has created a huge change in thinking, Mr. Ghani said. Mr. Karzai declined to participate, something his two opponents have used against him.
Since the debate, a flow of student volunteers has come forward to work for his campaign, Mr. Ghani said, and people from all walks — pilots, merchants, professors — have engaged him in detailed discussion of his ideas.
Articulate in several languages, Mr. Ghani has written two books, one titled “Fixing Failed States,” and the other a detailed plan on how to lift Afghanistan out of poverty and instability within 10 years, which is essentially his election manifesto.
Mr. Ghani has been one of the most influential figures involved in building the current Afghan state. Appointed finance minister in 2002, he instituted a centralized revenue collection scheme, and oversaw the flow of billions of dollars of foreign assistance into the war-torn country.
Yet his scrupulousness made him enemies and, disillusioned with official corruption and Mr. Karzai’s leadership, he left the cabinet in 2004.
Such is his experience, and his support in Washington, that Mr. Ghani is among the contenders mentioned to fill a strong executive position under the president that is being proposed by American officials to strengthen the government’s performance should Mr. Karzai win another term.
Mr. Ghani, whose campaign has hired the political strategist James Carville as a consultant, says it is too early to discuss post-election scenarios. He was once a close adviser to the president, but his distaste for Mr. Karzai’s way of running things is deep-seated, and he has been an outspoken critic of the way politics have been conducted in Afghanistan.
He has been the most vociferous of any candidate in challenging Mr. Karzai’s overstaying his constitutional mandate, which was extended in order to hold the election on Aug. 20, and also in accusing the president of using government resources and officials to promote his campaign. And he has castigated the election organizers, both foreign and Afghan, for allowing fraud and manipulation to occur unchecked.
He has also rejected the backroom deal-making for which Mr. Karzai has been strongly criticized, and has refused overtures from Mr. Karzai to give up his candidacy and join his campaign, something a number of other prospective candidates have done.
At election rallies, he vows to curb government corruption and so find the revenue to create a million jobs and a million houses.
He promises better education for the young, by increasing the number of mosques and madrasas to provide a general education at the village level. He also proposes adding universities and women’s colleges, as there are thousands more students than universities can accommodate.
And he lays out how to develop Afghanistan’s natural resources and create economic growth with Afghan labor, and bring justice and peace through local structures.
A former finance minister with a background in American academia and at the World Bank, Mr. Ghani, 60, says he is trying to change politics in Afghanistan. Using television and radio, Internet donations and student volunteers, as well as traditional networks like religious councils, he is seeking to reach out to young people, women and the poor, and do the unexpected: defeat President Hamid Karzai.
Mr. Ghani’s national support is hard to gauge — one recent poll put it at just 4 percent — and he probably remains an outsider in the race, trailing Mr. Karzai and his main challenger, Abdullah Abdullah, both of whom have much larger power bases.
Yet Mr. Ghani is elevating the debate with a focus on policy and a detailed plan for reform, challenging the Afghan electorate to think beyond the status quo.
“The people, the nature of mobilization, the talk has changed, anyplace I go,” he said in an early morning interview at his home in Kabul before setting off by helicopter to campaign in the provinces. “Afghans have a very different expectation of leadership today than they have ever had.”
A two-hour live television and radio debate between Mr. Ghani and Mr. Abdullah on July 23, watched and heard by over 10 million people, has created a huge change in thinking, Mr. Ghani said. Mr. Karzai declined to participate, something his two opponents have used against him.
Since the debate, a flow of student volunteers has come forward to work for his campaign, Mr. Ghani said, and people from all walks — pilots, merchants, professors — have engaged him in detailed discussion of his ideas.
Articulate in several languages, Mr. Ghani has written two books, one titled “Fixing Failed States,” and the other a detailed plan on how to lift Afghanistan out of poverty and instability within 10 years, which is essentially his election manifesto.
Mr. Ghani has been one of the most influential figures involved in building the current Afghan state. Appointed finance minister in 2002, he instituted a centralized revenue collection scheme, and oversaw the flow of billions of dollars of foreign assistance into the war-torn country.
Yet his scrupulousness made him enemies and, disillusioned with official corruption and Mr. Karzai’s leadership, he left the cabinet in 2004.
Such is his experience, and his support in Washington, that Mr. Ghani is among the contenders mentioned to fill a strong executive position under the president that is being proposed by American officials to strengthen the government’s performance should Mr. Karzai win another term.
Mr. Ghani, whose campaign has hired the political strategist James Carville as a consultant, says it is too early to discuss post-election scenarios. He was once a close adviser to the president, but his distaste for Mr. Karzai’s way of running things is deep-seated, and he has been an outspoken critic of the way politics have been conducted in Afghanistan.
He has been the most vociferous of any candidate in challenging Mr. Karzai’s overstaying his constitutional mandate, which was extended in order to hold the election on Aug. 20, and also in accusing the president of using government resources and officials to promote his campaign. And he has castigated the election organizers, both foreign and Afghan, for allowing fraud and manipulation to occur unchecked.
He has also rejected the backroom deal-making for which Mr. Karzai has been strongly criticized, and has refused overtures from Mr. Karzai to give up his candidacy and join his campaign, something a number of other prospective candidates have done.
At election rallies, he vows to curb government corruption and so find the revenue to create a million jobs and a million houses.
He promises better education for the young, by increasing the number of mosques and madrasas to provide a general education at the village level. He also proposes adding universities and women’s colleges, as there are thousands more students than universities can accommodate.
And he lays out how to develop Afghanistan’s natural resources and create economic growth with Afghan labor, and bring justice and peace through local structures.
Information about Facebook
Facebook, by some measurements the most popular social network with more than 200 million active users worldwide, is one of the fastest-growing and best-known sites on the Internet today.
The company, founded in 2004 by a Harvard sophomore, Mark Zuckerberg, began life catering first to Harvard students and then to all high school and college students. It has since evolved into a broadly popular online destination used by both teenagers and adults of all ages.
Like other social networks, the site allows its users to create a profile page and forge online links with friends and acquaintances. It has distinguished itself from rivals, partly by imposing a spartan design ethos and limiting how users can change the appearance of their profile pages. That has cut down on visual clutter and threats like spam, which plague rival social networks. In May 2007, Facebook unveiled an initiative called Facebook Platform, inviting third-party software makers to create programs for the service and to make money on advertising alongside them. The announcement stimulated the creation of hundreds of new features or "social applications" on Facebook , from games to new music and photo sharing tools, which had the effect of further turbo-charging activity on the site.
In May 2009, a Russian investment firm, Digital Sky Technologies, invested $200 million in Facebook in return for a 1.96 percent stake. The investment values Facebook's preferred stock at $10 billion, a $5 billion drop from October 2007 when Microsoft paid $240 million for a 1.6 percent stake. With the latest round of financing, Facebook has raised about $600 million since it was founded in 2004.
At the time of Microsoft's investment in 2007, Facebook's $15 billion valuation drew criticism for being unrealistically high and a sign of a bubble in social network investments. With the new valuation, Facebook is demonstrating to its critics that it is living up to its early promise.
Facebook's rise has been marked by several controversies. Three other Harvard students maintain that they came up with the original idea and that Mr. Zuckerberg, whom they had hired to write code for the site, stole the idea and surreptitiously created a rival company. Facebook has denied the allegations; a lawsuit is pending.
Another Harvard classmate, Aaron Greenspan, asserts that he created the underlying architecture for both companies, but has declined to enter the legal fray .
In November 2007, Facebook again created a storm when it announced a new advertising system called Beacon, in which users' purchases or activities on some 40 partner sites were broadcast to their Facebook friends. Some users claimed that they were not adequately warned about the feature, and the political activist group MoveOn.org organized a protest group on Facebook, which attracted more than 70,000 members.
In December, Facebook capitulated to a key demand of the protesters by offering users an easy way to decline to take part in Beacon.
In February 2009, when Facebook updated its terms, it deleted a provision that said users could remove their content at any time, at which time the license would expire. Further, it added new language that said Facebook would retain users’ content and licenses after an account was terminated.
After a wave of protests from its users, Facebook said that it would withdraw changes to its terms of service. Mr. Zuckerberg said that Facebook’s next revision of terms would reflect “a new approach” and would be “a substantial revision from where we are now.”
The company, founded in 2004 by a Harvard sophomore, Mark Zuckerberg, began life catering first to Harvard students and then to all high school and college students. It has since evolved into a broadly popular online destination used by both teenagers and adults of all ages.
Like other social networks, the site allows its users to create a profile page and forge online links with friends and acquaintances. It has distinguished itself from rivals, partly by imposing a spartan design ethos and limiting how users can change the appearance of their profile pages. That has cut down on visual clutter and threats like spam, which plague rival social networks. In May 2007, Facebook unveiled an initiative called Facebook Platform, inviting third-party software makers to create programs for the service and to make money on advertising alongside them. The announcement stimulated the creation of hundreds of new features or "social applications" on Facebook , from games to new music and photo sharing tools, which had the effect of further turbo-charging activity on the site.
In May 2009, a Russian investment firm, Digital Sky Technologies, invested $200 million in Facebook in return for a 1.96 percent stake. The investment values Facebook's preferred stock at $10 billion, a $5 billion drop from October 2007 when Microsoft paid $240 million for a 1.6 percent stake. With the latest round of financing, Facebook has raised about $600 million since it was founded in 2004.
At the time of Microsoft's investment in 2007, Facebook's $15 billion valuation drew criticism for being unrealistically high and a sign of a bubble in social network investments. With the new valuation, Facebook is demonstrating to its critics that it is living up to its early promise.
Facebook's rise has been marked by several controversies. Three other Harvard students maintain that they came up with the original idea and that Mr. Zuckerberg, whom they had hired to write code for the site, stole the idea and surreptitiously created a rival company. Facebook has denied the allegations; a lawsuit is pending.
Another Harvard classmate, Aaron Greenspan, asserts that he created the underlying architecture for both companies, but has declined to enter the legal fray .
In November 2007, Facebook again created a storm when it announced a new advertising system called Beacon, in which users' purchases or activities on some 40 partner sites were broadcast to their Facebook friends. Some users claimed that they were not adequately warned about the feature, and the political activist group MoveOn.org organized a protest group on Facebook, which attracted more than 70,000 members.
In December, Facebook capitulated to a key demand of the protesters by offering users an easy way to decline to take part in Beacon.
In February 2009, when Facebook updated its terms, it deleted a provision that said users could remove their content at any time, at which time the license would expire. Further, it added new language that said Facebook would retain users’ content and licenses after an account was terminated.
After a wave of protests from its users, Facebook said that it would withdraw changes to its terms of service. Mr. Zuckerberg said that Facebook’s next revision of terms would reflect “a new approach” and would be “a substantial revision from where we are now.”
International News
NEW YORK - The government of Pakistan will pay for new lawyers to defend Dr. Aafia Siddiqui, a Pakistani neuroscientist who is accused of opening fire on American personnel in Afghanistan last year, according to papers filed Wednesday in a Manhattan federal court.The decision was made "in consultation" with the family of Aafia Siddiqui, "and with the understanding that Dr. Siddiqui adamantly refused the assistance of and did not want to be represented by her (State) appointedRead full story
Pakistani Christians protest Gojra riots in front of UN
UNITED NATIONS - Pakistani christians living in and around New York Wednesday staged a demonstration in front of the U.N. to protest the recent anti-Christian riots in Gojra that claimed nine lives and left many injured.The demonstrators,… Read full story »
India fails to protect minorities:US panel
WASHINGTON (AFP) - An official US commission accused ally India of failing to protect Christian and Muslim minorities from violent attacks, prompting a denial Thursday from New Delhi.The report from the US Commission on International… Read full story »
300 feared dead in Taiwan village
CHISHAN (AFP) - At least 300 people were missing and feared dead after their village in southern Taiwan was flattened by landslides during Typhoon Morakot, a county magistrate said Thursday.“Some 300 people were missing and possibly buried… Read full story »
The Nation News
Pakistani Christians protest Gojra riots in front of UN
UNITED NATIONS - Pakistani christians living in and around New York Wednesday staged a demonstration in front of the U.N. to protest the recent anti-Christian riots in Gojra that claimed nine lives and left many injured.The demonstrators,… Read full story »
India fails to protect minorities:US panel
WASHINGTON (AFP) - An official US commission accused ally India of failing to protect Christian and Muslim minorities from violent attacks, prompting a denial Thursday from New Delhi.The report from the US Commission on International… Read full story »
300 feared dead in Taiwan village
CHISHAN (AFP) - At least 300 people were missing and feared dead after their village in southern Taiwan was flattened by landslides during Typhoon Morakot, a county magistrate said Thursday.“Some 300 people were missing and possibly buried… Read full story »
The Nation News
Aug 14 Independence Day Of PAKISTAN
LAHORE - The 62nd Independence Day is being celebrated today (Friday) across the country with great fervour, enthusiasm and renewed pledge by the masses to work for a progressive and prosperous Pakistan.The day will dawn in provincial metropolis offering special prayers after Fajr prayers for the development, stability, prosperity and progress of the motherland in various mosques. Minorities will also offer special prayers for the betterment of the country here.One of the important ceremonies of changing of guards at the Mazar of Dr Allama Muhammad Iqbal will be held paying special tributes to the great poet followed by Quran Khawani early in the morning.All the moving traffic (road, rail and sea) will be stopped for one minute throughout the country on Friday at 8:58 am with the sounding of sirens to herald the flag hoisting ceremony at 9 am. Other impressive flag hoisting ceremonies of the day will also be organised in various offices of the officials throughout the metropolitan.Chief Minister Punjab Mian Shahbaz Sharif will attend a flag hoisting ceremony at Hazoori Bagh near Shahi Qila while the Governor Punjab Salman Taseer will also attend a flag-hoisting ceremony at Governor’s House.The members of provincial Cabinet and Assembly will also attend the different ceremonies being organised in the City by various groups of civil society. Armed forces will join the nation in the celebrations of 62nd Independence Day while the Capital Police, Rescue 1122 service and City Traffic Police will also organise Independence Day celebrations throughout Punjab.A huge ceremony will also be organised at Wahga Border where a handmade map of entire Pakistan representing the four Capitals, mud made statues of Mazar-e-Quaid, Mazar-e-Iqbal, Badshahi Mosque will also add enthusiasm to the fervour of enthusiastic Pakistanis. All the educational institutions including PU, GC University, UET, Government College Lahore, Lahore College for Women, Diyal Singh College, MAO College and other institutions although will remain closed as public holiday but their managements will hold Independence Day functions and Jashn-e-Azadi Shows in which students will participate in large numbers
The Nation....
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Ten Indian troops are killed in the face of Taliban in Sawat, Pakistan
Intelligence report:- ISI told the media there are lots of weapons that is made of India in Balochistan , Pakistan. There were the terrorist trained in Indian terrorist centers in Rajhistan. Pak forces defeated him and provided the evidences to America & all the world. No one insist India to break his criminal actions which are used to unstable Pakistan. Pakistan has broadminded, brave, agile, well equipped army that is honorable for every Pakistani, all of them pray for him. India calls the name of Pakistan due to his lewd mind. India has begun to see the dreams of Super Power in Asia, But it is not suit for it because he spent lot of money to increase the mountain of weapons to discourage poor countries and to establish his command on them. India arrogated at Kashmir disobeying the order of US. The people of Kashmir also dislike him very much. They feel that India become them his servant & liberticide of their freedom.
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