Edutainment:

''In an era where the cultural and educational heritages of the world are being burnt to ashes and demolished into dust by religious fanatics and other extremists we must all work even harder to ensure the spreading and sharing of the seeds of  universal knowledge amongst womankind and mankind''

[patrick emek]

'Alien Encounters'

[The Science Channel]

It takes a lot these days for me to sit down and watch any television program.

Most programs are produced by arrogant, self-conceited elitist cliques – but cleverly designed and dressed up as 'mass entertainment' 'reality television' or 'educationally relevant'. For these reasons watching and listening to anything on the box - other than news channels worldwide these days - is a real burden for me.

So when the series 'Alien Encounters' were first aired some time ago I watched the first few minutes with the usual scepticism, my control at the ready to flick over to something more relevant and 'down to earth' in an instant.   However, I quickly woke up to the fact that the series was something really different from the others.

I was so impressed with the technical and scientific content that I called an 'emergency boardroom' 'meeting' with the kids to inform them that they were going to watch this program.   There were the usual howls of protest with one feigning a headache and another a tummy ache as reasons to excuse their availability from watching.    It was a battle - which I eventually won by means of 'gentle persuasion' (the promise of chocolates and ice cream) and 'time off' for good behavior.   The matter didn't end there.   There were scenes of utter exasperation, despair and hands wildly gesticulating in the air like some entranced religious worshippers - eyes rolling to the ceiling – as I paused and (just slightly) rewound frames or sections of each episode to explain some fundamental futurist, physical, biological or chemical theory or discovery which were being talked about.    The situation went from bad to worse with the (now) two remaining  'victims' (as they described themselves at that time)  just short of verbal altercations and maledictions towards me - and on the entire series - as the first episode ended.     (I had made matters much much worse by insisting they take notes as I would explain an important principle being discussed whilst I paused, then slightly rewound – so as to hopefully ensure that the matter was more accessible for their long term memories.    At the end of the first episode they swore they would never watch the second one under such onerous conditions.     However, the same two obligingly trundled in to watch the second, then the third, then fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh episodes.   Their protests never ceased – but were visibly growing far less as each new series evolved.

I could see that at least the two remaining 'victims' were intrigued - despite their howls and protests.

[The two interested individuals have very high IQs but one is very highly hyperactive – which means that anything requiring focused attention is always a challenge.]

When we arrived at episode eight, just before the Holidays, both declared that they had enough of my insistence on scientific-like note taking and would not continue to view unless I dropped this requirement and they could watch the program through from beginning to end – with no interruptions whatsoever.   This I could not agree to as I explained that the notes were to help them (as quite young children) to understand what was being discussed.    We could not agree.    The deadlock could not be broken.    We had reached an impasse – and neither of us was prepared to give way.    Other than taking the matter to the United Nations for arbitration I saw little future in continuing with my desire that they watch this with me for educational purposes.     I just forgot about the matter and gave it up as a lost cause.     Then, some time afterwards, quietly, little hints about 'when can we watch the next episode of Alien Encounters?' were innocuously and diplomatically hidden in passing conversations.     At first I ignored the hints because I was just too tired of doing battle, mentally scarred and emotionally drained of my own emergency reserve pack – the main oxygen supply line having been deliberately cut and long-since depleted.    But the innocuous turned into an outright 'we wanna watch the next episode of Alien Encounters!'; like protesters demanding their long-withheld civil rights.

So we watched episode eight together.     I still got the occasional protest as I paused, rewound and insisted on their taking notes to my explanations of situations.    By episode nine they were hooked.     No more protests and, to my amazement, vigorous independent notetaking (much to my shock and horror!) and not even a whimper as I would explain about theories of quantum mechanics, the links between  quantum computers, virtual reality, how big a yottabyte of information is and how such will operate with ease within the realms of quantum computers of the future.)

You will note that I have spent a lot of time talking about my battles with the kids and virtually none at all discussing what exactly 'Alien Encounters' is all about.

It's best summarised with the phrase given throughout: 'this program depicts a hypothetical scenario of first contact with alien intelligence' - a fictional  dramatization of the first encounter with intelligent life from another world.

It is however very different from anything which has ever preceeded it into production and, in my opinion, it is a unique series of considerable educational significance.

It could mark a watershed or new direction for edutainment or,  more likely,  is just a one-off gem in an otherwise desolate and (again, in my opinion) boring media and edutainment landscape.      [Other one-off gems include 'Through The Wormhole' (Morgan Freeman presenting) and Alien Planet.]

Perhaps I am just one of those elitist nerds I am so heavily critical of and most of the population, because of their limited scientific education or interest, will simply just not understand the series to such an extent that it fails to become a part of popular mainstream culture.    Perhaps indeed this is the reason it has failed to be 'internationalized' to the extent that, by now, it should, in my opinion, have become a 'cult' series.

[Perhaps one day when we live in a more popular 'enlightened' scientific community-linked world, it will take its true place in the pantheon of cult productions and what went unrecognised as just another quirky sci-fi faction story will then be seen for what it truly is – a unique work of art.]

All I can attest to is that two initially very doubting Thomases thought otherwise and 'Alien Encounters' has, no doubt, expanded their mental horizons of the possibilities to no outer limits hitherto reached by any teacher at their Junior High School.

I just want on this rare occasion of something useful having been produced for a viewing audience, to spread the good news of 'salvation' so that others may follow in their path.

The series will not assist with solving the insoluble problems of today nor bring hope to those in need and despair but, as with any good religion, the hope of salvation, at some point, needs to be kept alive.

This series is 'very heavy' on general science so if your knowledge of the subject is limited you might just wanna watch initially, ignoring the technical aspects and just appreciate the content for its style of dramatizations of fictional issues.

If the topics of science and mathematics are of absolutely no interest to you I suppose I'd better advise that you give the entire series a miss.

©Patrick Emek, 2015

Current 'cult' Edutainment series:

'Through The Wormhole' (with Morgan Freeman presenting)

&

'Alien Planet'

both also have been screened on 'The Science Channel'

http://www.sciencechannel.com/

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/pantheon

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_the_Apostle

WHERE IN THE WORLD CAN I GET SOME PRIVACY?

Increasingly people are nervous about surfing the Web for a variety of reasons.   Revelations about snooping by many governments on all of their citizens on even the most innocent of internet activities has probably already ruined the profits of many companies as people become very wary about which internet provider, which security software, which server provider they choose for their business.  Industrial and commercial espionage through electronic eavesdropping and hacking have never had it so good.  It's a golden age for government snooping, for piracy and for internet terrorism.    As I write this blog, entities and terrorists are already plotting how to 'blow up' nuclear reactors, how to bring down civilian planes, how to crash stock markets worldwide, how to cut off life support systems in critical environments simply by disabling safety thresholds or corrupting programs - how to set 'time bombs' with long delay 'intelligent' fuses and all via the internet.  The concept of the destruction or corruption of  software authentication systems via the internet may not be as remote nor far removed from the movies as once imagined. 

Having said all of that there is one positive note.   Despite the wide availability of, say, for example, knowledge of how to construct highly accurate projectile devices, few individuals with such knowledge have been one can short of a six pack to the extent of offering their services to serious fanatics, political and religious extremists or others clearly over the hedge. 

It is a positive development that laws have been introduced to make such access for the purposes of crashing, for example, defense or financial systems, serious criminal offences - but such will most certainly not deter the committed fanatical political or religious individual or groups.  

 Where Do the Politicians Fit In?

Almost without exception, Western politicians I have encountered have absolutely no concept of what it means to be prepared to die for a cause you believe in.   Of what it means to be prepared to strap explosives to an eight-year old to demolish a village market shopping area murdering all it's vendors and shoppers, to enter a maternity ward strapped with explosives, or a pregnant woman strapped with explosives entering a government building or airport terminal or a cafe to demolish it, as a symbol of her spiritual commitment.                              Let us never forget, ISIS or ISIL is the product of the failure of politics, of failed diplomacy, of weak central administrations where tribalism and religious extremism have been able (or allowed or encouraged) to flourish and take root, and are also the product of the triumph of tyranny, of perceived injustices, of failed hopes and dreams and, above all, of despairs and hopelessness amongst the next generation who, in a world at peace, would be at high or secondary school preparing for university rather than preparing to die as a suicide bomber or executing helpless civilians or Prisoners of War whom they are taught by fanatics to perceive as 'agents of Satan'.                They (politicians) will grieve for their own children if directly affected but such empathy never extends to the victims of, say, the School on Peshawar’s Warsak Road or the students and academic staff at Garissa University in Kenya, or the civilians and Police Officers such as Tukaram Omble, posthumously awarded the Ashoka Chakra for his bravery and all so mercilessly butchered in the 2008 Mumbai attacks where the objective was to kill anyone and everyone they (the terrorists) could find, independent of and incidental to their specific targets.

With this in mind, we have a generation of Western politicians who have never seen the bloody aftermath and carnage of the above, up close and personal.  It is such politicians with no real experience of life (beyond perhaps playing the school bully at Private or Public school) who then go on to enact laws to protect us all from the international terrorism that they have little to no knowledge about other than their schooldays swashbuckling adventure stories - where 'might is right'.

In the Shadows

Most Black Hat contributors would share my concerns about the future - but it only takes one lone wolf - and there are many worldwide far beyond the reach of reason and law - and it will take much more than just drone strikes to dislodge them all - and their portable devices.

 All Sparks In the Backroom

The European Union and other bodies are introducing mandatory laws requiring all motor cars have microchip and GPS devices installed by a particular date.  So the ability to, for example, effect an assassination by, say, disabling braking or other systems at a critical time or juncture will take the concept of warfare and terrorism into a new dimension.  

Full 'spectrum dominance' has been the goal of superpowers for a long time.  This dream - or nightmare - is approaching faster than the average citizen is aware.

'So Was It An Accident Then?  CNN Said That It Was?'

So, in the future, when you hear that some notable world political or spiritual leader 'died' in a plane crash, car accident or boating tragedy - or indeed that the airplane itself 'disappeared'  or the Coca Cola machine or his fridge or cooker or television or mobile phone or other microchip encoded device 'inexplicably' caught fire and blew up you might want to think twice about the initial report on your reputable news network - just in case there is more to it than just meets the eye.

Where Do I Fit Into This Brave New World? 

So where does the average citizen - you and me - fit into this equation?   The answer is nowhere I'm sorry to say. 

Independence Day

Some countries are developing their own 'autonomous' internets completely divorced from the United States - although this is a rather futile effort - unless you are North Korea - and even then you cannot prevent every single fibre of your system being 'tapped' somewhere along the line (!)

Keep Yourself Regularly Informed On Such Issues – That Is My Advice

As the subject of individual privacy becomes an international issue-even for the average citizen engaged in nothing more subversive than checking the school timetable for their child's activities on a particular day, I thought it might be useful to provide the most up to date analysis of world privacy.

For further information you should contact the providers of this useful guide direct.   Their reference is given at the bottom of the insert.

Please click on the image below to be redirected - Thank You!

©Patrick Emek, 2015

 

https://ivarsmore.wordpress.com/2013/10/14/infographic-the-5-countries-were-ranked-best-for-privacy/

 

footnote:

Researchers should note that this is a project in progress.  Countries will change in terms of repressive laws, internet snooping, freedom of access so do not take this as the definitive guide for all time on internet freedom.

PE

 

Other references

1.https://alumni.stanford.edu/get/page/magazine/article/?article_id=59976

2.https://www.ftc.gov/system/files/documents/reports/federal-trade-commission-staff-report-november-2013-workshop-entitled-internet-things-privacy/150127iotrpt.pdf

3. http://www.thejournal.ie/pakistan-school-hostages-taliban-1836791-Dec2014/

4. http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2015/04/02/kenya-university-attack/70815094/

 http://ktla.com/2015/04/07/at-vigil-kenyans-mourn-147-killed-in-terrorist-attack-at-university-in-garissa/

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/pope-francis-condemns-senseless-terrorist-5456268

 5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casualties_of_the_2008_Mumbai_attacks

6. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tukaram_Omble

7.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashoka_Chakra_%28military_decoration%29

8.An interesting blog was posted by Miguel Angel Ivars Mas entitled 'Google's War Against Blogs'.  Unfortunately the terrible translation from Spanish to English has distorted the narrative but if you appreciate this before reading you will get the jist of what is being said.  

For Spanish readers you should go direct to the Spanish version to get a clearer picture.

Versión Española:

La guerra de Google contra los blogs: https://ivarsmas.wordpress.com/2014/12/01/la-guerra-de-google-contra-los-blogs/

https://ivarsmore.wordpress.com/author/ivarsmas/

 English Version: Google's War Against Blogs https://ivarsmore.wordpress.com/2014/12/01/googles-war-against-blogs/

 

 

 

In The House Of The Damned and In The Anniversary Year of the Armenian Genocide, Turkey Launches Its Very Own Jewish Pogrom: ''The Mastermind''

Is an anti-Semitic film from Turkey with the direct support and backing of Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish President.    Indeed he was the first senior Turkish politician to endorse it's message.

The question I have is this: What are we to make of a Turkey which, in the year of the commemoration of the Armenian genocide, is promoting anti-Semitism in a region already filled with far too much hatred, death and misery?

Secondly, assuming that, as with all politicians, this vile propaganda is being endorsed worldwide by the Turkish government for reasons of domestic political expediency (in much the same way, incidentally, as the ethnic cleansing of all Armenians from Constantinople was for purely domestic

political reasons, to find scapegoats for the humiliations of Ottoman military defeats in a last desperate attempt to save Turkish pride - and the Ottoman Empire - from total collapse) so too today the idea of 'the Jews' being responsible for all of Turkey's woes – as a desperate Erdogan attempts to stave off both civil war and a military coup d'etat to overthrow what many can now see as a demagogue leading Turkey over the abyss, will gather pace and momentum over the coming months and years - or at least up until the time when Erdogan is deposed.

I said years ago Erdogan was a tyrant.  I was laughed at and dismissed as a crank, as a troublemaker.

Sadly when there is a buck to be made anywhere, few will sacrifice this until it is so glaringly obvious that public opinion forces a halt to investment.   Do you recall that during the Second World War, even when Anti-Fascist Germans, Jews, Gypsies, Communists, Jehovah Witnesses and other minorities and 'dissidents' were being transported by the Nazis wholesale to concentration camps for mass slaughter and all Allied powers were completely aware of this, the emphasis was in concealing the truth from the general public so as to avoid having to face the wrath of public opinion and disgust rather than take immediate action to prevent mass 'genocide' ( a term not yet in use but it's equivalent to the extermination of an entire race or group through terror and pogroms, was well known at this time.)    It was only as the War dragged on and it became politically expedient to refer to Nazi 'atrocities' for their propaganda value, did mention of such horrors become more public and widespread.

Meā Culpā – The Rise of ISIS

The Israelis do not, however, remain blameless in this 'Great Game'.     They thought, for example, that by playing both ends against the middle they could placate ISIS – as it went on a 'killing fields' spree in Iraq and, hopefully for the incumbent Israeli government as it would also wish it, also in Syria, in Yemen and potentially in the Lebanon.   That these countries would be so torn apart through war, famine, water shortages, disease and misery that Israel would enjoy many decades of 'bliss' or freedom from a viable military threat coming from the Arab world.   Any Israeli commander, if honestly asked, would have told the politicians to 'go get stuffed' and given them 'the one middle finger' for such political fantasy nonesense.  
Anyone with any sense at all could have seen that such chaos will ultimately be worse for Israel than taking the slow painful long road towards peace in the entire region.

To have done a deal with the PLO and it's successor, the Palestinian Authority and Hamas, would, with hindsight, have been far easier than any future attempts with a population already mesmerized by the prospect of the sacred 'army of Allah' (sic. ISIS) which 'The Great and Little Satans' (sic. The United States, Britain and Israel) have been unable, with all of their superpower might, to defeat.    That 'Satan' with all of his guile 'conspiracies' and the evil which everything he touches turns into, has to monitor and close international borders specifically to stop tens of thousands of the next generation (young Muslim men and women between the ages of 15-25) from linking up with their 'brothers and sisters' within the borders of ISIS-controlled territories, all converging with the intent of joining ISIS in it's sacred 'Jihad' to defeat the armies of the 'Great and Little Satans', is a testament to both their (sic. The Western Judeo-Christian world) helplessness and frustration when confronted with the power of Allah – who knows no borders nor boundaries.    That these agents of 'Satan' will conspire in every possible way to save their already damned eternal souls and attempt to lead the youth of Islam away from it's 'true' destiny (sic. to fight for Allah's global Caliphate) is yet further testament to the 'bankruptcy' of the Judeo-Christian world and the ultimate victory of Allah's kingdom on the planet.

So what do we have in place to counter such ideological insanity – especially towards its most vulnerable recipients?    Not very much which is spiritually 'redeeming' as our obsessive absorption into the material world blinds us to horrendous and catastrophic dangers (some of an almost unfathomable nature) just over the horizon.

So yes I also blame Western Christian and Muslim politicians for the above situation.   Through their infinite stupidity and infinite arrogance they are knowingly and consciously creating a morphed and twisted distortion (sic. the version of Islam promulgated by ISIS) which is gaining ever increasing popularity amongst young Arabs brutalised and traumatised through the decades of destruction or impoverishment  or both reigning down upon them and for which explanations – like those being advanced by (Salafist-inspired) Erdogan  can give credence to beliefs that such are (now) part of an international Judeo-Christian conspiracy - and that only regimes such as Erdogan's theocracy can 'regain' Islam's dignity.    Israel, effectively, now has a real monster in it's backyard with the military capability and millennia of regional political intrigues and conspiracies to create really serious damage in the entire region.

The Turks themselves, as a people, are neither in favor of extremist Islam, Wahhabism, Salafism, militarism nor anti-Semitism and still remain secular in nature.   For these reasons I have absolutely no doubt that Erdogan will go the way of President Morsi and  - and the sooner the better for Turkey as a secular country.

Is There A Way Forward?

Well of course there is way forward - it's called peace for all mankind – but it seems to have fallen out of most peoples vocabularies and these days you'll only find it scrawled on the subway walls in the netherworlds on this planet.

Mephisto:- Lost To The Dark Side

Our species appears more comfortable with Cerberus across the Styx on the dark roads of evil and wars than on any paths of light, love and world peace for all mankind.    Perhaps evil better fits this species' psyche than that of, say, love, peace, justice for all, understanding and the abolition of all weapons and all wars worldwide.

Everyone wants peace on their own terms and nobody wants world peace.   And those so-called bodies charged with promoting world peace long-ago sold their souls for less than thirty pieces of silver.

So this is why I conclude the human species feels more comfortable on a path of darkness as it is of greater solace as they all sing in unison their 'Alleluias' in Catherdals, College Chapels or chant their 'Allahu Akhbars' in the Caliphate Mosques' to herald the forthcoming of Allah, Yahweh' 'Jehovah' and all the other deities - more a testament to a primitive planet than anything remotely redeemable.

They would all, in my opinion, appear more to be chanting to their own unique (and loving) versions of Satan here on earth than for any visions or creator of a future world of peace, justice and harmony for all here on earth.

©Patrick Emek, 2015


footnote
a recent encounter has taught me that some meanings can be 'lost in translation'.
So that there is no doubt what I am saying above:
The matter of Nazi Germany's concentration camps only became a moral issue for the Allied forces' politicians after rather than during the facts and events in question.

error correction-should have read 'President Morsi' and not Mubarak

Islamist Turkish President Erdogan Says A 'Mastermind' Is Plotting Against Turkey; Antisemitic 'Documentary' Says Jews Have Been 'Mastermind' For Over 3,500 Years:

http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/8518.htm



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mephistopheles


https://www.google.co.uk/search?newwindow=1&q=Cerberus+and+the+Styx&oq=Cerberus+and+the+Styx&gs_l=serp.12..0i22i30l2.173551.183964.0.185468.22.14.0.0.0.0.885.2200.5-2j1.3.0.msedr...0...1c.1.64.serp..20.2.1508.0.7pgfmqjoRAI

HEROIN & OPIUM
Indonesia's Execution Of Drug Traffickers

Indonesia has executed eight convicted drug traffickers, seven of whom were foreign nationals from Australia, Brazil and Nigeria. They were all found guilty as charged and all international pleas for clemency were rejected.

Australia: Using 'Aid' Threats As A Lever In This Matter Was Highly Counterproductive

What surprised me about this incident is that the Australian government spent more effort in its diplomatic attempts to obtain a Presidential clemency than it did explaining to its citizens the dangers of drug trafficking across borders in South East Asia.

The worst mistake made was the extent of the publicity it undertook rather than 'quiet diplomacy' with threats in a semi-hysterical xenophobic Australian media about future foreign aid to Indonesia and linking its NGO and direct government aid work for disaster relief to the outcome of clemency appeals for its nationals in cases of drug trafficking convictions.

For myself, this represented the height of arrogance and an insult to the dignity of Indonesia as a country.

I could continue by discussing the racial strife between White Australians, peoples of color and Australians of the Islamic faith inside Australia itself but such are problems for Australia to resolve independent of this issue in hand. I only mention them because both Brazil and Australia have similar racial strife issues with regard to peoples of different ethnic backgrounds.

section deleted

Do You Remember The Opium Wars?^1&2

You Should,Because Even Today Drug Traffickers Have Destroyed Whole Communities, Societies and Countries In The Caribbean, and In Central and In South America

Indonesia has a very serious problem with addiction of its own citizens to hard drugs.

It's not on the same scale as Afghanistan or Mexico, Colombia or Trinidad but it is insidious and destructive to Indonesian communities and families.

If foreigners (sic. European and Australian passport holders) are perceived as 'above the law' this sends the wrong 'message' to Indonesian citizens as they attempt through education and social rehabilitation programs to keep their own local communities 'drugs free'.

Clash of Cultures

It is not uncommon to observe Australians and New Zealanders in particular being highly disrespectful of the culture and traditions of the countries in South East Asia where they find themselves either in temporary residence or on holidays. 
For example, being drunk in public in Christendom is very different from being intoxicated in public in a Muslim country - and the penalties can be draconian in some places.
I could give many examples from my own personal observations but that is beside the issue.

[Even though the U.S. is not very well-liked in some parts of the world, I have never seen Americans, as tourists or residents, in public, disrespectful of local people anywhere I have traveled.  Since the film Midnight Express, few are crazy enough to traffic narcotics in Muslim lands(!); [please could you note that I am excluding the remarks of the former U.S. Ambassador to India - which were untypical of anything anywhere I ever came across in public.]

section deleted

What I can say is that Indonesia and other South East Asia countries have become somewhat tired of lax or conflicting or contradictory attitudes of the West to hard drugs and executions of convicted drugs dealers is one way of sending their own very clear message to the nationals of such countries and their respective governments – that they traffic narcotics at their own risk with no sympathy from the Indonesian authorities if caught and convicted.

Where Our Real Sympathies Should Be

Of course I have sympathy for those executed individuals and their grieving families but having at first hand witnessed the highly destructive, pernicious and soul-destroying effects of addiction to heroin and opium on children, parents, families and communities in a manner that no other activity has, I cannot but think that the Australian government is better served educating its own citizens about the dangers of trafficking drugs in general and in particular out of or into countries which have the death penalty in place for convicted offenders rather than attempt, in essence, to bully South East Asia nations into doing its bidding as was the case on this occasion.

These countries have the death penalty in place for drug trafficking for very good local reasons.

Indonesia has sent a very clear message to Australia and to the rest of the world – which they ignore at their own peril.

©Patrick Emek, 2015

amended version

typographical errors ('its') corrected on 30th April, 2014

http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2015/04/29/ri-executes-8-drug-convicts.html

1.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Opium_War

2.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Opium_War

Midnight Express

Here is a former diplomat's take on both Billy Hayes and 'Midnight Express':

http://adst.org/2013/07/the-truth-behind-midnight-express/

 3.The real Billy Hayes speaks about the movie  'Midnight Express':

http://www.seattlepi.com/ae/movies/article/The-real-Billy-Hayes-regrets-Midnight-Express-1134196.php

Drug Trafficking - A 'Not To Be Missed' Film:

4.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midnight_Express_%28film%29

 5. 

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Midnight-Express-DVD-Brad-Davis/dp/B00004CYO2

Migration From Africa:

The New Boat People

As the numbers of  migrant Africans, Iraqis, Syrians, Afghans and others desperate to enter Europe by boats, home-made rafts, barrels, dinghies and any other water- floating device-enabled contraptions surge to levels never seen before, is there a solution to these exoduses of historic proportions?

The first thing which most commentators fail to point out is that nobody wants to be a refugee or migrant  in flight from their mother country or fatherland.   It's something which is forced upon them.   People pack their bags (or what little they possess) and their families (or those fit and young and healthy enough to survive the journey) because they have no choice.

If they stay behind they and their children will be butchered by the insanity of religious zealots, primitive beliefs, political madmen and tyrants, or starved to death because of war, famine, pestilence, disease or because as minorities (ethnic, religious, gay, lesbian) they are being persecuted and terrorised by governments or communities where civil society, as we understand it, has collapsed.

The image of a confused terrified and bewildered child clutching a precious toy or elderly people crying because everything they knew and loved has been destroyed all around them and they are being abandoned to fend for themselves, or human carcasses lying in the streets being eaten by packs of scavenging animals, once loving and loved family pets, now desperate for food as the world they knew disappeared, inexplicably and in an instant. The loving individuals and children they cared for - and who doted - on them - either blown apart, limb by limb now only as rotting corpses. For any pet this schizophrenic Kafkaesque-like new world must be as traumatic and terror-filled as it is for those humans fleeing in the wake of such horrors.
Don't be confused or let the media confuse you between the terms 'economic' migrants and refugees.  If people have become economic migrants, thye may have been forced to do so because they are religious or ethnic minorities with no opportunity for advancement in their country of birth.  
They may have been 'terrorised' into flight  through modern day 'pogroms' be it in Asia, Africa or elsewhere.

But you won't be reading this type of story in your mainstream media outlet where the emphasis will be on 'let them all die at sea' 'burn all their (immigrants) boats on the shores of North Africa so they can't get here.'  What statements like these do echo however are the fears and frustrations at what seems to be an insoluble and unsolvable problem.  I say 'insoluble' because, for example, I don't want to welcome immigrants who hate Gay and Lesbian people because they are Gay and Lesbian people and will not respect their fellow-citizens rights 'to be different' in their new secular society home in The United States or Europe.

The Netherlands – Almost From Mediaeval Times, A Sanctuary For Dissidents

The Netherlands and Denmark were two of the most liberal countries in Europe who opened their doors to Muslim refugees and migrant workers – only to find that those very same people they welcomed, when 'settled' (but never integrated) were contemptuous of the 'liberal' values of their host countries and, other than for public relations, prefer the comfort of listening to hate preachers from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, rail against Christianity and it's immorality and satanic values and such hate preachers openly calling for the murder of fellow-citizens in all countries who do not conform to their twisted version of Islamic values and therefore, are apostates.

Common Observations You Will Hear

''I do not want to see streets lined with coffee shops and me looked at as if I am some sort of monster or outcast if I ask can I get a bottle of beer.''

''I have nothing against immigrants opening any business – indeed such is always to be commended as it is enterprising and such is the spirity of our communities – but don't ask me to live as if we were in Turkey, or Morocco, or Saudi Arabia or some other Middle Eastern or North African Muslim country where Islam and it's mediaeval tenets are more important than my rights and tolerance of all minorities within communities.''

''I don't want to be looked at (or spoken to) with contempt should my daughters be wearing short skirts or short pants or dressed as they feel they want to in summertime or told that I should 'keep them under control' and that they should 'dress modestly' according to Islamic values in Europe.''

Yes there is a place for modesty – but according to our civil institutions or private establishments or when visiting churches, mosques, synagogues or temples where protocol dictates the dress code – but in Christendom the church is subject to civil law code in the same manner as any private citizen and church doctrines do not supercede the civil and criminal laws.

''Don't tell me to 'chastise' my wife or children because of a book written 1400 years ago or books written thousands of years ago outside Christendom says so – and I, a Christian, must conform to this or die.''   ''Don't tell me  that my wife and daughters are like baggage or chattels to be bought and sold at will.''

''Don't ask me to flog or crucify or murder Gay or Lesbian individuals because that's what happened thousands of years ago or happens today in Saudi Arabia or regions of Africa where cannibalism continues to be practiced (I am here sepcifically referring to the cannibalism of Albino individuals by locals across East Africa this very day¹) and not much has progressed in human thought on the dignity and rights in plural secular societies, so it's perfectly OK to burn alive or murder those who are 'different' to this today.''

These are not my communities.  These are not the Europeans with more recent (and visible) African heritage I know – but if you have good friends who are African and have known them for a long time, they will honestly tell you about these 'traditional' 'primitive' practices in the lands of their ancestors.  They will also honestly tell you that ignorance and superstition are at the root of such beliefs to this very day.

So this is my dilemma.   I don't have any problem welcoming anyone from any part of the world. Many people have issues of racism - against Black people, poor people, against refugees with absolutely nothing but the clothes on their backs, hidden within their very spiteful and hateful remarks about the 'dirty filthy immigrants'.  Perhaps if those very same people would give the 'dirty filthy immigrants' the dignity of a job and somewhere decent, safe and secure to live and be more focused on how to welcome and integrate such people and their children into their new home and community with the emphasis on respect for our secular values in Christendom and loyalty to our democratic values, the separation of church and state (rather than to a remote  land which gave them little except a book of prayer and certainly did not open its doors when they were fleeing for their lives seeking shelter and protection) then they would have less to fear rather than leaving such helpless individuals as lepers destitute and begging for sustenance and criminal - only to survive - on the streets throughout Europe.

Multi-Faith and Multi-Ethnic Communities Have Worked For Thousands Of Years - Until Religion or Politics Have Torn Them Apart

The problem I have is that I do not want to see my community which consists of White, Black, Brown and 'Mediterranean' tanned peoples who are straight, gay, lesbian, libertarians, conservatives and ultra-conservatives, all living together in the absence of bloodshed (but not without prejudices and differences) in civilized open-society communities, torn apart through bigotry and intolerance.  I would prefer to live in a community or communities where the values of individual liberty and personal freedom are more important than what any politician, religious extremist cleric or monk or priest or rabbi or imam will damn with the words taken from a book or books (and there are far too many different such 'religious' books in this world) which have caused more suffering, death and destruction, than all the diseases known to have killed populations throughout the course of human history.

The New York Precinct – Some Local History¹⁸

For example, little Ireland, little Italy, little Odessa. little Africa (Manhattan) all in the New York precinct, are the remains of thriving exclusively immigrant Irish, Italian African and Jewish communities who arrived in an alien land fleeing religious persecution, starvation, pogroms and tyranny, all seeking a better future for themselves and their families.  But this was in an age before instant communication.  It could take weeks (or months) for a letter from New York to arrive at a small Ukrainian or Polish or Irish village two hundred years ago.  Now, we have the capability to be aware of what is happening on planet earth almost in an instant.  In my opinion, this requires also a change in how we perceive and manage migration, immigration and emigration, worldwide.  It must be a proactive change to meet the new challenges.   What I am saying here is that modern communications and technologies have outpaced our abilities to foresee the legislation and actions in local municipalities required to meet the challenges of this new digital age in the context of how to respond to the phenomena of, for example, incitement to hatred being broadcast by ISIS or radical extremists to create civil unrest, murder and revolution – because they have a clear agenda and target audience whilst we do not have anything concrete in place to challenge their hateful and divisive propaganda, all designed to undermine civil democratic secular societies.

Problems Seeking Solutions

In conclusion I do not have an answer to the catastrophe of people in their millions throughout the world fleeing for their lives and the safety of their loved ones.   Better you ask the politicians and so-called 'men of god' who have created most of this chaos, causing societies in North Africa, The Middle East and elsewhere to collapse into anarchy – hence creating domino effects – than to ask me.

They did not ask for my permission to go to war and when they asked for my vote they told me nothing in advance of their global plans to replace fledgling secular despots in North Africa and elsewhere with religious zealots creating chaos and anarchy resulting in human displacement on a scale not seen since World War II – then these same politicians blame the helpless refugees for causing 'immigration' crises.

If they had asked my opinion I would have said nobody wants to live like a refugee – a castaway on some inhospitable shore - as practiced in Australia towards it's 'Boat Refugees'.

If such individuals fleeing for their lives had personal safety, industries, jobs, schools, libraries, kindergartens, hospitals, security, a future and stable societies back home – everything we take for granted by the way – few would desire uprooting to alien lands and none to have the humiliation of being treated and kicked around from pillar to post like human garbage.

So next time you see someone who might 'fit' the above description just ask youself for one second 'What would I do If I lost everything I had and everyone I loved in an instant, through no fault of my own?'  What would you do if every evening you came back with no food for your starving family because the land is so inhospitable that nothing will grow?; or you fear even going outside because you are a religious or ethnic or social outcast minority, murdered, or, as an Albino in East Africa, you are likely to be cannibalised or chopped up as human meat for sale in the market?

What would you do? What would you do? What would you do?

What would you do? What would you do? What would you do?

What would you do? What would you do? What would you do?

What would you do? What would you do? What would you do?

What would you do? What would you do?

What would you do?

©Patrick Emek, 2015

(amended version)

References

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pol_Pot

Genocide Against Albinos In East Africa – The White House and The Vatican Stay Silent Because Albinos Have No Voice In the World

The Fight To Stop Tanzanians Killing And Eating Albinos:

http://www.vice.com/en_ca/read/the-tanzanian-albino-hunt

Kabale Albinos Living in Fear Due to Increased Demand of Body Parts in Rwanda and Tanzania

http://ugandaradionetwork.com/a/story.php?s=63891

Read more: http://ugandaradionetwork.com/a/story.php?s=63891#ixzz3Y7hGjTSz

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/nov/16/tanzania-humanrights

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CCoQtwIwAQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D9F6UpuJIFaY&ei=2rA4VcjVEcziap-GgPAC&usg=AFQjCNGJmUgngVsoWXIHekz-YlWhkw0RTg

Albino Toddler Murdered For 'Lucky' Body Parts:http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/albino-toddler-murdered-for-lucky-body-parts/ar-BBhLtY6

  http://www.albinism.org.uk/albinism_life.php

 https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=Albino+Magazine&newwindow=1&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=VNc4VaCqO4LUauyggZgB&ved=0CCgQsAQ&biw=1280&bih=868

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=Albino+Community+Worldwide&newwindow=1&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=PdY4Va_SKYqvaYztgbAL&ved=0CCEQsAQ&biw=1280&bih=868 

What Is A Pogrom?

http://history1800s.about.com/od/1800sglossary/g/Pogrom-def.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pogrom

Australia Islamic school 'bans running' over virginity fears

http://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/australia-islamic-school-bans-running-over-virginity-fears/ar-AAbxKKd?ocid=mailsignoutmd

http://wikiislam.net/wiki/Main_Page

Welcome to WikiIslam,

the online resource on Islam that anyone can edit.

Islamic Witch Hunts (Saudi Arabia)

http://wikiislam.net/wiki/Islamic_Witch_Hunts_-_Saudi_Arabia

Will Saudi Arabia Execute Guest Workers for 'Witchcraft'?

Indonesian guest workers are on trial in Saudi Arabia for “witchcraft.” But the charges are cover for cultural misunderstandings, sexual assaults, and withheld wages.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/03/29/indonesia-workers-in-saudi-arabia-are-on-trial-for-witchcraft-some-facing-the-death-penalty.html

Beheading of a poor Indonesian maid in Saudi Arabia. Islam, the Barbaric Religion.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yyl5oOLnoRY

Saudi Arabia flogs blogger in public for "insulting Islam"

http://english.al-akhbar.com/node/23144

personal experience of having lived so far under the barbaric Islamic shariah law

http://www.danielpipes.org/comments/208535

18

Little Ireland, New York

http://untappedcities.com/2014/01/28/nycs-micro-neighborhoods-little-ireland-in-woodlawn-the-bronx/

Little Italy, New York:

https://images.search.yahoo.com/yhs/search;_ylt=A0LEVvzhxjhVZl8A5WwnnIlQ;_ylu=X3oDMTB0b2ZrZmU3BHNlYwNzYwRjb2xvA2JmMQR2dGlkA1lIUzAwMl8x?_adv_prop=image&fr=ytff1-&va=little+italy+new+york&hspart=mozilla&hsimp=yhs-002

Little Odessa, New York:

http://untappedcities.com/2014/01/23/nyc-micro-neighborhoods-little-odessa-brighton-beach-brooklyn/

Little Senegal, New York

http://untappedcities.com/2014/07/01/nycs-micro-neighborhoods-little-senegal-in-harlem-new-york-city/

Little Africa, New York

http://daytoninmanhattan.blogspot.co.uk/2010/05/little-africa-minetta-lane-and-minetta.html

I have just taken some small examples of 'unknown' NY.

[Use the references above to discover hamlets you never knew existed within the NY precincts]

This Year Marks The 100th Anniversary Of The Armenian Genocide¹ (or Medz Yeghern)

Many races have suffered their own particular 'holocaust' over the millennia.   Some you have heard of but most you have not.
Most races want to  move on and to  try to put the past behind - with an emphasis on the present and future for themselves, their children and grandchildren.  Few want to be permanently 'locked' (or trapped) in a 'time tunnel' of accusation, guilt, blame, and reparations, which is understandable, as the past cannot be undone but the future awaits solutions (or disasters) from today.   There were genuine beliefs that we could learn from past human mistakes - by educating future generations so as to warn them about the potential dangers of human frailty and the human condition.    Those individuals were (and are today) well meaning and I salute and acknowledge their efforts.    Sadly, I believe that, as a species, this one will never learn from its mistakes and is always to be doomed to repeat the past.    But this should never mean that you just give up and do not try to educate the uninformed (and the ignorant.)   As an individual, your own persistent efforts could determine whether your community, village, town, city, country or indeed the world will survive into a  future 'golden age' or just go down the biowarfare, computer viral, molecular, or nuclear toilets.

As a tribute to all holocaust survivors worldwide, during this year, I am, from time to time, selecting articles from across the globe, which, if anything, teach us, sadly, that we never learn from history.

©Patrick Emek, 2015

          The Armenian Genocide Commemoration Day is 24th April

1.http://armenianweekly.com/2013/05/15/the-exact-translation-how-medz-yeghern-means-genocide/

2.http://armenianweekly.com/

3.http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=4&ved=0CDkQFjAD&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.genocide-museum.am%2Feng%2Fremembrance_day.php&ei=eBQzVausCsbpaJL7gNAD&usg=AFQjCNGbJFrBtcS1oU_vDNyJvJxKVs7h7A 
or
http://www.genocide-museum.am/eng/remembrance_day.php

4.''Turkish PM’s Armenian Advisor Steps Down following ‘Genocide’ Remarks''    http://armenianweekly.com/2015/04/16/mahcupyan-steps-down/

5. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armenian_Genocide

 

6.http://www.genocide1915.org/index.html

http://armenianweekly.com

For details about Armenia today and the Armenian Genocide please subscribe to 'The Armenian Weekly' which can be found at the above website.

background reference for the story below:

Mizrahi Nation: 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mizrahi_Jews

http://mosaicmagazine.com/essay/2014/06/mizrahi-nation/

 

''The use of the term Mizrahi can be somewhat controversial. Before the establishment of the state of Israel, Mizrahi Jews did not identify themselves as a separate ethnic subgroup. Instead, Mizrahi Jews generally characterized themselves as Sephardi, because they follow the traditions of Sephardic Judaism (although with some differences among the minhagim of the particular communities). This has resulted in a conflation of terms, particularly in Israel, and in religious usage, where "Sephardi" is used in a broad sense to include Mizrahi Jews and Maghrebi Jews as well as Sephardim proper. Indeed, from the point of view of the official Israeli rabbinate, any rabbis of Mizrahi origin in Israel are under the jurisdiction of the Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel.''

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mizrahi_Jews]

In the story below, you will find it (and much more) at the +972 Blog

By +972 Blog

Published March 26, 2015

Stop blaming Mizrahim for everything wrong in Israel

Despite what many commentators would have you think, Israeli elections were not decided by racism among Israel’s Mizrahi population.
By Leeor Ohayon

Jewish nationalist activists from anti-miscegenation group Lehava protest in Rishon Lezion, August 17, 2014. (Activestills.org)

Benjamin Netanyahu’s re-election is largely credited to votes from the Mizrahi periphery, but to credit the Mizrahi periphery alone would be naïve. The Likud party, after all, is an Ashkenazi one at heart, with Ashkenazi supporters. The magnitude of Netanyahu’s win, as a result of his “gevalt campaign,” (a desperation blitz) actually came from the Ashkenazi Right — Jewish Home voters sacrificed their party to save Netanyahu.
In a recent article, Larry Derfner condemned “poor” Mizrahi Israelis for Netanyahu’s victory. Did “poor” refer to the working class? If so, does working class equate being “poor?” Is poor synonymous with being uneducated? Can one be educated and poor? When an Ashkenazi Israeli voted for Likud or Jewish Home, did that mean he was “poor” and thus uneducated? Or just uneducated? While Derfner sought to present a post-race, post-classist argument for ending the “infantilization” of the Mizrahi working class, it effectively perpetuated the very idea that the Ashkenazi Left is aloof and alienating.

Related stories

• Behind election lurks Israel's ethnic divide
  By Dimi Reider | March 11, 2015
• Israeli Black Panther: Mizrahim must boycott the elections
  By Haokets | February 20, 2015
• What Mizrahi activists really want: A ten-point program
  By Haokets | February 14, 2015
• Why Mizrahim don't vote for the Left
  By Haokets | January 24, 2015
  

Asserting that “the Mizrahi poor hate weakness, worse than the average Israeli,” is akin to the rightist statement that the “Arabs only understand dictatorships.” The idea that poor Mizrahi Jews worship fearless leaders is orientalist at its core; it plays on an age-old concept of oriental populations as an uncivilized, hot tempered and dangerous lot in need of iron-fisted rule. The idea that this hate is worse than that of the average Israeli, further implies that the poor Mizrahi is not really Israeli. For if hatred for the weak is an exclusively “poor Mizrahi” feature, where does that place Naftali Bennett and his election slogan of “not apologizing?”
Assigning Mizrahim collective features is dangerous, not least because stereotypes breed intolerance. It is dangerous because we are talking about an umbrella identity patched together by a 67-year-old shared narrative in Israel as the Jewish “ethnic other.” Mizrahim come from a geographically, culturally and linguistic diverse area that spans from Morocco to Iran.
The Ashkenazi Left’s wasted opportunity for new governance continues to snap at the Mizrahim of the geographic periphery, as the unruly apes that ruined the party for everyone in Tel Aviv. It is that exact historical psyche that guides the Ashkenazi Left in assuming the role of the “chosen” people for the chosen people, which views the Mizrahi savage in need of re-education and guidance. It is the same patronizing racism that provided a historical pretext for the cultural suppression of Mizrahi Jews, the wide-scale theft of Yemenite new-borns and infants, the segregation of housing, discrimination in employment, the erasure of cultural identity, the theft of goods and historical relics.
Mizrahi distrust of the Left runs a lot deeper than hatred of weakness. It also runs deeper than just the transit camps of the 1950s; to simplify it to that one event in history, as Derfner does, is to disregard the Mizrahi story in its entirety. The transit camp serves as a collective symbol no different to the historic symbols of slavery for African-Americans and the Holocaust for Ashkenazi Jews. The transit camp stands testimony to the lasting inequalities vis-a-vis Mizrahi representation in academia, politics and income.

https://staticv3.972mag.com/wp-content/uploads//2015/03/yemen-immigrants-rosh-haayin.jpg




Derfner further argues that working class Mizrahim hate African asylum seekers and Arabs. And yes, like any other socio-ethnic group, Mizrahim do have a racism issue, and like any sector of society, those issues should be tackled by members of that group — not by those who make up Israel’s de-facto privileged caste. Just like a white feminist cannot speak on behalf of the issues that black women face, Ashkenazi leftists cannot dictate the need to fix the racism of the poor Mizrahim.
Any hatred of African refugees and asylum seekers cannot be confined to the poor Mizrahi Israelis. No race or class is exempt when the mainstream Israeli media continues to refer to the refugees as “infiltrators,” drawing a (sub)conscious connection to the Palestinian fedayeen fighters of the 1950s. It is that imagery which creates nationwide hostility, borne of government policy and media coverage that casts the refugees as yet another threat to Jewish statehood. Racism toward African refugees isn’t a Mizrahi problem — it’s an Israeli problem, full stop.
Likewise, to lay racism toward Arabs on the shoulders of Mizrahim is to ignore the history of Israel. Ben-Gurion long emphasized the need to fight the “Levantine spirit” of the Mizrahi Jews, a mentality he believed was beneath the Ashkenazi foundations of the new Israeli identity. It was the Left that ensured Mizrahim became ashamed of their roots, that “Arabness” would leave a bad taste in their mouths. To deplore poor Mizrahim as being full of hate for those below them is to dismiss all the elements of the Mizrahi story.
If the poor Mizrahim hate Arabs, it is in also in part due to their own historical baggage with the Arab world as the indigenous sons of this region, having been punished for the Nakba, the Ashkenazi Left’s expulsion of the Palestinians in 1948. If the Mizrahim hate Arabs, it is because of the segregated housing policies that put poor Mizrahim on the Israeli-Arab front lines, absorbing the brunt of the Ashkenazi Left’s historical conflict with the Arabs. Poor Mizrahim worry that an Ashkenazi left-wing government will destroy any progress that they have made within Israeli society.
If Israeli society wasn’t built on a complex ethnic racial hierarchy, then perhaps the Ashkenazi Left could denounce the working class Mizrahi voter and his racist tendencies. But the reality remains that Mizrahi Jews, both rich and poor, remain inferior to the Ashkenazi population, socially, economically and historically. As long as racist inequality remains, then there is no need for the Ashkenazi Left to re-educate a subordinate, indigenous part of the population.
When the day after tomorrow comes, when the party ends and white flight causes the privileged to exit en masse with their EU passports, it will be the Mizrahim, rich and poor, with nowhere to go, who will clean up the mess alongside the Palestinians. Because only they will know how to live alongside their Arab counterparts, as they have done for two millennia.

Leeor Ohayon is a documentary photographer from London currently in Israel focusing his photographic work on Mizrahi Jewry.

Leeor Ohayon is a documentary photographer from London currently in Israel focusing his photographic work on Mizrahi Jewry.