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Sunday, May 27, 2007

Nobel Prize Laureate Cancels U.K. Trip Due To Anti-Israel Sentiment

American Professor Steven Weinberg of the University of Texas has canceled his speaking engagement at a London's Imperial College. He noted anti-Israel and anti-Semitic sentiment in the U.K. as prime motivations for his withdrawal.

Weinberg won the Nobel Prize for physics in 1979 and had been invited to speak at the university this July. He said that his decision was motivated by Britain's National Union of Journalists decision to boycott Israeli products.

"I see in the British press and the BBC signs of a very strong anti-Israel bias - a kind of blind hostility that whatever Israel does, it is always in the wrong." Weinberg said. "This represents a widespread feeling among British journalists." However, he stated that he was not calling for a British boycott.


Read the full story here.

Sunday, May 20, 2007

I am bored.

Hey guys!
So the summer is here, finally for Mason students. And while some of us may have fun and exciting adventures overseas to places that will be the envy of all your friends come August, others such as myself might lead semi-exciting breaks but have more boring moments that hitch-hiking my way across the Netherlands.
As much as I hate to admit this, I hate to be bored. So now, that all my television shows are over for the summer and there is no reading to keep me busy all I have is my jobs and a family vacation to look forward to this summer, which is nice don't get me wrong. Right now, I am locked up in my home in New York on crutches and slowly needing to get out of the house because there is only so much HBO movies and television shows on dvd box sets that I can watch.
I wanted to talk about all my favorite shows ending. Why am I not surprised? I am going to start off with Grey's. Like, I mean no matter how hard you were rooting for Burke and Christina, you knew it wasn't going to happen. Sure, they threw a curve ball here or there like Dr. Derek "McDreamy" Shepard, not taking the Chief of Surgery position and Meredith's long-lost step sister or whatever you want to call her entering the Intern Program at Seattle. Is it that shocking that they leave you for the summer with all these problems? No. They want you to come back.
Ugly Betty had the biggest shockers. Betty professed her "undying love" to her geeky accountant friend, while she found out her boy was jetting off to Arizona with his girlfriend who may or may not have his baby. Amanda, receptionist extrodinare, just also discovered her mother is the legendary Faye Summers. And Betty's sister does not get the happy ending she wanted. Her finace and her kid's dad was shot in a robbery, going to their son's play. Tear, Tear. (That whole problem was getting to dry). Great eppie, but I had one major problem. More Kristin Chenoweth who made a guest spot, as a dental tech who got too wrapped up in Betty's life. She stole so many of the scenes.
Gilmore Girls ended its seven year run, with its great lines and quick pace. End result: Rory, set out to conquer the world with Barack Obama's campaign in tow and Lorelai, of course, ended up with Luke and the show closed with the happy music and everybody hugging. Can we say Oprah moment?
Lost, oooo the suspense is killing me. It sorta is, actually in some way. I mean they are putting out huge clues every week about what is the island and all those questions fans want to know? I guess they have to because I mean the clock is ticking, ABC has given them 3 more seasons before they give them the ax. Surprise, surprise. We want to know stuff and ABC knows that. It can't be stretched out.
So while we all wait in anticipation for our favorite television shows in the fall to start again. ABC and the other networks have already been starting to advertise for their new "hopeful" big hits like Grey's Anatomy spin-off, Private Practice, about Addison jetting off to Cali to gain some perspective. And another show about some guy that talks, no wait, brings dead people back to life to help them find their killers and what-not called Pushing Daisies with Jim Dale, as the narrator, Chi McBride, and (in my opinion, the fantastic)Kristin Chenoweth. Been there, done that. But we shall see. We shall see also, if viewers get entertained by new shows for the summer like Traveler and National Bingo Night (yeah, I am messing with you for the last one, I am not a game show fan). Hey, if you got a boring summer planned, just turn on the television and hope that you get entertained by Paris Hilton's latest fiasco of possible jail time. Well, I guess that is all for now.
Signing off,
Sam

Thursday, May 10, 2007

QOD: In The Long Run....

"Sol Short once told me mankind is divided into two basic sorts: those who find the unknown future threatening… and those who find it thrilling. He says the rupture between those two sides has been responsible for most of the bloodshed in history. If change threatens you, you become conservative in self-defense. If it thrills you, you become liberal in self-liberation. He says the Threateneds are frequently more successful in the short run, because they always fight dirty. But in the long run, they always lose, because Thrilled people learn and thus accomplish more."

-Variable Star by Robert A. Heinlein and Spider Robinson

As the semester comes to an end, I want to wish everyone the best of luck with their finals, and plenty of fun over the break. I'd also like to send my regards to the graduates, some of whom I know quite well and will miss. Congratulations to all of you!

Be Thrilled!

Wednesday, May 9, 2007

AP: Iranian-American Being Held in Prison

Associated Press
By ANNA JOHNSON 05.09.07, 7:13 PM ET

An Iranian-American academic who works at a Washington-based institute is being held in a notorious prison after being prohibited from leaving Iran for more than four months, the institute and her husband said Wednesday.

Haleh Esfandiari, the director of the Middle East Program at the Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars, was sent Tuesday to Evin prison after she arrived at Iran's Intelligence Ministry for questioning, the center said.

Iran has not confirmed that it is detaining Esfandiari, and officials in Tehran could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

"This is extremely disturbing news," said Esfandiari's husband, Shaul Bakhash, in a telephone interview from their home in Potomac, Md. "I never expected they would jail a 67-year-old woman."

Her arrest comes as Washington and Tehran are locked in a bitter standoff over Iran's disputed nuclear program and involvement in Iraq. Although the two countries broke off diplomatic relations following the 1979 seizure of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, tensions between them have escalated sharply in the past year.

Other Iranian-Americans have also been prohibited from leaving Iran in recent months including journalist Parnaz Azima, who works for the U.S.-funded Radio Farda. Another American, former FBI agent Robert Levinson, disappeared in March after going to Iran's resort island of Kish, and his whereabouts are unknown. Tehran says it's continuing to investigate.

Speaking about the two Iranian-American women, the State Department said it was working "closely" with their families to try to secure their release.

"If the regime is willing to harass these innocent people, it's just an insight into the kind of government we're dealing with," said department spokesman Sean McCormack. He refused to discuss specifics of their cases.

The Wilson Center said three masked men holding knives threatened to kill Esfandiari, who was in Tehran visiting her 93-year-old mother, on Dec. 30 as she was on her way to the airport. They took her baggage, including her U.S. and Iranian passports, the center said.

For several weeks, she was interrogated by authorities for up to eight hours a day, according to the center. Most of the questioning focused on the activities of the Middle East Program at the Wilson Center.

"Although Dr. Esfandiari went home every evening, the some 50 hours of questioning were unpleasant - to put it mildly - and not free from intimidation and threat," the center said.

Former Rep. Lee Hamilton, director of the Wilson Center, wrote to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Feb. 20 to ask that Esfandiari be allowed to go back to the U.S. But Hamilton - who was co-chairman of the Iraq Study Group that recommend the Bush administration talk to Iran - did not receive a response, the center said.

Karim Sadjadpour, an expert on Iran at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, said the Tehran government is imprisoning, intimidating, and alienating those who seek to understand their viewpoint, and then complaining that Iran is misunderstood and media coverage is biased against it.

"Haleh was really providing a service at the Wilson Center by bringing in scholars and analysts from Tehran, many of whom were sympathetic to the Iranian government, and letting their voices be heard in Washington," he said. "By detaining her, the Iranian government only eliminates an advocate for diplomacy and strengthens the voices of those in Washington who say the regime is too cruel to be engaged."

Sadjadpour said Esfandiari was one of the few Iran scholars who traveled to the country frequently and interacted with people from across the political spectrum.

"The notion that Haleh is a threat to Iranian national security is beyond preposterous. ... Despite all their talk about being compassionate, Ahmadinejad's government is going back to the cruelty of the revolution's early days," Sadjadpour said.

"The regime feels it's sending a message to the U.S. government that there are repercussions for its democracy promotion efforts in Iran. But in the process they've increased the ranks of those in Washington who argue that the Iranian government is made up of radicals and engaging them would be a mistake. "

Esfandiari, who has been living in the U.S. since 1980, was allowed a telephone call to her mother after she arrived in at the prison Tuesday, the center said.

Bakhash, who is a professor of Middle East history at George Mason University in Virginia, said he believes there has been a "huge misunderstanding."

"She's not involved in politics and has done nothing to justify her incarceration in prison," he said.

The Wilson Center is a nonpartisan institution established by Congress in 1968 and funded through private and public funds, according to its Web site. Its Middle East program focuses on several areas, including "analysis of internal domestic and social developments in Iran; the aspiration of the younger generation for reform and expansion of individual liberties," according to the site.

Friday, May 4, 2007

Lost at Greys... Spoiler Alerts!

Hey Everyone!
Okay, so last week was a pretty big week of television. I mean viewers saw everything from Celine Dion singing live with Elvis on Idol to the big shockers from ABC's shows like Lost, Brothers and Sisters, and yes, even The View. Rosie O'Donnell announced the surprise that she was leaving the show.
But what I am going to talk about most today is the two biggest "shocking" episodes thus far of the season. Grey's Anatomy and LOST. Firstly, Lost's episodes for the past couple of weeks have been given viewers a clue into what the island is exactly, are the survivors dead, and Who in fact are "The Others?" This week's episode has dealt with the character, Locke's issues especially with his father who appeared on the island by the magic will of "The Others." Locke was told to kill his father, however he could not and Sawyer/James shot him for revenge from killing his family (or something like that). Locke also is apparently "spying" on the others by joining them but it doesn't look like he is coming back to the survivors. Jack and Juliet have set up a secret alliance that seems to alienate the rest, even though Juliet is spying for "The Others." For fans, these clues have been shocking and twisted leading to audience members being lost once more. (Fyi, pun was intended).
On Grey's Anatomy, the 2hr special show we saw Addison Montgomery-Shepard (or let's just call her Addison) leave Seattle Grace to do her "spin-off" in California, where she meets up with her Med School friends. Also, Christina and Burke are still getting married even though they both seem to have cold feet and both don't want to admit it. George is struggling with his marriage and seems to like Izzie even more. Addison seems as if her life in Seattle was over and now she is moving on for a fresh start, while leaving both Karev and McSteamy heartbroken and trying to understand exactly why she left.
Addison is played by the fantastic Kate Walsh from the preview from this episode she seems like she will handle her own show on her own. The only problem that it could fail is that many people hate her character due to the drama she caused at the hospital. BUT ITS ONLY A TELEVISION SHOW! It seems like its going to be funny and a cute dramedy for the fans of Grey's. Well, that's all for now.. Hope the Summer goes well and rest up for finals!
Signing off,
Sam

 

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