Al-Abbas Mosque in Karbala, where hazrat Abbas is buried.
I just finished reading the story of Abbas to my family, and it brought tears to our eyes.
We might not be Shias, but that doesn’t mean we can’t respect other people.
#photo #instagram #wikipedia #muharram #islam #religion #shia #abbas #mosque #iraq #karbala
It’s a life goal of mine to finally memorise the national anthem of my country (soon too :P). Here’s some facts about the anthem: (thank you wikipedia)
Social science refers to the academic disciplines concerned with society and human behavior.[1] “Social science” is commonly used as an umbrella term to refer to anthropology, archaeology, criminology, economics, education, history, linguistics, communication studies, political science, international relations, sociology, human geography, and psychology, and includes elements of other fields as well, such as law, cultural studies, environmental studies, and social work.
The term may however be used in the specific context of referring to the original science of society established in 19th century sociology (Latin: socius, “companion”; -ology, “the study of”, and Greekλόγος, lógos, “word”, “knowledge”). Émile Durkheim, Karl Marx and Max Weber are typically cited as the principal architects of modern social science by this definition.[2]Positivist social scientists use methods resembling those of the natural sciences as tools for understanding society, and so define science in its stricter modern sense. Interpretivist social scientists, by contrast, may use social critique or symbolic interpretation rather than constructing empirically falsifiable theories, and thus treat science in its broader sense. In modern academic practice, researchers are often eclectic, using multiple methodologies (for instance, by combining the quantitative and qualitative techniques). The term social research has also acquired a degree of autonomy as practitioners from various disciplines share in its aims and methods.
I looked social sciences after reading in my sociology book that, amongst other subjects, economics is a social science!! Honestly, all the awesome subjects are from social sciences, and hence, being so awesome, they are neglected and undervalued, if not shunned, by the majority of the world’s societies.
(by Mikel Ortega) Horses on Bianditz mountain. Behind them Aiako Harria mountain can be seen.
8 October 2006, 09:04.
My dad was telling me about the electric typewriter and how it worked with a ball instead of an arm thingy. FYI, i have an uncanny liking for typewriters.
Description12 November 2009
SourceOwn work
Author PermissionSee below.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Parkour 
Passement Nickname(s) PK Characteristics Contact Non-competitive Categorization Spiritual art, Body art, Philosophical Equipment Shoes, gloves (optional) Olympic No
Parkour (sometimes abbreviated PK) is a method of movement focused on moving around obstacles with speed and efficiency. Originally developed in France, the main purpose of the discipline is to teach participants how to move through their environment by vaulting, rolling, running, climbing and jumping. Traceurs (parkour practitioners) train to be able to identify and utilize alternate or the more efficient paths. Parkour can be practiced anywhere, but areas dense with obstacles offer many different training opportunities.
A pair of parkour techniques: A wall climb to a top out
Two primary characteristics of parkour are efficiency and speed. Traceurs take the most direct path through an obstacle as rapidly as that route can be traversed safely. Developing one’s level of spatial awareness is often used to aid development in these areas. Also, efficiency involves avoiding injuries, both short and long term. This idea embodying parkour’s unofficial motto is être et durer (“to be and to last”).
Traceurs say that parkour also influences one’s thought processes by enhancing self-confidence and critical-thinking skills that allow one to overcome everyday physical and mental obstacles.[1][2][3] A study by Neuropsychiatrie de l'Enfance et de l'Adolescence (Neuropsychiatry of Childhood and Adolescence) in France reflects that traceurs seek more excitement and leadership situations than do gymnastic practitioners.[4]
The first terms used to describe this form of training were “l'art du déplacement” and “le parcours”.[5] The term “parkour” (French pronunciation: [paʁˈkuʁ]) was coined by Hubert Koundé. It derives from “parcours du combattant”, the classic obstacle course method of military training proposed by Georges Hébert.[6][7][8]
A practitioner of parkour is called a “traceur” [tʁasœʁ], with the feminine form being “traceuse” [tʁasøz]. They are substantives derived from the French verb “tracer”, which normally means “trace”,[9] or “trail” (as in “he escaped without a trace”).[10]
In the film Jump London, Sébastien Foucan states that “Le Parkour has always existed, free running has always been there, the thing is that no one gave it a name, we didn’t put it in the box. It is an ancient art […] The Neanderthals, to hunt, or to chase, or to move around, they had to practice the free run.” The latter was also an inspiration for the famous on-foot chase scenes of Hong Kong stuntman, martial artist and actor Jackie Chan.[11] In Eastern martial arts such as Ninjutsu and Qing Gong, movements similar to those of Parkour have been taught for centuries and with a similar aim. In Jump London, Foucan does acknowledge the influence of martial arts movies on the development of Parkour: “We also climbed onto the roof of our school. We pretended we were Ninja warriors”.
A “traceur” performing a “passe muraille”
Before World War I, former naval officer Georges Hébert travelled throughout the world. During a visit to Africa, he was impressed by the physical development and skills of indigenous tribes that he met:[12] He noted, “their bodies were splendid, flexible, nimble, skillful, enduring, and resistant but yet they had no other tutor in gymnastics but their lives in nature.” [12]
On May 8, 1902, Saint-Pierre, Martinique, where Hébert was stationed, suffered from a volcanic eruption of Mount Pelée. Hébert coordinated the escape and rescue of some 700 people. This experience had a profound effect on him, and reinforced his belief that athletic skill must be combined with courage and altruism. He eventually developed this ethos into his motto “être fort pour être utile” (“ be strong to be useful”).[12] Inspired by indigenous tribes, Hébert became a physical education tutor at the college of Reims in France. He began to define the principles of his own system of physical education and to create various apparatuses and exercises to teach his “méthode naturelle”[12] which he defined as: “Methodical, progressive and continuous action, from childhood to adulthood, that has as its objective: assuring integrated physical development; increasing organic resistances; emphasizing aptitudes across all genres of natural exercise and indispensable utilities (walking, running, jumping, quadrupedal movement, climbing, equilibrium (balancing), throwing, lifting, defending and swimming); developing one’s energy and all other facets of action or virility such that all assets, both physical and virile, are mastered; one dominant moral idea: altruism.”[13]
Hébert set up a “méthode naturelle” session consisting of ten fundamental groups: walking, running, jumping, quadrupedal movement, climbing, balancing, throwing, lifting, self-defense, swimming, which are part of three main forces:[13]
During World War I and World War II, Hébert’s teaching continued to expand, becoming the standard system of French military education and training. Thus, Hébert was one of the proponents of “parcours”, an obstacle course, developed by a Swiss architect,[14] which is standard in the military training and led to the development of civilian fitness trails and confidence courses.[12] Also, French soldiers and firefighters developed their obstacle courses known as “parcours du combattant” and parcours SP".[15]
David Belle, parkour founder, at The New Yorker Festival Main articles: Raymond Belle and David BelleRaymond Belle was born in Vietnam, at the time part of French Indochina. His father died during the First Indochina War and Raymond was separated from his mother during the division of Vietnam in 1954. He was taken by the French Army in Da Lat and received a military education and training that shaped his character.[16] After the Battle of Dien Bien Phu, Raymond was repatriated to France and completed his military education in 1958. At age 19, his dedication to fitness helped him serve in Paris’s regiment of “sapeurs-pompiers” (the French fire service).[16]
David participated in activities such as martial arts and gymnastics and sought to apply his athletic prowess for some practical purpose. He trained extremely hard mostly to try to win the approval of his father (Raymond).[15] At age 17, David left school seeking freedom and action. He continued to develop his strength and dexterity in order to be useful in life, as Raymond had advised him.[15]
After moving to Lisses commune, David Belle continued his journey with others who would later form the group the Yamakasi.[15]Sébastien Foucan noted in Jump London “From then on we developed and really the whole town was there for us; there for parkour. You just have to look, you just have to think, like children.” This, as he describes, is “the vision of parkour.”
In 1997, Yann Hnautra, Charles Perriere, Chau Belle, David Belle, Laurent Piemontesi, Sébastien Foucan, Guylain Perriere, Malik Diouf and Williams Belle created the group Yamakasi,[17] whose name comes from the Lingala language of Congo, and means “strong spirit, strong body, strong man, endurance”. After the musical show Notre Dame de Paris, Belle and Foucan split up due to money and disagreements over the definition of “l'art du déplacement”,[18] The film Yamakasi (2001), and the French documentary Génération Yamakasi were created without Belle and Foucan.[citation needed]
According to Williams Belle, the philosophies and theories behind parkour are an integral aspect of the art, one that many non-practitioners have never been exposed to. Belle trains people because he wants “it to be alive” and for “people to use it”.[3] Châu Belle explains it is a “type of freedom” or “kind of expression”; that parkour is “only a state of mind” rather than a set of actions, and that it is about overcoming and adapting to mental and emotional obstacles as well as physical barriers.[3]
A newer convention of parkour philosophy has been the idea of “human reclamation”.[19] Andy (Animus of Parkour North America) clarifies it as “a means of reclaiming what it means to be a human being. It teaches us to move using the natural methods that we should have learned from infancy. It teaches us to touch the world and interact with it, instead of being sheltered by it.”[19]“It is as much as a part of truly learning the physical art as well as being able to master the movements, it gives you the ability to overcome your fears and pains and reapply this to life as you must be able to control your mind in order to master the art of parkour.”[20]
A point has been made about the similarities between the martial arts philosophy of Bruce Lee and Parkour.[21] In an interview with The New Yorker, David Belle acknowledges the influence of Lee’s thinking: “There’s a quote by Bruce Lee that’s my motto: ‘There are no limits. There are plateaus, but you must not stay there, you must go beyond them. A man must constantly exceed his level.’ If you’re not better than you were the day before, then what are you doing—what’s the point?”.[22]
A campaign was started on 1 May 2007 by Parkour.NET portal[23] to preserve parkour’s philosophy against sport competition and rivalry.[24] In the words of Erwan LeCorre: “Competition pushes people to fight against others for the satisfaction of a crowd and/or the benefits of a few business people by changing its mindset. Parkour is unique and cannot be a competitive sport unless it ignores its altruistic core of self development. If parkour becomes a sport, it will be hard to seriously teach and spread parkour as a non-competitive activity. And a new sport will be spread that may be called parkour, but that won’t hold its philosophical essence anymore.”[23] According to LeCorre, those who truly practice Parkour have the same mind aspect of each other, therefore it brings people to work together rather than compete, it allows them to be united internationally and forget the social and economical problems which separated them globally, ultimately leading one giant community working and growing together.
A saut de brasFree running is a form of urban acrobatics in which participants, known as free runners, use the city and rural landscape to perform movements through its structures. The term free running was coined during the filming of Jump London, as a way to present parkour to the English-speaking world. Parkour’s emphasis on efficiency distinguishes it from the similar practice of free running, which places more emphasis on freedom of movement and creativity.
The man who coined the phrase, Sébastien Foucan, defines free running as a discipline for self development, of following your own way[citation needed]. His dissatisfaction with the limited creativity and self-expression in Parkour was the motivation for Sebastian Foucan to develop a similar but also very different art of movement that became known as free running.[25] He notes “Understand that this form of art has been created by few soldiers in Vietnam to escape or reach: and this is the spirit we’d like parkour to keep. You have to make the difference between what is useful and what is not in emergency situations. Then you’ll know what is parkour and what is not. So if you do acrobatics things on the street with no other goal than showing off, please don’t say it’s parkour. Acrobatics existed a long time ago before parkour.”[6]
When questions are raised between the differences of parkour and free running, the Yamakasi group deny the differences and say: “parkour, l'art du deplacement, free running, the art of movement… they are all the same thing. They are all movement and they all came from the same place, the same nine guys originally. The only thing that differs is each individual’s way of moving”. [26]
After the attention that parkour received following the film Casino Royale, militaries from different countries began looking for ways to incorporate parkour into training. The British Royal Marines hired parkour athletes to train their members.[27] Colorado Parkour began a project to introduce parkour into the U.S. military[28] and parkour is slowly being introduced into the United States Marine Corps.[29]
Parkour is not widely practiced in dedicated public facilities such as skateparks. Although efforts are being made to create places for it, most Traceurs do not like the idea as it is contradictory to the philosophy of freedom. [30] Traceurs practice parkour in urban areas such as gyms, parks, playgrounds, offices, and abandoned structures. Concerns have been raised regarding trespassing, damage of property,[31] and the practice in inappropriate places.[32] However, most traceurs will take care of their training spots and will remove themselves quickly and quietly from a public place if asked.[33][34] The Magpie Youth Centre free running club in Glen Parva, Leicester has raised 40,000 Euros to build a free running park/training utility on the park opposite the youth center.
Concerns have been raised by law enforcement and fire and rescue teams of the risk in jumping off high buildings.[35] They argue that practitioners are needlessly risking damage to both themselves and rooftops by practicing at height, with police forces calling for practitioners to stay off the rooftops. [36][37][38] Some figures within the parkour community agree that this sort of behaviour is not to be encouraged.[37][39][40][41]
American traceur Mark Toorock says that injuries are rare “because participants rely not on what they can’t control – wheels or the icy surfaces of snowboarding and skiing – but their own hands and feet,” but Lanier Johnson, executive director of the American Sports Medicine Institute, notes that many of the injuries are not reported.[42] Even when injuries do occur, many members in the parkour community encourage pursuing the most scientifically sound method to recovery and future prevention. [43]
Comedian Daniel Tosh made fun of the discipline on one episode of his show, Tosh.0, calling it “Nothing more than extreme walking.”
There are fewer pre-defined movements in parkour than in gymnastics, as there is no list of “moves”. Each obstacle a traceur faces presents a unique challenge, committed Tracuers tend to shy away from defining movement. The ability to overcome the challenge depends on multiple factors, for example, on body type, speed, angle of approach, the physical make-up of the obstacle. Parkour is about training the body and mind to react to those obstacles appropriately with a technique that is effective. Often that technique cannot and need not be classified and given a name. In many cases effective parkour techniques depend on fast redistribution of body weight and the use of momentum to perform seemingly difficult or impossible body maneuvers at great speed. Absorption and redistribution of energy is also an important factor, such as body rolls when landing which reduce impact forces on the legs and spine, allowing a traceur to jump from greater heights than those often considered sensible in other forms of acrobatics and gymnastics.
According to David Belle, the practice is to move in such a way that will help you gain the most ground as if escaping or chasing something. Also, if you go from A to B, you need to be able to get back from B to A,[44] but not necessarily with the same movements or “passements”. Despite this, there are many basic versatile and effective techniques that are emphasized for beginners. Most important are good jumping and landing techniques. The roll, used to limit impact after a drop and to carry one’s momentum onward, is often stressed as the most important technique to learn.
Some movements defined in parkour are:[45]
Synonym Description French French pronouncation English Atterrissage [ateʁisaʒ] Landing Bending the knees when toes make contact with ground (never land flat footed; always land on toes and ball of your foot, or whole footed). réception [ʁesɛpsjɔ̃] Équilibre [ekilibʁ] Balance Walking along the crest of an obstacle; literally “balance.” Équilibre de chat Cat Crawl Quadrupedal movement along the crest of an obstacle. Franchissement [fʁɑ̃ʃismɑ̃]Z Underbar Jumping or swinging through a gap between obstacles; literally “to cross” or “to break through.” Lâché [laʃe] Lache Hanging drop; lâcher literally meaning “to let go.” To hang or swing (on a bar, on a wall, on a branch) and let go, dropping to the ground or to hang from another object. This can refer to almost all hanging/swinging type movements. swing Passe muraille [pas myʁaj] Pop vault, wall hop, Wallpass, wallrun Overcoming a tall structure, usually by use of a step off the wall to transform forward momentum into upward momentum, then using the arms to climb onto and over the object. Dyno (shortened from “Dynamic[clarification needed]”, opposite to “Static”) This movement comes from climbing terminology, and encompasses leaping from a position similar to an armjump, then grabbing an obstacle usually higher than the initial starting place, often used for an overhang. This movement is used when a simpler movement is not possible. Passement [pasmɑ̃] Vault, Pass To move over an object with one’s hand(s) on an object to ease the movement. Demitour [dəmi tuʁ] Turn vault A vault or dropping movement involving a 180° turn; literally “half turn.” This move is often used to place yourself hanging from an object in order to shorten a drop or prepare for a jump. Turn Down Passement Speed vault To overcome an obstacle by jumping side-ways first, then placing one hand on the obstacle to self-right your body and continue running. Thief To overcome an obstacle by using a one-handed vault, then using the other hand at the end of the vault to push oneself forwards in order to finish the move. Lazy vault Saut de chat [sod ʃa] Cat pass/jump, monkey vault The saut de chat involves diving forward over an obstacle so that the body becomes horizontal, pushing off with the hands and tucking the legs, such that the body is brought back to a vertical position, ready to land. Passement assis Dash vault This vault involves using the hands to move oneself forwards at the end of the vault. One uses both hands to overcome an obstacle by jumping feet first over the obstacle and pushing off with the hands at the end. Visually, this might seem similar to the saut de chat, but reversed. Allegedly David Belle has questioned the effectiveness of this movement. Saut de chat inversé Reverse vault A vault involving a 180° rotation such that the traceur’s back faces forward as they pass the obstacle. The purpose of the rotation is ease of technique in the case of otherwise awkward body position or loss of momentum prior to the vault. Kash vault This vault is a combination of two vaults; the cat pass and the dash vault. After pushing off with the hands in a cat pass, the body continues past vertical over the object until the feet are leading the body. The kash vault is then finished by pushing off the object at the end, as in a dash vault. Planche [plɑ̃ʃ] Muscle-up To get from a hanging position (wall, rail, branch, arm jump, etc.) into a position where your upper body is above the obstacle, supported by the arms. This then allows for you to climb up onto the obstacle and continue. climb-up Roulade [ʁulad] Roll A forward roll where the hands, arms and diagonal of the back contact the ground, often called breakfall. Used primarily to transfer the momentum/energy from jumps and to minimize impact, preventing a painful landing. It is similar to the basic kaiten or ukemi and it was taken from martial arts such as judo, ninjutsu, jujutsu, hapkido and aikido. Saut de bras [sodbra] Arm jump To land on the side of an obstacle in a hanging/crouched position, the hands gripping the top edge, holding the body, ready to perform a muscle-up. cat leap cat grab Saut de fond [sodfɔ̃] Drop Literally ‘jump to the ground’ / 'jump to the floor’. To jump down, or drop down from something. Saut de détente [sodə detɑ̃t] Gap jump, running jump To jump from one place/object to another, over a gap/distance. This technique is most often followed with a roll. Saut de précision [so d presiziɔ̃] Precision Static or moving jump from one object to a precise spot on another object. This term can refer to any form of jumping however. Often abbreviated to “pre” précision [presiziɔ̃] Saut de mur Wall Jump To step off a wall in order to overcome another obstacle or gain height to grab something Tic-Tac Saut de rotation Rotary jump Similar to a cat pass, the person dives and then rotates their lower body around the obstacle. Used for shorter to medium obstacles. For people that have trouble with cat pass. Rotary vault Side vault A vault where the person is parallel to the obstacle and places one hand on the obstacle. When performing the vault, the person’s back should be facing down.
A traceuse vaults an obstacle.
There is no equipment required, although practitioners normally train wearing light casual clothing:[46][47]
Comfortable running shoes, that are generally light, with good grip, and flexibility are encouraged. Many traceurs think cheaper and easier to replace shoes are much more practical.[citation needed] More experienced traceurs with stronger feet tend to train barefoot, which is the best way to feel the environment. Various sport shoes manufacturers around the world started offering parkour-specific products. Some parkour practitioners use sweat-bands for forearm protection.[citation needed] Some use thin athletic gloves to protect the hands;[48] those who do not, preferring to “feel their environment” directly, develop thick callouses.[49][50]
Since parkour is closely related to “méthode naturelle”, practitioners sometimes train barefooted to be able to move efficiently without depending on their gear. Some traceurs also use the lightweight “Feiyue” martial arts shoes. David Belle notes: “bare feet are the best shoes!”[51]
A number of films incorporate parkour; a few documentaries have also been written and filmed about parkour. After including parkour moves in a chase sequence in the film Taxi 2, French producer Luc Besson produced a feature film, Yamakasi, featuring members of the original Yamakasi group. In 2004, Besson wrote Banlieue 13, another feature film involving parkour, starring David Belle and Cyril Raffaelli; English-dubbed and -subtitled versions were released in 2006 as District B-13 in North America and the UK.[52][53] The film Casino Royale features Sébastien Foucan in a chase taking place early in the movie that implements free running. Casino Royale’s release sparked a renewed media interest in parkour and related disciplines and a large amount of recent mainstream parkour coverage dates to around Casino Royale’s release.[14] Along with The Bourne Ultimatum, Casino Royale is credited with starting a new wave of parkour-inspired stunts in Western film and television.[54] Parkour is featured prominently in the film Breaking and Entering, in which two of the characters employ parkour techniques to burgle an office in Kings Cross.[52][53] Dastan, in the film “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” uses parkour; David Belle was hired as parkour choreographer for the film and appears in the DVD and Blu-ray featurettes.
Jump London is a documentary which explained some of the background to parkour and culminated with Sébastien Foucan, Johann Vigroux, and Jérôme Ben Aoues demonstrating their parkour skills. David Belle received no mention in Jump London. Jump London was followed up by the sequel Jump Britain, once again featuring Foucan and Ben Aoues. My Playground, a documentary film by Kaspar Astrup Schröder, explores the way parkour and free running is changing the perception of urban space and how the spaces and buildings they are moving on are changing them.[55]
The webcomic Schlock Mercenary makes frequent reference to “Parkata Urbatsu”[56][57] which is said to have grown “out of the ancient disciplines of parkour, urbobatics, and youtubing. It is a martial art that focuses on both pursuit and escape in developed environments, with an eye towards the aesthetic.”[58]
Only a few television programs or episodes have been dedicated to parkour. The Australian version of 60 Minutes aired a segment about parkour on September 16, 2007, which featured Sébastien Foucan and Stephane Vigroux.[59] MTV’s Ultimate Parkour Challenge premiered as a one-hour special in October 2009 starring the athletes of the World Freerunning & Parkour Federation (WFPF). This was followed in May 2010 with a six episode series of the same name, also featuring top WFPF traceurs. The program format was a two-part weekly competition in different Southern California locations. First round was a “team video” round, the winners of which would advance to the Final Challenge for that week, either a speed or a skills challenge. The same competitors returned each week.[60]
A number of video games include parkour as major gameplay elements. In the Assassin’s Creed series of games, Altaïr and Ezio make heavy use of parkour, though it is named free running in the game.[61][62][63]Crackdown and Crackdown 2 include an emphasis on gripping and vaulting from ledges and protruding objects, which are designed to make players feel fully in control of their own movement, and by extension fully in control of their environment.[64]Tony Hawk’s American Wasteland allows the character to use several parkour techniques while not on the skateboard. In the game parkour is erroneously referred to as free running.[65]Mirror’s Edge’s core gameplay consists of parkour techniques, and made movement itself the goal.[66]Tron Evolution’s basic movements and combat were based on parkour and capoeira.[67]Prince of Persia incorporated elements of parkour, which were important when creating the film.[68]
So today was the rugby world cup final, New Zeland vs France, and i decided to work certain aspects of that into my English class today. The notorious high school gang All-Blacks figured out by Detective Francois Trinh-Duc. And thats when my Sir asked me: “Whats with the Vietnamese name?”, and i was like what?, and he said that Trinh is a Vietnamese name, and Duc is a south Vietnamese name. So guess what? My English teacher is as smart as hell apparently. I looked it up on Wikipedia, and my sports crush is of Vietnamese origins:
Trinh-Duc was noted as one of the first ever rugby players of Vietnamese origin to play for the French national side.[4][5] During a press interview, Trinh-Duc revealed that he inherited Vietnamese heritage from his paternal grandfather, who was born in Vietnam.[6] Trinh-Duc’s grandfather, Trịnh Đức Nhiên, migrated to France during the First Indochina War and settled near Agen in Lot-et-Garonne. Nhien later married anItalian woman, from whom Trinh-Duc’s father, Philippe was born.[7][fn 1]
So now its official, i have an uncanny attraction towards Asians, or in this case, half Asian’s. Hes hot as hell either way.
Potohar Plateau is bounded on the east by the Jhelum River, on the west by the Indus River, on the north by the Kala Chitta Range and the Margalla Hills, and on the south by the Salt Range.[1] The terrain is undulating. The Kala Chitta Range rises to an average height of 450-900 metres (3,000 ft) and extends for about 72 kilometres (45 mi). The Swaan River starts from nearby Murree and ends near Kalabagh in the Indus river. Sakesar is the highest mountain of this region.
The diverse wildlife includes urial, chinkara, chukar, hare, porcupine, mongoose, wild boar, and Yellow-throated Marten. Due to low rain fall, extensive deforestation, coal mining, oil and gas exploration, the area is becoming devoid of vegetation. The under water areas of lakes (Uchali, Khabeki, Jhallar and Kallar Kahar) have been reduced to much smaller areas than in the past.
The cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi sit on the plateau.
The Pothohar Plateau (also spelled Pothwar, Potowar or Potohar) (Urdu: سطح مرتفع پوٹھوہار) is a plateau in the province of Punjab, Pakistan and the western parts of Pakistan-administered Kashmir. The area was the home of the Soanian Culture, which is evidenced by the discovery of fossils, tools, coins, and remains of ancient archaeological sites. The local people speak Potwari, Punjabi Hindkoand Pakhto languages.
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Neturei Karta (Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: נטורי קרתא, literally “Guardians of the City”) is a Haredi Jewish group formally created in Jerusalem,British Mandate of Palestine, in 1938, splitting off from Agudas Yisroel. Neturei Karta opposes Zionism and calls for a peaceful dismantling of the State of Israel, in the belief that Jews are forbidden to have their own state until the coming of the Messiah.[1][2] They are in Jerusalem,Ramat Beit Shemesh Bet (or B), Bnei Brak, London, New York City, and other parts of New York, with smaller communities in various cities aroundNorth America.
In Israel some members also pray at affiliated beis midrash, in Jerusalem‘s Meah Shearim, neighborhood and in Ramat Beit Shemesh Bet. Neturei Karta states no official statistics exist about numbers.[3] The Jewish Virtual Library puts their numbers at 5,000 only in Jerusalem.[4] The Anti-Defamation League estimates that fewer than 100 members of the community take part in anti-Israel activism.[5]
According to Neturei Karta:
“The name Neturei Karta is a name usually given to those people who regularly pray in the Neturei Karta synagogues (Torah Ve'Yirah Jerusalem, Torah U'Tefillah London, Torah U'Tefillah NY, Beis Yehudi Upstate NY, etc.), study in or send their children to educational institutions run by Neturei Karta, or actively participate in activities, assemblies or demonstrations called by the Neturei Karta”.[6]
The name Neturei Karta literally means “Guardians of the City” in Aramaic and comes from the gemara of the Jerusalem Talmud, Hagigah, 76c. There it is related that Rabbi Judah haNasi sent two rabbis on a tour of inspection:
In one town they asked to see the “guardians of the city” and the city guard was paraded before them. They said that these were not the guardians of the city but its destroyers, which prompted the citizens to ask who, then, could be considered the guardians. The rabbis answered, “The scribes and the scholars,” referring them to Tehillim (Psalms) Chapter 127.[6]
It is this role that Neturei Karta see themselves as fulfilling by defending what they believe is “the position of the Torah and authentic unadulterated Judaism.”[6] Neturei Karta is sometimes confused with Satmar, due to both being anti-Zionist. They are separate groups and have had disagreements.
For the most part, the members of Neturei Karta are descended from Hungarian Jews who settled in Jerusalem’s Old City in the early nineteenth century, and from Lithuanian Jews who were students of the Gaon of Vilna (known as Perushim), who had settled earlier. In the late nineteenth century, their ancestors participated in the creation of new neighborhoods outside the city walls to alleviate overcrowding in the Old City, and most are now concentrated in the neighborhood of Batei Ungarin and the larger Meah Shearim neighborhood.
At the time, they were vocal opponents to the new political ideology of Zionism that was attempting to assert Jewish sovereignty in Ottoman-controlled Palestine. They resented the new arrivals, who were predominantly secular and anti-religious, and asserted that Jewish redemption could only be brought about by the Jewish messiah.
Other Orthodox Jewish movements, including some who oppose Zionism, have denounced the activities of the radical branch of Neturei Karta. According to The Guardian, “[e]ven among Charedi, or ultra-Orthodox circles, the Neturei Karta are regarded as a wild fringe”.[7] Neturei Karta asserts that the mass media deliberately downplays their viewpoint and makes them out to be few in number. Their protests in America are usually attended by, at most, a few dozen people. In Israel, several hundred is typical, depending on the nature of the protest and its location.[8]
Neturei Karta stresses what is said in the mussaf Shemona Esrei of Yom Tov, that because of their sins the Jewish people went into exile from the Land of Israel (“umipnei chatoeinu golinu meiartzeinu”). Additionally, they maintain the view – basing it on the Babylonian Talmud [9] – that any form of forceful recapture of the Land of Israel is a violation of divine will. They believe that the restoration of the Land of Israel to the Jews should only happen with the coming of the Messiah, not by self-determination.
Neturei Karta believes that the exile of the Jews can only end with the arrival of the Messiah, and that human attempts to establish Jewish sovereignty over the Land of Israel are sinful. In Neturei Karta’s view, Zionism is a presumptuous affront against God. Among their arguments against Zionism was a Talmudic discussion about portions in the Bible regarding a pact known as the Three Oaths made between God, the Jewish people, and the nations of the world, when the Jews were sent into exile. One provision of the pact was (1) that the Jews would not rebel against the non-Jewish world that gave them sanctuary; a second was (2) that they would not immigrate en masse to the Land of Israel. In return the (3) gentile nations promised not to persecute the Jews. By rebelling against this pact, they argued, the Jewish People were engaging in rebellion against God.
Moshe Hirsch, who was a leader of the smaller groups within Neturei Karta,[3] has endorsed Yasser Arafat, the Palestine Liberation Organization and later, the Palestinian Authority as the rightful rulers of the Land of Israel, which includes the modern-day State of Israel. Other Jewish groups,[which?] including anti-Zionist ones, have criticised this alignment, describing it as condoning or even abetting Palestinian political violence or using Palestinians as a tool for the destruction of Israel.[10][11][12]
The Neturei Karta synagogues follow the customs of the Gaon of Vilna, due to Neturei Karta’s origin within the Lithuanian rather than Hasidic branch of ultra-Orthodox Judaism. Neturei Karta is not a Hasidic but a Litvish group, they are often mistaken for Hasidim because their style of dress (including a shtreimel on Shabbos) is very similar to that of Hasidim. This style of dress is not unique to Neturei Karta, but is also the style of other Jerusalem Litvaks, such as Rabbi Yosef Sholom Eliashiv and his followers. Furthermore, Shomer Emunim a Hasidic group but with a similar anti-Zionist ideology, is often bundled together with Neturei Karta. Typically, the Jerusalem Neturei Karta will keep the customs of the “Old Yishuv” of the city of Jerusalem even when living outside of Jerusalem or even when living abroad, as a demonstration of their love and connection to the Holy Land.
The small faction of Orthodox Zionists were the most prominent representatives of Jewish religious communities when the United Nations voted to partition Palestine on November 29, 1947. However, representatives of another Orthodox party, Agudath Israel, actually asked the General Assembly to vote against partition. Nevertheless, since Israel was established, Agudath Israel has been a participant in most governments (though it still will not accept a ministerial portfolio as a result). Other Haredi groups, including the Edah HaChareidis and Neturei Karta, maintained their previous stance.
Their opposition to Israel and Zionism continued under the leadership of Rabbi Amram Blau. The community became more insular, while forming alliances with other groups that rejected the support given by Agudat Israel to Israel’s secular government after independence. Among their allies were the Edah HaChareidis, including the large and affluent Hasidic group Satmar, under the leadership of Rabbi Joel Teitelbaum, formerly of Hungary and later of New York City, as well as other Hasidic groups, some in Israel and others in the Diaspora.
With their help, Neturei Karta was able to withstand paying taxes to the state that they did not recognize and conversely, to avoid obtaining any benefits from that state by revitalizing the halukka distribution of funds that characterized earlier generations. As such they became a self-contained community within Israel with few formal ties to the surrounding political infrastructure.
They maintain the same customs held by many other Yerushalmi Haredim, including the usage of American dollars instead of Israeli shekels in many financial transactions, and not visiting theWestern Wall, feeling it has been befouled by Zionism and secularism, which they see as an abomination. These practices are common not only among Neturei Karta followers, but also inside the groups affiliated with the Edah HaChareidis.
While many in Neturei Karta chose to simply ignore the State of Israel, this became more difficult. Some took steps to condemn Israel and bring about its eventual dismantling until the coming of the Messiah. Chief among these was Moshe Hirsch, leader of the radical branch of Neturei Karta, who served in Yasser Arafat’s cabinet as Minister for Jewish Affairs.“
more here>>http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neturei_Kartamore here>>
The Golden Parakeet (Guaruba guarouba) is an endangered species of Neotropical parrot that lives in the drier, upland rainforests in the Amazon Basin. Males and females appear alike, being mainly yellow with green in the outer wings and with an all-yellow tail. It has a breeding system that is almost unique amongst parrots, as pairs are aided by a number of helpers which aid in the raising of the young.
Photo: Ironman br.
Found on Wikipedia’s main page
Manzil (Arabic: منزل, plural منازل manāzil) is the word for one of seven parts of roughly equal length into which the Qur'an is divided for the purpose of reciting the entire text in one week.
They are:
It follows this pattern:
A second meaning is a set of verses from different parts of the Qur'an which help in curing or preventing Sihr(evil magic). The collection of these verses is available in booklet form from various publishers.
Shipping, derived from the word relationship, is the belief that two fictional characters, typically from the same series, are in an intimate relationship, or have romantic feelings that could potentially lead to a relationship. It is considered a general term for fans’ emotional and/or intellectual involvement with the ongoing development of romance in a work of fiction. Though technically applicable to any such involvement, it refers chiefly to various related social dynamics observable on the Internet, and is seldom used outside of that context.
Shipping can involve virtually any kind of relationship — from the well-known and established, to the ambiguous or those undergoing development, and even to the highly improbable and the blatantly impossible. People involved in shipping (called shippers) variously assert that the relationship does exist, will exist, or simply that they would like it to exist.
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found via @loopdeloup ’s answer to my question about what the heck is ship?
The Fountain of River Commerce and Navigation, one of the two Fontaines de la Concorde (1840) on the Place de la Concorde. Behind: the Hôtel de Crillon; to the left: the embassy of the United States of America.