❧❧❧ Whatever you can do or dream, you can BEGIN IT. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Goethe ❧❧❧
❧❧❧ You were born whole, not broken. Sandra Hammel ❧❧❧
Tennis player Rafael Nadal waves to the crowd prior to the Champions League Round of 16, First Leg match between Real Madrid and Liverpool at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu on February 25, 2009 in Madrid, Spain. Above photo credits: Jasper Juinen of Getty Images .............................................
On his way out of the ‘Santiago Bernabéu’ Stadium right after watching his favourite team play against Liverpool in the quarterfinals of the Champions League, Rafa Nadal gave a small interview to the ‘Canal Plus’ channel in regards to his experience at the match.
Unfortunately, “the result wasn’t what the team wanted, however, they have to keep being positive”, said the world number 1 after watching his beloved Real Madrid lose 0-1.
“In their next match they have to go out there and believe in victory. They have to go to Liverpool with their hearts full”.
“I’m simply one more fan, but I have to say that I saw them playing often from the back, it was real hard for them to come forward. It’s a pity that with the one chance (Liverpool) had, they scored”, completed the champion.
FEBRUARY 26 | 2009
Davis Cup Training Begins
26th of February
Rafa Nadal is back home in Mallorca after spending yesterday afternoon watching the quarterfinals of the ‘Champions League’ match between Liverpool and his beloved Real Madrid at the ‘Santiago Bernabéu’ Stadium.
Sadly for Rafa, “the result wasn’t what the team wanted, however, they have to keep being positive”, “In their next match they have to go out there and believe in victory. They have to go to Liverpool with their hearts full”, said the world number 1 after Real’s 0-1 loss.
Rafa is also back training after spending a few days resting and relaxing from all the hard work he put into his last two tournaments in Rotterdam and the Australian Open.
In the video (above), you can watch Rafa train in the company of uncle Toni and his physiotherapist Rafa Maymo, who is also watching over the world’s best tennis player. Together, they have started their preparation for the Davis Cup tie between Spain and Serbia, which starts next Friday 6th of March.
Rafa is scheduled to travel to Beridom with the rest of the ‘National Spanish Federation Team’ this Saturday, which is when the organizers of the tournament are expecting to have the courts finished and ready for the defending Davis Cup champions.
"It will be a very difficult tie, we have to respect everyone and have into account that they are great players. We will have to make a huge effort to win”, said the new Spanish Davis Cup captain Albert Costa yesterday.
Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic will clash in the Davis Cup next month, it has been confirmed.
Spain and Serbia will meet on clay in Benidorm from March 6-8 (2009) and when the team announcements were confirmed by the International Tennis Federation on uesday, both the world number one and three were on the list. Read the full article
* I'm calling to ask President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton and Ambassador Rice to protect innocent civilians in Darfur in the wake of Bashir's arrest warrant. Please issue immediate warnings to Bashir and the government of Sudan specifying consequences of attacks on civilians. Please also prepare an emergency response plan to address further violence and appoint a full-time senior level envoy. Lastly, please stand firm in support of the ICC indictment and veto any delay in the prosecution of Bashir.
We never got to watch The Carol Burnett Show when I was growing up. After we came home from church Sunday evening, dad always wanted to watch Bonanza. So I missed The Ed Sullivan Show and this funny TV fare... .............................................
............................................. Tim Conway playing a dentiston the Carol Burnett Uploaded by ap0115 More videos of The Carol Burnett Show - Click the links Tim Conway as a lawyer, Mr. Bunny
The precarious peace between northern and southern Sudan stands at a crucial crossroads, says a report by Enough Project policy researcher Adam O'Brien. The Comprehensive Peace Agreement between Sudan and southern Sudan was intended by its architects as the cornerstone of peace in a country fractured by conflict, but it has been hamstrung by the National Congress Party's intransigence, the Sudan People's Liberation Movement's growing pains, and the international community's neglect. Click here to read Peace on the Rocks. Click here to read a backgrounder from the Council on Foreign Relations, Sudan's Fractured Internal Politics. Click here to read a report from Human Rights Watch, There is No Protection.
* I'm calling to ask President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton and Ambassador Rice to protect innocent civilians in Darfur in the wake of Bashir's arrest warrant. Please issue immediate warnings to Bashir and the government of Sudan specifying consequences of attacks on civilians. Please also prepare an emergency response plan to address further violence and appoint a full-time senior level envoy. Lastly, please stand firm in support of the ICC indictment and veto any delay in the prosecution of Bashir.
I took time out of my citizen activism regarding preventing and stopping genocide, specifically of Darfuri families. During my time-out, I worked as a volunteer with the Presidential candidate's campaign at the time, Barack Obama. Now, I am asking President Obama - along with everyone else who cares about inhumane behavior toward humans - to take the critically important step to select a high official for the Sudanese people of Darfur. Immediately. A Video with Barack Obama speaking on Darfur - while on the Presidential campaign trail
A Previous post of mine on Darfur "The United States has a moral obligation anytime you see humanitarian catastrophes... ...And when you see a genocide whether it's in Rwanda, or Bosnia or in Darfur - that's a stain on all of us, that's a stain on our souls...
I think the level of commitment and the way that I've spoken out on this issue indicates not only knowledge but also passion in bringing an end to this crisis.
It's very encouraging to see activism based not on self interest but on a moral imperative. And it's especially heartening to see the young people engaged in expressing their idealism through this movement.
We can't say 'never again' and then allow it to happen again. And as President of the United States, I don't intend to abandon people or turn a blind eye to slaughter."
Barack Obama Pictures of Darfur from David Johnson at Silent Images
Wolf: High Caliber Special Envoy Should Be Appointed to Sudan
Tuesday February 24, 2009
February 24, 2009 Contact: Dan Scandling (202) 225-5136
WOLF: HIGH CALIBER SPECIAL ENVOY SHOULD BE APPOINTED TO SUDAN Recommends Former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist for Job
Washington, D.C. -- Rep. Frank Wolf (R-VA) today called on President Obama to appoint a "high caliber" envoy to Sudan to help bring peace and stability to the war-torn nation.
In a letter to the president, Wolf specifically recommended former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist for the job, noting that he has a passion for the people and future of Sudan.
"Even when he served in the Senate, Dr. Bill Frist continued his surgical practice, travelling to Africa yearly on medical missions, including to Sudan," Wolf wrote. "He boldly emerged as a leader in declaring what was happening in Sudan to be genocide, and co-authoring the bipartisan Sudan Peace Act."
Wolf, who is the co-chairman of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission and one of the leading advocates in Congress for human rights around the globe, has been to Sudan five times. He and Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) in 2004 were the first members of Congress to travel to Darfur and have been openly critical of the government of Sudan for its involvement in the ongoing genocide.
"I’ve witnessed the nightmare with my own eyes," Wolf wrote to Obama. "Every day that passes, more men are killed, more women are raped, and more children die of malnutrition. This is simply unacceptable. The time to act is now."
Below is the complete text of Wolf’s letter to the president.
The Honorable Barack H. Obama The President The White House Washington DC 20500
Dear Mr. President:
I commend you for your recent special envoy appointments of both Senator George Mitchell and Ambassador Richard Holbrooke. These distinguished diplomats are well-suited to focus their full attention on foreign policy priorities. I have long favored the envoy approach as an effective way to tackle seemingly intractable challenges.
There is perhaps no more daunting challenge than the quest for peace and stability in Sudan-a nation which has long been ravaged by war, genocide and bloodshed.
The Comprehensive Peace Agreement, which in 2005 brought about the end to a brutal 20-year war between the genocidal government in Khartoum and the South, was a monumental achievement and was in many respects the result of tireless diplomacy by former Senator John Danforth-then U.S. special envoy to Sudan. We can learn from this successful model.
I have written Secretary of State Clinton urging the appointment of a high-caliber special envoy to Sudan. Today I echo that call to you, with the specific request that the appointment be made in a high-profile event, which makes it clear to the world that the envoy has your ear and speaks with your authority. I ask that you appoint former Senate Majority leader Bill Frist as this special envoy.
Even when he served in the Senate, Dr. Bill Frist continued his surgical practice, travelling to Africa yearly on medical missions, including to Sudan. He boldly emerged as a leader in declaring what was happening in Sudan to be genocide, and co-authoring the bipartisan Sudan Peace Act. Senator Frist is truly passionate about the people and future of Sudan and in the tradition of former Senate Majority Leader George Mitchell he is respected across the aisle. His efforts would undoubtedly be buoyed by the counsel of Theodore (Ted) Dagne, Roger Winter and John Prendergast - all capable, committed individuals whose expertise and extensive time spent in the region would make them invaluable advisers to any special envoy.
I have traveled to Sudan five times since 1989 and led the first congressional delegation to Darfur with Senator Sam Brownback. I've witnessed the nightmare with my own eyes. Every day that passes, more men are killed, more women are raped, and more children die of malnutrition. This is simply unacceptable. The time to act is now.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ This afternoon the following email was received from a Sudanese citizen, who is living in the USA currently. Many of his family members were murdered by the Sudanese-government-supported genocide activity.
Dear ALL,
Cell phones and satelite phones (Soraya) are vital tools in Darfur. The Government of Sudan has cut off services to cell phones in Darfur (in IDP camps in particular) to have news black-out, especially with the approaching March 4th (ICC announcement date). Why this is extremely crucial issue?:
1- Atrocities that happen in the camps and outside are reported by the civilians via their cell phones to the Darfuris in Diaspora, to news agencies, to Darfur radios (Europe and U.S.A.), to UNAMID. 2- Areal bombing raids are reported to the above mentioned entities, in addition, the natives alert other villagers in other locations downstream of the raid so that people can take cover or flea to hiding places ( life saving tool). 3- Via cell phones and the rapid reporting there was change of behavior noticed of UNAMID ( becoming more engaged to save lives), Government of Sudan (hard to deny attack news), Janjaweed (became more selective in targeting villages i.e. select remote villages where possibility of civilians having cell phones is little).
More violence is expected with ICC decision. It would be a disaster if this phone service black-out continues. Many lives might be lost unnecessarily.
Land phones also are mostly cut off these days in Darfur by the GoS.
* I'm calling to ask President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton and Ambassador Rice to protect innocent civilians in Darfur in the wake of Bashir's arrest warrant. Please issue immediate warnings to Bashir and the government of Sudan specifying consequences of attacks on civilians. Please also prepare an emergency response plan to address further violence and appoint a full-time senior level envoy. Lastly, please stand firm in support of the ICC indictment and veto any delay in the prosecution of Bashir.
Directed by Gus Van Sant Story by Dustin Lance Black UK release date 16 January 2009.
Genre: Drama/Biography.
Synopsis (IMDB): Using flashbacks from a statement recorded late in life and archival footage for atmosphere, this film traces Harvey Milk's career from his 40th birthday to his death. He leaves the closet and New York, opens a camera shop that becomes the salon for San Francisco's growing gay community, and organizes gays' purchasing power to build political alliances. He runs for office with lover Scott Smith as his campaign manager. Victory finally comes on the same day Dan White wins in the city's conservative district. The rest of the film sketches Milk's relationship with White and the 1978 fight against a statewide initiative to bar gays and their supporters from public school jobs.
OSCAR Winner 2009: Best actor: Sean Penn. Best original screenplay.
11 Feb 09 – Film: Ahead of the ICC arrest warrant for Omar al Bashir, Khartoum’s men speak out...
Shortly the International Criminal Court will decide whether to issue an arrest warrant for General Omar al-Bashir, President of Sudan, on charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide in Darfur. Today, in a 20-minute film released on the brink of that decision, Khartoum’s executioners have broken silence to reveal how Darfur’s atrocities were planned, financed and carried out – and who was responsible.
The film – ‘Darfur Destroyed’ – is available to view in English, French, German and Arabic. ........................................
Since 2003, at least 300,000 civilians have died in Darfur and millions have been displaced from their homes, many of them at the hands of militia nicknamed the ‘Janjaweed’ (‘devils on horseback’). Time after time, survivors stated – and international observers confirmed – that as they murdered, raped, looted and burned village after village, the Janjaweed was backed by the Sudanese army and air force. Yet the Sudanese Government has consistently denied responsibility for atrocities in Darfur and to this day, says it has nothing to do with the Janjaweed.
However, the defectors in this film – some of them speaking publicly for the first time – tell a very different story.
Between them, a senior Army finance officer, a Janjaweed commander, a regular soldier and a Janjaweed fighter explain why and how the Sudanese Government created and launched the Janjaweed militia; how it disguised the militia, once atrocities in Darfur came to world attention; how it armed and paid the Janjaweed; how the Janjaweed worked with Sudan’s regular army and air force, and how rape has been used as a weapon against the civilian population.
The witnesses implicate Sudanese Government figures at the highest level – including Ahmed Harun (Minister for Humanitarian Affairs), Ali Osman Mohammed Taha (Second Vice President), and even Omar al-Bashir himself.
Moataz El Fegiery, Executive Director of the Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS) states: “If you don’t believe the victims, or if you mistrust the UN, then you should at least listen to the voices of the perpetrators. In their own words, they describe the Sudanese Government’s role in killing its own people.”
Dr James Smith, Chief Executive of the Aegis Trust, states: “As one-time servants of the Bashir regime, the defectors in this film provide powerful evidence of the responsibility of the Sudanese Government for mass atrocities in Darfur. As they themselves have said: those responsible should be brought to account and answer at the ICC – even if they include the President himself.”
Nicolas Burniat, Pennoyer Fellow at Human Rights First noted: “For too long, the international community has allowed the government in Sudan to get away with murder in Darfur. To this very day, many countries continue to sell weapons to Khartoum, allowing the Sudanese army to keep sending fresh arms to Darfur, as shown in Aegis Trust’s film. Whether or not the ICC issues an arrest warrant against Bashir, these countries must decide between pushing Sudan to face its responsibility to cooperate with the Court or continuing to support a suspected war criminal”.
The defectors in their own words • Popular Defence Force / Janjaweed commander: “The Sudanese Government, all time he said, no genocide there, no rape there. I am from the PDF – Janjaweed – I want to tell the World the truth.” • Sudanese army paymaster: “As a human being, I’m not able to feel good about this. I am paying them and they’re going to kill other people.” • Popular Defence Force / Janjaweed commander: “The President of Sudan, Omar al Bashir, sent four billion Sudanese pounds for the Popular Defence Force in Nyala to be distributed as an incentive.” • Popular Defence Force / Janjaweed commander: “When you destroy the wells, or when you cut the trees, or when you burn the village, this means you expel the civilians from the village. This is an instruction from…It is came from Khartoum.” • Janjaweed fighter: “Rape can happen. Rape can happen…. What would happen is, they took the girls and the women away, just out of sight, and they started to rape them.” • Sudanese soldier: “They shout ‘Kill the slaves’ and ‘Fuck the slaves’. They take girls and rape them. They rape and torture them. They want the children to be different in colour, to be like them.” For media enquiries about this film, email david.brown@aegistrust.org. Copies of the film and raw footage are available at broadcast quality on request.
The above text and a full transcript of the film Darfur Destroyed can be found atwww.aegistrust.org
* I'm calling to ask President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton and Ambassador Rice to protect innocent civilians in Darfur in the wake of Bashir's arrest warrant. Please issue immediate warnings to Bashir and the government of Sudan specifying consequences of attacks on civilians. Please also prepare an emergency response plan to address further violence and appoint a full-time senior level envoy. Lastly, please stand firm in support of the ICC indictment and veto any delay in the prosecution of Bashir.
Text provided with the video: Defectors from the Sudanese regime explain their role in the Sudanese Government's planning and execution of mass atrocities in Darfur, implicating members of the regime at the highest level, including Omar Bashir, Ali Osman Mohammed Taha and Ahmed Harun.
* I'm calling to ask President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton and Ambassador Rice to protect innocent civilians in Darfur in the wake of Bashir's arrest warrant. Please issue immediate warnings to Bashir and the government of Sudan specifying consequences of attacks on civilians. Please also prepare an emergency response plan to address further violence and appoint a full-time senior level envoy. Lastly, please stand firm in support of the ICC indictment and veto any delay in the prosecution of Bashir.
So you can't please everyone. Nothing new there. Another raved about it. I loved Hugh Jackman's parts of the show. So refreshing, fun and entertaining to see someone simply adoring being on stage and being "our show". That is the key, really. A Big Talent that made me fall in love with him. It "translated" to me. It's an award show and unless you take the award part out of it - it isn't going to be other than an award show. Maybe, the LA Times is expecting too much out of a self-congratulating awards show to be something other than it has the roots to be. Perhaps the LA Times critic could be put in charge next year of producing the show.
At least one early review of Hugh Jackman's Oscar-hosting performance is in, and it's a rave. EW caught up with Baz Luhrmann (Jackman's Australia director and friend) at the Academy Awards on Sunday. The filmmaker said he was thrilled with how Jackman's emceeing turned out: While the show was mostly the vision of coproducer Bill Condon, Luhrmann said he helped Jackman with some of the choreography in the host's dance number with Beyonce. "At this time, his style, elegance, and grace is really resonating," Luhrmann said. "I spent six months with him touring around the world and two years making a movie with him in the desert. I know him almost as well as his family does. What you see is what you get." --Nicole Sperling
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........................................... Hugh Jackman Hugh Jackman as The Boy from Oz ~ 2004 Tony telecast Uploaded by wa8
* I'm calling to ask President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton and Ambassador Rice to protect innocent civilians in Darfur in the wake of Bashir's arrest warrant. Please issue immediate warnings to Bashir and the government of Sudan specifying consequences of attacks on civilians. Please also prepare an emergency response plan to address further violence and appoint a full-time senior level envoy. Lastly, please stand firm in support of the ICC indictment and veto any delay in the prosecution of Bashir.
The entire cast is superb. Gerard Butler and Jack McElhone deserved awards for this movie, for sure. As did the first time feature film director Shona Auerbach. This film shows us how film can be art.
The Academy needs to have a new category - for movies they missed giving deserving awards to in the year they were eligible. You know, an "oops, we're sorry" award - sorry for missing the mark the first time.
* I'm calling to ask President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton and Ambassador Rice to protect innocent civilians in Darfur in the wake of Bashir's arrest warrant. Please issue immediate warnings to Bashir and the government of Sudan specifying consequences of attacks on civilians. Please also prepare an emergency response plan to address further violence and appoint a full-time senior level envoy. Lastly, please stand firm in support of the ICC indictment and veto any delay in the prosecution of Bashir.
I love my life. I love where I live. And I am passionate about my passions. I love to dance. Necessary to live: music, piano, singing, writing, acting, painting.
I have been fighting for and supporting the arts all my adult life. Since 2004, I have been working with other activists to end the Darfur genocide.
I have traveled to Europe many times since my early twenties. Places I have been: many USA states including Hawaii, Montreal, Canada, Barbados, France, Spain, Luxembourg, England, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, Greece and Germany - and have wonderful memories.
My last trip was in May - June 2013 to Spain.
I would like to travel to Europe and Kyoto, Japan.
I love the southwest where I have visited Hopi, Navajo, Zia and San Idlefonso potters.
Life is exciting and I intend to live it full-out to the end.
B.S. and M.M., both in music
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Khartoum, Sudan Stop Genocide Time
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RAFA NADAL -BRING BACK LONG PANTS - SLEEVELESS TOPS
Double Click on Videos to Enlarge
Darfur - The Abandoned Genocide - a video by Sandra Hammel
Want to help? Call 1~800~GENOCIDE
"May I Suggest" by Susan Werner
Satchita - Playing for Change
Stand By Me ~ Playing for Change
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Genocide is not only a word,
it is crying of the whole human race.
There is nothing redeeming about being silent
when speaking up is the humane thing to do.
The honor and integrity of the human race is at stake.
