Here’s the headline:

Foreign workers to get credentials quicker.

Not necessarily.  They will just know “whether their credentials will allow them to work in Canada”.  Or won’t.

Here’s how it could work.  A foreign trained doctor could be told, within a year of applying, that their credentials will allow them to work after meeting certain standards.

We don’t want some professionals to be evaluated within a year.  That is not always enough time to verify and evaluate foreign qualifications.  There are ways to meet the one year guideline.  Just say “no” quicker.  Eliminate everyone with even slightly questionable qualifications and focus efforts on those closest to Canadian qualifications.

I’d rather have a long wait to see a qualified physician than a short wait to see an incompetent one.

While we’re on the subject, maybe someone could explain to me why a professional would move to a country without absolute certainty that they would be able to work in that country.  I wouldn’t.

California is sinking….financially

California is a great place to live; great weather, lots of things to do and it has something for everyone.  California has more people than any other state in the Union with almost 37 million people.  California could be a stand-alone country with the eighth-largest economy in the world.  Most countries would love to have what California has to offer; billions of barrels untapped oil off the coast, some of the busiest ports in the world, and is one of the richest agricultural producers in the world.  But California is headed for total chaos and a possible total meltdown. 

California  has politicians that are only interested in getting re-elected and thus will not make any hard decisions.  Here is the basic philosophy that serves as a foundation for most  California politicians:

They assume all businesses are evil and ripping off their constituents.

They kick the rich people in the gut  (they feel it is a sin to enjoy the fruits of your labors and all rich people are glutens and oppressors of the poor) because this gets them more votes.

They are only interested in giving out entitlements because this gets them more votes.

California Legislators are driving California into bankruptcy.  I for one would not give a thought to investing in California bonds.  They are now rated as junk bonds by security rating organizations.  Consider these following facts:

Anywhere from 3 to 6 million illegal aliens burden the state’s health, welfare and criminal justice systems.  Most illegal residents do not pay state income taxes, while participating in entitlements and burden the legal system at rates far greater than their percentage of the population.

California ranks between 47^th and 49^th in the ranking of our nations public schools.  This is bad because the long term prosperity of California and our country is directly tied to the quality of education system.

California runs the largest, most expensive and most recidivism-prone prison systems in the country.  Over 20% of the people in our prisons are illegal aliens. 

More than half of all of California public employees are unionized.  Our state’s workers are among the highest paid in the nation, yet California is going bankrupt.  A quick example is one city nurse that was paid $350,000 a year. 

California is actually losing population each year at the rate of about 150,000 per year.  This fact by itself is not really alarming.  What is alarming is the composition of the net loss.  California has a huge number of illegal immigrants that put a burden on California’s entitlement and legal resources and a big number of people that pay taxes leaving the state.  Many of the taxpayers leaving the state are unhappy at the ever increasing higher taxes and are just plain tired of the increasing government regulation.  California is one of the least small business friendly states in the Country and small business generates 75% of all jobs nationwide.  Stated a different way California has been experiencing a huge increase in people that do not pay taxes and over burden our health and legal systems and at the same time is experiencing an increasing number of people leaving the state that pay taxes.  Pretty soon California is going to run out of people to tax.  Here is a statistic that will fortify this analysis:  144,000 of California’s wealthiest residents – less than half of one percent of California’s population pays almost half of the state’s income taxes.  These are the same people that are leaving the state.  California is losing the taxpayers that pay for the increasing entitlements to the increasing number of people that do not pay taxes. 

The bottom line is California legislators are pandering to the people of the state that expect and receive entitlements while at the same time vilifying the people who pay the taxes to support these entitlements.  It does not take a rocket scientist to do the math that if your vote getting entitlements keep increasing and your taxpaying citizens keep decreasing Californa will run out of its source of revenues. Maybe California citizens should elect legislators that are not idiots or maybe the democratic system is flawed.  Legislators have to pander to the large base of voters that want entitlements and thus will only introduce and approve more entitlements and more taxation of people that have saved, worked hard and bettered themselves.  It appears on the surface that crash of the system is inevitable.    What makes this situation scarier is that California’s woes are prophetical of what is happening to America.  We need to kick the concept of political correctness in the butt and realize that we should not be spending more than we have as individuals and as a country.

There is a sense of entitlement that is sweeping the country.  Our federal government is increasing our national debt by trillions to pay for things the entitlement prone citizens are demanding and the government can’t afford.  I am personally ashamed that we are doing this and burdening our children and grandchildren with the cost of the things we are demanding now.   

Civil servants are being awarded the same campaign medals for serving in Afghanistan as soldiers risking their lives on the front line.

Critics said it was ‘offensive’ that Ministry of Defence bureaucrats manning desks at the British HQ, Camp Bastion, are handed the Operational Service Medal which is also given to squaddies facing Taliban bullets and bombs.

Penpushers receive the honour from ministers at formal presentation ceremonies, which were introduced after protests that the medals were being posted to them in plastic bags.

The news follows revelations in the Daily Mail that civilians working for the MoD have earned nearly £300million in bonuses while soldiers have been dying for lack of equipment.

Civil servants have seen ‘good performance’ payments double, including rewards for saving money, while on the battlefields of Helmand soldiers have accused the Government of putting lives at risk by scrimping on military kit including helicopters, radios and night goggles.

Liberal Democrat defence spokesman Willie Rennie said last night: ‘It is quite offensive that civil servants should be regarded and rewarded the same as soldiers who are putting themselves in danger to fight the Taliban.

‘We need a complete review of arrangements so that risk and courage is taken into account when medals are being awarded.

‘I think it would be more appropriate to give frontline troops a different medal that reflected their bravery and sacrifice.’

The Operational Service Medal was introduced in 2000 to honour service in a series of British campaigns, replacing the General Service Medal.

They have been handed out for service in Iraq, Sierre Leone and the Congo. 

The circular silver medal features the crowned effigy of Queen Elizabeth II on the front and the Union Flag surrounded by the inscription For Operational Service and the four points of the compass on the reverse.

The ribbon for the Afghanistan campaign consists of a broad central red stripe, flanked each side by a stripe of royal blue and one of light blue, to represent the three services, with an outer stripe of light brown, to represent the Afghan landscape.  

Complex criteria govern the award of the medal, depending on length of service, the type of operation and its location.

To qualify for award of the medal with a clasp, personnel must have served in Afghanistan for either five, 21 or 30 days continuous service between various dates depending on the operation.

The MoD has asked staff to volunteer for service in Afghanistan. Welfare and administration officers, scientists and mechanics are among those who can be posted there.

One civil servant who recently returned from Afghanistan said: ‘We are not on the front line facing the Taliban, but could be blown to pieces at any time. I shall wear my medal with pride inside and outside the office.’

At a presentation ceremony in July, Armed Forces minister Kevan Jones said: ‘The welfare role these people do is vital in operations and I thought it important that they get public recognition.’

An MoD spokesman: ‘Civil servants in Afghanistan provide essential support to troops on the front line.

‘Staff serving in Afghanistan are expected to work extremely long hours in potentially dangerous environments away from their families. They are all deserving of the Operational Service Medal.’

Armed Forces face shortfall of 7,000 troops

Britain’s Armed Forces fighting Afghan insurgents are facing an ‘alarming’ shortfall of nearly 7,000 specialist troops.

Vital roles including surgeons, helicopter pilots, divers and intelligence officers are operating at two-thirds strength or less, according to figures.

A 38 per cent shortfall in bomb disposal experts is said by the Army to be a ‘critical concern’.

The Army also has fewer than half the nurses it needs.

Of 68,000 specialist staff across the Army, Royal Navy and RAF, there are 6,700 vacancies.

Many troops can earn better pay in the private sector.

Liberal Democrat spokesman Nick Harvey said the figures were ‘alarming’, but Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth said Afghan forces were not left short.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1231938/Anger-penpushers-MoD-given-Afghanistan-medal-troops-risking-lives.html#ixzz0YLUX4YR8

Yesterday, Swiss citizens overwhelmingly approved a ban on new minaret construction in Switzerland, and in the process, infuriated all the right parties—the BBC, the Muslim Brotherhood, and elites in the United States. The Swiss should feel shame, and Europe should be worried, according to the Guardian, yet this vote represents a popular trend—Muslim immigrants must meld into society, not attempt to alter it.

In taking a quick peek at the numbers, fifty-seven percent approved the ban, on a relatively high turnout of fifty-three percent. And while only five percent of the Swiss population are Muslim immigrants, and only four minarets hover in towns throughout Switzerland, a clear majority were galvanized into opposing any dramatic changes to the cultural landscape.

France is considering a ban on niqabs and any other face-concealing veils, and one mayor in Italy has erected a controversial sign along with a new policy—no burqas and niqabs in Varallo, Italy. The warning is also translated in Arabic.

“Throughout the city, we are applying the prohibition of wearing these clothes that, in the case of the burqa, prevent the recognition of the person. The signs signify the will “of the Administration to stop this practice of Muslim women that goes against our traditions and standards on safety.”

Some elites, progressives and academics might find this cultural preservation trend troubling for many reasons: it upsets their utopian view of European multiculturalism; it challenges their enlightened Europe as America’s role model argument; it shatters political correctness into pieces. Make no mistake—banning burqas and minarets isn’t politically correct, nor is it expedient.

Perhaps conservatives were wrong. Maybe Americans could learn a thing or two from Europeans. Culture is important, and it merits the fight.

“Going against our traditions…”

Imagine if we used that response to the current assault on Christmas or the English language taking place in America. It’s racist to take the position that Americans or legal residents should have a rudimentary command of the language, and it is offensive to say “Merry Christmas.” By contrast, Italians are picky about their culture, which is why schools were informed of possible penalties if they dared to remove any of the crucifixes the European Human Rights Court found so offensive.

Over time and under constant influence by elites in D.C and on TV, Americans have been influenced into behaving like robots, unable to voice concerns or fight for their culture out of fear for looking like rubes. They can’t voice concerns without incessantly couching their words or avoiding the subject matter altogether. But as they’ve morphed under the pc cloud, they have also exhausted their patience with the experiment.

Taxpayers pay £1,600-a-week for family of ex-asylum seekers to live in luxury five-storey home

By LUCY BALLINGER

A Somali family are living in a luxury £1.8million five- storey house in central London funded by the taxpayer.

Nasra Warsame, 40, has lived with seven of her children and her elderly mother in the six-bedroom house since October.

Westminster council pays the £1,600-a-week rent for the former asylum seeker.

Luxury home: Nasra Warsame’s husband Bashir Aden in the five-storey house in central London which is costing the taxpayer £1,600-a-week

The fully-furnished house, within walking distance of the West End, has three sitting rooms and four bathrooms.

The main lounge has two leather sofas, a flat-screen television and a glass coffee table. Annual rent for the house would cost £83,200.

Mrs Warsame’s home is part of an impressive 1960s development of modern apartments and houses.

There is a large glass sculpture situated in the middle of a courtyard outside the family’s front door.

It is understood the rent being paid by the council is twice the going rate for a property in the area. It is unclear why this is the case.

Meanwhile, Mrs Warsame’s husband Bashir Aden, 50, and another of their children are living in a separate property in nearby Camden.

Cost: The house costs the public purse a massive £83,000 a year

He said they live separately because the family is too big to fit under one roof. His two-bedroom flat is also paid for by housing benefit.

Outside the family’s main house yesterday Mr Aden, a butcher, said: ‘I’ve already had too much trouble with this house.

‘Yes, it is true I live in Camden, and yes, my wife lives here, but she has a lot of problems with this at the moment.’

Mrs Warsame and her seven children, aged from two to 16, first lived in a house in Maida Vale, North-West London, but were moved because it was thought to be too small by council officials.

The weekly rent, which was also covered by housing benefit, is understood to have been £800. Mr Aden said: ‘That place was overcrowded. They moved her here for the children.’

An estate agent showed the family the spacious five-floor property near Edgware Road Underground station.

Great location: The house is in walking distance of Edgware Road tube station

‘The new house we moved into in October is a nice house and it is in a nice area,’ Mrs Warsame said. ‘It is quiet and it is convenient and we do not want to leave.

‘It is better than the house we were living in in Maida Vale which was quite small. We were getting complaints from neighbours that the children were being too noisy.’

Mrs Warsame and her husband fled unrest in Somalia in 1991 and claimed asylum in Britain.

They have since been granted citizenship and all of their children were born here. But the family could be evicted from their house, as it is claimed it has been rented out illegally.

Philippa Roe, of Westminster council, said: ‘It’s important to note that the amount of housing benefit payable for tenants is determined by government policy and not local councils. This rate is calculated and updated on a yearly basis according to the value of the local rental market. We have absolutely no discretion in this area.

‘Property rents in Westminster are among the highest in the country so it is perhaps unsurprising that a family claiming housing benefit for a property of this size would need to submit a claim for this amount.

‘We would, however, like to see the entire housing benefit system changed to enable councils to have more control and essentially the ability to limit the amount of money claimed where appropriate.’

Last year it was revealed Afghan single mother Toorpakai Saiedi and her seven children were given a £1.2million property complete with 100ft garden by Ealing council in West London.

Mrs Saiedi, 35, received £170,000 a year in benefits. Some £150,000 of that is paid to a private landlord for the seven-bedroom house.

A Department for Work and Pensions spokesman said: ‘We capped the Local Housing Allowance in April because it was unacceptable that a small number of people received exceptionally high levels of Housing Benefit.

‘We want the system to be fair, both to families in need and the taxpayer.’

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1231795/Taxpayers-pay-1-600-week-family-ex-asylum-seekers-live-luxury-storey-home.html#ixzz0YLAOzvOR

I just went to the channelnewsasia website and saw this question posted under the polling section ” It has been suggested that new immigrants be required to pass a test on the core values of Singapore before they are given citizenship. Is this necessary? “

I am utterly horrified that such thoughts even cross the minds of people. My answer to this question is a resounding NO. Before we go any further, i would first like to question what in the world is the so-called ” core values” of Singapore ? I really don’t get it, so i don’t see how anyone is going to come up with a test. Afterall, what kind of questions can be asked ?

And, having such a test is not in line with our nation’s continual efforts to promote the country as a cosmopolitan and vibrant city where people of diverse cultures converge. I am aware that many Singaporeans are already feeling the pressure due to the rise in the number of expatriates and foreign talents here. Many express their contempt and disregard for them by citing reasons such as ” they are unable to speak english”, “they are not loyal and intend to stay here till they earn enough and then pack their bags and return to their homeland” or that “they just can’t seem to assimilate into the society and culture”.

The last reason given is most probably a factor which gave rise to considerations for a test on “core values” to me carried out. However, i have a pertinent query, and that is how can we possibly test them without even letting them in and giving them a chance to assimilate? In an exam, students will be given time to study what would be examined. Surely it would not be fair to test foreigners on anything relating to Singapore even before they are allowed to immigrate settle down and learn and understand and appreciate what Singapore is about.

In conclusion, such a test is uncalled for. I am certain that potential immigrants who plan to come over would voluntarily take a step forward and attempt to understand whatever “core values” Singapore has, considering the fact that it would make things easier for themselves in terms of adapting to our country and communicating with locals. 

Hopefully, such a test would not be implemented. I believe that there are other feasible alternatives in ensuring that immigrants assimilate . Issuing citizenship to foreigners who may not be a welcoming thought  for locals, but, lets not get too harsh on them , shall we ?

Maybe I’m getting old, but lately I’ve been thinking a lot about where I am in my life – if that even makes sense.

So, here I am about to move for  the 4th time since becoming an adult and I’m trying to figure out if I consider myself to be successful. I know that this judgment is relative to a person’s culture and experiences and only I can really know the answer, but I can’t help but to think of what my family (and friends) may have expected from me. I wrote a while ago about cultural expectations for career choices and I think that’s where this all starts.

My mom always pushed us to go far in school. Very early on she made it clear that she expected my sister and I to at least finish college. Check, so +1

Then, I made the choice to get married and start a family soon after graduating college. –1

But, then I went back to school and obtained my masters’. +1

However, I am still trying to decide what I want to do for the rest of my life. –1

Even without my very expensive education , I would know that this complex equation adds up to 0. Let me also add that I know that my friends and family are extremely proud of me – it’s the successful part that make me wonder…

One thing I know for sure is that I am happy and I wouldn’t have things any other way. I just don’t want my type A personality to look back one day and wonder if I really made use of all my talents…

How do you (or your culture) measure success?

 Subscribe in a reader

Subscribe to Balanced Melting Pot by Email

Balanced Melting Pot on Facebook

Reading this,it’s obvious we have contributed to our problems,the british people have been silenced for the benefit of strangers.

It would be better if we enforced Britain’s cultural values on immigrant communities, rather than allowing them to dictate government policy, says Janet Daley.How do you create a home-grown terrorist? For a while, Britain seemed to hold the copyright on the formula for this.

First, you import a huge number of people from places where there are unresolved historical conflicts, with no stipulation that they learn anything about their adopted homeland (not even its language). Then you make no attempt to integrate these groups – which are large enough to constitute self-sustaining communities – into the culture and political traditions of the country that is now their home, nor do you advise the schools to inculcate any sense of pride or pleasure in the new national identity to which they are entitled. Indeed, you do precisely the opposite of this: you positively encourage not only the incomers themselves but their British-born children to maintain a separate, inward-looking ethnic community that stands apart from the mainstream life of the society and whose values may conflict with it.

So eager are you to show that you accept other cultures whose attitudes and assumptions (on, for example, the treatment of women) are opposed to the official values of your society, that you benevolently overlook what is being taught in their schools even when those schools are being supported by government funding. When your Government is caught in the act of having provided such funding, as happened last week with schools in Slough and Haringey, both of which had a history of links with the Muslim extremist organisation Hizb ut-Tahrir, the ensuing row is on purely technical points: which school officials held, or were connected to people who held, actual positions in the organisation on what dates? The question of whether schools with an explicitly separatist ethos should qualify as providing acceptable basic education is not even addressed.read more in the TELEGRAPH

Magnus Lofstrom of the Public Policy Institute of California has an interesting new paper on low-skilled immigrant entrepreneurship

More than half of the foreign born workforce in the U.S. have no schooling beyond high school and about 20 percent of the low-skilled workforce are immigrants. More than 10 percent of these low-skilled immigrants are self-employed. Utilizing longitudinal data from the 1996, 2001 and 2004 Survey of Income and Program Participation panels, this paper analyzes the returns to self-employment among low-skilled immigrants. We compare annual earnings and earnings growth of immigrant entrepreneurs to immigrants in wage/salary employment as well as native born business owners. We find that the returns to low-skilled self-employment among immigrants is higher than it is among natives but also that wage/salary employment is a more financially rewarding option for most low-skilled immigrants. An exception is immigrant men, who are found to have higher earnings growth than immigrants in wage/salary employment and are predicted to reach earnings parity after approximately 10 years in business. We also find that most of the 20 percent male native immigrant earnings gap among low-skilled business owners can be explained primarily by differences in the ethnic composition. Low-skilled female foreign born entrepreneurs are found to have earnings roughly equal to those of self-employed native born women.

The chart below shows low-skilled self employment rates by gender and nativity in the United States.

David Davis

BAe Systems (I thought it was on OUR side?) is developing UAVs (drones) to “patrol the coastline”, to deal with “smuggling” and “illegal immigrants”. Never thought I would hear the term “Police Aviation” used seriously and without irony.

Does not sound very libertarian to me.

If you have nothing to hide...

...then you have nothing to fear...

As the man said once… “very interrrrresting” …

De-Mentos is the new mint to prevent you keeping your bible hermeneutics from overwhelming your political, ideological, or imperialistic allegiances. Discernmentalists must always keep our Christo-fascist theology, Religious Right, and conservo-centric traditionalisms well tuned against liberals, emergents, accommodating conservatives and NT Wright.

Are you fighting an uphill battle with those kinds of Christians?????…you know the RED LETTER types that emphasize Jesus’ words? These are the types with anti-biblical values like peace mongering, anti-war, anti-torture and care for the poor. We all know that Jesus was pro-torture….or at least ambivalent about it. People like this are secret communists.

Perhaps you have run into the extremist that once said a nice word about a Muslim, or Rick Warren. Of course we know this to be “Christianity lite” and “liberalism.” We know for sure that Jesus really didn’t mean love your enemies or do good to those that persecute us. What he really meant was wait for the enemy to love you first.  Also, be weary of immigrants because they are ruining the country.

Remember these words from Sermon on the Mint “Blessed not are those who mourn, for they shall not be comforted. Comfort and feeling good about ourselves is from the devil, sissies, weak pansies and liberals.  Blessed are the proud and arrogant, for they shall conquer and triumph over all of the earth.”

This is why De-Mentos is the mint of choice. It will soothe the mind, ease the conscience and relieves us of any critical thinking….or worse emphasizing the words of Jesus that might make us uncomfortable. Remember, we don’t spin Jesus’ words THEY do!!!

Leave it to the ODMafia, and Dr. Truthslayer to make the right choice for you today – De-Mentos. The mint of choice for discernmentalists.

___________________________________________________________

De-Mintos is a subsidiary of Sermon on the Mint Corporations and Conglomerations Ltd.

Vejaciones, atropellos y posterior inadmisión en Barajas hacia nuestros familiares que vienen de visita. Acoso y persecución en las estaciones del Metro y otros transportes públicos. Referencias negativas consuetudinarias por parte de los medios de comunicación. Años de trámite para homologar nuestras titulaciones universitarias y para la obtención de la nacionalidad española. Ser tratados como delincuentes por una falta administrativa con “pena” de encarcelamiento en los CIE. Ofensas y falsas acusaciones de copar los servicios públicos desde partidos políticos xenófobos mientras el resto de sus homólogos callan ante la agresión. Eso y más cosas tenemos que vivir los inmigrantes en Cataluña y España.

Lo anterior se añade a la dinámica que conlleva el proceso de emigración, el cual implica comenzar un proyecto vital desde cero, en un lugar extraño y dejando atrás años de vivencias, familia, amigos. La lista de agravios y penurias sufridas por los inmigrantes – los irregulares particularmente – no hace si no aumentar y profundizar el drama en que termina para muchos su apuesta por una vida mejor en el viejo continente.

Ocurre en la barcelonesa ciudad de Terrassa. Me entero de ello por miembros de otras asociaciones inmigrantes egarenses. Al parecer no es el único sitio de Cataluña donde esto viene ocurriendo desde hace unas semanas. Las policías locales, autonómicas y nacionales se han dado a la tarea de visitar los domicilios donde se encuentran empadronados los inmigrantes irregulares, puerta por puerta, en sus hogares, entregándoles una citación para que se presenten en la comisaría de policía (de Terrassa en este caso) y abrirles el expediente de expulsión correspondiente por estancia irregular en España. Ya no satisface la cacería del inmigrante en las calles, ahora hay que ir casa por casa. Esta problemática ha sido denunciada por nosotros en todas las reuniones y encuentros del sector inmigrante a los cuales hemos asistido últimamente, incluyendo al Secretario para la inmigración. Oriol Amorós.

Menos mal que no estamos en la Italia de Berlusconi.

Mientras tanto en el Congreso de los Diputados de Madrid se ultima la “Ley sobre Derechos y Libertades de los Extranjeros y su Integración Social” (denominada Ley de Extranjería) a pesar de que la misma ha sido valorada negativamente por diversos sectores de la sociedad española (sindicatos, ONG`s, asociaciones de inmigrantes, iglesia, sectores académicos, gremios del sector social, etc.). Y aún falta el reglamento que establecerá las formas y métodos de aplicación de dicha restrictiva ley.

En Cataluña los legisladores regionales tampoco han perdido el tiempo y a estas horas se tramita con carácter de urgencia la “Llei de Acollida de les Persones Immigrades y Retornades a Catalunya” la cual desarrolla las competencias autonómicas que la “Ley de Extranjería” entrega a Cataluña gracias a la negociación entre el PSOE y CiU, pacto que evitó al gobierno tener que retirar su iniciativa parlamentaria en Madrid a cambio de entregar a la Generalitat el control de una buena parte de la política y procedimientos administrativos en materia de inmigración. Un negocio redondo para ambos grupos.

En Madrid se aprobará una norma legal que acentuará la desigualdad y las diferencias entre nacionales y extranjeros. En Cataluña se está fraguando en estos precisos momentos una legislación que establece “de facto” el tan atacado y denostado – con razón – contrato de inmigración que el Partido Popular propuso hace un tiempo y que provocó reacciones cuasi histéricas dentro de los mismos partidos que actualmente impulsan esta “Llei de Acollida” en las cortes catalanas. Los que ayer se rasgaban las vestiduras hoy están dispuestos a aprobar justo lo que tanto criticaron. Fariseos son.

¿Y las asociaciones de inmigrantes de Cataluña qué decimos al respecto?

Pues unas cuantas ya han pasado por el Parlament con bastante pena y ninguna gloria, diciendo sí e incluso alabando en algunos casos las regulaciones que coartan aún más las libertades y poder de decisión individual de los inmigrantes. Hemos podido leer y observar varias de las comparecencias de nuestros compañeros de otras asociaciones y federaciones y quisiera pensar que el motivo de esta actitud tibia y complaciente hacia el tema de las certificaciones, cobro de tasas y monolingüismo responde a que ni siquiera han leído el texto, ya que de lo contrario no se entiende el papel que algunos “dirigentes” del asociacionismo inmigrante han ido a desempeñar en el recinto legislativo de La Ciutadella.

Como dice el refrán aquel: “Con amigos así quien necesita enemigos”

Nosotros aún no hemos tenido la oportunidad de pronunciarnos respecto de esta ley en el Parlament, pero lo haremos próximamente. En este mismo espacio ofreceremos el detalle de nuestra exposición y de los argumentos que hayamos esgrimido en dicha intervención ante los señores diputados.

Our Thanksgiving was great. We hope yours was too.

We had too much to eat, as planned. We visited and the children played.

Here I am with Sal Jr as he’s checking out the bird. He did a great job!

Here’s the guest of honor. He didn’t look like that for long.

Here’s Zoey enjoying our Thanksgiving toast. (The children toasted with sparkling cider so no one was left out of the toast)

We had a wonderful day!
K

China’s Golden Shield Project has several US corporations such as IBM, General Electric, and Honeywell working closely with the Chinese government to install millions of surveillance cameras throughout the country, along with advanced video analysis and facial recognition software, which will identify and track individuals everywhere they go. They will be connected to a centralised database and monitoring station, which will, upon completion of the project, contain a picture of the face of every person in China – over 1.3 billion people.

Law enforcement and intelligence services in the UK and the US possess technology to remotely activate the microphones in cellphones, by accessing the phone’s diagnostic/maintenance features, in order to listen to conversations that take place nearby the person who holds the phone. Mobile phones are also commonly used to collect location data.

In the US, for instance, under the Communications Assistance For Law Enforcement Act, all phone calls, VoIP and broadband internet traffic (emails, web traffic, instant messaging, etc) are required to be available for unimpeded real-time monitoring by federal law enforcement agencies. Computers are also a surveillance target because of the personal data stored on them. If someone is able to install software (either physically or remotely), such as the FBI’s “Magic Lantern” and Computer and IP verification (CIPAV), on a computer system, they can easily gain unauthorised access to this data. Another form of computer surveillance, known as TEMPEST, involves reading electromagnetic emanations from computing devices in order to extract data from them at distances of hundreds of meters.

Surveillance cameras are often connected to a recording device, IP network, and/or watched by a security guard/law enforcement officer. In the UK, for instance, there are about 4.2 million surveillance cameras — one camera for every 14 people. (via How other countries fare).

The Red Rage

There is a increasing chorus in India that such a ‘surveillance’ regime is needed in India also. A undermanned police managed a low crime society in India till now. The excuse of terrorism is being used to advance the case for a police state in India also – like the UK, USA, China etc.

Lalgarh has proved one thing – purusharth in India is still alive and well. Moksh मोक्ष is the ultimate aim of all humans – and the meaning of moksh is freedom, emancipation, deliverance. Moksh is one of the four objectives (धर्म अर्थ, काम, मोक्ष)in the Indian ethical code of पुरुषार्थ.

Santhals and the British

In Lalgarh, middle aged Santhal women, armed with spears, axes and knives came out to battle a repressive state which sold out to Big Business. For nearly a 100 years, a 100 years ago, the same Santhals had fought the British Raj earlier. When so many women come out in the open, with bows and arrows, one thing is clear.

There are more where they come from.

The excuse for extending power

So, whether it is Red Rage or Green Jihad, the State just needs an excuse to extend its power – and this ‘surveillance’ raj is one part of it.

Cada vegada són més diversos els infants i adolescents immigrants que arriben a Catalunya sense comptar amb la companyia i el suport de cap persona adulta. Quants són? De quina nacionalitat són? Hi ha noies? Comparteixen els mateixos projectes migratoris? I un cop arriben, quina és la seva situació a Catalunya?

Per respondre a aquests interrogants, el grup de recerca d’Infància i Família en Ambients Multiculturals (IFAM) de la Fundació Pere Tarrés de la Universitat Ramon Llull està investigant des de l’any 2006 sobre l’estat actual i les noves tendències del fenomen del Menors Migrants No Acompanyats (MMNA) a l’Estat Espanyol. En el marc dels actes per commemorar el Dia Internacional del Migrant, el proper 16 de desembre la Fundació Pere Tarrés organitza una jornada on donarà a conèixer els resultats d’aquest estudi.

Jornada Gratuïta. Inscriu-te!

Clincant en el següent link.

Dia dimecres 16 desembre – Horari de 9 a 14 hores.

Lloc Aula Magna de les Escoles Universitàries de Treball Social i Educació Social de la Fundació Pere Tarrés, Universitat Ramon Llull.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING:

If its Ok with your doctor, you have my permission to over eat today.

Enjoy, with Family and Friends

Prior to 2003, if married partners were of the same nationality, the law of their country of origin applied in case of divorce. But in 2002 a group of Moroccan women filed a complaint with the Defensor del Pueblo on the grounds that Moroccan law discriminated against women and therefore violated the Spanish Constitution. As a result, Article 107 of the civil code was revised. The Article now reads that the law of the country of origin will be applied except in certain circumstances, one of which is that this law does not recognise separation or divorce and/ or is discriminatory.

The revision to Article 107 is good news for mediation here in Spain. It would be pointless to attempt to mediate between partners where one partner has considerably more legal clout than the other. Mediation is also questionable when one partner is obviously intimated by the other. Thus in cases of domestic violence the mediator often has no choice but to terminate mediation if one partner is so cowed by the other that he or she is unable to express and defend his or her own point of view.

The revision to Article 107 is not without controversy. One of the problems, as pointed out in “Una reforma desconocida y controvertida” (El Pais, 2003) is that a divorce granted to immigrants under Spanish law will not be not recognised outside of Spain. So, for example, the divorce of a Moroccan woman obtained according to Spanish legislation would not be valid if she returned to Morocco. However, given the alternative – having to apply discriminatory laws here in Spain – the revision to Article 107 is certainly a step in the right direction.