• published: 11 Sep 2008
• views: 1609

http://www.instablogs.com/ Terrorism takes backseat to economy in US It would not be wholly correct to state that seven years after the September 11 attacks terrorism has taken a back seat. Since the attacks the federal government has made only limited progress toward preventing a catastrophic nuclear, biological or chemical attack on U.S. soil and combating the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction abroad. The perpetuation of terrorism since then and manhandling of entire issue by US and its allies has posed serious threat to international peace as evident from subsequent events like 7/7 brutal attacks in London and elsewhere. The coalition forces seemed to have veered from their real target which comprised the elimination of Al Qaeda and Taliban forces. Instead, they are now fighting the drug trade which helps the militias retain their power and a resurgent Taliban to fight which the Bush administration recently took the decision to enhance the US troop levels. Although there has been no terrorist attack on the United States since 9/11 the threat of a new major attack is still very real. Both terrorism and economic recession are major challenges confronting US Nepal to end bonded labor The government decided to abolish the Haliya system the other day. This is an important step towards establishing social justice through abolition of the remnants of feudal system. The system is analogous to bonded labor and is a glaring example of the ruthless feudal relations that survives on exploitation and expropriation of the returns of labor. Held in debt bondage for generations those belonging to the lower rungs, especially untouchables and subalterns, are compelled to till and tend the land without being compensated for the labor. Once liberated and emancipated they should not be forced to till the land which is not owned by them as this is illegal and punishable by law. However, the decision needs effective implementation to ensure substantive improvement in the social and economic life of the bonded laborers. The abolition of the Haliyas system should be complemented by alternative means of livelihood so that the Haliyas can lead an independent and dignified life otherwise they might relapse into subjugation. Bolivia civil war threatens Brazil The situation is very tense in Bolivia, more specifically in the department of Santa Cruz, the richest and which has the largest natural gas reserves in the country. There is risk of having a civil war. The conflicts started because of a decision by President Evo Morales want to use the funds obtained from the income of gas in a social program, reducing the financial resources of the Departments. These Five departments in Bolivia, the richest, want to become autonomous regions, opening the possibility for that Bolivia is divided into two countries. Between yesterday and today, thousands of demonstrators took the streets of Santa Cruz and federal buildings are being invaded. There are rumors that thousands of Indigenous are going towards Santa Cruz to combat the separatist protesters. Moreover, these demonstrators attacked the gas pipeline that delivers natural gas to Sao Paulo state in Brazil, trying to force the Brazilian government to enter the conflict. For while Brazil seems to be very concerned about the situation but will not intervene in this situation, because it is clear the intention of the protesters is to overthrow a president who was democratically elected. Indian physicist, victim of racism Of the three main past and present physicists behind the landmark proton-smashing experiment in Geneva, the third man is the Bose of the Higgs-boson experiment - Satyendra Nath Bose so brilliant and yet so overlooked. It is Bose after whom the sub-atomic particle 'boson' is named. The $10 billion Large Hadron Collider experiment in Switzerland could not have happened without Bose and Albert Einstein. In 1924, Bose sent a paper to Einstein describing a statistical model that laid the basis for describing one of the two categories of the elementary particles that make up an atom of which one was boson. Einstein had already won the Nobel in 1921,the British scientist Peter Higgs who eventually came up with his theory of the Higgs boson is now widely tipped to win the Nobel. It is Satyendra Nath Bose who for some reason never won the medal perhaps he became a victim to institutionalized racism. In such a case the international community and the Nobel academy should make amends through immediate recognition of his work.