Happy New Year?

We have turned 2016 with a freezing cold wind from Russia. However, looking at the situation in Syria where there is  snow and no food several places, and ordinary people look like those who were released from prison camps after WWII, we in Norway have nothing to complain about. Yes, we have more people out of work, and our government predict that 2016 will be a challenging year concerning our economy, but still, this is just peanuts compared to eg what people in Yemen have to endure. Humanitarian aid to Syrian towns is promised, but when is the question; today? tomorrow? For many people it is already too late, they have starved to death.

Many NGOs do an extremely important job and really make a difference for people in need. Doctors Without Borders (MSF) is one of them. So why bomb them? For the second time in four months, hospitals run by MSF have been hit by bombs even though their coordinates are well know by governments. What a waste killing doctors saving lives.

So, is it really a happy new year? Well it all depends where you are and who you are. Try to make a difference if you can, it will definitely make you happier.

Source photo: https://media.msf.org/Docs/MSF/Media/CMS3/e/7/5/8/MSF157752.jpg

Christmas

With this video from Youtube, I just want to wish you all a merry holiday! Enjoy yourself, relax, or as Ordnett+ says it, "unwind, loosen up, ease up/off, let up, slow down, de-stress, unbend, rest, repose, put one's feet up, take it easy, take time off, take time out, slack off, be at leisure, take one's leisure, take one's ease, laze, luxuriate, do nothing, sit back, lounge, loll, slump, flop, idle, loaf, enjoy oneself, amuse oneself, play, entertain oneself; informal let it all hang out, let one's hair down, unbutton, veg out; N. Amer. informal hang loose, stay loose, chill out, kick back." See you all on Monday 4 January!

Shut Down of Brussels

In a news article in CNN 23 November, Juliette Kayyem (National Security Analyst), discusses whether it is a good idea to close down a city or not when expecting a terror attack. Brussels has now been shut down for three days. Economically of course it is a disaster, but psychologically it is even worse because the population in a whole city is affected. The question is whether it will be possible to live normal lives when the city is opened up again? Even more important, has not the IS achieved one of their main goals when they manage to close down a capital city? A city that is also the home of the headquarters of the European Uninon, and a major center of economic affairs in Europe? As Kayyem says in her article, "Thus, shutting down a city is a tactic that should only be used in the rarest of circumstances, based on criteria that are known to the public and that are understood by those who implement them."(http://edition.cnn.com/2015/11/22/opinions/kayyem-belgium-lockdown/index.html?eref=rss_world)
Image retrieved from: http://images.scribblelive.com/2015/11/22/9f1e4653-9013-4c2e-a3a4-abcd09777e7b.jpg

Paris Shooting

So, it has happened again, some ignorant jihadists have killed an unknown amount of innocent people. And the murderers did the killings in the name of Allah. How can anyone believe that killing will be applauded by any God? Only the devil supports actions like that. You do not help your people by murdering innocent people who by coincidence were at the wrong place at the wrong time, you do the opposite! You make it a lot worse for Muslims to be accepted and trusted in our society. How can we live in peace and harmony the way we should when some people behave the way they have done tonight? It is a dark night in modern European history.

Racism

Racism can be defined as "the belief that all members of each race possess characteristics, abilities, or qualities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races". Put in another way we could say "racism is prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior." (Ordnett+) The question is, how can any man or woman allege that s/he is superior to another human being? Unfortunately some people see it as their right to discriminate people who do not have the same cultural background as their own. Ethnocentrics is another word that could be used about the racists, and sadly they are found in all countries. Lately several reception centers for asylum seekers in Sweden have been burned down, and the newly elected mayor in Cologne in Germany, Henriette Reker, has been stabbed by a person who said he "disapproved of her liberal stance on refugees". Watch more here  and here.

A Year and No Trace

Last year September 43 students went missing in Mexico. Rumors say they were handed over to  drug gangs by the police and later murdered. Why? All the missing students were attending a teacher's college and trained to become teachers in the most remote and poor areas in Mexico. When attacked by the police the students were in buses on their way to raise money to their school. CNN says the reason they were attacked was their political stand, ie having CheGuevara as their idol. Watch this to learn more!

Iconic Photos

No doubt, media make a difference and sometimes even change people's opinion. We are grateful for these wakeup calls. Ordinary people, politicians and footballers all try to help. F.C.Bayern Munchen donates 9 million to projects aimed at refugees and Bob Geldorf opens several of his flats and houses to the people who have fled to Europe.