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Here is another amazing woman in the same article at the Guardian,” Wangari Maathai. “Too educated, too strong, too successful, too stubborn and too hard to control” was Wangari Maathai’s ex-husband’s verdict when he divorced her. And perhaps the judge agreed: when she called him “incompetent”, he promptly slapped her in jail for six months [...]

This is an interesting article from a Boston academic about revolutions and their dynamics. It starts with, “Revolutions around the world differ in details yet are similar in terms of their internal dynamics and cohesion as well as their progression and conclusions. The Libyan revolution should be no different particularly in relation to what I [...]

Sight under Reconstruction. Please be patient. Send emails or other messages if you like. At the moment ikners.com/blog is a draft new site. Let me know what you think.   George Ikners

Just when you may have thought an even hand was needed on Islam and its followers who have every right to believe what they do and practise that in any country where they live a German official continues the Merkel hatred based nonsense. One necessary point of view required to fuel this present round of [...]

If engineers predicted the behaviour of bridges the same way economists predict the economy, nothing would get built. Dr. N.P. Balaam B Eng Phd

Probably the greatest graffiti artist around is Banksy. Here is an interesting piece from the Guardian about him. It starts by saying that, “ He is perhaps best known for his carefully guarded anonymity, but Banksy has this week discovered that the Oscars do not “do” enigma. The British street artist has been refused permission [...]

There always seems to be incredibly disturbing reports that relate to extreme atrocities committed against women all over the world. For various reasons members of the male population view women as not just expendable but as obvious people for torture, humiliation and degradation. At times the results are like a horror story. In the latest [...]

There was a rather wonderful email received from David Swanson recently and it contains a story about, “ Nonviolent Action Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning” he continues that, “Michael Nagler tells this story: “One of my close friends, David Hartsough, who is white, was sitting in with a small group of civil rights [...]

There was a rather wonderful email received from David Swanson recently and it contains a story about, “ Nonviolent Action Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning” he continues that, “Michael Nagler tells this story: “One of my close friends, David Hartsough, who is white, was sitting in with a small group of civil rights [...]

There was a rather wonderful email received from David Swanson recently and it contains a story about, “ Nonviolent Action Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning” he continues that, “Michael Nagler tells this story: “One of my close friends, David Hartsough, who is white, was sitting in with a small group of civil rights [...]

There was a rather wonderful email received from David Swanson recently and it contains a story about, “ Nonviolent Action Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning” he continues that, “Michael Nagler tells this story: “One of my close friends, David Hartsough, who is white, was sitting in with a small group of civil rights [...]

When you read or look at the views expressed on this page it is entirely a matter for you as to what your own view is. That may sound trite or obvious but it is very important that views expressed on this page by me or others are something that you feel you should consider, [...]

You may have noticed the forces of darkness and that includes the Labor Right here in Australia, are mobilising to get to a position of total control of the internet. If the net is so dangerous can you think of or know a single person who has lost his or her life or liberty because [...]

What follows is a history of Assange from the Guardian. It starts with the following observations.” Glimpsed in the half-light of a London evening, the figure may just have passed for female. She emerged cautiously from a doorway and folded herself into a battered red car. There were a few companions – among them a [...]

There are quite a few people peddling hatred at the moment but none more vile than Beck in the US and media empire behind him. The latest target has every right to be genuinely worried even terrified at the prospects for her safety when these people garner support for deadly action against anyone prepared to [...]

There is an interview with Assange at the Guardian It commences with., “Julian Assange awakes to talk, from the nap he has stolen in an armchair at the Norfolk country house where he is staying. He has been up all night disseminating, on his WikiLeaks site, US State Department cables and documents relevant to the [...]

In another good article at the Tom Dispatch site Michael Klare looks at what he calles,”The Year of Living Dangerously “ as part of the,” Rising Commodity Prices and Extreme Weather Events Threaten Global Stability” His warning is to, “Get ready for a rocky year. From now on, rising prices, powerful storms, severe droughts and [...]

 Here is an interesting question,” Was Picasso Apolitical? In a recent article at Counterpunch, By VICENTE NAVARRO the position is given some earnest consideration by Navarro who is,” professor of Public and Social Policy, Johns Hopkins University and professor of Political Science at Pompeu Fabra University” He commences with the observation that,” A political objective of [...]

The Democracy Now site has a very good interview with Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish who has a very tragic story to tell about Operation Cast Lead. This site greatly depends on public donations so if you are able to leave a donation please do so. The interview commences with,” AMY GOODMAN: Yesterday marked the second anniversary [...]

If you have ever needed a map of a country on the planet this is the link to the United Nations cartography site. It is very easy to use and you can get maps to cover countries in the world. You can get there using http://www.un.org/Depts/Cartographic/english/htmain.htm or you can use link   George Ikners ikners.com [...]

Another article at the Guardian deals with a book recently published on whether there should be a different attitude to cancer research and treatment. The article commences with,” On the morning of 19 May 2004, Carla Reed, a 30-year-old nursery teacher and mother of three young children, woke up in bed with a headache. “Not [...]

In a very recent Guardian article taken from a local Guardian reporter and with references to an India Today article the position in India regarding corruption is examined (link). Perhaps corruption is not the best word to describe some of the allegations and unlawful activity or just plain old crime in India would convey what [...]

It is always a pleasure reading anything by Pepe Escobar. What follows is one of his latest pieces that concentrates on Assange and Wikileaks. You can see the article at the Asia Times site at link. The article is titled, “Emperor waits in wings with waterboard” A lot has been written about Wikileaks but you [...]

For those of you who treasure the ability the net can give you to look at other opinions not often available in the mainstream media or that is hidden from view by the hegemons that run the imperial project and the capital economy there is a very good article at the guardian site at link. [...]

For those of you who treasure the ability the net can give you to look at other opinions not often available in the mainstream media or that is hidden from view by the hegemons that run the imperial project and the capital economy there is a very good article at the guardian site at link. [...]

The Guardian has a very interesting interactive year site at link. It allows you to add your own material as well as look at theirs. All in all a top class effort.  George Ikners ikners.com joomla

There are two excellent videos available at the Real News site. The first concerns a lawsuit in Ecuador about the enormous environmental damage done by Texaco (now Chevron) during oil exploration in the past 30 years. One major impediment to the lawsuit is the fact that a settlement together with a release from future liability [...]

There are times when figures simply do not state the trues position. In a recebt article at the Guardian site, Polly Toynbee deals with census type matters and related occurrences. You can read the full article at link However the final paragraph is extremely interesting it commences in this way,” (And) consider another census error [...]

This is the link to the Guardian’s site for the complete list of Wikileaks US Embassy releases  http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/the-us-embassy-cables

In a situation that has been widely held to be true for many years Indian efforts regarding the use of torture are now the subject of some Wikileaks documents. In an article at the Guardian site the headline is,” India accused of systematic use of torture in Kashmir” The article continues to say that, “Beatings [...]

If you want to read a fairly comprehensive round up of opinion in Germany about Assange post arrest Der Spiegel has an article (link) that summarises many reports and accounts from leading conservative media outlets in Germany to what are described as left leaning outlets. The summaries are concise and are selected to show a [...]

Although what was said could be idle talk by a Russian attached to Medvedev’s group it is at least amusing to see an article in the Guardian titled,” Julian Assange should be awarded Nobel peace prize, suggests Russia” The next heading to the article is” Russia urges Assange nomination in calculated dig at the US [...]

You will find an extremely interesting article at the Guardian site at link It concerns the suspected attacks by hackers as revenge for the present Wikileaks position. The article is headed,” Operation Payback cripples MasterCard site in revenge for WikiLeaks ban” which is followed by, “Hackers attack credit card company and Swedish prosecution authority as [...]

Just in case you feel that the capital system is all heart look at the Irish. There the banks and others in the shark like feeding frenzy before the financial crisis have to be bailed out. By who you may ask. Well the general population that’s who. Today’s Guardian summed it up very well when [...]

There is a crisis growing over the newest leaks from Wikileaks, even though some have been known for some time. As the Guardian describes the position Hilary Clinton is in,” frantic ‘damage limitation’. You can read the full article together with links to the material at link. As you might expect in the world of [...]

There have been some happenings in South Korea after the shelling. It should be remembered that before the shelling there was always going to be a joint US and South Korean naval exercise in the area. Why the US should be involved in anything like that apart from provocation remains to be seen. No doubt [...]

On the topic of surveys and polls an article at the Guardian site claims that, “ One in three South African men admit to rape” according to a survey in the Gauteng Province. The article is at link and the actual figures were that the survey found that,” 37.44% of men confessed to rape, and [...]

“History, such as it has hitherto been written, is almost entirely a description of the ways and means by which theocracy, military power, autocracy, and, later on, the richer classes’ rule have been promoted, established, and maintained. The struggles between these forces make, in fact, the substance of history.” Peter Kropotkin from Mutual Aid (1998 [...]

In a recent Guardian (link) article by Lauren Booth she has said that she has converted to Islam. It seems this has caused a deal of consternation on the part of her colleagues and others who somehow see this as something negative. One article has attempted to show her conversion as negative and in some [...]

If you want to see some very interesting antiwar video, music and video presentations go to this link.   George Ikners  ikners.com  Joomla

There are many outspoken and courageous women on the planet, many of whom are forced to live in a state of constant fear of reprisals from people who disagree with their views. Names that come to mind are Malilai Joya and Arundhati Roy. Despite obvious personal risk these women have both continued to let their [...]

If it’s not over ‘til it’s over there is a lot more to come regarding the recent oil disaster in the Gulf. A report says that,”It appears not everything is dead and buried in the Gulf of Mexico. Halliburon shares are now plunging on a Bloomberg report which finds that the cement Halliburton Co. recommended [...]

I will be away for a week. The usual number of articles and lead-ins will probably be less for this time.   George Ikners ikners.com Joomla

There I a short article at the al Jazeera site that contains references to an interview with Fidel Castro. The interview was conducted by Jeffrey Goldberg and you can read the article at link. Interestingly the interview happened at an aquarium with dolphins but the real interest is in the few reported comments made by [...]