"Most of us wish for more time, bigger budgets, and more help in completing projects. Could that be wishing for the very things that push us further away from success? Should we, instead, wish for shorter deadlines, less people to work with, and even for smaller budgets?

Among the most familiar tunes you will hear played over and over on radio stations this holiday season are from Händel's Messiah. While that music is familiar to most ears, a less known fact is that Händel wrote the entire two-and-a-half-hour work in a mere twenty-four days. He had to, mainly to alleviate his pecuniary troubles at the time. Fast-forward about eighty years, and we witness Rossini poring over the score of his new opera, The Barber of Seville—but not for long, for he completed the entire two-act work in just under three weeks. " (Frank Sommers)

But it's OK now. Phiew.

"So far in this account I don't think Buddhism in practice comes to startlingly different conclusions about sexual conduct from those of balanced versions of other major religions. But the other religions also have lists of no-no's, of forbidden sexual practices. Some object to partial or total nudity, or masturbation, or cross-dressing, or sado-masochism, or homosexuality, or fetishism, or premarital sex, or oral, anal or group sex, or contracepted sex. Buddhism is notorious for its habit of putting points of practice and doctrine into lists. So where is Buddhism's list of naughty sexual practices?

The answer is short and sweet. Buddhism doesn't (for once!) have a list."

(http://www.buddhanet.net/winton_s.htm)

It simply states "don't do sexual misconduct" and leave the details to the practictioner for the details "sexual misconduct" means. And the guidance to determine that is "do no harm" (no deceit, manipulation, etc)

So consensual sex between two adults are in. Things like do harm like adultery in marriage, phedophilia, rape, etc are out.

Sexual orientation is not detailed in Buddhism - gay or straight - no biggie.

Buddhism itself is a very conservative religion and its standard for moral ethics is very high. We don't have a concept for forgiveness for our sin for example. The 'karma system' simply states if you are bad, you will reap the fruit later on. There is no last minute pardon.

“When the Muslims used to disagree, they had different schools of thought,” said Sayed el-Qemni, another reform-minded writer who lives in a small city outside of Cairo. “No one would point to the other and say, ‘This is not Islam.’ But when one school of thought says, ‘I am the correct school of thought and everyone else deserves death,’ then you are starting a new religion.”

"MR. BANNA says one of the fundamental problems with religious leaders in Egypt is that they look to the interpretations of their ancestors and not to the Koran itself. To look directly at the book, and not at the words as interpreted by men living in a different time, would have a liberating effect, he says."

(NY Times)

And I think this is an anathema that is quite common in any religion, reading their scripture and relying too much on the elders that lived hundreds of years ago. Read the holy book directly - it is available to be understood.

This is I think because there's an innate assumption that religious people in history is better people and hence more suitable to interpret holy books better. Bleh. If you read the history of the world, past times are actually terrible.

We lived in a better world that they did - as it should be - because we expect progress with time.

"How many pyramids have gotten built since the Egyptians adopted an Islamic work ethic?

Seriously, can you not see that Islamic values have contributed to the lack of productivity, which in turn contributes so much to the poverty level of the region.

Democracy isn't going to fix that problem." (RT's comment)

Well first of all, the Romans and the Greeks didn't built any either. And second, I think the Muslim didn't exactly pray inside Pyramids nor temples so they have little use for them.

But they do built pretty majestic and amazing Mosques here. If you come to Cairo, don't forget to  visit those 1000-900 year old Mosques that still pronounce their glorious past.

About the Islamic values contributing to the lack of productivity, I would not count that as much.  Dubai and Qatar are doing really really well - without much dependency of oil. Malaysia is doing good as well.

In the same vein, the heavily Catholic Latin America  and much the rest of Christian Africa are also in the same shit hole in terms of productivity in general.

No, democracy aint' going to fix Egypt. It takes more than that. It needs a few good leaders.

After hearing again on how Muslims describe Islam, I think it's a good bet that Muslim communities would actually progress so much faster if they actually follow the values of Islam.

Take a look at the issue of corruption. Fuckin' a. Stop doing that and you will see a different Middle East.

Take a look at the issue of cleanlines. They have to clean before they pray, which is five times a day. Imagine being reminded to be clean five times a day. And yet a lot of Muslim majority cities are dirty.

What the Egyptian accomplish in Cairo is actually creating a safe large city. Man, this is the safest big city I have been. You can go to poor areas at night and you will feel safe. Try that in South Chicago.

What Egypt needs is not necessarily democracy. It needs less selfishness and more patriots -  people that care for the good of the country, instead of its own limited self interest. More patriots - like wht USA has plenty of.

I went home from work early today. Yay !

"

It has been ruled with an increasingly iron fist since 1994 by President Alexander Lukashenko. Opposition figures are subjected to harsh penalties for organising protests.

In early 2005, Belarus was listed by the US as Europe's only remaining outpost of tyranny.

Belarus remains defiant in the face of Western pressure

The country became independent in 1991, following the collapse of the Soviet Union.

More than a decade later, the sense of national identity is weak, its international isolation is intensifying and the nature of political links with Russia remains a key issue.

In the Soviet post-war years, Belarus became one of the most prosperous parts of the USSR, but with independence came economic decline. President Lukashenko has steadfastly opposed the privatisation of state enterprises. Private business is virtually non-existent. Foreign investors stay away." (BBC)

Ramadan Work Schedule in Egypt : 9am - 3pm.

My work schedule in Ramadan in Egypt : 9am - 00.30.

"Today, however, I decided to choose honesty over niceness. Two months earlier, I had been diagnosed with a brain tumor that required intensive surgery and rehabilitation. This was my first meeting with the President and Karl Rove since my return. Something about undergoing brain surgery had made me reflect about whether I had really been doing a public service by pretending that our office had been living up to its commitments.

I glanced over at Karl and turned to look the President in the eye. "Sir, we've given them virtually nothing," I said, "because we have had virtually nothing new to give." The President had been looking down at some papers about the event, but his head jerked up. "Nothing? What do you mean we've given them nothing?" He glared. "Don't we have new money in programs like the Compassion Fund thing?"

I looked again at Karl. He seemed stunned at what I was saying. "No, sir," I told the President. "In the past two years we've gotten less than $80 million in new grant dollars." The number fell shockingly short of the $8 billion he had vowed to deliver in the first year alone." (Time)

This rant is awesome - I find it hillarious.

"So when you look back and put all my documented POVs together, an ugly picture starts to emerge. I want to live in an homogeneous society, have a brutal military that ignores Geneva Conventions, tortures our enemies, mows down entire civilian populations to assure we get the resistors disguised as civilians, stands up un-democratic dictators to do our bidding in the third world, suppress the ability of our citizens to undermine our military strategy, allows no dissent from citizens who dont have the best interests of our nation as a whole having a say in policy, and militarize our borders, shooting everyone we catch trying to cross them.......Basically it appears that I want to live in China, Russia, or maybe even North Korea. Apparently I am a Commie at heart and just didn't know it." (Redneck Texan)

Not there's anything wrong being a Commie.