Wonderful Women Of The World
Posted by Michelle Moquin on August 14th, 2010
I struggled for words to write this morning. And I came up empty. It happens sometimes. Sometimes someone else’s words say it all and I can not say it any better or any different. So why struggle?
I found this little snippet on Afghan leader Malalai Joya while ready TIME magazine from a few months ago. I googled to find out more about Joya. What I read left me so impressed with her courage and strength that when I sat down to write, I found that all I wanted to say was what was already said, and I could say it no better.
All that I can add is that it is no wonder Afghan leader Malalai Joya is considered a hero and ranked in TIME’s 100 most influential people of the world. She is a hero in my mind too.
To be a woman growing up in Afghanistan under the Taliban and to survive is in itself a major feat. To be so lucky as to become literate in a place where girls are shrouded and denied even fresh air is close to a miracle. To start underground schools and educate girls under the noses of turbaned, self-appointed defenders of virtue and forbidders of vice is truly extraordinary.
But to get a seat in parliament and refuse to be silent in the face of the Taliban and warlord zealots shows true fiber. When Malalai Joya did this, her opponents responded in the usual way: expulsion from parliament, warnings, intimidation and attempts to cut her life short. She has survived all of it.
Malalai, 31, is a leader. I hope in time she comes to see the U.S. and NATO forces in her country as her allies. She must use her notoriety, her demonstrated wit and her resilience to get the troops on her side instead of out of her country. The road to freedom is long and arduous and needs every hand.
-Hirsi Ali, author of Infidel, has a book, Nomad, out this month
Afghan Leader Malalai Joya Is Resistance Personified
Last April, she was ranked among the 100 most influential people of the world by Time Magazine
By Farooq Sulehria
Afghan leader Malalai Joya is resistance personified. She is the most vocal critic of both US occupation of Afghanistan and the ruling warlords. At the same time, she speaks dismissively of the Taliban: “Their violence is no resistance”. However, Malalai Joya hardly grabs headlines in the Pakistani media that often glorifies the mindless violence of the Taliban. But she is a household name in Afghanistan and a known figure internationally. She was called “Afghanistan’s most famous women” by the BBC a few years ago. Last April, she was ranked among the 100 most influential people of the world by Time Magazine.
But Time asked Dutch-Somalian author Ayaan Hirsi Ali, who is known for her Islamophobic views, to make the announcement. Now settled in the US, Hirsi Ali distorted Joya’s image in her malicious announcement by saying: “I hope in time [Joya] comes to see the US and NATO forces in her country as her allies. She must use her notoriety, her demonstrated wit and her resilience to get the troops on her side instead of out of her country”.
A furious Joya reacted strongly. In her counter-statement, she said: “Time has painted a false picture of me and does not mention anything at all about my struggle against the occupation of Afghanistan by the US and NATO, which is disgusting. In fact, everyone knows that I stand side-by-side with the glorious antiwar movements around the world and have proved time and again that I will never compromise with the US and NATO who have occupied my country, empowered the most bloody enemies of my people and are killing my innocent compatriots in Afghanistan”.
Joya earned a mark back in 2003 at the Loya Jirga (Greater Assembly) convened to ratify Afghanistan’s new constitution. Unlike the US-sponsored, clean-shaven fundamentalists, Joya was not nominated by Karzai. She was elected by the people of the Farah province to represent them at the Loya Jirga. The Jirga was chaired by Sibghatullah Mojaddedi who, at the very outset, told the women delegates: “Even God has not given you equal rights because under His decision two women are equal to one man”.
Joya had bravely organised underground girls’ schools in Herat when the Taliban’s terror drove millions into exile. Mojaddedi’s patriarchal admonition could not intimidate Joya. She stunned the Loya Jirga and the press members present to cover the occasion by delivering a three-minute, hard-hitting speech, exposing the crimes of the warlords running the Loya Jirga. A befuddled grey-bearded Sibghatullah Mojaddedi, on hearing Joya, screamed in anger and called her ‘infidel’ and ‘communist’. Others also shouted at her. But before she was silenced by an angry mob of warlords, with her single, but timely, act she had electrified Afghanistan.
When she criticised the warlords at the Loya Jirga, even ‘Viceroy’ Zalmay Khalilzad — the then US envoy to Afghanistan — was upset. “Joya”, Khalilzad chided, “had overstepped the framework of politeness”.
She wrote a letter to Khalilzad, saying: “If these criminals raped your mother or daughter or even your grandmother, or killed seven of your sons, let alone destroyed all the moral and material treasure of your country, what words would you use against such criminals and puppets that will be inside the framework of politeness and respect?”
In the meantime, three fateful minutes at the Loya Jirga changed the course of Joya’s life. In her native province of Farah, locals wanted her to represent them in elections. It does not merely take guns and dollars to contest an election in Afghanistan. Joya had none. Still, she contested and was elected to parliament in 2005. Danish filmmaker Eva Mulvad immortalised Joya’s courageous election campaign and subsequent victory in her documentary “Enemies of Happiness”. Aged 25, Malalai Joya was the youngest Afghan MP. More importantly, she proved herself to be the bravest MP. On the floor of parliament, she emerged as the strongest critic of US occupation and the Taliban- and mujahidin-dominated Karzai regime.
Hence, at almost every parliamentary session she attended, she had her hair pulled, was attacked physically and called names by her ‘Islamist’ colleagues. She was even threatened with rape on the floor of the house. In one case, the warlords bussed in thousands of men to Kabul to march and demand “Death to Joya”. Niaz Mohammad Amiri, a member of Abdul Rasul Sayyaf’s Wahabist party, would never miss an opportunity during parliamentary sessions to call her a prostitute. Flyers were distributed calling her prostitute, communist and anti-Islamic.
“Among the worst was a leaflet that showed a photograph of me without my headscarf, falsely saying that the picture was taken at the Loya Jirga. Underneath was the awful slogan: she took off her scarf at the Loya Jirga, she’ll take off her pants in parliament”, Joya noted in her book Raising My Voice that has recently come out. Once she was abroad on Valentine’s Day. It was propagated that she was abroad to celebrate Valentine’s Day. In her two years in parliament, she never once had the chance to complete her speech without her microphone switched off. But even her half-delivered speeches were hard to tolerate.
Hence, she was suspended from parliament. Her suspension has been widely criticised. From Noam Chomsky to Naomi Klein, a host of noted people have signed the petition for her reinstatement. She now leads an underground life. To hide her identity, she wears the burqa which she otherwise hates. In view of her previous experience, she has decided not to contest elections scheduled for September this year.
The writer is a freelance contributor. Email: mfsulehria@hotmail.com
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Bob: Thanks for the clarification. I was spluttering Wa..wha’at? too. :)
Scott: I was a WF customer for 20 years and dumped them last year. I had no idea about this scam. Unfortunately Wachovia is the back that I pay my mortgage to. Now I am forced to be with WF again.
Evelyn: I am delighted that you and Harris have been having a wonderful time together. I didn’t know that you two were still in each other’s company. How fab. So…meeting the parents soon eh? Looking forward to the 411. :)
Have a great weekend everyone!
Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my ‘loyal’(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.
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Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)
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August 14th, 2010 at 10:26 am
Hey Mischa, great article. Now I have another new female heroine – Hirsi Ali is my first, just finishing Infidel (time has not been expanding to meet my needs) though she is a totally engaging writer and her grit as well as Joya’s is astounding to me. The look in this woman’s eyes at 31 says it all, she’s been to hell and back and she’s still standing, just that makes me feel like I ain’t done nuttin’ even close – yet – watch though : ) that’s a changin’ also…
George, you would never yammer on like you do here in the face of an OTW bc you, dear unmedicated one, are the definition of a coward. somebody’s got to be one, so why not you?
Evelyn, Mischa said it all but I was pleasantly surprised that you and Harris made it through the fan club and are wanting more of each other : ) coolio…! Hope the ‘rents dig you as much as he does : ) if they don’t I’m sure harris will give em’ what for on the subject.
Luv, Zen Lill
August 14th, 2010 at 12:10 pm
Zen Lill
Thanks for the support. I was reading Robert about Dr. Laura with Harris and he hugged me and said “that will never happen if you married me.” I was shocked that he had even thought along those lines.
So when he asked me to come meet his family, I really didn’t know what to say. Usually I make my own decisions. But this time I called mom and asked her for advise.
She said “this is your call darling. But it can’t hurt to go. Think of if as another look at the deep South. Maybe you will find something about it to make you want to return to your country.”
So, I told Harris I would go. But I wanted us to be apart for 6 weeks first to give me chance to catch my breath. He agreed as long as we could continue to talk via our cells. He doesn’t trust emails. He believes some over eager fan has hacked into our email communications.
I can understand his paranoia. We were mobbed just about every where we went. You should be careful about saying on the blog where you will be if you are going to go out to party. You may not be prepared for the crowds and the behavior of “fans.”
Some people actually followed us from country to country as if they did not have jobs to go to. It was amazing! Me, Evelyn a celebrity? We ate just about everywhere for free. No one would take our money. We were encouraged to stay as long as we wished at most places, Gratis.
Harris wasted a lot of time arguing in the beginning. In the end we just gave up and enjoyed ourselves by trying to order something so expensive that they would ask us to pay. It never happened! Everything was free.
We had to sneak off to Guernsey. We had a wonder week at the Government House Hotel. It was absolutely beautiful. The 24 hour room service allowed us the privacy we craved. We played a little golf, did a lot of bowling(Harris is so good). He took my money before I made him return it when I discovered he regularly bowled in the 280′s. He bowled a 293 twice while taking this girl’s money.
I even made him attend a few Pilate classes with me. He’s such a dear. We got so much attention; he being so pale and me so dark. We made some excellent contacts though.
There were about 4 gay couples there on their honeymoons. They shielded us from any “fans” who may have been searching for us. Brnt said that he was a fan of my mothers and wanted to meet Anonz.
He said except for his husband, Anonz was the man he admired most. He asked me if he was as handsome as he sounded. I said I haven’t met him. I don’t think he believed me.
But we are hooked up for a planned get together in November. I am looking forward to it. We seem to have so much in common. Harris seemed a little self conscious at first. He said that he did not have any gay friends.
I told him I have a few i know about and probably more who I don’t. He laughed and said that could certainly hold true for him as his family were old republicans. I didn’t think that was funny. But he looked so cute trying to make a joke, that I laughed anyway.
Oh, I’m running on. I wish you and your daughter the best Zen Lill.
Evelyn
August 14th, 2010 at 12:33 pm
Varicose Veins Can Be Very Harmful to Your Health
John Blebea, MD
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Varicose veins — veins just beneath the skin that have become enlarged, discolored and twisted — affect up to 25% of adults, and as many as half of all adults over age 50.
For many people, varicose veins are merely unsightly. For some, aching legs may be a symptom, although these are not really a health risk. The main health risk is that, over the long term, skin ulcers may develop around the site of varicose veins.
The good news: The newest varicose vein treatments are quick, safe and highly effective. Even better: Most can be done quickly in your doctor’s office.
FINDING A SPECIALIST
Veins are responsible for returning blood to the heart to be reoxygenated. They contain a series of one-way valves that let blood move forward but not backward
. But aging, obesity, pregnancy and other factors can make certain valves — especially those in the legs — malfunction, causing blood to pool in these veins, making them enlarged, twisted and purplish.
Varicose veins are unsightly but usually not medically dangerous in and of themselves. However, they may also be the sign of a vein valve dysfunction either in the deep or superficial veins (there are two venous systems, one deep, one superficial).
Common mistake: Failing to seek evaluation from a board-certified vascular surgeon, interventional radiologist or other doctor who specializes in treating varicose veins.
To find one, go to the Web site for the Society for Vascular Surgery (www.vascularweb.org) or the Society of Interventional Radiology (www.sirweb.org). These specialists are trained to treat varicose veins and will give you a careful exam to determine if the veins are linked to a more serious problem.
Another benefit: If underlying medical problems are detected, your health insurance is likely to cover the treatment cost. Varicose vein treatments for purely cosmetic reasons, on the other hand, are typically not covered by insurance.
GETTING EXAMINED
When the doctor examines you, he/she will start with a visual exam and take a full history, including symptoms such as swelling (a possible sign of a more serious problem), itching or painful, aching legs at the end of the day and any history of blood clots.
The most important exam element is a venous duplex ultrasound scan of the veins in both legs, from hip to ankle. The scan takes about 30 minutes.
The doctor may have the equipment in his office or refer you to an accredited vascular lab. The scan will detect any blood clots or other blockages in the deep veins of your legs.
If there is a blockage in the deep veins, your superficial veins could be providing a pathway for blood going to your heart — and treatment for superficial varicosities without tending to the deep-vein issues could cause serious leg swelling and other complications.
The scan also maps out the network of varicose veins and determines if they’re linked to a dysfunction in the major valves of the great saphenous vein — the large superficial vein running the length of each leg.
If these valves — principally located in the groin and top of the thigh — are dysfunctional, this vein must be closed from groin to knee before treating any tributary veins. Otherwise, lower varicose veins will persist and new ones develop.
SAPHENOUS VEIN TREATMENT
Treatment for great saphenous veins used to involve inserting a plastic tube through an incision and literally pulling out the vein (“stripping”). Technology developed during the past five years has now replaced the old method with two new treatments: Radiofrequency endovenous obliteration and endovenous laser therapy.
In both procedures, a catheter is inserted into the vein — usually from the knee to the groin — heated and gradually withdrawn, causing the vein to collapse.
(Following the procedure, the blood previously flowing through the vein becomes naturally redirected into other leg veins.) Results are immediate.
The process uses local anesthesia and may be done in the doctor’s office, though many physicians prefer a hospital or surgical center.
The patient is up and walking after the procedure and wears compression bandages for 24 to 48 hours afterward. The procedure is only minimally painful and patients are able to resume normal activity after 48 hours.
I prefer to treat smaller varicose veins at the same time as well.
SMALLER VARICOSE VEINS
Once the great saphenous veins have been treated — or if ultrasound reveals that the saphenous valves are fine — the doctor can then treat any smaller varicose veins requiring attention.
Sclerotherapy is the “gold standard” for treating small- to medium-sized varicose veins. A small needle is used to inject a solution that irritates the vein’s internal lining, causing it to collapse. Although the vein is still there, it visually disappears since it no longer contains any blood.
The doctor typically makes a series of injections along the vein. The procedure is relatively painless, though the injections may sting slightly.
The patient is up and walking afterward and then wears compression bandages for several weeks. Depending on the number of varicose veins, more than one session may be needed.
Although both legs can be injected during one session (if there are multiple veins to be treated), for patient comfort and to limit session duration to less than one hour, you may need several sessions. I like to schedule sessions four to six weeks apart.
Sclerotherapy, delivered by an experienced doctor, has an excellent success rate and is quite safe. Still, it’s not completely without side effects.
Some patients may experience temporary bruising, sores, redness or brown pigmentation around the injection site. In rare cases, the patient may have an allergic reaction (itching, swelling) to the sclerosing liquid — this is seldom serious.
Doctors sometimes test a small area before the procedure if the patient has a history of allergies. Or some liquid may escape from the vein, causing temporary irritation.
Sodium tetradecyl sulfate (Sotradecol) and concentrated saline solutions are the only FDA-approved sclerosing agents in the US. Polidocanol (Aethoxysklerol) is used extensively in Europe and by some US doctors but is not approved by the FDA — so I do not use it for that reason.
Several more agents are expected to become available soon — including Varisolve, a foam version of polidocanol used widely in Europe and currently in clinical trials in the US.
The foam delivers the sclerosant more efficiently because it is less likely than a liquid to be diluted and deactivated when it mixes with the blood. This makes it more effective than other agents now in use, especially in larger veins.
Ambulatory (“stab”) phlebectomy is used for varicose veins too large to be treated with sclerotherapy. Instead, the veins are removed.
The doctor makes a series of tiny incisions along the vein, then uses a tiny hooked instrument to pull vein segments out through the incisions. The procedure is typically done in the doctor’s office using local anesthesia.
The incisions are so small that often no stitches are required. The patient can walk immediately following the procedure and wears compression bandages or compression hosiery for at least two weeks afterward.
TREATING SPIDER VEINS
A common variation of varicose veins are spider veins (networks of tiny purple or red blood vessels just under the skin surface), a purely cosmetic problem. Treating them is generally not covered by insurance.
Two treatments are sclerotherapy — an approach made possible by the recent introduction of extra-small sclerotherapy needles — or laser therapy, in which a laser is beamed through the skin to collapse the blood vessels. Both treatments have a success rate of more than 90%.
interviewed John Blebea, MD, a vascular surgeon and professor of vascular surgery and endovascular therapy at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine in Cleveland.
August 14th, 2010 at 12:42 pm
THESE REALLY WORKS!!
I checked this out on Snopes and it’s for real!
AMAZING SIMPLE HOME REMEDIES:
2. AVOID ARGUMENTS WITH THE FEMALES ABOUT LIFTING THE TOILET SEAT BY USING THE SINK.
August 14th, 2010 at 12:45 pm
Thanks Michelle for your article on Malalai Joya.
She is a heroine here in Iran too.
August 14th, 2010 at 9:20 pm
Olbermann Blasts Dr. Laura: ‘Genuine, Blind Ignorant Racism’ (VIDEO)
August 14th, 2010 at 9:28 pm
A visiting ship on its way to talk with those below will be coming in hard. That means that since they are angry about the pollution of their friends’ environment below they will not soften their ship’s gravitational pull.
The pull will be upon your plates. Hence where they surface there will follow a series of earthquakes. The degree will depend on the position of the plates affected and how hard they come in.
We will be negotiating with them on that concern. But you have destroyed a large portion of the underwater habitats of their friends. Hence they are not in a compromising mood.
They will approach on the side of the Northern Marianas. Guam most liked with be effected.
Xur
August 14th, 2010 at 10:00 pm
What will it take to stop men?
August 14th, 2010 at 10:25 pm
It looks as though Guam is in line for some action. Our government seems to be privy of this, as well, based on the most recent preparations the military has been taking on there. This seems to mean that our government is privy to this upcoming visit Xur is referring to. Of course they will deny this…
Be well Anna, Peter, and all readers of Guam.
August 15th, 2010 at 3:20 am
Hafa Adai Doug:
It’s 815PM here. I just read the blog. We have not felt any earthquakes or tremor. There were a look at possible Tsunamis but nothing so far.
There is an ominous presence of military from so many different nations here that it is scary to think about.
I hope for the best.
Lea
August 15th, 2010 at 4:20 am
The Healing Power of Compassion
Charles Raison, MD
Geshe Lobsang Tenzin Negi, PhD
Emory University
Thinking empathetically about other people improves your own health, research shows. Regularly meditating on the well-being of others reduces your body’s inflammatory responses to stress — and that lowers your risk for heart disease, diabetes, dementia and other stress-related health problems.
The goal of compassion meditation is to reshape your responses to other people by concentrating on the interconnectedness of every human being.
It’s easy: Try the following technique for 10 minutes a day, three to four times per week.
WEEK ONE. Sit comfortably, eyes closed, breathing deeply. Think about a time when you were kind to another person — for instance, helping a loved one through a crisis or simply holding a door for a stranger. Recognize your great capacity for goodness. For the last few minutes of your meditation, repeat, “May I be free from suffering… may I find the sources of happiness.”
WEEK TWO. Repeat the same exercise, this time building compassion toward a loved one. Think about someone close to you — your mother, daughter, dear friend — and focus on what a blessing she is in your life. Then think about any suffering she is experiencing… and what you can do to ease her pain. Recite: “May she be free from suffering… may she find the sources of happiness.”
WEEK THREE. Think about someone with whom you have only a minor connection — a bus driver, a waiter at your favorite café. How is he a blessing in your life? How might he be suffering? How can you ease his pain (for instance, with a smile and a sincere word of thanks)? Conclude with the recitation.
WEEK FOUR. Focus on someone you dislike — a whiny neighbor, a critical cousin. Identify blessings, perhaps as lessons you have learned about being patient or not judging others. Consider how the person may suffer… for instance, from being a quitter or having few friends. Finish with the recitation.
MOVING AHEAD. Continue to practice several times weekly, incorporating all four types of compassion into your meditation.
Women’s Health interviewed Charles Raison, MD, clinical director, Mind-Body Program, Emory University School of Medicine… and former Tibetan Buddhist monk Geshe Lobsang Tenzin Negi, PhD, senior lecturer, Emory University, and spiritual director, Drepung Loseling Monastery, all in Atlanta.