This painting was commissioned by someone working in Afghanistan and he wanted to immortalise his time over there. His request coincided perfectly with the shambles that was the elections and the announcement of Karzai's eventual and somewhat unconstitutional (perhaps?) victory and re-election to President. Hurrah for democracy! Though thats all in the past now, quickly forgotten about and life goes on.
"Afghan women and girls want education. Many risk their lives to go to school... Human rights are not a western concept, but universal and necessary for all human beings "
Dr Sima Samar, chairperson of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission and Special Human Rights Rapportuer for Sudan.
Kabul, Afghanistan, April 15, 2009: Hundreds of Afghan women stood up to an angry crowd and marched to the Parliament, calling for repeal of a new law restricting women's lives.
For the women of Afghanistan and neighboring areas of Pakistan dominated by the Taliban, recent news has been dire: The new law passed by Parliament and signed by President Karzai, forbidding women to leave the house without their husbands' permission and legalizing marital rape; a 17 year-old woman in the Swat region of Pakistan, flogged for what the local Taliban commander described as a "transgression"; continuing attacks on girls' schools. According to the Feminist Majority Foundation, hundreds of girls' schools have been destroyed and teachers murdered; young girls on their way to school had acid thrown at them.
Reaction to the new law -- and to the attacks on women which preceded it -- has been strong: President Obama said "I think this law is abhorrent. Certainly the views of this administration have been, and will be communicated to the Karzai government... The first reason we are there is to root out al Qaeda...those two things aren't contradictory, I think they're complementary..."
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton: "My message is very clear: Women's rights are a central part of American foreign policy in the Obama administration; they are not marginal; they re not an add-on or afterthought...So we will continue to work very hard on behalf of women and girls in Afghanistan and around the world." Women Senators have spoken up: a bipartisan group, led by U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and including Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Claire McCaskill (D-MO), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) sent a letter to President Karzai.
"This law should be reversed immediately," Boxer said. "Not only is this law an attack on individual freedom, but it condones despicable acts against women in their homes. By approving this law, Afghan leaders are holding back the entire country's progress and turning the nation back toward some of the most oppressive practices of the Taliban."
Responding to the public outcry, President Karzai has now promised to review the law. According to his aide, the legislation is not yet law, and will be reviewed so that it will be "consistent with the rights provided in the Constitution -- equality and the protection of women"
The State Departments is monitoring what happens next: "We're glad that President Karzai has agreed to review this law critics say permits spousal rape and severely limits women's rights," said State Department spokesman Robert Wood. "And we'll be watching this closely to see how the process develops."
Watch the video. Video courtesy of the Associated Press.
The women of Afghanistan are risking their lives to speak up for their rights; we must continue to speak up for them.
SCIENCE COMES (BACK) TO WASHINGTON
An important policy announcement this week, and a demonstration that respect for scientific evidence and evidence-based decision making has come back to Washington: The Environmental Protection Agency said formally that carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases "endanger public health and welfare within the meaning of the Clean Air Act." Among the problems they cause: increased drought, flooding, more frequent heat waves and wildfires, and harm to water resources, agriculture and eco-systems. The proposed finding is open for comment review for 60 days, but I think I have my favorite already: "'Duh' may not be a scientific term, but it applies here" said Emily Figdor, federal global warming director of Environment America. " EPA has embraced the basic facts on global warming that scientists around the world have acknowledged for years." A very happy Earth Day to all of us concerned about the health of our families -- and our planet.
EQUAL RIGHTS AT HOME
Next Tuesday, April 28th is Equal Pay Day -- and if you wonder why that day was chosen, April 28 marks how long into the current year American women have to work to catch up with what was earned by men just in the previous year. Think what a difference that equal paycheck would make to your family!
This year, we can celebrate passage of the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, the first legislation signed into law by President Obama, which ensures that women have a reasonable chance to sue for pay discrimination. But we could do so much more by acting, to prevent discrimination the first place. The Paycheck Fairness Act, originally sponsored by then-Senator Hillary Clinton, and now led by Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) and Representative Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) would strengthen the Equal Pay laws, and help take equal pay from the law books to our checkbooks.
We have a lot more information coming about and actions you can take on Equal Pay and the Paycheck Fairness Act -- stay tuned.
NO LIMITS IS GROWING
We're so proud to announce the next steps for No Limits: our new website will be ready soon, with resources and information about the issues you care about, and a special social networking feature that will make it easier for us all to stay connected.
You can help us grow! When you get the announcement of our new website, will you forward it to your friends?
Dogpile.com Helps Soldiers Bring Rescued Puppies Home from Afghanistan
Search & Rescue Program Helps Provide Warm Welcome Home for Soldiers
BELLEVUE, Wash. (February 02, 2009) /PRNewswire/ — Dogpile.com assisted two American soldiers, Dan Barker and Adam Krause, with the expense and dangerous task of bringing home puppies they'd rescued in Afghanistan while stationed there. In anticipation of Dan and Adam's return to the United States, the puppies, Jack and Emma, were transported home to Dan's wife just in time for the holidays.
• "We feel so fortunate to have played a hand in such an emotional and memorable time for the soldiers, their families and the two puppies," said Stacy Ybarra, director of corporate giving for Dogpile.com. "Helping provide Jack and Emma safe and loving homes is what the Search & Rescue program is all about and we look forward to continuing to help many more animals in need by donating money through Dogpile searches."
In November 2008, Dogpile launched Search & Rescue, which allows anyone to help needy animals just by searching the Web on Dogpile.com. The company had no idea the message would reach American soldiers serving overseas. But Dan Barker heard it from Afghanistan. Dan, whose tour of duty was nearing its end, couldn't bear the thought of returning home without Jack, a malnourished, young stray he'd rescued and raised in his quarters. Adam Krause, a U.S. soldier serving with Dan, felt the same way about Emma, a struggling puppy he'd raised alongside Jack. The soldiers had bonded with the puppies and knew that, if left in Afghanistan, Jack and Emma wouldn't survive the war-torn streets. But bringing a puppy back from Afghanistan is expensive and dangerous. So when Dan read about Dogpile's Search & Rescue program, he reached out for help.
Once the Search & Rescue team heard Jack and Emma's story, they offered to sponsor and arrange the dogs' trips home. • "Jack has been such an important part of my husband's life these past few months. He has helped my husband, along with the men on his team, escape from the harsh reality they have been living in," said Dan's wife, Lisa Barker. "The things these men have to see and deal with truly force them to build a wall around their emotions. I believe Jack has been so therapeutic to my husband, and helped him through some of the toughest times. Jack and Daniel have formed a true companionship that I know will continue to grow over the years. I promise you Jack will have the most loving home and family a dog could ever ask for." Visit http://rescue.dogpile.com/jack to meet the puppies who won the soldiers' hearts and follow each step of their journey home. Plus, check back for video footage of Jack and Dan's reunion and updates on how the dogs are doing in their new homes.
About Search & Rescue: The Search & Rescue program was launched in November 2008 and allows anyone to help animals in need for free by doing what they already do — search the Web. That's because a portion of revenue generated by searches conducted on Dogpile.com is donated to help animals in need. The downloadable Search & Rescue Toolbar makes it even easier to search right from your browser. With the help of its users, Dogpile hopes to raise at least one million dollars for pet rescue by the end of 2009. For more information about Search & Rescue, please visit http://rescue.dogpile.com/pets. To view a live counter tracking Search & Rescue revenue raised to date, please visit www.dogpile.com/rescue.
About Dogpile.com Dogpile goes beyond search as usual by providing a fun and engaging place to discover all the Web has to offer. Because Dogpile compiles the top search results from all the leading search engines, searches on Dogpile return all the best results with just one search. Dogpile is a business of InfoSpace, Inc. (NASDAQ:INSP). For information about InfoSpace, please visit: www.infospaceinc.com. About InfoSpace, Inc.
InfoSpace, Inc. is a leading developer of metasearch products to help people easily search and discover the Web. InfoSpace uses its proprietary metasearch technology that combines the top results from the leading search engines to power a portfolio of branded Web sites, including Dogpile (www.dogpile.com) and WebFetch (www.webfetch.com). In 2008, for the second consecutive year, Dogpile ranked highest in customer satisfaction among search engines, according to JD Power and Associates. More information can be found at www.infospaceinc.com.
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