B4U India

Everything you ever wanted to know about sex but were afraid to ask

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:54:00 -0400

In a sophisticated approach towards sex guidance, the Women''s Institute in UK is set to release a video on internet, which will include tips such as the best sexual position to adopt if your husband has suffered a heart attack previously, and even a rundown on battery-operated sex toys.

Known for offering sensible advice on household matters, WI will now be offering sensible advice on sex as well.

The video is being presented by Janice Langley, who belongs to Washington WI in West Sussex.

In the video, she suggests exploring relations in the lounge, the kitchen or even the garden (as long as the neighbours aren''t watching), but the video is entirely set in the bedroom.

And in order to add a raunchy touch to the video, Langley has even brandished a French maid''s outfit urging viewers to "try something really saucy".

"We''re not all 85 and knitting. We have a diverse membership," Times Online quoted her as saying.

Her presentation, called "sex, myths and spicy tips" is one of six subjects included in the video, which cover all topics ranging from IT, gardening, home management, the environment and creativity.

No-nonsense women with a natural air of authority have presented most of the topics in firm and well-modulated tones.

However, Langley''s video is the most eye-opening.

She has dealt with rising levels of sexually transmitted diseases among older people, and has advised them not to think of condoms as being just for contraception.

If one partner has arthritis or has suffered a brain haemorrhage, the video laso suggests what sexual positions are to be used.

The video shows Langley reclining on a bed with a variety of magazines, DVDs and sexual aids in vibrant colours, and says: "They come in all shapes and sizes. You may say nice girls don''t do that, but they do and they enjoy it."

She has also given suggestion on how women can cope if they or their husbands go off sex.

Langley said that she had discussed with the director what subjects to cover in her presentation that uses cartoon characters, which enact her words.

She said: "I wrote the script from the point of view of what I''d like to say. They were very good about sticking to what I felt comfortable with.

"It was filmed in my house and it was a long day. It was very different from anything I''d ever experienced before. The video is about showing that we have some very skilled and educated women in the WI. Quite often the perception is just about jam and cake."

Sixty-six-year-old Langley, who sits on the board of the National Federation of Women''s Institutes, was chosen for the job because she is a former nurse and a retired counsellor and sex therapist.

The video can be seen on www.sky.com/w-icon. (ANI)

Nine out of 10 overweight Britons are called by derogatory names

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:53:00 -0400

Nine out of 10 fat Britons are being called by derogatory names such as ‘porker’ or ‘thunder thighs’, says a new survey.

The top four hate names were ‘fatty’, ‘fat’, ‘lard arse’ and ‘fat b*****d’, while other common jibes included ‘porker’, ‘thunder thighs’, ‘Mr Blobby’ and ‘Ten Ton Tess’.

The survey involving 1,000 adults also found that such fat jibes were common among youngsters.

It said that weight-related name calling were "endemic" among Britons, with nine out of 10 overweight people experiencing it because of their excess pounds.

This negative attitude was shared by many of those who had felt the brunt of insults, with 33 pct of obese or very obese respondents among the name-callers.

Misguided banter could be why men were ready to insult friends and relatives in this way, with nearly a third (28 pct) doing so, in comparison to just 11pct of women.

The survey found that twice as many Londoners (30pct) called a friend or relative a nasty name compared to their Scottish counterparts (15pct).

"It''''s sad that adults now find such behaviour acceptable, and particularly so among the younger age groups, as they could well carry through these views as they get older, thus increasing the problem even further,” the Telegraph quoted Mandy Cassidy, a psychotherapist with the weight loss specialist LighterLife, which commissioned the survey, as saying.

"Just because someone is overweight, it doesn''''t mean it''''s acceptable to insult them.

“This type of prejudice isn''''t tolerated in any other walk of life - so we shouldn''''t allow it here," she added.

Dr. Ian W Campbell, of the charity Weight Concern also expressed concerns over the survey results.

"These findings are very concerning. People who have a weight problem need support and encouragement, not ridicule.

"Few people want to be very overweight and most would love to be able to change. That process needs support, not criticism; it needs incentive, not punishment," he added.(ANI)

Aussies are becoming slaves to technology

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:52:00 -0400

Australian people are increasingly becoming addicted to new technology, says a report.

Christena Singh, author of the 2008 Sensis e-Business Report, says that people’s inclination towards technology may be good for social connections and business efficiency, but it also raises some safety and social concerns.

She says that the Aussies are taking up new technology in droves, and it is proving to be quite addictive for some people.

"And its not just Gen Y — its right across the board, from little ones to seniors," News.com.au quoted her as saying.

The Sensis e-Business Report indicates that about 10 per cent Australians have a phone with email access.

It further states that 60 per cent people use a mobile email device mainly for work, while a further 10 per cent use it for both work and personal use. About 30 per cent people use the device mostly for personal use.

Over 60 per cent users never turn off their device, with about 20 per cent turning the device off over the weekend.

Half of users respond to work-related emails in their personal time, either always or most of the time.

The findings go to show that most Australians believe that mobile email is a useful tool that allows them to respond to email quickly, and work away from the office, besides providing them with mobility and convenience and assisting in work-life balance.

"The intrusion into one''s personal life is seen as the biggest negative impact," Singh said.

"However, Australians are very attached to this technology and would be reluctant to give it up," she added.

She said that 30 per cent users said that they would definitely not consider giving up the device.

Her report also highlights a spike in the number of small businesses owning notebook computers and personal websites.

Though personal websites have strengthen business organisations’ positions in the market, online security has emerged as a cause of concern because most Aussies have supplied personal information online during the year. (ANI)

Altaf warns 400,000 armed Afghans have intruded into Karachi

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:51:00 -0400

More than 400,000 Afghan nationals have arrived in Karachi, fully equipped with latest automatic weapons, MQM (Muttahidda Qaumi Movement) chief Altaf Hussain has claimed.

“These intruders have entered the city with an intention to occupy the whole of Sindh but the MQM is determined to oppose the Taliban, Al Qaeda and other jihadi elements and religious extremists,” the Daily Times quoted Hussain as saying in London.

Condemning suicide bombers, he said that their actions had defamed Islam worldwide.

He said that MQM workers would defend the citizens of Karachi against the 400,000 Afghans and Taliban in accordance with the United Nations Charter and the shariah.

Altaf has been staying in self-imposed exile in London for over 16 years. He faces arrest in a case related to the murder of former Sindh Governor Hakeem Muhammed Saeed, in which nine other MQM members were sentenced to death. He has also been accused of being involved in the kidnapping and torture of a Pakistan Army Major in 1991. (ANI)

US drones still hover over North Waziristan

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:50:00 -0400

Tribesmen in MIranshah said that barely hours after a missile strike killed at least four people, they saw US’ pilotless spy planes hovering over North Waziristan on Sunday.

Two missiles from suspected US drones struck a compound just outside Miranshah. The targeted compound was the residence of Taliban Omar Daraz, the Daily Times quoted a security official as saying.

The residents further said that they could see three drones overhead as they sifted through the remains of the destroyed compound searching for further casualties. (ANI)

JI chief Qazi warns forming tribal lashkars will push Pak towards a civil war

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:50:00 -0400

A senior Islamist leader in Pakistan has reportedly said that the formation of lashkars (body of local tribesmen) to fight back the Taliban was a “wrong policy” and that it was resulting in further “militarizing the society”.

He said this should be stopped, else it would result in civil war in the Tribal and settled areas of the NWFP.

“The move was pushing the society towards chaos and uncertainty, resulting in further bloodshed,” the Daily Times quoted Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Qazi Hussain Ahmad as saying at a press conference.

He said that the government would not achieve its objectives from the move that would “further militarise” the society. The bomb attack on a tribal jirga in Orakzai Agency was a result of the “wrong” policy of raising tribal lashkars in the agency, he claimed.

He said that the war (being fought in the Tribal Areas) was a “conspiracy hatched by the US”, which, he added, was planning to “shift the war theatre from Afghanistan to Pakistan”.

Qazi said that the events in the Bajaur Agency were also a part of the same game, and that the US wanted to establish its military base in Bajaur.

He further said that the allies of the US in the war on terror such as the UK and France were now admitting that they were fighting a “useless” war in Afghanistan where a “decisive” military victory was impossible.

He demanded that the government start negotiations with the Taliban in Bajaur Agency through the “true representatives” of the people of those areas and end the war. Hundreds of people had been displaced and that civilians had borne the brunt of this “useless” war, he added. (ANI)

McCain saw White House from a cell in Hanoi

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:49:00 -0400

Republivan presidential candidate John McCain and the other US servicemen held as prisoners of war in North Vietnam in the 1960s developed a number of survival techniques.

None was quite as effective as the one former Navy pilot Richard Stratton remembers: "If you kept your mind occupied, you were going to be okay."

Stratton would imagine meticulously assembling a large glider and flying it over the Alps. Another prisoner imagined himself fishing, the Washington Post reported.

But McCain had the most audacious dream of all, and he shared his vision one day with a group of fellow POWs.

“He was talking about his father to us and then he said: ‘I want to be President of the United States. Someday I’m going to be President,’ “ Stratton recalls. “If the cell wasn’t so small, we’d have been rolling around laughing.”

His friend, thought Stratton, ought to be concentrating far less on his fantasy and more on how to redirect a naval career that had been adrift before he was shot down over Hanoi.

“We reminded him that he had dug himself a big hole with his demerits in the past and nearly being the bottom man of his class at the Naval Academy,” Stratton recalls.

“And now he was talking about being President? ‘Come on, John. Get your career straightened out.’”

Not at all dissuaded, McCain offered his view on the meaning of real command, shaped in part by his father’s perspective on genuine power.

McCain wanted to be the one who made the decisions, he said, and his father had taught him that even such impressive-sounding jobs as chief of naval operations, the service''s highest uniformed position, didn''t always provide that opportunity. The only job that guaranteed it was that of president, McCain believed.

“Pursuit of command,” as McCain often referred to it, was an ethos bordering on obsession in his family, and it was in Vietnam that he embraced it.

But though McCain was the son and grandson of admirals, he decided his pursuit would be in another arena -- politics, where he would come to define success not in terms of ideas or legislation but in fulfilling his family''s ideals of leadership and character.

Over the next few years, according to the recollections of men who knew him well, McCain didn''t vacillate over conflicting career paths as much as lurch from one to the other, depending on how much he was despairing at a given moment about his reputation in the Navy, or how he was gauging his relative chances for leadership in politics vs. the military.

He hadn''t come any closer to deciding on his future when, in March 1973, a peace accord gave the POWs their freedom and McCain was suddenly flying home toward a reunion with his wife, Carol, and their three children in Florida.

Even before their plane reached the mainland, McCain and the other POWs received an inkling of the country''s fascination with them: When they made a stop in Hawaii, the tarmac was bathed in lights and ringed by television cameras.

The national jubilation and intense media coverage that greeted the returning men only heightened McCain''s indecision about his future.

He discovered he had new status, new friends and, potentially, new career opportunities outside the military. A president, a magnate and a powerful governor all wanted to fete him and the other POWs.

President Richard M. Nixon issued orders to arrange for a gala White House dinner. Ross Perot, a Naval Academy graduate and billionaire entrepreneur, followed up on the financial assistance he had given to Carol McCain and some other POW wives during their husbands'' captivity by throwing a huge party for the freed men.

During the whirlwind of well-wishers and media that greeted his return to his Florida home, McCain told neighbors he was eager to get back to active duty.

But within a few weeks, he confided to another naval officer that he planned to retire from the Navy as soon as he reached the 20-year mark necessary for obtaining a pension. He had new plans, he said cryptically. (ANI)

Lesbian porn star wants name cleared to work with disadvantaged children

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:49:00 -0400

Former porn star Rebecca Jane Clarke, who made lesbian pornography movies with teenagers, will be asking the High Court to clear her name so that she can work with disadvantaged children.

Clarke, 23, is seeking to have her conviction erased on the basis of a controversial ruling, which acquits sex offenders if they "honestly believe" their victims are more than the age of consent, News.com.au reported.

The pornographic movies that Clarke made were with two girls, who were both 14-years of age, and she wants her name off the national sex-offender register.

Her working as a counsellor depends upon the High Court''s decision to accept her plea or not to erase the conviction.

Clarke, of Goulburn in NSW, is serving a two-year good-behaviour bond for producing child pornography and inciting an indecent act.

She and her co-accused, Renee Jean Malyschko and Daniel Troy Osis, made a DVD of six movies, with the teenage girls, in Adelaide in 2005.

At trial, Clarke insisted that she "honestly believed" the girls were 17. (ANI)

Right of self determination and ''All Parties Adhoc Committee''

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:48:00 -0400

London: What a change? What a U turn? Those who were until recently selling General Musharaf''s four point agenda on Kashmir leading to division of the State of Jammu and Kashmir have made another somersault and have brought out a new ''commodity'' wrapped skilfully in cover of right of self determination.

Right of self determination is a fundamental human right and is highly respected in all societies, especially in the West. Many countries and agencies use this noble concept of self determination to further their national and personal interests. Some business minded people have transformed the Kashmiri struggle in to a lucrative business, and they have ability to sell anything.

They have mastered the art of salesmanship, and have successfully sold Kashmir issue for generations. When it suited them they advocated the status quo, when militancy was popular, it was sold as a ''Jihad''. When popularity of militancy declined they became advocates of peace and human rights. When General Musharaf, as a President of Pakistan proposed a division of Kashmir in a form of ''self rule'', they advocated that ''self rule'' was more ''advanced'' and ''forward looking'' concept than right of self determination.

Now that General Musharaf is no longer calling shots and his four point agenda is abandoned, policy makers in Islamabad thought of promoting right of accession under disguise of self determination. They approached their tried and tested ally based in Chandni Chowk of Rawalpindi, who successfully accomplished many missions for them in the past.

As a result of that understanding a declaration was made with regard to ''right of self determination''. This so called nationalist leader who is not regarded as such by any nationalist party of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit and Baltistan, and is out of step with all parties who promote united and independent Jammu and Kashmir is still ''blue eye boy'' of Pakistani agencies.

He seems to be more at home with pro Pakistan parties and that is why he never felt need to consult or talk to any of the nationalist parties. He under directions of his mentors had meetings with pro Pakistan parties and declared right of self determination day on 14th October.

Their foot soldiers and employees in Europe were also issued directions to hold some function to promote their brand of ''right of self determination'' that it ''coincide with the right of self-determination day called by their mentors in Islamabad, hence some people in a close room meting set up an ''All Parties Adhoc Committee'' in name of Kashmiri Diaspora.

Interestingly these promoters of right of self determination felt no need to take in to confidence anyone from Jammu, Ladakh, All Parties Nationalist Alliance - alliance of nationalist parties of Azad Kashmir of Gilgit and Baltistan, or GABNA alliance of parties in Gilgit and Baltistan, Kashmiri alliances among Kashmiri Diaspora and popular parties in the Valley; and yet
they have nerve to claim that they are representing the majority view. It clearly looked that their aim was to promote a Muslim interest – a right of self determination for Muslims to divide people of Jammu and Kashmir on religious lines.

Dr Nazir Gilani, a prominent human rights activist and Secretary General of JKCHR- only Kashmiri party with a special consultative status with the UN, was also among those who were not invited to this so called meeting in which this so called ''All Parties Adhoc Committee'' was set up. A Kashmiri channel – KBC is sincerely trying to educate people and doing its best to help Kashmiri Diaspora to forge some kind of unity; and Shams Rehman is playing a leading role in this regard.

Shams Rehman had a special TV programme for this purpose, and when he pressed these promoters of new right of ''self determination'', why they did not take other Kashmiris on board to promote unity and right of self determination, one man who receives a salary from a centre set up by Pakistani agencies said: We have called all people who believe in right of self determination, but we will not invite those who are ''hashia bardaar of India'' and that he ''will expose these people''. The term ''Hashia bardaar of India'' is abusive and derogative, and is not used by self respecting people – one can translate it as a ''member of an Indian lobby or agent of India''.

This man was a school teacher before the start of militancy and since that time has changed many platforms which helped him to run his kitchen. His mentors could not promote him adequately with a title of school teacher so they gave him a new title of a ''Professor''; and exported him from Islamabad to London with hefty salary. Perhaps this guy does not know that his
language was divisive and full of hatred; and he could be clearly in violation of British laws. The British authorities don''t look kindly at those who spread communalism and hatred, and advocate such policies which can shatter peace and harmony of the British society.

After pressure from the KBC team and other political parties they hurriedly issued some invitations. On Saturday 11th October I checked with some active nationalist parties in UK and I was astonished to find out that they did not receive any invitation, and this so called seminar is taking place on 14thOctober. Active participant in this campaign is Amanulalh Khan''s JKLF which is not regarded as a nationalist party by nationalists of Jammu and Kashmir, and like Muslim Conference their role is to protect and promote interest of Islamabad from their respective platforms.

According to the rational expressed by this employee of Islamabad all those who were not invited in the so called original meeting or there after are''Hashia bardaar of India'' – agents of India?

It would be pertinent to ask some questions from these champions of ''rightof self determination'':

1. Who called this meeting of representatives of Kashmiri Diaspora to set up an ''All Parties Adhoc Committee''?

2.What criteria, if any, were used to extend invitations?

3.When and where this meeting was held and who were present?

4.Names associated with this enterprise also belong to political parties; and those parties also have a policy on Kashmir, does it mean thatthey are disappointed with the policy or stand of their parent parties thatthey felt obliged to set up a new platform?

5. Apart from that these people are also associated with pro Pakistan alliance known as Rabta Committee or Coordination Committee, does it mean that this platform is no longer capable to advance the cause of self determination? (ANI)

Christian families in Orissa being forced to abandon their faith

Mon, 13 Oct 2008 11:48:00 -0400

India, the world’s most populous democracy and officially a secular nation, is today haunted by a stark assault on one of its fundamental freedoms.

In Orissa, which has been riven by six weeks of religious clashes, Christian families like the Digals say they are being forced to abandon their faith in exchange for their safety.

A New York Times report says that these forced conversions come amid widening attacks on Christians here and in at least five other states across the country, as India prepares for national elections next spring.

The clash of faiths has cut a wide swath of panic and destruction through the once quiet hamlets fed by paddy fields and jackfruit trees.

In Kandhamal district that has seen the greatest violence, more than 30 people have been killed, 3,000 homes burned and over 130 churches destroyed, including the tin-roofed Baptist prayer hall where the Digals worshiped.

Today it is a heap of rubble on an empty field, where cows blithely graze.

Across this ghastly terrain lie the singed remains of mud-and-thatch homes. Christian-owned businesses have been systematically attacked. Orange flags (orange is the sacred color of Hinduism) flutter triumphantly above the rooftops of houses and storefronts.

India is no stranger to religious violence between Christians, who make up about 2 percent of the population, and India’s Hindu-majority of 1.1 billion people. But this most recent spasm is the most intense in years, claims the paper.

The police have blamed Maoist guerrillas for the swami’s killing. But Hindu radicals continue to hold Christians responsible.

In recent weeks, they have plastered these villages with gruesome posters of the swami’s hacked corpse. “Who killed him?” the posters ask. “What is the solution?”

Behind the clashes are long-simmering tensions between equally impoverished groups: the Panas and Kandhas. Both original inhabitants of the land, the two groups for ages worshiped the same gods. Over the past several decades, the Panas for the most part became Christian, as Roman Catholic and Baptist missionaries arrived here more than 60 years ago, followed more recently by Pentecostals, who have proselytized more aggressively.

Meanwhile, the Kandhas, in part through the teachings of Swami Laxmanananda, embraced Hinduism. The men tied the sacred Hindu white thread around their torsos; their wives daubed their foreheads with bright red vermilion. Temples sprouted.

Hate has been fed by economic tensions as well, as the government has categorized each group differently and given them different privileges.

The Kandhas accused the Panas of cheating to obtain coveted quotas for government jobs. The Christian Panas, in turn, say their neighbors have become resentful as they have educated themselves and prospered.

Their grievances have erupted in sporadic clashes over the past 15 years, but they have exploded with a fury since the killing of Swami Laxmanananda. (ANI)