Revisiting India, Max Kantar, Edhi, Obama, Palestine, India, Hate Crimes Bill

Thirty years later, Star feature writer Jennifer Wells retraces her steps in India to learn how much both of them have changed.

Robert Bernstein: Human Shield for Criticism of Israel - By Max Kantar- Earlier this week the New York Times published an op-ed article, Rights Watchdog, ‘Lost in the Mideast’ written by Robert L. Bernstein, the founding chairman emeritus of Human Rights Watch. The editorial amounts to one regurgitation of Israeli propaganda after another in an effort to delegitimize mainstream criticism of Israeli policies in the international human rights community. The timing of Bernstein's article is instructive; its publication in the New York Times comes on the heels of the release of the Goldstone Report as the intellectual apologists for Israeli crimes in the U.S. go into ultra-hysteria mode to save the already eroding image of their favorite client state. Bernstein decries HRW for its supposed anti-Israel bias and unleashes a tirade of familiar accusations routinely invoked by ‘supporters of Israel’ to deflect criticism of the Jewish state. To make the case that HRW--and presumably the international human rights community in general—has ‘lost critical perspective’ on Israel-Palestine, Bernstein cites six major points:

Pakistani Philanthropist Wins 2009 UN Prize for Non-Violence - By pakpositive on People
Dr Abul Sattar Edhi of the Edhi Foundation in Karachi has been awarded the 2009...

Right-wing media claim Obama is criticizing Fox for "tough questions" and "reporting the truth"
By J.V.B. & B.C.O. - Several right-wing media figures have claimed that the Obama administration is criticizing Fox News because the network asks "tough questions" and is "reporting the truth." This assertion is undermined by Fox News' extensive history of advancing falsehoods, repeatedly passing off GOP materials as news, doctoring quotes, and frequently engaging in outrageous attacks on President Obama, such as Glenn Beck's claim that he is a "racist" with a "deep-seated hatred for white people, or the white culture -- I don't know what it is."

Deal or No Deal in Palestine - By James Gundun - Washington D.C. The Middle East has a new game to play. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, plagued by internal and external pressure, issued a peace call for the ages during his opening address at Israel’s Presidential Conference, titled ‘Facing Tomorrow.’ Netanyahu voiced a sound suggestion to rekindle the peace process.

Books" href="http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=f2aaff670ded3eb5b1b3c4fc1e2b99a3" target=_blank>Song of India By GAIUTRA BAHADUR on Immortals, The (Book) - A comedy of manners about a musician coming of age in status-conscious 1980s Bombay.

Hate Crimes Bill On Its Way To Obama’s Desk!!! What Say You Fox News??? By Priscilla
Despite all the prayers and entreaties of the homophobic “Christian” faithful, aided and abetted by America’s mouthpiece for the American Taliban (whoops, the religious right), Fox News, the Matthew Shepherd bill, which makes violence against gays and lesbians a hate crime, passed the senate and is heading for the President’s desk. Is there a lesson for Fox News that fomenting hatred has its limits?...