Cigdem Göle

Evanescence - My Immortal http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idd_92ajjwY

The Fate of A Man by Michail Sholokhov, Closing Two orphans, two grains of sand swept into strange parts by the tremendous hurricane of war... What did the future hold for them? I wanted to believe that this Russian, this man of unbreakable will, would stick it out, and that the boy would grow at his father's side into a man who could endure anything, overcome any obstacle if his country called upon him to do so. I felt sad as I watched them go. Perhaps all would have been well at our parting if Vanya after going a few paces had not twisted round on his stumpy legs and waved to me with his little rosy hand. And suddenly a soft but taloned paw seemed to grip my heart, and I turned hastily away. No, not only in their sleep do they weep, these elderly men whose hair turned gray in the years of war. They weep, too, in their waking hours. The main thing is to be able to turn away in time. The main thing is not to wound a child's heart, not to let him see that dry, burning tear on the cheek of a man.

English Teachers Network http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=2420726129 National Council of Teachers of English http://www.facebook.com/s.php?sid=8939de5a...gid=20657929304 English Teachers, Trainers, Translators and Interpreters Network http://www.facebook.com/group.php?sid=8939...gid=38370818866

More Facebook groups on the assassination, The Truth Behind The John F Kennedy Assassination http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=2256936616 I Believe There Was A Conspiracy To Kill JFK http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=2263175168

UN levels war crimes warning at Israel http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jan/09/gaza-palestinians-israel-evacuees-zeitoun More than 750 Palestinians have died since the start of the Israeli military operation. More than half of Gaza's population are children, and the Palestinian ministry of health said about 42% of the casualties have been children. Unicef said at least 100 children and minors were killed in the first 10 days of fighting. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights, which posts staff at hospitals to track casualties, put this number at more than 160. Stop child slaughter. Have mercy.

I have no idea why they don't let Red Cross in but they let Red Crescent medical team and 11 trucks loaded with medical supplies and food into Gaza. Photos are taken from the Turkish Red Crescent official website. http://www.kizilay.org.tr/english/index.php

At this point of the discussion, allow me to thank everyone who participate in this thread for their sensitivity to the subject. We might not agree on every aspect of the Israeli - Palestinian conflict but it is surely a matter we must not ignore. I'd also like to express my deepest gratitude to my colleagues in Ankara University /SFL (I know they are constant readers of The Education Forum) who have been helping me with the gathering of clothes, food and medical supplies for the Turkish Red Crescent to be sent to Gaza.

An Italian visiting America "One Day I'ma go to Detroit to a Bigga Otel, I go down to eata breakfast, I tella waitress, I wanna two pisses of toast. She brings me only one piss. I tella her I wanta two piss. She say go to the toilet. I say to her you no understand, I wanna two piss on my plate. She say you better not piss on the plate you sonna ma beach. I don't even know the lady and she calla me a sonna ma beach. So I go back to my room inna Otel, and there's no sheet on my bed. I calla the manager anna tella him I wanna sheet. He tella me to go to the toilet. So I say, you no understand, I wanna sheet on my bed. He say you better not sheet on the bed you sonna ma beach. I go to check out anda the man at the desk say. Peace to you, I say Piss on you too, you sonna ma beach. I go back to Italy."

During a period of seven years, fatal attacks from Gaza to Israel is 20, whereas Israel killed 310 civilians in a day. This clearly shows the misuse of the concept "self-defence". And the most concrete outcome of such wrong actions would be more violence. Due to huge death toll and international communities' –especially UN's- failure to act, people get furious and the ones who lose their relatives, homes or both, become suitable candidates for global jihadists. This sure is in favor of radical movements like Hamas. Bearing in mind that extremist movements arose from difficult circumstances and an unbalanced treatment towards people who are already aggrieved of terrible living conditions, military operations is not the answer.

Dictionary of Womanese 1. Yes = No 2. No = No 3. Maybe = No 4. Fine = I am right. This argument is over. 5. Do whatever you want = You'll pay for this later. 6. Do you love me? = I'm going to ask for something expensive. 7. How much do you love me? = I did something today you're really going to hate. 8. I'm sorry = You'll be sorry. 9. You have to learn to communicate = Just agree with me. 10. Are you listening to me? = Too late, you're dead.

Right. Those who call it a "mess" as long as they are someone else's dead and wounded children do not care. Others certainly do.

Red Cross: Israel delayed access to Gaza wounded By FRANK JORDANS – 23 hours ago GENEVA (AP) — The international Red Cross accused Israel on Thursday of "unacceptable" delays in letting rescue workers reach three Gaza City homes hit by shelling where they eventually found 15 dead and 18 wounded, including young children too weak to stand. The Geneva-based International Committee of the Red Cross said the Israeli army refused rescuers permission to reach the site in the Zeitoun neighborhood for four days. Ambulances could not get to the neighborhood because the Israeli army had erected large earthen barriers that blocked access. Israel said the delay was caused by fighting in the area and accused Hamas of using Palestinian civilians as human shields. Since Wednesday, Israel has observed a daily three-hour halt in operations to allow humanitarian evacuations and aid deliveries throughout Gaza. Eventually, rescuers from the international Red Cross and Palestine Red Crescent received permission to go into the shelled houses during the halt in fighting Wednesday, four days after the buildings were hit by Israeli shells. "This is a shocking incident," Pierre Wettach, head of the ICRC for the region, said. The rescue team "found four small children next to their dead mothers in one of the houses. They were too weak to stand up on their own. One man was also found alive, too weak to stand up," the statement said. "In all, there were at least 12 corpses lying on mattresses" in one of the houses, it added. The organization said the children and the wounded had to be transported by donkey cart to ambulances. "The Israeli military must have been aware of the situation but did not assist the wounded," the international Red Cross said. "Neither did they make it possible for us or the Palestine Red Crescent to assist the wounded." The ICRC normally conducts confidential negotiations with warring parties, and the statement was a rare public criticism of one party to a conflict over a specific incident. The organization said it believes "in this instance, the Israeli military failed to meet its obligation under international humanitarian law to care for and evacuate the wounded." "It considers the delay in allowing rescue services access unacceptable," the Red Cross statement said. The organization alleged Israel also refused requests to go to other destroyed houses in the same neighborhood of Gaza City, where they had reports of more wounded people. Red Cross medics in Gaza could not be reached for comment on the condition of the children rescued from Zeitoun. ICRC spokeswoman Dorothea Krimitsas in Geneva said the children were evacuated during Wednesday's three-hour cease-fire. The Palestine Red Crescent said the children are in the Shifa and al-Quds hospitals in Gaza City. The Associated Press was not able to visit the hospitals because of the dangers of moving around Gaza, and it has been difficult to obtain information from the hospitals about the children because staff are overwhelmed with casualties and unable to talk with reporters. Red Cross spokesman Iyad Nasr said emergency crews evacuated 105 more injured people from Zeitoun on Thursday and were struggling to find shelter for them. Also Thursday, a Palestinian health official said the bodies of 35 people have been found in the rubble of bombed out building in Gaza City during a three-hour pause in fighting, many of them in the Zeitoun neighborhood. The Israeli military did not comment on the specifics of the Red Cross allegations, but said it is closely cooperating with international aid organizations during the Gaza fighting to assist civilians caught in the crossfire. "The Israel Defense Forces are engaged in a battle with the Hamas terrorist organization that has deliberately used Palestinian civilians as human shields," a military statement said. "The IDF in no way intentionally targets civilians and has demonstrated its willingness to abort operations to save civilian lives and to risk injury in order to assist innocent civilians." Israel said it would investigate any formal complaint against the army's conduct within the constraints of the current military operation. Israel's ambassador in Geneva, Aharon Leshno-Yaar, denied his country was failing in its humanitarian obligations. "Once the military activity was over, then it was possible for humanitarian teams to evacuate the wounded," he told The Associated Press. Leshno-Yaar said Israel respects international humanitarian law and is working with aid groups to allow the wounded to be removed and in some cases transferred to hospitals in Israel. But aid groups say safe passage around Gaza remains a problem. On Thursday, the United Nations said it was halting all aid deliveries inside Gaza after gunfire from an Israeli tank killed an aid truck driver. The international Red Cross said it would continue its operations despite one of its convoys coming under fire from an Israeli position at the Netzarim crossing during the three-hour halt in fighting Thursday. One driver was lightly injured. ICRC spokeswoman Dorothea Krimitsas said the convoy, which was escorting ambulances to the south of Gaza, was forced to abort its mission. The World Health Organization said 21 Palestinian medical workers have been killed and 30 injured since Israel launched its offensive on Dec. 27. Copyright © 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

As long as the world goes on watching and as long as the peace loving leaders get assassinated, the possibility of peace in the Middle East is unlikely. I think everyone should protest the assault, since the military/economic power of Israel and Palestine cannot be compared in any way. Therefore, Gaza has become a field where the strong crushes the weak. It's not about religion, it's about conscience or the lack of it.

David, I'm deeply disappointed by your comment (if you ever care). At the end of my life, if I will have the chance to find the time to look back, there will be one thing I will mostly be proud of, that is; not having sided with tyranny regardless of its reason or source.

I agree with this to some extent. Good is a relative term. When I ask my students to define the qualities of a good teacher, they often say, a good teacher is someone who doesn't give any homework or who allows the students to listen to music in class with headphones on. I think it would be better to use the term "effective teacher" instead of "good". The things that fall into the category of effective teacher are not easy to measure. What makes this quality? Having a master's degree? Years of experience? Personality? Knowledge of the subject? However effective a teacher is, he/she cannot make a (relatively) boring subject interesting all the time. I also believe students' receiving the basic needs at home (parental support and care) has a lot to do with their achievement in school. I wouldn't list the last three methods of teaching as non-traditional. During my student years, I took part in all of them and have always thought I was educated in a traditional style.

I think you are missing a very important point. The truth about those Hamas rockets By Dennis Rahkonen Online Journal Contributing Writer Jan 1, 2009, 01:24 Five years ago, the Bush administration lied about weapons of mass destruction to dupe us into supporting an illegal, immoral invasion of Iraq. A few days ago, Israel trotted out only an infinitesimally more credible excuse -- the Hamas rockets case -- as justification for its own murderous shock and awe in Gaza, a long-planned campaign perniciously aimed at ousting a "regime" that came to power via popular, democratic vote. Yes, such rockets exist, but they're little more than slingshots against Israel's incredible military might, and they're used out of desperation by Palestinians who've never been accorded the democratic space within which to gain redress of their eminently just grievances. Israeli apologists have presented absurd propaganda about those devices. We've been asked, for instance, what would we do if rockets were being launched on our homes in New York or Texas, from Canada or Mexico? The proper answer is that, if those two nations had been unlawfully occupied or embargoed by the United States for 60 years of relentless oppression and repression, and if all attempts at peaceful change had been forcefully prevented or scuttled by the U.S., then such attacks would be an understandable, indeed a justifiable attempt at gaining intolerably deferred liberty. Our appropriate response wouldn't be to bomb the hell out of the nearest Canadian or Mexican city, but to collectively look into mirrors and earnestly ask ourselves, "What have we done wrong to incur their wrath?" And then act to correct the situation. Conscientious Israelis acknowledge that the Hamas rockets rationale is fraudulent. For instance, Jerusalem Post writer Larry Derfner has noted, "We don't want to see how people in Gaza are living, we block it out of our minds -- which, I suppose, is natural for a society at war, but which also keeps that war going longer than it might if we would recognize that Gaza is getting so much the worst of it. "The [Palestinian] Kassam [rockets] have terrorized the 25,000 people in Sderot and its environs, but have caused very, very few deaths or serious wounds. By contrast, Israel has terrorized 1.5 million Gazans, locked them inside their awfully narrow borders, throttled their economy, and killed and seriously wounded thousands of them . . . "This is crazy. Israel is the superpower of the Middle East, but because we still think we're the Jews of Europe in the 1930s, or the Israelites under Pharaoh, we spend a lot more time fighting our enemies than we might if we looked at the whole picture, not just our half of it . . ." As Gazan hospitals and morgues fill beyond capacity because of an ongoing air assault that cruelly began at precisely the hour when countless children were heading home from school, we're expected to believe that small craters mostly in empty Israeli fields constitute this terrible episode's chief sin. Bugs bothered by sporadically impacting, glorified fireworks cobbled together in backyard garages are ludicrously supposed to be the primary problem, not human limbs and lives shattered by the most destructive weapons that military science can produce! At any point during the past six decades, Israel could have had peace, simply by assenting to the great moral imperative of our time, namely the Palestinians' right to their own, unitary, sovereign homeland. Something which Israel continues to resist tooth and nail. Two years ago, in Southern Lebanon, Israel engaged in similar bombings in civilian areas. Then, too, it maintained that only "terrorist" targets were being hit. As impartial observers finally ascertained the truth, clear evidence of enormous civilian carnage surfaced. The Israeli leadership lied then, and it's lying now. There's a veritable holocaust occurring in densely packed Gaza. Think Guernica, or the Warsaw Ghetto, with all the searing irony that comparison involves. Apart from being an ethical travesty offending all decent hearts, it's an unpardonable outrage to especially Arab/Islamic peoples around the world. Witness the angry demonstrations in cities across the planet. It takes no extraordinary analytical prowess to appreciate that, when the White House ridiculously blames what's currently happening on "thugs" in Gaza, and when moderate Arab states adopt an accommodationist position pleasing the U.S. and Israel, a profound Arab/Islamic radicalization billows and swells. New Osama bin Ladens are being born as innocents in Gaza are getting ripped to death by American-made Hellfire missiles, dispatched toward fleshly targets by Israeli pilots. In fact, the almost certain, counterproductive outcome of Israel's action makes us necessarily suspect that secret motives mistakenly judged by Tel Aviv to be worth the risk are actually at play. Three possibilities spring immediately to mind: 1) Obscenely using de facto genocide to give the present Israeli government a "tough" image before upcoming national elections. 2) Roping Barack Obama into a harder pro-Israeli stance than Tel Aviv fears he'd otherwise take. 3) Creating a manipulated, intensely propagandized situation that would enable a desired Israeli attack on Iran. Whatever the most deeply hidden reality, Israel's gargantuan crime must be universally condemned in the strongest possible terms . . . and halted at once! Dennis Rahkonen of Superior, Wisconsin, has been writing progressive commentary with a Heartland perspective for various outlets since the '60s. Copyright © 1998-2007 Online Journal Email Online Journal Editor http://onlinejournal.com/artman/publish/article_4186.shtml

Israel has become a mass murderer, an entity which uses its power to slaughter the weak, just like the Nazis. In that sense, Israel has now turned onto the very horror they themselves have been complaining about since the WWII.

Victory attained by violence is tantamount to a defeat, for it is momentary." Mahatma Gandhi, 'Satyagraha Leaflet No. 13,' May 3, 1919Israel is decapitating Gaza while claiming that it is only fighting Hamas by targeting and destroying schools, mosques, private homes, charities, public buildings, drug stores, colleges and universities and committing genocide on the people of Gaza all under the false pretext of fighting Hamas. The death toll continues to mount on this the third day of Operation Solid Lead intended by Israel to break the back of Hamas and uproot its capability to rain missiles on southern Israel. CNN reports hundreds Gazans are dead. The UN estimates that many of them are civilians. I find it extraordinary that considering the firepower the IAF is using against Gaza that not only is Hamas able to continue its barrage, but that some of the rockets have proven lethal. In the entire several week period leading up to the end of the ceasefire, several hundred militant rockets didn't kill a single Israeli. It seems that now the Palestinians are out for blood and intend to make every missile count, which may be why there are now Israelis dead. Israeli politicians continue to labor under delusions that this military operation can "clean up" their "problem" once and for all. Both sides are renewing calls for bloodshed as age-old arguments resurface. "Hamas terrorist" not recognizing Israel's right to exist and "Israel the bully" not accepting its own responsibility of closing off Gaza like a prison. http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/...-kills-children

I have to disagree with the comment in the above article. First of all, what is the definition of a "boring lesson"? It depends on the learners' point of view and their fields of interest. I might find a Geography lesson boring however brilliantly it is presented since I'm not interested in the subject. Or another classmate might find History lessons boring whereas I participate in the lessons with enthusiasm. I believe generalizations like "Traditional style lessons are bad/boring/ineffective" are false. The style of the lesson is related to the learner's needs. There is no such thing as "the perfect lesson". Those inspectors should stop dictating teaching styles. A style which applies very well to a group of students may not work for another.

John, I now understand your point. Thanks for the clarification and also thanks for your interest. Be well, Çiğdem

You can run but you can't hide. Besides, I know where you live Happy new year to you, too.

John, if I remember right, you said that these girls were high school graduates (you call them fruitcakes? ). So, maybe because of her young age she felt insecure. Of course it doesn't seem like a fearful scenario (it's a kind offer). I think we should also see her timidness as a normal reaction of her being inexperienced.

An Englishman sees an Irishman standing on a bridge who is looking down the river as if he is going to jump. Englishman asks : Hello. Have you come here to die? Irishman replies : Hello. No, I was here yesterday, too.

While I am not 'other' just to clarify: I do NOT suspect the young filmmaker, Christina. She had nothing but the most noble of intentions and the hope my infamy might get her some notice through our chance encounter - I fault her not for that. I only made two observations: 1] a seven minute piece [only about one of me talking] can not do justice to what I said, nor what really happened. It is not misleading - just not complete. 2] the person who pointed out the video just hours after it was posted on the internet has tried twice before to 'out' my location in the world [which for reasons I'll not go into here, I felt dangerous to my security and not desirable] was, indeed, a very odd coincidence by a coincidence theorist. Christina said "....to be continued..". so who knows what else she'll do. I could also address [as I have in part before here] the background behind all this. Sorry if I sometimes seem [to some] not very sympathetic. I lost all, and almost my life - and am, admittedly, sometimes bitter or, at least ascerbic. I try to make my anger targeted at the real enemies. Peter Peter, I, too, watched the video and have to say that it's difficult to even imagine what you had to go through. It's not unusual to be bitter towards people at times especially for a person who had to endure great losses.