𝗔 𝗠𝗮𝗻 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀 𝗮 𝗳𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 “𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗲𝗻”... 𝗮𝗹𝗼𝘂𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴! While I deeply appreciate Imam Abu Hanifah & have gained valuable insights from the Hanafi fiqh, as well as the other three schools of thought, those familiar with me understand the intensity of my reaction when scholars such as Imam Abu Hanifah & others are attacked & spoken ill of. What you see in the video is not only ignorant & foolish but also reflects a lack of understanding of fiqh. This behaviour is truly appalling. Even within the Hanafi madhab, engaging in such actions is unequivocally incorrect & it invalidates your prayer, the only exemptions of cutting the prayer are in exceptional circumstances. 𝗜𝗻 𝗙𝗶𝗾𝗵 𝗶𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘅𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝗼𝗻𝗲’𝘀 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗻𝘁 – meaning the scholar who holds a different view – in challenging his own established argument, which he had employed to assert a different point of view, this in Fiqh is referred to as مراعاة الخلاف. Ibn Abideen the hanafi scholar said; “𝗜𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘂𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻.” This important concept of Fiqh has been cited by many of the scholars of the 4 madhabs and It is one of the principles upon which Malik built his Madhab on as mentioned by scholars such as Ibn Rushd, wansarisi، Ibn Arafa, Shaatibi & others. Ibn Taymiyyah says; “As for those who may differ with you on subsidiary Fiqhi matters such as the followers of Abu Hanifa, Malik, and Ash-Shafi'i, performing prayers behind them is 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗱 & 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲𝗱. This was emphasised by Ahmad because the Companions and their Successors 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝘂𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗮𝘆 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗙𝗶𝗾𝗵𝗶 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀, 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘁 𝗮 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘀𝘂𝘀. Additionally, because the opponent is either correct in his interpretation, earning rewards for his interpretation and correctness, or mistaken, still receiving rewards for his effort without incurring sin for the mistake”. Closing remarks. If you happen to be in a locality where a group of people behave like this, then my advice is to implement the principle of “𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗹𝘀”, this is what Ibn Baaz said when asked about refraining from saying “Ameen” loudly. And I quote: "Yes, it is allowed. If one is amongst a congregation where they do not raise their voices nor recite aloud, it is preferable that you 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 do so to maintain harmony with them. This way, they can be gently guided towards the right path, educated, fostering better relations among them. If u were to differ with them, they might condemn you due to the view they have of not raising the hands (excluding the opening Takbir) as they have learned & practiced it from their scholars. Similarly, not reciting aloud during the prayer is a well-known difference of opinion among scholars. Some say it is recommended to recite aloud, while others say it is not necessary. Some narrations indicate that the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ raised his voice during prayer, while others indicate he kept silent However, the preferred opinion is to recite aloud, as it is a recommended practice. 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗶𝗳 𝗶𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗱 amongst believers; hence, a believer refrains from performing a recommended act that might lead to discord and turmoil, especially if forsaking it serves a greater good. This is exemplified in Prophet ﷺ’s choice of not rebuilding the Kaaba according to the original structure of Ibrahim, since Quraysh had recently embraced Islam, & did not want to disturb the harmony for the greater good." #AtWritesshow more

As a gynecologist, one of the most frequently asked... questions is about the ''hymen''. The hymen is not a structure located deep inside the vagina. It is a thin, flexible fold of tissue situated very close to the vaginal opening, anatomically at the entrance of the vaginal canal. It is typically found about 1–2 cm inside the vaginal opening, but in many women, it is almost at the surface. Therefore, the common belief that it is located deep inside is incorrect. One of the most important points is this: The hymen is not a closed membrane. It naturally has openings that allow menstrual blood to pass. Additionally, the structure of the hymen varies from person to person. Its thickness, elasticity, and shape are not standard. In some women, it may be very thin and elastic, while in others, it may be minimal or barely noticeable. This is completely a normal anatomical variation. A common misconception is that changes in the hymen occur only due to sexual intercourse. In reality, factors such as certain physical activities or tampon use can also lead to stretching or changes in this tissue. Therefore, the hymen is not a reliable indicator of a person’s sexual history or “virginity.” In summary, the hymen is a small and variable anatomical structure. The meanings attributed to it are largely shaped by sociocultural beliefs rather than medical facts.show more

Learning is something you and your baby do together.... You can think of the process as happening in three distinct stages, during which skills are transferred gradually from you to your little one: During the first stage, your baby is observing the behavior and skills of others. During the second, they begin to emulate these behaviors - and can find success with the support of a helpful adult (you) or more expert peer (often a sibling). And gradually they internalize these skills and perform them all by themselves. This video is a great example of the shared second phase. Infants explore the world with their mouths. But an important lesson of toddlerhood is that some things are for putting in our mouths, while others are not. This little one knows that we don’t eat the Play-Doh. But it sure is tempting! Watch as he breaks off a piece and brings it to his mouth. As he does his eyes lift and he realizes that Mom is watching - which alone prompts some introspection. He grins broadly, shakes his head and exclaims “No, no, no” - using Mom’s past words to affirm his decision to place the Play-Doh back on the table. Left to his own devices, who knows? But together, without exchanging a word, he managed to make the right choice. As a parent it’s important to remember the key role you play in the learning process. And that extends to your child’s behavior. Self-regulation begins as co-regulation. So be there. This sweet little guy was shared to IG by parentosa.show more

The West is not dying. It is being killed,... and the names of the traitors are known. They occupy our capitals, infest our courts, pollute our newsrooms, and preach in our churches. They open the gates, kneel before the foreigner, and smirk as their own blood is driven from the land. They mock the fallen, defile the heroic, and spit on the blood that raised every city worth defending. They are not misguided. They are not mistaken. They are the enemy. They must be treated as such. For too long, we have been ruled by cowards, “men without chests,” by merchants loyal to nothing but the dollar, by liars who speak of progress while presiding over decay. A new generation now rises, armed not with apologies but with the fire of remembrance, with the memory of what we once were and the will to become greater still. We do not ask permission. We do not seek approval. We will reclaim what is ours, because no one else will. Victory will not come through debate. It will come through discipline, through will, through the unbreakable decision to endure, to outlast, and to return to the excellence and greatness that befit our people. We do not need millions. We require only a vanguard: men of loyalty, endurance, and resolve, hardened by truth and unmoved by fear. I say this not for approval, nor is it offered in hope of a reply, but in the spirit of doing what must be done. It is a promise made in full knowledge of what must come. The time of submission draws to a close. The age of reconquest begins. Let the traitors tremble. Let the weak, the feckless, and the unworthy fall away. The future belongs to those with the strength and the daring to seize it.show more

Apparently, I saw this video online and I decided... to share. What this worker is applying is called bitumen, or what many of us know as bituminous coating. Most people think a wall is a solid, impenetrable block, but in reality, it is more like a sponge. Concrete and blocks have microscopic pores that pull water from the earth through a process we call capillary action. This thick black substance is the shield that stops that water from climbing up into the house. It is not about making the wall look good because this part will be buried under the dirt forever. It is about creating a skin that water cannot breathe through. When do you need to do this? The need for this arises because the soil is a very aggressive environment. Water is not your only enemy.. The ground also contains salts and sulfates that want to eat away at the cement. If this moisture finds its way to the steel bars inside the columns, those bars will start to rust. And when steel rusts, it expands, and that expansion is what cracks the concrete from the inside out. This coating is the only thing standing between your foundation and that kind of slow destruction. Thats is why if you see wet patches at the bottom of your walls inside your house, it usually means someone skipped this step or did it poorly during construction. You can apply this anytime you are building parts of a structure that will stay in contact with the ground. It is common in areas where the water table is high or where the soil stays damp for most of the year. This is a one-shot opportunity. Once you backfill the soil, you can never go back to fix it without a lot of expense and a lot of digging. It is about having the foresight to protect the heart of the building while it is still exposed. Please don’t ignore this if you need to. If you ignore it now to save a bit of money, you will be funding the future decay of your own home. I hope this helps.show more

A point of utter embarrassment and shame for many... Iranians is the manner in which elements of the diaspora danced on the streets in Western capitals as bombs rained on Tehran. It is also a source for a lot of anger among Iranians in Iran who oppose the theocracy but nevertheless did not favor war and who are stunned to see some in the Diaspora being so indifferent to the suffering caused by the war. But there is another aspect that deserves closer scrutiny. These, almost exclusively pro-Shah elements of the Diaspora, did not dance to celebrate the downfall of the regime. They didn't dance because they had won. They simply danced because the war had started, nothing more. As if their goal was neither freedom nor democracy, but simply revenge and the pleasure they took from seeing Iran bombed. Had they danced after the theocracy had fallen (which it hasn't), it would be a bit different. It would be a moment where they could argue that the price was very high, but because the regime is defeated, it was worth it, and, as a result, a cause for celebration. But they didn't wait for the regime to fall. They danced right away. Signalling that the cost was worth it, EVEN IF the regime didn't fall. Because it was always about selfish revenge, not freedom.show more

"PRICE IS WHAT YOU PAY. VALUE IS WHAT YOU... GET." I keep buying $Kekec and I have a strong conviction. Here's Why: While the market is down, and Kekec is declining with it, there are data points that few are considering. Kekec borned in October and since then has been posting a different and original 30-second video every day, which I find extremely funny. For the past couple of months, they have also been posting daily on Instagram, and the attention on Kekec (which doesn't present itself on social media as a memecoin) is growing, moreover, it's increasing exponentially. The number of followers is increasing by about 500-1000 a day. This is largely due to the fact that they are not just focused on the main account but have several others that post reels and redirect to the main one. In short, an excellent strategy to keep growing more and more. Instagram link: Guess What? Not only are the followers increasing, but the team's workload is also growing. In fact, for a little over a month, they have also started pushing on YouTube, and the data here is promising as well. YouTube link: If we want to make a comparison, we can take Pudgy Penguins as an example, which has shown it can reach millions and millions of users without mentioning that they are a WEB3 company that owns an NFT collection. Or, if we want to be more appropriate by comparing one memecoin to another, we could take PONKE. Thanks to the use of social media and the quality of their content, they managed to achieve incredible numbers, which then translated into an increase in the coin's price. Kekec came before PONKE, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's better than PONKE. I believe PONKE is unbeatable in terms of content, but I want to make you reflect on an important point. PONKE came after KEKEC, and after PONKE's success, many coins have emerged trying to imitate it. One of KEKEC's strengths, in my opinion, is precisely the fact that it leverages social media without being a copy-paste. Instead, it is a unique meme derived from a 90's film, and it uses a unique form of content. In short, KEKEC > KEKEC and no one else. I want to conclude by suggesting you follow them on Instagram and evaluate not only the exponential growth of their followers day by day but also observe how the views of each reel increase accordingly. Pay special attention to the comments. Many of the people commenting have no idea what it is, and you can see from the comments how Kekec generates particular emotions in people—strange but still emotions. Personally, I believe that when something is unique and even very strange, it needs time to be adopted. However, once it happens, it usually explodes and spreads like never before. A few days ago, a Kekec video was posted by a very popular meme page. They probably don't know what Kekec is about but thought the video could spark interest among their followers. How many other pages will do the same? Lastly, but not least, I want to point out how Kekec maintains a good market cap despite everything that has happened in the crypto world since October 2023. As far as I know and have personally observed, everything is extremely organic. There is no cabal behind it, and the quality is not reflected in a single jpeg but in work that has been ongoing daily for months. Every day they work harder, and the quality of their videos grows as well. I have no affiliations with the team, but I believe that Kekec truly deserves more in this world where we push celebrity or cabal-backed coins to hundreds of millions in market cap. I keep buying because the numbers suggest so. Don't just evaluate the chart (price), evaluate the data (value). BÂLKÂN DWÂRFshow more

Narrated Abdullah: "When the Prophet entered Mecca on the... day of the conquest, there were 360 idols around the Kaaba. The Prophet started striking them with a stick he had in his hand and was saying, 'Truth has come, and falsehood will neither start nor will it reappear.'" (Sahih al-Bukhari 4287) This act represents holy intolerance, established as a binding commandment from the Sunnah of Muhammad. Quran 33:21 obliges Muslims to regard Muhammad as an excellent role model. Therefore, all his sayings and deeds embody the highest values of Islam and require eternal imitation. Before Muhammad conquered Mecca in 630 AD, tolerance prevailed in the region among all the many different worldviews. This harmony led to a prosperous multicultural social and commercial life. Muhammad turned everything upside down. A region and culture that had lived in tolerance side by side experienced a complete upheaval and became a violent area devoid of all tolerance. Muhammad and his followers smashed and destroyed all the sacred symbols of the other cultures that day in Mecca. Only the Islamic symbol, the Kaaba, remained standing. Since then, this is how Muslims have behaved, and this is how they will behave when they can and when circumstances allow them to do so in the future, because it is their sacred duty. There are countless examples of this. One such example is the destruction of the Buddha statues in Bamiyan by Muslims in Afghanistan in 2001. ⬇️show more

One of the most logical explanations of the Watchers... in the Book of Enoch is that they were an elite group of survivors or a breakaway civilization that was not supposed to mix with ordinary survivors, but only to watch over the masses and intervene when necessary. Part of this breakaway civilization fell in love with the "daughters of men," or the daughters of the ordinary survivors. They had children with them and shared their technology. As a result, they were expelled from the elite breakaway civilization. This story appears in many civilizations, from the Bible to the Sumerian Anunnaki, the Greek myth of Prometheus, and Quetzalcoatl in Mesoamerica. This is, by far, the most logical explanation, but being logical does not mean it is the truth. I will share another theory tomorrow.show more

Murder, Transgenderism, and the Objective Standard of Satanic Evil... Ladies and gentlemen, let us strip away the smokescreens and evasions. We are not dealing here with a matter of opinion, preference, or private taste. We are dealing with evil—real, objective, and knowable. The modern skeptic loves to pretend that evil is subjective—that murder is a matter of circumstance, that mutilating one’s body is a matter of personal expression, that words like Satanic are nothing more than medieval insults hurled by the ignorant. This is false, cowardly, and beneath the dignity of serious men. The Catholic standard is not opinion. It is not relative. It is objective truth, revealed by God, reasoned by the Church, and confirmed by the bloody consequences of rebellion played out before our eyes. Murder is not a “choice.” It is not a “right.” It is the deliberate destruction of innocent life. Christ Himself declared the devil “a murderer from the beginning.” When children are slaughtered in schools, in churches, or in the womb, we are not witnessing a “social issue.” We are seeing Satan’s hand at work. Transgenderism is not harmless. It is not compassion. It is mutilation of the body, desecration of God’s image, and rejection of creation itself. To say “I can change my sex” is to spit in the face of the Creator and to echo the serpent’s first lie: “You shall be as gods.” It is anti-Christic at its core because it denies Christ, who is Truth and who is Logos, order itself. You may sneer and call this rhetoric. You may flatter yourself with relativism. But relativism is not sophistication; it is rebellion dressed up as philosophy. The Church has never wavered: murder and the willful defacement of God’s creation are grave offenses, condemned not by my opinion, but by eternal law. They are Satanic because they participate in the same rebellion that cast Lucifer from heaven and continues in every age to drag souls into hell. To call murder and transgender ideology Satanic is not an exaggeration. It is accuracy. It is fidelity to the truth that does not bend to fashion, ideology, or your skepticism. If this offends you, it is not because the standard is false. It is because you are standing against it. Evil exists. Its fruits are visible. Its rebellion is named. The only question left is whether you will recognize it and stand against it, or excuse it and be consumed by it.show more

As long as you don't have your own loaf... of bread, you won't have an opinion. The hungry don't think, they just repeat. Freedom begins with a loaf of bread, not with dignity granted, because dignity is not granted, dignity is taken away. Poverty is not just the deprivation of money, it is the denial of dignity and the slow denial of will. You don't have the right to make Egyptian decisions related to your life when you are under the yoke of hunger. Don't ask the hungry to speak, feed them first, and don't ask for the opinion of the hungry. You must free them from the humiliation of questioning.. The mind doesn't function on an empty stomach, and dignity doesn't exist in a bread queue. Because he who doesn't have his bread doesn't have his voice, and he who doesn't have his voice doesn't own himself, and he who doesn't own himself doesn't own anything. This is true hell: being forced into silence because you can't afford to live.. Dear friends, two days ago I tweeted that I needed to buy two bags of flour... one for me and my family, and one for the 25 cats at the shelter. This is a new update. Unfortunately, no aid has flowed in over the past two days, and the price of flour has risen even more than it was. My friends, I barely received enough support to buy one bag.. I need you to stand by me because the price of a bag of flour has become $600 now. I am in real trouble. In a few days, the price of flour will rise even more and more if they do not allow any aid to enter... If I get these two bags, I can rely on them for my family and the cats for a whole month. I don't want to buy more than that, because a lot of things can happen in a month... I need a serious stand from you to get another bag of flour for me, for the cats, and for my family.. Your prayers and supplications are for us.. The tanks have advanced further today.. They are only a 20-minute walk away from me and things are terrifying.. Please keep us posted with your thoughts... and interact with my tweets... Your interaction helps spread the word. It's free support, and I appreciate it.show more

The clinical term is malignant narcissism. There is a... specific kind of man who walks into a room and immediately begins rearranging it. Not the furniture. The people. By minute four, he has forgotten the names of half of them. That is not a flaw in the system. That is the system. The clinical term is malignant narcissism. It sits at the intersection of four things: narcissistic personality disorder, antisocial features, paranoia, and sadism. The sadism part is what people miss. He does not simply lack empathy. He has inverted it. He reads your emotional state with the precision of a surgeon, then uses that information like a scalpel. Maximum discomfort. Minimum legal risk. Otto Kernberg, the psychiatrist who formalized the concept, called it one of the most dangerous personality structures a human being can carry. Not because it is loud. Because it is effective. And because it is almost impossible to name while you are standing inside it. History keeps producing the same man. Robert Maxwell looted his employees’ pension funds while they trusted him completely. Hundreds of millions. He knew the whole time. There is no evidence he experienced this as a problem. Silvio Berlusconi governed Italy like a man who had confused the country with his personal property. Laws bent to fit his legal situation. Courts were hollowed out when they became inconvenient. People who spent time close to him reported the same thing afterward: you left the conversation certain you had agreed to something. You just could not remember what. Charm makes you feel good about yourself. This makes you feel good about him. There is a difference. It takes most people years to locate it. The pattern has a shape. Once you see it you cannot unsee it. It begins with grandiosity so complete it functions as a worldview. Other people exist in one of three categories: instruments, obstacles, or audiences. He is perfectly pleasant to all three, for exactly as long as they remain useful. The moment that changes, so does he. The switch is not gradual. It is a door closing. It continues with a specific relationship to truth. He does not lie the way ordinary people lie, defensively, to avoid consequences. He lies the way a chess player moves pieces. If I can make you accept a false thing, I have demonstrated power over your reality. If you push back, I do not retreat. I escalate. The goal was never the fact. The goal was always the submission. It sustains itself by dismantling anything capable of judgment. Independent courts. A free press. Rival centers of power. These feel to him not like inconveniences but like attacks. The structure that can judge him is the structure that must be broken. This is not calculated. It is reflexive. It is as automatic as flinching. The frightening thing is not that these men exist. The frightening thing is the gap between when the room starts rearranging itself and when anyone names what they are watching. That gap can last years. Decades. Sometimes it outlasts the man entirely, and the next generation inherits the rearranged room and calls it normal. By the time someone says it plainly, the furniture is long gone. And he is already in the next room. Gandalvshow more

This video is from a country where there is... just 𝟭 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝟳𝟮𝟬 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 , but 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗩𝗜𝗣, 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝟯 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲𝗿𝘀 are assigned. We’re talking about India, which has one of the 𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲-𝘁𝗼-𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗻 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝘀 in the world. And yet, time and again, 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘃𝗼𝘆𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗹𝗲𝘀 are seen escorting not just elected leaders, but also their family members, even those who hold no official position or public duty. One of the most recent examples came just a few months ago, when 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗻 of Rajasthan’s Deputy Chief Minister was seen filming a reel, sitting in an open jeep, 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗲 𝗮 𝗽𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗱. The very officers who should’ve been 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗻𝘀 were instead following a 𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗹𝗮𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗲. Sadly, such misuse of state machinery is not rare. Senior advocate Harish Salve once recounted that he saw 𝗳𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝘆𝗮𝗻𝗮 𝗣𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝘃𝗲𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗮 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗵 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 in his neighbourhood. Upon inquiry, he discovered they weren’t there for a minister, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 of a Chief Minister. Yes, a relative. Not an elected official. Not even a bureaucrat. 𝗝𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲. This is how public institutions get hollowed out from within. To be clear, yes, certain positions absolutely require security, and no one disputes that. For instance, presidents and Prime Ministers around the world do receive protection, and rightly so. But their security is tied to the 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱, not to who they are as individuals. In India, however, that crucial line between 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗹𝗲𝗴𝗲 has been dangerously blurred. And unless we begin to 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲, it will keep growing, unchecked, unchallenged, and unpunished. -------------------------------------- As Acharya Prashant often says: "In a democracy, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿. Which means, the real transformation begins with the 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗼𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗻." Leaders simply mirror the collective consciousness of the public. If the public is 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝘂𝗻𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲, 𝗼𝗿 𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗲𝗱, the leadership will reflect the same. That’s why it’s not enough to blame politicians or institutions — the public must first awaken to its responsibility. So raise tough, informed questions now — before the cost of silence becomes too high.show more

Words by Brendan O’Neil: If you heard that a... man was thinking about selling his seven-year-old daughter into marriage or domestic servitude, who would you feel sorry for? The dad or the girl? All normal people would say the daughter. Of course we would. Not the BBC, though. Our public broadcaster has told precisely this horror story, only it paints the men selling their daughters as the victims, not the girls who are being sold. Meet the ‘Afghan fathers’ who are ‘forced to make impossible choices’, it blubs, blissfully unaware of how sick it sounds to the rest of us to play a tiny violin for men who sell girls into slavery. Where the men’s mental struggles are drawn in detail, the girls’ enslavement is described almost matter-of-factly. ‘Underage [marriages] have their problems’, the Beeb quotes one of the dads as saying. Call off the hunt for the grossest understatement of the year. It is the stuff of moral oblivion to refer to girls being sold for cash as a ‘problem’. All cultures are ‘valid’, right? Hence we end up with the BBC reporting on the enslavement of Afghan girls as if it were a cultural quirk. ‘There is a tradition [in Afghanistan]’, it breezily tells us, ‘in which a marital gift is given to the family of the girl from the family of the boy during marriage’. The euphemisms are suffocating. ‘Marital gift’ - you mean cash for girls? As for ‘boy’ - come on, BBC, you know those girls aren’t marrying boys. You know it is seen as acceptable in Islam for very young girls to get hitched to men. They must know - surely? - that it is bad. It is immoral, wicked, and alien to everything we in the civilised West hold dearshow more

This is not what we Ukrainians would want to... see from our windows in winter. It would be better if the voices and laughter of children making snowmen or playing snowballs echoed from the courtyards of residential areas. One could step out onto the balcony and watch that very scene while sipping a warm tea or coffee, rather than the sights we see now. You cannot distract yourself from thoughts of the war for long; it continues, and everything around us tries to remind us of that. Over the years, the brain tries to pretend it has adapted to everything happening around it - to what the ears hear and the eyes see, to the various situations that occur here every day. But sanity is always on guard, and an inner voice says without words: this is not a normal life for a human being; if only everything could return to the way it was before. But is it even possible to return to the life we had, carrying such an experience on our shoulders? … Now, in the "points of warmth," you can see beds. You might ask: are these for overnight stays? The beds are intended for people who need assistance in the event of an emergency or for medical reasons, as well as for temporary rest if a person is in need of it… but people are still forced to return to their apartments.show more

They started with 50. Now they say they’re 18,000... In 1996 there were fewer than 50 of them. Today, according to the organizers, up to 18,000 walked through Copenhagen. From Dronning Louises Bro to the Imam Ali Mosque. Look at the curve. This is how it happens. First a handful. Then a few hundred. Then it fills a bridge, a district, a capital. A little at a time, until it is no longer a little. And let me be fair, because fairness is the point. There is nothing strange about them holding this mourning procession. They have done it as part of their faith for more than a thousand years. It is theirs, and they believe in it. There is nothing strange about that at all. What should stop us is the other half. There is nothing strange about Europe allowing it either, and that is exactly the problem. Europe allows it because Europe has forgotten who it is. A people that remembers what it stands for does not need to ban anything, it simply knows where its own line runs. We have lost that. And so the issue was never them. The issue is us. Now look at what actually moved through the streets. Men in front. Women in the second row. That is not a detail, that is the whole point. It is a view of women set into a system and marched out into the public square, in a city where generations fought for women and men to stand as equals. The real question is not whether people may believe what they want. They may. The question is why our capital should cultivate a political law-religion that commemorates a 7th-century power struggle by dividing people by sex on Nørrebrogade. One of the organizers is the Imam Ali Mosque, repeatedly described as the Iranian regime’s extended arm in Denmark. The same regime that hangs women and young men from cranes. We are not importing culture. We are importing a system. And we let it grow, not because they are strong, but because we forgot why we were. First a little. Then a lot. Then too late.show more