Rambo is Back!

Rambo returns on the screens with the fourth sequel The movie has been getting mixed reviews but most critics predict high box-office receipts. Sly is turning 62 this year but he was is a decent shape for this movie, as well as in the Rocky's fourth sequel a year ago.

In new picture, person is beheaded, dismembered the bodies, break the throat with naked hands and shed fountains of blood naturally. So much of violence was not shown in any of the previous episodes of the saga. We shall recall, that films "First blood", "Rambo: First blood. "Part 2" & "Rambo 3" together collected 614 million dollars worldwide. And in America, arguments are on what censor ratings to give to the new film "Rambo IV" made by Sylvester Stallone. Some experts are consider that the next "Rambo" deserves rating NC-17 and then film can be correlated, for example, with "Caligula" of Tinto Brass. Person, less than 17 years of age, is not allowed for viewing such movies. This is the strict rating which is also assigned to pornographic movies. As a matter of fact, NC-17 is not the exclusive attribute of sexual films. Among the movies, many horror genre films and even "Kill Bill" of director Quentin Tarantino, which was released in original version on DVD, had received such certification. However, the creators of Rambo series of films were never concerned that their creation can earn rating NC-17, instead of usual certificate R (where children of u to 17 years should be accompanied by adults). Besides, with the release of film, one more scandal of religious character can crop up. As is known, central character of the saga - veteran John Rambo - always personified ideologically correct aspirations of American people. Firstly, Rambo having returned home after the Vietnam War, launched guerrilla attacks to highlight the attention of society towards the problems of veterans. Then, Rambo fought "Bad Russians", who attacked "Freedom-loving people" of Afghanistan.

To tell the truth, now the situation in this Eastern country has changed by cardinal manner and the film, where the American is at war with Mujahedeens rebels, looks already as a certain ideological diversion for audience in USA. Now, the question will be the protection of Christian missionaries, who were taken prisoners in Burma. In this connection, even the name of the movie at one time sounded as: "Rambo. Sacred war" and it already smelt slightly of a certain crusade against the faithless. In the last "Rocky", Sylvester Stallone specially did not try to be original and now, probably, he remains true to self. Nevertheless, in some details, "Rambo -IV" differs from the previous Rambo movie series.

For the first time, friend and instructor of the protagonist - Colonel Samuel Trautman, whom Rambo rescued from the captivity of Soviet Soldiers in Afghanistan in Rambo –III, is missing in the latest movie. Actor Richard Krenn, who portrayed the role of friend and instructor, died of cancer. James Brolin ("Traffic") was invited to play the character but Sylvester Stallone decided: "Trautman died the same day on which my friend Richard Krenn died" and thus, the character was deleted from the script. For the first time, music for the film "Rambo" was not scored by Jerry Goldsmith, who also died of cancer.

Well and at last, the most important thing:

Sylvester Stallone never directed the previous Rambo movies. Some time, raging imagination of SLY gave birth to witty names for the sequel. Apart from "Sacred war", "End of the world", "Bloody river" & "To hell and back" and "In the Serpent’s Eye" have been considered. Finally, the set of ideas infuriated the admirers of the film and they pleaded on Internet to leave to film the simple and understandable name - "Rambo". Stallone reluctantly agreed and explained the audience that the "Rambo – IV" is not the last part of epic Rambo series. It is already in circulation that, SLY has already signed agreement for the fifth film.

Some great stuff to consider for the fifth Rambo film courtesy of freakingnews:

Signs of the times: Extreme facelift

Men are increasingly opting for plastic surgery to look and feel better.
In UAE alone, about 5,000 men have gone under the plastic surgeon’s scalpel since 2005.

Nose reshaping, hair implantation and liposuction are the most popular surgeries among men.

Male Vanity, as they called it, men are conscious about being presentable and opting for aesthetic procedures is no longer looked down on.

Social attitudes towards plastic surgery have changed and improved techniques have lessened the risks and side effects.

The most common plastic surgeries in the Middle East are:

Gastric band - A form of restrictive weight loss surgery designed for obese patients. Cost ranges from SR12,000-20,000 (P130,000-220,000)

Hair transplant Involves transplanting bald-resistant hair follicles from the back and sides of the head to a person’s bald or thinning area. Cost ranges from SR10,000-16,000 (P110,000-176,000)

Nose reshaping (Rhinoplasty) Certain bone and cartilage are moved, added or rearranged to provide a newly-shaped structure. Cost ranges from SR12,000-16,000 (P130,000-176,000)

Bat ears (Otoplasty) Ear surgery is usually done to set prominent ears back closer to the head or to reduce the size of large ears. Cost ranges from SR10,000-14,000 (P110,000-154,000)

Eyelids (Blepharoplasty) Reshaping the upper eyelid or lower eyelid by the removal or repositioning of excess tissue as well as by reinforcement of surrounding muscles and tendons. Cost ranges from SR10,000-16,000 (110,00-176,000)

Barber shops are offering Facial services for only SR50.00 (P550.00) but for some fancy salon, the cost ranges from SR100-500.00 (P1,100-5,500).

Dr. John Cenica, president of Plastic Surgeons in the Philippines, is iin Saudi Arabia for a ten-day visit. Hopefully, I maybe able to meet him during his presscon and who knows, he might be interested to break into the cosmetic demands of most Arab people. For appointment, you may call Evelyn Lugo at 0560683457.

PGMA: Put your Money where your Heart is!

Philippine president Gloria Arroyo addresses a community gathering at Mina Al Salam.

Full text of PGMA speech last January 27, 2008 in Dubai.

Mga mahal kong kababayan:

Nakakagalak na makapayanam sa inyo ngayong hapon. Salamat sa pagdalo ninyo dito kahit bising-busy kayo sa trabaho. Alam nating Biyernes ang inyong day off, hindi Linggo. Kaya nag-absent pa kayo.

We are in Dubai to meet with many of you, our overseas workers, who live in Dubai and make sure you are getting what you need from our government. Nowhere is foreign policy more important than protecting and advancing the interests of our overseas workers.

Nothing is more important to me and to you and to your families than to protect the rights and working conditions of our overseas workers. And this is one reason why we make every effort to visit various mid East countries whenever possible.

There are now 400,000 Filipinos in the Emirates.

UAE today is the second most popular destination of Filipinos bound for the region.

Pero kayo rin ang paborito ng mga taga-Emirates sa lahat ng mga expatriate workers dito. All the Emirati that we met in our trip have the highest regard. Sabi nila kayo ang pinakamagaling, pinakamabait, at pinakamalinis sa lahat ng mga expatriate workers. Congratulations.

I am pleased to note that some Filipino organizations here in the UAE are supporting community-oriented projects back home.

You bring honor to our country and contribute to the strength of RP-UAE ties. Lahat kayo, hindi lang si Ambassador Cabactulan, ay embahador ng Pilipinas sa UAE. We are very proud of you.

Kasama na sa pumupuri sa inyo ang Ruler ng Dubai na kausap ko kaninang tanghali. We thanked him for the fair treatment you receive in the UAE, which has one of the most progressive labor laws and regulations in the region.

Thanks to the labor agreement we concluded with the UAE last April, we now have a bilateral institutional mechanism – a joint committee – where we can tackle OFW concerns.

We honor and value the contribution of our overseas workers for your sacrifice and dedication to your work, your family and your nation.

Salamat sa inyong tulong sa ating pag-unlad sa pamamagitan ng mga remittances ninyo patungong Pilipinas. Remittances from UAE exceeded half a billion dollars last year.

But I am also proud to say that our ambitious economic reforms are helping to break the offshore cycle and supporting an economy that is growing at its fastest pace in 20 years. The economic gains we are seeing now are paving the way to the day when Filipinos no longer need to go abroad for a job and the day when overseas work is just another career option and not the only choice you have to earn a living.

Our economy has reached a new level of maturity and stability with some of the strongest macroeconomic fundamentals in a generation. Seven years ago, no one thought we could get more revenues, cut down on tax cheats and smugglers, and move the stock market. And no one thought we could bring down our budget deficit, lower our national debt and raise employment, but we have. Kaya tuloy lumakas ang piso.

We recognize that the strong peso has reduced the buying power of the remittances sent home by many of our Overseas Filipino Workers, our OFWs. But on the other hand, the peso has helped offset the impact of the rising cost of oil, so transportation fares have not gone up inspite of the high price of oil in the world market. It has reduced the amount of national debt we have to pay and therefore it has reduced interest rates, which helps your families buy homes or start businesses. It is contributed to lowering the price of imports and in the process, kept inflation down.

But to cushion the impact on the strength of the peso, our Administration is addressing the weak dollar very aggressively.

Just before our meeting we met with big Emirati companies employing Filipino workers. This was in line with our efforts to identify ways to mitigate the effects on the stronger peso on your take home pay.

We met with them to solicit their support for the efforts of our Government to ease the effect of the “strong peso/weak dollar” on the inward remittances of our OFWs to youer families. The employers affirmed their support for the “hedging” program of the DBP, specifically: 1. a pre-agreed exchange rate if the peso further strengthens, but not if the peso weakens; or 2. paying an “insurance fee” to DBP at approximately 1.14% of the amount to be remitted to cover the OFW at a pre-agreed exchange rate if the peso strengthens, and pay te prevailing market exchange rate if the peso weakens.

We are hereby officially launching this hedging facility today.

We are also launching the OFW bond during this visit to Dubai . We are also working with the Central Bank and the Philippine Stock Exchange to promote financial literacy among OFWs and your families so that you can turn your hard-earned money into working capital and become Overseas Filipino Investors.

We are also launching the program to franchise Tindahang Pinoy so that OFWs can be encouraged to have an additional source of income. Tindahan Pinoy consolidates the products from the participants of our One Town One Product program such as Cornick or Boy Bawang from the North, Broas or some other delicacies or native products from the South, Sarangani Bay sardines from Mindanao, dried mangoes from Cebu . It doesn’t have to be just food. This shall be part of OWWA’s entrepreneurship training for reintegration when you go back home.

Clearly, there will be some impact on all countries of the possible U.S. slowdown because of the global significance of the U.S. economy. However, while it could dampen the growth of emerging markets, we are confident that the Philippines will withstand most of the adverse effects of such a development largely because of our improving economic fundamentals.

Moody’s upgraded the Philippines to positive this week for very good reasons: we have the fastest growth in a generation – 7% for 2007, faster than our neighbors in the region.

Today the Philippines is on a path to permanent economic growth and stability. Investments are pouring in and we have created 7 million jobs in seven years. And we have a surge in foreign reserves, an all-time high of $34 billion. And the Middle East is taking notice: the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Dubai World, Dubai Holdings, Emaar, the Qatari Investment Authority, and Noor of Kuwait believe the Philippines offers one of the best values in Asia for foreign investors and have told us that they will invest in our country.

Our aim is to make our reforms permanent so that our nation is on a sustained path of economic growth and stability. We have turned the economy and for the first time in a generation, we are investing heavily in human and physical infrastructure. Roads, bridges and airports as well as new schools and scholarships are the central building blocks that are necessary for the long term prospects of our citizens

We are committed to building a country that you can come home to with pride. Mabuhay kayo at maraming salamat!

Saudi approves first women's rights group

The majority of women today in Saudi Arabia are under the dominance of men. They can't be active members of society because of restrictions over their ability to leave home and arrange transport, and their being unable to get the simplest things unless they go through men. Soon, a first civil society called Ansar Al-Marah, dedicated to the rights of the kingdom’s women will be established after two years of negotiations.
The society aims to create institutional and individual change to improve the lives of women in the Saudi.
It will increase awareness of women’s right by facilitating ongoing debates on fundamental and provocative women issues, and help women improve their social, educational and cultural levels.

The current women's assemblies in the kingdom tended to function under the framework of humanitarian relief, but Ansar Al-Marah would act as an intermediate body between women and officials.

The establishment of Ansar Al-Marah comes at a time when women's rights in Saudi Arabia are gaining increasing media attention both at home and abroad.

Under Saudi Arabia's strict interpretation of Islamic law, a woman is not allowed to be in the company of a man who is not a member of her family.

However, Saudi King Abdullah is in the process of implementing reforms that extend what a woman can do and where she can go without a male guardian.

ASIAN TSUNAMI IN THE GULF

Well..well..well.. It seems an invasion in the Gulf by the “Sakangs”, “Singkits” and “Pangos” (possibly around 30 Million) in the next ten years is imminent.

A Bahraini minister has warned of an "Asian tsunami" because of the reliance of "lazy" Gulf Arabs on foreign labour to carry out even the simplest tasks.

At present, there are almost 17 million foreign workers in the Gulf, mostly from the Asian sub-continent, represented "a danger worse than the atomic bomb or an Israeli attack".

Bahrain Labour Minister Majid Al-Alawi Al-Alawi has called for the residency of foreign workers in the oil-rich Gulf states to be limited to six years but the leadership of the six-nation GCC has not followed up on the proposal.

Al-Alawi said that Gulf nationals were "lazy" and "spoilt", relying on imported labour for the simplest of tasks.

A lord with billions in Great Britain cleans his own car on a Sunday morning, whereas people of the Gulf look for someone to hand them a glass of water from just a couple of metres away.

30 years from now, how do you imagine seeing a “Sakang na Arabo”, “Singkit na Kalbo” or “Arabong pango ang ilong” because of inter-racial marriages?

Saudi tightens grip on internet use

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has begun implementing new laws for controlling the use of technology for terrorism, fraud, pornography, defamation, violating religious values and disregarding public etiquette.

The new information technology law contains 16 articles, and provides a maximum penalty of 10 years and a SR5 million fine for persons found guilty of running web sites in support of terrorist organisations.

A maximum penalty of three years and a SR500,000 fine will be handed to anyone found guilty of financial or data fraud, or found guilty of attacking the private life of another subject.
The new law also covers the religious and social use of information and communications technology. Those who produce and distribute IT material that violate public law, religious values and public etiquette will receive up to five years in jail, and a SR3 million fine. Those who use information technology to spread and market pornography will face the same punishment.

The new law comes into effect as Saudi Arabia faces the world's attention for its treatment of Saudi blogger Ahmad Fouad Al-Farhan. Al-Farhan was arrested for violating “non-security regulations", and is believed to be the first online critic to be arrested in the kingdom.

Al-Farhan’s blog - Searching for freedom, dignity, justice, equality, shoura and all the rest of lost Islamic values - has posted a letter, allegedly from Al-Farhan, which states he believes he was arrested because he “wrote about political prisoners in Saudi Arabia”.

.

Iranian University builds country's fastest supercomputer with AMD cores

A staffer at the Iranian High Performance Computing Research Center works on the "cluster of IRIMO," in a photo from the center's Web site.

An Iranian university is reporting that it has constructed the country's most powerful supercomputer, based on AMD processors.

In a statement posted on its website, the Iranian High Performance Computing Research Center (IHPCRC) at the Amirkabir University of Technology says that it has completed a cluster that utilizes 216 AMD Opteron processors.

AMD processors, along with many other computing components and technologies from US companies are supposedly embargoed from export to Iran by US authorities, but re-export through Dubai is commonplace.
IT news site ComputerWorld reported that there were photos on the IHPCRC site that possibly linked the supercomputer to a major distributor of AMD in the UAE, although the photos have since been removed.

In a statement provided to itp.net by AMD, the company said: “AMD has never authorized any shipments of AMD products to Iran or any other embargoed country, either directly or indirectly. AMD fully complies with all United States export control laws, and all authorized distributors of AMD products have contractually committed to AMD that they will do the same with respect to their sales and shipments of AMD products. Any shipment of AMD products to Iran by any authorized distributor of AMD would be a breach of the specific provisions of their contracts with AMD.”

The IHPCRC supercomputer will be used for meteorological research and weather forecasting, according to the University's statement. The Linux-based cluster has been loaded with the MM5 Weather Modelling System, a freely shared meteorological application, and the Advanced Regional Projection System (ARPS).

It is a relatively low powered computer when compared to the current HPC leader, IBM's BlueGene/L System. The IHPCRC computer is reported as hitting processing speeds of 860 gigaflops per second, or 860 billion calculation per second, while BlueGene/L clocks at 478.2 teraflops per second, or 478 trillion calculations per second.

Life is too short

Life is too short to wake up with regrets...
So love the people who treat you right. Forget about the one's who don't.

Believe everything happens for a reason.
If you get a second chance,grab it with both hands.
If it changes your life, let it.

Nobody said life would be easy, they just promised it would be worth it.

Saudi women get freedom to drive

At last, a decree will be issued by the end of this year to allow women in Saudi Arabia to get behind the wheel as the government lifts its longstanding ban on female drivers.

The decision comes as part of King Abdullah’s reform strategy despite objection from the extremists.

A new petition was handed to King Abdullah earlier this month urging him to end the restriction, and stating the “hope that 2008 will be the year in which Saudi women obtain their natural right to drive a car”.

Women will also be allowed to stay in hotels or furnished apartments without their male guardian, marking the end to further restrictions.

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has issued a circular to hotels asking that they accept women, providing their details are sent to a police station.

Beauty...Love...Sex...

Mobile worm attacking Symbian OS phones

Fortinet's security research team is warning of a new worm that is targeting mobile phones running the Symbian operating system.

The SymbOS/Beselo.A! worm is actively spreading at present, according to a warning the FortiGuardGlobal Security Research Team. The worm, which at present is most common in China, has been spreading worldwide and does not appear confined to any one carrier.

Once a mobile phone is infected, the worm then sends itself via viral MMS to all the other phone numbers in the contact list, and to other apparently randomly generated mobile phones in China.

The infected MMS disguises itself as a multimedia file with an evocative name: either Beauty.jpg, Sex.mp3 or Love.rm. The mobile user is then prompted to install a file with a randomly generated name, which will then infect their phone in turn.

FLOOD IN GULF

Record rainfall of 110 millimetres over two days caused havoc on the UAE's roads, with traffic at a standstill in city centres and a record number of accidents reported due to speeding and the poor road conditions.

The rain also caused flooding in many areas of the country, damaging properties and vehicles, and forcing some residents to wade through waist-high water just to leave their home.
Experts believe that climate change will result in more extreme weather in the coming years.

Saudi questioned over rights issues

Saudi officials have been questioned by the UN on the country's record on gender-equality.

The committee cited the numerous infringements on gender-equality that occur in Saudi Arabia, including the fact men have the right to twice the inheritance women are allowed, and that women are obliged to have a "tutor" accompany them for many of life's daily tasks.
Without the presence of this tutor [guardian], a woman cannot study, access health services, marry, travel abroad, have a business or even access an ambulance in an emergency," said one of the experts, according to minutes from the meeting.

"What is the legal basis in Saudi society that justifies this guardian system?" asked the same expert. "Is it necessary to maintain this system in the 21st century?"

Adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1979, the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, has been ratified by 185 states which must regularly report on how they are implementing its provisions.

Members of the committee asked the Saudi delegation why Saudi women do not have the right to drive.

In addition, they raised the case that made headlines around the world of a woman - since exonerated by King Abdullah - who had been convicted to six months in prison and 200 lashings after being gang-raped.

The Riyadh delegation reminded the committee that the country signed the convention with amendments made for Islamic law.

The kingdom is governed by Wahabism, a strict interpretation of Islam that - in the name of Sharia law - imposes complete separation of the sexes. As such, it is illegal for a woman to be in the company of a man who is not in her immediate family.

The Saudi delegation highlighted in a report they submitted to the committee that "Saudi society is still largely a tribal society and changes in mentality allowing new ideas to be accepted take time".

In its report, Riyadh also wrote that "Islam, as a realistic religion, admits that total equality between man and woman is contrary to reality, as various scientific studies on their psychological differences have shown".

The report justifies the disparity between inheritance based on the claim that women have less expenses than men.

While the delegation recognised that young women are still not allowed to study certain subjects, such as geology, it indicated that women can in fact travel abroad alone for studies - thereby representing "a radical change" from the past.

On the subject of polygamy, the Saudi representatives replied that in the kingdom, men are permitted by law to have up to four wives.

Sometimes the sexual appetite of a man is not satisfied by his wife and he must take another wife to satisfy this, otherwise he would be obliged to satisfy it an illegal manner, outside of marriage, explained the delegation.

Leading up to February 1, the committee experts will also examine country reports from Bolivia, Burundi, France, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Morocco, and Sweden.

Ice-coated Desert

Emergency winter supplies began reaching citizens in the frozen Saudi Arabian region of Tabuk and Qasim which witnessed sub-zero temperatures this week

Supplies of blankets, winter clothes, rugs, warming devices and food were all distributed free of charge.



Temperatures reached their lowest point in 30 years, plunging to -2C in the capital, Riyadh, and to -6C in mountainous regions blanketed by snow.

At least 10 people have died in the country as a weather system driven South from Siberia sent temperatures plummeting.

Pictures taken in Al-Kharj, 100 km from Riyadh.

Morocco Imprisons 6 For Homosexuality

by 365Gay.com Newscenter Staff

An appeals court has upheld the convictions of six men who prosecutors had claimed took part in a gay wedding.

After a video of what authorities claimed was a man in a dress dancing at the wedding appeared on the internet people in the northern town of Ksar el Kebir identified the six for police.

When the video and arrests became public in the Moroccan media Moslem faithful demonstrated in the streets demanding harsh sentences.

Homosexuality in Morocco is punishable with prison terms ranging up to three years.
All six pleaded not guilty at their trial. Western human rights groups who monitored the proceeding said they were convicted on flimsy evidence. It also was not determined if any of the men were gay or transgendered.

The man said to have been the organizer was convicted of homosexuality and serving liquor illegally. He was sentenced to 10 months. The others received six month sentences.

The appeals court examined the evidence and upheld the convictions but reduced the sentences for five of the six.

The alleged organizer's sentence was held but sentences for the five purported partiers were reduced to four months but could be released earlier.

Amnesty International called the convictions a travesty and called for the immediate release of all six. The group also said it was concerned about the personal safety of the men after they are freed.

"The public controversy sparked by this case in Morocco begs for an urgent review of the country's discriminatory laws which criminalize homosexuality. We urge the Moroccan government to drop the charges that contravene Morocco's obligations under international human rights law." said Philip Luther, Deputy Director for the Middle East and North Africa program at Amnesty International.

Erotic

Feelings of love... No feelings of lust that separate us from the beast... We become the beast inside...

My mind screamed out "Make love to me"
My body screamed out "Make love to me"
He did more than that….

Without a word
Without a thought
He touched, licked, kissed, nibbled, and sucked on places that my body thought had lost feeling

Passion, Desire, Lust
He knew just what I wanted
From the top of my head to the tip of my toes

I shivered…
Cried out….
Then fainted!

The rush of sensation passed through my body
It made all the tiny hairs stand up on end
Just a touch and all of my feeling came back to me
From just his touch.

I fell asleep that night - peaceful
Only to awake the next morning and realize that he was already gone
Just a dream
I don't know; but when he comes back we shall start all over again
and again…
and again.

Gulf states catch big chill

The Kingdom finds itself in an icebox. Every morning, before I catch a hot shower, I sit on my PC to check in Yahoo the weather condition in Riyadh. For almost a week now, I got “negative results” – temperature below 0C. This morning it goes down to -5C.
Saudi Arabia, a vast country with an area of 2,240,350 square kilometres covering most of the Arabian peninsula, has also been hit by a unprecedented cold spell.

Snow has fallen on some northern Saudi cities.

In Dubai, police recorded 584 accidents and two deaths within a few hours on Wednesday, with reduced visibility and speeding cited as the cause for most incidents.

Heavy rains have also lashed tiny gas-rich Qatar for nearly a week as temperatures dropped to an unusually low seven degrees Celsius, and authorities reported 1,200 drainage operations.

In Bahrain, which had its lowest recorded temperature of 2.7 degrees Celsius in 1964, the mercury dropped to between five and seven degrees Celsius over the past few days, but there were only scattered showers.

In Kuwait, where temperatures soar to above 50 degrees Celsius in July and August, the mercury dropped to sub-zero temperatures, but the state has had virtually no rain this winter.

The temperature in the open desert dropped to minus three Celsius at dawn on Wednesday for the second straight day, while passengers landing at Kuwait airport were greeted by minus one Celsius.

According to Kuwait's meteorological department, the lowest temperature ever recorded in the open desert was minus four Celsius in 1964. The cold spell was expected to continue until the weekend.
Nevertheless, we shall be spending our weekend (overnight stay starting tonight) in Dirab Golf Course located outside Riyadh Center. It has an open desert, resorts, valleys and of course golf course… and for sure, it will double the chill and…excitement!

Floods in Saudi Arabia???

Because of heavy downpours for the past days, the holy place in Saudi Arabia, Makkah, was devastated by flood.