Monday Morning Smile

https://www.youtube.com/embed/-MoNd9PjvWE

If Not For You

Monday Morning Smile

I don't know about you, but "Uptown Funk" rocks, and so do these pieces of film showing the golden age of dancing and musicals in the 40's.

Enjoy

Thank You Allen Toussaint, RIP

A Smile for a Change

DAESH

For many months now, we have heard world leaders speak of the threat posed by ISIS , IS and ISIL.

But in the wake of the devastating terror attacks in Paris on Friday, we have seen another word being used with increasing frequency.

When French president Francois Hollande addressed a nation in mourning following the tragic events, he said they were "waged by a terrorist army, a jihadist army, by Daesh, against France."

Hacker group Anonymous also included the term 'Daesh' in a tweet published yesterday in which they vowed to 'wage war' on Islamic State.


Many of us might not have heard the term 'Daesh' before - but you'll probably be hearing it much more often from now on.

Read more: For all the latest developments in Paris follow our live blog

What does it mean?
Daesh is an acronym for the Arabic phrase al-Dawla al-Islamiya al-Iraq al-Sham (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant).

Essentially, it's another word for ISIS - but apparently one that ISIS militants do not favour.

Why? Because it is similar to the Arabic words 'Daes', 'one who crushes something underfoot' and 'Dahes', translated as 'one who sows discord'.

ISIS FAKES

One Muslim TV host's segment on ISIS is going viral for exposing the Islamic State's deadliest weapon: Haterade. That's right—Waleed Aly, host of the Australian talk show The Project, demonstrated that the key to ISIS's success is haters sippin' on that nasty-ass haterade. After watching it, you'll put down the bottle for life.


In a segment from the show's first episode since the attacks, he starts off by discussing how ISIS appears much stronger than it actually is by "[taking] credit for any act of terrorism on Western soil," whether or not they were actually ordered by the organization. This is something ISIS has admitted to in its monthly magazine, Dabi, which actually encouraged supporters to take credit for DIY terrorist attacks so they don't appear to be "random killings."

The Project's clip is rapidly going viral on Facebook, with more than 210,000 likes and more than 260,000 shares. That's great news, because every person who sees the video makes ISIS's tactic less effective.


Aly discusses how ISIS, like a weird doomsday cult, wants to split the world into two camps—those who have "faith" and those who are in "disbelief"—in preparation for a "great war." They want Westerners to act hostile towards Muslims, and in turn, have those Muslims turn to ISIS in retaliation. Aly notes that it's a crazy, outlandish idea, but drives home the point that within this framework, being Islamophobic is actually a way of helping ISIS achieve their goal, however ridiculous that goal is.
So next time you wanna take a big gulp of that haterade, remember, you're taking a gulp for ISIS.
Sources: The Project/Facebook

Monday Morning Smile

Sorry for the late post. The weekend events kept me from thinking of smiling. Enjoy these deleted pieces of Monty Python & The Holy Grail - one of my favorite movies. Enjoy and smile.

Grief Knows no Native Tongue

Thoughts of a Paris Survivor

Isobel Bowdery
University of Cape Town · 27,743 followers · 11 hrs ·


you never think it will happen to you. It was just a friday night at a rock show. the atmosphere was so happy and everyone was dancing and smiling. and then when the men came through the front entrance and began the shooting, we naiively believed it was all part of the show. It wasn't just a terrorist attack, it was a massacre. Dozens of people were shot right infront of me. Pools of blood filled the floor. Cries of grown men who held their girlfriends dead bodies pierced the small music venue. Futures demolished, families heartbroken. in an instant. Shocked and alone, I pretended to be dead for over an hour, lying among people who could see their loved ones motionless.. Holding my breath, trying to not move, not cry - not giving those men the fear they longed to see. I was incredibly lucky to survive. But so many didn't. The people who had been there for the exact same reasons as I - to have a fun friday night were innocent. This world is cruel. And acts like this are suppose to highlight the depravity of humans and the images of those men circuling us like vultures will haunt me for the rest of my life. The way they meticoulsy aimed at shot people around the standing area i was in the centre of without any consideration for human life. It didn't feel real. i expected any moment for someone to say it was just a nightmare. But being a survivor of this horror lets me able to shed light on the heroes. To the man who reassured me and put his life on line to try and cover my brain whilst i whimpered, to the couple whose last words of love kept me believing the good in the world, to the police who succeded in rescuing hundreds of people, to the complete strangers who picked me up from the road and consoled me during the 45 minutes I truly believed the boy i loved was dead, to the injured man who i had mistaken for him and then on my recognition that he was not Amaury, held me and told me everything was going to be fine despite being all alone and scared himself, to the woman who opened her doors to the survivors, to the friend who offered me shelter and went out to buy new clothes so i wouldnt have to wear this blood stained top, to all of you who have sent caring messages of support - you make me believe this world has the potential to be better. to never let this happen again. but most of this is to the 80 people who were murdered inside that venue, who weren't as lucky, who didnt get to wake up today and to all the pain that their friends and families are going through. I am so sorry. There's nothing that will fix the pain. I feel priviledged to be there for their last breaths. And truly beliving that I would join them, I promise that their last thoughts were not on the animals who caused all this. It was thinking of the people they loved. As i lay down in the blood of strangers and waiting for my bullet to end my mere 22 years, I envisioned every face that I have ever loved and whispered I love you. over and over again. reflecting on the highlights of my life. Wishing that those i love knew just how much, wishing that they knew that no matter what happened to me, to keep belieivng in the good in people. to not let those men win. Last night, the lives of many were forever changed and it is up to us to be better people. to live lives that the innocent victims of this tragedy dreamt about but sadly will now never be able to fulfil. RIP angels. You will never be forgotten.

London after Paris

LONDON — For a few moments on Saturday evening, the thousands of people who gathered in Trafalgar Square stood and listened to a lone violinist play for the victims of the Paris attacks.

The young man walked into the crowd, opened his case, took out his violin and played two mournful pieces of music that visibly moved many at the central London vigil. As he performed people took out their phones, switched on their flashlights and held them aloft.

SEE ALSO: Here's how you can help victims of the Paris terror attacks

After he stopped playing, the crowd gave him a rousing cheer. He shouted "Vive la France" at the top of his voice.

He then quickly packed up his violin and disappeared into the sea of people.

Idiots (racist idiots) among us

Representative Jeff Duncan- South Carolina

His post on Twitter in light of the Paris terrorists' attack

How's that Syrian refugee resettlement look now? How about that mass migration into Europe? Terrorism is alive & well in the world. #No
6:33 PM - 13 Nov 2015


on Twitter as @RepJeffDuncan


WHAT is wrong with you, South Carolina???

Pray for the World

I woke this morning deeply disturbed by the news from #Paris, but more amazed by the attention it received on social media. I understand Paris is a beloved and familiar space for a lot of people, but it troubled me that #Beirut, a city my father grew up in, had received so little attention after the horrific bombings two days earlier. It also troubled me that #Baghdad, a place I have absolutely no connection with, received even less attention after the senseless bombing that took place there last week. Worst of all, I found the understanding of the refugee crisis skewed and simplistic. If you've been following the journeys of the people leaving their homes around the world right now, perhaps you'll understand why the words #SyrianRefugeeCrisis are just as devastating as #PrayForParis. It's time to pray for humanity. It is time to make all places beloved. It's time to pray for the world.

A photo posted by Karuna E Parikh (@karunaezara) on Nov 13, 2015 at 11:05pm PST

Je suis Paris

In my prayers.

A French artist Jean Jullien.

Veterans' Day

At exactly 11:11 a.m. every Veteran’s Day (Nov. 11), the sun aligns perfectly with the Anthem Veteran’s Memorial in Arizona to shine through the ellipses of the five marble pillars representing each branch of the Armed Forces, illuminating The Great Seal of the United States

Forty Years Ago

A tribute to the 29 men who died November 10, 1975, aboard the Edmund Fitzgerald in Lake Superior.

Lyrics
The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
The lake, it is said, never gives up her dead
When the skies of November turn gloomy
With a load of iron ore twenty-six thousand tons more
Than the Edmund Fitzgerald weighed empty
That good ship and true was a bone to be chewed
When the gales of November came early

The ship was the pride of the American side
Coming back from some mill in Wisconsin
As the big freighters go, it was bigger than most
With a crew and good captain well seasoned
Concluding some terms with a couple of steel firms
When they left fully loaded for Cleveland
Then later that night when the ship's bell rang
Could it be the north wind they'd been feelin'?

The wind in the wires made a tattle-tale sound
When the wave broke over the railing
And every man knew, as the captain did too
'Twas the witch of November come stealin'
The dawn came late and the breakfast had to wait
When the gales of November came slashin'
When afternoon came it was freezing rain
In the face of a hurricane west wind

When suppertime came, the old cook came on deck
Sayin' "Fellas, it's too rough to feed ya"
At seven PM a main hatchway caved in
He said, "Fellas, it's been good to know ya"
The captain wired in he had water comin' in
And the good ship and crew was in peril
And later that night when his lights went out of sight
Came the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald

Does anyone know where the love of God goes
When the waves turn the minutes to hours?
The searchers all say they'd have made Whitefish Bay
If they'd put fifteen more miles behind her
They might have split up or they might have capsized
They may have broke deep and took water
And all that remains is the faces and the names
Of the wives and the sons and the daughters

Lake Huron rolls, Superior sings
In the rooms of her ice-water mansion
Old Michigan steams like a young man's dreams
The islands and bays are for sportsmen
And farther below, Lake Ontario
Takes in what Lake Erie can send her
And the iron boats go as the mariners all know
With the gales of November remembered

In a musty old hall in Detroit they prayed
In the Maritime Sailors' Cathedral
The church bell chimed 'til it rang twenty-nine times
For each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald
The legend lives on from the Chippewa on down
Of the big lake they call Gitche Gumee
Superior, they said, never gives up her dead
When the gales of November come early

Monday Morning Smile