Online Einstein Project

http://einsteinpapers.press.princeton.edu/ 

The Shrinking World of Ideas

 

Click on the text below to read the whole article.

If questions of art, beauty, morality, and value continue to engage us, the answers, so it’s said, must lie in our genes. Or in our frontal cortices. Or in our innate capacity for wonder, which makes us adapt better to the wonder of existence. It’s anyone’s guess. It seems only that by ceding such questions to biological and cognitive science we have made peace, at least for the moment, with the ideas that used to make intellectuals reach for their pens and sometimes their guns. It’s hard to know exactly what this concession means, yet one can’t help but reflect that by placing too much faith in the human brain, we may be relinquishing the idea that the mind might one day fathom the human condition.


Arthur Krystal’s latest book is Except When I Write: Reflections of a Recovering Critic (Oxford University Press, 2011).

From: The chronicle of Higher Education

Letter of Novelist Alberto Manguel to Mahvash Sabet

 


 Dear Mahvash Sabet,
It’s almost an impertinence, I feel, to write to a poet who is being kept behind bars for her words and beliefs. King Lear, imprisoned at the end of the play with his daughter Cordelia, tells her that they will become “God’s spies”. That is what you as well have become, bearing witness to society’s injustices, prejudices and inability to understand that no matter what society might do to a poet, the poet’s words will still be free in the minds of the readers, and continue to conjure up ideas, engage the mind in conversation. Perhaps there’s consolation in this.
You end one of your poems saying that “You can’t see the sorrow after lights out,” and that you therefore “long for the dark, total black-out.” I hope, for your dear sake, that the end of your sorrow is near but not as that “total black-out” you speak of: instead, as a resolution of freedom, as the free sunlight that is every person’s natural right, a right no one is entitled to take away.
I don’t know if you can find comfort in realising that you have now been welcomed into a vast and honoured company of imprisoned writers, from all centuries and all tongues, from Boethius to Abu Nuwas, Cervantes, Yevgenia Ginzburg, Nazim Hikmet and hundreds of others, and that generations of readers to come will remember your name as they remember theirs, long after the names of your jailers have been swept off the memory of the earth.
I can’t offer you anything in your cell except my devotion as your reader, my trust in better times, and my distant but sincere friendship. I hope that in the very near future we will meet in person, not only on the page.
With very best wishes of hope and courage,
Alberto Manguel

PEN International Website on Mahvash Sabet: 

http://www.pen-international.org/newsitems/day-of-the-imprisoned-writer-mahvash-sabet/

MasterPeace

MasterPeace aims to inspire everyone to use their talent and energy for building peace and togetherness. MasterPeace will help lead the way to a more sustainable world with less armed conflict. 

 http://www.masterpeace.org/

 

HeForShe

A Solidarity Movement for Gender Equality

http://www.heforshe.org/

Climate March

 

 "Climate change is a defining issue of our time and there is no time to lose," he said. "There is no Plan B because we do not have planet B. We have to work and galvanize our action." ABC News

Side Events:

While the People’s Climate March, U.N. Climate Summit, and Climate Week are the most pronounced happenings with the biggest potential to make a lasting impression, a number of other worthwhile events are being organized to bring attention to less-discussed climate issues.

• The Converge for Climate Conference from Sept. 19-21 will focus on broadening the scope of climate action to include system-challenging solutions. “The root of the problem is an economic system that exploits people and the planet for profit,” state the organizers. “It is a system that requires constant growth, exploitation, warfare, racism, poverty and ever-increasing ecological devastation to function.” The opening plenary on Friday, 9/19, will include hip hop artist Immortal Technique, and on Saturday, 9/20, Naomi Klein, author of This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate, and The Shock Doctrine will speak.
  
• The People’s Climate Justice Summit on September 22 and 23 will convene community delegations to focus on the frontlines of climate change where the poor and vulnerable are often the hardest hit. The Summit delegates will convene at the U.N. Church Center, directly across the street from the U.N., and the proceedings will be live-streamed for public viewing at The New School. The organizers argue that the U.N. Climate Summit represents the next step in “corporate takeover of the UN climate negotiations.” They want to bring attention to the “indigenous peoples’ communities, communities of color and working-class white communities that are the first and most impacted by the storms, floods and droughts,” exacerbated by climate change.
• The Religions For The Earth Conference will bring together more than 200 religious and spiritual leaders from across the world to gather at Union Theological Seminary from Sept. 19-21. On Sunday, after the climate march, a multi-faith service focused on climate change at the Cathedral of Saint John the Divine will feature former Vice President Al Gore. The conference is part of the Climate Week events, a full list of which can be viewed at:
  
  www.climateweeknyc.org/events/
  
  Climate Progress
  

Simin Behbahani, Iran’s national poet, dies

Behbahani was an iconic figure of modern Persian literature, affectionately referred to as “the lioness of Iran” by the literati of a country that treasures poetry as its national scripture.

PBS NEWSHOUR

Justice in the Killing Fields: A glimmer of hope for emerging international justice

 



PHNOM PENH, Cambodia — A court on Thursday found the two most senior surviving leaders of the Khmer Rouge, which brutalized Cambodia during the 1970s, guilty of crimes against humanity and sentenced them to life in prison.

New York Times

Up until now, I was not sure if delayed justice could truly be of value. Certainly, without concluding the trial stage through to judgment, it would be harder to identify positive contributions despite the delays.  But on reflecting on the value of today’s judgment, it became apparent to me that the ECCC provides an important opportunity to assess the empowering potential for localized international justice, no matter how late.

International Justice Monitor

The Economist: Creative destruction (in higher education)

Reinventing an ancient institution will not be easy. But it does promise better education for many more people. Rarely have need and opportunity so neatly come together.

Second letter of Ayatollah Abdu’l-Hamid Ma‘sumi Tihrani, thanking the support of international community in response to his initiative for religious coexistence

 

http://www.amasumi.net/article155.html

 In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful!

 Today, thanks to scientific advancements, territories that were once isolated have drawn closer to one another and the cries of those who suffer oppression and torment can be heard by their compatriots more clearly than ever before.  Let there be no doubt that those who inflict such anguish and who continue to regard themselves as superior to others will no longer be able to suppress the legitimacy of a sound and progressive way of life or to deter the progress of their society through the promotion of pointless religious conflicts born of anti-human, uncivilized, unbridled individualism and self-aggrandizement that breed attitudes of superiority.

For more than a century, humanity has been wrestling with notions that foster self-supremacy.  In the century just passed, we witnessed that the posture of racial superiority led to the disaster of the Second World War; a conflagration that was marked by the massacres of the holocaust and the deaths of countless others.  The atrocities inflicted in the name of the superior race propelled humanity to rise up and to institute measures aimed at deterring any recurrence of these bloody crimes.  Humanity has paid a heavy price to learn how to avoid attitudes of racial superiority.

Now, although many communities are actively addressing the scourge of racism, alas religious discrimination remains alive; the horrific events of 11 September 2001 demonstrated the potential power of religious bigotry to inflict upon both the Muslim and non-Muslim worlds an experience perhaps even more horrendous than the Second World War.  Islamic extremism is born of the thinking of a group that considers its primitive reading of the Islamic texts as the truth.  Its adherents have no regard for the lives or well-being of the followers of other faiths; time and again they have demonstrated this lack of respect by their actions.  How many humans should be killed, how much innocent blood should be spilt, and how many highly cultured individuals should be trampled under the tyranny of the self-righteous and the mendacious before communities awaken and rise up to eradicate notions of religious superiority?

Today it is a source of joy to observe that when even a small step is taken towards justice, towards eradication of religious discrimination and the establishment of peaceful coexistence among the followers of various faiths and beliefs, and when the true vision of the Almighty God and His messengers—which in fact teaches respect for all, regardless of belief—is upheld, its call to love and freedom is received with the support of open-minded persons the world over, who, though of varying creeds and religions, respond in one voice, calling for the path of the love of humanity to be followed and the lives, property, and honour of all to be safeguarded, regardless of religion or sect.

In the first three days following the news of the presentation of an artwork to the followers of the Bahá’í Faith as a symbol of friendship and coexistence among the adherents of all religions, more than 12,000 messages supporting this symbolic act were sent to my office and such expressions of appreciation continue to arrive.  The volume of correspondence received is so extensive that my office does not have the capacity to reply to each message individually.  During the short time that has passed since the presentation of this artwork, Bahá’í and non-Bahá’ís— especially my dear compatriots, both Muslim and non-Muslim — have responded to its intended message with joy and, by the breadth of their vision, have brought my heartfelt intention closer to realization.  By expressing their approval, both directly and indirectly, religious leaders and followers of other faiths and religions, as well as intellectuals in numerous countries, have added to the value of this step which calls for the equality of all human beings and religious freedom to be upheld and for religious and sectarian prejudices to be rejected.  Plainly, communities everywhere are wearied and resentful of prejudice, religious discrimination, and self-superiority; people the world over are seeking the means to free their societies of these disastrous ills for they invariably lead to insecurity, cruelty, and even death.

This lowly one was only the creator of that symbolic work, but it has been presented on behalf of all those who support this action.  Therefore, I extend my utmost gratitude to my respected fellow citizens and to the valued intellectuals and leaders of various religions in numerous countries who openly support my symbolic act, and bow my head to them in respect.  You are the ones who, although of diverse backgrounds, beliefs, and religions, stand united and speak out in one voice against infringements upon the rights of any human being on account of his or her beliefs.  This solidarity and unity of voice, together with constant action, will definitely lead to the removal of primitive thoughts of self-superiority which, in the name of God and His religion, have repeatedly made societies the bereaved victims of their crimes.  To fight against extremism and self-supremacy does not require military strategy, it rather needs agreement, support, and the constant adherence of the followers of all religions to their faiths’ teachings; this is especially true of clerics and intellectuals, whose constant explanations may serve to raise consciousness about the inherent dangers of religious and sectarian discrimination and the imperative need to manifest friendship and coexistence, so that peace, security, and tranquility may return to human communities.

Awareness of the harm inflicted through ethnic, racial, and gender discrimination is steadily growing in many parts of the world; alongside the efforts to eradicate these forms of prejudice, support must be extended to peaceful movements that aim to address denominational and sectarian discrimination, so that religious extremism and fundamentalism, which act falsely in the name of God, will ultimately be eradicated.  This is not possible unless the religiously learned and thinkers reflect deeply upon those principles of their faiths that call for human dignity to be safeguarded and the rights of all the children of man to be upheld, regardless of religion, race, or nationality.   Our ancestors managed, through struggle, unity of purpose, and enormous suffering to raise consciousness about the damage that is inflicted through prejudices of race and gender.  We, too, together, can and must, strive earnestly to efface religious and sectarian intolerance and dispel the concept of the superiority of belief, so as to pass on to future generations a world characterized by equality and respect for all.

Let us be humans first before we are Muslims, Jews, Zoroastrians, Christians, Bahá’ís, Buddhists, irreligious, or atheists.

This lowly one once again invites his fellow citizens to love and affection, friendship and compassion, sympathy and mercy, forgiveness and generosity, unity and solidarity, assistance and support, respect for the lives, property, and dignity of others; let us hold no regard for the instigators of hatred and disunity.  Iran, with its abundant resources and prospects belongs to all of its people, regardless of ethnicity, religion, or gender does not belong exclusively to one particular class or faith.  I also request all thoughtful activists and respected intellectuals across the world to continue to follow the path of truth-seeking and friendship, until the time comes when respect for difference of faith and belief will have been established, that no one may suffer any more on account of conflicts arising from religious prejudice.   I hope that through the constant efforts of all caring people throughout the world, such discrimination will be removed, so that humanity, freed from the ravages of religious conflict, will be able to devise remedies for the many urgent ecological problems facing the world and thus forestall the chaos that will ensue should this matter not receive the attention it requires. 

Once again I beg you to accept the most sincere gratitude of this, your lowly brother.

In anticipation of His blessings,

 the imploring one, ‘Abdu’l-Hamid Ma‘sumi Tihrani

Take the case of abducted school girls in Nigeria to the UN General Assembly

 
 

A terrorist group in Nigeria has abducted hundreds of school girls and announced its chilling intention to sell them as 'slaves' in the market. This outrageous act should deeply concern every man and woman in the world and urge them to arise and condemn this naked violence against women. Furthermore, they should urge their governments to set aside their political differences and take a united effort to bring this case as a crime against humanity before the United Nations General Assembly for a resolution and recommendation that the crime involves violation of the principles of international law and requires collective measures for the prevention of the crime and punishment of perpetrators.

Read more:

Nigeria abductions: 6 reasons why the world should demand action

 http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/06/world/africa/nigeria-abductions-why-it-matters/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

Why I'm joining the million-women march for the missing Nigerian girls

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/may/05/million-women-march-missing-nigerian-girls

The historical text of Ayatollah Abdol-Hamid Masoumi-Tehrani on religious co-existence in Iran

 

 In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate

The Iranian people unlike their neighbouring nations —have not in their historical background shown animosity, brutality, or disregard for the human rights of their own people. We witness how on many occasions in the past they have demonstrated that their oneness and unity have, through the power of hope, hard exertion and resolute faith, saved them from man-made calamities of corruption and oppression. Time was when different religions and denominations, with manifold beliefs and practices, enjoyed social interaction and tolerant coexistence, eachwalking its own path of growth and endeavour, benefiting and vitalizing one another. This indeed is the way in which one’s humanity can, within one’s own society, flourish and be manifested.

What happened then, that today that ancient culture has been abandoned, that tradition of love and fellow-feeling has been extinguished from the hearts, and the right to life and possessions, to human dignity and honour become so devalued? This to such an extent that not only do we seelaws based on ignorance violate fundamental human values but also that humanitarian and altruistic traditions have fallen into such an abject state that some queue for hours for the dawn in order that, like in primitive times, they may watch the condemned being executed, while in another case a citizen takes a fellow citizen hostage, hangs him by the neck, and a family brings tragedy to its own members in the midst of festivities. Who are the ones that have effaced human values and the right to be human, and have in their place engraved anti-human verses of enmity?

In creating humanity, God, the All-Wise, magnified the human being and gave it the right to life, not because of the outer form of that being, but by virtue of the sanctity of its spirit and the human qualities which God had breathed into him. This right to life that every free human being must enjoy in his homeland, so that he may benefit from social possibilities, can never be violated or restricted through ideas, beliefs or laws that undermine the fundamental assumption regarding human dignity, let alone that in the modern age religious apartheid be perpetuated, and lies and deceit, treachery and hatred, smears and abuse be permitted to destroy human honour and pit brother against brother.

Iranian society today, especially its youth, suffers from a ruinous depression and anxiety. The values of fraternity and friendship, truthfulness and honesty, trustworthiness and modesty, purityof mind and altruism, compassion and reciprocity, kindliness and consideration, sacrifice and selflessness, care and assistance for others, and humility and uprightness have been eroded among us and turned into empty slogans and posturing. In their place there is division and contention, lies and deceit, betrayal and aggression, duplicity and deception, pretension and dishonesty, cruelty and discourtesy, and the destruction of the weak and their exploitation. The truth is that the traditions and morals of the people of our land were brought low when some among the learned and those who are charged with the promotion of morality have in fact sullied the values of humanity, of honour and of religion with the dust of deceit, lies, tyranny, and immoral acts, fruitless talk, and empty promises—all in the pursuit of their own worldly gain.

This lowly one has learned from the Old Testament: “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself ”i. From the New Testament, I have also learned: “Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself ”ii and “Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them”iii. From the holy Qur’an I have learned: “God doth not forbid you to deal with kindness and fairness towards those who have not made war upon you on account of your religion”iv, and, “Truly, the most worthy of honour in the sight of God is he who feareth Him most.”v And from the rich and ancient culture of Iran, I have learned: “Adam’s sons are body limbs, to say; For they’re created of the same clay.... Thou, careless of people’s suffering; Deserve not the name, human being.”vi

Therefore, feeling the need for another practical and symbolic action to serve as a reminder of the importance of valuing human beings, of peaceful coexistence, of cooperation and mutual support, and of avoidance of hatred, enmity and blind religious prejudice, I have made an illuminated calligraphy of a verse from the Kitáb-i-Aqdas of the Bahá’ís. I have made this as an enduring symbol of respect for the innate dignity of human beings, for fellow-feeling and peaceful coexistence regardless of religious affiliation, denomination or belief. And now at the start of thisnew year 1393 (2014) I present this precious symbol an expression of sympathy and care from me and on behalf of all my open-minded fellow citizens who respect others for their humanity and not for their religion or way of worship— to all the Bahá’ís of the world, particularly to the Bahá’ís of Iran who have suffered in manifold ways as a result of blind religious prejudice. Although it was my heart’s wish to make an illuminated copy of the whole Kitáb-Aqdas, like the holy Qur’an, the Torah, the Psalms, the New Testament, and the Book of Ezra, yet regrettably my physical and financial resources did not allow it. My hope is that this humble but spiritually significant rendering which will be kept by the Universal House of Justice will serve as a reminder of the rich andancient Iranian tradition of friendship and its culture of coexistence and that the numerous artistic shortcomings of the work will be overlooked with the eye of kindness.

With utmost brotherly kindness, this feeble one calls upon all my dear fellow citizens from every religion, belief and walk of life who may hear my words, to evince love and affection, friendship and kindliness, mercy and compassion, forgiveness and empathy, care and solidarity,helpfulness and support, and to respect the life, possessions and dignity of others. Now that we are at the start of a new spring season, it behoves us to contemplate our patterns of thoughts, wash away the dross that is the tendency to think in stereotypes about one another, and to extend the hand of love and assistance towards that which is human in each one of us, so that we and our future generations may reap, within the framework of thought as citizens, the bounties that accrue from solidarity and coexistence and the blessings and life-force that they bestow. Let us reject, then, those who through their wealth, power, and deceit aim to make us, in various forms, as enemies towards one another and to induce us to violate each other’s possessions, life and dignity.

This lowly one is content to believe that extensive and practical initiatives can eliminate the culture of conflict from our society and foster instead love and fellowship, solidarity and altruism which are increasing ly needed in our society which has sunk now into division and hatred.

Salutations be upon those who follow divine guidance.

Tehran

The imploring one, Abdol-Hamid Masoumi-Tehrani 

i Leviticus, 19:18

ii Matthew, 22:39

iii Matthew5:44

iv Qur’an, 60:8

v Qur’an, 49:13

vi Persian poetSa‘dí

Visions of the Impossible How ‘fantastic’ stories unlock the nature of consciousness

 





I suggest a way out of our present impasse: We should put these extreme narratives, these impossible stories, in the middle of our academic table. I would also like to make a wager, here and now, that once we put these currently rejected forms of knowledge on our academic table, things that were once impossible to imagine will soon become possible not only to imagine but also to think, theorize, and even test. I am betting, in other words, that we actually need these so-called impossible things to come up with better answers to our most pressing questions, including the biggest question of all: the nature of consciousness.

Climate change a threat to security, food and humankind - IPCC report

“Nobody on this planet is going to be untouched by the impacts of climate change,” said Rajendra Pachauri, chair of the IPCC.




Read the summary

Crimes with impunity continue...

 


BAHA’I WORLD NEWS SERVICE  GENEVA — In an apparent hate crime, three Baha'is were stabbed in their home in Birjand, Iran, by an unidentified intruder on Monday 3 February, the Baha'i International Community has learned.
The three – a husband and wife and their daughter – survived but are currently in intensive care at a nearby hospital.
According to reports from Iran, the attacker – who was masked – entered the home of Ghodratollah Moodi and his wife, Touba Sabzehjou, at about 8 p.m.
He immediately assaulted Mr. Moodi, Mrs. Sabzehjou, and their daughter, Azam Moodi, with a knife or sharp instrument, seriously injuring all three of them.
Mr. Moodi was injured in his abdomen and side; Mrs. Sabzehjou was wounded in the neck. Both lost consciousness from the loss of blood.
Ms. Moodi, although also seriously hurt, was able to call the police and all three were taken to the hospital, where they are being closely monitored.
Diane Ala'i, the Baha'i International Community’s representative to the United Nations in Geneva, said the attacker's only goal appears to have been to kill three innocent Baha'is in their home.
"As such, there can be no doubt that this crime was religiously motivated. Mr. Moodi was well-known as a leader in the Baha'i community in Birjand.
"Our immediate concern is for the recovery of the Moodi family. But we are also concerned that authorities in Iran begin immediately to investigate this crime and bring the perpetrator to justice.
"The sad fact is that there have been more than 50 physical assaults on Iranian Baha'is since 2005 – and none of the attackers has been prosecuted or otherwise brought to justice. And at least nine Baha'is have been murdered under suspicious circumstances in the same period, and the murderers have likewise enjoyed impunity.
"Most recently, for example, a Baha'i in Bandar Abbas was killed – and police have yet to charge anyone with the crime. Mr. Ataollah Rezvani, who was also a leader in the Baha'i community in his locality, was murdered in his own car by a gunshot to the head on 24 August 2013.
"If the new government of President Hassan Rouhani is sincere about his assertion that, under his presidency, all Iranian citizens will enjoy equal rights, then this new case should be taken extremely seriously, starting with an immediate search for the man who attacked the Moodi family.
"What is heartening is that once again non-Baha'i Iranians are registering their deep concern and support for the Baha'is of Iran, as evidenced by several online reports asking that Baha'is be treated with justice," said Ms. Ala'i.

It is 5 minutes to midnight

 


http://thebulletin.org/