Western concepts of Tibet embrace more myth than reality. The idea that Tibet is an oppressed nation composed of peaceful Buddhists who never did anyone any harm distorts history. In fact the belief that the Dalai Lama is the leader of world Buddhism rather than being just the leader of one sect among more than 1,700 ‘Living Buddhas’ of this unique Tibetan form of the faith displays a parochial view of world religions. The myth, of course, is an outgrowth of Tibet’s former inaccessibility, which has fostered illusions about this mysterious land in the midst of the Himalayan Mountains — illusions that have been skillfully promoted for political purposes by the Dalai Lama’s advocates. The myth will inevitably die, as all myths do, but until this happens, it would be wise to learn a few useful facts about this area of China. First, Tibet has been a part of China ever since it was merged into that country in 1239, when the Mongols began creating the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). This was before Marco Polo reached China from Europe and more than two centuries before Columbus sailed to the New World. True, China’s hold on this area sometimes appeared […]
We all know that America is the technology hub of the universe. It is home to Intel, Microsoft, Apple, Sun, Google, YouTube, Yahoo, MIT – the list is endless. So why, when it comes to the basics, like delivering the internet to its citizens, has it fallen way behind many other nations? In Manhattan people pay about $30 (£15) a month for a download speed of three megabits per second (Mbps) via a DSL line. Many people are very happy with that, until they realise what is going on elsewhere in the world. ‘In Japan you can get 100 megabits for $35,’ says Selina Lo of Ruckus Wireless. ‘I think that has penetrated some 30% of subscribers. The government is targeting for 100 megabit services to penetrate 60% plus of the subscriber base in a few years. ‘If you look at places like Hong Kong and Europe, in many places you can get over 10 megabits from your broadband network.’ Ten years ago, dozens of small DSL companies offered American consumers ever decreasing rates to the point where the businesses collapsed. Today most New Yorkers have two choices for home net – via their phone or […]
AHMEDABAD — Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama calls himself a Marxist monk, because ‘Marxism is more ethical, unlike capitalism’. At a gathering at the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A), he said: ‘I am a Marxist monk, a Buddhist Marxist. I belong to the Marxist camp, because unlike capitalism, Marxism is more ethical. Marxism, as an ideology, takes care of the welfare of its employees and believes in distribution of wealth among the people of the state.’ Delivering a lecture on Ethics and Business, the Tibetan leader-in-exile said the global economy has created vast economic differences in every country of the world. ‘In the absence of ethical handling of money, the whole community suffer from a sense of insecurity. Exploitation of workers is maximum in developing countries. There are very high degrees of exploitation in India and China, similar to the exploitation during industrialisation of Western countries a century ago,’ he said. Ethics, the Dalai Lama said, could be categorised as theistic, non-theistic, and secular, and need not be based on religious faith. ‘In all the three cases, the definition of ethics remains the same. Both theistic and non-theistic religions advocate love, forgiveness, tolerance and […]
Mr. McElvaine teaches history at Millsaps College. His latest book, Grand Theft Jesus: The Hijacking of Religion in America, has just been published by Crown. ‘As far as history goes and all of these quotes about people trying to guess what the history of the Bush administration is going to be, you know, I take great comfort in knowing that they don’t know what they are talking about, because history takes a long time for us to reach.’- George W. Bush, Fox News Sunday, Feb10, 2008 A Pew Research Center poll released last week found that the share of the American public that approves of President George W. Bush has dropped to a new low of 28 percent. An unscientific poll of professional historians completed the same week produced results far worse for a president clinging to the hope that history will someday take a kinder view of his presidency than does contemporary public opinion. In an informal survey of 109 professional historians conducted over a three-week period through the History News Network, 98.2 percent assessed the presidency of Mr. Bush to be a failure while 1.8 percent classified it as a success. Asked […]
BOMBAY — India has granted Africa radically improved terms of trade in the clearest signal yet that it intends to compete head-to-head with China for access to the continent’s natural resources. Speaking at the inaugural India-Africa Forum Summit in New Delhi, Manmohan Singh, the Indian Prime Minister, said that tariffs would be scrapped on a host of African imports, from diamonds and copper ore to sugar cane and clothes. The abolition of duties will cover 94 per cent of the in-bound goods from 34 African nations. The summit, which is being attended by the leaders of 14 African states, is widely regarded as India’s riposte to the China-Africa Cooperation Forum of 2006, at which China unveiled $9 billion in preferential loans, export credits and other incentives to reinforce its grip on Africa’s mineral-rich regions. Mr Singh yesterday tabled a rival set of financial sweeteners including plans to more than double credit lines to Africa, to $5.4 billion, over the next five years and $500 million in state aid. The measures join an estimated $15 billion in investment in Africa from India’s corporate sector last year, much of it in mining, power and IT projects. He said: […]
Remote Viewing the Year 2060
