By Latheef Farook –
Sri Lanka, once an inspiring leader of Non Aligned Movement, hosted a Non Aligned Summit of Heads of States in 1975 and won the hearts and minds of the entire Third World, has now aligned with United States led European- Israeli war mongers to fight against Houthis.
This is the inevitable price Sri Lanka pays for its economic bankruptcy, political and social instability which made the island turn to International Monetary Fund,IMF, for rescue. Now the question is whether a bankrupt country like Sri Lanka where the people are passing through, perhaps their worst ever sufferings, could afford to align with US waging wars worldwide, and now slaughtering Palestinians in Gaza, under the guise of fighting war on terrorism.
If United States President Joe Biden wants he could stop the on going US-European and Arab dictators backed genocide of Palestinians in Gaza with a telephone call to the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. But he doesn’t want to do that.
Instead President Biden dismissed the world and continued to vote against all United Nations resolutions calling Israel to stop the slaughter of Palestinians and the destruction of Gaza.
As a result US remains isolated even from its own allies.
Shamelessly declaring himself a Zionist, Biden continues to supply Israel with sophisticated weapons ,diplomatic support,billions of financial aid, dispatched war ships to Israeli’s shores to help Israel to continue its barbarity on Palestinian civilians, the destruction of 85 percent of buildings.Of the 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza more than 1.9million remain displaced.
Since 8 October 2023, Israel killed new born babies, months old children, young boys and girls, men, women, some of them pregnant, and even the aged. At the time of writing on Thursday 11 January at least 22,835 Palestinians had been killed, with another 58,416 reportedly injured. An estimated 70% are women and children. About 7,000 more are reportedly missing and most are likely dead. They have been killed at a rate of just under 250 a day.
Residential areas, hospitals, schools, mosques and churches and historic buildings were reduced to rubble throwing people into live in open areas and tents in the winter cold and rain.
Helpless people worldwide are seething with anger and demanding Biden to stop genocide of Palestinians. The opposition to Israeli atrocities is such that even young people in US started demanding the dismantling the settler settler state of Israel.
Leading Israeli columnists openly claim in the Israeli media that Israeli is breathing its last. A Jewish Rabbbi declared that Israel is the most unsafe place for Jews to live in the world.
South Africa filed case at the International Court if Justice, ICJ, demanding Israel stops its genocide of Palestinians while Arab dictators side with Israel to please their US, British and French masters and save their oppressive regimes.
Unfortunately for people in Sri Lankan the media in general, both print sand electronic, sold their souls to Israeli and American war mongers refuse to highlight daily Israeli crimes on Palestinians. Thus they help cover up the genocide and deprive the people of knowing about Israeli war crimes in Gaza.
It was under such circumstance that Houthis started attacking ships to Israel demanding Israel stop its genocide of Palestinians.
In supporting the US fleet by sending a ship from Sri Lanka’s navy the island has supported the continuation of Israeli genocide. Now the question is whether a bankrupt country like Sri Lanka could afford to do this at a reported cost of US Dollar 250 million.
Sri Lanka, over the years , has earned the good will of the Third World as a non aligned country fiercely supporting just struggle for freedom and democracy all over the third world.
On top of all is it possible for Sri Lanka, with its age old historic ties with the island, its trade and remittance from Sri Lankan employed there to antagonize the Middle East as a whole?
In view of its manipulated and illegitimate birth at UN, repeated invasion of neighbouring countries and occupying their lands, decades of oppression and atrocities of Palestinians and now its latest genocide in Gaza isn’t Israeli presence in the once non aligned capital,Colombo, an insult to human decency.
Israel was trying to penetrate the island from its inception in 1948. Some reports said diplomatic relations were established during late Prime Minister DS Senanayake’s time but, it was kept a secret.
It was during Prime Minister W. Dahanayake’s period a non-resident ambassador was appointed to Israel in 1958, but he was recalled by Prime Minister Mrs Srimavo Bandaranaike.
Fulfilling her promise then Prime Minister Mrs Srimavo Bandaranaike closed down the Israeli mission in Colombo in 1970 despite threats of economic boycott .
After July 83 violence President JR Jayewardene opened an Israeli Interest Section in the United States Embassy in Colombo .
Muslims opposed the move. Leading a delegation respected senior Muslim politician and Chairman of UNP Dr MCM Kaleel met President Jayewardene to express Muslim concerns. But dismissing them President Jayewardene stated “well, I will go even to devil to get help. If the Muslims wanted they can remain in the government, otherwise they can leave”. Muslim parliamentarians were placed in an embarrassing and helpless situation and Foreign Minister ACS Hameed had to defend the move.
Israeli President Chaim Herzog paid an official visit to Sri Lanka in 1986. President Ranasinghe Premadasa closed down the Israeli Interest Section in Colombo on 20 April 1990 and discontinued diplomatic relations with Israel.
In June 2000 diplomatic relations between the two countries resumed.
Sri Lanka’s ties with Israel continued to flourish during President Mahinda Rajapaksa government though he has been the president of Sri Lanka Committee for Solidarity with Palestinian People since 1975. The pinnacle of this warming up of relationship between the two countries came when President Mahinda Rajapaksa undertook a two day visit to Israel in January 2014
Ajith / January 14, 2024
Dear Latheef Farook,
USA not only helped Israel’s war against Palestinians in the name of terrorism but also supported the Sri Lanka’s war against Tamils in the name of terrorism. Even Tamil speaking Muslim community gave its support for Sri Lanka’s war on Tamils. Opportunism always play in politics.
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Pandi Kutti / January 15, 2024
Yes, Ajith you are 100% correct, not only this man but and all other Sri Lankan Muslims, who are all ethnically Tamil, kept quiet, rejoiced and openly gave support to the Chingkalla Sri Lankan state to discriminate, marginalize, commit war crimes, structural genocide on the island’s Thamizh. Muslim ministers belonging to all, ruling governments connived with the Chingkallams to deny the island’s Thamizh education, employment, land rights, and even joined Chingkalla ministers to organize pogroms against Thamizh.
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Pandi Kutti / January 15, 2024
Many even openly celebrated and rejoiced, thinking now they will replace the Thamizh as second most important community, and claim the entire ancient Thamizh east, where they arrived a few centuries ago as refugees, fleeing Portuguese and later Chingkalla persecution, claiming to be fellow Thamizh, over the heads of the native Eezham Thamizh and the Thamizhlized Vedda. All in the name of Islam and a fake imagined blanket Arab origin that now even DNA has proved that they hardly have, and they are indeed descendants of immigrant South Indian Thamizh converts to Islam.
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Pandi Kutti / January 15, 2024
Now pathetically, trying to look like Arab, arabizing themselves to prove to the world that they are indeed descendants of Arabs, when 95% of them look Thamizh Dravidian and their DNA also tells so. running around in Arab clothes and crying demonstrating and howling everywhere over the plight of the Palestinian Arabs, with whom they have hardly any connection other than the slender thread of Islam. In contrast despite sharing the same ethnicity, language, history and heritage with the Thamizh, they joined with the Chingkallams to destroy them and marginalize them, hoping to get lots of crumbs from the Chingkalla table for their immigrant fake Arab, community from South India, that only arrived a few centuries ago. I also feel sorry for the poor Palestinian Arabs but not for Hamas or Hezbollah who created all these problems, but I Am astounded by the hypocrisy of these people. So, the Sri Lankan state killing and committing war crimes and structural genocide and marginalizing your fellow Thamizh is fine and needs to be supported in the name of world Islam but when the same thing happens to the Palestinian Arabs it is a definite again in the name of world Islam and should be condemned? What sort of confused values.
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Rohan25 / January 15, 2024
Ajith, Mr.; Farook and the rest of the Muslim journalists on the island, or for that matter 99% of the so-called Sri Lankan Muslims, have never cared about their own Tamil ethnicity or language, only claim to be Tamil when it suits and is advantageous to them, like when in South India or to claim asylum in the west, otherwise always joined and connived with anyone or everyone who wanted to destroy their fellow non-Muslim Tamils for petty benefits and to steal their land, especially in the east and in many parts of the north too, if they can. Compare this to the way they go around everywhere and cry and howl about the plight of the Palestinians, and other Islamic people throughout the world, in the name of pan Islamic unity and a largely imagined blanket Arab origin, which is only in their minds. Even the Arabs have stated they are not Arabs but South Asian converts to Islam. How hypocritical.
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Rohan25 / January 15, 2024
Of course, the Palestinian civilians deserve all the sympathy they can get, caught between the Hamas, that deliberately created this problem (not Israel) and Jewish hardliners who, want to eliminate them as a people from the Gaza and West Bank. My sympathies are with them but these Tamil Sri Lankan Muslims who aided abetted and supported the Sinhalese and the Sri Lankan state to commit all sorts of atrocities and war crimes on the island’s native Tamils, now crying about the plight of Palestinian Arabs takes the cake and the brings out the height of hypocrisy.
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Mahila / January 16, 2024
AT TIMES THEY CHOSE NOT TO WEAR THE CAP??!! No Cap, ‘Asathya’ becomes Sathya undoubtedly.
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chiv / January 16, 2024
Mahila, here is an example. According to LF ” JR dismissed Muslim parliamentarians by saying
” if needed he will even go to devil, and those who disagree with him can either remain in his govt or leave , placing them including then Chairman of UNP , Foreign minister………. in embarrassing and helpless situation. Did any of those
power greedy Muslim parliamentarians resign or confront JR ????? NEVER AGAIN. There is no worse war monger than this racist who then goes on, calling Biden and the rest shameless. Even LJ seems to have better reasoning to LF.
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chiv / January 18, 2024
War monger LF will be soon claiming, US creating, escalating tension between Iran and Pakistan as both countries launched air strikes on each others soil. Initially Iran attacked Pakistan claiming destroying anti Iran forces / terrorist and soon Pakistan retaliated with air strikes on alleged Baloch separatist hide outs within Iran. Welcome to Shia vs Sunni, Terror world. Opportunism always play.
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SJ / January 16, 2024
The LTTE enabled the election of their prospective mass killer.
Opportunism always plays
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Raj-UK / January 15, 2024
What a load of bull. It might convince those with the ‘frog in the well syndrome’ but I am sure intelligent readers will consider it as an one sided racist outburst. Mr F doesn’t talk about the murder, kidnapping, dehumanisation & rape of civilians, including small children & old people by Hamas, who started the conflict.
Hamas & other muslim terror organisations are against the 2 state solution & wants the conflict to continue for their own survival. Maybe Hamas carried out the attack knowing that Israel will retaliate with vengeance & sacrificing their own people by holding them as human shields. An opportunity on a platter for hardline Jews to ‘ethnic cleanse’ Israel from Palestinians just to gain sympathy for their cause. Israel has stated the attacks will continue until all the hostages are released & has no option but to conduct an armed search & rescue operation even if the hostages are no longer alive. Hamas & Hezbollah are attacking Israel from Lebanon & Israel has the right to defend itself from terror attacks. When the SL military attacked the LTTE, Jaffna residents were caught in the crossfire but I can’t recollect any muslim journalists voicing their plight.
Cont.
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Raj-UK / January 15, 2024
Cont.
As for Mrs B’s jolly band of despots & dictators, the larger membership of the useless Non Aligned movement, it was a joke & an excuse to waste public funds. What did Mrs B actually achieve for the country with her movement? Did we at least get cheap fuel from Gaddafii? Maybe MR benefitted years later by laundering ill gotten wealth in these friendly corrupt African states.
Mr Farook & such likes should emigrate to Iran & join the militant ‘Free Palestine’ protest groups & leave the moderate Muslims to work collectively with other citizens of SL to build a better nation where people of all ethnicity & religions can live in harmony
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Rohan25 / January 15, 2024
He loves Srima and her government, as it was her acolyte Muslim minister Bathiudeen Mohammed who connived with the Sinhalese racists and hardliners and introduced standardization and regional basis selection for higher education, especially to prestigious science courses, to deliberately deny deserving Tamil students’ higher education and to admit far less deserving Sinhalese and Muslims students with far lower marks to these courses.
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Rohan25 / January 15, 2024
It was during this era that island’s Muslims were deliberately given more importance over the Tamils who at that time were around three times their population and the marginalization of the Tamils in the east, earnestly began with outside Muslims as well as Sinhalese settled on a large scale, especially in the Trincomalee area. Of course, he like most Muslims love this era. Their immigrant South Indian origin community benefitted largely at the expense of the native Tamils who had lived year for over 3000 years. They were made to feel wanted and important, and the Tamils not wanted and foreigners in their own ancient land.
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Mahila / January 16, 2024
………… and Muslim students were able to follow English Medium!!!??? Why??? Presumably because of Purported Arabic Lineage, they didn’t follow language policy, where all others have to follow the ‘MOTHER TOUNGUE.’ Even, that is incorrect, because the fathers were foreign and not the mothers!!!??? That famous double Doctor convoluted every little piece of FACT and confounded the people with his nonsensical rationale. that was understood only by him! None others! Even majority Sinhalese diddn’t have privilege, educating their Progeny in ENGLISH MEDIUM!!!???
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LankaScot / January 15, 2024
Hello Raj-UK,
I have the same name as a British Senior Political Advisor, then based in Tel Aviv. During that time I also worked for the same Government Department. Our email addresses were almost identical and I was constantly getting emails intended for him until we changed our email addresses. I would never divulge the contents, however I was shocked at the daily discrimination, abuse and harassment of the Palestinians by the Israeli Government and Security Personnel. In the space of a few months I had a glimpse into a world that no-one should have to suffer.
Hamas and Hezbollah are the result of the Israeli Apartheid against the Palestinians. Netanyahu himself supported Hamas in order to divide the Palestinians and prevent them forming their own State.
The fact that the British committed War Crimes in Lucknow, Meerut, Kanpur and many other places in India (1857-1858) – or the bombing of Dresden in WW2 – prior to the Genocide Convention does not excuse the Israelis indiscriminate/deliberate killing of more than 20,000 civilians.
The deliberate killing of Civilians for political ends is considered as Terrorism and Hamas is guilty of this, but it does not excuse Israel’s Genocide.
Best regards
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Leonard Jayawardena / January 15, 2024
LS:
“… I was shocked at the daily discrimination, abuse and harassment of the Palestinians by the Israeli Government and Security Personnel.”
Could you please give us a few examples of this without naming persons and the contexts in which such things happened?
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Siva Sankaran Sharma / January 16, 2024
He will never, as he is bullshitting. I worked for the Australian Federal government, and you have to use your official email and not you are personal one and they are strictly monitored, especially if sensitive information is being conveyed. Especially at that level. If email addresses are similar one most probably two emails may go amiss or accidentally sent to the incorrect address but definitely not a whole lot, especially at that level, with such sensitive information. Strange they are sending these sorts of information on email! He seems to be working everywhere and being everything. A Scott. was an engineer. Then working for British Foreign Office and now in Sri Lanka. What a bunch of fairy tales.
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Siva Sankaran Sharma / January 16, 2024
These official emails are very strictly monitored and there are strict criteria on using them. Strictly for official and work-related purposes and nothing inappropriate, political, lewd or racist in nature. There is a strict code of conduct for a Public Servant and if you disobey this, you will be investigated and can be demoted or even sacked. I find this person’s allegations unbelievable, with sensitive and security related information like this being sent by emails, that can be hacked.
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LankaScot / January 16, 2024
Hello,
Hello Siva Sankaran Sharma,
Working in IT/Training for various Government Departments you see a lot of incompetence and bureaucratic behaviour. I have seen the complete shambles that is the Sri Lankan Health Service IT. My stepson aged 38, died in Kandy Hospital after 9 months of treatment for Malignant Thymoma/Lymphoma and eventually contracted Covid whilst in the Cancer Ward. CT Scans/X-Rays were lost, Reports were delayed for weeks from getting to the right Consultants etc. The hospitals are under-staffed and Nurses and Doctors are overworked and stressed. I visited various hospitals throughout Sri Lanka and they all suffer the same problems. I was the last family member to speak to him before he was intubated in the ICU. He died 5 days later and was cremated the next day. There were none of the usual Buddhist traditions observed due to Sri Lanka’s stupid Anti-Muslim Covid rules on burial. He was taken directly from the hospital by hearse and his coffin almost thrown into the Crematorium furnace.
The relevance of this is, that unless you have personal experience you tend not to believe how bad things can be. The Palestinians suffer these things daily in Gaza.
Best regards
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LankaScot / January 16, 2024
Hello SSS,
It was an official email address, I never use my personal email for work related business. The problem was not caused by me or my namesake, but was due to the people sending emails to the wrong address. In large corporate IT Support organisations it can take some time to fix minor problems. There is a system called SLA (Support Level Agreements) which details which problems have priority and how quickly they should be fixed. Escalation can be enacted to resolve issues, but that again takes time and the intervention of managers. Nothing that I have said in this Forum (or any others) can be considered as sensitive (from a Security Perspective). Everything I have said about the Middle East is open source and can be found online. The information that I received by email was not Protectively Marked – neither was it subject to a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA). The UK has both a Freedom of Information Act and an Official Secrets Act which can be read here – https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1989/6/contents
I hope that clears up your issues.
Best regards
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SJ / January 16, 2024
Do you read anything outside US propaganda?
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SJ / January 16, 2024
Have you a clue about what happens on the West Bank?
Try a Google search. It may have a little bit of the other side.
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SJ / January 16, 2024
Once a person gets used to spoon-feeding it is hard to kick the habit.
Checking and cross checking is only for the slightly more intelligent.
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SJ / January 16, 2024
It seems that there are plenty of others who do not read anything outside US propaganda.
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LankaScot / January 16, 2024
Hello Leonard,
Various NGOs and Rights Organisations such as Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, War on Want, UNRWA For Human Rights and many others were in communication, with my namesake, regarding the daily infringements such as –
• Building a Separation Wall
• Military checkpoints and Barriers
• Detention Without Trial
• Illegal treatment of Detainees
• Killing of Civilians and unarmed Palestinian Combatants
• Unlawful Land Expropriation
• Soldiers regularly expelled Palestinians from their farmland, often under the direction of settlers
• Protecting Illegal Israeli Settlers whilst they were attacking Palestinian Farmers
• Settlers moving about on the Palestinian land regularly, stealing their crops, and even living on and working the land.
• Banning Palestinians from using certain roads
I saw regular email communications during 2009 and intermittently until 2011 when I moved to Qatar. Much of the most detailed information came from B’Tselem – The Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories. A more recent atrocity happened on 16 July 2014 when the IDF killed 4 children playing football on the beach in Gaza https://www.adalah.org/en/content/view/10514
If you do a little bit of investigation you will be convinced of the systematic and prolonged human rights violations by Israel over the last 75 or so years.
Best regards
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Leonard Jayawardena / January 17, 2024
LS:
I am aware of what you have mentioned through media reports and I just wanted to know what YOU had learned through the emails.
Regarding what you call “daily infringements,”
1. The separation wall between Israel and Palestinian territories, military checkpoints and barriers are for the purpose of security. The wall was built after the Second Intifada, which began in September 2000. Since its construction the number of suicide bombings launched against Israel from the West Bank has significantly decreased.
2. Killings of Palestinian civilians take place when they attack Israeli soldiers, often with stones.
Some Israeli settlements in the West Bank are legal according to Israeli law (but illegal according to others) while others are illegal even according to Israeli law. Any instances where Israeli forces unjustly take the side of and defend settlers even where they are in the wrong deserve condemnation.
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Leonard Jayawardena / January 17, 2024
Continued from last post.
LS: “If you do a little bit of investigation you will be convinced of the systematic and prolonged human rights violations by Israel over the last 75 or so years.”
If you are referring to “violations” in the West Bank, Israeli settlements there, legal or illegal, started after 1967, when “occupation” began with the conquest of that territory.
Are you also aware of human rights violations in the Gaza Strip by Hamas and in the West Bank by the Palestinian Authority? You might check out this report from AI for 2022.
https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/middle-east-and-north-africa/palestine-state-of/report-palestine-state-of/#:~:text=Palestinian%20authorities%20in%20the%20West,torture%20and%20other%20ill%2Dtreatment.
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Raj-UK / January 16, 2024
LankaScot
There is harassment, abuse & discrimination to some extent by those in authority in most countries. In fact, a divide & rule policy is an age old strategy. What is happening in Gaza is deplorable but Palestinians in Gaza were celebrating at the kidnapping, spitting at women being paraded naked, so would Israelis have any sympathy towards Palestinians? Israel has stated that attacks will stop when the hostages are released but even the Palestinians effected have not put pressure on Hamas to do so. Hamas use human shields, have fired rockets from schools, civilian homes, etc, even small children are proudly depicted with machine guns, brainwashed from birth, so do you think Hamas will release the hostages if Israel stopped bombing & ask nicely? If the LTTE kidnapped a few border villagers, how do you think the Sinhala population & the govt. would react?
Terror organisations don’t want conflicts to end because that is how they survive. In the context of the kidnapping & the unlikely event of Hamas surrendering, in my opinion, Israel has the right to protect its citizens in any way possible.
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SJ / January 16, 2024
“There is harassment, abuse & discrimination to some extent by those in authority in most countries.”
How casual and callous is this observation in this context.
*
Will we say things similar when it affects people close to us?
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Pandi Kutti / January 17, 2024
However, being a self-hating Thamizh with an agenda you are very casual and callous about the harassment abuse and discrimination of your fellow Thamizh at the hands of the Chingkalla Sri Lankan state, the occupying armed forces/police, Chingkalla and Islamic extremists and fawn and openly support them. How casual and callous and you constantly say similar things with regards to your own fellow Thamizh just like these Thullukans.
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SJ / January 17, 2024
I am hard on any racist.
If it is hard for you to bear, try to stopping being a racist. It could make you a human being.
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Raj-UK / January 17, 2024
SJ
It is an observation I have made & there is nothing the average person can do about. It is a casual observation & how deep the harassment etc is embedded in the system varies from country to country. I think UK is guilty of such allegations & there are worse countries. If you think it is a callous remark, it is your opinion. If it affects an individual, it can be brought to light for redress, perhaps, through media channels but, by & large, there is no perfect country, although, some Northern European countries are better in championing human rights.
A friend’s relative was kidnapped, his fate is still unknown & I can understand his anguish but there is nothing I or any of his other friends can do about getting his relative back unharmed.
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SJ / January 16, 2024
“…dehumanisation & rape of civilians, including small children & old people by Hamas, “
Which well does this come out of?
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Raj-UK / January 17, 2024
SJ
Rape, women stripped & paraded, cold blooded murder of young & old people, including women & small children, were live streamed by Hamas themselves. Some of the footage was broadcasted by TV channels in UK as the news broke out.
I don’t know the well you are are referring to but I am sure you can find footage still on the internet or even the websites of news channels.
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davidthegood / January 15, 2024
Why are people so crazy on war when peaceful living is much better, except of course those who want to sell arms
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SJ / January 16, 2024
dtg
Why is the US the main initiator of war since 1945?
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Native Vedda / January 17, 2024
“Why is the US the main initiator of war since 1945?”
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Why China is the main initiator of war/conflict in South China sea, Vietnam, India, Tibet, Taiwan, ……. ?
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Selective memory I suppose.
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Manel Fonseka / January 16, 2024
Ask IZrael, David!
And count the Palestinian lives it and its Zionist founders have slaughtered since the early 1900s.
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Read the accounts by former Israelis who have documented the early murders, rapes, tortures, etc., by Zionist groups like the Irgun, the Lehi, the Haganah….ancestors of people like Netanyahu, Smotrich, etc.
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What kind of moral values can you have not to shrink from the horrors IZ is inflicting on a helpless, starving people, on thousands of children with nowhere to run to?
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How can you believe in a god whose “chosen people” have wrapped themselves in cloaks soaked in blood!
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I lost my Christian faith a hundred years ago when my eyes were opened to apartheid in South Africa (where ever Christians of different races could not pray in the same church), & the great US of A (borne out of the slaughter of the native peoples of A) was slaughtering yet another people struggling to be reborn in Vietnam. And then, the criminal appropriation of the native land of the Palestinians by an entity called “G’s C P.
—
It’s high time u dropped “the good” from your name here.
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SJ / January 16, 2024
Manel,
Obsession with religion is a serious mental condition.
Let them cook themselves in their own juice.
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Ruchira / January 17, 2024
He is a perfect example of what religious fanaticism does to people. You get them in every religion.
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ramona therese fernando / January 15, 2024
Proves the Lankan governments of greater Socialism were honorable and humane, both for Sri Lankans and other global citizens. They were non-aligned and spent their efforts on developing their domestic economies. Our Capitalists governments are easily bought out by the US. They need the money for their reelections (like Anwar Sadat during the time of Golda Meir).
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If a few more Sri Lankan elite suddenly get rich and they tell us, “see, that what happens if you pull up your bootstraps,” don’t buy it – the money coming in will last only till the elections. Then they will dump us after that. Egypt is a poor country now, and has been for many decades.
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Lester / January 16, 2024
If Mohammed bin Salman and other Muslim leaders in OPEC want, they could use oil as leverage against the West. No need to go through the UN, as OPEC is an oligopoly. The ensuing inflation and threat of a global economic recession would force Israel to agree to a ceasefire or stop the war entirely. As I said before, the only major Muslim country with a genuine interest in Palestine is Iran. The conflict in Israel/Palestine is a Middle Eastern one, it should be solved by Middle Eastern nations.
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SJ / January 16, 2024
“The conflict in Israel/Palestine is a Middle Eastern one, it should be solved by Middle Eastern nations.”
So what the hell are the US and fellow criminals doing there?
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Native Vedda / January 17, 2024
“So what the hell are the US and fellow criminals doing there?”
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China reiterated that their companies are willing to invest in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka in a big way in spite of India’s similar interest in Tamil dominated areas
https://lankanewsweb.net/archives/45821/chinese-firms-eager-to-invest-in-the-north-ambassador-qi-zhenhong/
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As in Sudan, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Uzbekistan, North Korea, Burma and elsewhere, Chinese military and financial support directly contributed to government excesses in Sri Lanka.
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/china-aided-sri-lanka-bloodbath/articleshow/4629473.cms?from=mdr
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What the hell is China on its own doing in those countries and in Sri Lanka, perhaps must be following its nice foreign policy?
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Lester / January 17, 2024
SJ,
“So what the hell are the US and fellow criminals doing there?”
Essentially it’s Malthus. Populations of poor people that grow geometrically, with limited sustenance, leading to war, conflict, famine, or disease. These (Islamic) theocracies can only be governed by autocrats, or they will descend into chaos. When Saddam Hussein was removed from power, the resulting vacuum led to the creation of ISIS. ISIS then destabilized Syria. Lebanon is another one. Despite a “freely elected government”, the banking system nearly collapsed due to corruption. Gaza/Palestine is perfect Malthus. Even China was a Malthus, if one considers COVID-19. India is next. The bottom line is that the West can make security and trade deals with these countries. The “doom loop” can be avoided for some time, but not forever, there is always an “Arab Spring” around the corner. The one exception is Iran (Persian), which is self-sufficient and developing the military capability to defend against Western aggression.
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SJ / January 18, 2024
Malthus was sunk many times over.
Do you say that the killings are to oblige his memory?
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Lester / January 19, 2024
Malthus is alive and well. Check the recent literature.
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AYATHURAY RAJASINGAM / January 16, 2024
Upon an examination of the war between Israel & the Hamas, the Palestinians should realize to co-exist with Israel since it is a complicated issue. The result of waging a war on Israel, finally ended up in losing jobs by the Palestinians in Israel. Further, no Muslim countries are prepared to accept the Palestinian refugees. Apparently, the attack on the US and Indian commercial ships in the Red Sea to demonstrate their solidarity to the Hamas, is an infringement of innocent passage on international waters. As such, the bombing of places where Houthis are in Yemen is justified in flushing out the terrorists. At this stage, the sending of Naval ship by Sri Lanka to the Red Sea can only be considered to provide logistical support for the US & UK Naval Forces. The same issue will arise when India sends the Tamil youths from Sri Lanka to provide logistic support to the Indian Armed Foces, to flush out the terrorists in Kashmir, once the North-East Province is accommodated within the Union of India, which is likely to occur after the consecretion of Ram Mandir at Ayodhya and before the Lok Sabha election.
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SJ / January 16, 2024
AR
Spare some of your advice to Tamil separatists in exile.
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AYATHURAY RAJASINGAM / January 16, 2024
SJ,
Tamil separatists in exile will finally have to realize that they cannot do anything without the assistance provided by India. Their demand for separatist ideology will never materialize or even to be united with Tamil Nadu. They have to be within the Union of India in accordance with the constitution of India as an Independent Territory..
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SJ / January 17, 2024
So your dream is a new colonial master.
India can try to fulfill your dream, but is not easy.
Even the government of Male has said ‘Indian troops out’.
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AYATHURAY RAJASINGAM / January 17, 2024
SJ,
Just wait till the completion of consecretion ceremony of Sri Ram Mandir at Ayodya. Anything can happen. Even India may march in Sri Lanka. As far as India is concerned, its security gains priority. There are signals of certain incidents by India – Nirmala Sitaraman’s sudden visit to Trincomalee, Senthil Thondaman’s introduction of Tamil Nadu’s pattern of Pongal in Trincomalee together with the introduction of Jalli Kattu and the arrival of Indian waar ship and lot more. When Nirmala Sitaraman visited Sri Lanka, she opened some brances of Indian Banks in Trincomalee, Jaffna and even in Colombo. Pakistan is on the verge of collapse and what is surprising is Iran had launched an attack on Pakistan. Pakistan is against Afghanistan and Afghanistan is in good relationship with India. Though all these three Muslim countries are against Israel, India supports Israel. This appears to be a complicated issue, but this is India’s diplomacy. Maldivian President may take a stand against India, but at the local election his party lost heavily and Maldives will have to rely on India for vegetables. Moreover, India’s currency is accepted in 35 countries. Now you can guess the development of this strategy.
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Lester / January 18, 2024
“Even India may march in Sri Lanka.”
They already marched in the 1980’s. Then had to march (or run?) back. There are a handful of distinguished fighters, Sikhs, in the Indian Army, otherwise it is not a formidable force. And Sri Lanka will never be part of India, the cultures and languages (with the exception of Tamil) are far too different. It makes no sense.
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AYATHURAY RAJASINGAM / January 19, 2024
In the 1980’s it was because of R.Premadasa’s blind policy. Today it is a different case. India has the fourth largest powerful Army in the world. We will have to be patient until the completion of consecretion ceremony of Ram Temple. It might occur before the Lok Sabha election. Now Iran, Pakistan and China has become weak.
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SJ / January 18, 2024
“India’s currency is accepted in 35 countries. “
Interestingly, Russia want payment in RMB and not rupees for its oil.
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SJ / January 18, 2024
Just wait till the completion of consecretion ceremony of Sri Ram Mandir
We will have Rama Rajya then?
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AYATHURAY RAJASINGAM / January 19, 2024
India supports Iran in attacking terrorist organization in Pakistan. At the same time, America has protested against Iran’s attack on Pakistan. This was the state of confusion created by Lord Krishna in Mahabharata. Now it happens between Iran and Pakistan, prior to the Kumbabhishekam in the Ram temple at Ayodhya. So many miracles may take place. Even the great poet Subramaniya Bharathiar and Rabindranath Tagore had, long ago, predicted that Islam will just disappear and cannot be an obstacle to Hinduism in India.
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AYATHURAY RAJASINGAM / January 19, 2024
SJ,
Rama Rajya is in process. It is only a matter of time.
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AYATHURAY RAJASINGAM / January 19, 2024
SJ,
Iran used missiles and drones to strike near Koh-i-Sabs in West Pakistan. On Thursday, Pakistan carried out airstrikes in southeastern Iran near Saravan and later issued a statement saying “Iran is a brotherly country”. There is a lot of sibling rivalry going on here. Iran and Pakistan have targeted the hideouts of armed non-governmental organizations—Jaish al-Adl in Pakistan, and the Balochistan Liberation Army and the Balochistan Liberation Front in Iran—that each country accuses the other of harboring. How does this flash point fit into the conflicts involving Iranian proxies in Yemen and Gaza?
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Ajith / January 16, 2024
You mean the USA and Israel are right ?
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AYATHURAY RAJASINGAM / January 17, 2024
It is the Hamas who started the problem. Since it is about 75 years of occupation by the Israelis, is it fair to launch an attack on Israel. Why can’t the Palestinians co-exist with Israelists. Now the Palestinians have lost their jobs also and finding difficulties to maintain their families.
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SJ / January 18, 2024
India was occupied by the Brits for much longer. Was it right to fight for independence?
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SJ / January 17, 2024
If you like it that way, as you like it.
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Thanga / January 16, 2024
//Instead President Biden dismissed the world and continued to vote against all United Nations resolutions calling Israel to stop the slaughter of Palestinians and the destruction of Gaza./
Where was Latheef Farook when the Sri Lankan armed forces carpet-bombed the North? Did not the Muslims form themselves into Muslim Home Guards, along with the Sinhala army, go on a killing spree to kill Tamils and expel them from their homes? Today more than 100 villages once occupied by the Tamils have become 100% Muslim villages.
As for Hamas, it is they who started the war by firing missiles into Israel, killing civilians and taking hostages. Hamas wants to destroy Israel, a state recognized by the UNO. Hamas rejects two-state solutions out of hand.
No one can fault Israel’s retaliatory attacks in self-defence.
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LankaScot / January 16, 2024
Hello Thanga
It doesn’t matter to the ICJ (International court of Justice) who started it – they are considering whether Israel is committing Genocide which was first recognised as a crime under international law in 1946 by the United Nations General Assembly (A/RES/96-I). It was codified as an independent crime in the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (the Genocide Convention).
Best regards
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davidthegood / January 16, 2024
Thanga, True that Israel’s self defence cant be faulted. But Jerusalem is getting ready for the return of the jewish messiah and cannot have opposing Hamas and palestinians claiming Jerusalem as theirs and creating chaos.
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SJ / January 16, 2024
“As for Hamas, it is they who started the war by firing missiles into Israel”
Match this with
“As for Tamils, it is they who started the war by killing 13 soldiers”
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SJ / January 16, 2024
Do not comments like Thanga’s tell us why the Palestinian cause receives global mass support while nobody cares two hoots about the Tamils.
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Lester / January 16, 2024
“Today more than 100 villages once occupied by the Tamils have become 100% Muslim villages.”
I always see hear whining about “Sinhalese colonisation.” But it can’t be true if Muslims are also colonising. In fact, the British were the biggest colonisers. They brought 1 million Indian Tamils and settled them on land belonging to Sinhalese without permission or input from the latter.
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Native Vedda / January 17, 2024
Lester
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“In fact, the British were the biggest colonisers. They brought 1 million Indian Tamils and settled them on land belonging to Sinhalese without permission or input from the latter.”
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Do you know why?
What, the land never belonged to Sinhalese, those lands were sporadically occupied by Veddas.
_
What the hell the patriotic Sinhalese were doing when foreigners landed on the shores of the island, took over the entire land, built so many estates, …. especially the saffronistas were supposed to have guarded the land and the island?
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Were the Sinhalese willing to work in the estates?
It was and is hard work.
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Lester / January 17, 2024
“the land never belonged to Sinhalese, those lands were sporadically occupied by Veddas.”
Then you have not heard of the Kandyan Wars. Only after conquering Kandy, the British were able to bring indentured labor from India.
” Were the Sinhalese willing to work in the estates? It was and is hard work.”
Essentially slave labor for suddas. At that time there were no labor regulations.
Anyway, my point is regarding the false narrative of colonisation of the North & East. Other than Trinco, most Sinhalese have no interest in living in these places. Most would rather leave the country, if the possibility arose. I have been to the UK embassy in C7; the line begins at 4 AM. The military is in the North and East only for security reasons. Occasionally some monk will travel in an AC bus to one of these places and give a talk, that’s it. Compare with Israel. Jews will come from all over the world to live in a remote desert. SB’s do not have this conviction.
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LankaScot / January 17, 2024
Hello Lester,
Would you like to know how to steal the land from the people legally? Read how the British did it with the Enclosure Acts https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-hccc-worldhistory2/chapter/the-enclosure-act/
“A series of United Kingdom Acts of Parliament which enclosed open fields and common land in the country, creating legal property rights to land that was previously considered common. Between 1604 and 1914, over 5,200 individual acts were put into place, enclosing 6.8 million acres.”
Best regards
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Lester / January 18, 2024
LankaScot,
Yes, the British excelled at something called “divide and rule.” They used one segment of the population (usually a minority) to control another. In India, they used the Brahmins. In SL, they used Christians. In Malaya (Singapore), they imported Chinese at the expense of the local Malays. They also paved the way for European Jews to emigrate to Palestine. The legal justification for the existence for “Israel” comes from the Balfour Declaration. In Ireland, they used Protestants. Of course, once the British left, the respective majority community tried to reclaim its power. Leading to either division (partition) or unresolved conflict, as in the case of Palestine.
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sonali / January 16, 2024
Long years ago, when Jiddu Krishnamurti visited SL and gave a single talk at St Peter’s, Bambalapitiya, I too joined eager crowds in the college hall, expecting to arrive at instant enlightenment.
Sharp on time came this small, pale-skinned man in a flimsy-white wrap with bird-like legs to sit on the stage floor, before a mike. He began: “There is no god, there is no afterlife, etc…” A stunned shock filled the hall.
The talk set me thinking. We are mammals that feed on organic matter, like all other animals. On and off we slaughter each other in millions, like so many cattle, goats, sheep. But our ego makes us think that we will receive “life eternal”. Amusing.
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SJ / January 16, 2024
Sonali
Buddhsm does not talk of after life. It was an add-on from ‘Hinduism’.
Many oriental faiths do not talk of an after-life, so do many in Africa the Americas and Australia. they believe in spirits and such things
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Ruchira / January 17, 2024
SJ – “Buddhsm does not talk of after life. It was an add-on from ‘Hinduism’.”
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I thought whole of Buddhist doctrine is based on re-incarnation. What do you mean by it does not talk about after life? You mean as in heaven and hell?
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SJ / January 17, 2024
R
If so, what is the concept of ‘anatta’?
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SJ / January 17, 2024
R
Heaven and hell are here and nowhere else.
We make them. What we make for others will also be ours and what we make for us will also be for others.
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Paul / January 18, 2024
Have you considered that Rebirth is a mental and not physical phenomenon? We are being reborn continuously. What remains at death? Only desire. Think about a man’s thoughts just before he dies. Desire to live for ever or desire to be extinct, its all desire. And desire manifests as birth. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L_b1x2_sS80
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Jit / January 17, 2024
I doubt it SJ. Then what is ‘karma’ and its effect in Buddhist doctrines?? I for one don’t believe in reincarnation and this is the point where I do not align with the theoretical side of Buddhism.
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SJ / January 17, 2024
Buddhism rejects both god and soul. (Pl. refer https://www.britannica.com/topic/anatta & https://www.britannica.com/topic/anicca)
Karma means action. It has consequences that can go on forever.
But it has been re-interpreted by association with soul and rebirth under Hindu influence via the Mahayana school.
A more scientific interpretation of Karma concerns the continuing impact of any action even after its execution.
*
If there is no soul or a permanent self, who can claim possession of any karma?
This is where personalizing karma ties itself in knots.
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Ruchira / January 18, 2024
SJ – that’s an interesting distiction. Yes, it does say something to the event that who is reincarnated is neither you nor a different person. Something it seems gets carried forward, but you may be right about personalizing Karma – Carl Jung who visited Sri Lanka once said to have querried if Karma is collective?
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SJ / January 18, 2024
In fairness the Buddha dies not refer to any reincarnation.
The reincarnationists try hard to fit a square peg (reincarnation) into a round hole (anicca + anitta).
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LankaScot / January 18, 2024
Hello Ruchira,
After an explosion in Sigmund Freud’s bookcase, Jung said to Freud: “There, that is an example of a so-called catalytic exteriorization phenomenon.” Freud basically called Jung’s explanation bollocks. Jung replied “You are mistaken, Herr Professor. And to prove my point I now predict that in a moment there will be another such loud report!” Sure enough, no sooner had I said the words than the same detonation went off in the bookcase.”
Jung had been active in his younger days with all sorts of fakery, spiritualism, ESP, mediums etc.and new all of their tricks just like Helena Blavatsky.
I came to the conclusion in my early twenties that Jung was an intellectual version of T Lobsang Rampa – in short a fraud.
Best regards
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Ruchira / January 18, 2024
SJ – Buddhism also prescribe striving to attain Nibbana or Enlightenment. In a context absent of a self, what does it mean? Who achieves Nibbana if there’s no self?
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SJ / January 18, 2024
Buddhism has had many iterpretations.
I just look at their consistency with the basic precepts evolving from (i) suffering (ii) cause of suffering & (iii) relief from suffering.
He identifies desire as an important cause.
But rejects god and soul and emphasizes impermanence. (impermanence/anicca), suffering (dukkha), and not-self (anatta).
If something is in conflict with these, especially anicca and anatta, it is not Buddhism.
Much of Buddhist theory now is adulterated with theories that invoke gods and an eternal soul, in breach of impermanence and no-soul.
*
Rebirth has good market value, more attractive than the theory that “it is all here and now for any living thing”.
Marketing involves spicing up, and invariably distortion and misinterpretation.
*
Wonder how the Orientals did not fall for a god creator and an eternal soul. I think that they got the essence of what the Buddha said, although they mixed it with their faith traditions.
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LankaScot / January 18, 2024
Hello SJ and Ruchira,
In a previous article by Vipula Wanigasekera on Buddhism being scientific I asked many questions that were never answered by anyone. Below is a quote from Anattalakkhana Sutta (SN 22.59) and my question, posted on 31st October 2023
“You should truly see any kind of consciousness at all—past, future, or present; internal or external; coarse or fine; inferior or superior; far or near: all consciousness—with right understanding: This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.”
If consciousness is not yours; then who does it belong to, which body gives rise to it, without a brain there is no consciousness. This attempt to separate self from the material form of bodies is specious- in fact the whole Sutra is pure sophistry; I thought the Greeks were masters of Sophistry.
However when my Sri Lankan Sinhalese wife read what I had written she became very worried that we might get a visit from the police about my criticism of a Buddhist doctrine. So be careful gentlemen.
Best regards
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Ruchira / January 19, 2024
Hello LankaScot,
.
The idea that consciuosness is a product of neurochemical activity of the brain is a western one.
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It is if I am not mistaken based on scientific materialism emerged during the period of Enlightenment in the west, and particularly monism, a form of reductionism, that theorises everything in the universe could be reduced to some fundamental material building blocks like sub atomic particles.
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But even science today is sceptical about this, as it is found that particles have the ability to behave both as particles and waves (energy) depending on the presence of an observer. I think a phenomenon known as wave-particle duality as shown by double-slit experiment: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double-slit_experiment
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Oriental thinking differs fundamentally and put mind over matter. Basically the idea that the universe is made of energy and it is this energy that gives rise to material beings. So to answer your question consciousness could according to eastern thinking exist without a brain or a body.
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I think the idea of a soul existing separately from the body also aligns with this.
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It is our prejudices towards science often referred to as scientism that prevents us from believing these claims and regard them to be unscientific.
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Does that answer your querry?
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Ruchira / January 19, 2024
There are fundamental differences between western philolosopies and oriental ones. But then again Jesus wasn’t exactly from the western civilizatiin is he? Were the idea of a creator and an eternal soul preached by jesus or were they church’s constructs?
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Ruchira / January 19, 2024
“Buddhism has had many iterpretations.”
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One would expect given its complexity and the fact that initially it was passed down by word of mouth untill it was documented in Tripitaka.
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davidthegood / January 19, 2024
SJ, No God and no eternal soul might appeal to you now but when the reality overtakes you and you find that you are still there with an eternal soul coming into judgement under the principles of a creator God who loves you but you would not. Sad day.
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SJ / January 18, 2024
“Who achieves Nibbana if there’s no self?”
Self exists as any creature, but there is no soul. Nibbana is freedom from dhuka. It is not heaven or hell or afterlife.
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Ruchira / January 18, 2024
SJ – “Nibbana is freedom from dhuka. It is not heaven or hell or afterlife.” – Yes, I know that.
.
It is this idea of self and soul and anatta that I am a little unclear about.
.
According to what I and most buddhists have learnt, once you die, there’s something, usually referred to as your mind or consciousness (or vignanaya), that leaves your body and persists untill it gets reincarnated in a new body.
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This is the cyclical process, the samsarik existence that causes sufferring (dukka) and four noble truths shows you the way out of this samsaric existence by achieving Nibbana, a state (of mind I believe) in which there is no more Karma that could give you reincarnation. .
Once you achieve that state you fade into nothingness upon your passing away – nothing persists of such beings. No Karma. No rebirth or reincarnation.
.
I never thought how anatta contradict with this untill now, neither I believe have many Buddhists.
.
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davidthegood / January 19, 2024
SJ, Self is soul, all that we do on earth during our lifetime here. How can self vanish just like that, whatever religious beliefs are.
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Jit / January 18, 2024
“….Karma means action. It has consequences that can go on forever….”
Aren’t you disputing your own words?
If it goes forever……then it is exactly the concept of sansara….born again…and…again….
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leelagemalli / January 19, 2024
JIT AND OTHER RATIONAL THINKERS,
Before the COVID crisis, if i am honest, I had certain thoughts and beliefs about karma. I rather believe in some invisible forces behind the flora and fauna of this planet, but I have not emulated them since childhood. I always followed them to please my own mother. With her demise, I thought, all what I live up in this life is just a random thing.
But I’ve always been skeptical of Sinhala-Buddhism, mainly based on their ridiculous rituals (licking Baniyan tree for personal gains and wishes, offering them thousands of flowers and fruits for no good reason, and enriching criminal pseudo-monks hiding behind their cloaks) are misleading this vulnerable nation.
People are kept stupdier by religions engraining rather than anything else. THey woudl not yet raise the question ” why”. Even youth were misled to paint the walls with the eleciton GOTA govt…r emember ?
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The very same youth has now turned out to be the CYBER force in favour of JVP-NPP today. BLANTANT lies are raining like monsoon on their stages.
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However, I began to think that the way the covid pandemic took innocent lives, there is no connection between people’s actions and their karmic punishment. This must again be a superstition.
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SJ / January 18, 2024
The word itself means ‘deed’ or ‘action’.
The meaning has been extrapolated by associating one’s deeds with an eternal souls in several Hindu schools. Such theories offer easy explanations for ones joys and sorrows in the world.
A poor man is poor and a rich man in rich because of past karma. That applies to matters of health, learning etc.
*
Buddhist Karma cannot belong to anyone as there is no eternal soul. The effect of a deed is not over with its execution. It goes on and on as chain reactions.
Think of what happens when a tree is felled.
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SJ / January 18, 2024
I think that this summary in Wikipedia is close to what was intended: “Samsara is considered to be dukkha, suffering, and in general unsatisfactory and painful, perpetuated by desire and avidya (ignorance), and the resulting karma.”
The soul does not enter the scene.
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Ruchira / January 18, 2024
SJ – “The soul does not enter the scene.”
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Something does. What is that something? What persists beyond ones passing away and get reincarnated in a new life? That’s the question.
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Jit / January 17, 2024
Sonali, JK was a great philosopher and one had always been my favourite free thinkers. The close proximity of his thinking along with Gautama Buddha is really striking. If you get a chance please read his dialogue with Walpola Rahula on page 18 onward in “Questioning Krishnamurti” by Krishnamurti Foundation. Quite interesting and enlightening!
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RBH59 / January 16, 2024
China and Russia have the same position on the Palestine question.
The history of Palestine gives facts
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Champa / January 16, 2024
All eyes are on the International Court of Justice in The Hague which concluded its preliminary two-day hearing in South Africa’s genocide case against (apartheid) Israel. Interestingly, the US led Red Sea coalition bombed Yemen exactly on these two days, obviously to undermine the ICJ. Israel has also rejected the ICJ ruling in advance.
The civilized world is at cross roads. It is sickening to see how comforatable Western leaders, their governments and proxy governments in committing, aiding and abetting genocide, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. Will the ruling of the ICJ change the colonial killer mentality of massacring non-white people for economic reasons? Yes. It should and it should be done as fast as possible.
In its genocide case against Israel, South Africa is seeking an injunction order to stop the carnage in Gaza. South Africa is not alone. At least 85% of the world officially support an immediate ceasefire while the rest support a pause-fire. Basically, the entire world wants Israel’s carnage in Gaza to be stopped.
I am very positive of an injunction order from the ICJ demanding Israel to stop its genocide in the Gaza Strip with immediate effect. These are my basic and legal reasons. I challenge anyone to prove me wrong.
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Champa / January 16, 2024
Basic reasons:
1. The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip with an unprecedented majority of 153 countries in its favour. However, it failed to make any impact for the war in the Gaza Strip as the UNGA resolutions are non-binding.
2. The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is hijacked by the United States with its track record of taking decisions based on racism. The United States vetoed two attempts proposed by the UNSC calling for an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
3. The United Nations is the first and foremost international body where countries can seek justice, equality and humanity. However, UNSC, which is the UN’s legal body, is entirely controlled by the United States with its policy of taking decisions based on skin colour.
4. The application of the International Humanitarian Law and the International Human Rights Law is based on race theory. There is one law for white people and another law for non-white people.
5. As obvious, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the last resort for non-white people, who represent 85% of the global population, for justice, equality and humanity.
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Native Vedda / January 17, 2024
Champa
–
“As obvious, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the last resort for non-white people, who represent 85% of the global population, for justice, equality and humanity.”
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Are you giving free advice to AYATHURAY RAJASINGAM to follow South African example and take Sri Lanka to International Court of Justice (ICJ)?
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Will it work?
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RBH59 / January 17, 2024
The principles, theory, and history of historical writing.
First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.
This what Gandhi thinks, The British gave up india
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sonali / January 17, 2024
For those unable to accept that life is finite, transitory.
For those who incorporate parts of Hindu beliefs of another life after death into Buddhism.
This is what Gautama Buddha preached.
Gautama Buddha preached anattā, the doctrine of “non-self”.
This meant living beings have no unchanging, permanent self, soul, or essence.
He said at death humans pass into Nirvana, or Nothingness.
Tamám shud
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SJ / January 18, 2024
Thanks Sonali
Neat
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old codger / January 18, 2024
Sonali,
You mean all those devout givers of almsgivings (dana) are wasting their money?
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SJ / January 18, 2024
oc
They will not ralize that as they expect dividends in another birth.
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old codger / January 19, 2024
S.J,
I attend every almsgiving if invited. Where else can one get culinary fulfilment these days?
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Paul / January 19, 2024
Rational thought is useful but it is limited. So it leads to absurdities and contradictions. Fortunately human beings have another faculty, that is Awareness. Animals don’t have this ability.
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For example when a man is angry he can be aware of rising anger. He doesn’t have to let anger consume him until he becomes anger itself. He can just observe ‘anger has arisen’. He can watch it as an outsider and he will see it come into being, last for a while and pass away.
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Without developing this awareness no insight into anatta, nibbana etc is possible. However clever rational thought and logic are, they will miss the mark.
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davidthegood / January 19, 2024
sonali, what about samsara preached in buddhism. All are not fit for nirvana after robbing and murdering in this life. They go into a separate hell
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Ruchira / January 19, 2024
“He said at death humans pass into Nirvana, or Nothingness.”
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Did he say anything like that? I thought that refers to what happens when an enlightened person dies, not a default that happens when anyone dies.
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“Gautama Buddha preached anattā, the doctrine of “non-self”.”
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I wonder if it’s misleading to define anatta as not having a self or a soul.
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According to some I spoke to anatta means not having a self that is eternal or unchanging or could control the changes that occur, particularly to your body, due to natural phenomena, like for example, disease and aging.
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Soul refers to an eternal, therefore I believe a permenant, entity that exist apart from your body that remains unchanged even after death, hence the idea of eternal life in philosophies that believe the existence of soul.
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Anatta apears to differ from the fact that there’s nothing eternal or unchanging, but there’s something that gets carried forward and get reincarnated – if I can remember right buddha has said what gets reincarnated is neither you nor a new being.
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From the way I understan these two, the belief in a soul and anatta, have sublte diferences while the belief of the latter doesn’t negate reincarnation which may differ from an afterlife of an eternal soul.
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That’s what I’ve gathered so far. Not sure what Hinduism has to say about this.
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Jit / January 19, 2024
Sonali, there are definitions of karma in Buddhism which proves that there is rebirth. However, birth and death are absolutely biological incidents, nothing else! They are NOT philosophical phenomena at all, although billions of people hold onto their own ways of beliefs, seriously influenced by their own religions. Proof of ‘reincarnation’ is only warranted to be established by medical grade clinical tests. Even a super wise philosopher who is not scientifically trained to conduct such biological tests does not have the technical competence to prove or disprove rebirth or reincarnation. So how did Gautama Buddha who was only a great philosopher, but not a biological scientist, was able to prove or disprove rebirth?? Why should we accept his version? That is my primary question on karma and rebirth concepts in Buddhism. Questioning this sounds blasphemy but it is the only rational way to find out the answers why a Buddhist or any other religious person believe in re-birth?
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shankar / January 18, 2024
sri lanka has no option but to help in securing the red sea because it is a international commercial sea route.However it should not have gone it alone but waited for india to do the same before it also joined india.Many srilankan sailors are affected by this and also cost of living will go up.
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Siva Sankaran Sharma / January 18, 2024
Mr. Farook why are you not crying about the situation in Yemen, which was until a few months ago was on the brink of famine and mass starvation brought about by the actions of your fellow Islamic Houthis, who don’t care two hoots about what is happening in their own land and the Saudis, that your South Indian origin fake Arab community love to worship. It was the UN and the so-called Christian nations of the west who helped these Muslim Arabs, not any Islamic country. The Houthis instead of bothering about their own starving population, are doing the bidding of Iran and using the largely Suni Palestinian Arabs (strange they do not like the Suni Muslims, and this was the reason for all the chaos in Yemen and the famine that resulted) as an excuse to deliberately create chaos and disrupt world trade. Why don’t they demand the Hamas that created all these present problems and the cause for all this misery to release all the hostages and put an end to all this, so no further pain and misery will not be inflected? Instead of all your war mongering pan Islamic rubbish.
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Siva Sankaran Sharma / January 18, 2024
You and the rest of the island’s Muslims never cared about the misery of the island’s Tamils, of which you are a part of. On the contrary gleefully joined the Sinhalese majority as their junior partners to discriminate, marginalize and commit war crimes on them in anticipation of lots of rewards and benefits, especially to steal the largely depopulated and ethnically cleansed Tamil lands in the north and east for your recently migrated fake Arab converted community from South India. Hypocrite. Cry when Muslims are only affected but show indifference and even support when the victims are non-Muslims or if the perpetrators of the crime are other Muslim nations or people whom you Sri Lankan Muslims admire or want to be, even if the victims are Muslims too. Everything about you is only about Muslims and not about anyone else.
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SJ / January 19, 2024
When has any Tamil nationalist cared about any other identity?
In fact the plight of the depressed castes and gender oppression were never its concern.
They mostly sided with the oppressors of the world. Amirthalingam denounced the freedom fighters of Vietnam in parliament. That tradition has endured and finds expression in the hateful sectarian comments here.
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SJ / January 19, 2024
It was this attitude that has caused regionalism which does not seem show any sign of abating.
It has gone to the extent of the man from Kilinochchi objecting to Jaffna dominance.
What is forgotten is that it is not Jaffna per se but Jaffna Vellala (Hindu & Protestant Christian) elite dominance all along. In fairness, Christians were more progressive during certain stages like the Jaffna Youth Congress, but class interests took over eventually.
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davidthegood / January 19, 2024
S S Sharma, Muslims do not care for others as Allah has taught that only they will remain on earth. One day when they meet Jesus ruling from Jerusalem according to the kingdom of our Creator God, and they are out of step worshipping a false God who never existed visibly on earth, they will open their eyes too late.
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