People That You Admire

[Magpie]

ahahah yeah punk is much better than metal, nothing compares. what happened was that when i moved to sweden i got married to a "leader" of the northern black metal scene (who was also a very nice doctor in archeology untill he started to booze), so i first started to work for them, helping out with the labels, and so on, but they happened to have a drunk bass player who was not even bothering to show up for rehersals or even recording and who couldn't catch a break on stage because he was already dead drunk before the gigs, so i also started to fill in for him next to my "nanny" job.!

I didn't think there was a Swedish black metal scene of any consequence--I thought it was mostly the Norwegians who were into that sort of thing

Swedish metal is some of the best in the world right now--especially Opeth and Katatonia (my favourite)

[Magpie]

Neil Peart, Stephen Fry, Terry Pratchett, and Bruce Dickinson would all be near the top of any list of people I admire.

[Sister Hyde]

I didn't think there was a Swedish black metal scene of any consequence--I thought it was mostly the Norwegians who were into that sort of thing

Swedish metal is some of the best in the world right now--especially Opeth and Katatonia (my favourite)

They actually differ norwegien and swedish black metal by calling the swedish scene "swedish death metal", eventhough it's the exact same thing and that the people have the same restricted IQs.

[DVV]

Chesterton, for he is deep and light-hearted at the same time.

[Limehouse]

Sojourner Truth (otherwise - Isabella Baumfree) - formally a slave and later a women's rights activist - whose speech 'aint I a woman' came a whole century before the well-publicised women's rights campaigns of the 1960s. She spoke out against racial and gender inequalities after having fought to gain her son - sold into slavery.

Hugo Chavez - President of Venezuela - who has established a successful socialist system in his beloved country but has managed to do so democratically - with an emphasis on citizen participation and freedom of speech.

[Bob Hinton]

Hi,

Audrey Hepburn for being the sort of person people think Princess Diana was!

[DVV]

Sophie Herfort.
For she wrote a book about the Ripper with her left foot.
I respect that.

[The Good Michael]

Getchere,

For Egela and being cool.

Mike

[DVV]

Bravo Mike.
And when he will shift from Beletche to Abo Mismar, he'll be really perfect.

[DVV]

The Dalai Lama, for he knows all the Sheratons on earth.

[mariab]

The Dalai Lama, for he knows all the Sheratons on earth.

Good one, David. I also like the fun things Christopher Hitchens used to say about Mother Theresa.

[Archaic]

Human Rights Heroine: Eman al-Obeidy of Libya

Hi everyone.

I want to add someone to my list of the people I admire. And I want her to go towards the top of my list, because she is one of the most courageous and principled individuals I have ever heard of.

I feel strongly that we all need to bear witness to her story.

She is a Libyan woman named Eman al-Obeidey. She was kidnapped, tortured, and gang-raped for two days by Ghaddafi's Militia, but finally escaped and had the courage to "crash" an international news conference in order tell the world what had been done to her.

Eman was physically overpowered by Ghaddafi forces who tried to silence her. They beat up the foriegn journalists who tried to record her story and come to her aid, smashed their cameras, and dragged her away while she still defiantly screamed out the truth.

Ghaddafi's police have beaten Eman, declared her insane, and tried to both bribe and to threaten her into recanting her story, but she has refused. The details of what this woman suffered are truly horrifying, and her life is clearly in danger.

Please keep Eman al-Obeidy in your thoughts and prayers. Hopefully Eman will live to enjoy the kinds of basic freedoms and human rights that the rest of us take for granted.

Video 1- Hotel News Conference in which Eman makes her accusations of kidnapping and rape: http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/africa...ex.html?hpt=C1

Video 2- Telephone interview in which Eman explains how she has been abused by the police and other Govt representatives, is constantly monitored, and that her life is in danger. http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/wor....talks.pt2.cnn

Thank You,
Archaic

[Limehouse]

Thanks Archaic. I join you in keeping Eman in my thoughts and prayers. It is a very difficult time in the world just now and it is so easy for us to forget how muych freedom and comfort we enjoy compared to other nations.

Bless you for bringing this to out attention.

Julie

[Celesta]

Hi Archie,

She's certainly courageous in trying to get her story out. Thanks for posting this. I have no problem believing that such things are going on in the world, not just in Libya and not just in periods of unrest.

[Natalie Severn]

Thankyou Archaic.
I would like to add the name of Louise Christian,a human rights lawyer:http://old.cageprisoners.com/articles.php?id=1036
Norma