Your words can kill-2

If you do a search on the internet, you will find out where you cannot insult a ruler or post something on the internet which can be construed at hurting the sensibilities of the local population. Especially people are who traveling from relatively so called Free speech nations have to be very careful and not speak ill of the things they encounter or the people they meet and specially do not talk about politics or religion in every part of the world. And you should also be careful taking pictures as some areas could be off limits to the public especially if you are travelling in very authoritarian or repressive regimes or even in places where there are tourists since you never know what pictures you are taking can be treated as a threat by a government or some criminal organization. One of the ways that you can circumvent these restrictions is to learn a language of a place where it is in a very low minority. Another thing while travelling abroad is to follow the expression "silence is Golden" as it will get through your trip without any incident and you can also stick to your plan of having fun. Although I believe in freedom of speech but there are certain times for saying that and using your free speech in foreign trips is not one of them. Your words can either land you in trouble or get the local population get violent or both. So think before your speak because the words do kill.

Your words can kill

Everybody or nearly everybody has heard the expression that pen in mightier than the sword. Because a sword you kill one person but with your writing and your words you can set a neighborhood or a country on fire and many people can either die or injure due to your incite or hurtful words. And it has been true throughout history that words and not the sword or guns have killed more people and created fear and hatred in the eyes of society. At different points in history, books have been banned or censored just because the government of that time deemed it offensive and feared that it lead to public violence. Old classical books of the American history are being banned just because at the time of writing some words which are now considered very offensive are in it. Even now some of the books are banned and words have become an effective weapon to incite whole nations to violence. Recent events in the Muslim world have shown how toxic it is to speak your mind or offend someone. The American short movie about the insulting Islam, the Danish cartoons and the blasphemy laws in Pakistan specially are enough evidence to prove that words do kill without being the intent of the author to do so (or maybe they do). Your words can even hurt your loved ones beyond the killing as ill will can develop which can linger on for years just because you did not choose your words carefully or used it carelessly. In some countries it is almost a jail time or even death sentence if you utter any derogatory or funny thing about the ruler there (usually a monarchy).

Walking your way to health

On Saturday last I went to get my weekend coffee for me and my wife and there was line and I just got my coffee at my turn and drove to get my gas at a nearby gas station (not that nearby even if you are driving). Since I live in New Jersey and you are not allowed to pump your own gas, I was just waiting to get gas when I saw a lady walking with coffee in her hand and I instantly recognized her from the coffee shop. And as I said before, the gas station is not of walking distance from the coffee shop but somehow she walked all the way from the shop to the gas station and did not stop there as she kept on walk for her destination that I did not know. But I realized that how easy is to lose weight and enjoy a walk even if it is cold when we are so lazy to stay in our warm cars and drive everywhere. I am also a culprit in this laziness as when in my previous job I use to walk 2 miles a day to and from my work address to the station and did not felt a thing. But now if I have to walk then it becomes a chore for me although I can still walk around my house and still lose weight or outside my house but I do not do it and I believe millions of people don’t either. Rather than paying for the Gym and going there for doing exercise, why not just walk and lose weight. In this way you don’t have to make time for gym and also save money when you become lazy and don’t use the gym as often while you pay the fess month after month.

The mosque bombing in Nigeria

Another of many of the bombings happened in Nigeria recently where people were praying in the mosque and a suicide bomber detonated bombs which killed more than 60 people outright with many more casualties reported later on. This was another act of Boko Haram, the Islamic terrorist organization which aims to establish an Islamic state on the corpses of Muslims. I don’t know what really is going on but it seems that the Nigerian Army is either ineffective or purposely not being used like when the Taliban were detonating bombs in Pakistan and the Army was just sitting on the sidelines until they woke up (under the new Military leadership) and took on them in a big way. But in all this mess, the common people for no fault of theirs are getting killed in increasing numbers with no relief in sight. In Pakistan, there were the U.S. drones which were being used effectively in countering the Taliban, but in Nigeria the people there are left to fight or sacrifice their lives in the face of this real threat. As I felt sorry for the people of Pakistan for enduring years of bombing, my sympathy goes out for the people of Nigeria who are facing increasingly brutal tactics of Boko Haram with no one including the Military unable or unwilling to stop them. There were hundreds of girls kidnapped one time and nothing happened in that case and this bombing would not be the last one to happen as I have read increasing senseless killing on happening in that oil rich but poor largest country by population in Africa.