Tema e ditës

Kruje,o qytet i bekuar! http://www.illyricum.org/fotos/kruja/Images/kruja_muzeu3.jpg http://www.illyricum.org/fotos/kruja/Images/Muzeu_Kruja2_1.jpg http://www.illyricum.org/fotos/kruja/Images/Muzeu_Kruja_1.jpg http://www.illyricum.org/fotos/kruja/Images/skenderbeg6.jpg http://www.illyricum.org/fotos/kruja/Images/viz-skenderbeg.jpg

IRAQ

Palestina dhe padrejtesia me e madhe historike e tere koherave! Shume popujve e kombeve u jane bere e vazhdojne t'u behne padrejtesi dhe nder ta jemi dhe ne Ne, por me Palestinen ekziston nje sjllje qe te nervozon ne kulm dhe te ben t'i thuash "shko ne djall" cdo gjeje qe pretendon se mbron te drejten. Padrejtesia ndaj nje kombi te tere reklamohet hapur si nje e drejte qe asgjekundi nuk qendron!

Korça Qyteti i Serenates Shqiptare. Ku i kam patriotot e mi???Ka apo jo?

Nga cili qytet jeni? Forumista, Do te ishte me shume interes te njihnim me teper njeri-tjetrin. Nje nga kuriozitetet e shumta qe kemi, ka te beje me qytetin nga jemi ne Shqiperi. Jepni nje pershkrim te shkurter ju lutem, dhe cfare ju ben krenar ne te qenit Shqiptar, dhe banor i atij qyteti. Admiri, P.S Personalisht jam nga LEZHA. :thumbsup:

IRAKU - Dalengadale po kthehet ne nje histori suksesi . Pse... ? Sepse : - Nuk udhehiqet me nga nje diktator gjakpires si Sadami. -Diktatori nuk do ikte vete dhe per kete u deshen sakrifica , sakrificat u bene , dhe pas ketyre vejn shperblimi qe eshte liria dhe demokracia . Sigurshte liria dhe demokracia nuk konsolidohen per nje dite, nje muaj apo nje vite duhen vite dhe perpjekje. Por rruga drejt tyre filloi qe ne momentin kur u rrezua gjakpiresi. - Irakienet po e ndihmojne dhe perkrahin qeverine e re. - Irakienet nuk i duan terroristet dhe fondamentalistet islamike te cilet vrane me qindra dhe mijera te pafajshem . Irakienet e kuptojne se terrorizmi i fondamentalisteve islamike eshte edhe me i pergjakshem se regjimi diktatorial i SADAMIT. - Irakienet po shkojne drejte suksesit se iu dha rasti qe te shihnin driten dhe drita triumfon mbi terrin.

Pershkruani Shqiperine me nje fjale! e kuqe!

Made in Albania Te dashur miq...Gjitshka me posht esht marre nga revista klan, shkruar nga Blendi Fevziu. Qe nje artikull mjaft interesant qe me zgjoi shume kujtime. Shpresoj qe tju pelqeje sinqerisht, -B Duke ndjekur pa shume vemendje, por padyshim me nje lloj kurioziteti te holluar debatet e shqiptareve ne internet, qelloi te ndeshja emrin dhe adresen elektronike te nje mikut tim te vjeter. Nje ish studenti te shkelqyer te matematikes, me te cilin me shume se sa studimet, na bashkonte para viteve '90te pasioni i stadiumit dhe ajo dritherima e cdo te diele mbasdite, kur "Dinamo" dilte ne fushe dhe ne e ndiqnim me nje ndjesi tashme te harruar. Pastaj mbasditet e bordures, kur me shume sesa profesoret, personazhet e bisedave tona te tensionuara qene futbollistet dhe kur debatet e thjeshta shnderroheshin ne disa beteja fjalesh, qe shume shpesh me duken si pararendeset e parlamentit te sotem. I kenaqur nga kjo rigjetje pas shume vitesh, i nisa nje mesazh te shkurter, duke besuar se ndryshimet dhe koha e larget duhet ta kishin zbehur disi ate kujtim te mrekullueshem te nje jete tjeter. Ne te vertete nuk ishte ashtu dhe miku im m'u pergjigj shume shpejt, duke kujtuar me nje saktesi te frikshme shume detaje dhe situata te harruara, duke nenvizuar absurditetin e kohes, por pa e fshehur edhe nje lloj nostalgjie. Nostalgjia normale qe ka cdo njeri per femijerine apo rinine qe nuk kthehet me. Kudo dhe sido qe te kene qene ato. Nuk e di pse pas mesazheve te para ai me sqaroi dicka per familjen qe kishte ne Boston, per dy femijet qe tashme po rriteshin dhe shqetesimin se pavaresisht shqipes se gjymtuar qe flisnin te dy, ndiheshin, pak ose aspak shqiptare. Mesazhi tij, qe kishte brenda ne te vertete shume dhimbje, me kujtoi nje tjeter debat te gjere ne internet, po per te njejten teme: Sa e pranishme do te ishte Shqiperia tek femijet e emigranteve te vendosur tashme prej vitesh jashte dhe sa problem krijonte kjo tek prinderit e tyre? Me shume se sa nje pyetje, apo deshire e thjeshte, ajo shkonte shume me tej. Sa te lidhur do te ishin keta femije me prinderit e tyre, te formuar dhe te edukuar ne nje menyre krejt tjeter, peng apo rober te parimeve dhe filozofive te ndryshme? Pra sa mund te kuptoheshin ne nje bote te re, kur prinderit dhe femijet do te hynin me botkuptime thuajse diametralisht te kunderta. Ceshtje identitetesh mendova, ndersa miku im vijonte te me kujtonte plot skena te mrekullueshme te viteve te rinise, skena dhe detaje qe asnje nga femijet e tij nuk mund t'i kuptonte. Po cilat jane ato rrethana qe percaktojne identitetin e nje personi dhe sa te trashegueshme jane ne familje apo tek femijet? Dhe sa mund te ndihet njeriu i plotesuar, nese nje rrethane apo nje tjeter e ka privuar nga shume detaje apo ngjarje, per te mos thene botkuptime qe kane shenjuar femijerine e tij? Veshtire per t'i dhene pergjigje. Qelloi qe ato dite te mesazheve sapo kisha mbaruar se lexuari nje liber te mrekullueshem, nje lloj eseje filozofike te titulluar "Identitete vrastare". Autori, nje shkrimtar i njohur libanez, qe ne moshen 27 vjecare ishte vendosur ne France dhe qe tashme po prej 27 vitesh jetonte dhe krijonte atje, Amin Malouf, shtronte pikerisht pyetjen me te thjeshte, por edhe me te komplikuar ne bote: Cfare jam une? Pergjigjia e pare do te ishte padyshim e shpejte dhe pa ndonje reflektim te madh, libanez. Kishte lindur dhe ishte edukuar atje. Bartete me vete nje pjese te mentalitetit dhe kujtimeve te asaj pjese te botes dhe mbi te gjitha e mbi gjithcka, ishte mjaft i lidhur me historine e vendit te tij. Por pergjigjia e dyte dhe me e menduar kerkonte me shume vemendje. Prej 27 vitesh jetonte tashme ne France dhe jeta pariziene ishte bere nje shprehi e tij. Jetonte si francez, mendonte si francez, e mbi te gjitha shkruante frengjisht. Ata qe e takonin e merrnin padyshim si te tille dhe menyra e te shprehurit dhe ajo e te menduarit ishin aq larg bashkeatdhetareve te tij. Akoma me shume femijet e tij flisnin thjeshte frengjisht dhe Franca ishte atdheu i tyre i vetem. E pra, cfare ishte realisht ai dhe cila ishte pergjigja me e sakte qe mund t'i jepte pyetjes se tij cfilitese? I tunduar nga ideja e globalizmit, ai sqaronte apo linte te kuptohej se identitetet e kane humbur tashme kuptimin e tyre te pare e te dikurshem dhe se ajo qe konsiderohet si me e spikatura tek nje rrace apo kombesi, nuk mund te jete karakteristike e gjithe grupimit. Ideja se identitetet jane perzjere tashme dhe se tek gjithsecili mund te fleje pak nga origjinat e largeta, dilte here here ne tekst, duke shenjuar nje identitet te ri, por edhe shume interesant, ate te njerezve pa identitet te percaktuar. Thjeshte qytetare te botes, ose produkte te nje globalizmi qe sa vjen e rritet. Produkte te Coca Coles apo Philipsit, te Sony apo Gillete, te Versace apo Nestle. Qytetare te nje bote qe sa po vjen e po unifikohet dhe ku dallimet karakteristike te dikurshme kane mbetur shpesh si truke komerciale per te tunduar apo genjyer turistet e hutuar. Por nese nje pjese e madhe e botes kishte filluar te bashkohej tashme prej vitesh ne kete grupim gjithnje e ne rritje, ne grupimin ku identitetet fillojne e zbehen dhe nuk luajne ndonje rol te spikatur; nese shumica e femijve te botes kishin filluar prej dekadash te rriten dhe te edukohen ne qytete dhe fshatra qe gjithnje e me shume i ngjajne njeri tjetrit, pavaresisht cepave te globit ku jane ngritur, per ne gjithcka ishte me e ndryshme. Jam i bindur se shumica e femijve te botes sot, ne momentin e ndergjegjesimit te tyre, kane se paku nje mori gjerash te njohura pavaresisht vendit ku rriten: luajne me topa qe mbajne marken Adidas, ulen perballe tavolinash ku kane prodhimet e Nestle dhe mbi to, shishet e Pepsit apo Coca Cola. Femijet e mikut tim kishin padyshim nje jete si kjo, por jo ai vete. I shenjuar me nje identitet te paster dhe tashme thuajse te harruar, me shume se sa produkt i globalizmit ne rritje, ai dhe pothuajse te gjithe ne qe qeme rritur para viteve '90te ne Shqiperi, ruanim tashme vulen e nje origjine te spikatur. Nje origjine qe na ben shpesh te ndihemi te afert, por pse jo edhe te larget dhe te pakuptueshem per femijet qe po rriten. Nuk e di se sa te qarte e kisha kete vete ne koke, por me shume se kurre e ndjeva nje mbremje te mrekullueshme maji. Nje mbremje te fresket buze detit ne Durres, i tunduar nga ideja per te pjekur ne nje barbeky portative salcicet e nje firme tiranase te quajtur Hako, m'u desh te kaloja jo pak kohe me procesin e pergatitjes se saj. I pamesuar me zjarrin, besoj se shpenzova jo pak kohe dhe nje vardak me gazeta, per t'i dhene flake nje turre drush te lagur, te cilat nga ana e tyre, duhej te ndiznin dhe te pergatisnin disa grushta qymyr, mbi te cilat pritej te vendosej ushqimi qe do te piqej. Nuk e di se sa kohe humba duke ndjekur me shqetesim flaken qe here shfaqej e here zbehej, por ndoshta rreth nje ore pasi kisha hedhur shkrepsen e pare, flaka mori mbroth dhe une vendosa te shtoja mbi te disa kaci qymyr nga ai qe shitet ne cdo pike shumice te Tiranes. Pak minuta me vone, ndersa qymyri kishte filluar te skuqej dhe te merrte formen perfundimtare te nje barbekyje, nuk e di pse aroma e tij, ajo ere e rende dhe shpesh e padurueshme, m'u be befas e afert. Nje ndjesi e cuditshme me solli prane nje nga ato ditet e ftohta te femijerise, ose me mire te thuhet nje mbremje prej tyre. M'u duk se e rigjeta edhe nje here familjen time te mbledhur ne kuzhinen e ngushte ku bubullinte nje nga ato sobat 9 mije lekeshe me dru, pa emer dhe marke, dhe qe ne, si pothuaj gjithe shqiptaret e tjere, e mbushnim shpesh ne ditet e ftohta me qymyr. Duke shpresuar se nxehtesia do te qendronte me shume dhe se ne fund te fundit kjo ishte menyra me e mire per te kursyer dicka nga kater latat e druve, qe veshtire se mund te ishin te mjaftueshme per nje familje ne nje dimer te ashper. Nuk e di pse rijetova edhe nje here momentin kur soba mbushej plot me ate qymyrin e keq dhe te lagesht te Valiasit, i shnderruar ne ca forma vezake dhe qe nuk e di se perse quhej qymyr guri. Krejt inferior dhe i pakrahasueshem me ate tjetrin, qymyrin e drurit apo qymyrin qe mbante emrin "i Memaliajt". Nje asocim i cuditshem e lidhi eren e qymyrit me ate te cajit te malit, qe zjente ne cep te sobes ne cajnikun kinez prej alumini dhe qe sa here nxehej tej normales prodhonte nje shfryrje te zhurmeshme dhe pse jo te frikshme. Pastaj vinte era e bukes se thekur, nganjehere te djegur, qe jo ralle, per t'i shmangur kontaktin me pllaken e nxehte te sobes e vendosnim mbi mashen e gjate. I tunduar nga ai kujtim i mrekullueshem, por njekohesisht i mjere i femijerise, nuk e di pse m'u duk vetja krejt absurd perpara barbekyse portative, qymyrit qe e merrja tashme nga nje thes me etikete te shkruajtur bukur dhe salciceve qe prisnin ne krah shnderrimin e qymyrit ne prush. I gjendur mes dy situatave qe aq papritur dhe pabesueshem i kishte lidhur nje arome e rende dhe aspak e kendshme qymyri, mendova befas se nje asocim te ngjashem duhej te kishin me qindra mijera, ne mos me miliona shqiptare te tjere. A ka ndonje prej tyre, pyeta veten, qe nuk bashkon dot ne nje aromen e bukes se thekur ne sobe dhe jo ne theksen elektrike, eren e cajit te malit qe del nga nje cajnik i perveluar alumini dhe aromen e qymyrit qe prodhonte shpesh ne kuzhinat e vogla nje ajer te rende dhe mbytes? Veshtire, ia ktheva pergjigjen vetes, dhe nuk e di pse besova ate moment se ajo qe na shenjonte te gjitheve dhe qe na bente kaq te afert me njeri- tjetrin ishte pikerisht kjo. Ose disa dhjetra situata e detaje te tilla, krejtesisht tonat, qe kishin shenjuar nje pjese te rendesishme te jetes ose formimit shqiptar. Dhe qe ishin kaq te vecanta dhe kaq te ndryshme nga cdo situate ose detaj qe kishte shenjuar formimin e nje populli, ose disa popujve ne te njejten epoke me ate tonen. Disa ore me vone, ndersa darka kishte mbaruar dhe mbi barbekyne portative qene fikur tashme edhe thengjinjte e fundit, telekomanda e televizorit me mbeti padashur ne nje stacion qe transmetonte nuk e di se si nje emision homazh per Tano Banushin. Nje emision i mrekullueshem qe risillte prane humorin e holle te shume viteve me pare, qe ishte as me shume dhe as me pak, humori i femijerise sime. M'u kujtua se si ngulesha para TVSH diten e shtune ne mbremje, kur sipas programit te saj ishte "Estrada ne ekran" dhe m'u duk se ende tani e kam te veshtire te perjetoj po ate kenaqesi te atyre dy oreve. A mund t'ia shpjegonte miku im femijeve te tij amerikane kete dhe a do ta kuptonin ata? Si do t'ua shpjegonte ate momentin kur i veshur si fotograf, Tano Banushi replikon me qytetarin qe nuk gjente fotografine e tij duke i leshuar batuten monumentale: "Gruan ta gjeta, femijet t'i gjeta, kur nuk e di ti vete ku je, ku ta di une!". Padyshim qe nuk do ta kuptonin dhe nuk eshte cudi qe nje moment apo tjetrin ta veshtronin me qortim. Qene te afte te kuptonin cdo njeri, ne cdo cep te globit, por jo babain e tyre te rritur ne nje lagje te ulet dhe me qerpic te Tiranes. I perkisnin nje grupi tjeter identitetesh dhe ashtu si ne nje tregim te mrekullueshem te Teodor Kekos, vetem me vone do ta kuptonin se i ati, miqte e tij, shume nga ne, i perkisnin nje identiteti dikur te spikatur, por tani ne zhdukje, atij te shenjuar me firmen e dikurshme, Made in Albania.

Franca rrezon Kushtetuten europiane! Sipas informacioneve qe jepen rreth 55% e zgjedhesve franceze votuan te dielen kunder kushtetutes europiane. Cfare mendoni ju te nderuar miq per ceshtjen ne fjale???

SULMOHET LONDRA Multiple blasts hit London transport system Explosions shut down subway, buses, paralyzing capital; 2 deaths confirmed Jane Mingay / AP Injured subway passengers are escorted away from Edgware Road Tube station in central London following an explosion during rush hour on Thursday. BREAKING NEWS Updated: 6:54 a.m. ET July 7, 2005 NOTE: This is a developing story and details will be added as they become available. LONDON - Near simultaneous explosions rocked the London subway and three double-decker buses at the morning rush hour Thursday, police and news reports said. Authorities said the six blasts caused at least two deaths and nine injuries and police said they found indications of explosives at the scene of one of a series of blasts. "We are concerned that this is a coordinated attack. We are aware that one of the sites does containly does contain indications of explosives," London police chief Sir Ian Blair said on Sky News. He said authorities had not received any warning. "We have been at a very high state of alert. Of course if there had been any kind of specific warnings we would have dealt with it," he said. The near simultaneous explosions came a day after London was awarded the 2012 Olympics and as the G-8 summit was getting underway in Scotland. Initial reports blamed a power surge, but officials were not ruling out an intentional attack. "There have been a number of dreadful incidents across London today," said Home Secretary Charles Clarke, Britain's top law enforcement officer. He said there were "terrible injuries." Police confirmed two deaths and said there were at least six explosions. One witness, Darren Hall, said some passengers emerging from an evacuated subway station had soot and blood on their faces. He told BBC TV that he was evacuated along with others near the major King's Cross station and only afterward heard a blast. Buses destroyed Sky News showed a picture of a mangled red bus; police said they suspected a bomb caused the explosion. Police confirmed an explosion destroyed a double-decker bus at Russell Square in central London, and Dow Jones Newswires reported police reporting explosions on at least two others buses. A witness at the Russell Square blast said the entire top deck of that bus was destroyed. "I was on the bus in front and heard an incredible bang, I turned round and half the double decker bus was in the air," Belinda Seabrook told Press Association, the British news agency. She said the bus was packed with people. "It was a massive explosion and there were papers and half a bus flying through the air," she said. There was no immediate official comment from British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who was hosting the world's most powerful leaders at Gleneagles, Scotland. It was not clear if the G-8 gathering focusing on climate change and aid for Africa -- but from which Iraq has largely been left off the agenda -- would have to be postponed. 'Walking wounded' Police said incidents were reported at the Aldgate station near the Liverpool Street railway terminal, Edgware Road and King's Cross in north London, Old Street in the financial district and Russell Square in central London, near the British Museum. London Ambulance Service said several vehicles had been dispatched to the area near Liverpool Street station. "We believe there was some sort of explosion. There are some walking wounded at Aldgate," said a spokesman for City of London police, speaking on condition of anonymity. "We are not sure of the scale of the incident. Reports are still coming in." Bradley Anderson, a subway passenger, told Sky News that "there was some kind of explosion or something" as his train reached the Edgware Road station in northeast London. "Everything went black and we collided into some kind of oncoming train," Anderson said. Simon Corvett, 26, who was on an eastbound train from Edgware Road station, said: "All of sudden there was this massive huge bang." "It was absolutely deafening and all the windows shattered," he said. "There were just loads of people screaming and the carriages filled with smoke. "You could see the carriage opposite was completely gutted," he said. "There were some people in real trouble." © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Rate this story Low High

Sa haptazi thoni qe jeni shqiptare? Aresyeja pse po e hap kete teme eshte sepse kam nje shokun tim qe nuk thote per qamet qe eshte shqiptar. Une jetoj ne amerike, dhe sa here qe shkojme diku, do te thote qe eshte grek, edhe nganjehere italian po kurre shqiptar. A ju vjen turp te pranoni qe jeni shqiptare?

A duhet te largohen SHBA tani nga Iraku?! Tani, qe lufta mbaroi, regjimi i Sadam Huseinit u rrezua- dhe ne kohen qe armet e shkaterrimit ne mase bashke me bazat e Al-kaides, nuk u gjeten; a ka me ndonje arsye, pse amerikanet te qendrojne ne Irak. Amerikanet duket se dolen bllof me akuzat e tyre mbi armet e shkaterrimit ne mase. Nese vertet do kishin ekzistuar, atehere me siguri qe udheheqsia e paskrupullt irakene do i kish perdorur gjate luftimeve, por nje gje e tille nuk ndodhi, pra nje prove e qarte, se arme te tilla ishin vetem ne koken e amerikaneve. Nje shije shume te keqe, amerikanet lane sidomos ne ditet e para te hyrjes pa lufte ne Bagdat. U lejuan trazira, u shkaterrun nga bastisjet shume institucione dhe me e keqja shume monumente te kultures se vjeter vendase, e cila eshte njekohesisht djepi i qyteterimit boteror, u vodhen, ndersa amerikanet sapo hyne ne qytet te paren gje qe bene, qe sigurimi i ministrise irakene te naftes. Nje prove e qarte kjo! Ditet e fundit ka pasur protesta ne rruget e Bagdatit nga populli iraken. Dje kane dale ne rruge 10 mije banore te kryeqytetit iraken, per te protestuar kunder atyre qe ata i quajne "pushtues amerikane", ndersa sot vendet fqinje te Irakut kane kerkuar largimin e menjehershem te trupave amerikane. A kane te drejte legjitime te qendrojne ende aty amerikanet?!

Korca,nje Paris i vogel. Si mendoni per te ardhmen e korces? Do arrije ajo te behet vertert nje Paris i vogel?

A duhet sulmuar Iraku?????? si mendoni a duhet sulmuar sadam husain????

Amerika Nr. 1.! Vertet? Nje statistike e shkurter qe tregon se si reshtohet USA ne raport me shtete te tjera apo me Europen! No. 1? By: MICHAEL VENTURA No concept lies more firmly embedded in our national character than the notion that the USA is "No. 1," "the greatest." Our broadcast media are, in essence, continuous advertisements for the brand name "America Is No. 1." Any office seeker saying otherwise would be committing political suicide. In fact, anyone saying otherwise will be labeled "un-American." We're an "empire," ain't we? Sure we are. An empire without a manufacturing base. An empire that must borrow $2 billion a day from its competitors in order to function. Yet the delusion is ineradicable. We're No. 1. Well ... this is the country you really live in: • The United States is 49th in the world in literacy (The New York Times, Dec. 12, 2004). • The United States ranked 28th out of 40 countries in mathematical literacy (NYT, Dec. 12, 2004). • One-third of our science teachers and one-half of our math teachers did not major in those subjects. (Quoted on The West Wing, but you can trust it – their researchers are legendary.) • Twenty percent of Americans think the sun orbits the Earth. Seventeen percent believe the Earth revolves around the sun once a day (The Week, Jan. 7, 2005). • "The International Adult Literacy Survey ... found that Americans with less than nine years of education 'score worse than virtually all of the other countries'" (Jeremy Rifkin's superbly documented book The European Dream : How Europe's Vision of the Future Is Quietly Eclipsing the American Dream, p.78). • Our workers are so ignorant, and lack so many basic skills, that American businesses spend $30 billion a year on remedial training (NYT, Dec. 12, 2004). No wonder they relocate elsewhere! • "The European Union leads the U.S. in ... the number of science and engineering graduates; public research and development (R&D) expenditures; and new capital raised" (The European Dream, p.70). • "Europe surpassed the United States in the mid-1990s as the largest producer of scientific literature" (The European Dream, p.70). • Nevertheless, Congress cut funds to the National Science Foundation. The agency will issue 1,000 fewer research grants this year (NYT, Dec. 21, 2004). • Foreign applications to U.S. grad schools declined 28% last year. Foreign student enrollment on all levels fell for the first time in three decades, but increased greatly in Europe and China. Last year Chinese grad-school graduates in the U.S. dropped 56%, Indians 51%, South Koreans 28% (NYT, Dec. 21, 2004). We're not the place to be anymore. • The World Health Organization "ranked the countries of the world in terms of overall health performance, and the U.S. was ... 37th." In the fairness of health care, we're 54th. "The irony is that the United States spends more per capita for health care than any other nation in the world" (The European Dream, pp.79-80). Pay more, get lots, lots less. • "The U.S. and South Africa are the only two developed countries in the world that do not provide health care for all their citizens" (The European Dream, p.80). Excuse me, but since when is South Africa a "developed" country? Anyway, that's the company we're keeping. • Lack of health insurance coverage causes 18,000 unnecessary American deaths a year. (That's six times the number of people killed on 9/11.) (NYT, Jan. 12, 2005.) • "U.S. childhood poverty now ranks 22nd, or second to last, among the developed nations. Only Mexico scores lower" (The European Dream, p.81). Been to Mexico lately? Does it look "developed" to you? Yet it's the only "developed" country to score lower in childhood poverty. • Twelve million American families – more than 10% of all U.S. households – "continue to struggle, and not always successfully, to feed themselves." Families that "had members who actually went hungry at some point last year" numbered 3.9 million (NYT, Nov. 22, 2004). • The United States is 41st in the world in infant mortality. Cuba scores higher (NYT, Jan. 12, 2005). • Women are 70% more likely to die in childbirth in America than in Europe (NYT, Jan. 12, 2005). • The leading cause of death of pregnant women in this country is murder (CNN, Dec. 14, 2004). • "Of the 20 most developed countries in the world, the U.S. was dead last in the growth rate of total compensation to its work-force in the 1980s. ... In the 1990s, the U.S. average compensation growth rate grew only slightly, at an annual rate of about 0.1%" (The European Dream, p.39). Yet Americans work longer hours per year than any other industrialized country, and get less vacation time. • "Sixty-one of the 140 biggest companies on the Global Fortune 500 rankings are European, while only 50 are U.S. companies" (The European Dream, p.66). "In a recent survey of the world's 50 best companies, conducted by Global Finance, all but one was European" (The European Dream, p.69). • "Fourteen of the 20 largest commercial banks in the world today are European. ... In the chemical industry, the European company BASF is the world's leader, and three of the top six players are European. In engineering and construction, three of the top five companies are European. ... The two others are Japanese. Not a single American engineering and construction company is included among the world's top nine competitors. In food and consumer products, Nestlé and Unilever, two European giants, rank first and second, respectively, in the world. In the food and drugstore retail trade, two European companies ... are first and second, and European companies make up five of the top 10. Only four U.S. companies are on the list" (The European Dream, p.68). • The United States has lost 1.3 million jobs to China in the last decade (CNN, Jan. 12, 2005). • U.S. employers eliminated 1 million jobs in 2004 (The Week, Jan. 14, 2005). • Three million six hundred thousand Americans ran out of unemployment insurance last year; 1.8 million – one in five – unemployed workers are jobless for more than six months (NYT, Jan. 9, 2005). • Japan, China, Taiwan, and South Korea hold 40% of our government debt. (That's why we talk nice to them.) "By helping keep mortgage rates from rising, China has come to play an enormous and little-noticed role in sustaining the American housing boom" (NYT, Dec. 4, 2004). Read that twice. We owe our housing boom to China, because they want us to keep buying all that stuff they manufacture. • Sometime in the next 10 years Brazil will probably pass the U.S. as the world's largest agricultural producer. Brazil is now the world's largest exporter of chickens, orange juice, sugar, coffee, and tobacco. Last year, Brazil passed the U.S. as the world's largest beef producer. (Hear that, you poor deluded cowboys?) As a result, while we bear record trade deficits, Brazil boasts a $30 billion trade surplus (NYT, Dec. 12, 2004). • As of last June, the U.S. imported more food than it exported (NYT, Dec. 12, 2004). • Bush: 62,027,582 votes. Kerry: 59,026,003 votes. Number of eligible voters who didn't show up: 79,279,000 (NYT, Dec. 26, 2004). That's more than a third. Way more. If more than a third of Iraqis don't show for their election, no country in the world will think that election legitimate. • One-third of all U.S. children are born out of wedlock. One-half of all U.S. children will live in a one-parent house (CNN, Dec. 10, 2004). • "Americans are now spending more money on gambling than on movies, videos, DVDs, music, and books combined" (The European Dream, p.28). • "Nearly one out of four Americans believe that using violence to get what they want is acceptable" (The European Dream, p.32). • Forty-three percent of Americans think torture is sometimes justified, according to a PEW Poll (Associated Press, Aug. 19, 2004). • "Nearly 900,000 children were abused or neglected in 2002, the last year for which such data are available" (USA Today, Dec. 21, 2004). • "The International Association of Chiefs of Police said that cuts by the Bush administration in federal aid to local police agencies have left the nation more vulnerable than ever" (USA Today, Nov. 17, 2004). No. 1? In most important categories we're not even in the Top 10 anymore. Not even close. The USA is "No. 1" in nothing but weaponry, consumer spending, debt, and delusion.