Introduction to KashmirForum.org Blog

I launched the website and the Blog after having spoken to government officials, political analysts and security experts specializing in South Asian affairs from three continents. The feedback was uniformly consistent. The bottom line is that when Kashmiris are suffering and the world has its own set of priorities, we need to find ways to help each other. We must be realistic, go beyond polemics and demagoguery, and propose innovative ideas that will bring peace, justice and prosperity in all of Jammu and Kashmir.

The author had two reasons to create this blog. First, it was to address the question that was being asked repeatedly, especially, by journalists and other observers in the U.S., U.K., and Canada, inquiring whether the Kashmiri society was concerned about social, cultural and environmental challenges in the valley given that only political upheaval and violence were reported or highlighted by media.

Second, the author has covered the entire spectrum of societal issues and challenges facing Kashmiri people over an 8-year period with the exception of politics given that politics gets all the exposure at the expense of REAL CHALLENGES that will likely result in irreversible degradation in the quality of life and the standard of living for future generations of Kashmiris to come.

The author stopped adding additional material to the Blog once it was felt that most, if not all, concerns, challenges and issues facing the Kashmiri society are cataloged in the Blog. There are over 1900 entries in the Blog and most commentaries include short biographical sketches of authors to bring readers close to the essence of Kashmir. Unfortunately, the 8-year assessment also indicates that neither Kashmiri civil society, nor intellectuals or political leadership have any inclination or enthusiasm in pursuing issues that do not coincide with their vested political agendas. What it means for the future of Kashmiri children and their children is unfathomable. But the evidence is all laid out.

This Blog is a reality check on Kashmir. It is a historical record of how Kashmir lost its way.

Vijay Sazawal, Ph.D.
www.kashmirforum.org

Thursday, September 11, 2008

Why is Glass Always Half-full for Kashmiris?

Kashmir is the capital of global conspiracies, and while the world is watching the particle beam experiment near Geneva with fascination, in Kashmir it is producing a different kind of anxiety


Kashmir panicky over Big Bang experiment: Weatherman dispels rumors of earthquake

Rising Kashmir News

Srinagar: The ongoing experiments by the European scientists at Geneva to recreate conditions that existed immediately after the “Big Bang” caused panic in Kashmir Valley on Wednesday as the rumors of an earthquake spreading among people.The news spread fast that the experiments are underway in Geneva. Most of the private news channels based in New Delhi kept the people informed and updated about the experiment.

People across the Valley felt a bit terrified and rang up the Metrological Department to inquire about the experiments.T K Jotshi, Assistant Director Met Deptt told Rising Kashmir that since morning, he received numerous calls from the people from different parts of the Valley enquiring about the repercussions of the experiment. “The fear is on the higher side as two earthquakes jolted the Valley in past week,” said Jotshi.Urging people not to worry, he said, “The experiment was carried in a controlled manner and there is nothing to worry. It will not lead to doomsday like situation in Kashmir.

Several leading scientists of the world have also refuted the fears of planetary annihilation by this experiment.”One of the Physics scholars, who did not want to be named, said that the experiment has been given a go ahead after a proper study was conducted by the scientist from different countries.

“The apprehensions are totally baseless,” he said.He, however, said that there has been criticism from a group of scientists. “Due to the criticism by some scientists, people have panicked world over”.“It is only of experimental nature and will produce conditions similar to the original ‘Big Bang’ to see how the matter was held together after the bang,” he said.He added that such fears were associated with several experiments in the past and people are always sceptical about the results.

The Big Bang experiment, which is being carried out at on the French and Swiss border near Geneva, is using the biggest and most complex machine - the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) inside 27-km tunnel deep beneath the surface. The scientists will race a beam of sub-atomic particles just under the speed of light and later fire a beam in opposite direction with energies up to seven times greater than any achieved before.

The experiment is believed to provide vital clues about the origin of the earth and universe.

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