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Monday, 28 September, 2015
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‘I WILL BECOME FIRST MUSLIM US PRESIDENT’: MUSLIM BOY TELLS BEN CARSON
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FTER listening to US presidential candidate Ben Carson’s anti-Muslim tirade about Muslims being unfit to become president of the United States, a 12-year-old could not remain silent and decided to respond to Carson. Last week, the Republican candidate ignited a storm of controversy when he told NBC Meet the Press that a Muslim would be unfit to become president of the US, arguing their faith was inconsistent with American principles. “I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. I absolutely would not agree with that,” Carson has said. The 12-year-old Yusuf Dayur from Eden Prairie, Minnesota begins his 2minute and 20-second video response, which would later be uploaded by his mother on YouTube, with the words “This is my response to presidential candidate Ben Carson.” After a moment’s pause, Dayur calmly continues, “Mr Carson what if someone told you that you cannot be-
come president because of your colour? Or what if someone told you that you cannot become president because of your race? Or what if someone told you that you cannot become president because of your faith, because that’s what you did to me.” Talking about his ambition to become the president one day since he was just 2 or 3-year-old, Dayur said when he barely knew how to walk and was going to pre-school, he used brag to his friends that he would become the president one day. “You basically shattered my dreams. Because you said a Muslim cannot become president,” he told Carson disappointedly. Referring to the prejudices that existed in the past against the AfricanAmericans and how people used to say that they could not become president, Dayur said the incumbent US President Barack Obama “already broke that black people boundary.” Vowing to break another barrier, with resolve in his voice, the 12-year-old said “I will break the Muslim boundary. I will become the first Muslim president.” Addressing the Republican candidate, Dayur said, “You will see when I
MArs ‘Mystery solved’: hAs NAsA fouNd wAter flowiNg oN the red PlANet? COURTESY TELEGRAPH
become president, I will respect people of all faith, all colour and all religions.” He added that, “It doesn’t matter if they are Jews, Muslims or Hindus, doesn’t matter if they are atheist, Christian or believe in Greek or Roman mythology. I don’t care [because] they are still human beings and we should treat them with respect.”
Taking a jibe at Carson, Dayur said, “And obviously you don’t know what the respect is.” In the end, the 12-year-old again expressed his resolve to become the president and told Carson, “My name is Yusuf Dayur. And guess what, I don’t care what you said because I will become president.”
Zuckerberg, Gates make bid for universal Internet access NEW YORK AGENCIES
BP Pills Before sleeP lower diABetes risk too COURTESY IANS Taking blood pressure pills at bedtime rather than in the morning reduces BP during sleep and also lowers risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, research reveals. The team of Spanish researchers found that there was a 57 per cent decrease in the risk of developing new-onset Type 2 diabetes in the bedtime-treated group. “In hypertensive patients without diabetes, ingestion of the entire daily dose of one or more blood pressure-lowering medications at bedtime results in significantly improved sleeping blood pressure control and prevention of new-onset diabetes,” said Ramon Hermida from University of Vigo, Spain. The team did a randomised trial of 2,012 hypertensive patients without diabetes (976 men and 1,036 women) Patients were randomised to ingest all their prescribed hypertension medications upon awakening or the entire daily dose of one or more of them at bedtime. Investigators who did not know which patients were in which group assessed the development of new-onset diabetes. During a median follow-up of six years, 171 participants developed Type 2 diabetes. Patients in the bedtime – compared with the morning-treatment group – showed a significantly lower asleep mean BP and a greater sleep-time relative BP decline. In the bedtime-treated group, there was a lowerprevalence of a phenomenon known as “non-dipping” in which, patients’ night time BP falls by less than 10 percent compared to daytime BP. Further analysis showed that greater reduction in risk of developing diabetes was observed for bedtime compared with awakening treatment. The authors conclude that regimen of taking anti-hypertensive medications before bed is as safe as taking them in the morning. The research was published in Diabetologia – the journal of the European Association for the Study of Diabetes.
Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates on Saturday threw their weight behind the goal of bringing Internet access to everyone in the world by 2020. The pledge comes amid a United Nations effort to eradicate extreme poverty by 2030, a goal set on Friday during a special summit at the global body. The Internet became commonplace in developed countries in the 1990s, but UN officials estimate that half the world does not have reliable access — especially women and girls, whose education is vital to development. “When people have access to the tools and knowledge of the Internet, they have access to opportunities that make life better for all of us,” said a declaration signed by Zuckerberg and Bill and Melinda Gates, who have devoted their wealth to philanthropy. “The Internet belongs to everyone. It should be accessible by everyone,” the declaration said. Zuckerberg, swapping his trademark hoodie for a suit and tie as he appeared at the United Nations, said that for every 10 people connected to the Internet, one is lifted out of poverty. “The Internet is more than just a network of ma-
Nasa is preparing to unveil a “major science finding” from its Mars exploration programme, fuelling speculation it could have found water flowing on the Red Planet. The space agency has called a press conference for Monday promising to announce “Mars Mystery Solved”. While many are hoping Nasa will announce it has discovered alien life, the leading theory appears to be an announcement of the presence of liquid water. The speculation has been driven by Nasa’s disclosure that Lujendra Ojha, a PhD student who discovered possible signs of water while an undergraduate student in 2011, will take part in Monday’s announcement. Scientists have long known that there is frozen water at the poles of Mars, but have yet to find it in liquid form - which would raise the chances of life being sustained on the Red Planet.
sAudi PriNce Arrested oN sex criMe chArge At los ANgeles MANsioN LOS ANGELES AGENCIES
chines; it is the key driver of social and economic progress in our time,” Zuckerberg told a luncheon at the UN headquarters attended by German Chancellor Angela Merkel. The 31year-old entrepreneur pointed to the role of the Internet in empowering otherwise voiceless people in places such as Syria, where civil war is producing a refugee exodus. “A ‘like’ or a post won’t stop a tank or a bullet, but when people are connected, we have the chance to build a common global community with a shared understanding — and that’s a powerful force,” he said. He estimated that spreading the Internet could also bring affordable education to 600 million children who would
otherwise go unschooled. Other signatories included Jimmy Wales, cofounder of free online encyclopedia Wikipedia, and U2 frontman Bono on behalf of his One anti-poverty campaign. Jamie Drummond, global executive director of One which spearheaded the push, called on every country to come up with an “urgent plan” to meet the Internet access goals. The campaigners did not announce funding on their own, but the United Nations has said that meeting the new global goals will cost between $3.5 and $5 trillion per year. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation on Saturday launched its own roadmap, which put a top priority on improving the health and education for girls.
A Saudi prince has been arrested on charges of trying to force a worker at a Beverly Hills estate to perform oral sex, Los Angeles police said on Thursday. Majed Abdulaziz Al-Saud, 28, was arrested on Wednesday and was released on $300,000 bond the next day, according to police and online jail records. The Los Angeles Police Department’s special consul division said the prince does not have diplomatic immunity, according to the Los Angeles Times and KCBS-TV. The Los Angeles Times said police descended on the massive estate after a neighbor saw a bleeding woman screaming for help as she tried to scale the property’s surrounding wall on Wednesday. The $37 million home, in one of the most exclusive enclaves in the world, has been rented for weeks at a time by foreign nationals over the past year, the neighbor told the Times. The prince is expected to be in court Oct 19, court records show. Attempts to reach him by telephone were unsuccessful and his attorney was not immediately known. A call to the Saudi embassy was not immediately returned.
SELFIE WITH POPE WILL BRING YOU FAME COURTESY IANS While you are busy taking another selfie with friends or somewhere alone, which celebrity do you think can give you the best chance to win 15 minutes of fame on social media and beyond? Hold your breath. It is not the “selfie queen” Kim Kardashian or hot singer Beyonce but none other than Pope Francis himself! According to Daily Intelligencer newspaper, getting a selfie with the Pope is the one most people will die for. While compiling a ranking of 10 high profile celebrity selfie subjects, the newspaper found that the rare self-portrait with the Pope – who was given a rockstar welcome in New York during a trip to the US this week – will impress your friends and family members the most. At second spot is Beyonce who “makes people feel blessed simply by
proximity. This ranking is mostly self-explanatory.” The Obamas have taken third and fourth spot with it comes to celebrity selfie. Taking a selfie with the First Lady [Michelle Obama] is more impressive than getting a selfie with the president because of difficulty. “If she agrees to take a selfie with you, you’ve already won because Michelle Obama doesn’t like selfies but she will deal with the ignominy for people she likes,” the report said. “Taking a selfie with Barack Obama is almost a guarantee that you will get at least 15 minutes of fame, although you should avoid taking said photo at a memorial service,” the report added. The copyright ownership fight over the “monkey selfie” has now reached the court, thanks to the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), an animal rights organisation. At sixth spot is reality star Kardashian. “The
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Kim Kardashian selfie does not take its power from its rarity but from the exclusivity it confers”. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, at seventh spot, rarely participates in selfies but when she does, “she also throws in a 1,000-word commentary on her opinion of modern culture, written entirely
through facial expressions”. Mitt Romney, the 2012 Republican presidential nominee, is at eighth spot on the list. Ellen Lee DeGeneres, comedian, television host, actress, writer and producer, holds the ninth spot. “If you take a selfie with Ellen, you are probably insanely famous.