Picture of the day

The stunning Danxia Scenic Area in Zhangye city, northwest China's Gansu Pronvice. Danxia, which means rosy cloud, is a special landscape, formed from reddish sandstone that has been eroded over time into a series of mountains surrounded by curvaceous cliffs and many unusual rock formations.

Picture: CATERS

Pope Francis talks gay

With discrimination being a major issue still haunting our society, the Pop decided to give his insight on discrimination against gays and he also tried to rest-assure them that there is place for them in the Catholic church. In an interview conducted in a plane that brought him back from Brazil, the Pop claimed that "If a person is  gay and seeks God and has good will, who am I to judge him?" Through the years we have noticed a growing number of people with a different sexual orientation than that thought in the bible and many priests are starting to adhere to that as well. Thus, the Pop reaches out to them in a very subtle and subliminal way. He carried on by saying "The problem is not having that orientation, we must be brother. The problem is lobbying by this orientation, or lobbies of greedy people, political lobbies..." This may seem normal and encouraging to everyone, but does the Pop really mean what he says? Is he really going to accept everyone the same way and have them do sacred work without having to judge their personal life style? Will he allow someone to turn away from that, what is depicted in the book that is responsible for leading them, which is a man for a woman or vice verse? Also we need to pay attention to the message carried by the words he says when he says that the problem is not having that orientation but lobbying by it. This shows that the number in the Church Governing Body is increasing as well, therefore if someone accepts the other person, then one has to be prepared to live and support the other person in whatever they do. Moreover, one has to consider what the other person has in mind to make them feel at ease and more comfortable. There are a number of principles one must hold in order for them to be able to lead the a church. Following the bible and living according to it, is considered as one of the highest requirements for catholic people, now how is the Pop going to do this without damaging his relationship with  the Most High.  This is a very sensitive topic indeed, but i hope the Catholic Church and the Pop will really give life to their words. This will be pretty interesting.

Picture of the day

At least 77 people have been killed and more than 143 injured after a passenger train derailed outside the northern Spanish city of Santiago de Compostela. All 13 train carriages carrying 218 passengers plus crew left the tracks and four carriages overturned completely.

Picture: AFP/Getty Images

British royal baby goes global

Media houses have had closely been following the pregnancy of  Duchess of Cambridge, for as early as she first confirmed her pregnancy. They watched her every move, more so whenever she would go to a hospital or clinic to get checked up. A barrage of journalists gathered outside the St Mary's hospital in London just days before, George Alexander Louis or as he will be know in the future 'His Royal Highness Prince George of Cambridge', was born so as to be the first to get live pictures of the royal baby.

It was on the 23rd of July, that the baby was born and he sure got the most warm welcome he could have ever gotten; with his father alongside members of the royal family being the first ones to get a glimpse of him, of course, the baby boy came into the world in a spectacular manner. Journalist across the world followed the Duchess's labour closely, that it seemed as if God was about to come down right now and save the whole world.

We all understand how important the royal family is, and how they influence the dealings of the world, but some of us are pretty displeased at the amount of media coverage this little baby is getting. The world has more important issues to deal with and focus on; Apart from that, the media in general should try and keep up with more serious matters instead of trying to distract humanity from what really needs to be addressed.

As the royal  baby continues to make  headlines all over the world, and is the main topic of many newspapers, magazines, TV and radio talks, as if the follow-through of the pregnancy and birth of the baby was not enough, many will still have to be blinded folded with the news about this baby everyday and forget about the real issues.

We are all delighted at the fact that a new-born has come into the world, and that it belongs to the royal family. We wish them all the best in raising this beautiful child and may God walk alongside them always.

Let all the hype and publicity be over, well, at least until the baby is old enough to make real headlines!

Picture of the day

A monkey plays in a pond surrounded by carp at a wild life park in Hefei, Anhui pronvice in china
Picture: REUTERS

Picture of the day

A photographer is hit by a jet of water fired from a riot police vehivle during a 24-hour national strike in Chile.
Picture: REUTERS

Showbiz and its secrets

When we see stars on TV, magazines, newspaper, or even in real life, most people tend to get excited and proclaim their undisputed admiration for them. Others go as far as emulating everything their stars do, to show the world that they really love them and there is no one above them. We have seen so many stories about people who tattoo the names of their idols on them, do what their idols have once done, which is conveyed through their music or life-style, and that sometimes can lead to some catastrophic results such as injuries, depression, loneliness, drug abuse and death.
According to reports from the catholic church in Poland, Madonna will be featured at a five day meeting agenda of European Exorcists. Father Andrzej Grefkowic explains that "Part of the conference is dedicated to the hidden subliminal message in communication and the choice of this subject was inspired by the woman who dares to call herself Madona.... We've been worried about her concerts."
The showbiz industry has always been associated with some form of cult or secret society involving devil-worshiping, demonic practices, and misleading society as a whole. We have to be very careful about the type of entertainment we follow,as well as the superstars we tend to choose as our idols. Although there a number of subliminal messages carried out by artists on many songs, which makes it difficult for their followers to understand them, some messages are as clear as pure water can be. Still, many people choose to ignore those messages, which is quiet understandable because love is really blind, and when combined with obsession, it can make a person lose all of their senses. We are all free to choose who to like and have as our idols, it is a sin to judge, but it is a blessing to be logical. Let's use our senses to the fullest.

Picture of the day

Tourists watch water gushing out from the Xiaolangdi Reservoir on the Yellow River during a sand-washing operation in Luoyang, central China's Henan Province. The on-going operation works by discharging water at a volume of 2,600 cubic meters per second from the reservoir to clear up the sediment in the Yellow River. The Yellow River has been plagued by an increasing amount of mud and sand. Each year, the river bed rises as silt deposits build up, slowing the water flow in the lower reaches.
Picture: Quirky China News/Rex Features

Picture of the day

A snail enjoys a long game of leapfrog as it takes eight minutes to calmly climb over a frog before reaching its destination. Photographer Lessy Sebastian, from Jakarta, Indonesia, captured this rare moment in his front garden.
Picture: Lessy Sebastian/Solent News

The oppression continues

Power is something very intriguing, and when associated with politics, it can either be as good as its holder or  otherwise. Africa, for example, is one of the continents that has been extremely affected by our greedy leaders and their thirst for constant power, which causes them to ignore the voice of the people most times, or act in a way that triggers fear and resentment among the nations.
Democracy is the main topic of their political rallies and public speeches. We live in a democratic society, according to these leaders, but I reckon most of them fail to understand the real meaning of democracy, or they simply choose to ignore it's core meaning and create a circle around them that impels them to act in the manner they do towards the people.
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, has always been one of the main figures of African politics. He has recently launched a "DO or Die" campaign in which, he urged his supporters to fight for survival. He said "You are soldiers, you have a battle to fight. Go into the battle well-armed. It's a fight for our lives. It's a battle for survival." That is one subliminal statement, that causes more confusion than clarity among the nation.
Truth is, nobody needs to fight anymore! If we live in a democratic society we should be able accept defeat, without having to instill fear in people's minds. Let the voice of the people be heard.
That is just one example of the mental oppression we suffer and most of us sometimes fail to take note of. Democracy seems to have a different meaning for most of the leaders in Africa, and around the world. We live in an unfair world and despite efforts to eradicate such political theories, we never seem to get it right.