What can YOU do on Mandela Day?

The objective of Mandela Day is to inspire individuals to take action to help change the world for the better, and in doing so build a global movement for good.  “Take Action; Inspire Change; Make Every Day a Mandela Day.”

Individuals and organisations are free to participate in Internaitonal Mandela Day as they wish.

You can find your way to spend 67 minutes on Mandela Day (July 18th) to help others and make a better world!

You have over two weeks to prepare for Mandela Day…

Here is a link to the official website where you can register your personal action :

http://www.mandeladay.com/

 

70 years later, 93 year old paratrooper jumps again in Normandy!

This paratrooper was 23 when he jumped over Normandy for D-Day 70 years ago…

Today he relived his part in this historic moment when he did his last jump over the same Normandy ground.

Hear about it and watch his jump here:

video -> 70 years later, D-Day paratrooper jumps again / National News.

paratrooper 23

Aged 23

paratrooper 93

Aged 93

paratrooper jumps

Parachuting at 93 years old!

Obama pays tribute to D-Day veterans in Normandy

President Barack Obama paid poetic tribute to the men who breached “Hitler’s Wall” and stormed ashore to liberate Europe on D-Day, at Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial in Colleville-sur-Mer.

Mr Obama said: “Fresh faced G.I.s rubbed trinkets, kissed pictures of sweethearts, checked and re-checked their equipment. ‘God,’ asked one, ‘Give me guts.’

“And in the pre-dawn hours, planes rumbled down runways, riders and paratroopers slipped through the sky, giant screws began to turn on an Armada that looked more like ships than sea. And more than 150,000 souls set off towards this tiny sliver of sand upon which hung more than the fate of a war, but rather the course of human history.

He added: “I am honoured to return here today to pay tribute to the men and women of a generation who defied every danger, among them are veterans of D-Day, and gentlemen we are truly humbled by your presence here today.”

Video: Obama pays moving tribute to D-Day veterans – Telegraph.

Optical illusions

There are many optical illusions, both natural and man-made, that can trick your brain… every time. The visual illusions are characterized by visually perceived images that differ from objective reality. The information your eyes gather doesn’t match the source in some way, causing a major (awesome) headache.

There are three main types of illusions: “literal optical illusions that create images that are different from the objects that make them, physiological ones that are the effects on the eyes and brain of excessive stimulation of a specific type (brightness, colour, size, position, tilt, movement), and cognitive illusions, the result of unconscious inferences.”

These 2 blocks are the same color. … … Cover the line with your finger to check.

optical-illusion-blocks-color

Stare at the cross for 10 seconds … … the purple dots disappear. 
optical-illusion-dots disappear
That’s not a bird. … … It’s a painted woman.
optical-illusions-woman parrot

Maasai women in Kenya try to stop ritual excision

Maasai-young-girls

52 young girls of a Maasai village, including the chief’s daughters, recently took part in a new ritual (the Alternative Rites of Passage). They did not have to suffer the pains of excision, as their older sisters and mothers had. Instead, they had a new ceremony: they stayed for two days in their classroom, wearing traditional black dresses and colorful crowns, with three women who talked to them about what being a woman means.

Female circumcision, widely known as female genital mutilation, is illegal in Kenya and is punishable by law, yet it is still practiced in many villages. Many regions in Africa and some countries in Asia and the Middle East widely practice the ritualistic procedure.

Traditionally, young women who had not yet been circumcised were rejected in their villages. The women who had endured the procedure were considered acceptable members of society and suitable for marriage.

Instruments traditionally used to perform the cut are sharp metal tools, knives, and other crude objects, and the procedure is usually not carried out by trained medical professionals. The effects of excision often bring on medical complications, going from local infection to death.

The physical pain resulting from the practice has immeasurable psychological impact on these young girls.

The scars left by the cutting often leads to complications later when women give birth, causing sharp pains, rips and often making a caesarean section necessary.

As the suffering of young women continues to surface across the globe, studies and personal opinion continue to find no sensible reason for female circumcision, considering it to be an act of violence against women.

It is estimated that 100 million–140 million women and girls have already been subjected to some form of female genital mutilation.

“Female mutilation is against the law, but people are still dying from it,” said Ikoluba, a volunteer for the Campaign Against Female Genital Mutilation in New York City. “Just earlier this year, one girl died from the bleeding and her sister ran away.” She herself was excised when she was 13 years old. “I wanted to run away, but my mother assured me that I should not be scared. She said she would hold my hand and that I would be okay”. “I felt as if I were going to die. It was very painful to urinate after the cutting. I had infections and fever and lots of nightmares.”

If you want to read more, read the full article here: The Epoch Times.