a Sobre o tempo que passa: You might think that it was chuckling with amusement at the white men who come and go and leave all things as they were

Sobre o tempo que passa

Espremer, gota a gota, o escravo que mantemos escondido dentro de nós. Porque nós inventámos o Estado de Direito, para deixarmos de ter um dono, como dizia Plínio. Basta que não tenhamos medo, conforme o projecto de Étienne la Boétie: "n'ayez pas peur". Na "servitude volontaire" o grande ou pequeno tirano apenas têm o poder que se lhes dá...

20.10.08

You might think that it was chuckling with amusement at the white men who come and go and leave all things as they were


O discreto autor do suspenso  Je Mantiendrai, cujo nome bem conheço, remeteu-me o seguinte excerto do livro cuja imagem encima este postal: "In the tropical East, where the sun sets at much the same time throughout the year, the evening's 'Last Post' often coincided with the Muslim call to prayer or the gongs and bells of a nearby temple. Together they came to comprise a reassuring recessional at day's end. The scent-laden air, once the sting of its heat had been drawn by the lengthening shadows, seemed at last to stir in moist sympathy with these serenades to silence and repose. Somewhere the flag had been furled and the watch had been set. Peace reigned; empires came off duty. Into crystal glasses tinkled ice cubes while rattan roofing reawoke to the first tut-tuts of the pale nocturnal lizard which Malays call the chik-chak. "You might think', wrote the novelist Somerset Maugham, 'that it was chuckling with amusement at the white men who come and go and leave all things as they were…”

Apenas lhe respondo com um abraço. Dizendo-lhe que tentarei o conselho de não perder uma peregrinação à ilha das Flores. Mais não posso dizer neste lugar público, a não ser este

Apelo à liberdade de blogar! Juntem-se! 


Dear Friend, 10th October, 2008

At this moment, at least 80 people around the world, many of them bloggers, are behind bars because they dared to express their political opinions online. We are hoping that you will take a moment to add your name to a petition by parliamentarians and others calling for their release. The short statement below, calling for freedom of expression on the Internet, has been signed by over 50 legislators from all continents, and is now being circulated for signature to bloggers, journalists, citizens and groups. Once it has received a large number of signatures, it will be sent to heads of state and government, including those who are holding the prisoners, as well as to the UN Human Rights Council.
This Call for e-Freedom has been initiated by the e-Parliament, which is a new forum for democratic legislators.
For the first time in history, the internet enables us to have a truly global conversation about our common future – in our local communities, our national communities and our global community. In blogs, websites and discussion groups, people are sharing ideas, exposing corruption and building networks to solve common problems.
Yet in some parts of the world, people who express views that conflict with those of their leaders risk imprisonment, torture or death. This is not only a denial of their rights. It denies their countries the benefits of free debate, and it prevents the world from hearing their voices as our global conversation expands day by day.
We are now contacting you as a member of the blogging community in the hope that you would like to sign this Call for e-Freedom -- to show solidarity with your fellow bloggers whose only crime has been to voice an opinion online.
The text that we are asking people to sign is as follows:
As Members of Parliament and Congress and as citizens, we call on all governments to allow their people to express their views on the Internet freely and without fear of retribution. In particular, we call for the release of those who are now in prison because they expressed opinions online that their governments did not like. We believe the Internet should be a space for free exchange among all the world’s people, where no one loses their life or their liberty for saying what they think.
You can add your name simply by visiting http://www.e-parl.net/efreedom and signing at the bottom of the page. If you can also encourage your friends and colleagues to add their names, we would be most grateful.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,

Graham Watson MEP , Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, European Parliament
Sirpa Pietikainen MEP, European People's Party (Christian Democrats), European Parliament
Ana Maria Gomes MEP, Socialist Group, European Parliament
Anders Wijkman MEP, European People's Party (Christian Democrats), European Parliament