Morocco jails Facebook royal imposter

CNN) -- A computer engineer accused of posing as a member of the Moroccan royal family on the social networking Web site, Facebook, has been sentenced to three years in prison.

Prince Moulay Rachid, center, is pictured with Jordan's King Abdallah, left, and Morocco's King Mohammed in Marrakech in January.

A court in Casablanca imposed the sentence on Fouad Mourtada, 26, on Friday, the state news agency said.

Mourtada was charged with stealing the identity of Prince Moulay Rachid, the younger brother of the Moroccan king, and of forging computer documents.

Lawyers for Mourtada, who said he created the profile as "a joke, a gag," said they would appeal the sentence.

Since Mourtada's arrest this month, bloggers in Morocco and across Europe have rallied behind him. At least seven fake profiles for the prince popped up on Facebook.

In a Web site that his family started, www.helpfouad.com, Mourtada is quoted as saying the following to relatives who visited him in jail: "I never thought that by creating a profile of his Highness Prince Moulay Rachid I am harming him in any way.

"I, as a matter of fact, did not send any message from that account to anyone. It was just a joke, a gag. ... I am not an evil doer; my ambition in the life was simply to have a stable job and a normal life."

Facebook, like Myspace.com, is a social networking site that allows users to create personal profiles. They can then connect with one another, upload photos and share links. The Web site boasts more than 60 million active users.

There are fake profiles galore on Facebook, with dozens for U.S. President George W. Bush and a handful for Mother Teresa.

Peace, Propaganda & the Promised Land

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Peace, Propaganda & the Promised Land provides a striking comparison of U.S. and international media coverage of the crisis in the Middle East, zeroing in on how structural distortions in U.S. coverage have reinforced false perceptions of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This pivotal documentary exposes how the foreign policy interests of American political elites--oil, and a need to have a secure military base in the region, among others--work in combination with Israeli public relations strategies to exercise a powerful influence over how news from the region is reported.


Through the voices of scholars, media critics, peace activists, religious figures, and Middle East experts, Peace, Propaganda & the Promised Land carefully analyzes and explains how--through the use of language, framing and context--the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza remains hidden in the news media, and Israeli colonization of the occupied terrorities appears to be a defensive move rather than an offensive one. The documentary also explores the ways that U.S. journalists, for reasons ranging from intimidation to a lack of thorough investigation, have become complicit in carrying out Israel's PR campaign. At its core, the documentary raises questions about the ethics and role of journalism, and the relationship between media and politics.



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Half-Marathon Run - Next up : full Monty

These are the tired faces of 1/2 marathon runners. At least 2 of us are dead beat. Mr Haroufi Radwane on the other hand looks as if he is warmed up for a full marathon.

After an 8-week training program, I was able to pull it off. yay for me. Goal was set to 130 mins, which puts me right at 10 mins for every mile over a 13.1 mile distance.
But I was able to do better than anticipated and pull off a 2 hr and 5 min deal !
Best part is the winner of the whole shabang turned out to be Moroccan runner straight out of New Mexico. Mr Youssef Lahlou :) also pulled it off. With a very painful blister, he has learned not to change anything about shoes the night of the race :).
So Congrats to all 5200 runners who participated in the race.
and Congrats to Mr Harroufi who managed to run the race in 1 hr and 3 mins and win the whole thing. That s 2 steps foe every step I make :)
More pictures to come soon !

Next up in the Full Marathon in 2009, probably in February.
Winner:

What a Shame !

A recent World Bank reports finds that the Arab World is falling behind other regions in terms of education. And the worst performers? More...

The region had not seen the increasing literacy and school enrollment witnessed in Asia and Latin America, they said.

Djibouti, Yemen, Iraq and Morocco were ranked the worst educational reformers.

Iraq had to contend with a U.S. military invasion. What, exactly, is Morocco's excuse?

National Instruments Named Among FORTUNE's '100 Best Companies to Work For' List for Ninth Consecutive Year

FORTUNE magazine yesterday released its annual ranking of the nation's top 100 companies to work for, listing Austin-based National Instruments NATI as number 79. This is the ninth consecutive year National Instruments has made FORTUNE's "100 Best Companies to Work For" list. The annual survey polls employees from companies nationwide about the quality of their corporate cultures.

"We have built a successful business with a fun, challenging work environment that is truly improving everyday life," said Dr. James Truchard, NI president, CEO and co-founder. "With a collective focus on innovation, creativity, growth and continuous improvement, NI employees are truly inspired and driven by the impact we're having throughout science and engineering. Together with our customers, we're tackling some of the world's most challenging problems such as global climate change, energy dependence and aging populations. This is what makes me look forward to coming to work every day."

While National Instruments is best known for pioneering virtual instrumentation with its LabVIEW graphical system design platform, internal programs support the company's belief that well-rounded employees foster the NI community and provide inspiration to excel. Programs such as LEGO(R) MINDSTORMS(R) mentorships and the company's internal community relations department provide employees with volunteer opportunities to help them give back to the community. The Wellness Circuit program and on-site gym encourage a healthy lifestyle, and activities such as deck parties and company-wide meetings foster camaraderie and a sense of community within the corporate environment.

"It is an honor to be selected as one of FORTUNE's 100 Best Companies to Work For for nine consecutive years," said Mark Finger, NI vice president of human resources. "A key to our successful corporate culture over so many years has been our employees' commitment to both our work culture and the communities we live in. We continue to be grateful for their passion and dedication to both."

In addition to the FORTUNE "100 Best Companies to Work For" list, National Instruments has been named one of the best places to work in Germany (Best Workplaces in Germany 2004 and 2005; Great Places to Work Institute), Hungary (Best Employers in Europe 2004; Hewitt Associates), Italy (Best Workplaces in Italy 2007 and 2008; Great Places to Work Institute) and the United Kingdom (Best Workplaces in United Kingdom 2006 and 2007; Great Places to Work Institute).

How FORTUNE Chose the 100 Best

The Great Place to Work Institute compiles the list of best employers for FORTUNE each year. This year, more than 105,000 employees from 446 companies responded to the Institute's 57-question survey. Two-thirds of a company's score is based on the survey, which is sent to a minimum of 400 randomly selected employees from each company. The remainder of the score is based on the evaluation of company responses to several questions. For more information on the FORTUNE "100 Best Companies to Work For" list, visit www.fortune.com.