For sailer Evi Van Acker the day started very well as she was the first to finish in her first regatta in the very first day of the competition in the Laser Radial class. She rapidly came into the lead and held the other contenders far behind until the finish. In the second race she wasn't a true contender for victory. Good news for the Belgian sailer, she ends the first day with a number three spot in the tournament.

However the fight isn't yet over while there's still 7 regattas to come. There's a total of nine races on the program. Van Acker believes in herself and knows she stands a chance on Olympic metal stays cool about it all. She takes it one day at a time.

नम है नफ़स-नफ़स मेरे सीने में
क्यों खर्च नहीं होती साँस जीने में

मेरी बाक़ी ज़िन्दगी का तुम ही सहारा
मुझे आज भी है इन्तिज़ार तुम्हारा

नामे-इश्क़ जायेगा मेरा सब-कुछ
क़िस्मत क्यों नहीं कहती आज कुछ

नाख़ुदा कश्ती को कब मिलेगा सहारा
मुझे आज भी है इन्तिज़ार तुम्हारा

'नज़र' को नयी ज़ीस्त दी तुमने शीना
जीने का तुमने सिखाया मुझको क़रीना

तेरे ही साथ मैंने हर लम्हा गुज़ारा
मुझे आज भी है इन्तिज़ार तुम्हारा

वज़नी: heavy; नफ़स: breath; नाख़ुदा: boater, sailer;
ज़ीस्त: life; शीना: shine; क़रीना: style

First, more than anybody else in recent politics, Obama has internalized the rule in all the self-help books on how to win arguments: Restate your opponent's argument respectfully to show you understand it. Since most people assume their rival disagrees with them only because he is too stupid to understand their reasons, this instantly disarms much opposition. Indeed, Obama's intelligence and verbal skills allow him often to summarize his opponents' ideas better than they could themselves.

What his opponents don't realize is that, although Obama is more than smart enough to grasp their logic, he just doesn't care about what they care about.

Obama reminds me of a famous incident in Charles De Gaulle's career. When in 1958 he journeyed to war-torn French Algeria, where the French Army's mutiny had propelled him back into power, he stared out for a long moment at a waiting throng of European residents, then pronounced four words: "Je vous ai compris—I have understood you."

The mob went wild with joy. "De Gaulle understands us! He will make everything right."

Nonetheless, much to the surprise of the pied noir Europeans who cheered De Gaulle that day, the French president then proceeded to give Algeria to the rebels, dooming Algeria's one million Europeans to exile for life and their Arab allies to death.

Meer over de Rimor Sailer 645 TC...