Couldn’t help but see this as an exhibit on display. The tree stump is a work of art and the creator’s name is painted on the grill. (Click on image to see it in a larger size)

This tree was one of the hundreds that was cut on a road in Bangalore to make way for the Metro. The place looks barren now, with a lot of construction dust all around. A war-zone like feeling, with all the victims being mute enough to not bother us.

The New Yorker carries this slideshow on the war in Iraq and Afghanistan:

This summer, the photographer Platon took pictures of hundreds of men and women who volunteered to serve in the military and were sent to Iraq or Afghanistan. He followed them on their journey through training and deployment, after demobilization and in hospitals, to compile a portrait of the dedication of the armed services today. Sergeant Tim Johannsen, who lost both legs when he drove over an I.E.D. on his second tour of duty in Iraq, made a point of buying an Army T-shirt to wear in his photograph. Of his sacrifice, he said, “It’s just part of the job. You know what you signed up for.”

Click here to view the pictures

World Press Photo: Winners of 2007

I found many hard-hitting photographs in that list of winners. My personal favourites are:

General News Stories 2nd Prize – Peter van Agtmael, USA, Polaris Images – Night raids, Iraq, January-March

People in the News 3rd Prize Singles – Stephanie Sinclair, USA, NPR – Family flee Israeli bombings, Lebanon, 27 July

General News Singles 3rd Prize – Daniel Aguilar, Mexico, Reuters – Accused burglar, Oaxaca, Mexico, 18 October

People in the News 1st Prize Singles – Oded Balilty, Israel, The Associated Press – Settler woman struggles with Israeli security officer, Amona outpost, West Bank,1 February

Most of these photographs bring out one thing – the harsh and extremely uncertain lives that most fellow humans are enduring in this world of ours.

Some pictures scream out at you. Some stay silent to let you scream.