When leaders and people discuss national security, war, strategy, and such - I think it is wise to keep it real with a photo of someone whose life may hang in the balance.
As the author indicates, when you have lots of “show,” there is often very little “go.” Take away all the glitter and false starts and Darfur is still one of the leading killing grounds in the world. Is Sudan’s oil worth that much? Diversionary tactics on Darfur |
September 20, 2009 — Diversionary tactics seem to be the order of the day where Darfur is concerned. The real tragedy of Darfur – the suffering of its people – has been forgotten under a sea of pointless initiatives, all of which seem to have only one goal in mind: to create enough confusion and chaos that the status quo will prevail. On the ground - and contrary to prevailing diplomatic speak - people continue to be killed and targeted in the Jebel Marra area by government forces that now have carte blanche to do what they like. Meanwhile, day after day we are treated to a circus-like environment in which more and more competing initiatives are announced. Of course none of them have a hope of working, but that isn’t the point. For most of those involved, self-interest and geo-political gamesmanship have been put before human suffering – a point that is not lost on those living through this nightmare every day on the ground. Read more at www.sudantribune.com |
Do we need more troops in Afghanistan to capture Osama bin Ladin or to not allow him to re-establish a base in Afghanistan? I don’t think so. Would it be nice to leave there with a democratic regime in place and economic development going forward? Sure but that’s not reason enough for sendingin more troops or planning now on when the last US troops leave for home. No more troops to Afghanistan |
With General Stanley A. McChrystal’s report calling for additional troops now public, President Obama will soon have his King Henry moment; whether or not to send more troops into the ever-worsening war in Afghanistan. Much depends on his definition of the mission. Is it to defeat the Taliban in battle as Henry defeated the flower of French chivalry? There will be no famous victories in the irregular warfare that has so marked Afghanistan over the centuries. Read more at www.boston.com |
What prevents women from being safe, asserting human rights in Afghanistan? It’s the really obvious dead elephant in the room that everyone is trying to pretend does not smell up the whole place - it is the US and NATO war against who/what? Tribalism, war lords, terrorists, Taliban? The Biggest Danger to Women’s Rights in Afghanistan |
Ultimately, though, Afghan women’s prospects for transforming their society are undermined by the US-led war. In fact, many Afghan women activists identify the war as the biggest danger to women’s rights in Afghanistan Read more at www.madre.org |
This article tells more perhaps than the speaker wanted it too. If, as other experts claim, Predator drones are a nice, clean way to kill the enemy, how is it that he says bin Ladin’s son was in the “wrong place at the wrong time.” His supposed killing (85% sure?-what’s that mean?) sounds like an accident. He just happened to be where the rockets hit? So could have a few dozen innocent citizens - right?
If this was supposed to raise American support for rocket guided assassination - which is still a violation of Presidential Executive Orders that our President has not withdrawn or complied with - then it missed its mark with me. ‘US killed bin Laden’s son in Pakistan’ |
Sa’ad bin Laden, the son of arch-terrorist Osama bin Laden, has been killed by a US drone attack in Pakistan, US officials told the National Public Radio station (NPR) in a report aired on Wednesday.
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The report quoted a senior US counterterrorism official, who said that while Sa’ad bin Laden was active in al-Qaida, he was not a major figure in the terror organization, and was not important enough to target personally. It was therefore assumed that he was simply “in the wrong place at the wrong time,” the official said.
Read more at www.jpost.com |
Kittay House Senior Citizens Make Long Trek for Peace with Monday Protests |
THE BRONX, NY - A cacophony of honking livery car horns, shrill ambulance sirens, the “whup whup” of an unmarked police car, a blaring blast from a bus and a short loud salute from a fire truck at W. Kingsbridge Road and Webb Ave. hurt the ears last Monday morning, but leave you smiling. |
They are holding signs reading “Seniors for Peace,” “Senior Patriots Against the War,” “More Funding for the Wounded” and the message that has caused the at-times deafening eruption - “HONK FOR PEACE.” |
But the low, raspy voice of 97-year-old Martin Harth, barely audible through the din, utters the ultimate proclamation. |
“War is a terrible thing,” he says, shaking his head. “A terrible thing.” |
He wears a Jewish War Veterans hat and a natty blue blazer. He holds his sign, unmoving except for a wave at a vehicle once in a while. |
Some Afghans, understandibly, think leaving their home is only way forward for life. Similar fate for those in Northwest Pakistan. Are we helping, or making things worse? KABUL, Afghanistan
- Through two decades of war, Abdul Ahad never contemplated leaving
Afghanistan. But as his country started to deteriorate rapidly in 2007,
so did his life. He was laid off from his full-time driving job and
forced to take the only work he could find: a once-a-week driving gig
through Taliban territory. |
Weary of War, Young Afghans Pay for an Exit |
![[Abdul Ahad driving through Taliban territory with a bodyguard. Frustrated by his perilous job, he has begun scouting potential smugglers to take him to Europe. (Eros Hoagland for The New York Times)]](http://www.commondreams.org/files/article_images/05smuggle.span.600.jpg) Abdul Ahad driving through Taliban territory with a bodyguard. Frustrated by his perilous job, he has begun scouting potential smugglers to take him to Europe. (Eros Hoagland for The New York Times) |
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