Month: July 2004

A Party of Cowards

It’s a shame, really, that John Kerry isn’t taking full advantage of the war issue to make his case for regime change in Washington. Opining that he would have gone to war in a different way, on a different timetable, just doesn’t cut it. Many of his most high-profile supporters are sorely disappointed, such as … Continue reading “A Party of Cowards”

Bush Resists Pressure to Meddle in Sudan – for Now

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Bush administration continues to refrain from calling a campaign of ethnic cleansing against black Africans in Sudan’s western Darfur province “genocide,” although both houses of the U.S. Congress approved non-binding resolutions last week that used the term to describe the situation. Such a determination would require signers of the Genocide Treaty, … Continue reading “Bush Resists Pressure to Meddle in Sudan – for Now”

Kidnapping: Insurgents’ New Weapon of Choice

Kidnapping has become a weapon that is bringing increasing pressure on countries supporting the U.S.-led occupation of Iraq. Any foreigner associated with the United States is a target. On Monday Mohamed Mamdouh Qutb, the third highest ranking Egyptian diplomat in Iraq who had been abducted outside a mosque last Friday was released “because of the … Continue reading “Kidnapping: Insurgents’ New Weapon of Choice”

Veterans Demand End to Occupation

BOSTON – As military veterans wrangle over whom to support for president, one veterans’ organization has fired a shot across the bow of whoever will occupy the White House next year. Over 400 Veterans for Peace (VFP) members gathered last weekend in Boston for the organization’s annual convention, hearing from Daniel Ellsberg, historian Howard Zinn, … Continue reading “Veterans Demand End to Occupation”

India-Pakistan Hope Gives Way to Uncertainty

NEW DELHI – The atmospherics still exude cordiality as India’s Foreign Minister Natwar Singh rounded off his numerous meetings in Islamabad with Pakistani policymakers with a one-on-one conversation with Pakistan President Gen. Pervez Musharraf. But the initial euphoria, optimism and effusiveness of last week are yielding to caution, worry, and fear that the two nations’ … Continue reading “India-Pakistan Hope Gives Way to Uncertainty”

What Price Unanimity?

The 567-page final report released Thursday by the 9/11 Commission provides a wealth of data – indeed, so much detail that it is easy to get lost in the trees and miss the forest. Comments by the ubiquitous commissioners over the weekend leave the impression either that they themselves have no window on the forest, … Continue reading “What Price Unanimity?”

Conflict Spreads Within Fatah

RAMALLAH – A bullet hole in the curtain of the television room at Palestinian opposition figure Nabil Amr’s luxurious villa still attests to the shooting last Wednesday in which he was heavily wounded. Amr survived and is in hospital in Jordan, but Palestinian politics may be in a terminal crisis. “They were shooting to kill, … Continue reading “Conflict Spreads Within Fatah”

Incompetent Imperialists

There is an American Empire, but we should dump it, because we Americans are woefully incompetent when it comes to maintaining empires. One mistake that seems to be a permanent feature of our foreign policy is mirror-imaging. So many American politicians, most of them poorly educated and ignorant of other people and their cultures, tend … Continue reading “Incompetent Imperialists”