Global
A couple of phrases give us useful pointers to the moral and
political intricacies of retribution. The Pentagon is talking about
establishing "killing boxes" around Kabul, where U.S. helicopter gunships
can fire at will. The Pentagon's assumption is that such "killing boxes"
contain only Taliban troops, fair game for everything the gunships can throw
at them.
Thus we see the return of an old friend from counterinsurgency in an earlier time, when "free-fire zones" meant that any Vietnamese peasant could be swiftly identified as Viet Cong, and thus a legitimate target.
Motorized transportation in Afghanistan mostly consists of old trucks. My brother Patrick, reporting from the Panjshir Valley for the London Independent, told me on his satellite phone Friday morning that he was being driven around in a truck with bullet holes in the windscreen that the Northern Alliance had captured not long before from the Taliban.
Thus we see the return of an old friend from counterinsurgency in an earlier time, when "free-fire zones" meant that any Vietnamese peasant could be swiftly identified as Viet Cong, and thus a legitimate target.
Motorized transportation in Afghanistan mostly consists of old trucks. My brother Patrick, reporting from the Panjshir Valley for the London Independent, told me on his satellite phone Friday morning that he was being driven around in a truck with bullet holes in the windscreen that the Northern Alliance had captured not long before from the Taliban.
On 28 June 1991, the Yugoslavian Federation fell off the wall. The
Humpty-Dumpty of nations shattered into pieces, and years of civil war and
domestic conflict blighted the now-independent countries of Slovenia,
Croatia and Bosnia. As the decade of the 1990?s waned, the Americans and
their NATO allies helped in the continued destruction of Yugoslavia by
assisting an ethnic Albanian minority to claim land and independence from
what remained of Tito?s Cold War creation.
The Gulf War was still being celebrated during the final days of June 1991. Few people, especially Americans, paid any attention to Yugoslavia. Your correspondent was among the ignorant, reporting on the events in the Middle East and ignoring the crisis brewing in the Balkans until a fateful train ride on 28 June 1991.
The International Train
The Gulf War was still being celebrated during the final days of June 1991. Few people, especially Americans, paid any attention to Yugoslavia. Your correspondent was among the ignorant, reporting on the events in the Middle East and ignoring the crisis brewing in the Balkans until a fateful train ride on 28 June 1991.
The International Train
Written by Stephen Zunes, Middle East EditorForeign Policy In Focus
Editors: Tom Barry (IRC) and Martha Honey (IPS)
Key Points The U.S. effectively coddled Husseins dictatorial regime during the 1980s with economic and military aid, likely emboldening the invasion of Kuwait. The 1991 Gulf War forced the withdrawal of Iraqi troops from Kuwait and led to an ongoing U.S. military presence in the region. Certain provisions of the cease-fire agreement, severe economic sanctions and ongoing military operations, have limited Iraqi sovereignty and have created a severe humanitarian crisis.
Key Points The U.S. effectively coddled Husseins dictatorial regime during the 1980s with economic and military aid, likely emboldening the invasion of Kuwait. The 1991 Gulf War forced the withdrawal of Iraqi troops from Kuwait and led to an ongoing U.S. military presence in the region. Certain provisions of the cease-fire agreement, severe economic sanctions and ongoing military operations, have limited Iraqi sovereignty and have created a severe humanitarian crisis.
There is an incredibly biologically special place, right here in Ohio. It's
called the Highlands Nature Sanctuary. It had been known by its current name
for 5-6 years. It's located in south central Ohio, in which (at least) three
major bio-regions
exist. It includes land where the glaciers came through, and stopped,
(depositing seeds of plant species usually found further north), the
western front of the Appalachian foothills, limestone bedrock of the west,
and sandstone and shale of the east. All of these "edge" effects increase
biodiversity exponentially-gifting the area with an extraordinarily high
number of rare wildflowers, trees, and ferns. It is one of the most
biologically diverse areas in the state, possibly in the country (ok,
excluding the Everglades).
MEDICAL MARIJUANA RESEARCH FINALLY APPROVED
Source: Marijuana Policy Project http://www.mpp.org/, Marijuana Policy Report Vol. 7, No. 2 ? Spring 2001
(California) On June 13, a federal shipment of marijuana arrived at the San Mateo County Health Center for a medical marijuana study involving people with AIDS. The county will test the feasibility of allowing patients to take marijuana out of a hospital setting to smoke it for medical research. Assuming that there are no diversion problems or other drawbacks, the study? s subsequent phases may generate the clinical data needed to meet FDA?s requirements for the approval of marijuana as a prescription medicine. This study is unique in that it is being funded entirely by the county. (And it is the only study underway in the country.)
Source: Marijuana Policy Project http://www.mpp.org/, Marijuana Policy Report Vol. 7, No. 2 ? Spring 2001
(California) On June 13, a federal shipment of marijuana arrived at the San Mateo County Health Center for a medical marijuana study involving people with AIDS. The county will test the feasibility of allowing patients to take marijuana out of a hospital setting to smoke it for medical research. Assuming that there are no diversion problems or other drawbacks, the study? s subsequent phases may generate the clinical data needed to meet FDA?s requirements for the approval of marijuana as a prescription medicine. This study is unique in that it is being funded entirely by the county. (And it is the only study underway in the country.)
Editors: Tom Barry (IRC) and Martha Honey (IPS)
Key Points The U.S. effectively coddled Husseins dictatorial regime during the 1980s with economic and military aid, likely emboldening the invasion of Kuwait. The 1991 Gulf War forced the withdrawal of Iraqi troops from Kuwait and led to an ongoing U.S. military presence in the region. Certain provisions of the cease-fire agreement, severe economic sanctions and ongoing military operations, have limited Iraqi sovereignty and have created a severe humanitarian crisis.
Key Points The U.S. effectively coddled Husseins dictatorial regime during the 1980s with economic and military aid, likely emboldening the invasion of Kuwait. The 1991 Gulf War forced the withdrawal of Iraqi troops from Kuwait and led to an ongoing U.S. military presence in the region. Certain provisions of the cease-fire agreement, severe economic sanctions and ongoing military operations, have limited Iraqi sovereignty and have created a severe humanitarian crisis.
AUSTIN -- On war, and rumors of war. In 1950, the United States
got involved in a war and called it a police action. We are now involved a
police action we're calling a war. The semantic confusion is having
unfortunate effects on everyone.
As we bomb Afghanistan, Secretary of State Colin Powell is waging a diplomatic offensive in the region, including plans for a broad-based future government to include "moderate elements of the Taliban" -- an arresting concept. This must be as confusing to the Afghans as it is to us. However, it makes perfect sense in the context of a police action with limited aims and a substantial humanitarian commitment.
As we bomb Afghanistan, Secretary of State Colin Powell is waging a diplomatic offensive in the region, including plans for a broad-based future government to include "moderate elements of the Taliban" -- an arresting concept. This must be as confusing to the Afghans as it is to us. However, it makes perfect sense in the context of a police action with limited aims and a substantial humanitarian commitment.
President Bush's upward spike of popularity owes a lot to his presence on television -- a medium that has not always been so kind. At times, under pressure, he has earned many comparisons to a deer in headlights. But after a wobbly performance on Sept. 11, Bush got into a groove of seizing the TV opportunity and making the most of it.
Today's television environment is, more than ever, warmly hospitable to simple -- and simplistic -- declarative statements. That's just as well for Bush, who has shown a distinct tendency to get entangled in a morass of fragmentary linguistic riffs. Last year, on many occasions, he seemed painfully anxious to make his way to the end of sentences without further embarrassment. But now, for the most part, it's a very different story.
Today's television environment is, more than ever, warmly hospitable to simple -- and simplistic -- declarative statements. That's just as well for Bush, who has shown a distinct tendency to get entangled in a morass of fragmentary linguistic riffs. Last year, on many occasions, he seemed painfully anxious to make his way to the end of sentences without further embarrassment. But now, for the most part, it's a very different story.
AUSTIN --- Afghanistan is to nation-building what Afghanistan is
to war -- pretty much the last place on earth you'd choose, if you had any
choice at all. I point this out not to oppose the idea, about which I think
we have no choice, but to underline that the task is hard, long and
incredibly complicated. President Bush has said that from the beginning, but
it cannot be said too often.
The Pentagon's air drops of food parcels and President Bush's plea
for American children to aid Afghan kids with dollar bills will go down in
history as two of the most cynical maneuvers of media manipulation in the
early 21st century.
Many U.S. news outlets have been eager to play along. A New York Times editorial proclaimed that "Mr. Bush has wisely made providing humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people an integral part of American strategy." Four days later, on Oct. 12, the same newspaper still had nothing but praise for the U.S. government's food aid charades: "His reaffirmation of the need for humanitarian aid to the people of Afghanistan -- including donations from American children -- seemed heartfelt."
While thousands of kids across the United States stuff dollar bills into envelopes and mail them to the White House, the U.S. government continues a bombing campaign that is accelerating the momentum of mass starvation in Afghanistan.
Many U.S. news outlets have been eager to play along. A New York Times editorial proclaimed that "Mr. Bush has wisely made providing humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people an integral part of American strategy." Four days later, on Oct. 12, the same newspaper still had nothing but praise for the U.S. government's food aid charades: "His reaffirmation of the need for humanitarian aid to the people of Afghanistan -- including donations from American children -- seemed heartfelt."
While thousands of kids across the United States stuff dollar bills into envelopes and mail them to the White House, the U.S. government continues a bombing campaign that is accelerating the momentum of mass starvation in Afghanistan.