The Impudent Observer - Global Liberal Issues Analyzes issues of liberal concern and gives readers a digest of what is reported in over forty newspapers throughout the world to engage them in critical thinking issues. Statistics Unique Visitors: Total Unique Visitors: Outgoing: Total Outgoing: 0 0 0 8518

Articles from The Impudent Observer - Global Liberal Issues

Gorbachev Urges Patience With New Russian Democracy 2007-12-11 19:07:30 Mikhail Gorbachev, former leader of the Soviet Union, urged a meeting of the World Political Forum, to have greater patience with Russia’s march toward democracy. In referring to recent tensions brought on by American insistence on missile bases in the Czech Republic and Poland, he said: “If you crucify us, we will be unable to cooperate with you. Russia is only halfway through to democratization progress now, but I expect the difference between Russis’s and the EU’s understanding of democracy and civil rights remain in the long run too.” Gorbachev urged Europeans to have more patience and to make greater efforts to understand the forces at play in Russia. His feelings were echoed by Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany of Hungary who noted, “The European Union has to build up a mutual conversation with Russia, instead of continuously judging its actions without an intention to understand them.” Mikhail Gorbachev is a voice of reason, but even he ...

Zimbabwe Goes On Attack, Attacking Chancellor Merkel 2007-12-11 16:37:39 The old adage of the best defense is an offense rang true with attacks by Zimbabwe officials on Chancellor Merkel of Germany who had the audacity to make nasty remarks about the thugs who now govern the nation of Zimbabwe. Zimbabwe Minister of Information, Sikhanyiso Nidovu, ripped into Chancellor Merketl who had term Presdent Mugabe an embarrassment to the people of Africa because of destructive policies which have wrecked his nation’s economy and created an 80% unemployment figure as well as an 8000% inflation rate. The Zimbabwean government termed Merkel a “racist’ and a “Nazi remnant” for standing up and defending the oppressed people of Zimbabwe. Chancellor Merkel made her remarks at the recent summit meeting of European Union and African leaders because none of the so-called “leaders” of Africa had the courage to defend the oppressed people of Zimbabwe. One of the tragedies of African nationalism in the post WWII era is failure on the par ...

Terrorist Attacks In Algeria And Morocco 2007-12-11 14:40:26 The Maghreb region was shaken by terrorist attacks in Algeria and in Morocco. Two suicide car bombers blasted targets in Algeria resulting in the death of probably 12 Un workers together with about 15 other people. The Interior Minister of Algeria, Noureddine Yazid Zerhouni blames the attacks on the Salafist Group For Preaching and Combat(GSPC) but other sources believe they were the result of actions by al-Qaeda. Three extremists blew themselves up in Casablanca as they were being chased by police. Morocco authorities expected further attacks in the coming days and the capital was placed on alert. Many Muslims are visibly upset at the prospect of having Algeria and Morocco becoming the center of extremist attacks. There are already fears that Europe will use such violence as justification for cracking down on Muslims within the EU. A European police(EUROPOL) report released yesterday revealed that 498 terrorist attacks were registered in the European Union last year. Out of them, on ...

Ahmadinejad Relaxes On Rhetoric, Sees Hope In Future 2007-12-11 14:16:54 President Ahmadinejad told reporters he regards the US intelligence report, which decries complaints that Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapon program, as a positive step” and expressed hope that Washington would take “more steps like this.” He believes the ceasing of American tirades against alleged Iranian atomic bomb programs will lead to change and pave the way “for resolving he regions’ major problems.” When asked exactly what the United States might do to improve relations, he urged the Bush administration to “respect the rights of countries in the region(Middle East). Ahmadinejad also wants an end to sanctions against his nation since it now has evidence that nuclear development has been for peaceful ends, not military. He also promised to continue talks on nuclear issues. “We believe that nuclear energy does not mean an atomic bomb.” Reporters asked Ahmadinejad about his attitude toward Israel and the president responded that ...

John Kerry Says US Must Lead In Climate Change Efforts 2007-12-11 13:50:33 Senator John Kerry told delegates at the Bali conference on climate change that he wants America to do much more toward having the world gain control of deadly carbon emissions. “The United States,” he said, “is going to be at the table, the United States is going to lead, and the United States is going to embrace significant change in order to lead with climate change.” Kerry, who c0-chairs a U>S. Senate committee on climate change argues the United States must seek a goal of at least 60%-70% reduction in carbon emissions by 2050. The Bali conference is seeking much swifter implementation of climate change by insisting that developed nations must reduce carbon emissions by 30% within the coming fifteen years. Ralph Nader insisted in the elections of 2000 and 2004 there was no real difference between Republicans and Democrats. Senator Kerry’s commitment to climate change is obviously vastly different from the Bush position. President Bush, like so many co ...

Hamas May Return Gaza To Abbas Control 2007-12-11 09:05:28 There are unconfirmed reports that Hamas leaders are prepared to return control of the Gaza Strip to President Abbas and the Palestinian Authority. A senior Hamas leader, Hussein Abu-Qawik, told a London newspaper that Khalad Mashaal, head of the Hamas political bureau has agreed it is necessary at this point in time for Hamas to surrender control of Gaza to the Palestinian Authority. President Abbas expressed outrage over the weekend when he learned that Saudi Arabia had given the red carpet treatment to Mashaal during his recent visit to their nation. Mashaal met with key Saudi Arabian leaders in a blatant disregard by Saudi Arabia to the Abbas government. The Saudis and Egyptians claim they are merely trying to keep connections open to both sides in the conflict in order to arrange a compromise which would result in a unified Palestinian government engaging in discussions with Israel. If the Saudi and Egyptian decision to enter into discussions with Hamas is meant to lead toward rec ...

Australia Changes Refugee Policy Horror 2007-12-11 08:39:00 The new government of Kevin Rudd announced a dramatic change in Australia’s policy of handling refugees. Under the John Howard administration, asylum-seekers were sent to remote Pacific islands where they spent years behind razor wire before being declared for the most part genuine refugees. The new Labor government granted asylum to seven Burmese men held on the island of Nauru for over a year. Under Howard, the Australian government made financial arrangements with the government of Nauru to handle refugees, a “Pacific Solution” which invariably resulted in miserable living conditions for those who had escaped problems in their native land. A few months before the recent election, Howard would not allow 438 Afghan refugees to land on Christmas Island even though their boat had sunk. Most of the ship’s passengers were sent to Nauru island. Yesterday, Chris Evans, the Immigration Minister said the Burmese Muslim refugees “should have been processed some t ...

Is Medvedev His Own Man Or Putin’s Obedient Son? 2007-12-11 08:19:11 The intense speculation continues regarding President Vladmir Putin’s anointment of Dimitry Medvedev as his successor in the presidency. the 42 year-old lawyer has a strong academic background and is known for his work in the fields of education, housing and agriculture. He represents a sharp break from the old Soviet military-police background of Putin and the hundreds of former KGB agents who were appointed to key positions in the Putin regime. Does Medvedev represent Putin turning the torch of leadership over to the next generation of Russians or is Medvedev a Trojan Horse who will simply do the bidding of the man who gave him power? Some Russian critics term him as virtually the unofficial son of Putin. However, most foreign observers regard Medvedev as more liberal than Putin and less inclined to adopt hawkish antagonist stances against Western ideas. Life can play tricks on even the best laid plans we seek to implement. Undoubtedly, Putin expects Medvedev to accept his adv ...

Great Britain Expands Offshore Wind Power 2007-12-11 01:08:22 Great Britain’s business secretary announced that his nation is poised to make a major investment in offshore wind farms. Hundreds of new turbines would generate over 30 megawatts of clean electricity annually— enough to light every home in Britain. John Hutton expressed the vision of a new approach to global warming by stating that given the decline in oil production from North Sea rigs, ‘it’s time we sourced more energy from our other abundant natural resources — sea and wind.” his nation has given a commitment to the European Union that by 2020, at least 20% of energy would come from renewable sources. At present these sources only account for about 2% of Britain’s energy so moving to 20% will require enormous expenditures on the part of the government. Hutton gave his talk in Germany, a nation whose Chancellor, Angela Merkel, announced a plan to spend $4.9 billion in an effort to move her nation from having 14% of energy come from renewa ...

Canada Blasted At UN Climate Meeting In Bali 2007-12-11 01:05:48 Canada was severely criticized by many nations for its refusal to take immediate action regarding global warming. They attacked the refusal of the Canadian government to reject any future climate treaty unless it sets emission targets for all major polluters. The Canadian position is that any successor treaty to the Kyoto Protocol must set binding conditions on countries like the United States, China, and India, nations which rank among the world’s most dangerous polluters. Yvo de Boer, the UN climate chief, wondered how a rich nation like Canada could abandon its own targets under Kyoto, then demand that developing countries like China and India should adopt binding obligations. To make matters worse for the Canadian delegation, Quebec’s Line Beauchamp and Ontario’s John Gerretsen made it clear the Ottawa government does not speak for their provinces. As Gerretsen, noted, “If the U.S. is not willing to sign on, does that mean nobody should sign on?” Canad ...

Torture On Rise In Egypt, Claims Nadime Center Report 2007-12-11 01:05:39 El Nadime Center for the Management and Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence issued a report on torture in Egypt which documented state organized torture of opponents of the regime of President Mubarak. Included in the report is testimony from victims of the 2004 security raids conducted in Al-Arish following the Taba bombings. At that time, 3,000 people were detained, including women and children who were arrested to force their male relatives to come forward. The report also documents the experiences of farmers in the village of Sarando who were subjected to a two-week police campaign to evict them from their own land. The end of the report includes a table with the names of 272 policemen accused of torture by their victims. It details where and when the torture occurred, the victim’s identity and which organization documented the incident. Lawyer, Ahmed Seif El Islam of the Hisham Mubarak Law Center which handles torture cases, told the press “we will distribute this li ...

UK Resident Tortured By CIA! 2007-12-10 14:48:55 Lawyers for a British resident who is being held by the United States government at Guantanamo Bay have identified the existence of photographs taken by CIA agents that supposedly show how their client was tortured. Clive Stafford-Smith, legal director of Reprieve, who is representing Binyan Mohammed, claims to know the identify of the CIA agents who were present when his client was allegedly beaten and tortured. In a letter for Foreign Minister David Miliband, Mr. Smith wrote: “Given the opportunity, we can prove that the evidence(obtained from Mr. Mohammed) was the fruit of torture. Indeed, we can prove that a photographic record was made of this by the CIA. through diligent investigation we know when the CIA took pictures of Mr. Mohammed’s brutalized genitalia, we know the identity of the CIA agents who were present including the person who took the pictures(we know both their false identities and their true names), and we know what those pictures show…I have see ...

Prime Minister Olmert Pledges To Work For Peace 2007-12-10 12:30:07 Israel Prime Minister Ehud Olmert promised to use talks with Palestinians that begin on Wednesday as an opportunity to achieve a lasting peace. “This is an opportunity,” he said, “that entails many uncertainties, many risks, many dangers. We cannot ignore them. But, we absolutely must not allow uncertainty and risks to prevail because an opportunity also exists. I intend to take advantage of this opportunity to wage serious, ongoing and uninterrupted negotiations in order to forge an historic path toward a new diplomatic reality.” the prime minister’s words hopefully can become translated from verbal utterances to written documents that achieve his goals of a secure Israel that can live in peace with Palestinians. However, even as he spoke, President Abbas indicated he could not attend the scheduled Wednesday meeting unless Israel ceases further construction of housing on the West Bank or in East Jerusalem. Prime Minister Olmert is obviously taking a gambl ...

Giuliani Ain’t No Fiorello LaGuardia! 2007-12-10 11:43:29 Rudy Giuliani doggedly insisted on Tim Russert’s program that he did nothing wrong in having police guard his mistress, Judith Nathan, while they were having an affair. He claimed assigning a chauffeur to drive her around was based upon “threat assessments made by the New York Police Department.” Unfortunately, this explanation does not square with a New York Daily News story on Friday, that was based on information from multiple witnesses, and a law enforcement source, that she was being protected months before the affair had ever been reported anywhere by the media. Giuliani admitted he did a poor job of knowing about Bernard Kerik’s background before recommending him for the position of Director of Homeland Affairs. Bernard Kerik was a policeman who was assigned to be a chauffeur for Giuliani. Based on that experience he was given the job of Director of Corrections and then appointed Police Commissioner of New York City. The Republican candidate compared hi ...

An Incident In Iraq Impacting Brave American Soldiers 2007-12-10 09:18:13 The military newspaper, Stars & Stripes, has been running a series of stories on the daily life of soldiers who are fighting in Iraq. Today’s story tells about an incident that happened and was not revealed to the American press. Men of Charlie Company has been engaged in continuous fighting in Adhamiya province which led to the deaths of many of their comrades. One day, First Sgt. McKinney, who was on a patrol to deal with road mines, halted, sat down, and said: “I can’t take it anymore.” He placed his M4 under his chin and fired a shot. His grief stricken driver called company headquarters saying in a voice shook by fear and anguish, “This is Apache seven delta. Apache seven just shot himself. He just shot himself.” A few days later, Charlie Company’s 2nd Platoon was ordered to clear a road of IEDs. For some reason, at the last moment, the task was given to Alpha Company. As soldiers proceeded along the highway, a Bradley hit a large m ...