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 0 110 8518

Articles from The Impudent Observer - Global Liberal Issues

Kenya Political Leader Urges UN Intervention 2008-02-05 01:18:29 Raila Odinga of the Orange Democratic Movement urged outside intervention in order to end the chaos created by the nation’s president who stole an election through means of vote fraud. Odinga claims both the army and the police are no longer able to serve as objective enforcers of law. “The Kenya Army personnel are not neutral. They serve Kibaki’s interests and are not fit to be used to restore peace.” Under UN provisions, troops can be deployed in cases of civil war or when local military forces are unable to ensure law and order. Odinga was particularly upset at police failures since he claims their minds are “poisoned” and they are unable to deal with the unrest that has resulted in over 300,000 people being left homeless. It is quite clear President Kibaki has lost the confidence of a significant portion of his own country, if not the world. The African Union apparently will not act in Kenya anymore than it made moves to assist the people of Zimb ...

Marine Corps Stretched To The Limit 2008-02-05 01:14:46 James Conway, Commandant of the Marine Corps, told reporters the Marines no longer can maintain the strain of fighting all over the world in a nonstop fashion. “We can’t have one foot in Afghanistan and one foot in Iraq. I believe that would be–an analogy would be having one foot in the canoe and one foot on the bank. You can’t be there long.” He is concerned how the wars impact training programs for the corps. “We are not doing that kind of multi-capable training that we historically do in order to be that swing force and arguably the first to fight.” The necessity of constantly being engaged in fighting has created a new generation of men and whome who do not have an understanding of the marine corps historic role to be a lightening fast force that deals with situations and then leaves them for the Army to handle. Conway realizes 3,000 Marines are headed for Aghanistan and “if there is a determination to send more Marines to Afghanista ...

Did British Muslim MP Get Bugged? 2008-02-05 01:05:31 British Justice Secretary Jack Straw will make a statement about claims that a senior Muslim MP was bugged by police while meeting with a constitutent in prison. Conservatives want to know what the Brown government knew about Scotland Yard’s anti-terrorism unit. The police allegedly listened into a private conversation between Sadiq Khan, a Labor whip, and Babar Ahmad, who is facing extrdition to the United States for trial over supposedly running a website to raise funds for Chechen separatists and Afghanistan’s Taliban. Ahmad is a childhood friend of the MP. The director of Liberty, a human rights group, said there could only be a case for bugging if the Labor MP was a suspect in a criminal case. Khan said: “I’m pleased Jack Straw, as soon as he heard about these allegations, has ordered an inquiry… the implications are quite serious.” This is merely another example of how fear of “terrorists” has clouded our basic rights for free spee ...

Turkish Women Demonstrate Against Headscarf 2008-02-05 01:04:41 More then 100,000 demonstrators flocked to Anitkabir to express their opposition to the government’s headscarf proposal which is tearing apart the Turkish nation. The meeting was led by several women’s organizations which intend to fight new efforts by the Justice and Development Party and the Nationalist Movement Party which have agreed on new wording to the constitution which allows women to wear a headscarf while attending university classes. The demonstration came a few days after a large number of academic and university leaders claimed the change would result in extreme conflict and disorder in universities. The Republic Women’s assocation and the Association in Support of Contemporary Life flocked to the mausoleum of the Republic’s founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in a symbolic demonstration that drew upon the Ataturk policy of secularism. There were demonstrations against the headscarf in many areas of Turkey where speakers argued the Erdogan government i ...

Has Hugo Chavez Become Drug Lords’ Friend? 2008-02-04 10:20:58 John Carlin, writing in the Manchester Guardian, offers an insightful analysis of how the Venezuelan government of Hugo Chavez is aiding the efforts of so-called revolutionary forces in Colombia to pursue their drug trafficking efforts. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia(Farc) which began years ago as a socialist left-wing effort to fight for the rights of poor people has become transformed into another drug lord operation with the active cooperation of their Venezuelan allies. Carlin notes that about 2,400 Farc guerrillas have deserted this year due to disgust with the organization and many have sought to cooperate with Colombian authorities. Carlin spoke with one such deserter who claimed there is a “non-aggession pact with the Venezuelan military” under which Farc can operate without any fear of being attacked by Chavez loyalists. John Carlin interviewed a host of diplomats and analysts and “all agreed that powerful elements within the Venezuelan state app ...

British Secret Negotiations With Taliban! 2008-02-04 06:34:38 Afghanistan’s President Karzai is infuriated over secret British negotiations with the Taliban which were designed to win over thousands in an effort to break the back of the militant opposition. The British had developed a plan entitled, “European Union Peace Building Programme” which involved building a camp for thousands of Taliban fighters and developing economic reconstruction projects to help develop the area around Helmand where the British have been fighting. The British claim President Karzai was kept informed of their discussions but he insists it was done behind his back. A few weeks ago, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said, “we will not enter into any negotiatin with these people.” Finally, a bit of creative thinking on the part of the British, and President Karzai apparently is upset. He, along with the Bush adminstration, believes the way to handle militants is bombing and fighting rather than provide economic inducements to get them back into t ...

Immigrants Protest Death Of Moroccan In Cologne 2008-02-04 04:05:59 Following the violent death of a Moroccan teenager in Cologne, hundreds of immigrants have taken to the streets in nightly demonstratins to protest what they regard as continued evidence to be a Muslim in Germany is to be classified as a second-clas citizen. Muslim protestors interpret the death of Salih as a German attack on a Muslim, the police version fundamentally differs since in their view Salih was attempting to mug a 20 year old German man who responded with use of a knife to the heart of the Moroccan teen-ager. The police claim it is a case of self defense and they have witnesses to support that version of the incident. The case really is not about which is the correct version, the issue stems from powerful feelings among Muslims in Germany that society treats them as second class citizens. They feel disenfranchised, they lack education opportunities, and continually are assaulted by insults from German politicians like Roland Koch. Each night, crowds come out shouting their a ...

An Apology Is Owed-Quit Dodging Australia 2008-02-04 01:19:30 Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is pushing hard for an offiical apology by parliament regarding policies that lasted for generations in which Aboriginal children were forcibly removed from their parents and given to others. Some members of the opposition are quibbling over wording, and Rudd told them, “you either support an apology or you don’t, and the language of it and how we approach it in overall terms should be clear as the week progresses. Members of the opposition party are divided and their indigenous affairs spokesperson, Tony Abbot, said there would be support if the wording “is reasonable” and wanted a balanced perspective to be presented. Abbot did not believe wording should ‘defame previous generations” or pretend nothing but “ill had come from policies of the past.” The Abbot argument is akin to Nazi German supporters wanting the world to know Hitler constructed good roads and that should be cited in any evaluation of ...

Did Gaza Breach Create New Missile Problem? 2008-02-04 01:11:40 The Hamas breach of the security barriers around Gaza may have resulted in large scale influx of more advanced weaponry into the area. israel’s Shin Beit’s head, Yuval Diskin, told a briefing the breach allowed dozens of operatives from all of the different terrorist organizations in Syria, Iran and Egypt to infiltrate Gaza. He also believes it led to the movement of long-range rockets, anti-tank missiles and anti-aircraft missiles into Gaza which could be used against Israel forces. Diskin was also concerned about the drop in popularity of Fatah and the slow but steady rise in Hamas popular standing among Palestinians. Hamas apparently is willing to assume some responsibility for border control and would allow back EU monitors, provided they did not live in Israel. On another matter, Diskin was furious at the Palestinian Authority handling of murders of Israeli citizens by Palestinians. The murderers initially were given 15 year sentences, but, after pressure their priso ...

Rambo Stallone Takes On Burma Junta 2008-02-04 01:10:47 Burmese officials are not only concerned about human rights activists and monks marching through the streets of major cities, but they are now ready to confront the greatest challenge to their power–Sylvester Stallone and his rendition of Rambo! They have banned all copies of his latest Rambo film, even the pirated ones, in an effort to avoid regime change. Stallone has told the media he is ready and willing to go to Rangoon and personally confront those in charge of the military junta run nation. Thanks to him, “these incredibly brave people have found a kind of a voice, in a very odd way, in American cinema… They’ve actually used some of the film’s quotes as rallying points,” he notes. Burmese people are secretly obtaining copies of the film and many are now quoting some of its lines such as: When you’re pushed, kiling’s as easy as breathing. Burma’s a warzone. Rambo: Are you bringing in any weapons? Aid Worker: Of course ...

Afghanistan Sale Of Children Continues 2008-02-04 01:10:15 Almost six years ago, American forces in conjunction with Afghan allies, swept into Afghanistan and removed the hated Taliban government. President Bush made many promises about what freedom would bring to the Taliban-free nation. After years of “freedfom,” Afghanistan is the fifth least developed nation in the world with over half its population living below the poverty level on less than $1 day. A recent story about the sale of three Afghan girls shocked may people in the world. Afghanistan’s Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC ) said the sale was merely a reflection of deep seated poverty and indicated a “serious warning about a possilble catatrophe which may affect poor Afghan children.” In January, parents sold one of their twin four month old girls for $40 and later in the month, parents of a nine-month old girl sold her for $240. News of the sales led to an outpouring of money so the children could be returned to their families. Publicity c ... Children

Turkish Diplomat Reveals Secret Iraq War Negotiations 2008-02-04 01:06:27 A veteran Turkish diplomat who led his nation’s delegation in discussing possible entry into the Iraq war on the side of the United States believes failure to do so prevented dealing with Kurdish rebels. Ambassador Deniz Boiukasi said Turkey’s parliament in March, 2003, narrowly rejected a government motion to militarily cooperate with the US invasion of Iraq. He points out in a new book that if Turkey had participated in the invasion, their troops would have occupied areas of Kurdistan now under the control of Kurdish rebels. According to Bouikbasi, for some reason the military remained silent during the debate, and, if they had spoken out, Turkey would have joined in the Iraq war and thus gained control over areas of Kurdistan in which Kurdish militants now use as bases of operation. The former diplomat raises some interesting, “what if” questions, but he does ignore how becoming part of the Iraq war would also have plunged his nation into a conflict that drag ...

Troops In Iraq In 2009—And Beyond? 2008-02-04 01:05:46 President Bush’s top diplomat in Iraq said the US plans on keeping troops there into 2009 and most probably beond that point. Ambassador Ryan Crocker believes the American presence is the center of gravity that holds together the effort to defeat militants in the war torn nation. He said both General Petraeus and hmself are “not the ones who make the policy decisions– not in this administration and not in the next one. If someone wants to reset the conditions, then obviously we’ll do the best we can within the context ut thos aren’s assumption that we start with.” Crocker said Iraqi chiefs are working off a blueprint that calls for “conditions-based withdrawal” that might result in some troops being withdrawn but “leave other forces in Iraq for long-haul missions such as training.” Part of the difficulty in discussing this topic stems from the lack of a blueprint that establishes firm goals for the Iraqi government to achieve. ...

British Politician Challenges Drug Law Changes 2008-02-04 01:04:10 Former Home Secretary David Blunkett has criticised a government plan to take a tougher line on cannais and claims the revrsal of his decision to downgrade the drug to a class C status would send mixed legal signals. “Rather than affecting practice on the ground, classifying cannabis back to class B would simply cause confusion.” Plunkett believes classifying cannabis as class C “is a much more honest approach, both politically and in terms of how the drug is policed” and to do so will only increase problems in controlling its use. The current Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith, is pushing for upgrading the drug to class B and, apparently taking a more aggressive policing stance on curbing its use. Ms. Smith admits having used cannabis in her youth but insists there is evidence of a connection between mental illness and cannabis. Apparently, using cannabis did not impact the mental health of the Home Secretary, but she believes it will hurt other users. The history ...

Mentally Ill Children Locked In With Adults! 2008-02-03 01:19:51 In the year 2008, mentally ill children are being systematically locked up with violent adults at several institutions in Sweden. Lena Nyberg, Children’s Ombundsman in Sweden, expressed her anger at these policies which directly violate the UN Convention on the Rights of Children. Article 37 of that document states, “every child deprived of liberty shall be separated from adults.” However, many closed psychiatric departments across Sweden do not follow regulations and at several institutions children are mixed with adults, both systematically and in the case of emergency. The most common complaint in such situations is that some children are too difficult to handle and thus cannot be placed with other children, but the newspaper, Svenska Dagbladtet, found cases in which mixing occurred due to lack of space or staff resources. Sofia Akerman was 16 years-old when her children’s ward was closed due to lack of resources. She was relocated to an adult ward where &ld ... Children