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

Legislation For Wounded Soldiers Pushed In Congress 2007-10-17 08:26:45 President Bush urged Congress to modernize the government’s inefficient system that cares for the wounded. Several months ago, Bush appointed a bipartisan commission to examine issues related to dealing with wounded soldiers and veterans. Republican Bob Dole and Democrat Donna Shalala headed a commission which made recommendations, but both stated in an op-ed piece appearing in the Washington Post they feared their proposals would be lost in the bureaucracy and urged a complete reform program. “It’s time,” said their article, “to decide –do we reform the current military and veterans’ disability evaluation and compensation systems or limp along, placing Band-Aids over existing flaws?” Bush informed Congress the “outdated system needs to be changed.” George Bush is master of creating problems and then blaming others for the problems he created. He appointed political hacks to run the Veterans Administration resulting in veteran ...

No Dalai Lama, China Warns Bush 2007-10-17 08:12:36 China’s Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi strongly denounced the Bush meeting with exiled Tibetan leader, the Dalai Lama. He claimed the meeting will be a gross violation of the norms of international relations and could have “an extremely serious impact on relations.” A White House spokesperson, Dana Perino rsponded: “We in no way want to stir the pot and make China feel that we are poking a stick in their eye. We understand the Chinese have strong feelings about this.” Bush and Congress will award the Dalai Lama the Congressional Medal of Honor for his gallant fight for peace and the rights of Tibet. The Chinese government describes the Dalai Lama as a “separatist” because he wants an independent Tibet while China claims that area is part of the Chinese nation. First, Turkey tells the American government which resolutions it can pass, and now China is telling our government who is allowed to visit the White House. I doubt very much if Turkey woul ...

A Common Sense Turkish View Of The Congressional Resolution 2007-10-16 20:49:43 Mehmet Ali Birand, writing in the Turkish Daily News offered a common sense approach for the Turkish people in handling resolutions about Armenia. “We are stuck with the Armenian genocide allegations now. The Armenians worked hard at it, while we remained indifferent. In the end, we were branded by international public opinion. Since we can’t be at odds with everyone, we must make a new beginning.” “We must bring out the truth about what really happened and refrain from hiding anything. A second important step will be to replace the term ‘genocide’ with a new word or a sentence that really qualifies the events and insist on using it. We must organize conferences and seminars directed at western universities. In internal politics, the change must b by the creation of a millieu where we can discuss the events of 1915 without complexes. Turkish society must get rid of article 301(this law makes illegal insulting the Turkish nation and mentioning the gen ...

Czech Republic Proposes Banning Communist Party 2007-10-16 16:36:18 A proposed bill that would outlaw the Czech communist party as well as Nazi organizations passed the first reading in the Senate. The law is backed by former dissidents and members of the academic community who believe it necessary to prohibit extreme political parties. Senator Jaromir Stetina said the law indicates “that Czech society has finally resolved to cope with its totalitarian past.” Communists argue that citing the words of Karl Marx to justify concluding contemporary communists seek violence violates the very concept of democracy. This proposed law which revokes the right of people to vote communist because it is feared they might vote incorrectly somehow smacks of totalitarianism. Democracy is predicated on the belief ideas have to circulate freely because one is convinced a majority seek to live in a democratic society. Using undemocratic means to achieve democratic ends only serves to erode democratic rights. I find it unwise to cite the words of a 19th centu ...

An Indonesian Analyzes Myanmar Situation 2007-10-16 10:31:00 Jusuf Wanandi of the Jakarta Center for Strategic Studies offered an interesting analysis of the situation in Myanmar and what might be done to further the cause of democracy. British colonialists left Burma with a volatile situation in which the Burmese people constituted 60% of the population but the remainder consisted of diverse minorities. The emergence of a powerful military junta provided the nation with an institution which had the capability of maintaining some semblance of cohesion in the nation. A sudden withdrawal of the military might well lead to a collapse of the nation as disparate minorities vie for power with the majority Burmese. The nations of southeast Asia, ASEAN, seek to use diplomacy and engagement with the military junta rather than follow the UN approach which seeks to impose sanctions. According to Wanandi, there is little evidence sanctions will impact the military junta of Burma. Wanandi suggests there is need for an interim period during which the military ...

Iran Hosts International Conference On Chemical Weapons 2007-10-16 09:55:59 Iran will host the first international conference dealing with the impact of chemical weapons upon people. During the Iran-Iraq war which lasted from 1980-1988, it is estimated over 100,000 Iranians died due to the use by Saddam Hussein of chemical warfare. “Iran,” said Gholam Hossein Dehghani, “is one of the greatest victims of chemical weapons and no country in the world has suffered from the consequences of chemical weapons as Iran.” There is little doubt the United States supported Saddam Hussein in his war against Iran. The American press frequently cites evidence of the cruel use of chemical weapons on the people of Kurdistan, but there is scant mention of Saddam Hussein’s extensive use of chemical warfare in his fight against Iran. America aided Saddam in that war and one can only wonder if any American officials in the Reagan administration knew what was going on, but never protested. ...

John McCain: More Troops, Stay The Course 2007-10-16 09:44:13 In an interview with the Army Times, Senator John McCain said, if elected president, he would expand the size of the Army and Marine Corps. “One of the major failures of the Rumsfeld era is that we didn’t expand the Army and Marine Corps.” He appeared to attribute problem in ending violence in Iraq due to lack of sufficient troops on the ground. The senator discussed strains imposed on members of the military and their families by shortened deployment after serving in Iraq. McCain believes increasing the size of our military “is something we should have done long ago. We are going to be in Afghanistan a long time, and I don’t know what other conflict might break out.” During the interview, McCain at one point indicated his belief troops could have longer deployment time in America, but also said, “i would do whatever is necessary to succeed,” even if it required shorter deployment time at home. Senator McCain’s comments reflect his ...

US Prevented British Pullout From Basra In March 2007-10-16 08:01:46 According to senior British military sources, their troops were prevented from pulling out of Basra in March due to American pressure. “The decision to stay on was made in London, it was a political and not a logistical one. The Americans flatly refused to pull out their consulate and it was them informing us that they intended to send down a brigade which decided matters in London.” The British government had concluded earlier this year the presence of its troops in Basra increased rather than decreased violence in the area. They thought outside forces created a rationale for Shiite militia to fight and hoped by withdrawing fighting and violence would decrease. American military leaders insisted withdrawal would open the way for Iranian agents and al-Qaeda to enter the area. It is somewhat ironic that Bush continues asserting we must turn over control to Iraq forces but he opposes an example of local Iraq forces being given an opportunity to handle the situation. Perhaps, ...

Turkish Political Leaders Angry At American Jews 2007-10-15 18:53:22 The vote by members of the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee underlined the failure of Turkish political leaders to influence American Jewish politicians. Seven of eight Jews on the committee voted in favor of the resolution including Tom Lantos, the only Holocaust survivor serving in Congress. Turkish politicians had hoped he would oppose the resolution particularly after his statement: “We have to weigh the desire to express our solidarity with the Armenian people and to condemn the historic nightmare through the use of the word ‘genocide’ against the risks that it would cause young men and women in the uniform of the United States armed forces to pay an even higher price (in Iraq and Afghanistan) than they are currently paying.” Turkish politicians were shocked when Lantos voted for the resolution. According to Egeman Bagis, advisor to Prime Minister Erdogan, “we have seen that his understanding of history is changing in time.&rdqu ...

Holocaust Controversy Swirls In Lithuania 2007-10-15 17:46:02 Moshe Kantor, president of the European Jewish Congress accused Latvia and Lithuania of belittling the role of the Soviet Red Army during World War II in liberating eastern Europe from Nazi rule. He argued taking such an attitude is akin to denying the existence of the Holocaust. Lativa, Lithuania, and Estonia were taken over by the Soviet Union in 1940 creating extensive anti-Russian feeling. This anger toward the Soviet Union was exacerbated when thousands of Russians were settled in the three countries. The Nazis found many collaborators when they drove Russians out of those areas, and some, did assist in the killing of Jews. Thus, for many Baltic people, the “liberation of east Europe” by the Soviet Army marked once again being under Soviet rule. After the Baltic nations became independent, laws were passed against Russian residents even though thousands had been born in a Baltic nation. In addition, those who collaborated with the Nazis are often regarded as heroes. Pr ...

Kenya Muslims Demand Government Keep Promises 2007-10-15 17:23:53 The National Muslim Leaders Forum (Namief) criticised some of Kenya’s Muslim leaders for failure to be honest with the government regarding problems encountered by the nation’s Muslim population. They said the government of President Kibaki had treated Muslims with contempt and urged the Muslim community to vote against Kibaki in the upcoming election. Namief was particularly upset at the silence of the Kenya government about imprisonment of Kenya citizens in the Guantanamo prison and supporting American and Ethiopian assaults on the Islamic government of Somalia. Large areas of East Africa have an extensive Christian population, but there is also a large Muslim presence. The United States and Ethiopia launched an attack that overthrew the Islamic government of Somalia in a war that many African Muslims interpreted to be led by Christians against Muslims. President Bush frequently does not completely grasp the complexities of issues impacting the people of Africa. ...

Time For Palestinian State, Says Rice 2007-10-15 09:56:26 Secretary of State Rice met with Palestinian leader, President Abbas and assured him that Bush believes the establishment of a Palestinian state is ‘one of the highest priorities of his administration.” She told Abbas, “Finally, it’s time for a Palestinian state.” During the past several weeks, President Abbas has made clear he considers creating an agenda with specific goals to be attained within a “certain time period” is crucial if the upcoming Annapolis conference is to be successful. As of this point, Prime Minister Olmert of Israel has not indicated any interest in such specific outcomes. George Bush assumed the presidency just at the Clinton mediation effort between Palestinians and Israel had reached a deadlock. Instead of building on Clinton’s work, Bush discounted what the former president had accomplished and refused to have anything to do with Palestine-Israel peace efforts. Instead, he focused on Iraq and war. We are living i ...

Russians And Americans Fail Reaching Missile Agreement 2007-10-15 09:35:11 The recent visit by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates failed to achieve an agreement with Russians on the issue of America establishing missile bases in Poland and the Czech Republic. Putin in an angry statement commented: “We might decide some day to set up a missile defense system on the moon, but until then, the opportunity for an agreement might be lost while you realize your plans.” He also threatened to have Russia withdraw from the Intermediate-Missile Nuclear Forces Treaty if the pact is not applied to all countries. Secretary Gates discounted the anger of Russians by claiming, “when they’re hit with new ideas, they basically go to a default position of a defensive crouch, until they really have time to thank about it and consider it.” The Gates comment is fascinating since it comes from someone in the Bush administration. Accusing other nations of becoming “defensive” when hit by “new ideas ...

Senior British Police Officer Urges End To Drug Laws 2007-10-15 09:15:41 Richard Brunstrom, Chief Constable of North Wales, issued a powerful report which claims the war on drugs has failed and it is time to explore other alternatives. “If policy on drugs is in future,” he writes, “to be pragmatic, not moralistic, driven by ethics, not dogma, then the current prohibitionist stance will have to be swept away as both unworkable and immoral, to be replaced with an evidence based unified system (including tobacco and alcohol) aimed at minimisation of harms to society.” He notes in his statement, a report from the Chief Medical Officer of Wales who found in 2004 that 13,000 died from tobacco use, 2,052 died from alcohol and only 356 died from use of illegal drugs. The war on drugs has failed just at Prohibition in the 1920s failed. One can only wonder how advocates of current drug laws would explain to a visiting Martian anthropologist why an array of drugs like Prozac are perfectly OK as are alcohol and tobacco, but other drugs are not. ...

Ramadan In Thailand Offers Moments Of Peace 2007-10-15 08:54:04 Thailand’s three southern provinces are the only areas in which Muslims constitute a majority of the population. After a month of fasting for Ramadan, Thai Muslims celebrated Idul Fitri, day to mark the end of the holiday, with renewed hope the violence which has wracked the provinces will soon end. A Muslim led insurgency which began in January, 2004 has led to the deaths of over 3,400 people. Thai Muslims charge the dominant Buddhist government refuses to acknowledge the rights of minorities. In response, the Thai army has been heavily engaged in military actions in the area. Mohammad Rahman, as he left his mosque said: “Today at least, we are not afraid of shootings or murder. I hope the momentum for less violence will continue.” Unfortunately, his area witnessed ten deaths within a week. The Muslim led insurgency in southern Thailand is another example of what happens when governments fail to take a proactive stance in ensuring minorities enjoy equal rights. A re ... Thailand