JNA General Pavle Strugar was sentenced to 7 and 1/2 years in prison for his role in the shelling of Dubrovnik, Croatia, during the conflict accompanying the breakup of Yugoslavia. Dubrovnik, known as the “Pearl of the Adriatic” for its historic and beautiful old city, was subjected to a 7-month siege during the war. 2/3 […]
By now you have heard the news that a U.S. representative will attend a previously scheduled meeting tomorrow with an Iranian representative in Geneva. Although this represents a dramatic departure from the U.S. effort to isolate Iran, a skeptical observer may ask why this such an important move. Do we really expect a breakthrough? An op-ed […]
On July 1, the breakaway region of Abkhazia was in a state of emergency because of a bomb near the Inguri bridge. The bridge is a vital trading link for the thousands of Georgians living in the Gali district, a region inside Abkhazia that borders the ceasefire line with Georgia. Abkhazia is seeking independence from […]
“Pretty much all the honest truth telling there is in the world is done by children.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., Writer (1809-1894) ‘Out of the mouth of babes’, they so often say when a child just blurts out the truth, and it appears that truth telling is something all too often left behind in […]
The film Very Young Girls takes you into the reality of sexual exploitation and trafficking of American girls, a true eye opener that is a must see for anyone who wants to see that Americas youth are given their chance at the American dream. Our eyes must be opened to the exploitation of our own […]
Today's New York Times offers some analysis (Policy Shift Seen in U.S. Decision on Iran Talks) of the potential breakthrough mentioned in the last post, and it looks like oil prices are starting to respond to the lessening tensions between the U.S. and Iran. In this video from The Council on Foreign Relations, foreign policy […]
Thankfully, we have a debate here — on the ideas behind Jim Glassman's “War of Ideas.” It is a topic worthy of debate, although to many it may seem like inside baseball. It was Glassman, the new Undersecretary for Public Diplomacy at the US State Department, who earlier this month called for a “War of […]
In what can only be seen as a victory for the Bush administration, Judge James Robertson for the U.S. District Court in Washington denied Thursday a motion to delay the trial of the former driver of Osama bin Laden, Salim Hamdan. Hamdan, a 37-year old Yemeni national, will be the first “enemy combatant” in the […]
Al Gore made an important speech today in Washington: In it he challenged the US to become carbon free in its electricity production in ten years time. See this from CNN. Regarding surface transportation, the article quotes him as saying "The way to bring gas prices down is to end our dependence on oil and […]
Last May, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili signed into law a set of three amendments lowering the age of criminal responsibility from 14 to 12 in direct contravention to UN recommendations. Children committing major crimes will be tried as adults. Major crimes include premeditated murder, intentional damage to health, rape, most types of robbery, and possession […]
Further to my last post, here are some more looks at transportation issues. Air Show , This article from the "NY Times" today, The Wild Green Yonder, describes some of the initiatives of the airline industry I touched on the other day: new materials, new engines, new fuels. The article refers to a series of […]
Canadian lawyers acting on behalf of a Palestinian man sued two Montreal companies and their director for violation of international laws pertaining to the transfer of civilian populations into Israeli settlements in Palestinian territories. Court documents filed in the Superior Court of the District of Montreal claim two firms acting on behalf of the Israeli […]
When one in the US thinks of sex trafficking and exploitation, they tend to think of girls from lands with mostly unpronounceable names. Images of Russian "Natasha's", young Thai girls, girls on the streets of India, etc., however those images are not the only picture one must see in order to see the harsh reality […]
In something that resembled more of a rock concert than your traditional Hezbollah rally, the party's Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah made a rare in-person appearance on stage this evening at a ceremony celebrating the return of Hezbollah's prisoners exchanged for the bodies of two Israeli soldiers. Nasrallah has typically appeared live to his audience televised […]
A quick follow-up to my last post to note that the U.S. appears to be inching toward a new engagement with Iran. According to this New York Times report (U.S. Envoy to Join Meeting With Iranian): President Bush has authorized the most significant American diplomatic contact with Iran since the Islamic Revolution in 1979, […]