Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in a speech Tuesday with legal officials from several Islamic countries said there should be an international Islamic court using Sharia law to prosecute war criminals and violators of humanitarian rights. Ahmadinejad failed to elaborate on the logistics of the court, but said the proposed body would serve as an alternative […]
“Where there is no hope, one must invent hope.” – Albert Camus Recently I have written a few posts on the situation in Sudan, and I was fortunate enough to attend the prescreening last night of Sand and Sorrow, which premiers on HBO on December 6th at 8pn ET. The event was held Monday, December […]
Renewable fuel compromise key to bill is the headline from A.P. and we learn, among other things, that “Democratic leaders working on an energy bill were trying to forge compromises Monday to increase the use of renewable fuels both in cars and by electric utilities after reaching a deal earlier that would raise vehicle fuel […]
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon addresses the International Criminal Court Monday, opening its annual two-week meeting which many see as chance to examine the credibility of the first permanent international war crimes tribunal. Ban addresses the 105-nation ICC as the court faces international criticism for its failure to prosecute Sudanese war crimes suspects. Analysts say that […]
Have you been bitten by the gift giving bug this season? Was my last post, Holiday Wish List, not enough to keep you busy, or satisfy your unquenchable need to help underprivileged children. Well then here are 20 more ways for you to help make a child's life better this year. Why not pick a […]
The U.S. government seems to be making a truly constructive move on climate change for a change. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative announced an agreement today between the U.S. and the E.U. proposing "eliminating tariff and non-tariff barriers to environmental goods and services, particularly clean energy technologies." Trade Representative Susan Schwab will go […]
Slavery is a word many think little of in modern terms, but the word is not one which we have put behind us, it is even more present today than in yesteryears. More than 27 million people are enslaved around the world today, and today we recognize their plight and struggle for freedom, as […]
Dems Reach Deal on Energy Bill is the headline from A.P. this morning. What’s in? A 40% boost in the CAFE standards for the automakers and a 15% renewable portfolio standard for the utilities. What’s out? It appears that the rescission of the $16 billion tax breaks presently being enjoyed by the oil and gas […]
"Stop AIDS. Keep the Promise." In 1988, the UN General Assembly expressed deep concern at the pandemic proportions of the AIDS virus, and noting that the World Health Organization (WHO) had declared 1 December 1988 World AIDS Day, the General Assembly thus drafted resolution 43/15. More than 41 million people are living with HIV/AIDS, some […]
Bali and the UN meetings start next Monday, December 3, and run through midmonth. These talks are to formally kick off the negotiations for a post-Kyoto regime on addressing the climate change crisis. It seems like lots of folks are headed out there. I'm now getting about 20 emails a day inviting me to "side events" […]
The Iraqi Prime Minister, Nouri al-Maliki, issued an appeal to U.S. President George W. Bush requesting U.S. officials hand over Ali Hassan al-Majid , “Chemical Ali” , and two other former Iraqi officials sentenced to hang for war crimes. U.S. officials have been reluctant to hand the three officials over to the Iraqi's citing a […]
Love is the fuel that gives us life, that gives us the fight for one more day. The fuel that gives us hope and strength, which allows us to continue on the long hard journey. Love is food for the hungry, the main nourishment of a child.
The special screening was held in Washington DC last night for the acclaimed film, HOLLY, opened by Ambassador Mark Lagon, and was followed by a question and answer session, with Ambassador Lagon, Guy Jacobson, and Adi Ezroni. A young girl running desperately through the streets, being chased by two men, her tiny feet taking her […]
The chief investigator for the U.N. commission investigating the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri said the inquiry is developing new leads and “persons of interest.” Serge Brammertz, the Belgian prosecutor charged with investigating the assassination, issued his final report to the U.N. Security Council stating the investigation has produced new information. “The […]
Three buses carrying some 140 children leave Guinea-Bissau heading to Senegal, the children are not going on a school trip, but are being trafficked to work in the cotton fields of southern Senegal. Two of the buses where stopped, but the third was never found, the children's fate is grim. Only weeks before an unnamed […]