President Obama has been on the prowl telling the World that U.S. Combat Operations will end on August 31. I welcome that as I continue to be concerned that 50,000 US troops will continue to remain. I have also continued to be disturbed by reports by commentators like Tariq Ali who note that the U.S. will continue to have a long-lasting presence not withstanding what the Adminstration leads us to believe.
The cost continues to rise ever more. I am frankly numb at the monies spent in Iraq. The daily counter featured in "outsiders" signifies the continued spending being done with no apparent end in sight. Yet, Iraqis are lucky to get a few hours of electricity every day and even luckier if they have running water. I won't even begin to discuss the job prospects, the continued uncertainty in Kurdistan and the fact that there is not even a Government in place. As always, the Economist' Kal said it best:
When the Chief of Staff of the Iraqi Army notes that the Iraqi Army is not ready, it seems that the Adminstration must step up and take notice. When there is no Government, though, there is not much that can be done. The Iraqiya Group and the State of law group continue to bicker as the bombings and killings continue to go on. What was quite startling was how the story was quickly suppressed.
Moving on to Afghanistan, things continue to be in a state of flux. General Petraus has begun making the rounds making the case that the July 2011 withdrawal date is not practical. One of the "happy talk" we have been fed has been the rise of the Afghan National Army. On a campaign they apparently undertook north of Kabul, they got slammed to say the least. Nato and US troops had to rush in to bail them out. There is also the story of "New Ansari" that appeared in the New York Times this past week. New Ansari is basically a money dealer that was under investigation for money laundeering by agents trained by the United States. The problem was that it got too close to associates of Karzai and he ended up putting his own people in charge. One has to wonder with such friends, who really needs enemies.
The country and the World seems to be fed with the fiction that these two campaigns are ultimately winnable. With all the treasure and blood spent, it is a very big question mark especially as America has to deal with the day after when soldiers do come home.
The World right now continues to be focused on Haiti. The focus is so right in light of the utter devastation going on. The desparation is evident and the scenes are heart breaking. I cannot even comprehend what Kerry Sanders, the NBC News Correpodent is reporting right now:
What I worry about is California. As a member of my local City's Public Safety and Emergency Prepardness Committee, I wonder whether we can deal with the big one. What I know is that the big one will happen in California in light of the tremendous resource challenges it has right now. As I wrote about Haiti, though, all of us will do our part. The recovery will take a long time. The whole country has to be literally built from scratch. It is great to see that this massive moblization effort is across ideological lines.
As I continued to survey the devastation, I thought about France. Despite the ugly colonial history, I commend France for stepping up as they have. For Haitians, the world will insure that there continues to be hope and the will to live has to be brought back ever more. I also commend President Obama has done in asking President Clinton and President George W. Bush to get involved as President Clinton and President George H.W. Bush did after the tragedy in Indonesia.
This tragedy needs to be a wakeup call for us all to come together as humans to realize how fragile life is. We need to overcome the prejudices in order to be able to come together. I wonder if the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan understand that. I wonder if the ubber-rich in India understand that as the untouchables in India continue to suffer. All of us must remember this admontion from Joseph Addison as quoted by Dr. Stephen Covey in his Book, the Seven Habits:
"When I look upon the tombs of the great, every emotion of envy dies in me; when I read the epitaphs of the beautiful, every inordinate desire goes out; when I meet with the grief of parents upon a tombstone, my heart melts with compassion; when I see the tomb of the parents themselves, I consider the vanity of grieving for those who we must quickly follow; when I see kings lying by those who deposed them, when I consider rival wits placed side by side, or the holy men that divided the world with their contests and disputes, I reflect with sorrow and astonishment on the little competitions, factions, and debates of mankind. When I read the several dates of the tombs, of some that died yesterday, and some six hundred years ago, I consider that great Day when we shall all of us be Contemporaries, and make our appearance together." (Covey, The Seven Habits, p. 97)
As I plan for 2010 and beyond, I have been continuing to reflect upon a very trying year and a very tough decade. I have been particuarly thinking about Obama's story. I remember him being in Los Angeles during the 2000 Democratic National Convention. He was denied entry. I remmeber him going to get money from his ATM and his ATM bounced. 9 years later, he's President of the United States flying on Air Force One for 10 days of vacation
Outsider Views and its' sister sites have been launched as a platform to focus on the present by providing an reasonably objective analysis of the issues at hand and providing ideas about the future. But, sometimes, events occur that prompts me not to stay silent.
I have to ask the question: What is going on with leading Republican lights? First it was John Ensign, now Mark Sanford has come out with admitting to have had an affair. Both these guys were being talked about as 2012 Presidential Contenders. Sanford made national headlines with his refusal to take stimulus money. The legislature and the Supreme Court (all majority Republican-Controlled) overruled him. But such political challenges, in my view, does not justify betraying your family. I would almost bet that as the details come out, I am sure that there are those who will again seek to justify such failings and remind all fo the failings of Bill Clinton and Elliot Spitzer. Bill Clinton got impeached and that will be forever a scar on him. Elliot Spitzer did the honorable thing and also resigned. John Edwards disappeared from the public eye and will have to live with his conscious as to what he did to his family. It seems to me that Governor Sanford should also resign as well. Resigning as head of the Republican Governors' Assocation is simply not enough
President Obama is right now speaking at Cairo University. Before he began his speech, he spent a few hours at Sultan Hassan Mosque, one of the centers of teaching in the Moslem World. He reached out to all and underscored America's committment to move forward. He noted that Violence is a dead end
As I write this, Al Jazeera is showing live scenes from Cairo showing Air Force One arriving. Cairo is pretty much shut down and been given a face lift in anticipation of the visit. Security is as tight as it gets
I caught the program, Empire, that Al Jazeera's Marwan Bishara hosts talking about U.S. Foreign Policy and the future. The analysis done is chilling. The session he hosted had Seymour Hersch, Lakhmar Brahimi and Tariq Ali. Tariq Ali and Seymour Hersch are considered "lefties" by the Conservative Community. But, sometimes lefites have words of wisdom that should be listened to.
In Iraq, there is some consesus that there is reasonable security. Hannity, in his radio interview on Thursday with Governor Rendell of Pennsylvania, said that the United States won the Iraq war. My reaction was, really? How? The fact is that Suicide bombers are back in fashion as America begins to withdraw. If the United States did in fact win, then why do we still have 150,000 troops in that country? Why are people dying
Today is Easter. It is a day to celebrate and to remember. As all of us pray for those who are in harm's way, we ought to also remember those who did not live to see this blessed day. I especially am mindful of those who lost their lives in Italy during that terrible earthquake. I am also reminded of those who continue to lose their lives everyday to hunger and disease despite all the abundance in our world.
We must make a renewed committment to find hunger, disease, homelessness and injustice anywhere. We must work to embrace creativity and embrace the new while remembering the best of the old. I view this as a solemn responsbility especially for those who have the bullypulpit. As someone who has the privilege to teach and to write, I wanted to do my small part to live up to this committment. We have to continue to think about our future so that we can emerge stronger. It was in this spirit that I decided to launch Outsider Views and to take on moderating Kitten Politics here within the ever-growing Orble Community. It has been a journey that I will continue on. At times, I have felt that the struggle is a lonely one. But, the prospect of doing nothing is something that I refuse to do
I find the recent spat between Jon Stewart and Jim Cramer and Meghan McCain and Ann Coulter hillarious to say the least. Bill O'Reilly talked about it in his Factor show on Monday on Fox News. He talked the Cramer vs. Stewart feud with Stewart Varney of Fox Business and on Meghan McCain vs. Ann Coulter with a reporter for the Washington Times.
I saw Jon Stewart's show, I saw Jim Cramer's "response when he appeared on MSNBC and NBC and then Jon Stewart's rebuttal. Jon Stewart nailed Jim Cramer. There was no question about it. But, O'Reilly's way of lambasting Stewart for going after him for being "liberal" and "mainstream" is a bit far-fetched. What O'Reilly and the folks at fox forget to tell the rest of the world is that they were the "mainstream" during the 8 years of the Bush Adminstration. They pushed this fiction that markets work and self-regulate and had to be left alone. Well, this so-called conservative philosophy (as they call it) was in fact the cause of the economic winter we are faced with today. Bernie Maddoff and Allan Stafford are but the most extreme of examples. But, the entertainment nature of CNBC was also just as much to blame in my view. Jon Stewart called Jim Cramer on it. I do commend Jim Cramer for agreeing to appear on The Daily Show later on tonight. That should be quite interesting. But, this fiction of a liberal bias that Bill O'Reilly continues to push gets to be old. It is entertaining and funny, though. Cramer made some bad calls and he has to own up to it
As the flow of bad news continues about the economy, the Republicans have continued their "jihad" against the stimulus. As I assessed the news and the debate, I was especially sickened by Lindsay Graham's tirade in the Senate. He accused the President of doing nothing and not reaching out. I was especially disappointed in him because I had found Lindsay Graham to be one of the more reasonble Republicans. But, his speech on the floor of the Senate yesterday showed the Republicans for what they truly are: An bunch of Obstructionist idiots who seem to be totally clueless as to what is going on in the Country. This is the reality:
Mrs. Clinton has now been confirmed as Secretary of State. I am anxiously some truly earth-shattering annoucements on the foreign policy front over the ensuingd days. I am very, very excited about George Mitchell being appointed Middle East Envoy. The man helped bring peace to Northern Ireland. Although his record on the Middle East was not as effective, I still think he can do wonders. I also do fondly remember how he put Baseball on a solid footing after the scandals that has engulfed Roger Clemens, Mark McGuire and many others. I view it as a sign of things to come
The President Arrives For His First Day....A Busy One too!!!
The first day of the Obama Adminstration has begun. The President began his day by attending the National Prayer Service and got down to work. I saw him when he met with the White House and signed off on the new Ethics Rules. He has also been meeting with the Economics and National Security Teams. They have hit the ground running. Unfortunately, the Senate has not done the job by confirming the nominees. At least three key members are yet to be confirmed. A new Era has truly begun
Barack Hussein Obama is now the 44th President of the United States. Throughout my lifetime, I have had the privilege to read on the traditions and was finally able to be a true witness to this momentous transfer of power due to the power of technology. I have continued to marvel at how someone with so much power gives it up so willingly because the people are truly sovereign in America. This was quite moving when the President and the First Lady escorted Former Mr. and Mrs. Bush
I have been reading through all the controversy surrounding the invitation by President-Elect Obama to speak at the Inauguration. Here is the President-Elect's news conference on Thursday when he spoke on this subject:
:The Coverage Has Fallen off the Face of the Earth....
Gaza continues to be under siege by the Israelis. Israel has initiated the blockade with the support of Egypt because of the security threat from Hamas. Some have said that Gaza is the world's largest prison. I am truly trying to see and think through a solution that all can live with. Whatever ideas folks have had has only resulted in misery for all. Israelis have to continue to live in fear. Palestianians continue to suffer because they cannot simply have the basic necessities that is necessary. Israel pulled out of Gaza. But, it continues to control the Air, the Sea and Land borders of Gaza. I am sure Israel understands its' obligations. But somehow the suffering of the ordinary Palestianian that is neither a member of Hamas or any the families should never be forgotten. From what I have seen, it is in fact the case.
The plight of the Palestinians was discussed in this film showcased in Toronto last month
The wide ranging discussions Pastor Warren and Senator McCain had continued on. One of the questions I felt was poignant. Pastor Warren noted that leaders are not stubborn and do change their minds. He then asked Senator McCain about a decision he had made and then changed his mind. He was quick to respond: Off Shore Drilling. He went on to note that we must attack the problem of energy on all fronts now. He reminded all of us that the United States is sending out 700 billion dollars a year to folks who are not at times that friendly and cooperative. Senator McCain's plan is dubbed the "Lexington Plan" and is available on his website. Leaders should be flexible and change their mind, while not forgetting their principles. George W. Bush seems to have understood that during the last months of his Presidency.
His response to the question of Abortion was to the point and without any reservations. His view is that abortion begins at the moment of conception. He told the world that he was going to be a Pro-Life President. As for marriage, Senator McCain was also adamant that it was a union between a man and a woman. Although an avowed Federalist, Senator McCain noted that he would back a marriage amendment if the States moved to force other states to accept their marriages. Evil must be defeated and the Senator brought up Osama Bin Laden. He committed to hunting him down. Osama is evil and evil indeed must be eradicated. I think his commitment is a bit over the top due to the realities on the ground in Pakistan and Afghanistan
As I continued to think about John Edwards, I thought about what a tragic figure he actually has become. For someone who truly could have become Attorney General or Secretary of Labor, he blew it all away for nothing. I can't still understand what got into him. Beyond that, as I read this week's People Magazine, I truly realized what a fraud he was. His betrayal of his sacred trust was the worst sin of all. All I will do now is to pray for his family and his two young children who will not have their mother for much longer. I don't expect our leaders to be perfect. But I do expect leaders to understand the fundementals. But, America is also a forgiving nation. Whether that forgiveness extends to John Edwards is something that remains to be seen. They forgave Richard Nixon. Remember, though, he was a former President of the United States.
Mike Pouraryan
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