Saturday, May 01, 2004
The troubles this week
I haven't sat down yet to analyze the takeover of the Cathedral, and subsequent street chaos and arrests, this week by the STISS--apparently done to protest the firing of health sector workers in contravention of a union-government agreement last year--but I do have a few initial reactions.
For the few people with whom I've spoken, the ends simply do not seem to justify the means. These militant tactics don't have the popular appeal they might have had, say, 20 years ago, and if anyone thinks they do... well, they might do well to start talking to their neighbors.
You can click here to get a sense of some of the images of the week (go down and click on "Una tarde de violencia.") If you want the FMLN response, which refers to the "neofascist government" of ARENA, issued in time for the May 1st celebration of labor day, click here: fmlnmay1.doc
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Getting out of Iraq
David Corn interviews Ambassador Joseph Wilson (the last acting U.S. ambassador to Iraq), and poses to him the question of what "should be done in the coming weeks and months." Wilson's response: he says, "Given the way the situation is deteriorating, if we don't get our arms around it pretty quickly, the debate is going to turn serious over the question of abandoning the whole project."
And then Wilson mentions a former NSA chief who's already in that camp:
For example, retired general William Odom, the former chief of the National Security Agency, is now advocating getting out of Iraq and leaving it to the Europeans to get more involved. In a way, I like that as a negotiating position. You say this so the Europeans come to realize that their interests are at stake. We need to have a new sense that collective, international interests are at stake in Iraq. I've always thought the Europeans would eventually recognize that their interests are in play in Iraq. Still, they need to be encouraged to participate fully in the reconstruction. We have not done that. And there are a number of things that need to be done. We need to offer them a significant place at the table. Senator Joe Biden has talked about a multilateral board of directors for Iraq under a general U.N. rubric, bringing together countries that are prepared to put their military and economic assets into play.
(cursor.org has more links today to stories about Odom.)
Gen. Zinni, on the other hand, in the interview I cited earlier today, makes it clear from a military perspective as to why they can't just cut and run--not because it would be bad for Iraqis, but because the troops would be more vulnerable to attack as their force level dwindles: "At the point where you have, let's say, 30,000 U.S. troops in there, they may be far more vulnerable than they are obviously now."
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And then Wilson mentions a former NSA chief who's already in that camp:
For example, retired general William Odom, the former chief of the National Security Agency, is now advocating getting out of Iraq and leaving it to the Europeans to get more involved. In a way, I like that as a negotiating position. You say this so the Europeans come to realize that their interests are at stake. We need to have a new sense that collective, international interests are at stake in Iraq. I've always thought the Europeans would eventually recognize that their interests are in play in Iraq. Still, they need to be encouraged to participate fully in the reconstruction. We have not done that. And there are a number of things that need to be done. We need to offer them a significant place at the table. Senator Joe Biden has talked about a multilateral board of directors for Iraq under a general U.N. rubric, bringing together countries that are prepared to put their military and economic assets into play.
(cursor.org has more links today to stories about Odom.)
Gen. Zinni, on the other hand, in the interview I cited earlier today, makes it clear from a military perspective as to why they can't just cut and run--not because it would be bad for Iraqis, but because the troops would be more vulnerable to attack as their force level dwindles: "At the point where you have, let's say, 30,000 U.S. troops in there, they may be far more vulnerable than they are obviously now."
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Ten Stories the World Should Hear More About
IPS reports that yesterday U.N. Under-Secretary-General for Public Information Shashi Tharoor decried the international press' single-minded attention to stories like those on Iraq, while neglecting others, more positive in nature, that deserved important attention.
In Tharoor's view, the press seems to have adopted the notion that "good news is no news." These are the top ten under-reported stories, according to the UN:
--Uganda: Child soldiers at centre of mounting humanitarian crisis
--Central African Republic: a silent crisis crying out for help
--AIDS orphans in sub-Saharan Africa: a looming threat to future generations
--The peacekeeping paradox: as peace spreads, surge in demand strains UN resources
--Tajikistan: rising from the ashes of civil war
--Women as peacemakers: from victims to re-builders of society
--Persons with disabilities: a treaty seeks to break new ground in ensuring equality
--Bakassi Peninsula: Recourse to the law to prevent conflict
--Overfishing: a threat to marine biodiversity
--Indigenous peoples living in voluntary isolation
Not surprisingly, this was a non-story for both the New York Times and the Washington Post.
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In Tharoor's view, the press seems to have adopted the notion that "good news is no news." These are the top ten under-reported stories, according to the UN:
--Uganda: Child soldiers at centre of mounting humanitarian crisis
--Central African Republic: a silent crisis crying out for help
--AIDS orphans in sub-Saharan Africa: a looming threat to future generations
--The peacekeeping paradox: as peace spreads, surge in demand strains UN resources
--Tajikistan: rising from the ashes of civil war
--Women as peacemakers: from victims to re-builders of society
--Persons with disabilities: a treaty seeks to break new ground in ensuring equality
--Bakassi Peninsula: Recourse to the law to prevent conflict
--Overfishing: a threat to marine biodiversity
--Indigenous peoples living in voluntary isolation
Not surprisingly, this was a non-story for both the New York Times and the Washington Post.
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Quote of the Day
"I'll give you my hopeful formula to get out of [Iraq]. But every day and every decision makes it worse. The first thing you do when you find yourself in a hole is stop digging. They seem to continue to dig. This 'stay the course' idea is wonderful except the course is leading us over Niagara Falls."
--Gen. Anthony Zinni, former Commander in chief of U.S. Central command and Bush envoy to the Middle East, in a frank and revealing interview in the San Diego Union-Tribune.
The whole piece is worth a good look. For example, what should we have done instead of invade Iraq? Zinni: "...containment worked with the Soviet Union, the Cubans, the North Koreans, thus far. Containment was done at very low cost. In Centcom, in my time there when we had the dual containment policy, there were less troops on a day-to-day basis in the entire theater than than report to work at the Pentagon every day...."
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--Gen. Anthony Zinni, former Commander in chief of U.S. Central command and Bush envoy to the Middle East, in a frank and revealing interview in the San Diego Union-Tribune.
The whole piece is worth a good look. For example, what should we have done instead of invade Iraq? Zinni: "...containment worked with the Soviet Union, the Cubans, the North Koreans, thus far. Containment was done at very low cost. In Centcom, in my time there when we had the dual containment policy, there were less troops on a day-to-day basis in the entire theater than than report to work at the Pentagon every day...."
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Friday, April 30, 2004
Che's other legacy
BBC photo
I will have a lot of critical things to say about Cuba in this space, but this post will not be one of them. Yes, according to this BBC story, Che Guevara is credited with "sparking the keen interest in chess in the island" of Cuba.
The reason for this bit of trivia? Reports the BBC: "Cuba has broken its own world record for the most people playing chess at the same time. About 13,000 chess fans gathered in the central Cuba city of Santa Clara for the mass game."
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Gag this, too
"It is remarkable that a gag provision in the Patriot Act kept the public in the dark about the mere fact that a constitutional challenge had been filed in court."
--Ann Beeson, the ACLU's associate legal director, in a story in today's Washington Post. Reports the Post: The lawsuit was filed April 6 in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, but the case was kept under seal to avoid violating secrecy rules contained in the USA Patriot Act, the ACLU said. The group was allowed to release a redacted version of the lawsuit after weeks of negotiations with the government.
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--Ann Beeson, the ACLU's associate legal director, in a story in today's Washington Post. Reports the Post: The lawsuit was filed April 6 in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, but the case was kept under seal to avoid violating secrecy rules contained in the USA Patriot Act, the ACLU said. The group was allowed to release a redacted version of the lawsuit after weeks of negotiations with the government.
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Thursday, April 29, 2004
Dubya's El Salvador
I don't even know where to begin to dissect a piece that just came online at the National Review website about Iraq, entitled "Dubya's El Salvador: Success in Central America, not Vietnam failure, is the model for Iraq."
Now the concern is China, not the Soviet Union, which is aiding Iran and Syria. Well, it's not worth going into any detail, but in case you were wondering, "the only difference between El Salvador of the 1980s and the Iraq of today is the American military presence, but this makes taking action more imperative, not less."
Take a look, if only out of curiosity.
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Now the concern is China, not the Soviet Union, which is aiding Iran and Syria. Well, it's not worth going into any detail, but in case you were wondering, "the only difference between El Salvador of the 1980s and the Iraq of today is the American military presence, but this makes taking action more imperative, not less."
Take a look, if only out of curiosity.
Comments to dlholiday@yahoo.com
Haitian Rebels--"Keystone Cops," not Washington stooges
Perhaps I missed something while on vacation, but on April 12th the St. Petersburg Times published a piece by David Adams (who won the Maria Moors Cabot Prize in 2002 from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism) on the origins of the Haitian rebel movement. Kevin Murray of Grassroots International alerted me to this article.
Read the whole story, and circulate to friends (especially those left-wing conspiracy theorists).
Here's the key argument:
A month after Aristide's whirlwind exit, questions still linger about Aristide's ouster. Was there U.S. complicity in his removal? And who was behind the seemingly all-powerful rebel army?
In recent days, the answers to those questions have become clearer. And the truth that is emerging contains some surprises.
More Keystone Kops than White House-orchestrated covert operations, the events of February were a largely home-grown affair, according to interviews with some of the rebel plotters and their allies, who included the septuagenarian representative of a Ponte Vedra Beach electrical company, and a 36-year-old Republican lawyer from Winter Park.
Far from being a well-equipped army with sophisticated lines of communication and logistics, like the U.S.-backed Nicaraguan Contras of the 1980s, the Haitian rebels were a ragtag bunch of former soldiers and opportunists who begged and borrowed to raise the money for their guns.
With the backing of a small group of Haitian dissidents in the Dominican Republic, a few dozen weapons and a handful of cash, the rebels were extraordinarily successful. In less than a month they toppled the government and in the process forced Washington into a major shift in policy.
I'm sure there's more to this story, but it's a good start.
Comments to dlholiday@yahoo.com
Read the whole story, and circulate to friends (especially those left-wing conspiracy theorists).
Here's the key argument:
A month after Aristide's whirlwind exit, questions still linger about Aristide's ouster. Was there U.S. complicity in his removal? And who was behind the seemingly all-powerful rebel army?
In recent days, the answers to those questions have become clearer. And the truth that is emerging contains some surprises.
More Keystone Kops than White House-orchestrated covert operations, the events of February were a largely home-grown affair, according to interviews with some of the rebel plotters and their allies, who included the septuagenarian representative of a Ponte Vedra Beach electrical company, and a 36-year-old Republican lawyer from Winter Park.
Far from being a well-equipped army with sophisticated lines of communication and logistics, like the U.S.-backed Nicaraguan Contras of the 1980s, the Haitian rebels were a ragtag bunch of former soldiers and opportunists who begged and borrowed to raise the money for their guns.
With the backing of a small group of Haitian dissidents in the Dominican Republic, a few dozen weapons and a handful of cash, the rebels were extraordinarily successful. In less than a month they toppled the government and in the process forced Washington into a major shift in policy.
I'm sure there's more to this story, but it's a good start.
Comments to dlholiday@yahoo.com
Back in ES, still obsessed with Iraq
I am back in El Salvador, where STISS took over the cathedral yesterday, burned some vehicles downtown, and reminded Salvadorans of a past they'd rather leave behind; and where the FMLN is getting ready to expel or punish a few dissidents for speaking their mind (and, okay, for throwing around a few chairs at the San Salvador party headquarters a few weeks ago); and where there's still no word from Tony Saca as to who will comprise his new cabinet come June 1.
But Iraq is still on my mind. Here's a revealing couple of paragraphs from an interview published yesterday in the Chicago Tribune with Northeastern Illinois University accounting professor Yass Alkafaji, an Iraqi-American who was in Iraq from late January until very recently, serving the Coalition Provisional Authority as the director of finance for the Ministry of Higher Education.
Q. What is your take on the mood of the Iraqi people?
A. They are thankful to the U.S. for getting rid of Saddam Hussein, and they are content that the military needs to be there. But after that, they are divided between how long should the U.S. military stay and whether they are doing a good job or not. The U.S. military presence is very visible, and they [the soldiers] are really scared, so their posture is very offensive. They see Iraqis, and they put guns in your face. They move in convoys, and they tell people to get away from them. When the convoys are in a traffic jam in the middle of Baghdad, that is the most dangerous thing. So they shout at people to get out of the way, and they drive up on the sidewalk of some stores. That creates a lot of hard feelings for the Iraqis.
Q. What about the economic and employment situation with ordinary Iraqis?
A. Most of the people are not informed of what the U.S. is doing because they don't see the visible improvement of their livelihood, especially those who don't have a government job . . . I think there is still a lot of confusion about who is the good Iraqi and who is the bad Iraqi. I think [the U.S.] has shown to the rest of the world that we are really ignorant when it comes to dealing with other cultures. We have a great military power, but when it comes to building nations we have no idea. You can see the tension in the clashes between the British and Americans in the palace. The Americans will say `do this or do that' and the British will just be shaking their head. But the British have a much longer history in the Middle East, and they know how to deal with the Arab mentality. They feel very marginalized.
Comments to dlholiday@yahoo.com
But Iraq is still on my mind. Here's a revealing couple of paragraphs from an interview published yesterday in the Chicago Tribune with Northeastern Illinois University accounting professor Yass Alkafaji, an Iraqi-American who was in Iraq from late January until very recently, serving the Coalition Provisional Authority as the director of finance for the Ministry of Higher Education.
Q. What is your take on the mood of the Iraqi people?
A. They are thankful to the U.S. for getting rid of Saddam Hussein, and they are content that the military needs to be there. But after that, they are divided between how long should the U.S. military stay and whether they are doing a good job or not. The U.S. military presence is very visible, and they [the soldiers] are really scared, so their posture is very offensive. They see Iraqis, and they put guns in your face. They move in convoys, and they tell people to get away from them. When the convoys are in a traffic jam in the middle of Baghdad, that is the most dangerous thing. So they shout at people to get out of the way, and they drive up on the sidewalk of some stores. That creates a lot of hard feelings for the Iraqis.
Q. What about the economic and employment situation with ordinary Iraqis?
A. Most of the people are not informed of what the U.S. is doing because they don't see the visible improvement of their livelihood, especially those who don't have a government job . . . I think there is still a lot of confusion about who is the good Iraqi and who is the bad Iraqi. I think [the U.S.] has shown to the rest of the world that we are really ignorant when it comes to dealing with other cultures. We have a great military power, but when it comes to building nations we have no idea. You can see the tension in the clashes between the British and Americans in the palace. The Americans will say `do this or do that' and the British will just be shaking their head. But the British have a much longer history in the Middle East, and they know how to deal with the Arab mentality. They feel very marginalized.
Comments to dlholiday@yahoo.com
Wednesday, April 28, 2004
The Washington March that I missed
AP Photo
I would have gone, really I would have--despite my belief that marches do more for those attending them than they do for actually changing policy. In fact, the Post yesterday quoted an academic scholar of Washington marches as saying pretty much the same thing.
"Is it going to change President Bush's mind? No. Is it going to bolster people who are already pro-choice? . . . I think yes," said Lynn G. Barber, a historian at the California State Archives in Sacramento and the author of a book on Washington marches.
However, the same story also notes that a pro-choice march 12 years ago may have, in fact, affected a Supreme Court decision:
The Supreme Court, in some ways the key institution of government on the abortion issue, has long been considered immune to the cries of protesters. Yet the antiabortion movement claims that one of its biggest marches succeeded in influencing that very institution.
Early in 1992, the Supreme Court voted to consider Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, a case that, in a divided court, constituted a challenge to Roe v. Wade.
Roe, according to the recently released papers of former Supreme Court justice Harry A. Blackmun, was poised for defeat. But in a last-minute switch, Reagan-appointed Justice Anthony M. Kennedy changed his vote, and abortion rights survived, 5 to 4.
"I believe the march had an impact on their decision making," Smeal said. "What happens in the street brings [these issues] home. It impacts the temper of the times."
Then, in a very ambiguous quote, the story cites recently released oral history tapes of Justice Blackmun as saying that it was the protests both for and against the Roe decision that made him think the Court had made the right decision:
Despite dozens of demonstrations demanding abortion rights before the original Roe decision, Blackmun said he initially didn't consider the decision a monumental one. In an oral history tape, Blackmun said the demonstrations and letter-writing campaigns protesting the decision convinced him that Roe was a necessary step in the emancipation of women.
"As the furor developed and [Roe's] integrity was attacked and upheld, certainly I came to that conclusion," he said. "I think it was a step that had to be taken."
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Monday, April 26, 2004
Those ubiquitous Guanacos
On my recent trip to the U.S., I kept running into Salvadorans and other Central Americans--even in Maine, the most northeastern of any state. Salvadorans supplied the labor to rebuild the fallen wall on my friends' John and Sarah's neighbor's wall that had fallen in D.C.; Guatemalans manned the Starbucks at the Woodrow Wilson rest stop on the New Jersey turnpike; and generally speaking Latin Americans seem to staff nearly every fast-food place all up and down the East Coast.
There's a story in today's Portland Press Herald that starts off with an anecdote about the Salvadoran restaurant Tu Casa, which I visited on my trip. Run by a Salvadoran family from Chalatenango, I was told that migration to that area had picked up in the last five years.
Maine, by the way, in a three-way tie with Arkansas and Mississippi, is the state with the fastest growing poverty rate in the country, according to the 2000 Census.
In Maine, which has only a few thousand Latin Americans statewide, there's a new executive order from the Governor that prohibits state employees who provide public services from asking about a person's immigration status, except under limited circumstances. The order is similar to those created by cities around the country, including Portland. But it appears to be the first of its kind affecting an entire state.
That's a good thing, because after a recent immigration sweep, people appeared to be afraid to ask for even minimal services related to health, education and work issues. The action came after a controversial sweep by federal agents of a homeless shelter in January in Portland, and as a result of lobbying by social service agencies, advocacy groups and community action organizations.
There's a story in today's Portland Press Herald that starts off with an anecdote about the Salvadoran restaurant Tu Casa, which I visited on my trip. Run by a Salvadoran family from Chalatenango, I was told that migration to that area had picked up in the last five years.
Maine, by the way, in a three-way tie with Arkansas and Mississippi, is the state with the fastest growing poverty rate in the country, according to the 2000 Census.
In Maine, which has only a few thousand Latin Americans statewide, there's a new executive order from the Governor that prohibits state employees who provide public services from asking about a person's immigration status, except under limited circumstances. The order is similar to those created by cities around the country, including Portland. But it appears to be the first of its kind affecting an entire state.
That's a good thing, because after a recent immigration sweep, people appeared to be afraid to ask for even minimal services related to health, education and work issues. The action came after a controversial sweep by federal agents of a homeless shelter in January in Portland, and as a result of lobbying by social service agencies, advocacy groups and community action organizations.
