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[ Converted text/html to text/plain ] Salut fellow activists. Below are 4 interesting articles. My appologies if one or more of them have already been posted. Salwa de Vree, Leiden, The Netherlands North Korean Danger Far Outweighs Iraqi One: Albright Tuesday, January 14 2003 @ 08:06 AM GMT "Albright went even further when she lashed out at Bush’s hotchpotch foreign policy, describing him as a confused man .." PARIS - Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeline Albright criticized U.S. President George W. Bush’s concentration on Iraq and his desire to unseat Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, a French paper Monday, January 13. (image) Former U.S. Secretary of State Madeline Albright In an interview with the French Le Figaro daily, Albright said North Korea is far dangerous than Iraq, pointing out that it [North Korea] threatened to create seismic waves in Asia on the contrary to the Iraqi position in the Middle East. The U.S.A, on the one hand, is rest assured that North Korea is led by a dictator, a nuclear juggernaut and has a one million-strong army, while it, on the other, has no information about the weapons possessed by the Iraqi president, she added. It is true that Bush wants to see a “regime change” in Iraq. But why does he insist on doing as such when Pyongyang poses real threats? Albright wondered. The former Clinton’s Secretary of State said that Saddam could be contained and the North Korean danger far outweighed the Iraqi one, asserting that North Korea’s possession of nuclear arms and medium-range missiles was a case in point. The daily quoted Albright as saying that the U.S. did everything in its power to avert a military build-up in Asia by assigning U.S. troops to South Korea and providing Japan with armed protection. The U.S., in addition, paid due attention to China and was keen on not letting it become the Asian cop; therefore, the U.S. should keep up its foothold in the Asian region by watching North Korea closely, Albright added. “Confused Man” Albright went even further when she lashed out at Bush’s hotchpotch foreign policy, describing him as a confused man. Bush said his prime goal was to root out Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaeda network and now he made a surprising policy shift by making Iraq first, al-Qaeda second and North Korea third and I think he has no solutions to crises, Albright said. Washington and Pyongyang at loggerheads On the current tensions between Washington and Pyongyang, Albright told Le Figaro that Washington had advanced, by leaps and bounds, in its protracted talks with North Korea; however, negotiations were brought to a halt when she left office, but she kept Secretary of State Colin Powell and Bush’s National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice posted on the outcome of her talks with North Korean officials. The Bush administration, in effect, did not translate its attention to the North Korean problem into concrete steps. But if the incumbent U.S. administration committed a blunder by not building on the efforts exerted by the former administration vis-à-vis the North Korean crisis, the North Korean President Kim Jong Il was also blamed for deciding to go on with his underground nuclear program, Albright said. Albright underlined that if Bush had made use of the outgrowth of Clinton’s U.S.-North Korean negotiations, the situation would have been much different. She defended the North Korean president by saying that he was a flexible sort of a person, who admitted that his country had been an economic basket case and hoped to change the current situation for the welfare of his country. Albright further said that Kim Jong Il is not a reclusive president, asserting that he was watching CNN and had many PCs. -[IslamOnline & News Agencies (islamonline.net).] Published at the Palestine Chronicle.[1] http://palestinechronicle.com/article.php?story=20030114080650476&mode=print[2] ******************************************************* Too Big Not to Use "Are thousands of Iraqis going to die because the US military was just too darned big not to use? This may sound strange, but it is the best explanation that I have heard .." By Chris Meyer - "Whats the point of having this superb military youre always talking about, if we cant use it?" - Madeleine Albright On National Public Radio this morning an intelligent and reasonable sounding young conservative pundit explained that the United States military is just too big not to use, and everyone in the world understands this. Too big not to use? Are thousands of Iraqis going to die because the US military was just too darned big not to use? This may sound strange, but it is the best explanation for the upcoming war against Iraq that I have heard. The US weapons industry is a commercial business just like any other US corporation. By definition, this means that they must continue to grow and gain market share, or they will go out of business. Furthermore, many producers of commercial products are becoming increasingly dependent on winning a piece of the burgeoning US defense budget. Boeing, for example, builds commercial aircraft, but it also makes smart bombs and other military aviation hardware to stay afloat. Boeings commercial aircraft market is currently in a slump and workers are being laid off in Seattle. If the US government doesnt use up its current inventory of weapons on Iraq and place fresh orders with Boeing soon, heads will roll. There is also the issue of use it or lose it. The US currently has the largest and most advanced fighting force in the world. This requires many things. The military personal must have live fire training in order to keep sharp. New weapons must be properly field tested and developed to stay ahead of competitors. A sufficient flow of military inventory must be sustained to keep the weapons manufacturers in business. Finally, new weapons markets must be developed, and US suppliers must continually feed existing markets. Otherwise competing countries will pick up the slack, and the US will loose its monopoly on military expertise. This is why the US military is truly too big not to be used and must be constantly engaged somewhere in the world. This means the other nations of the world get to draw straws to see who is going to be the next punching bag for the US war machine. This certainly ought to make the other nations sit up and take notice. It reminds me of what most Americans must imagine Saddam Husseins cabinet meetings are like. It certainly reminds one of Al Qaida: US military bases (terrorist cells) are all over the world! Where will it strike next? If it is not stopped, its military forces will surely strike somewhere soon because its national interests demand it! The last country to draw the short straw was Iraq back in 1989, when the Soviet Union ceased to provide US military with a reason to exist. Iraq was the logical choice and has remained the primary target ever since, with a surprise one year respite from Afghanistan. The US knew that Iraq had an easily demonized leader in Saddam Hussein, because the US helped get Hussein into power and supported him for years. The US also knew Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, because the US sold them to him. Furthermore, Iraq is sitting on top of over 100 billion barrels of oil. That is about two trillion dollars worth of black gold, the favorite commodity of the corporations that dominate the US government. This brings the following digressions to mind. Digression one: how do you properly field test weapons of mass destruction (WMD) when the world has outlawed them even for military purposes? Find a ruthless dictator like Saddam Hussein, get him involved in wars in which he will need to use WMD, and supply him with WMD. Then let the press, the UN and Amnesty International collect the data on the effectiveness of the WMD, all the while being careful to display an appropriate level of outrage that WMD were used. Make sure a smooth professional like Donald Rumsfeld handles the whole affair. Corollary to the main thesis: WMD are just too profitable not to be properly field-tested. Digression two: All this makes one think of Israel as well. If any country has a military that is too big not to use, it is Israel. A population of 6 million has acquired one of the largest military machines in the world, complete with hundreds of nuclear warheads. If Israel ever finishes off the Palestinians, who will be next? One cannot just leave an expensive fighting machine like the Israel Defense Force lying idle! It would decay and loose its massive overkill vis-أ -vis its neighbors. So what are peace-loving people to do in the midst of this downwardly spiraling military madness? On January 18th, 2003, there will be a peace rally in Washington, D.C. to protest the coming war in Iraq. Participants will rally at the capital and then march to the navy shipyards and demand to inspect the US weapons of mass destruction. Organizers at International A.N.S.W.E.R (internationalanswer.org) are expecting tens of thousands. Im hoping for hundreds of thousands - a million would be nice. Ill be there, how about you, gentle reader? Organizations like Voices in the Wilderness (nonviolence.org/vitw) are forming peace groups of US and European citizens to send to Iraq to stop the war. Organizers are hoping to be able to place up to 100,000 Europeans and Americans in Baghdad with cameras and cell phones to impede US aggression. The idea is simple and probably the most effective plan to date. Bush may not care about Iraqis, but will he have the guts to bomb American citizens on live television? Now is the time for Americans to stare down the barrels of their own weapons, while it is still primarily Americans at the trigger. If the US weapons industry continues to grow unchecked, production will exceed the ability of the US government and her allies to consume. The only way for the weapons industry to survive will be to expand its market into the enormous third world that has been oppressed and victimized by US corporations and governmental policies for decades. The US will then sow the seeds of its own destruction, and global human misery will only continue to increase as unbridled weapons proliferation spreads across the earth. http://www.arabia.com/newsfeed/print/article/english/0,14239,360516,00.html[3] ******************************************************* January 11, 2003, 08:57 AM ATHENS - The current head of the EU Presidency, Greece, and the European Commission on Friday stressed that Europe will definitely avoid a war in Iraq. [4] enlarge image[5] (image)[6] "We cannot prejudge that there will be a war in Iraq or not, but we dont want a war," Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis told a press conference in Athens on Friday afternoon. Simitis said he is in contact with other members of the UNSC and other EU member states on the issue of Iraq. "War is not inevitable. We will do everything to avoid the crisis," stressed the President of the EU Commission Romano Prodi. The two leaders were speaking to the press soon after Greece officially took over the six-month rotating EU Presidency. Simitis said he is in contact with EU leaders to adopt common position on Iraq. He, however, added that a decision will be taken to safeguard peace after the UN weapons inspectors have presented their report on Iraqs weapons later this month. The current EU President noted that the Greek Presidency will have seven priorities, enlargement, immigration, the convention on the future of Europe, to develop EUs foreign policy in the Balkans, the Middle East, the Mediterranean region and finally to pursue the Lisbon Process. "Our Presidency will be full of challenges, noted Simitis. Prodi said that the EU has developed contingency plans for humanitarian aid in case war breaks out in Iraq. Prodi said that the current Greek Presidency and the next Italian Presidency offer "unique and excellent opportunities" for a cohesive U policy in the Middle East and in the Mediterranean region. http://www.arabia.com/newsfeed/article/english/0,14183,360525,00.html[7] ******************************************************* Pope Slams War Prospects As "Defeat for Humanity" Tuesday, January 14 2003 @ 08:13 AM GMT "The Pope referred to Iraq as the 'land of Prophets' whose people were 'already sorely tried by more than 12 years of embargo' .." VATICAN CITY - Pope John Paul II Monday, January 13, renewed his opposition to the potential military action against Iraq, saying that all diplomatic means to break the deadlock should be exhausted before war be declared the "very last option". (image) The Pope referred to Iraq as the 'land of Prophets' "War is never just another means that one can choose to employ for settling differences between nations," the Pope said in a reference to Iraq in his annual New Year address to diplomats accredited to the Holy See. "War cannot be decided upon, even when it is a matter of ensuring the common good, except as the very last option and in accordance with very strict conditions," he said, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP). The 82-year-old pontiff called (on the U.S.) to consider the humanitarian consequences should a third Gulf war be erupted, as the war was "always a defeat for humanity." He said those behind any war in Iraq would have to consider "the consequences for the civilian population both during and after the military operations." The head of the Roman Catholic Church also spoke of the global troubles affecting the Middle East, South America, and Africa in a wide-ranging address in French, the traditional language of diplomacy. "I have personally been struck by the feeling of fear which often dwells in the hearts of our contemporaries," he told the ambassadors to the Vatican. He referred to Iraq, threatened by a U.S.-led war which many commentators expect could break out in the coming weeks, as a "land of Prophets" whose people were "already sorely tried by more than 12 years of embargo." Neither could military victories be the solution to the "constant degeneration" of the crisis in the Middle East, he added. "War is not always inevitable. It is always a defeat for humanity," he said. "International law, honest dialogue, solidarity between states, the noble exercise of diplomacy: these are the methods worthy of individuals and nations in resolving their differences." Rich & Poor Countries The Pope also used Monday's address to shed a light on the inequality on the world scene between what he called rich and poor countries.. "Selfishness is also the indifference of prosperous nations towards nations left out in the cold," he said, highlighting the problem of water shortages, which the United Nations will give particular prominence to this year. "All peoples are entitled to receive a fair share of the goods of this world and of the know-how of the more advanced countries." Relations Strained The Pope's repeated denunciation of the U.S. growing war threats to Iraq seems to be moving on a one line that shows an utter abhorrence to military aggression against any country without justified causes. But the stance is understood to be religiously motivated in this small country. The Church teaches that for a war to be "just", the use of military force should meet rigorous conditions of moral legitimacy. It also says that all other means must first be exhausted, and that the type of force used must be proportionate to the wrong it tries to rectify. The Vatican clearly does not consider that America's planned offensive to topple Saddam Hussein meets the conditions of a "just war" laid down by the Roman Catholic Church, opined a BBC analyst. The pontiff appears to be signaling the start of a new diplomatic rift with the US - a repeat of the one which broke out over the Gulf War in 1991, analysts say. During the Gulf War, relations between the Vatican and the U.S. were strained because the Pope refused to state unequivocally that the conflict was a "just" one. However, the Pope also appeared keen to strike a note of optimism in this, the 25th New Year address of his pontificate. "Everything can change. It depends on each of us. Everyone can develop within himself his potential for faith, for honesty, for respect of others and for commitment to the service of others," he said. http://palestinechronicle.com/article.php?story=20030114081356814&mode=print[8] ******************************************************* * -- _______________________________________________ Sign-up for your own FREE Personalized E-mail at Mail.com[9] Meet Singles[10] ===References:=== 1. http://palestinechronicle.com/ 2. http://palestinechronicle.com/article.php?story=20030114080650476&mode=print 3. http://www.arabia.com/newsfeed/print/article/english/0,14239,360516,00.html 4. javascript:popupImage(646); 5. javascript:popupImage(646); 6. http://ads.arabia.com/?SHT=news_336x280_english 7. http://www.arabia.com/newsfeed/article/english/0,14183,360525,00.html 8. http://palestinechronicle.com/article.php?story=20030114081356814&mode=print 9. http://www.mail.com/?sr=signup 10. http://corp.mail.com/lavalife _______________________________________________ Sent via the discussion list of the Campaign Against Sanctions on Iraq. 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