Ahmadinejad: UN nuclear agency does US bidding: What We're Reading Now
Sep 23, 2011
IRAN
EU Seeks Unconditional Atomic Talks With Iran
Global Security Newswire - September 22, 2011
The European Union on Thursday said it is willing to engage Iran in direct discussions of its atomic program "without preconditions," Agence France-Presse reported.
NORTH KOREA
N. Korea and U.S. to talk on war remains next month: report
Reuters - September 23, 2011
North Korea and the United States will resume talks next month on recovering the remains of American troops killed during the 1950-53 Korean War, South Korean media reported on Friday.
It's not all doom and gloom in Pyongyang
Andrei Lakov, Asia Times - September 23, 2011
An acquaintance recently remarked, "Only bad news comes out of North Korea." Well, this is not quite true. The mainstream media are critical indeed, but this is not a full picture. Across the globe there is a number of pro-Pyongyang news outlets that publish news which presents North Korean life in a favorable light.
UN
Ahmadinejad: UN nuclear agency does US bidding
Anne Gearan, AP - September 22, 2011
ranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad accused the U.N. nuclear watchdog of being in the pocket of the United States and illegally releasing the names of three nuclear scientists who were then assassinated by alleged Israeli-trained killers.
What We're Reading Now
Sep 02, 2011
IRAN
Iran charm offensive fails to ease nuclear fears
Fredrik Dahl, Reuters -- September 1, 2011
An Iranian effort to show increased openness about its disputed nuclear program is doing little to dispel Western suspicions about Tehran's atomic ambitions, with one Vienna-based envoy dismissing it as a "charm offensive."
Iran is said to be trying to shelter nuclear fuel program
David Sanger, New York Times -- September 1, 2011
Iran is moving its most critical nuclear fuel production to a heavily defended underground military facility outside the holy city of Qum, where it is less vulnerable to attack from the air and, the Iranians hope, the kind of cyberattack that crippled its nuclear program, according to intelligence officials.
Afghanistan?. Check, Iraq?. Check, Iran?. Checking?
Mark Thompson, Time -- August 31, 2011
Nice to know Air Force Lieut. Colonel Leif Eckholm is keeping busy in his job inside the inner sanctum of American military power: the strategic plans and policy directorate for the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Perhaps that's why he has just written
The Military Option on Iran: Be Careful What You Wish For
Peter Crail, Arms Control Now -- September 1, 2011
TIME Magazine has recently highlighted an analysis entitled “Invading Iran: Lessons from Iraq” by Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Leif Eckholm, who works in the Strategic Plans and Policy Directorate for the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (the analysis was published by Stanford’s Hoover Institution, where Eckholm served as a defense fellow).
NORTH KOREA
Obama moves to sell Northrop drones to South Korea
Reuters -- September 1, 2011
The Obama administration has begun consulting Congress on plans to sell remotely piloted Global Hawk surveillance planes to South Korea, which came close to all-out war with North Korea last year, two people familiar with the matter said.
North Korea ghost town reflects deeper woes as it woos China
Jeremy Laurence, Reuters -- September 1, 2011
Long grass grows around the idle hotels, stores are covered in cobwebs and a big padlock hangs off the front of the bank at the deserted shopping centre.
Council delivers Merkley petition urging troop cuts in Afghanistan
Jun 21, 2011
The Council for a Livable World, with a cover letter from Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley, today delivered a petition signed by 12,357 people urging "significant troop withdrawal beginning July of no less than 30,000 troops."
Senator Merkley stated:
"As Commander in Chief, you have the heavy responsibility of choosing the path forward that will protect our national security and economic future. I hope that as you weigh that decision, you will consider the views of these concerned citizens who are deeply committed to those same objectives," writes Merkley in his letter that will be submitted alongside the petition.
President Obama is scheduled to announce his troop withdrawal plan on Wednesday evening, June 22. Council for a Livable World will analyze and comment on this important address.
The Expansion of Presidential Power
May 14, 2010
Presidential power is one of the mysteries of the American political system, certainly not justified or suggested in the United States Constitution. The last thing the framers of the Constitution wanted was a king, an American George III, with the power to tax, to levy armies, to initiate wars. Yet that is our current system and presidential power is growing as the democratic spirit weakens under the pressures of maintaining world-wide hegemony.
The ultimate presidential power: only the president can order the use of a nuclear weapon against an enemy he identifies, at a moment he chooses, for reasons he alone finds adequate. To give it practical effect the president is always accompanied by an aide carrying a briefcase containing the authorization codes to fire one or all of America's nuclear weapons. The president is not required to consult anyone. Given the strength of America's nuclear arsenal, the president can destroy the entire human species and end all life on planet Earth. This enormous personal power has belonged to all presidents since 1945.
Now President Obama seeks to expand his solitary power to the domestic economic and financial sphere, seeking control of the money supply for his unilateral use and control.
This month President Obama plans to ask Congress to give him and future presidents the power to delete individual items from appropriation bills. Many previous presidents have sought to seize the power of the purse. Here is where it now resides. The U.S. Constitution, Article 1, Section 7, “All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives…..” subject to amendment by the Senate, the right of the president to veto, and the right of the Congress to override the veto.
Saving Obama and the Democrats
May 05, 2010
Here is the problem for liberals: we need to protect the Democrats from the anger their policies have generated while pushing them to implement the promises they made to win the 2008 election.
The most unfortunate outcome in the November 2010 elections would be significant political gains by the movement led by Sarah Palin and the Tea Party reactionaries. A close second negative would be the takeover of Congress by the Republican Party committed to downsizing and disempowering government from its responsibility to protect the nation and the most vulnerable people from the wild swings of the capitalist market.
President Obama's policies make it difficult to rally the voters who voted for hope and change, his glittering generalities not yet implemented but of special importance to liberals. On March 29, Obama changed federal policy by allowing and promoting drilling for oil offshore California and the eastern seaboard from Florida to Virginia, violating the promises he made to environmentalists. Despite the terrible explosion and oil spill that now threatens vast areas of the US, Obama insists that he will continue the new drilling program once the current crisis has been overcome. The oil companies were preferred over the environmental groups,
In his State of the Union address on January 27, Obama confirmed his campaign promise by calling for repeal of the “Don't ask, Don't tell” DADT policy. Less than a week later, Admiral Mike Mullen, Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a Senate committee that repealing the policy that prevents gay men and women from serving openly in the military was “the right thing to do.” But that policy has not been repealed. DADT is still the law of land.
America's Soft Power
Mar 01, 2010
The United States cannot solve the problems of the world on its own, and the world cannot solve them without the United States.
As the world’s only remaining superpower, America has the ability to affect the behavior of other nations through coercion, economic strength and the power of attraction. Hard power relies on coercion and raw economic power. Soft power influences others through public diplomacy, broadcasting, exchange programs, development assistance, disaster relief, exchange of ideas and culture - everything from Hollywood to Shakespeare to orchestras.
In his inaugural address, President Barack Obama informed all countries, friendly and unfriendly, that there was a new attitude in the White House. He advised those countries “on the wrong side of history” that the United States “will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.”
Dick Cheney's Path to Bipartisanship
Feb 23, 2010
President Obama has finally achieved the bipartisanship for which he has been virtually begging since his agenda collapsed in Congress in the first year of his term. And the Republican partisan who showed him the way was former Vice President Richard Cheney, the meanest gun in politics. In his recent exchanges with Vice President Joe Biden, Cheney opposed virtually every Obama policy except for one: Cheney approves Obama policy in Afghanistan.
Finally, Obama knows how to get bipartisan support: concentrate on military intervention abroad, For generations, the presidents of both parties have unified the nation by fighting undeclared wars all over the world. The parties draw together to support the US troops sent abroad to fight "Just" wars and to establish American military bases, a Roman strategy without the pizza.
Cheney's approval arrives just in time to help Obama replace his failed agenda to reform health care, to regulate financial institutions, to solve the crisis in unemployment. With the Congress in total gridlock over domestic matters, Obama will gain political approval from Republicans and Independents by concentrating on Afghanistan and Iraq, with Iran waiting-on-call followed by likely insurgencies in Egypt and Saudi Arabia. Priorities determine bipartisanship. Cut Medicare but capture Osama Bin Laden.
Obama Needs to Deliver Change
Oct 13, 2009
Obama's very effectiveness as a president is widely viewed as being in serious question. He is unable to convince people that the stimulus program is working. His health care reform program is under attack from a variety of interests. On the Afghanistan war, he seems indecisive.
Combined with his lack of executive experience, his seeming inability to resolve political problems affect his ability to govern. Obama’s quick trip to Copenhagen to lobby for Chicago's bid on the Olympic Games-and then to be rejected-seemed to indicate poor staff work and a trivialization of priorities. Allowing General Stanley McChrystal to lobby the public to affect the president's decision on Afghanistan weakened Obama’s authority. A confident president would have fired the general as Truman did with MacArthur and Bush did with Shinseki. The situation blended into comic relief when Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize while fighting two wars and planning on a third.
President Obama Receives Nobel Peace Prize
Oct 09, 2009
Recognizing the importance of reducing the danger of nuclear weapons, the Nobel Committee today awarded the Nobel Peace Prize to President Barack Obama.
Obama has “created a new international climate,” the Committee said. “Multilateral diplomacy has regained a central position…The vision of a world free from nuclear arms has powerfully stimulated disarmament and arms control negotiations.”
In awarding President Obama this great honor, the Committee has recognized the importance of the President’s efforts to restore American leadership on critical issues of our time, particularly in regard to nuclear weapons.
In his historic April 2009 speech in Prague, the President vowed to pursue a world without nuclear weapons. Words are important, but words without action mean little. Thankfully, President Obama has already taken a number of concrete steps toward that goal by:
Early Progress and Challenges on Nuclear Weapons Issues
Jun 10, 2009
On June 10, John Isaacs gave a talk to a group of advocacy and think tank representatives under the banner of Connect U.S., a network in support of responsible U.S. global engagement through grantmaking, policy advocacy and community-building.
In assessing progress and obstacles in less than four months of the Obama administration, Isaacs said: "To use a playground vernacular, those working on nuclear weapons issues are lucky duckies."
Isaacs pointed out that in January, the Connect US community presented a three point agenda on nuclear weapons issues. The President said thanks, sure I will back these, and raise you several items that you did not call for.
Isaacs added: "Not only that, but we wanted to see high level engagement on our issues. We got that coming out of our ears."
However, Isaacs warned: "But the most important question mark on nuclear issues: our agenda has been endorsed at the highest levels but it is a long way from being negotiated, approved and enacted."
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