Monday, November 29, 2010

Wikileaks' Assange in his own words

The cables show the extent of US spying on its allies and the UN; turning a blind eye to corruption and human rights abuse in "client states"; backroom deals with supposedly neutral countries; lobbying for US corporations; and the measures US diplomats take to advance those who have access to them.

This document release reveals the contradictions between the US’s public persona and what it says behind closed doors – and shows that if citizens in a democracy want their governments to reflect their wishes, they should ask to see what’s going on behind the scenes.

Every American schoolchild is taught that George Washington – the country’s first President – could not tell a lie. If the administrations of his successors lived up to the same principle, today’s document flood would be a mere embarrassment. Instead, the US Government has been warning governments -- even the most corrupt -- around the world about the coming leaks and is bracing itself for the exposures.

Does anyone besides Julian Assange and his groupies actually think he has embarrassed the U.S. more than himself?






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Hezbollah "draining the life blood out of Lebanon"

Now Lebanon Opinion: "It's our dignity too." November 29, 2010.
In truth, Nasrallah is missing the point. All his babbling about US-Zionist projects and the wild theories of Israelis hacking into the mobile network to frame Hezbollah for the Hariri murder may serve his party’s longevity but it is draining the life blood out of Lebanon, and once again Nasrallah has shown that Lebanon plays second fiddle to his own fiendish agenda.
Nasrallah told the graduates that the STL [Special Tribunal on Lebanon] is an attack on the party’s dignity. Does he think Hezbollah has a monopoly on dignity? The rest of the nation is entitled to theirs too.
To read more: http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticleDetails.aspx?ID=219348#ixzz16gAxth4v

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

Lebanon on my mind

Things are not looking good in Lebanon. The pending announcement of conclusions from the UN's Special Tribunal on Lebanon concerns all of Lebanon's neighbors as well. 

US Sen. John Kerry was in Beirut (as well as Syria, Israel, the West Bank, and Turkey) a couple of weeks ago in an apparent attempt to show US support for the UN probe of Hariri's 2005 assassination--and reassure the Lebanese that they will not be left to wolves. Let's just note that this tribunal was requested by the government of Lebanon and is assigned to enforce national criminal laws. 


See also, Michael Young, "Trial or error?" Now Lebanon. Nov. 19, 2010.
Q&A with Paul Salem, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Nov. 22, 2010.


And
Hanin Ghaddar, "Southern Exposure."  Tablet Magazine. Nov. 18 , 2010.
Hanin Ghaddar, "My Grandmother Loves Hezbollah." Tablet Magazine. Jan. 20, 2010.


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Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Michael Young: U.S. looks the other way as Lebanon slides towards chaos

This is a couple weeks old, and still worth reading.

Michael Young, "The US looks the other way as Lebanon slides towards chaos." Al-Arabiya. September 23, 2010.

See also Lee Smith, "Cinders of Lebanon." Tablet Magazine. August 11, 2010


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Monday, October 18, 2010

Mudar Zahran on abuse of Palestinians at the hands of their self-proclaimed defenders

Mudar Zahran, a Jordanian citizen of Palestinian heritage, highlights the hypocritical silence on the abuse of Palestinians at the hands of their fellow Arabs.

"Israel, the Good Enemy," Mudar Zahran. Qudosi Chronicles. October 6, 2010.

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Monday, October 11, 2010

The politics of Gilad Shalit

A cruel lesson in why the everyday morality of decent people often makes for foolish political strategy.




Via Michael Totten.


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