[Peace-discuss] JFP 8/27: "Palestinian Gandhi" Convicted; Wars Degrade Terrorist WMD hunt

Sat Aug 28 07:45:58 CDT 2010

Some interesting and surprising info here -- wind power-radar-Pentagon problems. (Btw, JFP is worth $upporting, and the JFP News Summary is worth subscribing to -- see below. Regular, easy-to-read, well referenced summary of world events.) --Jenifer

--- On Fri, 8/27/10, Just Foreign Policy <naiman at justforeignpolicy.org> wrote:

        Just Foreign Policy News

August 27, 2010 

Just Foreign Policy News on the Web: 

http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/node/693

"Palestinian Gandhi" Convicted for Protesting; U.S. Silent 

Catherine Ashton, Europe's Hillary Clinton, protested the conviction by military court of Abdallah Abu Rahmah for organizing protests against the separation barrier in Bilin. But not only is the U.S. government silent; not only have U.S. newspaper columnists failed to protest; the U.S. press hasn't even reported the news.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-naiman/palestinian-gandhi-convic_b_696884.htmlu

Why Should the Senate Fund "Enduring" U.S. Military Bases in Afghanistan? 

Walter Pincus reports in the Washington Post that the Pentagon is planning military construction for years of U.S. combat in Afghanistan. But the Senate could still refuse to fund it; in 2008, Congress rejected a similar Pentagon request for "long term" military construction in Iraq. Urge your senators to oppose construction of long-term U.S. bases in Afghanistan.

http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/act/afghanistanbases

New York Times video: Dispute in the Negev

Bedouins fight Israeli government plans to remove them from their homes.

http://video.nytimes.com/video/2010/08/25/world/middleeast/1248068915888/dispute-in-the-negev.html

Bacevich: Washington Rules  

Andrew Bacevich's new book, "Washington Rules: America's Path to Permanent War," is a call for Americans to reject the Washington consensus for permanent war, and to demand instead that America "come home."

Get the book 

http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/buywashingtonrules

(The book may also be available in your local bookstore or public library.)

September 24th: JFP "Virtual Brown Bag" with Andrew Bacevich  

http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/bacevichtalk

Help Support Our Work

Your donation helps us educate Americans and create opportunities to advocate for a just foreign policy.

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Summary:

U.S./Top News 

1) The CIA is making secret payments to a substantial portion of Afghan President Karzai's administration, the Washington Post reports. "Half the palace is on the payroll," said a U.S. official. The agency's approach has drawn criticism from others in the U.S. government, who accuse the CIA of contributing to an atmosphere in which Afghans are conditioned to extend their hands for secret payments in almost every transaction. 

2) The head of U.S. special forces says the effort to keep weapons of mass destruction out of the hands of terrorists has been slowed by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Bloomberg reports. Fewer elite commandos are available and their expertise has been degraded by decreased training, Admiral Eric Olson said. They now have only a "limited" capability for this mission, he said. In March, Olson said the threat of extremists acquiring and using chemical, biological or nuclear arms "is greater now than at any other time in history."

3) A Yemeni security official disputed statements from U.S. officials that they may step up attacks against Al Qaeda in Yemen and argued that Yemen is able to fight al Qaeda without outside intervention, Reuters reports. The US role was called into question this week when Amnesty International released a report which said that U.S. forces appeared to have collaborated with Yemen in attacks on militants that violated international law.

4) The U.S. military is demanding to know what happened to $1.9 million worth of computers purchased by U.S. taxpayers and intended for Iraqi schoolchildren that have instead been auctioned off by Iraqi officials for less than $50,000, AP reports. 

5) The Defense Department has become a major obstacle to the expanded production of wind power in the U.S., the New York Times reports. In 2009, about 9,000 megawatts of proposed wind projects were abandoned or delayed because of radar concerns raised by the military and the FAA, according to a survey by the American Wind Energy Association. That is nearly as much as the amount of wind capacity that was actually built in the same year, the trade group says. One wind energy official said the objections could make wind energy less competitive. "It makes investors and banks jittery," he said. "They will increasingly view these as risky projects and push up the financial terms."

6) The Department of Defense has refused to pay for treatment for soldiers who became addicted to painkillers as a result of treatment for war injuries, the Boston Globe reports. In April, Representative McGovern and seven other members of Congress petitioning Defense Secretary Gates to amend Tricare benefits to cover methadone and buprenorphine. In June, Defense Undersecretary Stanley assured the congressmen that Tricare is "pursuing changes" in its policy of disallowing coverage for opioid dependency.

Iran 

7) President Obama has resisted efforts by Defense Secretary Gates and journalists to box him in to establishing a "red line" for Iran's nuclear capacity at anything less than a clear signal of intent to produce a nuclear weapon, Gareth Porter writes for Inter Press Service. 

Bahrain 

8) A crackdown on Shiite political and human rights leaders by the government of Bahrain may signal the end of promised reforms, the New York Times reports. The government said this week that it would no longer tolerate unrest among the Shiite majority, who make up about two-thirds of the population but are barred from many government jobs and face a chronic housing shortage. Allegations of torture and police brutality circulate daily. Bahrain is home to the US Navy's Fifth Fleet; opposition leaders have accused the U.S. of turning a blind eye to the repression.

Colombia 

9) Colombian officials said a U.S.-Colombia military basing agreement that was blocked by Colombia's highest court is not likely to be renegotiated, the Washington Times reports. One official said he is "99 percent sure" the government would not seek legislative approval of the agreement during the current legislative session, which ends in December, and that it is "80 percent likely that there will be no new negotiations over the next year."

10) President Santos declared his support for Mexican President Calderon's call for a discussion on drug legalization, saying that, like Calderon, he was personally opposed to it, but it should be discussed, according to Colombia Reports. Santos said that if California votes to legalize marijuana consumption in a November referendum,  Colombia, Mexico and Peru should have a united response. If California were to legalize marijuana consumption, "how would we explain to an indigenous person on a Colombian mountain that producing marijuana is illegal and take him to jail, or destroy the marijuana, when in the U.S. it is legal to consume it?" Santos said. In 1998 Santos co-signed a letter to the U.N. secretary general, calling for "a frank and honest evaluation of global drug control efforts," as "we believe that the global war on drugs is now causing more harm than drug abuse itself."

Cuba 

11) Cuba has issued a pair of free-market decrees, allowing foreign investors to lease government land for up to 99 years and loosening state controls on commerce to let islanders grow and sell their own fruit and vegetables, AP reports. The CEO of Leisure Canada said the former move was "huge." 

-

Robert Naiman 

Just Foreign Policy

www.justforeignpolicy.org        

Just Foreign Policy is a membership organization devoted to reforming US foreign policy so it reflects the values and interests of the majority of Americans.

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