Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Thursday, August 26, 2010
The Middle East Peace Process and the Threat to Peace
When we talk about the Middle East, we talk about the Arab states, Palestinians, the Gaza strip, oil and most specially Israel. The history of the Middle East dates back in Ancient times when various religions such as Christianity, Islam and Judaism were first founded. But perhaps the most famous and most significant event worth mentioning is the continued conflict between Israel, the Arab league and several neighboring states as well. With Palestinians trying to claim back their land (Israel), it is certainly a very complicated task to settle both parties.
The 2008-2009 Gaza war is a perfect example on how unstable and unpredictable the situation is in the Middle East. The Hamas and other Palestinian groups used the Gaza strip to fire thousands of rockets aiming at hitting the cities in Israel and inflicting significant amount of damage and casualties. Because of the danger it imposed to its people, Israel immediately staged a massive invasion aiming at capturing Gaza and preventing any further missile attacks to Israel. There was widespread bloodbath with over 1000 civilians losing their lives and over 5000 getting wounded. The Arab states strongly condemned Israel and even tagged the event as the Gaza Massacre.
And just recently, yet another conflict has erupted with the Israeli armed forces attacking the Gaza Freedom Flotilla. The flotilla explained that they wanted to deliver precious supplies of food and other essential materials to the people of Gaza. The raid claimed the lives of 8 Turkish and 1 Turkish-American passengers. After the event, Israel faced widespread criticisms for violating international law as it resulted in the loss of lives. This event has also deteriorated the Turkish and Israel relations as Turkish citizens lost their lives during the raid.
There is also a growing pressure to the United States to take a stand in preventing any further conflict and maintain the Middle East peace process. As a close ally of Israel but also has growing relations with some Arab states, the U.S. is torn in preserving its foreign relations with these countries that is why it is being very careful with its decisions especially if it will affect the other.
American writer George Will argued that the greatest threat to peace in the Middle East is the peace process. The fact that the Palestinians deny the very existence of Israel is already a proper indication that there will always be conflict as long as Israel is around. The peace process has been going around for decades now without gaining any significant results.
The 2008-2009 Gaza war is a perfect example on how unstable and unpredictable the situation is in the Middle East. The Hamas and other Palestinian groups used the Gaza strip to fire thousands of rockets aiming at hitting the cities in Israel and inflicting significant amount of damage and casualties. Because of the danger it imposed to its people, Israel immediately staged a massive invasion aiming at capturing Gaza and preventing any further missile attacks to Israel. There was widespread bloodbath with over 1000 civilians losing their lives and over 5000 getting wounded. The Arab states strongly condemned Israel and even tagged the event as the Gaza Massacre.
And just recently, yet another conflict has erupted with the Israeli armed forces attacking the Gaza Freedom Flotilla. The flotilla explained that they wanted to deliver precious supplies of food and other essential materials to the people of Gaza. The raid claimed the lives of 8 Turkish and 1 Turkish-American passengers. After the event, Israel faced widespread criticisms for violating international law as it resulted in the loss of lives. This event has also deteriorated the Turkish and Israel relations as Turkish citizens lost their lives during the raid.
There is also a growing pressure to the United States to take a stand in preventing any further conflict and maintain the Middle East peace process. As a close ally of Israel but also has growing relations with some Arab states, the U.S. is torn in preserving its foreign relations with these countries that is why it is being very careful with its decisions especially if it will affect the other.
American writer George Will argued that the greatest threat to peace in the Middle East is the peace process. The fact that the Palestinians deny the very existence of Israel is already a proper indication that there will always be conflict as long as Israel is around. The peace process has been going around for decades now without gaining any significant results.
Evaluating the Results of the Stimulus Fund
After suffering significant losses mostly economically from the recent economic recession, Pres. Obama ordered the passing of the economic stimulus bill which provides funds to various financial institutions and also to fund the basic social services of the government. The bill was aimed to create more jobs and to promote rapid consumer spending as a way to stimulate economic growth and get the country out of the recession. Of the over $800 billion stimulus fund, $100 billion was spent for the development of innovative technologies which the government treats as equally important in generating more jobs and improving healthcare, transportation and energy efficiency.
But despite of the level of positivity that the present administration has declared unto this stimulus funding, there are drawbacks and flaws that went unnoticed. Take for example the claims of the government that the stimulus funding doubled the U.S. renewable energy generation capacity and renewable manufacturing capacity by 2012. The truth is the fact that it has doubled isn’t meaningful at all as we are still uncertain of its results in years to come. It is still difficult to predict and project if the growth will continue in years to come.
With regards to health and information technology, the government also claimed that the stimulus law provided a significant boost in creating electronic health records, computerizing medicine prescriptions and conducting remote treatments to patients who live in hard to reach locations. Much of the computerization of health documents and health records are still in its early stages. It is still prone to errors and glitches which will surface in years to come. Also, much of the funds haven’t still utilized while there is still no system qualified and certified enough to satisfy the needed capabilities of the health department.
There are also assumptions that the $8 billion allocated to the creation of a high-speed rail will yield favorable results in the field of transportation. In reality, not all projects will be reaching the required speed of trains as some would prefer upgrading the existing freight rail tracks with speeds up to 110 mph. The speed is considered way short compared to the standards of other countries. There is also the challenge to the meet the 2017 deadline in spending all the funds brought by the recovery act. While the U.S. is capable of manufacturing passenger rail cars, it will take years to design and test newer models of rail cars which can satisfy the high safety standards of the U.S. society.
While the stimulus act is proven to be of great help for the recovery of the U.S. economy, there are still instances where results are irrelevant in measuring success as it is still too early to tell. The government should conduct an extensive review unto these programs in order to ensure that the funds used in these programs are reaping better and favorable results. It is also equally important to provide transparency in where and how will these funds be used.
But despite of the level of positivity that the present administration has declared unto this stimulus funding, there are drawbacks and flaws that went unnoticed. Take for example the claims of the government that the stimulus funding doubled the U.S. renewable energy generation capacity and renewable manufacturing capacity by 2012. The truth is the fact that it has doubled isn’t meaningful at all as we are still uncertain of its results in years to come. It is still difficult to predict and project if the growth will continue in years to come.
With regards to health and information technology, the government also claimed that the stimulus law provided a significant boost in creating electronic health records, computerizing medicine prescriptions and conducting remote treatments to patients who live in hard to reach locations. Much of the computerization of health documents and health records are still in its early stages. It is still prone to errors and glitches which will surface in years to come. Also, much of the funds haven’t still utilized while there is still no system qualified and certified enough to satisfy the needed capabilities of the health department.
There are also assumptions that the $8 billion allocated to the creation of a high-speed rail will yield favorable results in the field of transportation. In reality, not all projects will be reaching the required speed of trains as some would prefer upgrading the existing freight rail tracks with speeds up to 110 mph. The speed is considered way short compared to the standards of other countries. There is also the challenge to the meet the 2017 deadline in spending all the funds brought by the recovery act. While the U.S. is capable of manufacturing passenger rail cars, it will take years to design and test newer models of rail cars which can satisfy the high safety standards of the U.S. society.
While the stimulus act is proven to be of great help for the recovery of the U.S. economy, there are still instances where results are irrelevant in measuring success as it is still too early to tell. The government should conduct an extensive review unto these programs in order to ensure that the funds used in these programs are reaping better and favorable results. It is also equally important to provide transparency in where and how will these funds be used.
Dismantling Drug Cartels Through Legalization
Because of its unfavorable psychological effects to humans and its direct linkage to increasing crime rates in cities, illegal drugs has been widely banned and criminalized by most countries such as the United States of America, Mexico and the United Kingdom. In Mexico, there is an ongoing war between the government of Mexico and the drug cartels responsible for the distribution of these illegal drugs. The Mexican drug cartels are such a big concern to the U.S. society as they are responsible for most of the wholesale illicit drug market in the United States.
The war in Illegal drugs has evolved over the years. Today, drug cartels and drug trafficking organizations are now powerful enough to wage an armed conflict against the government. These organizations are now strongly considering the acquisition of tanks, strong firearms and hand grenades to kill everyone that blocks their path. Mexico has become a dangerous place as even police officers and drug narcotic agents are killed almost as immediately. The deaths in Tijuana are considered higher than the death tolls in Baghdad, Iraq.
Police officers are often given a choice: either to accept bribery and allow these cartels to operate or reject them and suffer death. The streets of Mexico are not anymore safe as frequent stabbing, murder and mutilations are seen frequently. These acts are initiated by drug cartels to warn any people who want to get in their way. Illegal drug trafficking has grown into a widely profitable business being able to generate income that almost as big as the income of a U.S. state.
There is a growing movement in Mexico which aims to legalize the use of these illegal drugs. There reasons are based on the assumption that drug cartels will lose tremendous amounts of profit when they encounter stiff competition. The reason why these drug cartels are so powerful is because they control much of the supply needed to satisfy the huge demand of the world. If you legalize these illegal drugs, then many more organizations will be tapping this product significantly reducing the profits of these drug cartels.
Mexico on the mean time faces tough criticisms from countries that are previously drug users. There is an intense pressure coming from the United States and Britain to keep Mexico from fighting the war on illegal drugs. There is a universal argument that legalizing drugs will entail into massive usage and will greatly increase crime rates in each city. There is now a tough debate on whether or not illegal drugs should be legalized.
The war in Illegal drugs has evolved over the years. Today, drug cartels and drug trafficking organizations are now powerful enough to wage an armed conflict against the government. These organizations are now strongly considering the acquisition of tanks, strong firearms and hand grenades to kill everyone that blocks their path. Mexico has become a dangerous place as even police officers and drug narcotic agents are killed almost as immediately. The deaths in Tijuana are considered higher than the death tolls in Baghdad, Iraq.
Police officers are often given a choice: either to accept bribery and allow these cartels to operate or reject them and suffer death. The streets of Mexico are not anymore safe as frequent stabbing, murder and mutilations are seen frequently. These acts are initiated by drug cartels to warn any people who want to get in their way. Illegal drug trafficking has grown into a widely profitable business being able to generate income that almost as big as the income of a U.S. state.
There is a growing movement in Mexico which aims to legalize the use of these illegal drugs. There reasons are based on the assumption that drug cartels will lose tremendous amounts of profit when they encounter stiff competition. The reason why these drug cartels are so powerful is because they control much of the supply needed to satisfy the huge demand of the world. If you legalize these illegal drugs, then many more organizations will be tapping this product significantly reducing the profits of these drug cartels.
Mexico on the mean time faces tough criticisms from countries that are previously drug users. There is an intense pressure coming from the United States and Britain to keep Mexico from fighting the war on illegal drugs. There is a universal argument that legalizing drugs will entail into massive usage and will greatly increase crime rates in each city. There is now a tough debate on whether or not illegal drugs should be legalized.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Will the Date of Withdrawal of U.S. Troops in Afghanistan Boost the Morale of Insurgency Groups?
With over 3,000 lives lost during the September 11 terror attacks on the World Trade Center, the U.S. and its allies wasted no time in trying to eradicate a growing problem. Terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda were directly blamed for the incident and are now highly considered a threat to the peace and security of every country. And thus, Operation Enduring Freedom was launched on October 7, 2001 to hunt down and destroy terrorist groups and their training grounds. Along with other NATO countries, the U.S. armed forces have been facing strong resistance from Al Qaeda and from the Taliban Insurgency.
With every American solder getting killed in Afghanistan, the lower the confidence and trust of the American people in pursuing the war. For years, the armed forces have not only faced armed resistance but also harsh criticisms from several politicians, lawmakers and citizens themselves. It is evident that more and more people have lost their patience with the armed forces indicating that the war itself isn’t winnable at all.
After over 9 years in combat and with almost 8,000 allied casualty, the U.S. has finally decided to end the war by bring back home their troops. U.S. President Barack Obama’s announced that the U.S. will begin withdrawing troops from Afghanistan in July 2011. With suicide attacks increasing every day, the troop withdrawal is good news to all the families of U.S. troops stationed in Afghanistan. Some said that it will help prevent any further bloodshed and save more American lives.
But retiring marine General James Conway said that the announcement by Pres. Obama is just going to boost the morale of insurgency groups. It is good to note that the Taliban Insurgency has been mainly responsible for the recent attacks on allied bases which are constantly claiming the lives of many allied soldiers. Conway believes that the insurgency can now wait till the last U.S. soldier leaves Afghanistan in order to reclaim the land back.
While the argument of Conway may be partly true, it is still reasonable to withdraw those troops as the war has been going on for over 9 years without any significant results. More and more U.S. servicemen are losing their lives in foreign soil on a war that is perceived as unwinnable. Many people believed that the moment the U.S. armed forces step foot in Afghanistan was already a big mistake. With the insurgency not going any weaker, it is best to withdraw those troops to save lives and be reasonable enough. Also, with the economic recession depleting the federal budget very rapidly, ending combat operations in Afghanistan will save a lot of federal money which can be used to create jobs instead.
With every American solder getting killed in Afghanistan, the lower the confidence and trust of the American people in pursuing the war. For years, the armed forces have not only faced armed resistance but also harsh criticisms from several politicians, lawmakers and citizens themselves. It is evident that more and more people have lost their patience with the armed forces indicating that the war itself isn’t winnable at all.
After over 9 years in combat and with almost 8,000 allied casualty, the U.S. has finally decided to end the war by bring back home their troops. U.S. President Barack Obama’s announced that the U.S. will begin withdrawing troops from Afghanistan in July 2011. With suicide attacks increasing every day, the troop withdrawal is good news to all the families of U.S. troops stationed in Afghanistan. Some said that it will help prevent any further bloodshed and save more American lives.
But retiring marine General James Conway said that the announcement by Pres. Obama is just going to boost the morale of insurgency groups. It is good to note that the Taliban Insurgency has been mainly responsible for the recent attacks on allied bases which are constantly claiming the lives of many allied soldiers. Conway believes that the insurgency can now wait till the last U.S. soldier leaves Afghanistan in order to reclaim the land back.
While the argument of Conway may be partly true, it is still reasonable to withdraw those troops as the war has been going on for over 9 years without any significant results. More and more U.S. servicemen are losing their lives in foreign soil on a war that is perceived as unwinnable. Many people believed that the moment the U.S. armed forces step foot in Afghanistan was already a big mistake. With the insurgency not going any weaker, it is best to withdraw those troops to save lives and be reasonable enough. Also, with the economic recession depleting the federal budget very rapidly, ending combat operations in Afghanistan will save a lot of federal money which can be used to create jobs instead.
The Government Should Grant Equal Access and Funding to Independent Researchers of the BP Oil Spill
The Deepwater Horizon explosion and resulting oil spill has been widely considered as very destructive not only on the environmental habitat surrounding the Mexico gulf but also for the thousands of business establishments and residents that were affected by the incident. With the large volumes of oil that leaked into the sea, it is widely regarded as the largest oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry and the one of the worst oil spill in the U.S. The extensive damage to wildlife and marine habitat has been a major concern to local residents, environmental experts and to the U.S. government itself.
Because of the major environmental disaster that is had caused, scientists are now scrambling to collect valuable data which will be used to determine the extent of the disaster and effect it will bring in the future. Although the oil blowout has been capped and the surface oil slick already been dispersed, there may still be the presence of toxic chemicals that has combined with sea water. These chemicals are a huge threat to the surrounding habitat and may disrupt the food chain. Scientists believed that despite of the successful cleanup operations, there are more work to be done in assessing the long term effect of the disaster.
But despite of the massive efforts of scientists to conduct research, there has been an unequal treatment with regards to funds, access to vital information and access to key locations in the gulf. Since the location of the oil spill is owned by BP, only those who are directly working for them or those who are working for the federal government’s Natural Resource Damage Assessment program are given enough funding and the privilege to access those important sites. Other independent researchers are discarded or have limited access to the research site.
The results of the numerous will be used to pursue the legal remedies that BP will be facing. Without proper transparency on these researches, expect a one-sided result which will surely favor BP. The results will be in total secrecy without uncovering the truth to the public. Independent scientists are now asking the government to grant them access to affected sites in order to conduct their own research and investigation on the disaster. Without the commitment to provide appropriate funding and vital access, the rehabilitation and restoration of the gulf will be in jeopardy.
Because of the major environmental disaster that is had caused, scientists are now scrambling to collect valuable data which will be used to determine the extent of the disaster and effect it will bring in the future. Although the oil blowout has been capped and the surface oil slick already been dispersed, there may still be the presence of toxic chemicals that has combined with sea water. These chemicals are a huge threat to the surrounding habitat and may disrupt the food chain. Scientists believed that despite of the successful cleanup operations, there are more work to be done in assessing the long term effect of the disaster.
But despite of the massive efforts of scientists to conduct research, there has been an unequal treatment with regards to funds, access to vital information and access to key locations in the gulf. Since the location of the oil spill is owned by BP, only those who are directly working for them or those who are working for the federal government’s Natural Resource Damage Assessment program are given enough funding and the privilege to access those important sites. Other independent researchers are discarded or have limited access to the research site.
The results of the numerous will be used to pursue the legal remedies that BP will be facing. Without proper transparency on these researches, expect a one-sided result which will surely favor BP. The results will be in total secrecy without uncovering the truth to the public. Independent scientists are now asking the government to grant them access to affected sites in order to conduct their own research and investigation on the disaster. Without the commitment to provide appropriate funding and vital access, the rehabilitation and restoration of the gulf will be in jeopardy.
More Americans Now Believe that Obama is Indeed a Muslim
Before his presidency, Barack Obama was a democratic Senator of the state of Illinois. Having graduated at Harvard University law school with Juris Doctor (J.D.) magna cum laude honors, he was then perceived as an intelligent and skillful man. On February 10, 2007, Obama announced his bid for presidency. During his campaign, his platforms with regards to ending the war in Iraq, improving and increasing energy efficiency and creating a universal health care program caught the attention of a lot of people. Obama would then win the presidential race being the first African-American to take the highest position in office in America.
During the early days of his presidency, there was renewed hope felt by millions of citizens especially that the nation has been plagued by a lot of social, political and economical problems left by the previous administration. Because of him being considerably black, there were also high hopes in the restoration of freedom and justice regardless of race. But after almost 2 years in office, it seems that the voting population has been steadily losing trust and patience with Obama.
His inability to resolve the rising death tolls in both wars (Afghanistan and Iraq) have drawn many criticisms from several politicians, lawmakers and citizens. Also, the controversial health care reform bill has also received negative reviews stating that it is unreasonable and will only negate the freedom enjoyed by millions of Americans. Another big issue is his capability to find a solution to the present economic crisis that has left 12% of the population without a job. The increasing budget deficit is also a huge concern limiting government funding on basic social services and also erasing thousands of federal jobs.
But perhaps the most controversial issue that the President has faced is with regards to his comments on the proposed Mosque to be constructed two blocks away from Ground Zero. Because of that incident, more people have developed doubts about the real religion of Obama. A recent poll indicated that 1 in every 5 Americans believed that Obama is a Muslim. Even before his comments on the proposed Mosque, there is already a continued rise on the belief that he is indeed a Muslim.
Various democrats label this as a politically-charged action ahead of the Congressional elections. They also argued that some of the disagreements that pertain to Obama’s religion were linked to discontent of his performance. Whatever the real score is, the degree of distrust to the president is really increasing. I can fully say that this has also something to do with the lack of transparency that the present administration has. If indeed Pres. Obama is really a Christian, then the government should have nothing to hide and show the actual proof to the people. With lack of confidence and trust, the nation will never achieve national unity.
During the early days of his presidency, there was renewed hope felt by millions of citizens especially that the nation has been plagued by a lot of social, political and economical problems left by the previous administration. Because of him being considerably black, there were also high hopes in the restoration of freedom and justice regardless of race. But after almost 2 years in office, it seems that the voting population has been steadily losing trust and patience with Obama.
His inability to resolve the rising death tolls in both wars (Afghanistan and Iraq) have drawn many criticisms from several politicians, lawmakers and citizens. Also, the controversial health care reform bill has also received negative reviews stating that it is unreasonable and will only negate the freedom enjoyed by millions of Americans. Another big issue is his capability to find a solution to the present economic crisis that has left 12% of the population without a job. The increasing budget deficit is also a huge concern limiting government funding on basic social services and also erasing thousands of federal jobs.
But perhaps the most controversial issue that the President has faced is with regards to his comments on the proposed Mosque to be constructed two blocks away from Ground Zero. Because of that incident, more people have developed doubts about the real religion of Obama. A recent poll indicated that 1 in every 5 Americans believed that Obama is a Muslim. Even before his comments on the proposed Mosque, there is already a continued rise on the belief that he is indeed a Muslim.
Various democrats label this as a politically-charged action ahead of the Congressional elections. They also argued that some of the disagreements that pertain to Obama’s religion were linked to discontent of his performance. Whatever the real score is, the degree of distrust to the president is really increasing. I can fully say that this has also something to do with the lack of transparency that the present administration has. If indeed Pres. Obama is really a Christian, then the government should have nothing to hide and show the actual proof to the people. With lack of confidence and trust, the nation will never achieve national unity.
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