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  • An Analysis of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1441

    as Adopted on November 8, 2002 The Security Council, Recalling all its previous relevantresolutions, in particular its resolutions 661 (1990) of 6 August 1990, 678(1990) of 29 November 1990, 686 (1991) of 2 March 1991, 687 (1991) of 3 April1991, 688 (1991) of 5 April 1991, 707 (1991) of 15 August 1991, 715 (1991) of 11October 1991, 986 (1995) of 14 April 1995, and 1284 (1999) of 17 December 1999,and all the relevant statements of its President, PhyllisBennis, fellow at the Institute for PolicyStudies and author of the newbook Before and After: U.S. Foreign Policy and the September 11thCrisis:”According to…

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  • Detailed Analysis of October 7, 2002 Speech by Bush on Iraq

    Thank you for that very gracious and warm Cincinnati welcome. I’m honored to be here tonight. I appreciate you all coming. Tonight I want to take a few minutes to discuss a grave threat to peace and America’s determination to lead the world in confronting that threat. The threat comes from Iraq. It arises directly from the Iraqi regime’s own actions, its history of aggression and its drive toward an arsenal of terror. Chris Toensing, editor of Middle East Report: “This might indicate that Iraq is actively threatening the peace in the region. There is no evidence whatsoever that Iraq…

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  • A Detailed Analysis of the Draft UN Security Council Resolution Proposed by the U.S. Government

    (Latest publicly available version, October 23, 2002) PP1 Recalling all its previous relevant resolutions, in particular its resolutions 661 (1990) of 6 August 1990, 686 (1991) of 2 March 1991, 678 (1990) of 29 November 1990, 687 (1991) of 3 April 1991, 688 (1991) of 5 April 1991, 986 (1995) of 14 April 1995, and 1284 (1999) of 17 December 1999, and all the relevant statements of its President, PP2 Recognizing the threat Iraq’s noncompliance with Security Council resolutions and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and long-range missiles poses to international peace and security, Rahul Mahajan [www.rahulmahajan.com], author of…

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  • UN Security Council Resolutions Being Violated by U.S. Allies

    The following are some of the UN Security Council resolutions being violated by U.S. allies: Resolution 252 (1968) Israel: Urgently calls upon Israel to rescind measures that change the legal status of Jerusalem, including the expropriation of land and properties thereon. http://domino.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/bdd57d15a29f428d85256c3800701fc4/46f2803d78a0488e852560c3006023a8!OpenDocument 262 (1968) Israel: Calls upon Israel to pay compensation to Lebanon for destruction of airliners at Beirut International Airport. http://domino.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/bdd57d15a29f428d85256c3800701fc4/74cff7bff73f9ea1852560c30061d11b!OpenDocument 353 (1974) Turkey: Calls on nations to respect the sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity of Cyprus and for the withdrawal without delay of foreign troops from Cyprus. www.pio.gov.cy/docs/un/security_council/res_353.htm 379 (1975) Morocco: Calls for the withdrawal of foreign forces…

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  • Is God “Neutral”?

    WASHINGTON — Ever since Sept. 11, some American religious leaders have been outspoken in calling for a peaceful response and respect for civil liberties. Their perspectives contrast sharply with President Bush’s bellicose invocations of religious rhetoric, as in his Sept. 20 address to Congress when he declared that “God is not neutral.” “Christians have a ‘just war’ teaching that in theory can be used to judge any war. In practice, the teaching serves to bless rather than judge wars,” said Sister Evelyn Mattern, a program associate at the North Carolina Council of Churches. “For example, the U.S. Roman Catholic bishops…

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  • As Bombs Fall, Critics Question U.S. Approach

    WASHINGTON – As the United States continued with air attacks on targets in Afghanistan, dubbed “strategic military locations” by Pentagon officials, peace advocates found their struggle pushed to the forefront. The U.S. strikes, comprised of cruise missiles launched from remote locations and bomber raids, were initial steps of what President Bush described as a “sustained, comprehensive and relentless” campaign against Taliban forces. According to the Washington Post, the attacks focused on Taliban strongholds in the south of Afghanistan, damaging airports and other military facilities in Kabul and Kandahar. Critics of the campaign questioned the approach behind these “strategic” strikes.

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  • Critics Blast Bush’s Call for “Lengthy Campaign”

    WASHINGTON – When President Bush took the national pulpit on September 20 to address a joint session of Congress, he faced perhaps his greatest challenge since his inauguration. Mainstream media pundits spoke at length of his need to rise to the occasion — to solidify the nation’s commitment to fighting terrorism. With the chamber’s applause still audible, the reports were already coming out. Bush’s approval rating had risen ten more points, to an astronomical 91 percent. His singling out of common citizens — some of whom sat in the audience — had captured the allegiance of skeptics. His calls for…

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  • Rethinking Welfare Reform

    WASHINGTON — With re-authorization of key “welfare reform” legislation due in the coming year, activists are mobilizing to place the rights of minorities and women foremost on the agenda. Many indict the current system — established by the 1996 passage of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act — as a racist and gender-biased structure that keeps the poor in poverty and further burdens disadvantaged families. The five-year-old legislation has in fact reduced welfare rolls. A White House report in 2000 said that the number of Americans on welfare had decreased from 5.5 percent in 1993 to 2.3 percent…

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  • Uncontrolled Burn: How congress is adding fuel to the western wildfires

    As wildfires rage through woodland in the West, critics are questioning the federal government’s role in protecting the National Forests. Recently, President Bush proposed a $175 million increase in commercial timber sales on public lands — a move that, along with a planned repeal of the “roadless rule” established by former President Clinton, has many suspicious of where the Bush administration’s true agenda lies. Big forest fires make the news every summer. Last year, over 7 million acres of U.S. land burned during wildfire season. Many forest advocates believe that wildfires are a naturally occurring, healthy phenomenon and should, to…

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  • Are Americans “Vacation Starved”?

    WASHINGTON — When President Bush clocked out to start on a 30-day vacation at his Texas ranch, a collective lament was in the air from much of the population: “When do we get a break?” The vacation brings to 52 days the president’s total vacation time since his swearing-in last January, a number that dwarfs the average eight days of vacation most U.S. small business employees receive each year, according to Joe Robinson, director of the Work to Live campaign. Robinson, declaring America to be “the most vacation-starved country in the industrialized world,” is one of many people leading the…

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  • Afghanistan: * Just War? * Five Times GDP

    DANIEL C. MAGUIRE Maguire is professor of moral theological ethics at Marquette University and is the author of The Horrors We Bless: Rethinking the Just-War Legacy. He recently wrote that in Obama’s Nobel Prize address the president “hoisted his petard on the classical ‘just war theory,’ a theory that, properly understood, condemns his decision to…

  • Copenhagen: * Rich Dumping on Poor? * Police Arresting Activists

    The Guardian (UK) today published a piece headlined “Friends of the Earth Among Activists Barred from Copenhagen Conference Center: Security intensifies ahead of mass action to invade summit as 115 world leaders arrive for high-level talks.” ANNE PETERMAN Peterman is executive director of the Global Justice Ecology Project, based in Vermont. She said: “The domination…

  • Senators’ Global Warming Proposal

    Sens. John Kerry, Joseph Lieberman and Lindsey Graham yesterday had a news conference where they talked about a “framework” for legislation on global warming. Said Lieberman: “You remember the artist formerly known as Prince? This is the market-based system for punishing polluters previously known as ‘cap and trade.’” DAPHNE WYSHAM Wysham is a fellow of…

  • Obama’s Nobel Prize vs. Policies

    The following analysts are available to talk about Obama administration policies and the advancement of peace: JODY WILLIAMS Nobel Laureate Williams is now chair of the Nobel Women’s Initiative. She recently wrote the piece “United States’ shameful land mine policy: By refusing to join the Mine Ban Treaty, Obama shows disregard for international humanitarian law,”…

  • “The Story of Cap and Trade”

    DAPHNE WYSHAM Wysham is a fellow of the Institute for Policy Studies. She is a content adviser to the new short film “The Story of Cap and Trade.” Wysham recently wrote the piece “Cap and Trade Should Go the Way of the DoDo Before We Do,” which states: “President Barack Obama’s announcement that the U.S.…

  • New Evidence on Honduran Election

    The Real News reports that contrary to the claims of many, including the U.S. representative to the Organization of American States, the official polling data suggest that the turnout in the recently boycotted Honduran election was under 50 percent. See: “Honduran Elections Exposed.” JESSE FREESTON Freeston is a reporter for The Real News who has…

  • Jobs

    PETER EDELMAN A professor at Georgetown Law Center who was assistant secretary of Health and Human Services in the Clinton administration, Edelman is a co-author of the new report “Battered by the Storm: How the Safety Net Is Failing Americans and How to Fix It” from the Institute for Policy Studies. He also just wrote…

  • Interviews Available from Copenhagen

    In an unprecedented move, 56 newspapers around the world in 20 languages including Chinese, Arabic and Russian are publishing one editorial on the urgent need to address climate change now: “The politicians in Copenhagen have the power to shape history’s judgment on this generation: one that saw a challenge and rose to it, or one…

  • Black Unemployment

    KEVIN GRAY Gray wrote “The Novocaine Effect: Obama and Black America” in the recent print edition of CounterPunch. He said today: “Obama said that there’s limited funds at the ‘Jobs Summit’ yesterday, but that doesn’t seem to apply to billions for war. … “By any economic measure the black community is in a severe depression.…

  • Are Obama and Clinton Being Honest About How Afghan War Began?

    “Only after the Taliban refused to turn over Osama bin Laden [did we send] our troops into Afghanistan.” — Barack Obama at West Point, Dec. 1 “[The Taliban] were given a chance to turn over al Qaeda and bin Laden before we attacked them and they refused.” — Hillary Clinton in response to questioning by…

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