- Okinawa hovers at the negotiating table/田中秀征（元経済企画庁長官）財務省の「一人天下」を止められるか
many okinawans
benefit economically from the us presence, especially the construction
companies that feed off lucrative contracts. pro-base candidates have sometimes
prevailed in local elections. but much of the population regards the americans
as more of an occupying force than a guarantor of safety. from time
to time, anti-us sentiment bubbles over. it did so in 1995 after the gang rape
of a 12-year-old-girl by three us servicemen, and again in 2004 when a marine
corp helicopter from the futenma base slammed into a university, exploding into
a fireball.
many okinawans benefit economically from the us presence, especially the construction companies that feed off lucrative contracts. pro-base candidates have sometimes prevailed in local elections. but much of the population regards the americans as more of an occupying force than a guarantor of safety. from time to time, anti-us sentiment bubbles over. it did so in 1995 after the gang rape of a 12-year-old-girl by three us servicemen, and again in 2004 when a marine corp helicopter from the futenma base slammed into a university, exploding into a fireball.
- Mitchell extends Mideast trip to push for Obama-
leaders' political considerations come into play
leadersu0026#39; political considerations come into play
- No title
libya’s qaddafi tells un to abolish security council sept. 23 (bloomberg) -- libyan leader muammar qaddafi told the united nations today to abolish the security council, its most powerful body, saying the five permanent members had created a “terror council” to punish small nations. in a speech that lasted more than 90 minutes and touched on dozens of topics, qaddafi tried to rip in two a pocket-sized copy of the un charter, charging that the council’s existence violated the provision that all un members be treated equally. he called for power to go to the general assembly, whose rotating presidency this year is held by libyan diplomat ali treki. “the security council since its establishment did not provide us with security but on the contrary provides us with terror and sanctions,” he said. “it was used against us. it should not be called a security council, it should be called a terror council.” qaddafi’s appearance was his first before the general assembly and his first in the u.s. since the country was removed from the u.s. government’s list of state sponsors of terrorism in 2006. libya was under sanctions imposed by the security council until 2003 after a libyan security agent was convicted of blowing up pan am flight 103 over lockerbie, scotland, in 1988. the agent was returned to libya last month. other candidates the u.s., britain, france, china and russia are the permanent members of the 15-nation council. libya is among the current temporary members of the panel. at one point, qadaffi said security council seats should go to multinational organizations, including the organization of african unity, the non-aligned nations and the 50 u.s. states. qaddafi blamed the council for the global conflict that has occurred since the end of world war ii. the security council, sometimes referred to as the un’s principal policy-making panel, is the only body in the organization whose resolutions are legally binding on all members. “sixty-five wars broke out after the establishment of the un and the security council, and the victims are millions more than the victims of world war ii,” he said. “were these wars in the interest of all of us? no, they were in the interest of one country or three countries or four countries.” turning to the heads of state gathered in the assembly chamber, qaddafi said, “you are just like speakers on hyde park corner” in london. “you make a speech and then disappear.” more voices urged he said the security council should be replaced by a new mechanism he didn’t clearly identify. he said greater voice should be given to the assembly, where each of the 192 un members has a vote. “the general assembly is the parliament of the world, the master of the world, and no one should object,” he said. qaddafi asked for $7.77 trillion in restitution for the wealth he said europe’s former colonial powers stripped from the continent of africa. he wore a silhouette of africa on a brown shirt under a matching tunic. the libyan leader said he is proud of barack obama’s election to the u.s. presidency as a “son of africa” and called him “a glimmer in the dark.” he praised obama’s call for a reduction in nuclear weapons. obama spoke just before qaddafi. qaddafi used his platform to address a range of global issues, from nuclear disarmament to piracy in somalia. he said the un only objects to the nuclear ambitions of small states, and offered to broker a treaty between somali sea bandits and the nations that fish and dump toxic waste along the country’s coast. on mideast peace turning to the israeli-palestinian conflict, just days after obama urged israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu and palestinian leader mahmoud abbas to build two states living side-by-side in peace, qaddafi said a two-state solution was “not practicable.” “the solution is an arab state without religious fanaticism,” he said. “look at palestinian youth, look at israeli youth -- they want peace and want to live in one state.” qaddafi’s speech was delayed by at least 10 minutes, as the libyan leader stayed in his seat in the assembly hall greeting well-wishers as treki banged his gavel and called in vain in english and french for the delegates and heads of state to take their seats. as diplomats returned to their seats, treki called on security to escort the libyan leader, whom he called “the king of kings of africa” and “leader of the revolution,” to the podium. move un sessions at one point, qaddafi noted that many world leaders appeared to have dozed off during his speech, and complained that holding un sessions in new york caused jet lag. he said he had woken up at 4 a.m. because of the change in time zones. qaddafi arrived in new york yesterday, and it wasn’t clear if he had spent the night at the libyan mission to the un or at an estate owned by developer donald trump in bedford, new york, about 40 miles northeast of manhattan. bedford town officials yesterday told the estate’s manager to stop the construction of a tent on the property where qaddafi might have spent the night, according to the web site of the journal news, a local newspaper.
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- When Obama's tax overhaul is complete there won
michael gerson
a week of revelation
michael gerson a week of revelation
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