Fling off Thy Sadness!

I have been reading a lot lately. I got into a few girly~girly novels, and read one of them in just one day! So I have updated my 50 Books in 2009 list again. I've read 11 books now. I'm slowly creeping towards my goal. I hope I can really make it! Eek! At the rate I'm going, I don't know if it will work. Guess we will see. I think since I'm taking the Summer off from school I will have more time to read books and catch up.

Today is April 1st, and it still snowed here most of the day!!! WTF?! So not cool! Its like some sort of April Fools joke, by the Weather Guru or something. I don't know! But it better stop. This poem is perfect for today:

"Awake, thou wintry earth -
Fling off thy sadness!
Fair vernal flowers, laugh forth
Your ancient gladness!"
- Thomas Blackburn, An Easter Hymn

Tomorrow is The Grand Opening at The Rack. I hope there's not too many people! Ick. I worked at the Sugar House Rack on Saturday. It was interesting. I got to go with Lindsey from work, and she's pretty awesome, so it was good. I'm glad it was her I got to go with. The manager of that store, Bridget, took us out to a cafe nearby, and paid for our food. Way nice. The actual manager of the Accessories department was totally weird though. Our actual manager from the Sandy Rack called while we were on break and wanted us to call her back, the manager at Sugar House told us not to! She's like "oh, we need you to keep working, don't call her back." WHAT? So so strange. Yeah, here, let us disobey our actual manager, sure that makes sense..

I finally watched MILK the other day with Ashley, my sister. I can't believe how crazy this world is! WHY do some people think they are so important, and that they are so great and religious and wonderful, and think it is their right to belittle people that are "below" them!?!? I don't understand. It made me so mad.. and sad.. and happy that we are actually getting somewhere in the Gay Rights struggle. BUT at the same time, I was like dude! there was a proposition (Prop 6) that had similar arguments to Prop 8, and people are still so super bigoted?! Guess we haven't changed that much. I mean, Prop 6 was almost thirty years ago!! Ah, it just amazes me. My sister wrote more about the whole struggle, and the crazy woman, Anita Bryant that was the voice for the Religious Right during the movement. Click here for her blog post about it. All in all it was a good movie, and I am glad that it was made. We all need to be reminded of the different struggles for equality in this imperfect country.

In other current events, the G-20 starts tomorrow in London. I hope that people will protest for their causes peacefully, so that their voices can be heard, and not be overshadowed by not-needed violence and disruption. Although, I would love for someone to be like HEY Why didn't anyone arrest al-Bashir when he traveled out of The Sudan to Qatar, this past week?! Argh.

But the best news of today, I don't know if I said anything recently but I have been talking to my adviser at school about doing an Internship next Spring for my Social Work degree. It will get me so much closer to graduating. Well, last Wednesday, an opportunity came up in New Delhi. I thought it was a total long shot, but I thought what the hell, I'll apply. My adviser called me this afternoon to tell me I got in. So I will be in New Delhi, India from January 2010 to April 2010! Wahoo!! I've always wanted to go to Delhi! Now we're just trying to get my sister over there doing something, so we can go together. I'm so excited!
Just Kidding! APRIL FOOLS! :)

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Three Cheers for President Obama

Major General J. Scott Gration a retired major general that visited the Darfur region of the Sudan with (then Senator) Obama in 2006, has now been appointed as the United States' special envoy to Sudan. Can everybody say yippee!?!? Remember how I discussed this in this post, about how I was excited George Clooney was pressuring President Obama into sending a special envoy to Darfur? Yep, well seems that the pressure worked - I'm glad I signed a few of those petitions. Not that I think it was just me and George.. but man, oh man, I'm excited. I know that it won't make everything better. And, everyone won't just wake up tomorrow and the world will be better. But I really think it is awesome, and a move in the right direction.

However.. it isn't all roses, and frankly Major General Gration has a lot of work ahead of him. Quoting from the Save Darfur Coalition:

The Sudanese government's recent decision to expel 13 international aid agencies has left about 1.1 million civilians without food aid, 1.5 million without health care and over a million without potable water—threatening starvation and disease on a massive scale.

General Gration has his work cut out for him. He will need to hit the ground running and spearhead an urgent and sustained diplomatic push to establish unimpeded humanitarian access in Darfur, as well as sustainable peace in all of Sudan. And we'll need your help again in the days and weeks to come.

But at least many people actually know where Darfur is. (at least they can say Africa.. right?) I remember wearing my Save Darfur t-shirt way back when people would stare at me and be like "Who's Darfur?"

In other Obamaness, the Obama administration also announced today that they are going to start phasing out stop losses. This also makes me very happy. Stop losses are the military practice of holding troops past end of enlistments. According to the Defense Secretary, the military will now be using more incentive-based programs if enlistments need to be extended.

My last cheer for President Obama is his funny-ness. Among a big Senator Dodd / AIG / Stupid bonuses scandal, where many are pushing for Secretary Timothy Geitner to step down, the President instead was full of humor and jokes at the California Town Hall Meeting tonight. Yay for President Obama. His administration isn't perfect... but I think he's doing AWESOME in the things that count.

PS! Obama is going to be on Jay Leno tomorrow night. In case any of you are interested.

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Je pense..

Bullets. I like bullets. As long as they are on a computer screen.. Guns are bad - but we will leave that for another time. On to some bulleted ramblings.

• On Friday piece of shit Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir kicked out THIRTEEN HUMANITARIAN AID GROUPS OUT OF SUDAN. because he was so pissed off about his arrest warrant being issued by the ICC a few days prior (see blog post here). I am so mad! If you want to sign the International Rescue Committee's petition to the United Nations about al-Bashir's actions, click here: http://ga3.org/campaign/aid_sud.
• Then as if that wasn't enough, he toured the city of El Fashir, the capital of Sudan's Darfur region... He makes my blood boil!
  
• Proposition 8 is being re-thought about in the California State Supreme Court. They are attempting to overturn the ridiculous proposition that barely passed last November. The argument is one I agree with: The Majority should never be allowed to take rights away from the Minority and call it "democracy."
• I finally watched the Oliver Stone movie W this week. Josh Brolin did such an awesome job at playing President George W. Bush! The movie was good, the plot was interesting ~but I really think my favorite part was how they were able to imitate all those famous faces so well! My favorite was definitely "dubya" but after that Condie Rice and Cheney were pretty good too.
  
• Speaking of Mr. awful former Vice President Cheney, he is on CNN this weekend on State of the Union with John King. Should be very interesting.
• I know it has been said a lot.. and my opinion is probably obvious to everyone who knows me, but all I have to say is Rush. Limbaugh. Seriously?!?!? He makes me SOOO nauseous!
• I also watched Body of Lies this weekend. It was really good. I love me some Leonardo DiCaprio. Russell Crowe.. not so much. But I guess that is why I was so suspicious of his character during the entire movie. It was very interesting though. That, and Eagle Eye, remind me of each other. Sometimes I'm like WOW we really have that much surveillance? That is actually kind of neat. And then I think of 1984, which I just read a few weeks ago and think.. Oh no..

In happier news. I am so excited for American Idol's Top 13 tonight!

* Je pense = "I think" in French*

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Arrest Omar al-Bashir!

Sigh.. I wish it was that easy. The International Criminal Court has issued a warrant for his arrest. However, he won't be arrested unless he leaves his country of Sudan. Maybe I should call George Clooney,
somehow I'm sure me and him could lure him into a plane and drop him off at the Hague. For more info on the ICC, see my post from last year here; and my post here, about al-Bashir's indictment last July.

Man, it can be so depressing.. I started learning and talking about the problem in Darfur in 2005. Four years ago ... We gotta do something! And, I've showed this cartoon before.. but I really really think it is true, and I really really think that we should all listen to its message.


Sorry to be such a downer. I just really care .

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Random Babble

i was going to post yesterday, but i've been feeling sick, and been busy, and just didn't get to it, so now i feel like i'm bursting with things to say and don't know where to start. first off yahoo for my first day at nordstrom rack today. the orientation today was fun. i really enjoyed it actually, for an orientation of course. they seem so much more together than macys ever was, and that. is. awesome. they also have benefits! i haven't looked to see exactly how much $$ they are yet, but at least they are available. i have medical right now, but i would like some dental and vision insurance. sigh. and they have 401k stuff.. and profit sharing. yeah, they have a real benefit package . amazing i know. haven't seen that in awhile. oh! and THE best benefit of all: 20% off at nordstrom cafe. enough said. if you dont quite understand see here to hear about my absolute excitement over my nordstrom discount.

speaking of money, i got my tax refund today ~ at least federal that is. yay. not that i get to spend most of it on fun things, but man oh man it will be nice to have a little extra money. like today, i had wendys and i had cafe rio with friends last night. even being able to buy those two things makes me happier again. sad. but. true.

our dear president obama spoke two nights ago. i love him. i really do. my favorite part - among many - was near the beginning when he introduced his wife to the audience, and she mouthed back "love you," they are like the perfect couple and i love it. i mean.. usually all we can hope for is a good president in office, but president barack hussein obama is not only a great president but an awesome husband and father. yup. i love it.

i think that the budget is all together good. obviously, there are a lot of aspects to it, and some things i don't even completely understand. but, i think its great that the three top things that were highlited for the speech are education, health care, and the economy. those big three things are truly interrelated, and really will help this country in the long run. there are other things i really don't like, and i hope that we can solve them somehow. like, there will still be a budget deficit in 2012. i am hoping in the finalized budget proposal - due in april - there will be more avenues involved where we can make up that negative balance. but, at the same time, we are in a recession, and our country is fighting two wars. i truly believe that some things are vital. health care. the economy. education. and making sure our service men and women are protected, and that the world is safer is one of those things. especially when we're already in afghanistan and iraq. unfortunately sometimes you have to fix some dumb texan dude's mistakes.

george clooney is coming back to er for the season finale. i am excited. that. is. for. sure. but i am also happy and excited because he was asking congress this week for a special envoy to darfur. i hope it really happens. that would sure make me happy. we really need to do something... according to the un 12,000 people have had to flee southern darfur today. see here for more info.

yay for george clooney. i don't think i ever would have thought he would be so awesome when i first saw him as dr doug ross. haha.

so i have to wait awhile to see dr ross return, but at least i get to watch carter (noah wyle) on er tonight. and american idol. yay for thursdays.

ps~ capitalization is way overrated today.

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What price would you pay for Peace?

If anyone had been watching me as I watched the news this afternoon, you might have seen smoke fuming from my ears, or my eyes bulging out of my head: I was so angry. This is the headline I saw: Pakistani government does deal with Taliban on sharia law. I wanted to scream WHAT?! back at CNN's Campbell Brown (although I do know that she wouldn't hear me). It still makes me so mad.

First let me explain a little about Sharia law, I got the following information from this website:

Sharia Law - source and definitions:

The term "Sharia" (a.k.a. Shari'a) literally means "the path to a watering hole." The Guardian newspaper in the UK describes Sharia as: "... a religious code for living, in the same way that the Bible offers a moral system for Christians."

Within Sharia law, there are a group of "Haram" offenses which carry severe punishments. These include pre-marital sexual intercourse, sex by divorced persons, post-marital sex, adultery, false accusation of unlawful intercourse, drinking alcohol, theft, and highway robbery. Haram sexual offenses can carry a sentence of stoning to death or severe flogging. An eyewitness account of Soraya M, a woman executed by stoning, can be read on an anti-Iranian web site. Caution: do not read this if you have a weak stomach; it is quite graphic.

London's, The Independent ran an article today about the Pakistani Sharia Law entitled, Sharia law is the price of peace in Pakistan. The price for peace?? I'm not sure I think that Sharia law is a "good price" for peace. Who does this really help?? Does it really outweigh who it hurts?

This so called deal occurred in the North West Frontier Province (aka as SWAT: South Waziristan), where the Taliban have been terrorizing the area, with beheadings, rapes, and out right violence - mostly targeting women, notably girls' schools. I can see how you would want to stop that violence. Stop that terror. No one deserves to live like that. However, isn't anyone reminded of what happened in Afghanistan? I remember when the Taliban was just a group that needed to be appeased in Afghanistan. That didn't exactly end well. And lest we've forgotten, North West Frontier Province, SWAT, oh yeah, that's the province with the sketchy border with Afghanistan. That place that former President Musharraf basically handed over to the Taliban in the area. Isn't that nice?

From the CNN article, this Pakistani professor, Khamid Hussain, makes a good point:

Khadim Hussain, a professor Bahria University in Islamabad who studies Pakistani politics, said the government has effectively surrendered the areas to the Taliban, thereby setting the stage for two contradictory, parallel states in North West Frontier Province.

"If you leave them like that and you give ... a semblance of peace in a particular area, what does that mean?" Hussain said. "It means you're capitulating. It means you're surrendering the state to them. It means your submitting the state authority to them because they are running a parallel state."

He said the government's decision amounts to a marriage of convenience made under duress.

And of course this all happens when President Obama's envoy to the region, Richard Holbrooke, is on his way to Pakistan - he's currently in India. That couldn't be just a simple coincidence. Could it?

Modern countries currently practicing varying forms of Sharia Law:

• India: has a dual system, with both secular and religious courts
• The Philippines: also has a dual system of secular and religious courts
• Saudi Arabia: Religious Police
• Iran: Religious Police
• Libya: National laws predominantly influenced by Sharia
• Sudan*: National laws predominantly influenced by Sharia
• Nigeria: has newly reintroduced harsh punishments, such as:
• amputations of one or both hands for theft
• stoning for adultery and apostasy

* like I needed another reason to hate the Sudanese government. (see here)

Sharia Law is considered barbaric and cruel by the European Court of Human Rights. But sure, the U.S. will still be allies with Pakistan. Giving them money. Weapons. Anything else you'd like? I mean, I am all for keeping the diplomacy door open, but this just makes me want to hurl. Yuck.

One last thing, see this blog: http://womenagainstshariah.blogspot.com/ for an interesting read.

He who sacrifices freedom for security deserves neither.

~ Benjamin Franklin

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SALAM

Salam is the word for peace in Arabic, the language spoken in both Darfur and Gaza.

Finally! At least a little more movement and contribution to relieving the sorrow in Darfur. See article: U.S. begins Darfur supply fights. Click here for a History on the Conflict, and here to find out how you can help.

And then there's Gaza.. I was listening to NPR this morning on the way to class and heard an interesting thought, that somehow had escaped me. The caller said that she saw the Israeli strike on Gaza as "one last chance" because they know that they have President Bush's full support in their efforts to take down Hamas. Therefore they have used the last few weeks of his Presidency as a way to strike at Hamas, because they are unsure of what President Obama's view would be. I think that's interesting. Think its true? It very well could be.

I know that it is a very complicated situation, and I keep wanting to write a blog post fully about it, and come up with a completely 100% " I feel this way " statement, but it is hard. It is a disproportionate offensive, that's for sure. Israel has so much more power than Gaza. Which, in reality, no matter who sent the first rocket of attack, shouldn't Israel realize that by putting up such a large offensive and killing so many CHILDREN, that they are really just doing an injustice to themselves? The Arab world is going to hate them even more now. And the Osama tape that came out, somehow it really just doesn't make a lot of sense to me. He doesn't even really seem all that relevant anymore.

Some disturbing facts from this Conflict:

• UNICEF reports 320 children have died, and 1,500 have been injured. See article here: UNICEF: Children bearing brunt of Gaza war; watching this video (also embedded below) makes me sad.
  
• 1,000 total Palestinians have been killed, with nearly 5,000 wounded.
• 13 Israelis have died: 10 soldiers and 3 civilians.
• Israel won't let any media inside Gaza.. it really BOTHERS me. In this article they somewhat explain why, but I'm not really convinced.

Sigh. If only there could be peace.. Maybe everyone needs to take my Dispute Resolution class, eh?

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"Made in China" makes me nauseous

Today, I decided to write a post about why I don't like China. After writing about Sudan, like a week ago, I was like "man, I need to tell everyone why I don't like China. People probably think I'm mean." However, I DO have reasons to not like them, but I also have reasons to like China. For instance, I love Chinese food, I really do. I'm not so sure how much I would love it in actual China though, since they have a lot of fish and things I wouldn't like (besides, I suck at chopsticks). I still remember when my friend, Carmen, thought it was hilarious when she ordered CHICKEN FEET one day and I was completely disgusted by it! That's another thing I like about China, it is where my friend Carmen was born, and I like my Carmen. Haha. Except that she is from Hong Kong... and that's different. (right?)

However, the reasons I can't stand China, overwhelmingly outweigh the reasons I like it. China offers very cheap labor, and strict-and sometimes nonexistent - labor laws, so many corporations go to China to have their products made for cheaper. I personally don't think that this should be allowed in the United States.. these products to be allowed to be made overseas, with less than perfect standards on not only work conditions such as child workers' ages, as well as no regulation for work shifts, and dirty conditions; but also because of the National Security risked by these products. It is not right that there have been so many breaches in recent years. Remember all the pets that died because of the tainted pet food with the common nauseating sticker of "Made in China"? or the lead paint found in toys, where some children died and many more became seriously ill! That is not okay, to risk America's children and loved ones to such dangers. Moreover, more recently, the baby formula crises in China, killed many infants because the workers were trying to make the formula stretch further - to make a better profit, those babies DIED because of money. Fortunately, none of it made its way to the United States, but still! These were innocent children.

I am a big supporter of the Endangered Species Act, and the prevention of poaching and illegal fishing. I don't believe that just because something tastes good, or is a traditional medical treatment, that it is okay to kill animals that are endangered. I believe in respecting the animals. I am not a vegetarian by any means, I believe in eating protein ;) but I don't understand why many people in China are adamant about killing certain animals, such as bears. This is uncalled for, and makes me really sad. It is going t be awful to have to explain to my Grandchildren that there used to be certain bears and wildlife, but they were pointlessly killed. I don't understand that.

Speaking of Oil.. I am now to the issue that probably pulls at my heartstrings the hardest: Darfur. I don't blame China for the fighting. I don't blame China for the killing directly. There were problems and issues in The Sudan long before China had any interest in the area. However, the part I don't understand, is the Chinese government is well aware of what is going on in Darfur now, and they have yet to join the forces with many in the International Community to try and stop it. I don't even care if they never have any interest in Sudan again. I just want them to leave. I want them to stop buying Sudan's oil, because by buying the oil from the corrupt Sudanese government, they are literally fueling the crises. And not only are they continuosly buying the oil, but they are rumored to be providing modern strategic weapons to BOTH SIDES of the conflict. How great is that? Unfortunately, China has their hand in many conflicts on the African continent. It does not stop in the Sudan.

But again, why should I be surprised? I know how China is when it comes to provinces in their own land, think: TIBET. Remember those protesting monks, and how the Chinese guards trounced on them in March? That was great, wasn't it? It was kind of reminiscent of Tiananmen Square. What is it about Tibet that the Chinese need to hold on to? What's in it for them??? (I want to know this answer.. I will find it, one of these days!)

Sigh.. China, China, China. They also ruined one of my favorite things: The Olympics. I have to give it to them though, they had a really awesome Opening and Closing Ceremony in Beijing, it was awesome. Nevertheless, what was up with them cheating when it came to ages I mean, did you see those gymnasts? There was no way that some of those girls were any older than 12. And I could go off about why didn't the IOC find anything in their research, and blah blah blah, but I won't. And i won't go into how there were also rumors about the divers' ages too. I really just don't understand it. Why would you cheat? Especially when it was held on your home stage? Many Chinese viewed Beijing 2008 as a great way of welcoming the world to their land, to showing off the wonder of it. In many ways, I think they succeeded. I still want to walk on the Great Wall, and I still really love Disney's Mulan. I just don't understand how they can be so ruthless. What happened to honor?

To rap up my very long ramblings (OOPS! Sorry!) I would like to say just one more thing. Lin Hao, the very awesome little boy that walked with Yao Ming during the Opening Ceremony in Beijing. He was a little hero during the Sichuan Earthquakes, I think that what he did was very heroic, and very awesome, and perhaps, just maybe gives me a little hope for the future of China. Maybe it's not all bad, Right?

This is why... "Made in China" makes me nauseous.

Maybe I should read this book: A Year Without "Made in China": One Family's True Life Adventure in the Global Economy

Disclaimer: in no way do I blame the Chinese people. I have friends that are Chinese.. I just have some issues with their government. Which, I have issues with my own government as well.. so no need to feel bad.

For an interesting read also check out this article: China's year of tumult and triumph, from BBC News, published Dec 26th of this year.

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Never Again?

DARFUR NOW
Preview for the Documentary, Darfur Now:


This makes me so sad. It's crazy how at the beginning he says, "this is like Nazi Germany." I thought after Hitler's Germany, and the Holocaust we said never again? What happened to Never Again?

Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.

~ Martin Luther King Jr.

I stole this video from my friend Kim, who cares just as much as I do about Darfur. And I am stealing it because I want everyone to know! I don't understand how people can be indifferent and do nothing.

At least Joe Biden knows what he's talking about when it comes to Darfur, this is what he said in the Vice President Debate about Darfur on Thursday.
(see Question's transcript here)

I don’t have the stomach for genocide when it comes to Darfur. We can now impose a no-fly zone. It’s within our capacity. We can lead NATO if we’re willing to take a hard stand. We can, I’ve been in those camps in Chad. I’ve seen the suffering, thousands and tens of thousands have died and are dying. We should rally the world to act and demonstrate it by our own movement to provide the helicopters to get the 21,000 forces of the African Union in there now to stop this genocide.
~ Joe Biden
VP Debate, October 2, 2008

Sigh.. and I thought that Sarah Palin's answer in the debate, was the one and only thing I actually could agree with her on. Until I found this article, from SaveDarfur.org. Guess not. Governor Palin had claimed that she was all-for the divestment bill that failed in Alaska, earlier this spring, which would have divested holdings from Sudan in the Alaskan budget. However this article from the Washington Post, also explains that the Palin administration in Alaska was actually against the efforts, not for them; until it was too late for the Legislation to pass. Sounds familiar to that Bridge to Nowhere...

The Alaska Permanent Fund currently holds $22 million in Sudan-linked investments, according to the non-profit Sudan Divestment Task Force. Divestment advocates say the fund does not need an act of the state legislature to divest itself of those holdings. (from here)

China is the biggest contributor to Sudan's economy, fueling the war with their thirst for Sudanese oil. Yet another reason to hate the Chinese.. What happened to the world's moral conscience?

Click here to donate to the Save Darfur Coalition.

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Darfur, and the Olympics

"I am saddened not to be able to attend the Games. The Olympic Games represent something powerful: that people can come together from around the world and do things that no one thought were possible. However, the denial of my visa is a part of a systemic effort by the Chinese government to coerce and threaten athletes who are speaking out on behalf of the innocent people of Darfur."

,says Joey Cheek, after at the last minute, he was denied his visa to goto Beijing for the 2008 Olympics.

Joey Cheek, who was a 2006 Olympic speed skating gold medalist has not been shy about his opinions of China's contribution to the violence in Darfur. So what? They put a muzzle on him? Joey Cheek is the president, and co-founder of Team Darfur, an international coalition of athletes dedicated to raising awareness about, and bringing the end to the violence in Darfur.

But why should anyone be surprised? China has been supporting the Sudanese acts of genocide in Darfur for years now. According to one report, from save darfur.org, "Sudan buys 90 percent of its small arms from China, as well as big ticket items such as A5 Fantan ground-attack fighter jets. Despite an existing UN Security Council arms embargo for Darfur, China and Sudan are working together to exploit a loophole to keep the arms flowing. Specifically, China argues that it sells weapons to the Sudanese regime in Khartoum, and that it cannot be held responsible if Sudan then sends those weapons on to Darfur in violation of the embargo" Cannot be held responsible? C'mon, SERIOUSLY?!?

This is what Joey says, on his blog.

"This account was actually set up so that I could blog from Beijing, but as many of you have probably seen my visa was revoked by the Chinese government less than 24 hours before my flight was to depart. It is of course disappointing to me, but I am not alone. Brad Greiner, Kendra Zanotto, and Chris Boyles all had visas revoked or denied. I find this very concerning because I believe that it is an effort to silence anyone who is even suspected of disagreeing with the Chinese government.
I remain a huge believer in the power of the Olympic Games to bring people together and to be a force for conflict resolution around the world. The athletes that have joined Team Darfur did so out of a sense that the more than 2 million men, women, and children, who have been driven from their homes in Darfur deserve protection. Brad and I founded Team Darfur because we feel trying to stop conflicts such as the one in Darfur are exactly what the Olympics are about.
The recent media attention that has been paid to my situation has given us a spotlight to focus on the plight of the people in Darfur, but we must continue to fight to find a peaceful resolution to the crisis. The story of this Olympic Games is certainly not finished, but I want to personally thank the more than 25,000 people who wrote to support the athletes competing in Beijing that are members of Team Darfur. I am moved by your words and I know that the athletes are too.
Best of luck to all the athletes - even though I am not there in body, I am rooting for you with all of my heart here in the States!"

Click here to donate to SaveDarfur.org, and wear the wristband.

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The International Criminal Court

There can be no global justice unless the worst of crimes -- crimes against humanity -- are subject to the Law. In this age more than ever we recognize that the crime of genocide against one people truly is an assault on us all - a crime against humanity. The establishment of an International Criminal Court will ensure that humanity's response will be swift and will be just.

Kofi Annan

Okay, so the other day, when the Sudanese President al-Bashir was indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC), I started to do more research on what exactly the ICC is. I am a firm believer in International Organizations, this world is too complicated and technologically "small" for big democratic nations to not join in with the International Organizations, such as the United Nations, NATO and the International Criminal Court. It makes me think of "no man is an island", well, in effect no country should be either. Well, apparently Mr. Bush seems to think the United States should be..

Now some background:
In July of 1998, the United Nations state members convened in Rome, to discuss the possibility of such a court. Kofi Annan, who was then the United Nations Secretary General said this:

Now at last, thanks to the hard work of the States that participated in the United Nations Conference over the last five weeks - and indeed for many more months before that - we shall have a permanent court to judge the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole: genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.

Kofi Annan

This meeting in Rome, is now known as the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
President Bill Clinton signed the treaty on the last day it was available to be signed.. December 31, 2000, and this is part of what he said on that day:

The United States is today signing the 1998 Rome Treaty on the International Criminal Court. In taking this action, we join more than 130 other countries that have signed by the December 31, 2000 deadline established in the treaty. We do so to reaffirm our strong support for international accountability and for bringing to justice perpetrators of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. We do so as well because we wish to remain engaged in making the I.C.C. an instrument of impartial and effective justice in the years to come.

President Bill Clinton

However, after the Bush Administration entered office, on May 6, 2002 President Bush nullified President Clinton's signature. The Rome Statute was to go in effect on July 1, 2002. His claim was that the ICC "may initiate politically-motivated prosecutions against US nationals."

As the United States works to bring peace around the whole world, our diplomats and our soldiers could be dragged into this court," Bush said. "And that's very troubling to me. We'll try to work out the impasse at the United Nations but one thing we're not going to do is sign on to the International Criminal Court.

President George W Bush

I understand that he says he wants to protect our soldiers and diplomats. But if we're not doing anything wrong.. Why would we have anything to hide? It's not like the ICC can just bring up false charges. It has rules, and regulations, just like any other court in a government body.

Human Rights Watch, a popular organization that does just that, watches out and tries to ensure human rights around the world, had said this when it was "unsigned."

Unsigning the treaty will throw the United States into opposition against the most important new institution for enforcing human rights in 50 years

Kenneth Roth

Human Rights Watch

Sigh..

here's a current article discussing the court: www.iht.com

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Indictment for Omar al-Bashir Is it too little too late?

President Omar al-Bashir is finally going to have to take responsibility for his awful actions and be punished for the evil that he has done. At least I hope. I hope that he will be in trouble, that he will be held responsible and will be shown to the world for the awful man that he is. I just hope that something like this doesn't spar more violence in Darfur.. because, frankly, it has taken 6 years for the world to notice the killing and torture that has been happening; and, if a backlash was to occur, I think any reaction would devastatingly be way too late.

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — U.N. officials and diplomats said the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court will seek an arrest warrant Monday charging Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir with crimes against humanity and genocide in Darfur. (from the Associated Press article, click here).

Omar al-Bashir deserves everything he gets. However, the worst part of it all is that it might not end with al-Bashir. He has followers, his goons.. and they may continue the hell that Mr. al-Bashir has inflicted on his very own people. I don't understand why it has taken so long for something to be done, the International Criminal Court is finally recognizing that war crimes have occurred, and that al-Bashir MUST be punished. The worst part is the world has seen things like this happen before, and if we do not stop them, and show the world and the evil men like Omar al-Bashir that the things he is doing ARE NOT OKAY, it will just keep happening. Someone needs to stand up for those people. For those children.

Darfur Conflict Facts:

• has been going on for 6 long years
• 300,000 people have died
• 2.7 million people have been displaced
• 1.8 million children have been affected

SaveDarfur.org has a post called "The Genocide in Darfur - Briefing Paper" that's worth checking out...

The following article was written in April 2006, by Mr. Paul Rusesbagina, the man that is portrayed in the movie Hotel Rwanda. In this article, he tells of how the "lessons of Rwanda" are being ignored in Darfur, and how the world has turned it's back on the region. It's awful.. and I think really, the worst part, is he wrote this over 2 years ago. And still nothing?

Paul Rusesbagina

FROM THE OPINIONJOURNAL ARCHIVES
Darfur
In Sudan, the world ignores Rwanda's lessons.
by PAUL RUSESABAGINA
Sunday, April 9, 2006 12:01 a.m. EDT

History shows us that genocides can happen only if four important conditions are in place. There must be the cover of a war. Ethnic grievances must be manipulated and exaggerated. Ordinary citizens must be deputized by their government to become executioners. And the rest of the world must be persuaded to look away and do nothing. This last is the most shameful of all, especially so because genocide is happening again right now in the Darfur region of Sudan, and the world community has done precious little to stop the killings.

What is happening in Darfur is exactly what happened in my home country of Rwanda, which was left to choke on its own blood from April to July of 1994.

The United Nations took virtually no action during the genocide. A detachment of well-equipped peacekeepers, made up of less than one-twentieth of the American troops now stationed in Iraq, could have easily stopped the killings without risk and sent the powerful message that the world would no longer tolerate mass murders of civilians, a real expression of the phrase "Never Again." But this simple act was deemed, then and now, to be somehow beyond the power of the United Nations, the United States, NATO, the European community and everybody else with the real power to stop another holocaust.

There are now about 7,000 soldiers from the African Union stationed in Sudan, which is mostly an exercise in public relations. They lack helicopters, jeeps and firepower. More importantly, they lack a sense of purpose. There are no clear rules of engagement and many of the soldiers appear more interested in collecting their per diem payments than inserting themselves between the government-backed Janjaweed militia and their victims in the farming villages. The African Union recently said it will stay into September, and a handover to the United Nations may take place at that point. By that time, the genocide will have lasted for three years with a likely half-million dead, or more.

To be sure, part of the debate involves the fear of an Iraqi-style campaign of insurgence against any humanitarian or peacekeeping force deemed "too Western" by the Sudanese government and the Janjaweed thugs. But we should not let ourselves be cowed by these threats. Will we allow murderers to intimidate us away from doing the right thing and saving lives?

Historically, I am sorry to say, the answer has been "yes." When modern genocide has loomed, the United Nations has shown more concern for not.

The real lesson here is that the United Nations is in need of not only reform but also a basic rethinking of its peacekeeping philosophy. World governments must agree that the extinction of a race is a crime worth stopping at any cost, and back up this sentiment with action. And the U.N. Security Council must create a tool that it has lacked for far too long--a small multinational "rapid response" force which can quickly airlift tanks, jeeps, helicopters and troops to spots where the evidence of genocide is overwhelming.

Such a force would not require endless dickering, delicacy and will-testing; it should be made up of no more than 10,000 troops and deployed only in extreme situations, because its real power is not in its gun barrels--it is in the message to genocidal regimes that the world will refuse to overlook atrocities. This would have stopped the Rwanda tragedy from happening, probably without a shot being fired. It could now stop Darfur from getting worse, with similar ease. History offers us another lesson about genocides: The apologies, recriminations and resolutions of Never Again usually begin after the genocide is safely finished and it becomes safe once more to mourn the lack of action. That should not happen this time. The proposed extinction of an entire race should now be considered an override clause to the rule of national sovereignty. Rwanda is over and everybody mourns it comfortably. We ought not to wait until Darfur is over to start saying Never Again yet again.

Mr. Rusesabagina is the author, with Tom Zoellner, of "An Ordinary Man," published this week by Viking. The film "Hotel Rwanda," was based on his personal story as a hotel manager who saved the lives of numerous Tutsis by offering them refuge in the Hotel Milles Collines in Kigali, Rwanda. A recipient of the National Civil Rights Museum's 2005 Freedom Award, he lives in Brussels. (article from this website: http://www.opinionjournal.com/extra/?id=110008204)

www.savedarfur.org

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