Beyond greed
David Keen
February 6, 2007 09:00 AM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/david_keen/2007/02/post_1056.html
"I'm sick of writing about victims," says the agonised journalist
(Jennifer Connelly) in the film Blood Diamond. "It's nothing new; it's
not enough to make it stop." She is surely right: the majority of
western coverage will focus on the "humanitarian" disaster; but
pictures of thousands queuing for food tell us next to nothing about
what is driving these conflicts.
Yet, it is easy to slip from the fantasy that "we" are the solution
(feeding all those victims) to the belief (which has elements of
truth) that we are the problem. There may be narcissism in both
positions, a narcissism that is neatly encapsulated by a film about
Sierra Leone starring a concerned white journalist going head-to-head
with a cynical white mercenary (Leonardo DiCaprio).
Reflecting the reality of Jewish diversity
Tony Lerman
February 6, 2007 08:00 AM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/tony_lerman/2007/02/hold_jewish_voices_=
8=2Ehtml
'Who speaks for minority groups?' is one of the hottest issues in
Britain today. The government has acknowledged this, and made it a
matter of national importance by trying to fight Islamist extremism
through Muslim community bodies it prioritises as spokespersons for
the Muslim community. But this policy of squeezing minority groups
into "representative" boxes is facing a growing challenge. Minorities
are increasingly asserting their own internal diversity and refusing
to line up behind establishment or government-favoured organisations.
For example, Muslim groups dissenting from the views of the Muslim
Council of Britain have blossomed. A largely British-Asian inspired
initiative, the New Generation Network, was launched in 2006 to
encourage a new debate on race and faith.
Is Bush right?
Ian Bremmer
February 5, 2007 08:00 PM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/ian_bremmer/2007/02/is_bush_right.html
Whatever critics at home and abroad may think, the "surge" that
President Bush is planning for Iraq is more than a troop increase; it
is a new and high-risk regional strategy. True, Bush's plan will prove
far too little and comes far too late to stabilize Iraq. But it does
offer the United States some longer-term benefits in the regional
battle with Iran for influence.
At the heart of the new strategy is Bush's decision to take the fight
directly to Iraq's most powerful militia, the Mahdi Army. Under the
nominal control of the militant cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, the group has
become Iraq's largest and best-armed fighting force and is pursuing
its own political and security agenda.
Assault and battery
John Farndon
February 5, 2007 07:02 PM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/john_farndon/2007/02/farndon.html
So it's happened. Britain's poultry industry has finally been struck
by the H5N1 strain of the bird flu virus. And the results have been
unpleasant. Last week 2,000 or so turkeys died of the disease at
Bernard Matthews' Holton Farm in Suffolk. Over the weekend, 160,000
were gassed. For those who have to clear up the mess, it's a
thoroughly nasty business.
What is perhaps most telling about the event, though, is that it has
hit one of Britain's biggest industrial chicken farms. Last year, when
a dead swan was found in Scotland infected with the H5N1 virus, the
alarm went out to free-range and organic farms. The predominant line
was that migrating wild birds were the carriers of the disease - and
the poultry they were likely to infect were those that roamed in the
open. People began to worry about the need to bring chickens indoors.
There was even talk of the demise of Britain's resurgent free-range
and organic poultry business.
Wild for the West
Sasha Abramsky
February 5, 2007 06:00 PM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/sasha_abramsky/2007/02/wild_for_the_wes=
t=2Ehtml
New Mexico governor Bill Richardson's announcement that he is running
for the White House adds a fascinating dimension to the 2008
Democratic Party primary campaign.
Most commentators seem to think there are only two credible candidates
in this race: Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. The other hopefuls,
according to the conventional wisdom, are little more than
curiosities.
From Trident to turbines
Ian Davis
February 5, 2007 05:30 PM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/ian_davis/2007/02/oceans_of_work_from_t=
rident_to.html
The scientists have provided the diagnosis and its now time for the
politicians to prescribe the cure. Last Friday, the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) - 2,500 scientists from more than 130
countries - issued its starkest warning yet on the consequences of
global warming, describing as "unequivocal" effects that are likely to
last for centuries. The IPCC scientists also say that humankind is
almost certainly to blame.
And three weeks ago the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientist moved its
doomsday clock two minutes closer to midnight - the figurative end of
civilisation. It is now five minutes to midnight, closer than at any
time since the height of the cold war. The change reflects the
failures to solve the twin global threats from nuclear weapons and the
climate crisis. The clock is ticking and, like Captain Hook, we can
hear it loud and clear.
Spare the facts and spoil the story
Andrew Brown
February 5, 2007 05:15 PM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/andrew_brown/2007/02/spare_the_facts_an=
d_spoil_the.html
There is currently a proposal to ban spanking children in California:
it has a suitably Californian twist in that the woman proposing it,
Assemblywoman Sally Lieber, bases her position on her experience as a
cat owner, since she doesn't have any children herself. Her vet told
her never to hit Snoop the cat, so - as she told the San Jose Mercury
News - it is obviously even more wrong for anyone to hit a human
child. It's true that Snoop is not her only adviser. She is also
friends with Thomas Nazario, a San Francisco law professor, who seems
to have drafted the proposed law. Nazario's arguments, as relayed by
numerous reports, keep coming back to Sweden and then I just want to
scream.
Sweden was indeed the first country in the world to ban smacking. It
was in 1979, the year my son was born; I had been living there for two
years, and would live there for most of another five. At the time the
law was controversial - of course - but now it seems widely accepted
as a symbol of the fact that society disapproves of violence against
children. That is how it was sold at the time, too. The trouble with
even this minimalist position is that there is no evidence that
expressing disapproval in this way has done anything to make Sweden a
less violent country, either for adults or children.
Kant or cant?
Julian Baggini
February 5, 2007 04:45 PM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/julian_baggini/2007/02/post_1057.html
Forget turkey twizzlers, DVDs, computer games, lack of fresh air,
parental separation, pre-pubescent sexualisation and early-onset mad
consumerist disease. None of these alleged modern ills lies at the
root of the trouble with kids today. No, the real problem is that they
do not philosophise enough.
That is the conclusion you might be tempted to jump to if your powers
of logical reasoning were deficient and you'd read about the amazing
results achieved in Clackmannanshire, where children as young as four
have been given philosophy lessons. The results, allegedly, include
significant leaps in IQ, emotional intelligence, behaviour, confidence
and self-esteem.
Independent Jewish noise
Seth Freedman
February 5, 2007 04:00 PM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/seth_freedman/2007/02/independent_jewis=
h_noise.html
It may be trite to call it noise, but that's my initial reaction to
the two Independent Jewish Voices articles that dominate Comment is
Free today.
I have absolutely no quibble with the principles that this group
stands for, other than the condescension implicit in their school-
mistress-style dissemination. "There is no justification for any form
of racism", "Human rights are universal and indivisible and should be
upheld without exception", "Peace and stability require the
willingness of all parties to the conflict to comply with
international law". Yeah?
Molly Ivins and the spirit of Texas
James K Galbraith
February 5, 2007 03:46 PM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/james_k_galbraith/2007/02/molly_ivins_a=
nd_the_spirit_of.html
The Texas Observer has published my tribute to Molly Ivins. I won't
repeat it here, except for a small part. The "final Fridays" were a
monthly event, held for years at Molly's house until her health made
it impossible to go on.
"I used to go to the final Fridays late, after the slam poets were
done, after the party had quieted down some and mainly the bitter-
enders were left, just so I could sit among the butts and bottles like
a bad child, and listen to the rowdy tales and feel part of our group
- the hard-core liberals in Texas. And just so I could watch her flash
that smile, and hear her call me sweetheart now and then.
Sounding the battle cry
Andrew Murray
February 5, 2007 03:30 PM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/andrew_murray/2007/02/martial_melanie_w=
ants_more_war.html
I know that deconstructing the work of Melanie Phillips may seem a
futile occupation, which is why I would like help with this one.
Blair's Major difference
Edward Pearce
February 5, 2007 02:55 PM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/edward_pearce/2007/02/bblairs_major_dif=
ference.html
Every other journalist, when remarking upon the late, late days of
Tony Blair, has made comparisons with the similar ending of John
Major's government and the absolute refusal of things to go right.
That's fine, but it is more instructive (and a revelation) to compare
both governments and the men themselves.
Tony Blair came to power with a majority of 181. John Major actually
contained the Labour swing to a fraction of 1% in 1992. But we had
discovered targeting and he was left with a majority of just over 30.
The Tory party in parliament then suffered an unprecedented number of
deaths and entrances: suicide, accidental death, ordinary death.
Little and dwindling majorities are hell, and little and dwindling
loyalty makes hell hotter. The temperature rises again with the active
enmity of your influential predecessor leading, for no good reason,
the suicidal disloyalty of a party faction. The ragings of Thatcher's
late souped-up and affronted ego was quite exceptional.
The Goldilocks enigma
Inayat Bunglawala
February 5, 2007 02:15 PM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/inayat_bunglawala/2007/02/the_goldilock=
s_enigma.html
In his latest book, the scientist and writer, Paul Davies, takes a
look at why - like Goldilocks' porridge - the laws of physics appear
to be "just right" for life to exist in the universe.
If certain physical constants such as Newton's gravitational constant,
G, or the value of the strong and electromagnetic forces in atomic
nuclei, were only very slightly different from what they actually are,
Davies says that the universe would have been quite unsuitable to
support any form of life. Currently, there is no evidence that their
values are anything other than a series of remarkable coincidences and
it is understandable why many believers see in this a sign of a
Creator.
Israel and the A-word
David Goldberg
February 5, 2007 01:00 PM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/david_goldberg/2007/02/hold_jewish_voic=
es_5.html
Former US president Jimmy Carter has been in deep trouble with the
large, powerful and vociferous American Jewish community for his
recent book Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid.
Critics have accused him of anti-semitism, plagiarism and factual
inaccuracies and objected to his assertion that pro-Israel lobbyists
have effectively stifled debate in the USA - but what riled them most
was his use of the word "apartheid" to describe the human rights
abuses committed by Israel in the occupied territories. The word is
guaranteed to offend Jewish sensitivities, given Judaism's insistent
teachings about justice and human rights and the prominent role played
by South African Jewish activists in helping to topple that odious
regime.
It's not too late to talk
Alex Bigham
February 5, 2007 11:55 AM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/alex_bigham/2007/02/post_1053.html
The diplomatic clock is ticking down to a confrontation with Iran, but
a major report out today signed by a broad coalition of NGOs, trade
unions and faith groups argues that there is still time to talk.
A few weeks ago, the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, moved the hands of
its Doomsday clock forward to five minutes to midnight. One of the
main reasons is that the world seems on the brink of an avoidable
conflict over WMD in the Middle East - this time with Iran.
War and skis
Jeremy Leggett
February 5, 2007 10:46 AM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/jeremy_leggett/2007/02/day_one_my_last_=
day_of_skiing.html
The Intergovernmental Panel's warning was all across the front pages
and TV news this morning. Apparently even the US networks turned up in
force to the scientists' news conference in Paris. For the Guardian's
man on the spot, the graphs said it all. "The words 'hell' and
'handcart' came to mind," he wrote. I guess no amount of evidence will
ever be persuasive for some of the contrarian contributors to my blog
threads. But in the history books of the future, I suspect yesterday
will prove to be the day that all reasonable doubt was set aside.
In my last blog entry, I likened the response needed from society to
mobilisation for war. A number of contributors have taken issue with
that view. Wary of machismo, and having a good few friends who hate
militarism in all forms, I have reflected. But as a metaphor, the more
I consider it the more it seems appropriate. All of a sudden, we need
Spitfires and Lancasters, not racing cars and yachts. We need
Churchills, not Chamberlains. Project the impacts of drought on
agriculture into the future - not to mention peak oil - and we are
going to need rationing, and land armies. To say nothing of the
communal can-do, must-do, spirit my parents reminisce about from 1939.
A 9/11 conspiracy virus is sweeping the world, but it has no basis in
fact
http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,2006529,00.html
Loose Change is a sharp, slick film with an authoritative voiceover,
but it drowns the truth in an ocean of nonsense
George Monbiot
Tuesday February 6, 2007
The Guardian
There is a virus sweeping the world. It infects opponents of the Bush
government, sucks their brains out through their eyes and turns them
into gibbering idiots. First cultivated in a laboratory in the US, the
strain reached these shores a few months ago. In the past fortnight,
it has become an epidemic. Scarcely a day now passes without someone
possessed by this sickness, eyes rolling, lips flecked with foam,
trying to infect me.
These moderates are in fact fanatics, torturers and killers
http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,2006658,00.html
The longer the US and Britain back dictatorial regimes in the Middle
East the more explosive the region will become
Mai Yamani
Tuesday February 6, 2007
The Guardian
Politicians, especially in times of geopolitical deadlock, adopt a
word or a concept to sell to the public. In 1973, at the peak of cold-
war tensions, the US secretary of state, Henry Kissinger, coined the
term "detente". Such words gain a currency and become useful political
tools to escape policy quagmires. As the Middle East lurches from
crisis to crisis, Tony Blair, George Bush and Condoleezza Rice
compulsively repeat the word "moderates" to describe their allies in
the region. But the concept of moderate is merely the latest attempt
to market a failed policy, while offering a facile hedge against
accusations of Islamophobia and anti-Islamic policies.
Liberty is our best defence
http://www.guardian.co.uk/comment/story/0,,2006620,00.html
The Archbishop of York says Britain is turning into a police state. He
does have a point
David Davis
Tuesday February 6, 2007
The Guardian
The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, yesterday compared the
government of this country with Uganda, his country of birth, under
Idi Amin, and described Britain as veering towards a police state. I
would not put it so starkly, but he does have a point.
It is little more than a year since Tony Blair tried to tell us that
the right to lock people up without trial for 90 days was essential to
our security. The claim came in the aftermath of a terrorist attack
that left more than 50 dead. This same claim was again made last week
- after frightening accounts of a plot to behead British citizens were
splashed across the front pages. So it is timely to consider how much
truth there was in those bald assertions last year. Are such draconian
measures necessary? Indeed, are they effective at all, or could they
have the opposite effect to that intended?
It's the war, stupid
http://www.guardian.co.uk/leaders/story/0,,2006520,00.html
Leader
Tuesday February 6, 2007
The Guardian
Whatever the question you ask in American politics right now, the
answer always comes back the same - it's the war, stupid. George
Bush's federal budget plan for 2008, released in Washington yesterday,
is no exception to that rule. The budget calls on Congress for
supplementary funding for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan for the
current fiscal year, bringing the 2006-07 out-turn to $165bn (not far
short of what this country spends annually on the NHS). Then, for
2007-08 - the last full fiscal year of the Bush presidency - the war
is projected to consume a further $145bn. The total falls sharply to
$50bn in 2008-09 and finally disappears to nothing at all thereafter.
If you think you may have heard this before, the answer is that you
have. A big push now, sustained throughout next year, and then all
scaled down to nothing in the year Mr Bush's successor moves into the
White House. It is precisely the same optimistic "one last heave"
scenario that Mr Bush offered Americans last month and which sceptical
senators from both parties were preparing to reject last night. As an
exercise in political fantasy, it is hard to beat.
Children of war: the generation traumatised by violence in Iraq
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,2006738,00.html
Growing up in a war zone takes its toll as young play games of murder
and mayhem
Michael Howard in Baghdad
Tuesday February 6, 2007
The Guardian
The car stopped at the makeshift checkpoint that cut across the muddy
backstreet in western Baghdad. A sentry appeared. "Are you Sunni or
Shia?" he barked, waving his Kalashnikov at the driver. "Are you with
Zarqawi or the Mahdi army?"
"The Mahdi army," the driver said. "Wrong answer," shouted the sentry,
almost gleefully. "Get him!"
Bush slashes aid to poor to boost Iraq war chest
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,2006618,00.html
=B7 Bill for Iraq conflict will soon overtake Vietnam
=B7 $78bn squeeze on medical care for elderly and poor
Ewen MacAskill in Washington
Tuesday February 6, 2007
The Guardian
President George Bush is proposing to slash medical care for the poor
and elderly to meet the soaring cost of the Iraq war.
Mr Bush's $2.9 trillion (=A31.5 trillion) budget, sent to Congress
yesterday, includes $100bn extra for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars for
this year, on top of $70bn already allocated by Congress and $141.7bn
next year. He is planning an 11.3% increase for the Pentagon. Spending
on the Iraq war is destined to top the total cost of the 13-year war
in Vietnam.
Fears of new civil war increase as Lebanese political factions rearm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/syria/story/0,,2006624,00.html
=B7 Gun sales triple since start of opposition protests
=B7 Anniversary of Hariri's death may prompt clashes
Clancy Chassay in Beirut
Tuesday February 6, 2007
The Guardian
Gun sales in Lebanon have tripled since the current standoff between
the government and the Hizbullah-led opposition began, prompting
concern that political factions are rearming.
The increased presence of gunmen on the streets of the capital,
Beirut, and reports of fighters loyal to the Sunni-dominated
government being trained overseas has heightened fears of a return to
civil war, which ravaged Lebanon from 1975 to 1990. Gunfights last
month, some involving the army, left six civilians dead and more than
150 wounded.
Bush slashes aid to poor to boost Iraq war chest
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,,2006617,00.html
=B7 Bill for Iraq conflict will soon overtake Vietnam
=B7 $78bn squeeze on medical care for elderly and poor
Ewen MacAskill in Washington
Tuesday February 6, 2007
The Guardian
President George Bush is proposing to slash medical care for the poor
and elderly to meet the soaring cost of the Iraq war.
Mr Bush's $2.9 trillion (=A31.5 trillion) budget, sent to Congress
yesterday, includes $100bn extra for the Iraq and Afghanistan wars for
this year, on top of $70bn already allocated by Congress and $141.7bn
next year. He is planning an 11.3% increase for the Pentagon. Spending
on the Iraq war is destined to top the total cost of the 13-year war
in Vietnam.
Kvas is it! Coke taps Soviet brew
http://www.guardian.co.uk/russia/article/0,,2006530,00.html
Tom Parfitt in Moscow
Tuesday February 6, 2007
The Guardian
It is seen as a quintessentially Russian item, on a par with vodka,
felt boots and troikas. But now Coca-Cola, the ultimate symbol of
western capitalism, is to start producing kvas, the Russian drink made
from fermented bread which is sometimes called "the Coke of
Communism".
The soft drinks giant is in talks with beverage companies in Moscow
over bottling the drink, a murky concoction that is often sold from
tankers in the street.
An afternoon of science in Africa
http://education.guardian.co.uk/egweekly/story/0,,2006249,00.html
African leaders see the light on science
Linda Nordling
Tuesday February 6, 2007
The Guardian
At long last, the presidents came. Filing out of the UN buildings in
Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, a handful of the leaders attending
the 8th African Union heads of state summit last week deigned to visit
the exhibition by African scientists on their way to a gala dinner.
For the scientists hosting stands, it was a welcome payoff after
almost a week of uncertainty. "The leaders are not scientists," said
Robson Mafoti, who heads a research lab in Zimbabwe. "They need to be
educated. I think it's up to us to do it."
"You must write about the science exhibition," said Calestous Juma,
the Harvard professor of international development. As he opened the
part of the summit devoted to science, Juma said enthusiasm for
science had been key in building the Asian tiger economies.
"Latecomers tend to grow faster than frontrunners, which should give
you hope to grow as fast as China, if not faster."
Fatah and Hamas meet in 'last chance' for peace
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/middle_east/article2241459.ece
By Donald Macintyre in Gaza City
Published: 06 February 2007
The leaderships of the two rival Palestinian factions are due to meet
in Mecca today for Saudi-brokered talks which could be the last chance
to prevent a bloody and open-ended escalation of their internal
conflict.
With one militant leader predicting that failure of the talks will be
" considered a decision to go to civil war", the Palestinian
President, Mahmoud Abbas, and the Damascus-based head of Hamas's
political bureau, Khaled Mashaal, will lead delegations in an effort
to agree a coalition " government of national unity".
Republicans block debate on troops
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/article2241495.ece
By Rupert Cornwell
Published: 06 February 2007
Republicans in the Senate blocked not only a vote, but even a debate,
last night on a bipartisan resolution opposing President Bush's troop
"surge" in Iraq - dealing a big blow to critics of the war, and
defying the will of the electorate as expressed in last November's mid-
term Congressional elections.
In the crucial procedural vote, the Democratic-driven proposal
mustered a majority of 49 votes to 47, but far short of the 60
required to end a filibuster and bring the resolution to the Senate
floor. The measure was non-binding and Mr Bush had made clear he would
ignore it. But its passage would have been a clear and humiliating
repudiation of his policy
School halls of fame
Oli de Botton
February 6, 2007 10:00 AM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/oli_de_botton/2007/02/post_1058.html
A discussion in Year 11 English yesterday showed the emptiness of
modern entertainment. Some of my more errant students felt it
necessary to dissect the complex psychological sub-plot involved in
Project Catwalk. This is a programme that, as far as I can tell,
involves select experts trying to make "ordinary folk" into "super-
designers". Aside from the sheer predictability of the formula -
"people living tough lives, beating the odds to become stars" - the
notion that this reflects reality in any way is ludicrous. The
hackneyed and obvious point is that reality TV is so far removed from
reality that it becomes a dissent into farce. However, in response to
my middle-class smug challenge, we collectively came up with a
solution.
How about a TV show about real life that tries to do something about
the tough lives that programmes like Big Brother and X-Factor exploit?
Rather than taking pleasure in showing people fail, why not see if TV
can help people succeed? Let's have a programme that puts the best and
brightest in charge of a challenging but vital institution and gives
them time to turn it around. A school would be a perfect host for such
a venture. An institution that can produce painful humour and sorrow
in equal measure, and that can, in certain circumstances, change the
life chances of young people. The project would provide heart-rending
entertainment and the real possibility of social good.
The aftertaste of cheap meat
Joyce D'Silva
February 6, 2007 09:30 AM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/joyce_dsilva/2007/02/dsilva.html
Attention has been narrowly focused on the Suffolk farm where the
current outbreak of avian flu has occurred. But what do we know about
turkey farming - or poultry production in general? How are the birds
bred and kept the intensive poultry farms which provide ever cheaper
meat for our supermarkets and shopping baskets?
Turkeys, whose wild cousins still live and fly in the forests of North
America, have been bred over the years to grow ever larger. The
breeding birds are now so huge and have such unnatural amounts of
breast meat - that's where the profit lies - that they can no longer
mate naturally. The solution? Artificial insemination. This means
that, in spite of public distaste and legal prohibitions on
bestiality, we actually employ people to masturbate turkey cocks on a
regular basis - although the industry prefers to use the innocuous
term "milking".
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