North Koreans and U.S. Take Hard Lines as Talks Open
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/19/world/asia/19korea.ready.html?ref=3Dworld
By DAVID LAGUE
Assistant Secretary of State Christopher R. Hill warned North Korea
that it faced an extended period of sanctions if it refused to abandon
its nuclear-weapons program.
Chinese Success Story Chokes on Its Own Growth
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/19/world/asia/19shenzhen.html?ref=3Dworld&pa=
gewanted=3Dall
By HOWARD W. FRENCH
Few cities have created wealth faster than Shenzhen, China, but the
costs of its phenomenal success stare out from every corner.
Bush Approves Deal With India for Nuclear Sales
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/19/world/asia/19prexy.html?ref=3Dworld
By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG
In return for access to American technology, India must now open its
nuclear program to international inspection.
Crowding People's Market for Cabbage: The Price Is Right
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/19/world/asia/19cabbage.html?ref=3Dworld
By JIM YARDLEY
Markets in Beijing give away cabbage to attract hordes of old people in
hopes that the spectacle will attract more affluent customers.
Europe's Muslims Face 'Islamophobia,' Study Says
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/19/world/europe/19islamophobia.html?ref=3Deu=
rope
By REUTERS
Europe's Muslims also say they could do more themselves to connect
with wider society, a European Union report released Monday says.
Senator Removes His Block on Federal Court Nominee
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/19/washington/19judge.html?ref=3Dus
By NEIL A. LEWIS
Senator Sam Brownback had blocked her confirmation because she attended
a same-sex commitment ceremony.
Making a Life in the U.S., but Feeling Mexico's Tug
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/19/us/19raquel.html?pagewanted=3Dall
By JULIA PRESTON
For Raquel Rodr=EDguez of San Antonio, legal immigration status has been
both a privilege and a burden.
Hungry for Coverage
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/19/us/politics/19pintro.html?ref=3Dpolitics
By ADAM NAGOURNEY
If any more evidence was needed that the Bush administration's
response to Hurricane Katrina will play a prominent role in Democratic
efforts to take back the White House, it has arrived.
Women in Science: The Battle Moves to the Trenches
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/19/science/19women.html?ref=3Deducation&page=
wanted=3Dall
By CORNELIA DEAN
Women have still not reached the top academic ranks in numbers anything
like their growing presence in science and engineering classes would
suggest.
Talk in Class Turns to God, Setting Off Public Debate on Rights
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/18/nyregion/18kearny.html?ref=3Deducation&pa=
gewanted=3Dall
By TINA KELLEY
A controversy has erupted after a New Jersey high school teacher
expressed his religious beliefs in class, and a student taped it.
incoln's Sword: The Presidency and the Power of Words'
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/19/books/19kaku.html?ref=3Darts
By DOUGLAS L. WILSON
Reviewed by MICHIKO KAKUTANI
Douglas L. Wilson looks at the role that writing played in the
presidency of Abraham Lincoln, who used his eloquence to transform how
Americans thought about their country.
A 'Surge' in Wasted Sacrifice
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
0945.html
By Eugene Robinson
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; Page A29
Here's an idea: Let's send more U.S. troops to Iraq. The generals say
it's way too late to even think about resurrecting Colin Powell's
"overwhelming force" doctrine, so let's send over a modest "surge" in
troop strength that has almost no chance of making any difference --
except in the casualty count. Oh, and let's not give these soldiers and
Marines any sort of well-defined mission. Let's just send them out into
the bloody chaos of Baghdad and the deadly badlands of Anbar province
with orders not to come back until they "get the job done."
I don't know about you, but that strikes me as a terrible idea,
arguably the worst imaginable "way forward" in Iraq. So of course this
seems to be where George W. Bush is headed.
Two Cities McCain Stands to Lose
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
0942.html
By Richard Cohen
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; Page A29
Earlier this year a close friend of John McCain gave me fair warning:
McCain was about to become much more conservative, and I would not like
what was coming. He was right. I did not like McCain's speech at Jerry
Falwell's Liberty University, and I think his support of intelligent
design is -- sorry, John -- just plain brainless. But it is not the
supposedly new McCain that bothers me, it's the old one: His incessant
sword-rattling has gotten just plain rattling.
At the moment McCain is probably the most prominent proponent of the
pour-it-on school regarding Iraq. He wants the United States to
considerably beef up its forces there, which as far as I'm concerned is
throwing good money after bad -- providing the insurgents with even
more targets as well. But even if additional troops could succeed in
tamping down the level of violence in Baghdad, we have learned enough
about Iraq to suggest that it would be only a temporary reprieve. The
rivalries, hatreds and vengefulness that are so much a part of Iraqi
religious, sectarian, tribal and God-knows-what-else animosities will
erupt the minute Uncle Sam's boot is off Baghdad's neck. So what's the
point?
'Old Europe' Can Gloat, but Then What?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
0940.html
By Anne Applebaum
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; Page A29
BERLIN -- On the day James Baker's Iraq report was published, I gritted
my teeth and waited for the well-earned, long-awaited, Franco-German
"Old Europe" gloat to begin. I didn't wait long. "America Faces Up to
the Iraq Disaster" read a headline in Der Spiegel. In the patronizing
tones of a senior doctor, Le Monde diagnosed the "political
feverishness" gripping Washington in Baker's wake. Suddeutsche Zeitung
said the report "stripped Bush of his authority," although Le Figaro
opined that nothing Baker proposed could improve the "catastrophic
state" of Iraq anyway.
And then, for two weeks . . . silence. If there are politicians,
academics or journalists anywhere in Germany and France who have better
ideas about how to improve the catastrophic state of Iraq, they aren't
speaking very loudly. There is no question that America's credibility
has been undermined by the Iraq war, in "Old Europe" as everywhere
else. There is no question that America's reputation for competence has
been destroyed. But that doesn't mean there are dozens of eager
candidates, or even one eager candidate, clamoring to replace us.
White House, Joint Chiefs At Odds on Adding Troops
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
1477_pf.html
By Robin Wright and Peter Baker
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; A01
The Bush administration is split over the idea of a surge in troops to
Iraq, with White House officials aggressively promoting the concept
over the unanimous disagreement of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, according
to U.S. officials familiar with the intense debate.
Sending 15,000 to 30,000 more troops for a mission of possibly six to
eight months is one of the central proposals on the table of the White
House policy review to reverse the steady deterioration in Iraq. The
option is being discussed as an element in a range of bigger packages,
the officials said.
Giuliani's Primary Hurdle
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
1410_pf.html
Polls Aside, Skeptics Say GOP Won't Nominate a Social Liberal for
President
By Michael Powell and Chris Cillizza
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; A01
NEW YORK, Dec. 18 -- His national poll numbers are a dream, he's a
major box office draw on the Republican Party circuit, and he goes by
the shorthand title "America's Mayor." All of which has former New York
mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani convinced he just might become America's
president in 2008.
He is showing the early signs of a serious candidacy: Giuliani's
presidential exploratory committee throws its first major fundraiser in
a hotel near Times Square on Tuesday evening, and he recently hired the
political director of the Republican National Committee during 2006. A
Washington Post-ABC News poll released last week found that Republicans
give Giuliani an early lead over Sen. John McCain of Arizona, who is
far ahead of the former mayor in organizing a national campaign.
Pentagon Cites Success Of Anti-U.S. Forces in Iraq
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
0791.html
By Ann Scott Tyson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; Page A01
The Pentagon said yesterday that violence in Iraq soared this fall to
its highest level on record and acknowledged that anti-U.S. fighters
have achieved a "strategic success" by unleashing a spiral of sectarian
killings by Sunni and Shiite death squads that threatens Iraq's
political institutions.
In its most pessimistic report yet on progress in Iraq, the Pentagon
described a nation listing toward civil war, with violence at record
highs of 959 attacks per week, declining public confidence in
government and "little progress" toward political reconciliation.
Paramilitary Ties Implicate Colombia's Political Elite
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
1374_pf.html
By Juan Forero
Washington Post Foreign Service
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; A01
BOGOTA, Colombia, Dec. 18 -- In what has been heralded as a decisive
moment in Colombia's shadowy, decades-long conflict, a powerful
paramilitary commander is to appear in a special court Tuesday to
account for crimes that include massacres and assassinations. Salvatore
Mancuso's testimony will be the first by a top death-squad leader in a
Colombian courtroom, and it is being touted by the administration of
President =C1lvaro Uribe as evidence that the wheels of justice are
turning.
Rather than rejoicing, however, the Uribe government has found itself
in the awkward position of being implicated in the wrongdoing. Over the
past several weeks, Colombians have been gripped by revelations of ties
between paramilitary fighters and several congressmen close to the
president, as well as some officials in his administration. The scandal
now threatens to unravel his authority.
For ACLU, A Victory In Standoff With U.S.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
1094.html
By Robert Barnes
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; Page A09
Federal prosecutors yesterday dropped their demand that the American
Civil Liberties Union turn over all copies of a "secret" document the
organization had obtained, after the government was roundly criticized
for using a grand jury subpoena in an attempt to seize the material.
The government's unprecedented legal move demanded "any and all copies
of the document" in an apparent attempt to keep the ACLU from using the
information. It was part of a broader grand jury investigation into
leaks of classified information that, in this case, included the Army
directive about photographing enemy prisoners, federal prosecutors
confirmed yesterday.
Teaching the Notion of Nanotechnology
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
0905.html
Science of Manipulating Super-Small Objects Inches Its Way Into
Classrooms
By Valerie Strauss
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; Page A10
Scientist Robert P.H. Chang of Northwestern University had no trouble
persuading education officials in Mexico to introduce the burgeoning
field of nanotechnology to schools there, but it's been a far tougher
sell in the United States.
In Mexico, Chang said he had only to speak about the subject to top
government officials, who then simply ordered school officials to teach
it.
In German Opera, Heads Come Off Without Incident
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
1255_pf.html
Fears of Offending Muslims Prompted Cancellation of Earlier Performance
By Craig Whitlock
Washington Post Foreign Service
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; A16
BERLIN, Dec. 18 -- Just before the curtain dropped on an otherwise
uneventful opera, the grisly scene that everyone came to see finally
transpired. The King of Crete pulled the severed head of the prophet
Muhammad out of a sack and triumphantly placed it on a wooden chair,
next to three decapitated deities.
A few loud shouts of "Jawohl!" or "That's right!" erupted from the
audience, along with some scattered jeering, as the long-delayed
production of Mozart's "Idomeneo" came to a conclusion. Dozens of
security men wearing earpieces scanned the crowd for trouble. But much
to the relief of the anxious German authorities, no physical violence
or terrorist threats were reported. Nor did any organized protests
occur outside.
Six-Nation Talks Resume On N. Korea Disarmament
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
0140.html
Return to '05 Nuclear Pact Called Unlikely
By Edward Cody
Washington Post Foreign Service
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; Page A16
BEIJING, Dec. 18 -- Long-stalled negotiations on dismantling North
Korea's nuclear weapons program resumed Monday in an atmosphere of
pessimism, with North Korea insisting it must be regarded as a nuclear
power and the United States demanding swift action to make the Korean
Peninsula nuclear-free.
China, which has sponsored the off-and-on talks since 2003, called for
patience and warned negotiators gathered at a Beijing state guesthouse
that their task was "glorious and arduous" because the issues are so
complicated and the stakes so high. "The talks are of vital
importance," said Vice Foreign Minister Wu Dawei, who heads the host
delegation.
Publisher Reflects on Politics, Money And Happiness in the New China
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
1066_pf.html
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; A24
Hung Huang is regarded as a model by many young Chinese women. Her
mother was Mao Zedong's English teacher in the 1960s, her stepfather
was foreign minister in the 1970s. Despite her communist pedigree, Hung
"jumped into the sea," as the Chinese say, taking advantage of economic
reforms to try her luck in private business. It worked; at 45, Hung is
emblematic of the new China. Her China Interactive Media Group
publishes several glossy lifestyle magazines. Her flagship publication,
Ilook, is filled with photos, articles and advertisements aimed at
China's new rich. In a warehouse in Beijing's Dashanzi art district
where she and 80 employees work, Hung shared her thoughts with Beijing
correspondent Edward Cody on where China is and where it might be
headed.
Drop in Female Births Prompts Alarm in India
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
1064.html
Associated Press
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; Page A24
NEW DELHI, Dec. 18 -- Lawmakers and women's rights activists expressed
alarm Monday over new evidence indicating that about 7,000 fewer girls
than expected are born each day in India, where women routinely suffer
discrimination and parents often abort female fetuses.
The spread of ultrasound technology that allows parents to find out the
sex of their unborn children has resulted in a large-scale
"disappearance" of girls. One study released this year estimated that
10 million fewer girls were born here than expected in the past 20
years.
Ex-NSC Official Says White House Is Stifling His Criticism of Iran
Policy
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
0974.html
By Glenn Kessler
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; Page A25
A former top White House official accused the Bush administration
yesterday of trying to muzzle his criticism of its Iran policy and of
falsely alleging that his writings contained classified material to
prevent them from being published.
Flynt Leverett, a former CIA analyst who became a senior director for
Middle East policy for the National Security Council before leaving the
administration in 2003, said the White House decided that substantial
passages of an opinion article he had written for the New York Times
involved classified information. Leverett said the article was only a
summary of a longer paper he had written a few weeks earlier -- which
had been cleared by the CIA as containing no classified information.
NASA Launches Google Collaboration
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/18/AR200612180=
1119.html
Web Giant Will Make Images From Space Agency's Missions Accessible to
Public
By Marc Kaufman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, December 19, 2006; Page A27
NASA, seeking to give the public easy access to its massive trove of
images and data about Earth and outer space, has entered into a formal
agreement with Google to post material from the agency's many missions
on the Internet. As the technology improves and the collaboration
grows, officials said, viewers could one day be treated to live video
from the moon, Mars and elsewhere.
"This agreement between NASA and Google will soon allow every American
to experience a virtual flight over the surface of the moon or through
the canyons of Mars," NASA Administrator Michael D. Griffin said in a
statement. He called the effort one "to make NASA's space exploration
work accessible to everyone."
The traps of recognition
Jonathan Cook
December 19, 2006 10:01 AM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/jonathan_cook/2006/12/post_800.html
There is scant sympathy for the Palestinians as civil war threatens to
engulf them. The general view is that the Hamas government failed its
first test because it refused to recognise Israel's "right to exist".
With those few words of reassurance, the peace process would supposedly
have been back on track.
But there are good reasons why the Palestinian prime minister, Ismail
Haniyeh, recently refused to contemplate such an announcement.
Recognition would be a trap - or rather two traps - from which the
Palestinian struggle for national liberation would almost certainly
never extricate itself.
You who?
Tim Footman
December 19, 2006 09:17 AM
http://commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/tim_footman/2006/12/you_who.html
Time magazine, yet again copping an opportunistic snog with the
Zeitgeist at the global office party, has picked you as its Person of
the Year. Sorry, not you. It's picked You, that capital letter being a
clear nod to YouTube, the most obvious example of the
customer-developed content that has, according to Jeff Jarvis, provoked
a sea-change in our perception of the media over the last 12 months, or
even much earlier.
Now, we need to define a term or two. "You" doesn't mean everybody -
just those of us with access to the necessary technology. On a planet
where millions don't have access to telephones, let alone broadband,
that's a meaningful distinction. Even in the developed world, age,
class, wealth and education still tend to define your ability to make
the most of the ones and zeros on offer. "You" means not humanity in
all its teeming variety, but the bits of humanity who might read Time
magazine, or indeed the Guardian. Congratulations, You're on a par with
such previous Time cover stars as Hitler, Stalin and Ayatollah Khomeini.
.
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