24 years have passed when Late Rajiv Gandhi dreamt of taking India into 21st century. Today, India is emerging as a strong country and Rahul Gandhi, who is following the footprints of his father, has tossed an important question and the question is; from where does India gets it' s strength?...
In the course of Lok Sabha election 2009, Rahul often raised this question and he tried to find the answer himself. He talked about his visit to Amethi with a British minister (David Milliband) where they had food and spent night with villagers. Rahul said, “The British minister asked me as to where do India gets it's strength? I told him that if he wanted to feel the strength of India he would have to go to villages. The strength of India could not be understood in an air-conditioned room in Delhi. Thereafter Rahul went on telling as to how he took Milliband to Amethi, had food, talked to people and spent a night. He said that a foreigner easily understood the strength of India but BJP could not understand it. He criticized opposition for not recognizing the hard labour, struggle, optimism and honest values of the villagers and said that the opposition was trapped in the complete hangover of India shining and urbane glitter.
When Rahul talks about the villages and hinterland, Rajiv Gandhi appears again before people in their mind. Due to IT revolution, Rajiv Gandhi is considered as the symbol of urban development but the silent revolution Rajiv Gandhi initiated through Panchati Raj has become Rahul’s main campaign plank.
Rahul Gandhi is showing the world how villages are being transformed through Panchayats. There is great similarity between the father and the son; both are great listeners as experienced by this correspondent during various tours with both leaders.
Rajivji listened to the villagers for hours as Manishankar Aiyyar a long time associate of Rajivji recalls. “When Rajivji talked to villagers it was difficult to guess how much time had passed. It is interesting that Rahul Gandhi does not tell one thing about his visit to Amethi with Milliband that he played the role of a translator for hours between Milliband and the villagers.
Rahiv Gandhi strengthened the base of grass root democracy by empowering villages through Panchayati Raj. On the same line, Rahul is making new experiments in Youth Congress and student organization of the party by bringing democracy within them. He has successfully conducted elections of Youth Congress and NSUI in Punjab and Uttarakhand under the supervision of ex-CEC J M Lyngodh. The party swept the election in both these states bagging all the five seats in Uttarkhand and 9 out of 13 in Punjab. However, Rahul’s strategy in winning these seats are yet to be analyzed.
excerpts from http://pressbrief.in/
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Monsoon clouds gather on Bengal
The monsoon is likely to hit Bengal in the next two or three days, at least 10 days earlier than usual, the Met office today said.
Before that, the next two days could see heavy rain in Calcutta and the south Bengal districts, raising the hope that this summer’s heat wave-like conditions may now be over.
The Met office issued a cyclone alert tonight, warning of heavy rain in south Bengal in the next 48 hours and asking fishermen not to go to sea. The expected cyclonic storm and the early monsoon onset are related.
A depression formed over the west central Bay of Bengal today and was 600km from Calcutta, Met officials said tonight. It is likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm and move towards Bengal and the Bangladesh coast, triggering the next two days’ rain.
“The rapid progress of the monsoon is also being caused by the depression, which is dragging the monsoon currents faster towards the state,” said G.C. Debnath, the director of the weather section at the Regional Meteorological Centre in Alipore. “We expect the monsoon to set in within the next two or three days. We expect the depression to drag the monsoon into north and south Bengal on the same day.”
The monsoon usually hits north Bengal on June 5 and south Bengal three days later. The last time these rain-bearing winds had arrived in south Bengal so early was 10 years ago, on May 28, 1999.
A Met official said that once the monsoon currents set in, the maximum temperature is not expected to rise beyond 35-36°C. Debnath said the next two days’ rain “may cross 250mm at one or two places”.
The monsoon today moved into Kerala nine days before the normal arrival date of June 1. An early onset, though, has no apparent correlation with monsoon behaviour. The India Meteorological Department has predicted 96 per cent of the average rainfall this year.
Before that, the next two days could see heavy rain in Calcutta and the south Bengal districts, raising the hope that this summer’s heat wave-like conditions may now be over.
The Met office issued a cyclone alert tonight, warning of heavy rain in south Bengal in the next 48 hours and asking fishermen not to go to sea. The expected cyclonic storm and the early monsoon onset are related.
A depression formed over the west central Bay of Bengal today and was 600km from Calcutta, Met officials said tonight. It is likely to intensify into a cyclonic storm and move towards Bengal and the Bangladesh coast, triggering the next two days’ rain.
“The rapid progress of the monsoon is also being caused by the depression, which is dragging the monsoon currents faster towards the state,” said G.C. Debnath, the director of the weather section at the Regional Meteorological Centre in Alipore. “We expect the monsoon to set in within the next two or three days. We expect the depression to drag the monsoon into north and south Bengal on the same day.”
The monsoon usually hits north Bengal on June 5 and south Bengal three days later. The last time these rain-bearing winds had arrived in south Bengal so early was 10 years ago, on May 28, 1999.
A Met official said that once the monsoon currents set in, the maximum temperature is not expected to rise beyond 35-36°C. Debnath said the next two days’ rain “may cross 250mm at one or two places”.
The monsoon today moved into Kerala nine days before the normal arrival date of June 1. An early onset, though, has no apparent correlation with monsoon behaviour. The India Meteorological Department has predicted 96 per cent of the average rainfall this year.
China now bigger threat than Pak: IAF chief
Taking China’s dramatic military expansion seriously, the Indian Air Force chief has said China poses a more real and potent threat to India than Pakistan, which remains caught in a vortex of conflict and instability.
Talking to HT, Air Chief Marshal Fali Homi Major said India was rapidly upgrading its fighter bases in the country’s northeast to boost its military deterrence against China.
“China is a totally different ballgame compared to Pakistan,” the air chief said. “We know very little about the actual capabilities of China, their combat edge or how professional their military is…they are certainly a greater threat.”
The comments are bound to lend urgency to the new government’s China agenda and the need to understand the security implications of the rapidly modernising Chinese military.
The Chinese air force is ridding itself of obsolete platforms from the 1960s such as the J-6 and J-7 (equivalent to MiG-19s and MiG-21s). The People’s Liberation Army Air Force is pushing full steam ahead with the induction of first-rate fighter jets such as Sukhoi-30s, JF-17 Thunder light combat aircraft, J-10 strike fighters, airborne early warning aircraft and midair refuellers to expand the operating radius of its fighter jets.
“The way he (China) is growing, he definitely has the capability. But we should neither put China on a pedestal and say it will chew us up nor lose sight of the fact that they have (acquired) huge capabilities,” Major said.
Talking to HT, Air Chief Marshal Fali Homi Major said India was rapidly upgrading its fighter bases in the country’s northeast to boost its military deterrence against China.
“China is a totally different ballgame compared to Pakistan,” the air chief said. “We know very little about the actual capabilities of China, their combat edge or how professional their military is…they are certainly a greater threat.”
The comments are bound to lend urgency to the new government’s China agenda and the need to understand the security implications of the rapidly modernising Chinese military.
The Chinese air force is ridding itself of obsolete platforms from the 1960s such as the J-6 and J-7 (equivalent to MiG-19s and MiG-21s). The People’s Liberation Army Air Force is pushing full steam ahead with the induction of first-rate fighter jets such as Sukhoi-30s, JF-17 Thunder light combat aircraft, J-10 strike fighters, airborne early warning aircraft and midair refuellers to expand the operating radius of its fighter jets.
“The way he (China) is growing, he definitely has the capability. But we should neither put China on a pedestal and say it will chew us up nor lose sight of the fact that they have (acquired) huge capabilities,” Major said.
Choosing when to die was "truly what she wanted to do," says friend
With hands twisted by arthritis, Linda Fleming was no stranger to pain.
But the 66-year-old Sequim woman met the limits of her endurance when she was diagnosed last month with terminal pancreatic cancer.
Rather than die in agony or spend her final days in a drug-induced haze, Fleming swallowed a fatal dose of barbiturates in her apartment Thursday night — becoming the first person in Washington to end her life under the state's new "Death with Dignity" law.
Family members, her beloved Chihuahua, Seri, and a physician were with her when she died, according to Compassion & Choices Washington, the organization that sponsored the measure adopted by Washington voters in November.
Fleming's friend and neighbor, Sharon Lake, came out on her porch at the Vintage apartment complex for senior citizens when she heard medics and police arrive.
"They told me: 'Linda is gone,' " said Lake, who had signed legal documents weeks earlier witnessing Fleming's decision.
"It was very hard on me, but I know this is truly what she wanted to do," Lake said.
At first, Fleming didn't tell many people about her intentions, for fear that opponents might turn her into a cause célèbre, said her friend Virginia Peterhansen. "She didn't want people picketing in her yard."
But Fleming did discuss her situation with representatives from Compassion & Choices, and left behind a statement.
"I am a very spiritual person, and it was very important to me to be conscious, clear-minded and alert at the time of my death," she wrote. "The powerful pain medications were making it difficult to maintain the state of mind I wanted to have at my death. And I knew I would have to increase them."
She said she was grateful that Washington's law provided her "the choice of a death that fits my own personal beliefs."
One opponent of the law called Fleming's death a "sad day" and criticized her choice as "egotistical."
"It's saying: 'I want to go out of life on my own terms, even though the vast majority of us accept the natural conclusion of our lives,' " said Chris Carlson, of the Coalition Against Assisted Suicide, one of the groups that raised $1.6 million to fight the measure.
Supporters raised $4.9 million, making the initiative the costliest on last year's ballot.
Retired Seattle cardiologist Dr. Tom Preston, medical director for Compassion & Choices, said Fleming's experience shows that the law can work as intended to give dying patients another option.
"The prescribed medication gives patients peace of mind that they can take control of their dying if suffering becomes intolerable," he said.
Peterhansen watched her friend decline rapidly after her diagnosis in early April.
Fleming had loved walking all over town and on Dungeness Spit, Peterhansen said. She had recently bought a car — a 1982 Oldsmobile station wagon — and was looking forward to delving more into pottery and contra dancing.
"She was allowing herself to enjoy things," Peterhansen said.
But the cancer and pain drugs dulled her mind, and the disease made it hard to swallow and left her with stomach pain. She couldn't keep down her food and began to lose weight.
Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest forms, and the disease usually progresses quickly and relentlessly.
"It can be very painful," said Preston, who during his years as a physician has attended more than 100 patients in their final days.
Washington is only the second state to allow doctors to prescribe lethal doses of medication for terminally ill patients.
The state's law is modeled on a 10-year-old measure in Oregon, where about 400 people have ended their lives.
Washington's law applies only to people age 18 or older, who are able to exercise sound judgment and have been diagnosed with six months or less to live. Though the drugs are prescribed by a physician, the sick person must self-administer them.
The patient must make two oral requests for the drugs, 15 days apart, and also must present a written request witnessed by two people.
As of Friday, lethal drugs have been dispensed to six Washington residents, according to the state Department of Health. Physicians have 30 days to file documents reporting deaths under the law.
About a third of Washington hospitals have barred their caregivers and pharmacies from helping patients die. But most individual doctors are free to decide whether to participate.
Lake, a Lutheran, was reluctant at first to serve as a witness for Fleming.
"I wondered, would God forgive us for that?" asked the former dairy farmer. "I told her: This is really going to upset your family."
But after conferring with her minister and listening to Fleming's arguments, she agreed.
"There's a lot of people who are suffering and wasting all the money for the families," Lake said. "They know they're not going to live, so why prolong it?"
As Fleming's health deteriorated, her daughter adopted Seri, the dog — but brought the animal back for a final visit. Fleming also gave away most of her possessions, including her car.
"That was Linda," Lake said. "Always helping the other person."
But the 66-year-old Sequim woman met the limits of her endurance when she was diagnosed last month with terminal pancreatic cancer.
Rather than die in agony or spend her final days in a drug-induced haze, Fleming swallowed a fatal dose of barbiturates in her apartment Thursday night — becoming the first person in Washington to end her life under the state's new "Death with Dignity" law.
Family members, her beloved Chihuahua, Seri, and a physician were with her when she died, according to Compassion & Choices Washington, the organization that sponsored the measure adopted by Washington voters in November.
Fleming's friend and neighbor, Sharon Lake, came out on her porch at the Vintage apartment complex for senior citizens when she heard medics and police arrive.
"They told me: 'Linda is gone,' " said Lake, who had signed legal documents weeks earlier witnessing Fleming's decision.
"It was very hard on me, but I know this is truly what she wanted to do," Lake said.
At first, Fleming didn't tell many people about her intentions, for fear that opponents might turn her into a cause célèbre, said her friend Virginia Peterhansen. "She didn't want people picketing in her yard."
But Fleming did discuss her situation with representatives from Compassion & Choices, and left behind a statement.
"I am a very spiritual person, and it was very important to me to be conscious, clear-minded and alert at the time of my death," she wrote. "The powerful pain medications were making it difficult to maintain the state of mind I wanted to have at my death. And I knew I would have to increase them."
She said she was grateful that Washington's law provided her "the choice of a death that fits my own personal beliefs."
One opponent of the law called Fleming's death a "sad day" and criticized her choice as "egotistical."
"It's saying: 'I want to go out of life on my own terms, even though the vast majority of us accept the natural conclusion of our lives,' " said Chris Carlson, of the Coalition Against Assisted Suicide, one of the groups that raised $1.6 million to fight the measure.
Supporters raised $4.9 million, making the initiative the costliest on last year's ballot.
Retired Seattle cardiologist Dr. Tom Preston, medical director for Compassion & Choices, said Fleming's experience shows that the law can work as intended to give dying patients another option.
"The prescribed medication gives patients peace of mind that they can take control of their dying if suffering becomes intolerable," he said.
Peterhansen watched her friend decline rapidly after her diagnosis in early April.
Fleming had loved walking all over town and on Dungeness Spit, Peterhansen said. She had recently bought a car — a 1982 Oldsmobile station wagon — and was looking forward to delving more into pottery and contra dancing.
"She was allowing herself to enjoy things," Peterhansen said.
But the cancer and pain drugs dulled her mind, and the disease made it hard to swallow and left her with stomach pain. She couldn't keep down her food and began to lose weight.
Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest forms, and the disease usually progresses quickly and relentlessly.
"It can be very painful," said Preston, who during his years as a physician has attended more than 100 patients in their final days.
Washington is only the second state to allow doctors to prescribe lethal doses of medication for terminally ill patients.
The state's law is modeled on a 10-year-old measure in Oregon, where about 400 people have ended their lives.
Washington's law applies only to people age 18 or older, who are able to exercise sound judgment and have been diagnosed with six months or less to live. Though the drugs are prescribed by a physician, the sick person must self-administer them.
The patient must make two oral requests for the drugs, 15 days apart, and also must present a written request witnessed by two people.
As of Friday, lethal drugs have been dispensed to six Washington residents, according to the state Department of Health. Physicians have 30 days to file documents reporting deaths under the law.
About a third of Washington hospitals have barred their caregivers and pharmacies from helping patients die. But most individual doctors are free to decide whether to participate.
Lake, a Lutheran, was reluctant at first to serve as a witness for Fleming.
"I wondered, would God forgive us for that?" asked the former dairy farmer. "I told her: This is really going to upset your family."
But after conferring with her minister and listening to Fleming's arguments, she agreed.
"There's a lot of people who are suffering and wasting all the money for the families," Lake said. "They know they're not going to live, so why prolong it?"
As Fleming's health deteriorated, her daughter adopted Seri, the dog — but brought the animal back for a final visit. Fleming also gave away most of her possessions, including her car.
"That was Linda," Lake said. "Always helping the other person."
Leadership Long Delayed
Macrobiotic living -- a one-with-nature philosophy heavy on the whole grains and vegetables -- is riding the wave of interest in organic and healthy foods to new popularity.
The macrobiotic diet, part of a greater doctrine of living a happy, healthy life in harmony with the environment, was brought to the U.S. in the 1950s by Japanese philosopher George Ohsawa, and has cycled in and out of fashion ever since. Right now, it is riding high -- Los Angeles has even seen the opening of several new macrobiotic restaurants in recent months.
"My phone's ringing more, students are showing up for classes more," says David Briscoe, a macrobiotic consultant and co-founder of Macrobiotics America in Oroville. "It's definitely an increasing trend."
Practitioners credit their diet for preventing diseases including colds and cancer. "Our kitchen is our pharmacy," says Mina Dobic, a macrobiotic counselor and state-certified nutritional advisor in Los Angeles. "When you eat well and you also live well, then you live a longer life."
Dobic's personal enthusiasm for macrobiotic food dates back 22 years, to the time when she was diagnosed with cancer and, she says, given two months to live. She credits macrobiotic living for her recovery and subsequent stellar health -- not a single cold in two decades, she says.
But to suggest macrobiotics is a panacea is a step too far, says Andrea Giancoli, a registered dietitian in Los Angeles and a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Assn. It does, however, have healthful features -- it is high in fiber and low in saturated fat and cholesterol. A diet packed with vegetables, fruits and whole grains is associated with reduced risk for heart disease and some cancers, according to the American Heart Assn. and American Cancer Society.
Macrobiotics categorizes foods as "expansive" or "contractive" -- the yin and yang, respectively, of macrobiotic eating. Cool, fresh expansive foods (such as apples) enhance relaxation; warm, salted contractive foods (such as fish) promote focus. Getting too much of one or the other can imbalance the body, Briscoe says, leading to health problems.
The primary macrobiotic prescription: whole grains. Vegetables and plant-based proteins, such as beans and soy products, are also key. The diet deemphasizes acid-forming foods such as dairy products.
Vegan principles -- no animal products at all -- are a common complement but not required; many macrobiotic menus include the occasional fish dish.
Macrobiotics' Asian origins also show in the recommended foods. Seaweed, high in minerals, is an essential component. Miso soup, made from a paste of fermented beans and grains, is also a top macrobiotic choice. Miso is the "bodyguard of the immune system," Dobic says.
Some research suggests that elements of the macrobiotic diet may have cancer- and infection-fighting properties, says Jane Teas, who studies seaweed and cancer at the University of South Carolina in Columbia.
For example, in a 2001 study, Japanese scientists found that a seaweed extract suppressed breast tumor growth in rats and caused human breast cancer cells growing in a dish to commit cellular suicide. Another Japanese research group has reported that a starch from algae has antiviral properties and prevented death in mice infected with the influenza virus.
"In my opinion, in 20 years seaweed will be part of that dietary pyramid," Teas says.
Collecting data to link macrobiotics to cancer prevention or treatment in humans is difficult, Teas adds. That's because people interpret the tenets of macrobiotics in a variety of ways. When she interviewed macrobiotic eaters for one study, "the range of what people said was macrobiotics was incredible." That variability, combined with the fact that the population of macrobiotics followers is small, makes rigorous scientific study challenging.
Though a macrobiotic diet includes many healthy characteristics, it isn't the only diet that has those advantages. And Giancoli has a few reservations about macrobiotic eating. Macrobiotics recommends that people minimize members of the nightshade family, such as tomatoes and potatoes, as well as many fruits because of their sugar content. "That's just silly," Giancoli says. "People shouldn't be afraid of fruit."
People considering a macrobiotic diet, particularly if they are vegan, should be careful about getting enough vitamin B-12, which is found only in animal products. After giving up meat and dairy, a person can live off the body's B-12 stores for five or six years, Giancoli says, but eventually supplements would be advisable. The U.S. government recommends adults get 2.4 micrograms of vitamin B-12 daily.
In many ways, macrobiotics has been ahead of the curve, says Lawrence Kushi, a cancer epidemiologist at Kaiser Permanente Northern California in Oakland. The son of macrobiotics leader Michio Kushi, he has watched as Americans have discovered the foods that he grew up with.
The government's dietary recommendations have certainly come to look more and more like macrobiotic guidelines, emphasizing plant foods and minimizing animal products. "Things that I thought were weird when I was in elementary school . . . now everyone has kind of moved in that direction," Kushi says
.
The macrobiotic diet, part of a greater doctrine of living a happy, healthy life in harmony with the environment, was brought to the U.S. in the 1950s by Japanese philosopher George Ohsawa, and has cycled in and out of fashion ever since. Right now, it is riding high -- Los Angeles has even seen the opening of several new macrobiotic restaurants in recent months.
"My phone's ringing more, students are showing up for classes more," says David Briscoe, a macrobiotic consultant and co-founder of Macrobiotics America in Oroville. "It's definitely an increasing trend."
Practitioners credit their diet for preventing diseases including colds and cancer. "Our kitchen is our pharmacy," says Mina Dobic, a macrobiotic counselor and state-certified nutritional advisor in Los Angeles. "When you eat well and you also live well, then you live a longer life."
Dobic's personal enthusiasm for macrobiotic food dates back 22 years, to the time when she was diagnosed with cancer and, she says, given two months to live. She credits macrobiotic living for her recovery and subsequent stellar health -- not a single cold in two decades, she says.
But to suggest macrobiotics is a panacea is a step too far, says Andrea Giancoli, a registered dietitian in Los Angeles and a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Assn. It does, however, have healthful features -- it is high in fiber and low in saturated fat and cholesterol. A diet packed with vegetables, fruits and whole grains is associated with reduced risk for heart disease and some cancers, according to the American Heart Assn. and American Cancer Society.
Macrobiotics categorizes foods as "expansive" or "contractive" -- the yin and yang, respectively, of macrobiotic eating. Cool, fresh expansive foods (such as apples) enhance relaxation; warm, salted contractive foods (such as fish) promote focus. Getting too much of one or the other can imbalance the body, Briscoe says, leading to health problems.
The primary macrobiotic prescription: whole grains. Vegetables and plant-based proteins, such as beans and soy products, are also key. The diet deemphasizes acid-forming foods such as dairy products.
Vegan principles -- no animal products at all -- are a common complement but not required; many macrobiotic menus include the occasional fish dish.
Macrobiotics' Asian origins also show in the recommended foods. Seaweed, high in minerals, is an essential component. Miso soup, made from a paste of fermented beans and grains, is also a top macrobiotic choice. Miso is the "bodyguard of the immune system," Dobic says.
Some research suggests that elements of the macrobiotic diet may have cancer- and infection-fighting properties, says Jane Teas, who studies seaweed and cancer at the University of South Carolina in Columbia.
For example, in a 2001 study, Japanese scientists found that a seaweed extract suppressed breast tumor growth in rats and caused human breast cancer cells growing in a dish to commit cellular suicide. Another Japanese research group has reported that a starch from algae has antiviral properties and prevented death in mice infected with the influenza virus.
"In my opinion, in 20 years seaweed will be part of that dietary pyramid," Teas says.
Collecting data to link macrobiotics to cancer prevention or treatment in humans is difficult, Teas adds. That's because people interpret the tenets of macrobiotics in a variety of ways. When she interviewed macrobiotic eaters for one study, "the range of what people said was macrobiotics was incredible." That variability, combined with the fact that the population of macrobiotics followers is small, makes rigorous scientific study challenging.
Though a macrobiotic diet includes many healthy characteristics, it isn't the only diet that has those advantages. And Giancoli has a few reservations about macrobiotic eating. Macrobiotics recommends that people minimize members of the nightshade family, such as tomatoes and potatoes, as well as many fruits because of their sugar content. "That's just silly," Giancoli says. "People shouldn't be afraid of fruit."
People considering a macrobiotic diet, particularly if they are vegan, should be careful about getting enough vitamin B-12, which is found only in animal products. After giving up meat and dairy, a person can live off the body's B-12 stores for five or six years, Giancoli says, but eventually supplements would be advisable. The U.S. government recommends adults get 2.4 micrograms of vitamin B-12 daily.
In many ways, macrobiotics has been ahead of the curve, says Lawrence Kushi, a cancer epidemiologist at Kaiser Permanente Northern California in Oakland. The son of macrobiotics leader Michio Kushi, he has watched as Americans have discovered the foods that he grew up with.
The government's dietary recommendations have certainly come to look more and more like macrobiotic guidelines, emphasizing plant foods and minimizing animal products. "Things that I thought were weird when I was in elementary school . . . now everyone has kind of moved in that direction," Kushi says
.
U.S holds journalist without charges in Iraq
: May 22, 2009
For anyone eager to see the United States take a serious leadership role on the issue of global warming, this week was enormously encouraging.
Greenhouse Gas EmissionsIt began with the White House’s announcement that it will impose the first-ever limits on greenhouse gas emissions from cars and trucks. It ended with a House committee approving a comprehensive energy and global warming bill — an important first step on legislation that seeks to reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil, reverse emissions of carbon dioxide and create millions of clean energy jobs.
In fairly short order, President Obama and a Democratically controlled Congress have made the lassitude and indifference of the Bush years seem like ancient history. And they have greatly improved the prospects that American negotiators will arrive at the next round of global climate negotiations in Copenhagen with a credible strategy in hand and with the leverage to encourage other major emitters like China to get cracking.
The trick now will be to sustain the momentum — at home and internationally.
The legislation approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee must survive scrutiny by other committees and, of course, the whole House. Even after the strong endorsement of expert scientists, only one of the committee’s Republicans — Mary Bono Mack of California — voted for the bill. And then comes the Senate, where 60 votes are required to overcome a filibuster and where a climate change bill crashed to defeat last year.
The House bill’s main architect, Representative Henry Waxman of California, and his chief lieutenant, Representative Edward Markey of Massachusetts, have politically tailored this bill to do better.
It calls for a 17 percent reduction in 2005 levels of greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 — and 83 percent by 2050. It would put a price on carbon through a cap-and-trade system that would impose a steadily declining ceiling on emissions while allowing polluters to trade permits, or allowances, to give them more flexibility in meeting their targets. It also mandates greater use of renewable power sources like wind and solar, sets tough new efficiency standards for buildings and invests in cleaner energy technologies, largely through the sale of carbon allowances.
To placate politicians from industrial states that rely heavily on coal, and whose energy costs are likely to rise, the bill includes a variety of mechanisms to help industries make the near-term transition to cleaner and more efficient ways of creating energy. The most prominent of these are “ offsets” that would allow polluters to satisfy their own emissions-reduction obligations by investing in carbon-reducing programs elsewhere, like preventing deforestation.
Critics says these and other provisions are too generous to polluters, and in truth the bill is not as strong as it should be. But anything more might well fail, as other bills have failed, and then the country would be back to Square 1. As it is, the bill represents an ambitious first step toward a solution too long delayed for a problem too long denied.
For anyone eager to see the United States take a serious leadership role on the issue of global warming, this week was enormously encouraging.
Greenhouse Gas EmissionsIt began with the White House’s announcement that it will impose the first-ever limits on greenhouse gas emissions from cars and trucks. It ended with a House committee approving a comprehensive energy and global warming bill — an important first step on legislation that seeks to reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil, reverse emissions of carbon dioxide and create millions of clean energy jobs.
In fairly short order, President Obama and a Democratically controlled Congress have made the lassitude and indifference of the Bush years seem like ancient history. And they have greatly improved the prospects that American negotiators will arrive at the next round of global climate negotiations in Copenhagen with a credible strategy in hand and with the leverage to encourage other major emitters like China to get cracking.
The trick now will be to sustain the momentum — at home and internationally.
The legislation approved by the House Energy and Commerce Committee must survive scrutiny by other committees and, of course, the whole House. Even after the strong endorsement of expert scientists, only one of the committee’s Republicans — Mary Bono Mack of California — voted for the bill. And then comes the Senate, where 60 votes are required to overcome a filibuster and where a climate change bill crashed to defeat last year.
The House bill’s main architect, Representative Henry Waxman of California, and his chief lieutenant, Representative Edward Markey of Massachusetts, have politically tailored this bill to do better.
It calls for a 17 percent reduction in 2005 levels of greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 — and 83 percent by 2050. It would put a price on carbon through a cap-and-trade system that would impose a steadily declining ceiling on emissions while allowing polluters to trade permits, or allowances, to give them more flexibility in meeting their targets. It also mandates greater use of renewable power sources like wind and solar, sets tough new efficiency standards for buildings and invests in cleaner energy technologies, largely through the sale of carbon allowances.
To placate politicians from industrial states that rely heavily on coal, and whose energy costs are likely to rise, the bill includes a variety of mechanisms to help industries make the near-term transition to cleaner and more efficient ways of creating energy. The most prominent of these are “ offsets” that would allow polluters to satisfy their own emissions-reduction obligations by investing in carbon-reducing programs elsewhere, like preventing deforestation.
Critics says these and other provisions are too generous to polluters, and in truth the bill is not as strong as it should be. But anything more might well fail, as other bills have failed, and then the country would be back to Square 1. As it is, the bill represents an ambitious first step toward a solution too long delayed for a problem too long denied.
U.S holds journalist without charges in Iraq
The soldiers came at 1:30 a.m, rousing family members who were sleeping on the roof to escape the late-summer heat.
They broke down the front door. Accompanied by dogs, American and Iraqi troops burst into the Jassam family home south of Baghdad in the town of Mahmoudiya.
"Where is the journalist Ibrahim?" one of the Iraqi soldiers barked at the grandparents, children and grandchildren as they staggered blearily down the stairs.
Ibrahim Jassam, a cameraman and photographer for the Reuters news agency, stepped forward, one of this brothers recalled. "Take me if you want me, but please leave my brothers." The soldiers rifled through the house, confiscating his computer hard drive and cameras. And then they led him away, handcuffed and blindfolded.
That was Sept. 2.
Jassam, 31, has been in U.S. custody ever since. His case represents the latest in a dozen detentions the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists has documented since 2001.
No formal accusations have been made against Jassam, and an Iraqi court ordered in November that he be released for lack of evidence. But the U.S. military continues to hold him, saying it has intelligence that he is "a high security threat," according to Maj. Neal Fisher, spokesman for detainee affairs.
The Obama administration harshly criticized Iran for its imprisonment of Roxana Saberi, the U.S.-Iranian journalist who was convicted of espionage and sentenced to eight years in prison before being freed last week. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton criticized Iran's treatment of Saberi as "non-transparent, unpredictable and arbitrary."
Washington also has called upon North Korea to expedite the trial of two U.S. journalists being held there on spying charges.
Yet the United States has routinely used the arbitrary powers it assumed after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorism attacks to hold without charge journalists in Iraq, as well as Afghanistan and Pakistan, the Committee to Protect Journalists points out.
None of the detained journalists has been convicted of any charge, said Joel Simon, executive director of the group, undermining the United States reputation when it comes to criticizing other countries on issues of press freedom.
"The U.S. has a record of holding journalists for long periods of time without due process and without explanation," he said. "Its standing would be improved if it addressed this issue."
Reuters has expressed disappointment at Jassam's detention and has said there is no evidence against him.
Sami Haj, a cameraman for the Al Jazeera TV network, was detained by Pakistani authorities as he tried to cross into Afghanistan in 2001 to cover the offensive against the Taliban. He was turned over to the U.S. military, which held him for six years at the detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He was accused him of being a courier for militant Islamic organizations, but was never charged. He was released a year ago.
In Iraq, Associated Press photographer Bilal Hussein was held for two years without trial before he was released last April on the orders of an Iraqi judge under the terms of an Iraqi amnesty law. The U.S. military maintained that Hussein had links to insurgents, but the AP insisted that the allegations were based on nothing more than the Pulitzer Prize-winning photographs of insurgents that he had taken on the streets of Ramadi, in western Iraq.
Jassam is the only Iraqi journalist still in U.S. custody, the last to be detained under wartime rules in force prior to a U.S.-Iraqi security agreement signed in December. Under the new accord, U.S. forces are required to obtain a warrant before they can arrest an Iraqi citizen.
Jassam was detained without a warrant "as the result of his activity with a known insurgent organization," Fisher alleged.
No evidence against Jassam was presented at his court hearing in November, Fisher said, because the military intelligence against him had not yet been verified.
Under the wartime rules in place at the time, he said, "there was no requirement to link the military intelligence with rule of law type of evidentiary procedures."
After the court ordered Jassam's release, Fisher said, fresh evidence came to light that suggested he was a "high security threat."
The journalist committee's Simon said it was possible for someone to use the cover of journalism to conduct other activities.
"No one is suggesting that journalists should have a get out of jail free card," he said. "But if you accuse someone of something there needs to be a fair legal process. That's what we said in the Roxana Saberi case, and that's what we say in the Ibrahim Jassam case."
Jassam will have to wait for the requirements of the security pact to play out before he receives another day in court or his release. Under the agreement, the U.S. is supposed to release low-threat detainees in a "safe and orderly" fashion, while referring "high threat" cases to the Iraqi Justice Ministry for review.
The decision to release him or transfer him to the Iraqi legal system will be made by the Iraqi government. The only timetable for that to happen is "by the end of the year," Fisher said. By that time, Jassam will have been in custody for more than a year.
Jassam's brother, Walid, visited him recently in Camp Bucca, the desolate, tented U.S. prison camp in the desert in southern Iraq, and found him close to breaking point.
"He used to be handsome, but now he's pale and he's tired," said Walid, who insists his brother had no contacts with insurgents. "Every now and then while we were talking, he would start crying. He was begging me, 'please do something to get me out of here. I don't know what is the charge against me."
"I told him we already tried everything
They broke down the front door. Accompanied by dogs, American and Iraqi troops burst into the Jassam family home south of Baghdad in the town of Mahmoudiya.
"Where is the journalist Ibrahim?" one of the Iraqi soldiers barked at the grandparents, children and grandchildren as they staggered blearily down the stairs.
Ibrahim Jassam, a cameraman and photographer for the Reuters news agency, stepped forward, one of this brothers recalled. "Take me if you want me, but please leave my brothers." The soldiers rifled through the house, confiscating his computer hard drive and cameras. And then they led him away, handcuffed and blindfolded.
That was Sept. 2.
Jassam, 31, has been in U.S. custody ever since. His case represents the latest in a dozen detentions the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists has documented since 2001.
No formal accusations have been made against Jassam, and an Iraqi court ordered in November that he be released for lack of evidence. But the U.S. military continues to hold him, saying it has intelligence that he is "a high security threat," according to Maj. Neal Fisher, spokesman for detainee affairs.
The Obama administration harshly criticized Iran for its imprisonment of Roxana Saberi, the U.S.-Iranian journalist who was convicted of espionage and sentenced to eight years in prison before being freed last week. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton criticized Iran's treatment of Saberi as "non-transparent, unpredictable and arbitrary."
Washington also has called upon North Korea to expedite the trial of two U.S. journalists being held there on spying charges.
Yet the United States has routinely used the arbitrary powers it assumed after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorism attacks to hold without charge journalists in Iraq, as well as Afghanistan and Pakistan, the Committee to Protect Journalists points out.
None of the detained journalists has been convicted of any charge, said Joel Simon, executive director of the group, undermining the United States reputation when it comes to criticizing other countries on issues of press freedom.
"The U.S. has a record of holding journalists for long periods of time without due process and without explanation," he said. "Its standing would be improved if it addressed this issue."
Reuters has expressed disappointment at Jassam's detention and has said there is no evidence against him.
Sami Haj, a cameraman for the Al Jazeera TV network, was detained by Pakistani authorities as he tried to cross into Afghanistan in 2001 to cover the offensive against the Taliban. He was turned over to the U.S. military, which held him for six years at the detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He was accused him of being a courier for militant Islamic organizations, but was never charged. He was released a year ago.
In Iraq, Associated Press photographer Bilal Hussein was held for two years without trial before he was released last April on the orders of an Iraqi judge under the terms of an Iraqi amnesty law. The U.S. military maintained that Hussein had links to insurgents, but the AP insisted that the allegations were based on nothing more than the Pulitzer Prize-winning photographs of insurgents that he had taken on the streets of Ramadi, in western Iraq.
Jassam is the only Iraqi journalist still in U.S. custody, the last to be detained under wartime rules in force prior to a U.S.-Iraqi security agreement signed in December. Under the new accord, U.S. forces are required to obtain a warrant before they can arrest an Iraqi citizen.
Jassam was detained without a warrant "as the result of his activity with a known insurgent organization," Fisher alleged.
No evidence against Jassam was presented at his court hearing in November, Fisher said, because the military intelligence against him had not yet been verified.
Under the wartime rules in place at the time, he said, "there was no requirement to link the military intelligence with rule of law type of evidentiary procedures."
After the court ordered Jassam's release, Fisher said, fresh evidence came to light that suggested he was a "high security threat."
The journalist committee's Simon said it was possible for someone to use the cover of journalism to conduct other activities.
"No one is suggesting that journalists should have a get out of jail free card," he said. "But if you accuse someone of something there needs to be a fair legal process. That's what we said in the Roxana Saberi case, and that's what we say in the Ibrahim Jassam case."
Jassam will have to wait for the requirements of the security pact to play out before he receives another day in court or his release. Under the agreement, the U.S. is supposed to release low-threat detainees in a "safe and orderly" fashion, while referring "high threat" cases to the Iraqi Justice Ministry for review.
The decision to release him or transfer him to the Iraqi legal system will be made by the Iraqi government. The only timetable for that to happen is "by the end of the year," Fisher said. By that time, Jassam will have been in custody for more than a year.
Jassam's brother, Walid, visited him recently in Camp Bucca, the desolate, tented U.S. prison camp in the desert in southern Iraq, and found him close to breaking point.
"He used to be handsome, but now he's pale and he's tired," said Walid, who insists his brother had no contacts with insurgents. "Every now and then while we were talking, he would start crying. He was begging me, 'please do something to get me out of here. I don't know what is the charge against me."
"I told him we already tried everything
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