Vaclav Havel

I once had a chance to sit in on a news conference with Vaclav Havel.  I had listened to his speech at Stanford and was assigned to write an article on it for the student newspaper.  I was overawed by the occasion, though, and didn't actually ask any questions at the news conference.  I remember him being personally pretty unassuming, and that his speech was about democratic ideals.  I think the questions the other reporters asked intimidated me more than Mr. Havel did.  I wrote my story around the speech.  I wish I could find a copy of it, but the Daily doesn't keep its archives online.  Probably for the better.  Here's an obituary from the LA Times instead: Vaclav Havel, Czech leader of '89 'Velvet Revolution,' dead at 75.

More Bad News from Pakistan

Here's another story about the perversion of justice in Pakistan. Brave, good reporting from the New York Times that should raise the level of interest in human rights there. Pakistan is an ally, because "the enemy of my enemy is my friend." But Pakistan is hardly a democratic country where the rule of law is primary. Let's hope things change there, and soon, so that we don't end up with another failed state -- this time with nuclear weapons in the arsenal of whatever thugs manage to cling to power.

By the way, Afghanistan hasn't been doing so great on human rights recently, either.

Grim Stories from Pakistan

These two reports show how dangerous life can be in Pakistan, whether you are a Christian or an insurgent:

Christians burned in own home
Swat Valley not exactly returning to normal

Those are my headlines, but they suit the stories well enough. These stories probably ran in the back pages of the New York Times' print edition, but they are worth paying attention to. Pakistan is our ally in the war on terror, but it's a fragile alliance that doesn't reach down far enough to become a security arrangement for the people of Pakistan. Someone needs to look out for these vulnerable people to tell the government and militant imams not to take advantage of the poorest among them.

Worldwide Celebrity

I've resisted posting about Michael Jackson to this point, but today's funeral was apparently watched around the world, which prompted some thoughts about celebrity. When I took an African American history class in college, the OJ Simpson trial was a major distraction. The day the verdict came down, the class was buzzing. But the professor wasn't impressed -- "20 years from now, no one will remember OJ Simpson," he said. I'm not so sure. I think the OJ trial ushered in a new dimension in this era of celebrity worship -- basically, the opposite of celebrity worship -- celebrity demonization, if you will. That demonization may have reached its peak (hopefully) with the recent coverage of Britney Spears, and hopefully the death of Michael Jackson will allow people to realize that when you put people on pedestals, they are going to get knocked off. Worse than that, people will pull other people down off those pedestals at virtually every opportunity. The speeches at Mr. Jackson's funeral praised him to the stars, which is in some ways appropriate to the occasion, but I hope the people involved in the proceedings realize that this is only one step in a long process of coming to terms with this shocking news, and that their best efforts to put him back on his pedestal will ultimately fail. Sorry to be depressing, but it's probably the truth.

"Business as Usual" in Iran

This background story appeared a couple days ago on the BBC website. I think it's useful to those of us who are just now "learning our enemy" in Iran. An Iranian cleric is now calling for a trial of British embassy employees - possibly 1 or 2 -- who are accused of meddling in Iranian politics and fomenting the protests over the disputed election.

From the Horse's Mouth

No, I'm not talking about Mr. Ed, but rather, Saddam Hussein, who apparently had 20 interviews and 5 "casual conversations" with the FBI before he was executed in 2006. An editorial summary of the interviews can be found here -- pretty hard evidence that, at least from Saddam's perspective, there were no WMDs, there was no link to al Qaeda, and that the dictator was more concerned with Iran than the U.S. before the final invasion that ended his career. It's an interesting read for those who are interested in the first draft of history. Also, Saddam's ego comes through in the pages of the interviews.

Brazil bests US -- the one that got away

This could have been the day that the U.S. broke through as a force to be reckoned with in international soccer. Brazil was just too tough, though, in the Confederations Cup final. Here are some photos from the match and an article in the Times that details the drama of the match.

Lech Walesa's advice

"Lead your struggle in a wise way but do not hit your heads 
against the wall," said Walesa. "If not this time, you will win 
next time."

This advice, contained in an AP story, sums up what I am hoping for the people of Iran.

Trusty NYT Scoops Bloggers on G-8 Summit

After an hour or so trying to find something with a German slant on the G-8 summit, I stumbled on a report from India-News that Pres. Bush said something about everybody speaking English at the summit. Shocking as that might be, even if I believed it, the better story is here, at the good ol' New York Times.

I'm now wondering if Angela Merkel will survive as Bundeskanzlerin (Prime Minister) after this encounter with Bush.

On Torture

This article sums up many things that are wrong with current U.S. policy. It is, not so surprisingly, written by two retired generals. I love the headline on the commentary. It's an important piece shaking up my preconceptions and reminding me where we should be in this war on terror, as opposed to where we are.

I am following the herd in posting this link (I found it on technorati's top news links), but I think it's a valuable resource, so I'm willing to do it.

Military news from Africa

According to the International Herald Tribune, the U.S. has been conducting operations against Al Qaeda in Somalia, using an Ethiopian air base. I received word of this operation from a military person's blog, Free Thinking Americans. He said it's what the U.S. should have been doing all along in the War on Terror. I suppose it's a good contrast to what's been happening in Iraq, since the article describes it as a "rout." Personally, I'm not sure it's a legal operation, but I agree it's probably more effective than the war in Iraq. It's also one more sign that the U.S. is engaged in a global struggle with worldwide implications, and I'm not sure the U.S. public is as well informed as it should be. Typical liberal worries in the time of war. I wonder how liberal I really am.