Obama talks the money talk!

With the state of Pennsylvania becoming one of the battleground states, Obama barack has just outlined some of his economic policies that he would be adopting if elected as the president. From what I had heard so far, I have to say that this candidate is a much better deal for us than McCain would ever be. The economic policies as outlined by Barack Obama are realistic,practical and ones that can be initiated easily.

The policies as outlined by McCain pale by comparison for they are weak, vague and more to do with election drama and bereft of any real content. McCain's policies seem to do more with short term gains than any long term benefits, reminding us all once again, that he is of the same cloth as the current president. When it comes to election rallies there are very few politicians who would come forward to outline policies with long term benefits as Obama has done.

Furthermore, McCain's policies are based primarily on slashing expenditure without any thought whatsoever to the consequences. Take for example McCain's idea of doing away with the gasoline tax, the impact of such a policy would only serve to make the oil companies richer than they already are and cause constriction in the availability of funds for community related infrastructure projects.
Everything considered, Obama is the way to go, no doubts about that.

Iowa under floods - 20,000 flee!

The floods have hit the state of Iowa hard, forcing some 24,000 to lose their homes and another 20,000 to literally run for their lives. The floods are on account of unprecedented rain in the Iowa area which generally sees about a few inches of rain per year. But this time around, due to heavy rains coupled with thunderstorms, the Cedar river has risen far above the record mark it set the last time in 1929. It managed to reach a height of 32 feet, higher than the old mark by nearly 12 feet.

The Cedar river has flooded the drinking wells as well, thus limiting the amount of drinking water available to the citizens there. The wells that supply this water has been flooded and it will be quite some time before they are rendered usable again. In the meantime, with only one well still in use, it is time for the rationing to begin.

The forecast for the Cedar river area is not all that good with more rains being forecast. With most of the major levees having broken down, any more rain would only serve to make this far worse, transforming the Cedar river into raging flood waters. The fact is that despite disasters like Katrina and others, the infrastructure is ill-equipped to handle a massive exodus leave alone provide food,water and shelter for the remainder of the time needed. The question is that is Iowa planning to do in order to manage this crisis?

Zimbabwe heads to Kangaroo district!

We all have been aware of the shenanigans of Mugabe and his coterie, manipulating the law of the land to suit their own ends. With the inflation reaching the stratosphere of common sense, the country and the common man suffered for long under Mugabe. With the current elections, they had decided more or less, to show Mugabe the door and that would have happened had the election commission released the results.
But with the court refusing to get into the mess and ordering the commission to release the results, it seems that Mugabe may just well manipulate the results and try to continue as the head of the government pushing Zimbabwe further into decline. It is high time that Mugabe realised that he cannot do what ever he wants to do and expect everyone else to stick it up. The whole world is watching the Zimbabwe crisis unfold with dismay and Mugabe should realise that they would be only too happy to step into the fray. One of the most common reasons for declaring a war these days is to enforce democracy. Some of the Zimbabweans may be with Mugabe but most of them are not and this may well be the premise for any nation to attack Mugabe and install the popular leader as the head of the government!

How low can you get?

The current election campaigns are tearing the democrats apart by all this sledging. To say that only one side is indulging in it would be a lie, since both the sides, that is the camps of both Hilary and Obama are pretty much having a go at it. But one should point out that at least Obama’s side seems to be doing their research so that whatever they ‘sledge’, it sticks.

Case in point is the NAFTA issue, which Hilary can deny until she is blue in the face but the facts speak for themselves. Whereas the Clinton camp seems to be circulating a photo of Obama wearing a turban, and implying that all those who wear one are Muslims.

Well his HRH prince Charles wore one but that did not make him one nor did the fact that Omaba was a chief guest who was asked to try out a costume stop the Clinton’s from sledging.

This election has bought out the best and the worst in Politicians, as usual but what really surprises me is the fact that a well seasoned politician like Hilary can make mistakes as the one she did with the photo. Rule of the thumb is that if you are going to sledge then you better do your homework to make sure that the dirt sticks!

Obama slams Hilary on NAFTA!

We all saw Hilary having a go at Obama's mailings just a couple of days ago. The timing of such an attack is naturally suspected and Obama echoed this as well. It is only natural to assume that your rival will try and go for the jugular especially if that so called rival has been losing constantly. It seems that the ‘crocodile tears’ did not help Hilary that much this time around.

Anyway, Obama was very clear on NAFTA and today, in his speech he had pretty much clarified his position on it much to the discomfiture of both the opposing camps [count as Hilary and McCain]. This election resembles more and more a bollywood movie, with actors borrowing lines left and right. We have Hilary on one hand trying to copy Obama’s lines and failing miserably at it. Even a school child would be able to see that all that Hilary’s so called advisors are doing is re framing Obama’s lines and spewing it back to the public at large. And McCain of late seems to have taken a page from Hilary’s book and has started doing that as well. The speeches of the candidates resemble more and more like the old reruns that we get on the telly with the only difference being that at least the old re runs had some entertainment factor in them.

That was what I had thought until a couple of days ago, when Hilary all of a sudden decided to get aggressive. Well, if the heat is going to be turned on, the sooner the better as most of their recent speeches with the sole exception of Obama Barack seem to be putting me to sleep.

Regarding NAFTA, we all know that it is one agreement that is skewered in no one’s favor and that it is the one agreement that definitely either has to go or needs to be looked into. We also know the roles that both the Clinton’s played as far as this agreement goes and for Hilary to say that the mailers that the Omaba camp sent out was wrong, is laughable. More like that she did not want that to come out now with her nomination in jeopardy and with both Ohio and Texas turning out to be the crucial states.

Whatever happens in both Ohio and Texas, the one thing that most Americans as well as the rest of the world wants is a change for the better. The United States deserves a president who is strong and capable and does not get overly emotional like the way Hilary did. Obama uses Mahatma Gandhi as a role model and that is one hell of a role model to choose. Mahatma Gandhi acted on his words and led an entire nation to freedom; one can only hope that Obama performs as half as good as the Mahatma. As you can see by my post here, I would very much prefer that Obama wins the primaries and ends up winning the election. I just cannot stomach the thought of another Clinton in the White House, now or ever!

Obama wows the Global democrats!

The change is fast sweeping the mindsets of the democrat primaries and with Obama winning the global primaries it seems to be a non starter for the likes of Hilary Rodham Clinton. Obama seems to be on the move and both Hilary and McCain are getting a bit antsy where he is concerned. They both seem to be eager to dig up all the dirt that they can get on Obama and it seems that the dirt trail is hitting them instead. I shall cover that later.

For now, Obama is trying to look ahead to the Texas state and hope that the momentum will carry him through in that state as well. The Texas has always been a stronghold for the Clintons but thanks to George Bush and his policies, people may just want a change. The people well remember that the last time a Clinton was in the White House, the United States stood for sex, lies and videotape. So they are not going to be in a hurry to vote another Clinton in and they may well want a change for the better.

The primaries are for the next month and it is a touch and go for Hilary. Most of the media organizations are predicting a dead heat between the two of them and after the next month it will be the war of the Super delegates. I am sure that to the rest of the world this election must seem confusing at the very least, but then again, this is the process and one that we all must have to go through whether we like it
or not!

Obama leads Clinton in Super tuesday!

Well I guess it is too early to say HUZZAH! I for one am glad that Obama barack has taken the lead, a very short lead but a lead nevertheless. It is high time that we all got rid of all the Clinton contenders once and for all.
The entire nation must have been sick to their cores with all the 'lies,sex and videotapes' surrounding the Clintons.

When Hilary turned on the waterworks, that was the clincher. There must have been a few who may have mistaken those tears for actual ones, but I would not put it past her to use a bottle of Glycerin to produce those tears. Anyway, I do not think that we have ever seen anyone so power hungry as the Clintons and now the time has come to say goodbye to them once and for all.

The super tuesday has made it clear that the race is going to be a dead heat and all bets are off. The 'Washington' factor is going to come into play soon and I hope that it says 'Obama' all the way!

Israel, fuming and angry!

Every time that the militants manage to attack a place or two, there is always a 'knee jerk' reaction from one or the other countries in that region. This is certainly true when it comes to Israel. It seems that all the middle eastern countries in that region from Jordan to Syria seem to embrace Hannibal's rule of 'an eye for an eye' more vigorously than any other civilization has done to date.

The recent attack on Israel by a suicide bomber has left Israel fuming and angry, to say that Israel is itching to get back at the militants would be an understatement. As it is, they have already launched a few Ariel strikes against Palestine and would love to do more. But what most of these countries that take part i such activities is the failure to realize that none of these attacks are doing any of them good.

For one, innocents get killed on both the sides, mothers are left childless,the investors would not want to invest in such a troubled area, the tourists would stop coming,the fuel prices would hike and as it is Israel has already stopped the supply of fuel to certain areas of Palestine.....none of this is good. True, I may have simplified the problem but what I have posted are based on facts and it is already happening!

Israel,palestine,united states,economy,tourists,syria,jordan

Venezuela bank robbers captured!

It had all the hallmarks of a badly written western but at least this one had a happy ending of sorts. Venezuela, not really known for its law and order, had to face a sort of catch - 22 with the bank robbers holding some members of the public as hostage.
In the beginning they managed to take at least 30 hostages but later, released them as a sign of good faith. In the closing chapters of this episode, they took five hostages with them and fled away in an ambulance. of all the escape vehicles, this was one of the dumbest ones that they could have used. Instead of using a vehicle that would easily meld into the background, they went and chose one which was sure to stand out even in a car rally. Anyway on being surrounded, these mentally incapacitated bank robbers surrendered having at last discovered that 'Crime does not pay'.

The United Nations threatens action over Darfur attacks!

The situation in Darfur is going from bad to worse these days just when we all thought that it cannot get any more worse than it already has. Now the Sudanese troops have taken to taking potshots at the U.N peacekeepers posted there to maintain peace and order.
It is one thing for the Sudan to feign ignorance over the attacks on the innocent civilians but totally another to say that they do not even know that the peacekeepers were attacked. It is one blatant lie that will not pass muster of any kind and it is high time that the Security council declared war on Sudan. Enough is enough, the whole world knows that the Sudanese government and the troops and the militias have one thing in their minds and that is none other than the total extermination of the refugees in Sudan. The Security council should take strong action regarding Darfur and halt the genocide that seems to be taking place in spite of the peace keepers that are posted there!

The cat and mouse between the Iranian Navy and the U.S Navy!

With all the baggage that exists between them, one would think that these two would have much better things to do than to play a 'cat and mouse' game and on international waters at that. If things were not bad between the two of them, they have to resort to this as well. In case, you are wondering what am I jabbering about here, it is all about the Iranian Navy targeting the U.S navy ships and vice versa.

All this does is bring to my mind a line from one of the many action movies, 'Children, we must all learn to share' and this is one lesson that neither party wants to learn anytime quickly. One can understand that both the Americans and the Iranians have a lot of baggage between the two of them, but if both India and Pakistan can be matured about the relationship between them, then why on earth shouldn't the U.S and Iran start behaving themselves, at least when they are in the international arena??

Cheap politics and gun control!

At times when there has been a news of a disaster or something of that kind, one would expect that all the politicians would all come together and lend support to the local community that has been affected. But all that they do is to gather the victims around them and give very long winded speeches and make it sound as though their rivals are to blame for the entire thing.
This is totally deplorable and yes, I know that the elections for the U.S president is just around the corner and even that does not excuse the kind of ugly behaviour shown by both the democrats and the republicans in the recent speeches in view of the latest shooting spree that took place recently!

Iran still very much a threat - U.S!

It seems that after all that was said and done, the United states still believes Iran to be very much threat and that they still believe in going ahead with the missile defense shield plans. The baggage of past relations is one that Henry Kissinger would probably understand the best of all of us, for none more than he would know how history can have this resounding effect on relations for decades to come.
Look at South Korea and North Korea, technically they are still supposed to be at war, and that was over 50 years ago, so record wise that may be the longest war that has ever been fought in the modern history of man, not counting the 100 years war. One can only hope that both Iran and the United states find some peaceful way of resolving their issues!

Iran: The report that never was!

Iran seems to be more in the news these days and not for all the right reasons. The latest round in the Iran-U.S war of the meek seems to have ended in the favor of Iran. The leakage of the intelligence report telling one and all that Iran seems to have halted its nuclear weapons program way back in 2003 is not all that surprising to those who know the Iranians well. For those who do know the Iranians well, know that they have this inherent tactic for survival and that they will never take the foolhardy path of Saddam Hussein. They well know that to take that path will only lead to total and utter destruction on all sides and that it is indeed better to live and let live. On that thought, did you know that the ancient school of philosophy can be traced back to Iran and that it is in Iran that it had its roots and not in Greece as many think so!

This intelligence report has come at a time that the United states is going hammer and tongs at getting even more sanctions against Iran approved by the Security council. For one, this report does make things a little bit difficult for the United states to push for even more tougher sanctions. And anyone can see that to most Americans today, Iran and its hardliners still represent a threat not because of their religion or the fact that Iran thinks that Israel does not exist, but for the fact that many Americans were taken hostage during the Iranian revolution. What irks the Americans to this day is the fact that many Americans were taken hostage in the American embassy in Teheran. This baggage is one of the main reasons why America today finds it so difficult to even get along with Iran. The past is in the past and that is easier said than done, but it is high time that both these countries realise that there is nothing to be gained by holding onto past grudges. They should really take a page from the India-Pakistan book, the whole world knows the legendary rivalry between those two and today, they are not against each other, at least not the way that they were in the 1970's. They have matured and come a long way since then.

One thing is for sure, the other countries can breath a sigh of relief as they know that the United states would not be pressing that hard for sanctions this time around and that the Nuclear watchdog and mr.ElBaradei can go about their job and make sure that Iran has indeed complied with the IAEA rules and that Iran is only involved in fuel enrichment for peaceful purposes!

Iran,United States,India,Pakistan,iaea,nuclear,

The U.S,Iran and Iraq!

This is indeed a quixotic situation of sorts for the Untied states, to be talking Iraq to Iran. Iran is slowly but surely increasing its influence in Iraq and there does not seem to be much that the United states can do about it. The United states realise that in order to have a stable Iraq, Iran's inputs does not only become necessary but all too essential. With the violence in Iraq having come down a notch, the government of Iraq as well as the security forces are looking for ways to press ahead their advantage and see if they can bring about a stable Iraq sooner than later. But with both the United states and Iran suffering from a trust deficit, it is only a matter of days before this latest round of talks fail as well. But that does not mean the end of the road, the journey for the Untied states-iran convoy has just began and it is a very rocky road, but there is so many miles to cover, can they overcome their hostilities and carry on?

United states,iran,iraq,peace,

The Supreme court may say 'No' to guns!

In a case that will have a very large impact on the American society at large, the Supreme court is to decide whether D.C can ban handguns. American has one of the largest number of gun fatalities every single year and in my opinion it is because the guns are so easily available that teenagers can walk in to a gun shop with fake id and purchase guns and ammunition's.
It is one thing to say that the right to bear arms is enshrined in the constitution but when that very right allows young teenagers to blow off steam by shooting other innocent students and teachers to death, questions on its necessity are raised, Do we need this law at all? The right to bear arms is all fine but what about the innocent students who have lost their lives because of this asinine law? What can you tell the moms of the shot school children, that it is okay to use guns and shoot others? how will you feel if your child was shot and all because the government failed to ban guns? These are the questions that we should ask ourselves and amongst the most important of them all is this one,' do we need guns'?

Pakistan under the scanner - Negroponte!

Pakistan and its dictator wannabe General Musharraf came under some fresh pressure from its so called ally in the war on terror, the United States. The United states has sent in its deputy secretary John Negroponte to make sure that Musharraf understood that the United states would love to see the constitution restored at the very earliest and that it would not condone his machinations for 'power trip'.
At the very least Musharraf is feeling the pressure which is why shortly after a telephone call from the White house, Musharraf immediately freed Bhutto and other activists from house arrest and also brought back two television channels which he had shut down earlier. The United states is fuming at the turn of events in Pakistan and is sending Negroponte to inform the general that he should not take the support of the United states for granted and that although his help is essential in the war on terror that there is no way that the United states would dilute the values of democracy and turn a blind eye to all that is happening in Pakistan. The United states would like nothing better than to have both Musharraf and Bhutto working together but since both of them have entrenched themselves in their respective positions, it is going to be difficult to make them work together leave alone have them in the same room together. Lets see if Negroponte can deliver as he has promised, would the general realise what is at stake here?

Killer student mows down 8 in Finland!

It seems that the School Killings have started all over again. I had said this before and I shall say this again, it is high time that stronger gun control laws be brought into force. It is one thing to have guns to protect oneself but totally another thing to use them to shoot innocent people, just because you do not feel okay. Here in India as well as the other countries there is a very strict gun law which is duly enforced and it is pretty much unheard of for any teen to get their hands on any guns or ammunition of any kind, leave alone, to bring them to school.
We all have gone through that 'teen' years, with all sorts of hormones running through our body. It is at this stage that a human is most vulnerable and it is at this age that he or she can learn about life and mature into a responsible adult. To learn that Bullying was the cause for this person to run amok in this Finnish school, I have to ask did no one notice that he was being bullied? Why did the school counsellor not make an attempt to intervene? These are some of the questions that many a Finnish citizen would be asking themselves today.

These killings have only shown us how easy it is for underage adults/minors to obtain guns and ammunition of all sorts in countries where gun control is limited or pretty much non existent. Why should guns be so readily available in the market? I can never accept the argument that if guns cannot be sold over the counter legally then there is always the black market. It is high time that all guns were removed from the society as such, other than the police and the armed forces. That way, we would not be threatened by school kids 'going off their rocker' or by any robbers or murderers with guns. What is more, this way, tracing a gun that has been used in a crime would definitely be a whole lot easier! The American constitution may grant one the right to defend oneself, but it is that very right that is eroding the society of Modern America and this disease is spreading to other countries that do not have strict gun control laws like that of Finland. This crime has hit the Finnish people very hard as they are fighting to understand what happened and why it has happened? It will be some time before life gets back to normal in Finland but as far as schools go, Finnish education has changed and the feeling of safety in Finnish schools has gone forever!

The President cracks the whip and Pakistan jumps the hoop!

The man behind the current turmoil in Pakistan is none other than the General A.K.A president Musharraf. He has not only promulgated an ordinance suspending the very constitution of Pakistan but he has also effectively gagged the rights of every single Individual there. The fourth estate is gagged and can only report according to Musharraf's views. In short, what he says goes, and if you are found to be breaking the law by just being yourself, even god cannot help you at the moment. Most of the top opposition leaders have all been arrested and placed under house arrest, thereby curtailing all of their movements ion and around Pakistan.

The Human rights commission of Pakistan stands suspended and most of its top members placed under arrest. The explanation that Musharraf gave the nation yesterday is really laughable. If he was so into protecting the stability of Pakistan, then why did he wait until now to do what he has done? The only logical explanation being that Musharraf wanted to hold on to the reins of power by any means possible.
It is at times like these that all political parties from the length and breadth of Pakistan unite together and fight literally for their freedom. After all, their ancestors did fight the British occupation of India[then both Indian and Pakistan], so if they could do it, there is no reason why the current politicians cannot fight Musharraf.

It is disgusting to see the way the the United states is pandering to the whims of their darling child, Musharraf, all because they consider him to be an important allay in their fight against terror. But I do not think that I have to remind anyone that this 'fight against terror' is all America's fight and there is no reason why democracy in Pakistan should be sacrificed just because Musharraf is helping the Americans out some of the time. Should not the ultimate goal be democracy and not just this 'war on terror' which by the way is not even our war to start with. Will democracy rise in Pakistan ever again?

Russia and China block the Iran sanctions!

This is not exactly a surprising news, is it? Both Russia and China have enormous economic capital invested in Tehran and they know that if the U.N were to apply any economic sanction of any kind on Iran, they both face huge losses as well as the loss of lucrative oil contracts.
This does bring into the question of the 'Multi polar' world versus that of the 'Unipolar' one. Is the United states right in waging an economic war on a single country and expecting all the other nations to follow its lead? Many people may have something very strong kin nature to say to the United states, especially with the way that its foreign policies are being run. The way it is going, it is only a matter of time before the United states sees that it has no friends whatsoever in the International community. Both Russia and China are totally against the imperialistic attitude of the United states. What is more they both together with India are trying to fashion up a multi polar world, one that does heed to the rules of the book. Where the Unites states is concerned, it has long since thrown the book out of the window along with Jimmy carter. The United states has made it clear that it has no intention of being a 'hall monitor' but instead plans to be the bully. And do you want to take an educated guess who is in its headlights, Iran, right in the center of this storm that is yet to blow!

united states,iran,sanction,russia,china,foreign policy,