***Operation Infinite Freedom - Situation Room - 10 MAY 03/Day 52 - LIVE THREAD***

Everywhere! | 10 MAY 03 | null and void

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Operation Infinite Freedom

Link to the previous thread

Good Morning.

This is the Daily Thread of Operation Infinite Freedom, formerly Operation Iraqi Freedom - Situation Room - LIVE THREAD.

It is designed for general conversation about the ongoing war on terror, and the related events of the day. In depth discussion of events should be left to individual threads - but links to the threads or other articles is highly encouraged. This allows us to stay abreast of the situation in general, while also providing a means of obtaining specific information.

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The war on terror is not over, yet it is not endless. We do not know the day of final victory, but we have seen the turning of the tide. - George W. Bush

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Ping!

[TexKat]

Funds can topple AIDS Goliath

LUSAKA, Zambia -- When I learned about President Bush (news - web sites)'s $15-billion AIDS (news - web sites) plan, I was overcome. Here was the leader of the world's most powerful country, yet he heard the cry of Africa. He heard the orphaned children of a thousand villages sobbing for their parents. His message: Don't lose hope.

The president's plan is truly charitable, even if it provides a balm for only a fraction of those in need. When I think of the most vulnerable victims, the children, I wonder: Can't we do more? Across southern Africa, 3 million children under age 15 carry the AIDS virus, and more than 14 million children have lost parents to the disease. By 2010, Africa may have more than 20 million AIDS orphans.

[chantal7]

Hehehe. I'm here...just chilling after returning from seeking shelter from tornado that went over our town and watching OKC tornado thread.

[bart99]

I felt the same way about Bush's commitment to funding for the AIDS crisis in Africa - til I heard about all the backroom bickering about how it should be spent. There was the prventative issue of condoms vs abstinence vs the medical treatments to those inflicted. And no one agrees how the money should be allocated or spent.

Then I saw the recently published statistics of how often countries, including those in Africa, supported the US in UN votes....... coupled with the "foreign aid" we provide to all those countries. And, since the numbers are in the 70 - 80% range of non-support, and millions upon millions of aid, I wonder.... and wonder. There is something fundamentaly flawed here.

Probably the UN..... but probably the USA too, especially the liberal wing, for wanting to give away money to anyone who needs some.

And we not teach those countries to fish, rather than just provide some fish for them? Bet it would cost less, and we MIGHT be more appreciated in the world.

[TexKat]

Powell Leaves for Mideast to Promote Peace Plan

ANDREWS AIR FORCE BASE, Md. (Reuters) - Secretary of State Colin Powell left for Jerusalem on Friday to promote a Middle East peace plan and resume personal mediation between Israelis and Palestinians after a one-year hiatus.

Powell will also visit Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia to muster Arab support for new Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas, whom Washington has endorsed as Israel's peace partner in exchange for sidelined Palestinian President Yasser Arafat.

[Kip Lange]

Plus, it makes Bono happy. :p

[bart99]

A part of the story you didn't quote...... and this is who is the author of the piece..... the first paragraph here is kinda gripping, don't you think?

" At 14, I dropped out of school. I got pregnant. At 17, I married my boyfriend, a man 25 years older than me. He already had lost two wives to AIDS. Perhaps the darkest part of my story is that both my husband and I are HIV positive. Our two daughters, Joy and Faith, are free of the virus.

Today, at 27, I am full of hope. I have a good job as a radio broadcaster, and I have found my voice in speaking out for victims of the pandemic. My message is simple: If you are HIV positive, you can live positively. AIDS may be the worst health crisis ever, but it is shining a light on our need to love one another.

Sometimes, I see the disease as an evil Goliath, crouching over Africa. All of us are mere Davids, but together we can defeat this Goliath. By offering his visionary plan, President Bush has placed a good-sized rock in the slingshot. To Congress, I say: ''Fling this rock at Goliath -- approve this plan.''

---

So, do we spend billions on 14 year olds who get pregnant and marry men who are 25 years older? This is not a "feel good" story. Sorry.

[bart99]

So...... where's the Belly girl???

[Paradox]

Along with the terraformation of the middle east, Bush and company plan to adopt Africa. This money is intended to buy some hearts and minds down there, perhaps to slow or stop the spread of militant Islam. I see it as part of a larger plan (not that I agree with it however..).

[Kip Lange]

Bush's Trade Carrot Brings High Hopes, Hearty Skepticism

"Now the Bush administration is banking on a new approach: Dangling the prospect of a free-trade agreement with the United States, in the hope that Arab governments will scrap protective barriers and statist controls that have kept their economies stagnant."

The Wash. Post carrot-and-sticking Bush's perceived carrot-and-sticking. Fascinating, Captain.

[Kip Lange]

Right, right, here you go:

But really...she's getting a bit long in the tooth, thread-wise, dontcha think?

[TexKat]

Sorry bart, I did not quote anyone. I copied, pasted and provided a link to the article. At the bottom of the article is this.

Princess Kasune Zulu of Zambia is an AIDS educator with World Vision, an international Christian humanitarian organization.

[Kip Lange]

Of course, you could boil that down to: "UN finds wallet empty; begins groveling process". :p

[TexKat]

Feds Charge Man With Smuggling Bubonic Plague

LUBBOCK, Texas -- A Texas Tech researcher at the center of a January bioterrorism scare pleaded not guilty Friday to 15 federal counts.

Dr. Thomas Butler was arraigned in Lubbock on charges that allege he smuggled plague bacteria into the United States.

[TexKat]

U.S. presses for ruling against Iran

NEW YORK, May 8 (UPI) -- U.S. officials are pressing the International Atomic Energy Agency to declare Iran has violated the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, The New York Times reported Thursday.

"It's not just that Iran is speeding up its nuclear plans," an administration official told the newspaper. "It's also that we've only recently learned some things about their program that have been going on for two years. There's also a lot of hammering from the Israelis for us to take this problem seriously."

[TexKat]

Israel limits foreigners' travel to Gaza

TEL AVIV, Israel, May 9 (UPI) -- The Israeli army has tightened control over foreigners wishing to cross between Israel proper and the autonomous Palestinian Gaza Strip.

New orders, announced Friday evening, require foreign nationals seeking to enter the Palestinian areas there first obtain permission from the Israel Defense Forces, Israel's military.