THE HEADLINES

Def. Sec. Robert Gates speaks with troops in Iraq (AP Photo)

THE PENTAGON’S THOUGHTS ABOUT KEEPING FORCES IN IRAQ AFTER THIS YEAR ARE LONG, LONG THOUGHTS.

(AP/Yahoo News)

Although the Status of Forces Agreement would have all U.S. “combat forces” removed by December 31, Defense Secretary Robert Gates among others is floating the idea of forces remaining after that “deadline,” citing a likely “power vacuum” after U.S. withdrawal. These thoughts will no doubt be “long” ones not quickly resolved, as U.S. policy is caught between the rock of internal Iraqi expectation that SOFA be implemented and the hard place of GOP bulliers like Senator Lindsey Graham who are sure to make the “quitting with the job not done” rhetoric a potent campaign issue in next year’s elections.

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AFRICAN-UNION FORCES SENT TO LIBYA TO REINFORCE REBEL OPPOSITION TO GADDAFI REGIME, ARE EMERGING AS POSSIBLE LEADERS IN DIPLOMACY TO END THE CONFLICT.

(UK Independent)

Gaddafi is said to be negotiating a cease-fire through AU intermediaries as conflict in the country settles into an extended stalemate between between government and rebel forces.

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A NUCLEAR RENAISSANCE TO CREATE JOBS? THERE’ IS SOMETHING (SERIOUSLY) OFF-KILTER ABOUT THAT.

(AlterNet)

The Obama administration touts nuclear power development as a means of adding jobs to the U.S. economy. A new economic study of the energy industry indicates that, in addition to safety hazards highlighted by the Japanese disaster, nuclear power development would in fact generate less increase in employment than would comparable development of renewable energy sources like solar, wind bio-mass.

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WILL CREEK INDIAN LAND ACQUISITION IN ST. SIMONS ISLAND GEORGIA BE THE ECONOMIC SALVATION OF TRIBE AND ISLAND—OR A REVERSE TRAIL OF TEARS FOR CREEK FROM OK TO GA?

(Atlanta Journal Constitution)

This is the issue as Georgia developers consider sale of land to Creeks who are notable for opening gambling casinos when they buy new land. Promoters see the opportunity of developing the first land-based casino in Georgia; while detractors argue that such action would not improve the overall level of prosperity and unity in the Creek Nation.

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PALM BEACH COUNTY SCHOOL CHILDREN, LIKE THOSE  THROUGHOUT FLORIDA, ARE TAKING THE FLORIDA COMPREHENSIVE ASSESSMENT TEST (FCAT) TODAY.

(Palm Beach Post)

With the stakes even higher with the legislature’s adding rewards and punishments for schools and teachers based on FCATs, the School District issues appeals to parents to get their kids well-prepared for the Big Day, including a nutritious breakfast before they go to school. The local McDonald’s plans to help with the nutritious part, offering a free breakfast including an Egg McMuffin, as the school board forgets for the moment that the county also has an “anti-obesity” program for school children.

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Quote of the day…

Since when did the so-called international community care about the will of the majority of Haitians, other than a handful of corrupt elitists?
When a huge mass movement brought [former president Jean- Bertrand] Aristide to power in the 1990s with an alternative programme that was far more progressive than what exists now, he was first removed and then forced to accept a much more destructive programme devised by the West. It’s ludicrous for the U.S. to talk about democracy in action – since they have never respected the agenda of the Haitian people when it did not accord with their preconceived ideas of what they could gain from Haiti.

Alex Dupuy, professor of sociology in Wesleyan University, as U.S. officials tout the now-completed Haitian election as a harbinger of new “business opportunities” for Americans in the country.

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