John Kerry stretches his one-dove one-hawk wings to hold back a closing chapter in his political career.
This is his plan:
- Get more help from other nations
- Provide better training for Iraqi security forces
- Provide benefits to the Iraqi people
- Ensure democratic elections can be held next year as promised.
Three of the four things are being done, and the first condescends to Americans while firmly establishing Kerry's place in never-never land: we're already in an uphill battle, and he wants us to try to join another in convincing other nations to help us. Uh huh, right. The only way to convince other nations that we're worth helping is to have successes. Prove that the goals that have been set are met and are successful. Let them battle with their inner daemons about the means, let us worry about the ends.
The UN's heading for
reform of the Security Council and possibly marking a milestone in its history, and relevance. SG Annan has called for a panel to investigate reform within the UN:
"The panel is to produce a first draft in September, before submitting its final version to Mr Annan by December 1st. He will then present it, with his own comments and recommendations, in September next year to the General Assembly"
Resources:
- A German NGO, Committee for a Democratic UN, released a 09/04/2004 strategy paper
Developing International Democracy
There're tons of examples of how persecuted groups have been represented and have coped during and after a period of intense scrutiny. What lessons can be learned, patterns extrapolated from the treatment of Native Americans, Jews, Basques, Bosnians, Serbs, Soviets and now Muslims, from media representation. Is there a generic cycle of changes that make the dominant society accept a persecuted minority or are there those that make a persecuted minority adjust or evolve their views to be more accepted by a dominant minority?