Hi, Lyann,

Thanks reminding everyone about Guy Fawkes Day -- Nov 5, if I remember correctly.

"A penny for the Guy!"

Death to tyranny.

Oceans

My sense is that Obama is a great patriot. He actually thinks deeply about what is in the best interests of ALL Americans, including the best interests of the future of our country. Instinctively, he listens to people and includes people.

I am not suggesting that McCain is not patriotic, but it, I sense, is more the cheerleader type of patriotism, loud but not thoughtful, demonstrative rather than leading to effective leadership and governance.

Oceans

Hi, everyone!

Well, T22, if you turn out to be right, my kudos to you as Prognosticator of the Year....

Oceans

How can McCain not be selected by the Republicans? he has the delegate count, no?

I've been defending McCain as a decent guy but one, admittedly, not very capable of tackling the difficulties facing our great country.

This YouTube clip is in a sense the tip of an iceberg.

http://bravenewfilms.org/blog/39179-mccain-s-youtube-problem-just-became-a-nightmare

What do you think?

Oceans

Yup. I keep expecting to read about one every time I open the paper.

And then there were six...

Good point. The US gave the Afghani mujahedeen Stingers, didn't sell them. There are still seven Stingers unaccounted for.

Does anyone know if the Russians have the equivalent of the Stinger?

Oceans

I think you are referring to some 2,000 people killed 'last night' in Gori, not in Ossetia. Those killed were Georgians, killed by Russia warplanes.

At least, that is what the news reports are recounting.

Oceans

Greetings, all!

Georgia became independent after the fall of the Soviet Union, and is a member of the UN.

It is illegal for any country to invade another, whether or not they are a member of the UN.

The Georgian situation is a bit more complicated (gee, what a surprise)!

As part of the 'deal' between Russia and Georgia that allowed Georgia to withdraw from the Soviet Union, Russia was to keep several military bases in Georgia.

When the then-president of Georgia, Eduard Shevardnadze (and, ironically, the well-regarded former Foreign Minister of the USSR under Gorbachev), started making noises about shutting down the bases, the Russians hooked up with the break-away region of Abkhazia, and allowed the first president of a free Georgia to return from exile and launch a civil war against Shevernadze. (Are we all following this?) Shevernadze saw the light and agreed that Russian troops could remain based in Georgia.

But....meanwhile, another break-away area, Ossetia, tried to take advantage of the chaos and declared its independence from Georgia. The Ossetians sought help from the Russians against the central Georgian government in Tbilisi, and received it, a way for Putin to stick it to the Georgians.

This recent flare-up is not 'war' and some of our media have portrayed it, but a continuation of the general low-level of harassment both sides have mounted against each other. That Saakashvili, the current Georgian president, cuddled up to President Bush in the hope of assuring for himself American support against Russia -- this by public embrace and the provision of some 3,000 troops to the US 'coalition' in Iraq (third largest contingent after the US and UK)-- only singled Saakashvili for further attention by Putin.

Now, of course, the Georgians want to bring their troops home from Iraq to try and force the return of Ossetia. Or maybe the Georgians are only threatening to do so to get the US to pressure the Russians to ease up in Ossetia. Or....maybe the Russians realize that the US has exhausted itself militarily, morally, and economically in Iraq and is simply plucking some low-lying fruit in Ossetia. or....

Hope all this sums things up clearly!

Oceans

Yes, the US economy is in crisis, and all in the space of seven years. I don't think many Americans appreciate how badly the economy has been served in this period, or how they have been personally affected through the devaluation of the dollar, the massive debt service that has been placed on their shoulders, and the additional impacts that the 'slowdown' will have on jobs and prices.

And few have thought about the financial impact of the war against Iraq and Afghanistan and the radically increased personal surveillance programs on this economic catastrophe.

The numbers cited omit the costs to the Iraq war, and add a massive further amount of debt to the US economy.

It is difficult to see any solutions, other than wait for the Bush administration to be shut down and hope that we have a new President who actually understands economics and budgets, and who has the courage to shut down our overseas adventures and staunch the loss of money and US lives.

So another 7 months to go, and it is fingers crossed that we elect an intelligent and emotionally balanced president.

Oceans

Hi, Belushi!

Great saying....

Does the Lebanese heart mean what I think? Please say hi to our friend.

Spanish: well, I can't say I'm at the point where I am speaking it fluently -- far from it. A wonderful CD Spanish self-teaching course by Michel Thomas was my point of departure. I highly recommend his CD course, though I found I couldn't do it while driving; it does require concentration.

Oceans

Hi, Voile!

I've been dashing about the globe and writing up a storm -- and doing some intensive Dahn yoga since we were last in touch. It's a good life and great to be back in touch!

Oceans

I sooooooooo agreeeeeee

knowledge is never a bad thing, learning more than one language is positive and can be financial lucrative (for those that follow the mighty dollar)

I am presently trying to learn American sign language


Cool! I've always wondered how close to a spoken language it is, or whether it might be more similar to an Asian language. I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.

Thanks

Oceans

Having had the great luck to learn several languages, I want to say that it is not only a pleasure, but has enabled me to do many wonderful things that would not otherwise have been possible.

I know that there are a lot of bad language teachers are out there. So not everyone has had a positive experience.

Spanish is one of the easiest languages in the world to learn. Even President Bush learned some, and it is clear that he enjoys speaking it.

But there are a lot of other fine languages: Russian, Chinese, Arabic, French...all promise a rich variety of ways to see the world and to communicate.

I too don't think that it must be mandatory -- and Obama did not suggest that it should be despite the strange tone of outrage of the OP -- but I do think that all parents owe it to their kids to encourage them to learn multiple languages, and that includes learning to speak and write in English well.

Oceans

Agreed!

English will undoubtedly remain the common melting pot language. AND we should welcome the opportunity to learn and use a vast array of other languages. This is, in a sense, part of the unique legacy that all Americans have together.

Let's not let fritter away this extraordinary legacy on the hit-and-run advice of fear-filled hate-mongers.

Oceans

Another post from a die-hard xenophobe!

I LOVE foreign languages, and wish that all of us in the US knew several.

Obama's commitment to the education of ALL our children, regardless of native tongue, is commendable and praiseworthy.

Obama cares deeply about our children and their future.

He will make a worthy, honorable and productive president.

McCain is a decent man, though I think he is far less capable than Obama. Both men deserve to be treated with respect: hatred directed toward either is vile and toxic.

Those who besmirch Obama, as this poster does here and has elsewhere, through hate-materials are beneath contempt, for they seek to poison our society with their hatred.

Oceans

Slowhand, it seems to me that you are depending entirely on Israeli and pro-Israeli sources. So it is not surprising that you can't see the 'bad behavior' of the Israelis. It is not sufficient simply to condemn Palestinian attacks on israelis: you must see the conflict in its entirety before reaching your conclusions, or your conclusions will simply be one-sided and inadequate.

At its most basic level, the Zionists seized Palestine from the Palestinians. This began gently in the 1890s, became violent in the 1930s, and militaristic in the 1940s, and remains so to this day. To the extent it was a 'civil war' as you insist, it was one imposed on the Palestinians by the Zionists. It was aggressive on the part of the Zionists, and defensive on the part of the Palestinians. They are not 'equally to blame'.

Yes, some the Palestinians engage in terrorist acts against Israelis. Can you not see, though, why they do so?

Can you not have any empathy for a people who have been brutally dispossessed of their lands and homes and livelihood and independence?

If you cannot, then I suspect you will have a very hard time understanding the conflict.

I have empathy for the Israelis -- particularly those born in Israel since 1948 -- and who now find themselves in this mess created by their Zionist forefathers.

When I think of solutions to the conflict -- something I am actively involved in -- this empathy helps me understand what the outline of a just and sustainable peace might be.

I will offer you a closing thought: your die-hard and blindly one-sided stance does no good to the Israelis. Their interests lie in finding their way to a genuine peace.

Screaming "TERRORISTS" from the roof-tops does not advance that cause.

I invite you to consider the conflict as a whole, to acknowledge the whole history of the conflict, and to extend your empathy to all parties so that you may become part of the solution.

Oceans

Being a hero does not necessarily make someone a wise person....

Perhaps you will have a chance to go visit the Ukraine. It is a beautiful country, with many good people.

I'm off to finish a report.
Nice chatting with you.

Oceans

Yes, I'm glad you feel welcome here. We do have a pretty good country. We are in a period of difficulty now, but we will emerge OK.

A lot depends on this election, of course. We will recover far faster with Obama than McCain, I feel pretty certain.

Oceans