Thursday, September 12, 2002

Dinosaurs of Republicans Past QUOTE OF THE DAY "Cheney, Rumsfeld, they are people who are unfortunately misleading the president. Because my impression of the president is that this is a man with whom you can do business. But it is the men around him who are dinosaurs. - - Nelson Mandela RHINO HERE: I was fortunate in December 1999 to be able to visit Robyn Island Prison, off the coast of Capetown, South Africa, to rest my chin between the same bars that confined Nelson Mandela for well over 2 decades. Just stopping a bit to ponder the palpable movement of history in that country in the previous decade. Mandela leading a non-violent revolution, his presidency flavored primarily by a passion for racial reconciliation and justice. A man who Lady History will surely hold as one of her favorites. Is is possible shrubosaurus might have a rush of wisdom at being complimented by President Mandela, and actually listen to what he has to say in the current issue of Newsweek (excerpted below)? Or is he hopelessly HYP-MO-TIZED by dick, don & daddy, the dinosaurs of republicans past. 8:28:00 AM    comment

Nelson Mandela: The United States of America is a Threat to World Peace Newsweek, September 10, 2002 NEWSWEEK: Why are you speaking out on Iraq? Do you want to mediate, as you tried to on the Mideast a couple of years ago? It seems you are reentering the fray now.         Nelson Mandela: If I am asked, by credible organizations, to mediate, I will consider that very seriously. But a situation of this nature does not need an individual, it needs an organization like the United Nations to mediate. We must understand the seriousness of this situation. The United States has made serious mistakes in the conduct of its foreign affairs, which have had unfortunate repercussions long after the decisions were taken. Unqualified support of the Shah of Iran led directly to the Islamic revolution of 1979. Then the United States chose to arm and finance the [Islamic] mujahedin in Afghanistan instead of supporting and encouraging the moderate wing of the government of Afghanistan. That is what led to the Taliban in Afghanistan. But the most catastrophic action of the United States was to sabotage the decision that was painstakingly stitched together by the United Nations regarding the withdrawal of the Soviet Union from Afghanistan. If you look at those matters, you will come to the conclusion that the attitude of the United States of America is a threat to world peace. Because what [America] is saying is that if you are afraid of a veto in the Security Council, you can go outside and take action and violate the sovereignty of other countries. That is the message they are sending to the world. That must be condemned in the strongest terms. And you will notice that France, Germany Russia, China are against this decision. It is clearly a decision that is motivated by George W. Bush's desire to please the arms and oil industries in the United States of America... TO SEE THE ENTIRE ARTICLE, GO TO: http://www.msnbc.com/news/806174.asp Reprinted under the Fair Use doctrine of international copyright law ( http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html ). All copyrights belong to original publisher. "RHINO'S NEWS BLOG" is the responsibility of Gary Rhine. Feedback is encouraged and can be emailed to him at: rhino@kifaru.com RHINO'S WEB SITES: http://radio.weblogs.com/0103207 (RHINO'S NEWS WEBLOG - PRESENT & PAST) http://www.dreamcatchers.org (INDIGENOUS ASSISTANCE & INTERCULTURAL DIALOG) http://www.kifaru.com (NATIVE AMERICAN RELATIONS VIDEO DOCUMENTARIES) 8:24:58 AM    comment

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