3/20 - Clive Owen

• Mess O'Potamia. Three years after the United States began military operations in Iraq on March 19, 2003, many are concerned about whether continuing violence in Iraq indicates that the country is in or is heading towards civil war. Such concerns have increased following the February 22 bombing of the Golden Mosque in Samarra, a major Shiite holy shrine also known as the Askariya Shrine, which was followed by attacks on other mosques, protests and violence.
  Iraq's former interim prime minister Ayad Allawi said on a recent BBC interview (article and link on-line here) that 50-60 on average were being lost each day due to civil war and that Iraq was heading towards the "point of no return."
  On the other hand, Iraq President Jalal Talabni said on March 19 that the country was "far from a civil war" (article on-line here).
  President George W. Bush has said in recent speeches that insurgents are trying to foment civil war. "The situation on the ground remains tense. And in the face of continued reports about killings and reprisals, I understand how some Americans have had their confidence shaken," Bush said in a March 20 speech (on-line here). Bush has focused on the Iraq government's response, saying that progress is being made towards establishing local control and security.
  Regarding the anniversary itself, Bush said on March 19 (on-line here) that "on this third anniversary, the beginning of the liberation of Iraq, I think all Americans should offer thanks to the men and women who wear the uniform, and their families who support them. We are implementing a strategy that will lead to victory in Iraq. And a victory in Iraq will make this country more secure, and will help lay the foundation of peace for generations to come."

• Discussion of Global Warming. Many agree that global average surface temperature has increased over the 100 years by about one degree and that higher concentrations of greenhouse gases relating to human activity such as the use of fossil fuels have contributed to this increase. President George W. Bush himself acknowledged the temperature increase and the greenhouse effect in a June 11, 2001 speech (on-line here), though he also raised questions about how much was known and what should be done in response.
  "We do not know how much effect natural fluctuations in climate may have had on warming. We do not know how much our climate could, or will change in the future. We do not know how fast change will occur, or even how some of our actions could impact it," he said. "Finally, no one can say with any certainty what constitutes a dangerous level of warming, and therefore what level must be avoided. The policy challenge is to act in a serious and sensible way, given the limits of our knowledge."
  Regarding Artic ice, researchers reported on September 29 that Arctic sea ice had declined on September 21, 2005 to 2.05 million square miles, its lowest extent in decades of monitoring. According to the researchers, Arctic sea ice has declined an estimated 8.5 percent per decade over the past 27 years. The release, with multimedia images, is on-line here.

posted by Stephen Lee @ 3/21/2006 09:30:00 AM