 |
|
Frank
Gaffney
Center for Security Policy |
...A former Assistant Secretary of Defense during the Reagan
administration says he does not believe the Bush administration
is doing enough to confront the nuclear threat being posed by
North Korea. Although Secretary of State Colin Powell told
reporters last month that diplomacy seems to be working when it
comes to ending the nuclear weapons programs of Iran and North
Korea, Frank Gaffney of the Center for Security Policy does not
feel the president's North Korea strategy is working. "The
previous administration helped prop up one of the most dangerous
regimes on the planet," Gaffney says, "and I'm afraid the
current administration's policy under President Bush is not
doing much to change that. The so-called six-party talks, I'm
afraid, are just a formula for kicking the can down the road."
Dissatisfied with the assessment that diplomatic efforts are
working and believing Kim Jong Il is simply stalling for time,
the foreign policy analyst is concerned that more talks will
only result in a more dangerous North Korea that the U.S. will
be forced to confront in the future. It is unfortunate, Gaffney
says, that Bush's North Korea policy is no improvement on that
of Bill Clinton, whose appeasement strategies, according to the
Center spokesman, helped prop up Kim Jong Il's regime in the
first place.
 ...An
immigration reform organization is blasting the government of
Mexico for issuing a booklet that gives advice to its citizens
who want to enter the United States illegally. The 32-page
booklet published by the Mexican foreign ministry offers
practical tips on safety, legal rights, and how to live
unobtrusively in the United States. Rick Oltman of the
Federation for American Immigration Reform says it is so
transparent that the Mexican government is trying to protect
it's most valuable export -- illegal aliens. "Mexico can export
a barrel of oil to us and they get paid one time," he explains.
"If they export a worker to us, it's like the gift that keeps on
giving. They get paid every single month as that worker sends
money back home to support the community that he came out of on
a weekly or a monthly basis." But Oltman contends Mexico would
be better off putting its resources into making life better for
its citizens in Mexico. "They don't spread around the wealth,"
he says, "and if they did that, not only would they be able to
build a Mexican middle class and there wouldn't be any need to
flee economic impoverishment in Mexico, but the richest people
would get even richer, as our system has proven here in the
United States." It is interesting, Oltman adds, that the Mexican
government's new publication leaves out one important tip for
would-be Mexican immigrants: how they can legally obtain a valid
U.S. visa. [Chad Groening]
...A
leading trade analyst says China's economic impact on the United
States is reaching alarming proportions. America buys 180
billion dollars worth of goods from China each year while the
Chinese buy 30 billion dollars of goods from America, leaving
the U.S. with a trade deficit of 150 billion dollars a year with
Beijing. But John Tkacik of the Heritage Foundation (www.heritage.org
) says that is not the case with all of China's trading
partners. "For some reason, we're the only country that they
have this trade imbalance with," he observes, "because if you
look at China's overall balance of payments, evidently it's
within balance by between three and six percent. So why do they
pick on us? To me, it's clear that the Chinese government
engages in a vast policy of politically directed importation
decision making." And according to Tkacik, Chinese investments
in America are on the increase. As a result, he notes, Chinese
influence on the U.S. economy is reaching alarming dimensions
and causing many analysts concern. [Bill Fancher]
...An
author and freelance journalist contends that the war in Iraq is
ultimately for the Iraqis themselves to win or lose. Steven
Vincent is the author of Inside the Red Zone: A Journey Into the
Soul of Iraq. He believes the United States cannot win the war
in Iraq, simply because it is not really America's war. "We're
going to reap the benefits of victory," Vincent says, "but the
war's going to be won or lost by the Iraqis. It's their country,
their society." And although it is said that democracy cannot be
imposed at gunpoint, the author asserts, "We're not trying to
impose democracy. The Iraqi people want Democracy. Look at those
election workers who were executed. They know they're running
terrible risks, yet they're doing this." But while Vincent
believes most Iraqi citizens want the election to take place
later this month, he says the question remains open as to
whether or not this will happen. [Chad Groening]
...A
disaster relief fund has been established by Compassion
International to help those affected by the recent earthquake
and tsunami in South Asia. Donations received through the
Tsunami Disaster Relief Fund will help the ministry partner with
other evangelical relief agencies to help disaster victims. The
hardest hit area for Compassion International was in India,
where at least three projects were affected. Melissa Eiles,
director of communication for the ministry, says many Compassion
families felt the impact personally. "The storms just came in
incredibly quickly, and more than 400 fishermen were swept away;
25 of them were fathers of Compassion-assisted children," Eiles
says. "So those families are not only grieving the loss of their
fathers, but they've lost their livelihood [and] they've had
their homes destroyed. It's been very tough for this area of
India." Staffers for Compassion International in India area are
traveling to the home of each child in the impacted areas to see
if all children and family members are accounted for. Ministry
projects in Thailand and Indonesia were not affected by the
disaster.
 |
|
Indonesia |
...A World Vision relief worker in tsunami-ravaged Indonesia
says he's answering God's call to serve those in need. Steve
Levitt says God is present amid the tragedy -- in people of
faith, their relief efforts, and the way they "support one
another." World Vision spokesman Dean Owen says the Christian
charity does not evangelize or proselytize, but tries to
"demonstrate God's love" through its relief and development
work. Owen says cash donations will support relief efforts by
the nearly 4,000 World Vision staff members who already are
stationed in countries devastated by the killer waves.
CG |
