4A the university daily kansan
opinion
thursday, april 22, 2004
EDITORIAL BOARD
President needs to fix communication flaws
President George Bush has the right to loathe news conferences such as the one last week, given that he must confront bloodthirsty Democrats while uttering lesssth an-glib responses.
OURVIEW
OUR VIEW
President Bush has spent too little time communicating with the American public and needs to do some explaining.
The April 13
But despite the grounded apprehension, Bush needs to make up for lost time in the communication arena.
update on Iraq marked only the 12th press conference and the third televised one of Bush's term.
The violence in the Middle East makes talking with the press all the more necessary. Televised or not, Bush needs to inform the public about their sons, daughters, wives or husbands who are currently serving their country.
Adding fuel to the Democrats' fire is the number of Bush's vacations, otherwise known as retreats. A CBS News tally calculated that since taking office, Bush has spent about 40 percent of his presidency out of Washington: 233 days at the Texas ranch. 78 visits to Camp David and five days at the Kennebunkport, Maine, retreat.
Maine, retreat.
During the recent escalation of violence Easter weekend, Democrats criticized Bush for continuing his week-long vacation. Although Bush is likely not sipping margaritas or donning a tropical shirt at such times, it still makes one cringe to know that a vacation continues even after the bodies of mutilated Americans were dragged through the streets in Iraq.
In one of the finer moments of his presidency, Bush secretly flew to Iraq for Thanksgiving dinner with a few of the United States armed forces. It was a courageous move and should be applauded, but Bush's audaciousness needs to extend to facing the music more often.
The news arrived last weekend that the number of U.S. troops killed by enemy fire in Iraq is the highest since Vietnam. The analogy between the two wars is already on many lips, and the time is now for Bush to consistently inform the American people if the Iraqi conflict is truly spiraling out of control — even if it means a mispronounced word or two.
Abortion aside, humanity joins people
When does a human become human?
GUEST COMMENTARY
This question often arises during the controversy over abortion, but, for this commentary on the ongoing debate, I would like to focus on an altered form of the question, namely:
When does a human become inhuman?
Kyle Timmermeyer
opinion@hansan.com
man?
No, this commentary is not going in the direction of an attack but rather of a reflection. Not so long ago, I was hotly entangled in anger toward abortion and its supporters. I found it hard to condemn even the most violent anti-abortion acts such as assassinations of abortion providers.
To this day, I still find it difficult to condemn the anti-abortion attacks as genuinely anti-life, but a surprisingly more subtle personal experience is leading me closer to the proper perspective about such tragic disregard for humanity.
I wear a precious feet pin most of the time on campus to make a stand because I know that the liberal atmosphere of the University (if not the student majority outright) is not for the anti-abortion position. One day, just before class, one of my friends asked me why I had feet on my shirt. I answered that the tiny pair of feet was an anti-abortion symbol.
After she let me know that she was an anti-abortion advocate as well, another one of my friends entered the conversation by saying that he supports abortion rights. My immediate reaction was anger. Unable to decide an appropriate response, I simply turned away. He filled the void in the conversation with, "But,
hev. to each his own
hey, to each his own.
Although I wanted to acknowledge what he had said, I found no words for a proper response because I was feeling angry and defensive. However, even before class ended, I wished that I would have been generous enough to say something constructive to my friend who is an abortion-rights advocate. Upon further reflection, I recognized that my angry defensiveness was abortion-rights paranoia.
noia.
In forgetting the difference between ideology and person, I was failing to fully respect the humanity of my friend: I was starting down the path to inhumanity myself. By focusing on the single issue, I had lost the essence of the philosophy of humanity. In my anger, I forgot that humanity's beauty can be found everywhere, from an-embryo who is helpless to a friend who disagrees, even to an abortion provider who murders.
I should have directed my anger at my friend's ignorance instead of my friend himself. I should have remembered that
there will be no universal social justice unless all people individually as well as collectively recognize the dignity and inherent value of each and every human person.
human person. Most importantly, I should have remembered that Jesus taught us, "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew 5:44). Though there can be no logical compromise between the permission to abort and the denial of the permission to abort, everyone anti-abortion advocate, abortionrights advocate or unaffiliated — must never forget that disagreement is just another way that we show that we are human.
Iencourage people to discuss their differences with the other side, especially during this Stand Up for Life Week. There will be a table in front of Wescoe Hall for the rest of this week. Stop by in person or online at www.ku.edu/~kusfl.
Timmermeyer is a Derby junior in English.
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return to is in Israel's position.
Bush probably made one of the worst comments a president could make toward the ongoing Israeli-Palestinian conflict when he said, "In light of new realities on the ground including already existing Israeli population centers, it is unrealistic to have a full return to the 1949 line."
The Mountain Dewds are the wave of the future.
Is it just me or does my accounting teacher look like The Bachelor.
U.S. foreign policy essential in Israeli-Palestinian conflict
U. S. foreign policy in the Middle East is sure to be one of the biggest issues in November's presidential election because peace and stability in the Middle East is vital to long-term world peace.
COMMENTARY
The American people may never know the Bush administration's real intentions for going to war with Iraq or how long troops will be stationed in Afghanistan, but one thing is for certain: the U.S. government is committed to the region.
Middle Eastern policy is a delicate subject. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, who just met with Bush last week, told the French media that Arabs hate Americans more than ever because of U.S.Middle Eastern policies.
The United States' alliance with Israel is an example of that.
Brandon Cobb
opinion@kansan.com
Last Wednesday, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon met with President Bush in Washington, D.C. He announced plans to withdraw troops and settlements from parts of the West Bank and Gaza strip to "reduce friction and tension between Israelis and Palestinians."
It is almost impossible to please all parties in the Middle East.
on between is indicated. These areas have been a major source
of conflict between Israelis and Palestinians since the 1948-49 Arab-Israeli war when Israel violated the United Nations partition plan and the 1967 war when Israel took over Palestinian settlements. Palestinians have long wanted a Palestinian state but the land they wish to return to is in Israel's possession.
Members of Palestinian leadership were upset at Sharon and Bush's actions.
When referring to Bush, Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia said, "He is the first president who has legitimized the settlements in the Palestinian territories when he said that there will be no return to the borders of 1967. We as Palestinians reject that. We cannot accept that. We reject it, and we refuse it."
that. We reject her "friendship" with the United States has put a lot of Arab leaders in an awkward position. The United States claims to want peace in the Middle East, but it is hard for Arab leaders such as King Abdullah II of Jordan to convince his people otherwise when they oppose the U.S. occupation in Iraq and alliance with Israel.
occupation in hawaii and arabs deeply sympathize with Palestinians and want them to have their own state. Bush backing Sharon's plan will force Palestinian refugees to flee to Jordan, placing strain on the Jordanian economy, which is something Abdullah does not want to happen.
he is not want to happily leave. These issues caused King Abdullah II and Palestinian foreign minister Nabil Shaath to postpone meetings with President Bush until they are reassured of the United States' stance on peace. Qureia said, "We hope the U.S. administration ...
will remain committed to its responsibilities ... and not say anything that is considered a reward for a party or a side at the expense of the other party. Otherwise, there will be no peace."
wise, there will be more strain on Palestinian-Israeli peace talks, in the past month Israelis have assassinated Hamas leaders Abdel Aziz Rantisi and Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, which is sure to cause retaliation from the Palestinians.
from the Faces. Three key alliances that are needed for peace and stability in the Middle East are Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan.
Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan I do not know what to think about these countries. Saudi Arabi and Pakistan recognized the Taliban's regime in Afghanistan as legitimate and most of the Sept. 11 hijackers were Saudi. And after Egyptian President Mubarak's remarks to the French media, it will be interesting to see what steps he makes next in the Middle Eastern peace process.
In my opinion, the four key issues in Middle Eastern policy are oil, terrorism, peace and religion. Unfortunately, every side has its own interpretations of these.
Furthermore, Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf was not democratically elected, Musharraf has a huge problem with Al Qaeda. It has tried to assassinate him twice. Saudia Arabia has also had problems with Al Qaeda because Al
Qaeda wants the Saudi monarchy abolished. It has initiated several car bombings in the past year including one that killed six yesterday. Last year, the United States began moving troops out of Saudi Arabian bases, much to the delight of radical Muslims who have long disapproved of the U.S. occupation of the Muslim Holy Land.
Israelis believe that Palestinians are terrorists and Palestinians believe that Israelis are terrorists. Bush tries to downplay his oil ties to Halliburton, Vice President Dick Cheney's former employer. Halliburton has several contracts in Iraq and rumors are swirling that Bush is trying to make a deal with the Saudis to lower the oil prices so gas would be lower come election time.
so gas would be more radical Muslims use every chance that they can get to tie something to a war against Islam. And who wants peace? The people. But their leadership is not listening.
Cobb is a Kansas City, Kan., senior in political science.
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