Perspectives

"The forthcoming parliamentary elections, in short, are up for grabs. Plenty of evidence indicates that Iranians are frustrated with the inability of the reform movement to overcome conservative stonewalling; indeed, this is a major reason why voter participation plummeted in 2003."

"Trade between the two countries increased from about $200 million in 1992 to nearly $1 billion in 1999."

"Today, if Rich Lowry stood in Coalition-devastated Iraq, at the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, he would be at a source that once “watered Sumeria and Akkad, and nourished the Hanging Gardens of Babylon” (Will Durant’s “Story of Civilization”). The peoples of this ancient land, once known as Mesopotamia, (part of which is holy also to Christianity), prepared the first codes of law, under the magnificent Hammurabi."

"...terrorism at its basic root is a struggle for world resources between the world-wide multinational corporate elite and those who are harmed by the concentration of wealth and power by the corporate elite."

"Tracing the roots of Indo-Israel military relations, one notes that they began decades ago as invisible cooperation in the fields of security and defense. In the sixties, these relations reached the point of several reciprocal secret visits and mutual military aid during their respective armed conflicts."

"Colombia is one of the few countries that preserved its democracy during the decades of dictatorship in Latin America, and it is famous for its jurists. The authoritarian elements that are starting to show in this war (including a failed attempt to redraw the Constitution and pave the way for the President’s reelection) have scared ordinary Colombians, as resolute as they are in fighting terrorists. And they have now spoken in defense of their civil liberties."

"For over 40 years, India literally pandered to the Arabs and thus hesitated to respond to the hand of friendship proffered by Israel."

"Eager to blame someone else for the slowdown in negotiations, U.S. trade representatives have pointed their fingers at the less fortunate countries of the South, such as Brazil and Argentina. The plain fact is, however, the United States is currently as much a stumbling block as any of the less developed and protectionist countries in South America."