On Friday, September 16 Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas announced that he would pursue full membership for a Palestinian state within the United Nations Security Council. At this broadcast, Americans immediately felt uneasy, as the U.S. is still heavily involved in current Middle Eastern conflicts. The following week on September 23 Abbas formally requested membership in the UN, as a path toward the recognition of a Palestinian state.

Abbas’s action followed months of American and European efforts to initiate Palestinian negotiations with Israel, all failed. Palestinians say that it is time for a new approach to the situation, in which the borders of a Palestinian state are globally recognized. Afterward, they say, the two states of Israel and Palestine will discuss final details.

The United States believes a vote on this matter would be “more symbolic and less divisive,” and the Obama administration has sworn to use its veto power at the UN to prevent Palestinian recognition. This action is risky, because doing so might weaken the country’s standing with Arab nations.

The borders Palestine is pursuing are the ones established in 1967, which would include East Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza. Over 500,000 Israelis have settled past those lines. Israel accepts the idea of a Palestinian state, but wishes to maintain control of Jerusalem and allow their settlers to remain where they are.

By gaining elevated status in the UN, Palestinians would also gain the right to observe and submit resolutions. They would also have the ability to join other United Nations groups. Furthermore, being an “observer state” could strengthen their power to pursue cases in the International Criminal Court- this is what is most bothersome to the U.S.

Seeking full membership in the UN will not serve as an alternative to peace negotiations with Israel; President Mahmoud Abbas has stressed his promise of peace and wishes to preserve the current two-state solution.

Palestinian Maen Rashid Areikat, who is Chief Representative of the General Delegation of the Palestine Liberation Organization to the U.S., pointed out in an opinion article in the New York Times that the U.S. formerly claimed to have adopted a “position of support for those seeking freedom.” He suggests that it would be in the U.S.’s best interests to be consistent with its support, and to promote democracy and peace through allowing Palestine full membership in the UN.

To be admitted as a full member state in the United Nations, Palestine must have a recommendation from the fifteen-member Security Council. There must be a nine-vote majority with no veto from the five permanent members, which include the United States. The process could take weeks or months. Afterward, their submission goes to the General Assembly, which must pass with a two-thirds vote.

Massive protests erupted on January 25, 2011 as Egypt, the most heavily populated nation in the Arab world, lashed out against the dictatorial presidency of leader Hosni Mubarak. Mubarak, who assumed the presidency in 1981 after the assassination of President Sadat, served five terms to date. Though Mubarak’s regime improved Egyptian relations with other Arab countries in addition to the United States, protestors were angered by the poverty and corruption that has dominated their society in current years.

Inspired by the Jasmine Revolution, a recent uprising in Tunisia, Egyptian protestors demanded Mubarak to step down as president. Upon several violent demonstrations the president spoke on January 28, reporting that he intended to remain in office. He recognized the protestors’ demands for political change; in his speech he announced that he would dissolve his cabinet and exercise social and economic reform policies. Demonstrators rejected his concessions and expressed that the president’s reforms were merely a ploy to remain in power.

The following day on January 29, Mubarak appointed Omar Suleiman as his Vice President. Suleiman, formerly the director of the Egyptian General Intelligence Service, is the first Vice President to be appointed in Mubarak’s presidency.

On February 1, after continuous unrest, demonstrations, and over 300 deaths, Mubarak appeared on Egyptian state television to declare he would not seek a sixth term as president. Later on February 11, during evening prayers in Cairo, Vice-President Suleiman addressed the public in a brief televised statement, announcing that Mubarak was resigning. The announcement sent the public into a frenzied celebration.

Immediately in response to Mubarak’s resignation President Obama made a public statement to the American and Egyptian people: “By stepping down, President Mubarak responded to the Egyptian people’s hunger for change,” he said. He further explained that the peaceful exit of the president marked a new start for Egypt, holding potential for a great new democracy. Still, he added, “There will be difficult days ahead.”

In addition to political unrest, Egypt has also been facing recent cultural destruction. On Friday, January 28 thieves searching for gold broke into the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, breaking 70 objects. Among the damages include two sculptures of Tutankhamen and two stolen skulls from a research lab. The thieves were stopped by civilians and were unable to escape the museum by the time law enforcement arrived. Authorities report that all the damaged objects will be restored.

In another episode armed looters ravaged a museum storage site on the Sinai Peninsula. The looters took six bones from a collection that was intended to be included in a future museum exhibit. After a mass media statement demanding the return of the artifacts, 288 items were left in the street on the morning of Tuesday, February 1.

Meanwhile, in Saqqara, the site of Egypt’s oldest pyramid, padlocks on a number of tombs were broken though nothing was taken. All other sites such as the Valley of Kings, the Valley of Queens, and the pyramids of Giza are reported to be safe.

Connections between the political unrest and the museum thieves have neither been reported nor confirmed. As the disorder continues, Gettysburg College students studying abroad at the American University in Cairo have been given the option and resources to evacuate should they desire to.

If you want to hear the point of view of someone who was actually there, check out this article: One Student’s Experience on the ‘Day of Rage’

The nation of Pakistan has been ravaged by floods since monsoons began in late August. At the time of this writing, an area the size of Italy has flooded as a result of these rains, with the UN estimating that over 20 million people have been affected or left homeless by the flooding. Recently I sat down with Gettysburg student and Pakistan native Abdur Rehman to discuss these events.

Brian: Tell us, Abdur, just where in Pakistan are you from?
Abdur: I am from the suburbs of Lahore, the capital of Punjab province. It’s close to the Indian border. Although River Ravi flows through it, it rarely experiences flooding, because Ravi has been dry for many years.

B: Does Pakistan flood regularly, or is this an uncommon occurrence?
A: Floods occur once or twice during the year, usually during the monsoon season. However, water is only a few feet and the main reason given is inadequate or slow drainage.

B: Why are this year’s floods so bad in comparison to years past?
A: There have been unprecedented rains this monsoon season. The wildfires in Russia created a low pressure area over Pakistan which attracted heavy torrential rainfall, never witnessed before.

B: How hard will it be for the country to recover?
A: It will take many years for Pakistan to recover. The sheer scale of the disaster, with more than 16 million people displaced, more than a million homes destroyed and 7.9 million acres of productive land devastated, will take much more than just aid. According to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, it is the worst humanitarian crisis in recent memory.

B: What has the world community done to help those affected?
A: Many countries of the world have donated for Pakistan flood relief. However, the total aid pledged is still way less than that $460mln required according to the UN, so more needs to be done.

B: Is there much that the Gettysburg community can do?
A: I am planning a fundraiser so students can volunteer hours to arrange and attend it. Spreading the word, even if it means tweeting/facebooking “Text FLOOD to 27722”, can go a long way.

B: Anything else you’d like to add?
A: I hope people donate for the humanity that is suffering due to the floods despite the negative image of Islam in general and Pakistanis in particular in the US media.

Currently Abdur is organizing a fundraiser to help those affected by the flooding, if you are interested in helping you can email him at rehmab01@gettysburg.edu.

On Sunday October 11, members of Allies, Gettysburg’s Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Straight Alliance went down to Washington D.C. for the National Equality March. The sixteen students who went down as a group and the other students and professors who went on their own were just a small part of a crowd of 200,000 individuals of all sexual orientations from across the country who came to the nation’s capitol to show support for the GLBT rights movement.

The Gettysburg students went down carrying signs expressing sentiments from the standard “gay rights are human rights” to the religious “Catholic for equality” and “Pagans for equality,” to a sign that challenged intercommunity bias “Challenge InvisiBIlity” adding them to thousands of others. During the march Gettysburg students led multiple chants, and showed an enthusiasm that was not matched by other larger college groups.

After the march, which passed by the White House, there was a rally held in front of the Capitol building. Over thirty speakers offered messages of never giving up, telling the crowd that this was only the beginning and that the energy put into the March must then be taken back with them, and used to organize. Speakers included Judy Shepard, the mother of Matthew Shepard, who was brutally murdered because of his sexual orientation. Another speaker was Staceyann Chin, a Jamaican poet and performance artist who was sexually assaulted in Jamaica because she was a lesbian. Her speech, one of the most passionate of the day was of how she left Jamaica hoping to find acceptance, and how that dream has yet to be fully realized. Lt. Dan Choi an Arab linguist and founding member of the West Point GLBT support group Knights Out, was discharged under “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.” He spoke of how despite the way the government treats gays and lesbians those soldiers who served and still serve do so out of a love for their country.

The National Equality March was the result of a grass roots campaign begun after the anger and frustration over the passing of Proposition 8 in California, which overturned same sex marriage in California, and the subsequent upholding of Prop 8 by California’s Supreme Court. This anger, coupled with what many in the GLBT community saw as an unenergetic response by President Barack Obama to address their concerns was the driving force for the march. Obama’s speech to the Human Rights Campaign annual dinner—the HRC is the self proclaimed largest GLBT rights organization in the U.S.—did nothing to satisfy the energy felt by the crowd. His speech was considered by the GLBT community to be nothing but empty words, and until he delivers, that energy will not subside.

The march was meant to do more then to show Congress and Obama that the GLBT community is getting impatient. It was meant to form connections between people and groups to impress upon all those attending that this was the beginning. It was meant to remind people that shouting and waving signs is pointless unless everyone went back and began organizing and pushing for their rights.

Not only was the National Equality March the result of a grass roots effort, but it was undertaken originally with no support from any major GLBT rights organization such as the HRC. It was only after it became clear that the march would happen with or without the support of these organizations that they signed on.

In addition to attending the march, Allies, in collaboration with Peace Club and Students for a Democratic Society, decided to raise awareness about the lack of GLBT visibility on campus. The inverted pink triangle, used by the Nazis to identify homosexual men, was reinterpreted with an inverted black triangle over a pink armband. The idea was to invoke both a symbol of oppression in the pink triangle and a protest icon in the black armband.

There were also plans for the students involved to hold hands with someone of the same sex. This was added as part of the demonstration after it became clear that out of everyone who attended an Allies meeting only one person had ever seen a same sex couple holding hands.

Many of those involved believed that this small demonstration was a success, despite a few homophobic incidents. One student overheard another telling his friend that the armbands were just “some fag thing.” This and other comments were a reminder to the GLBT students on campus of the present if passive homophobia that still exists on campus.

Leaders from some of the world’s largest economies met last Thursday and Friday to work towards resolving the worldwide economic crisis. The conference, held in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is following on the heels of a G-20 conference in April held in London. Originally planned to be held in New York to coincide with the opening of the UN General Assembly, the event was moved to Pittsburgh due to coordinating concerns.

The shakers and movers from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States were all in attendance. Although not technically members of the G-20, the Netherlands and Spain were invited to the event as well. Also present were representatives from the New Partnership for Africa’s Development, the Association of Southeast Nations, the European Commission, the European Council, the United Nations, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the Financial Stability Forum.

Following the April meeting, where the G-20 came to an agreement on new credit card ratings and hedge fund regulations, as well as a commitment of over a trillion dollars towards boosting world trade and aiding struggling economies, those in attendance were looking to assess progress and see what else they could do to help the struggling economies recover from one of the worst recessions in recent memory.

Ultimately very little came out of the Pittsburgh summit, with the only notable thing being that the countries agreed that the G-20 would replace the smaller G-8, which is comprised of only the eight largest economies in the world, when it comes to matters of international economic cooperation. The G-8 will still meet to discuss major security issues, but will have a much depleted influence as an institution. The move to grant greater power to the G-20 was made to allow developing economies such as China, Brazil and India a greater voice in international matters.

Like all other international monetary institutions, the G-20 has its share of controversy and opposition. The Pittsburgh Summit, similar to recent meetings of the WTO, the G-8 and the G-20, was accompanied by protests by various groups and organizations.

Peace, labor, environmental, and social justice organizations all actively protested the summit, each lobbying for their own interests. And although not formally part of any organization, various anarchists also made their opposition known.

The protests started with the hanging of a banner on a bridge by Greenpeace, which ultimately only had the effect of slowing down traffic for a time. Another event that occurred before the formal start of the summit was a protest march and “day of action” organized by the G-20 Resistance Project. This protest gathered around 500 demonstrators, and was ultimately dispersed by authorities by pepper spray and a sound cannon. Some demonstrators were met with counter-protestors who shouted “Let’s go Steelers,” presumably in support of the Pittsburgh Steelers, a local professional football franchise.

By the end of the summit, police estimated that about 4,500 people participated in protests, with 83 people being arrested. Furthermore, authorities estimated that about $50,000 worth of damage was caused, with $20,000 of it caused by a single anarchist.

Although very little concrete action came out from the conference, it still caused a stir among various advocacy groups. While replacing the G-8 with the G-20 is a meaningful gesture, it is just the symbolic and ultimately meaningless move that one should expect when it comes to the world of international politics.

Leahy-Specter Motion—Habeas Corpus Restoration Act:
In a relatively important yet unnoticed battle in the chamber of the United States Senate, a bipartisan motion co-sponsored by Senator Patrick Leahy (D—VT) and Senator Arlen Specter (R, PA) failed; when the votes were counted the final total was 56 in favor and 43 opposed. The failure of this motion can be attributed to the fact that it failed to obtain a supermajority (60 votes), which would have allowed it to overcome the Republican filibuster. This is seen as a defeat for the Democrats, as the motion attempted to restore the right of Habeus Corpus to the imprisoned “illegal enemy combatants” currently being held at Guantanamo Bay.

Webb Amendment:
The amendment proposed by Senator James Webb (D—VA) would have restricted, in essence, how long and how often troops could be deployed in combat. The amendment went down in defeat; as 56 senators were in favor and 44 against, again failing to attain the supermajority level. The fact that this amendment failed is seen as another defeat for the Democrats, but more surprising than the defeat of the amendment is the fact that Senator John Warner (R—VA) changed his position so radically. Originally Senator Warner was in favor of the amendment, but then he began to waver and actually, in the final vote, voted against Webb’s amendment.

Levin-Reed Amendment:
An amendment sponsored by Senator Carl Levin (D—MI) and Senator Jack Reed (D—RI) would have “required a change of mission in Iraq and mandated firm timetables for withdrawal.” The amendment was defeated by a vote of 47 in favor and 47 against. Surprisingly, unlike Senator Webb’s amendment, which received a majority of votes, but not the required supermajority, the Levin-Reed Amendment did not receive a simple majority of the votes. The amendment did receive limited bipartisan support from Senator Chuck Hagel (R—NE), Senator Gordon Smith (R—OR), and Senator Olympia Snowe (R—ME).

Cornyn-Inhofe Resolution:
Last week, when General Petraeus was testifying before Congress, the anti-war group, MoveOn.org placed an ad in the New York Times labeling the four star general as “General Betray US” and making the claim that he “cooks the books for the White House.” By a vote of 72 in favor, 25 against, the Senate passed a resolution co-sponsored by Senator John Cornyn (R—TX) and Senator James Inhofe (R—OK), which condemned MoveOn.org for this advertisement. The passage of this resolution is seen as a victory for Republicans.

Approval Rating:
While President Bush’s approval ratings currently hover somewhere between 30-35 percent, given the day, the news from Iraq, and the agency conducting the poll, Congress’s most recent approval rating appears to be 11 percent. This figure, barely one third of the President Bush’s approval rating, cannot and should not be viewed as a good sign by anyone. Even though the traditional wisdom would be for the Republicans to be happy, as this number really cannot be described in any way other than pathetic, the number could indicate a strong degree of anger, by the voters, towards all incumbents, not just Democrats.

If Thompson Runs, NBC will pull Law and Order Episodes:

If former Senator Fred Thompson (R- TN) decides to run for president in 2008, some television stations will find themselves with a slight problem, they will have to “suspend reruns of the show if [Thompson] makes a bid for the White House.” This suspension would be due to the fact that “federal campaign law requires broadcasters to give all candidates equal time on the airwaves.” So, if Thompson does declare himself a candidate, fans will have to live without re-runs for some time, but can take comfort knowing that Sam Waterston’s character Jack McCoy will likely be becoming DA.

Clinton and Obama continue to spar, but is it a harbinger of something else:

With the continuance of sharp words between Hillary Clinton (D, NY) and Barack Obama (D, IL), many people seem to delight in the competition rather than the potential outcome. The fact of the matter is that two liberal senators have all but reduced the Democratic nomination to a contest between themselves, one (Clinton) is an experienced “establishment” candidate, where the other (Obama) is a relatively inexperienced “change/reform” candidate who has the power to woo the masses. The situation is a very strong parallel to the fight for the Democratic nomination between Senator John F. Kennedy and Senator Lyndon B. Johnson in 1960. If the parallel holds true, Obama will run for President, Clinton will take the V.P. nod, and they will beat their Republican opponent, to win the White House. This situation could be worth watching.

Romney and Huckabee Rock the Iowa Vote; Brownback loses heavily:

The victory of former Governor Romney (R, MA) in the Ames straw poll on August 11 th, was expected, but nevertheless a great boon to his candidacy. If Romney can convert this win into more momentum in New Hampshire, he could start to really win in the primaries and sweep McCain out of the water, and perhaps even beat Thompson (if he declares) and Giuliani. The fact that former Governor Huckabee (R, AK) won a decisive second place victory over Senator Sam Brownback, (R, KA), bodes well for Huckabee. Brownback outspent Huckabee by hundreds of thousands of dollars, but still did not secure a victory. Additionally, this means that Huckabee is garnering more support from Evangelical Christians than Brownback, not a good sign for the senator.

Diehard Clinton fans say Obama would be a negative on her ticket:

Salivating Hillary Clinton fans who are envisioning her heading the ticket in 2008 do not see a place for her main rival Barack Obama. They believe that he would not bring a lot to the ticket and show strong indications of recruiting a southerner to try to win the South. Time will tell if this approach is genius or lunacy.

There is a downside to being the next JFK/RFK:

Senator Obama, in my opinion, can only be described as a combination of John Fitzgerald Kennedy and his brother Robert Fitzgerald Kennedy. Whether the junior senator from Illinois will find my comparison flattering or not is beyond comprehension, but the sheer volume of adoring fans, the excitement, and the sense of youth and change he manages to generate are amazing, to say the least. However, the downside to this popularity is that the Senator is forced to turn down invitations to different forums and must restrict his participation in debates. How this will affect his candidacy remains to be seen, as it does have the potential to anger people due to the fact that he appears to be ignoring them. However, it could be a propaganda weapon for Obama as he would be demonstrating that the job the voters elected him to perform trumps speaking appearances.

People are looking to September when General Petraeus will report on Iraq:

With the recent upswing of good news concerning the war in Iraq and President Bush’s Surge Strategy, everyone is waiting for General Petraeus to issue his report in September concerning the situation in Iraq. If he reports good news, President Bush will be vindicated and Congressional Democrats may find themselves in some hot water. However, if he reports bad news, the situation could be reversed. It is widely agreed that if he reports bad news more Republicans will begin to move for troop withdrawals.

Before the midterm elections, the state of New Jersey passed a measure that may forever change our country. Although many states voted to ban gay marriage during the recent elections, New Jersey’s highest court on October 25 paved the way for lawmakers to legalize gay marriage, making it only the second state in the United States to do so.
The court, in a 4-3 decision, decided that homosexual couples are entitled the same rights at heterosexual couples, and gave lawmakers 180 days to grant marriage or an equivalent alternative, such as civil unions. Many gay rights activists have seen New Jersey as an ideal location for such legislation since it is one of only five states that does not explicitly ban gay marriage within the state constitution. The state also passed legislation in 2004 that made domestic partnerships legal, also lending support for gay marriage advocates. The New Jersey legislature must now decide how to handle the issue. Governor Jon Corzine has stated that he supports domestic partnerships, but not gay marriage. Although the issue is not settled, historic steps have certainly been made.

One must pay careful attention nowadays as they watch daytime television. For if they do, they will witness the ending of an era. While most people were paying attention to unimportant things like midterm elections, television history was announced and almost forgotten. Bob Barker, the legendary host of the infamous daytime television game show called The Price is Right, has announced that he will retire.

Bob Barker first started his marvelous career in television in 1956 when he began hosting a show called Truth or Consequences. Since then, he has spent fifty years on television, including 35 years hosting The Price is Right. When asked why he is retiring, Barker replied, “I will be 83 years old in December, and I’ve decided to retire while I’m still young.” Barker went on to say that he plans on seeing what it’s like to be bored, and may appear in small movie roles once retired. The president of CBS, the station on which The Price is Right is shown, commented that, “Barker has left an enduring mark on the network . . . [and called his work] immeasurable.”

Daytime television will lose one of its best faces in June when Bob Barker reminds us to help control the pet population by having our pets spayed or neutered for the last time. Thank you, Bob, for all the good times. We will never forget what you have done for us.

An American soldier has finally returned home. Not from the sands of Iraq or Afghanistan. Not from the jungles of Vietnam. Not from the beaches of Normandy. Private Francis Lupo, of Cincinnati, Ohio, has returned from the fields of France. After 90 years, Francis Lupo, one of the first soldiers from the First World War to be excavated, identified, and returned in decades, has finally received a proper burial.

Lupo has become one of the longest missing soldiers to be identified after being killed in battle on July 21, 1918. In 2003, archaeologists looking for ancient burials discovered the body of Francis Lupo in a shallow grave along with the remains of a still unidentified soldier. A piece of wallet was found with the bodies, with the name Francis Lupo embossed on it. This allowed the remains to be identified by comparing DNA with the only known living relative of Lupo, a niece named Rachel Kleisinger. She was born 15 years after his death, and only remembers Francis from a photo she saw as a child.

In 2004, members of the to the Defense Department’s Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command in Hawaii received Lupo’s remains and began the process to positively identify them, as well as to find a living relative. It was the first time the command had worked on a soldier from the First World War. Along with the most modern technology, the command was able to positively identify the remains, and pave the way for a proper burial.

Rachel Kleisinger, now 73, was the only family member alive to see Lupo’s funeral, held at Arlington National Cemetery. No parades were held. No veterans from “The Great War” stood at attention. He still, however, was given the full military honors that he deserved, including, ” . . .a horse-drawn caisson, a bugler, [and] rifle volleys.” Francis Lupo is finally home. It took 90 years, but he has finally received the rest he earned. He received the funeral that all fallen soldiers deserve. He no longer lies unnamed in a field in France. He now lies in a place of honor. Thank you, Francis, and welcome home.