U.S. won't join landmine ban, administration decides
Pepe Silvia
Posts: 3,758
boo
http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/11/24/ ... index.html
U.S. won't join landmine ban, administration decides
From Charley Keyes, CNN Senior Producer
November 24, 2009 6:05 p.m. EST
Washington (CNN) -- The United States won't join its NATO allies and many other countries in formally banning landmines, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said during his midday briefing Tuesday.
"This administration undertook a policy review and we decided our landmine policy remains in effect," Kelly said in response to a question. "We made our policy review and we determined that we would not be able to meet our national defense needs nor our security commitments to our friends and allies if we sign this convention."
Opponents of the U.S. landmine policy said they were surprised.
"It is a disturbing development," said Steve Goose of Human Rights Watch. "The administration never said a policy review was under way."
Goose said the decision to leave the policy in place is at odds with the administration's professed commitments to international agreements and humanitarian issues.
"The international treaty against landmines has made a a huge difference and it is a very strong deterrent," Goose said. "It has to have been a very fast and cursory review."
The United States will attend an international conference on landmines next week in Cartagena, Colombia, sending an inter-agency delegation from the State and Defense departments as observers.
Kelly said the United States continues to work with governments as well as nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to help remove landmines.
"The U.S. is proud to be the world's single largest supporter of humanitarian mine action," Kelly said. "Since 1993 the U.S. has provided more than $1.5 billion worldwide dedicated to building new partnerships with more than 50 post-conflict countries and supporting efforts by dozens of NGOs to promote stability and set the stage for recovery and development through mine clearance and conventional-weapons destruction programs."
The United States is the only member of NATO that will not sign the landmine treaty, Goose said. Russia and China also have not joined the 156 nations that have endorsed the ban, he said.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/11/24/ ... index.html
U.S. won't join landmine ban, administration decides
From Charley Keyes, CNN Senior Producer
November 24, 2009 6:05 p.m. EST
Washington (CNN) -- The United States won't join its NATO allies and many other countries in formally banning landmines, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said during his midday briefing Tuesday.
"This administration undertook a policy review and we decided our landmine policy remains in effect," Kelly said in response to a question. "We made our policy review and we determined that we would not be able to meet our national defense needs nor our security commitments to our friends and allies if we sign this convention."
Opponents of the U.S. landmine policy said they were surprised.
"It is a disturbing development," said Steve Goose of Human Rights Watch. "The administration never said a policy review was under way."
Goose said the decision to leave the policy in place is at odds with the administration's professed commitments to international agreements and humanitarian issues.
"The international treaty against landmines has made a a huge difference and it is a very strong deterrent," Goose said. "It has to have been a very fast and cursory review."
The United States will attend an international conference on landmines next week in Cartagena, Colombia, sending an inter-agency delegation from the State and Defense departments as observers.
Kelly said the United States continues to work with governments as well as nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) to help remove landmines.
"The U.S. is proud to be the world's single largest supporter of humanitarian mine action," Kelly said. "Since 1993 the U.S. has provided more than $1.5 billion worldwide dedicated to building new partnerships with more than 50 post-conflict countries and supporting efforts by dozens of NGOs to promote stability and set the stage for recovery and development through mine clearance and conventional-weapons destruction programs."
The United States is the only member of NATO that will not sign the landmine treaty, Goose said. Russia and China also have not joined the 156 nations that have endorsed the ban, he said.
don't compete; coexist
what are you but my reflection? who am i to judge or strike you down?
"I will promise you this, that if we have not gotten our troops out by the time I am president, it is the first thing I will do. I will get our troops home. We will bring an end to this war. You can take that to the bank." - Barack Obama
when you told me 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em'
i was thinkin 'death before dishonor'
what are you but my reflection? who am i to judge or strike you down?
"I will promise you this, that if we have not gotten our troops out by the time I am president, it is the first thing I will do. I will get our troops home. We will bring an end to this war. You can take that to the bank." - Barack Obama
when you told me 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em'
i was thinkin 'death before dishonor'
Post edited by Unknown User on
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Comments
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yeah! ... nobel prize for PEACE ... what a joke0
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im not surprised. change we can BELIEVE in, but not actually follw through on.....polaris_x wrote:yeah! ... nobel prize for PEACE ... what a joke
what a fucking joke...."You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry." - Lincoln
"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."0 -
The so called main stream media pushed this guy and some fell for it...why would people vote for such an inexperienced man to be president.....maybe there brainwashed by the mainstream media that does not report most of the news that is happening.......I guess this is what happens when people are not informed... “We the people are the rightful masters of both Congress and the courts, not to overthrow the Constitution but to overthrow the men who pervert the Constitution.” Abraham Lincoln0 -
not exactly the right message to be sending.
let's pretend that spending more money than any other nation (1.5 billion in the last 15 years), to assist with mine clearance, and cleaning up the mess, makes us awesome and the good guys.
how about showing support for the other countries that agree this is wrong, and let's do the sane thing and not make a mess to start with.
wouldn't that be simpler?0 -
whatever you are talking about, keep doing it. please keep posting funny things. your comedy is one of the only reasons i come around here anymore. with everything wrong in my life, i need your satire to cheer me up.....aerial wrote: The so called main stream media pushed this guy and some fell for it...why would people vote for such an inexperienced man to be president.....maybe there brainwashed by the mainstream media that does not report most of the news that is happening.......I guess this is what happens when people are not informed...
seriously though, with every post you make, you expose yourself as possibly the least well informed poster in the history of the train. and that is not easy to do."You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry." - Lincoln
"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."0 -
why on earth would we not support a landmine ban?
i am completely perplexed and astonished by this decision.... :?"You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry." - Lincoln
"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."0 -
gimmesometruth27 wrote:why on earth would we not support a landmine ban?
i am completely perplexed and astonished by this decision.... :?
because apparently if we banned landmines "we would not be able to meet our national defense needs nor our security commitments to our friends and allies"don't compete; coexist
what are you but my reflection? who am i to judge or strike you down?
"I will promise you this, that if we have not gotten our troops out by the time I am president, it is the first thing I will do. I will get our troops home. We will bring an end to this war. You can take that to the bank." - Barack Obama
when you told me 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em'
i was thinkin 'death before dishonor'0 -
oh yeah, i skimmed right over that part lol....i guess i was in shock at the decision and it did not register.Pepe Silvia wrote:
because apparently if we banned landmines "we would not be able to meet our national defense needs nor our security commitments to our friends and allies"
even so, how will landmines meet our national defense needs? considering they are all placed in countries other than our own.."You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry." - Lincoln
"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."0 -
wouldn't some corporation be chomping at the bit to get a no-bid contract for billions of dollars to remove said landmines?? maybe the lobbyists for the military industrial complex are losing influence????"You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry." - Lincoln
"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."0 -
the correlation between human rights abuses and US aid is never mentioned in US media...if ever there was a time for it is now.0
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aerial wrote: The so called main stream media pushed this guy and some fell for it...why would people vote for such an inexperienced man to be president.....maybe there brainwashed by the mainstream media that does not report most of the news that is happening.......I guess this is what happens when people are not informed...
says the least informed poster on the board... and potentially the only one that agree with him on this issue and thinks landmines are fine, just like torturing terrorists. the irony...0 -
gimmesometruth27 wrote:why on earth would we not support a landmine ban?
i am completely perplexed and astonished by this decision.... :?
Because with anything, there is more too this story then we are ever going to know to form any kind of opinion.BRING BACK THE WHALE0 -
gimmesometruth27 wrote:wouldn't some corporation be chomping at the bit to get a no-bid contract for billions of dollars to remove said landmines?? maybe the lobbyists for the military industrial complex are losing influence????
The "military industrial complex" has been on a decline for a while, get ready to see some massive cut backs on the next BRAC, and more contracts slashed with in the coming years.BRING BACK THE WHALE0 -
OffHeGoes29 wrote:
The "military industrial complex" has been on a decline for a while, get ready to see some massive cut backs on the next BRAC, and more contracts slashed with in the coming years.
wasn't the "military industrial complex" at least partly to blame for our hard-on for the wars in iraq and afghanistan? those companies made record windfall profits from our lack of a strategy and our willingness to pay companies like blackwater 5 times what a US soldier makes and KBR $300 for a hammer and $500 for a damn toilet seat WITHOUT GETTING COMPETING BIDS? sounds like some pretty big influence to me....
if the pentagon budget and these contracts get slashed its about 8 years too late, and frankly i will be stunned if that happens, considering that obama has gone from "change we can believe in" to "bush lite"..."You can tell the greatness of a man by what makes him angry." - Lincoln
"Well, you tell him that I don't talk to suckas."0 -
Pepe Silvia wrote:
because apparently if we banned landmines "we would not be able to meet our national defense needs nor our security commitments to our friends and allies"
Until North Korea becomes less of a concern, I can't say I disagree too much with Obama, Bush & Clinton on this.
http://www.globalissues.org/article/79/landminesADD 5,200 to the post count you see, thank you.
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hey now, Obama won't support the landmine ban because......uhhh.....ummmm....flips through book of excuses....change takes time!!
nevermind effort, we all must heed the urgent call of 'meh, maybe someday' that was his campaign slogan, right?don't compete; coexist
what are you but my reflection? who am i to judge or strike you down?
"I will promise you this, that if we have not gotten our troops out by the time I am president, it is the first thing I will do. I will get our troops home. We will bring an end to this war. You can take that to the bank." - Barack Obama
when you told me 'if you can't beat 'em, join 'em'
i was thinkin 'death before dishonor'0 -
CJMST3K wrote:Until North Korea becomes less of a concern, I can't say I disagree too much with Obama, Bush & Clinton on this.
http://www.globalissues.org/article/79/landmines
is there something in your link that says landmines are good? ... the initial part up top just reaffirms my belief that these things are unnecessary and in fact do more for civilian devastation than defense ...
for the same reasons why the US do not participate in ANY weapons (nuclear or otherwise) - this landmine ban shows what US priorities are ... $$$0 -
This just shows how neurotic our government is... we won't join the ban of inhumane weaponry (kind of an oxymoron, I know) because of the possibility of a war in the Koreas, where evidently anti-personnel mines would be absolutely necessary. Maintaining power is obviously more important than creating peace, and murder is okay if it is performed by the State.Everything not forbidden is compulsory and eveything not compulsory is forbidden. You are free... free to do what the government says you can do.0
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ADD 5,200 to the post count you see, thank you.
*NYC 9/28/96 *NYC 9/29/96 *NJ 9/8/98 (front row "may i play drums with you")
*MSG 9/10/98 (backstage) *MSG 9/11/98 (backstage)
*Jones Beach 8/23/00 *Jones Beach 8/24/00 *Jones Beach 8/25/00
*Mansfield 8/29/00 *Mansfield 8/30/00 *Nassau 4/30/03 *Nissan VA 7/1/03
*Borgata 10/1/05 *Camden 5/27/06 *Camden 5/28/06 *DC 5/30/06
*VA Beach 6/17/08 *DC 6/22/08 *MSG 6/24/08 (backstage) *MSG 6/25/08
*EV DC 8/17/08 *EV Baltimore 6/15/09 *Philly 10/31/09
*Bristow VA 5/13/10 *MSG 5/20/10 *MSG 5/21/100 -
gimmesometruth27 wrote:wouldn't some corporation be chomping at the bit to get a no-bid contract for billions of dollars to remove said landmines?? maybe the lobbyists for the military industrial complex are losing influence????
I don't think they're losing influence-- just the opposite, actually. I think this is a classic example of the landmine manufacturers having more influence ($) than whatever company that could come and and gain a contract to remove landmines.
I know someone that has several patents for technology that would have saved American lives in the battlefield right now from IEDs. It is robotic technology that disarms bombs with a laser-- I've seen his video demonstration of it all, and it's very interesting stuff. He has signed contracts with the army and has been pushing to get this stuff manufactured and in the field for years. He has given speaking engagements and demonstrations at the pentagon, and he just keeps getting the yellow and red light from the Dept. of Defense-- all the while, people are losing limbs and lives out there. Four years later, he's still no farther than when he started. Bottomline: stuff NEEDS to get blown up for a very small group of businesses out there to profit immensely-- his ideas only get in the way. The other day, he said to me, "They can ram through any piece of legislation they want, and allocate billions of dollars at a time for any purpose at all, including 'stimulus'-- but they can't push through some small, effective, and inexpensive machinery to help out the troops." Sadly, it's true-- the lives of the soldiers are not important enough when there is money to be made.
He's Joe Schmoe with a great idea-- not Lockheed Martin with some incredibly wasteful ideas, and that's why he will only continue to be strung along, waiting for the green light that's never going to come, or come far too late.0
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