News opinion 2008-07-25 Andanh.com

Karadzic’s capture was long overdue Thu, 24 Jul 2008 11:13:00 -0500
Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic has been on the run since 1998 and it was long overdue when the world learned Monday that the man suspected of genocide and war crimes during Bosnia’s war had been captured. Karadzic had been indicted by the U.N. War Crimes Tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands, and he is expected to be turned over to the court in a matter of days. The fugitive, whose appearance had changed from a larger man wearing three-piece suits during his years in power to a thinner man with a white beard and glasses while on the run, is believed to have been responsible for masterminding the wartime siege of Sarajevo and the executions of up to 8,000 Muslim men and boys in Srebrencia during Bosnia’s 1992-95 war. The atrocities are believed to be the worst massacre in Europe since World War II. All these crimes happened during the reign of former Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic, who was trying to preserve his country and not let various ethnic and religious regions within it become independent from Yugoslavia. Milosevic was indicted in 2000 and tried by the U.N. War Crimes Tribunal, but died before the trial was over in 2006. It is a relief that Karadzic is off the streets and will eventually have his day in court. Of course, he denies the allegations before him and plans to represent himself in court as Milosevic did, but the evidence to be presented against him seems very strong. It is worth noting that governments worldwide hailed the arrest of the man described by the tribunal as the mastermind of “scenes from hell, written on the darkest pages of human history.” His arrest also sends a strong message that Serbia wants to be a part of the international community. This indicates that it wants to be pro-Western, unlike past regimes that attempted to defy the West. Turning over suspected war criminals could put the country on a fast track for membership in the European Union. We commend Serbian officials for bringing Karadzic to justice and look forward to seeing him before the war crimes court to answer for his suspected atrocities.

Flip-flop Barack Thu, 24 Jul 2008 11:07:19 -0500
As an inveterate “stage-door Johnny,” I have hundreds of song lyrics floating around in my head and can produce them at a moment’s notice. Sometimes they jump out at the most appropriate time to describe a current event. In the case of the Iraq War, Sen. Barack Obama has said that even though the military surge ordered by President Bush and backed by Sen. John McCain has worked, he still opposes it. Would he have preferred all-out defeat or an endless quagmire, which was where things appeared to be heading before the surge? During the primary campaign, Obama said, if he were elected president, he would pull most - if not all - U.S. troops out immediately. He later added that before ordering a retreat, he would first consult commanders on the ground. Then he said he might have to “adjust” his timetable, which he said was 16 months. When the left went berserk over what it regarded as a broken promise to unilaterally withdraw, Obama said he was sticking to his 16-month timetable and had not changed his position. Now to the song lyric, which characterizes Obama’s decision-making process: “You say yes, then it’s no; You say you’ll stay, then you go You’re undecided now, so what are you gonna do? Yes, it’s about a fickle lover, but doesn’t it apply to Obama and his “leadership” by focus group and political expediency? First you say you do, and then you don’t, And then you say you will, and then you won’t, You’re undecided now, so what are you gonna do? Democrats have been critical of President Bush for what they regard as his stubborn refusal to admit mistakes in the war. They are less interested in confession than they are in using such statements to advance their own political agenda. They seem less concerned with promoting ultimate U.S. interests, which would, for now, be a stable and democratic Iraq. They say they want to win only the war in Afghanistan but have less to say about how to prevail in the much longer war against the radical Islamic extremists of which Iraq and Afghanistan are only a part. Instead of leadership, Obama gives us politics and this: Now you want to play, and then it’s no, And when you say you’ll stay, that’s when you go You’re undecided now, so what are you gonna do? There’s more: I’ve been sittin’ on a fence, and it doesn’t make much sense, ’Cause you keep me in suspense, and you know it. And suppose that after the pullout things deteriorate? The song covers that too: You promise to return; when you don’t I really burn, Well, I guess I’ll never learn, and I show it! There is another possibility that the surge may be masking. It is that the enemies of democracy and America are lying low, knowing that if the surge appears to be working, U.S. forces are likely to withdraw more quickly. Then, after substantial numbers have left, the terrorists, backed by Iran, might flood back in, or come out of hiding and strike again. This could require a return of American forces at even greater cost in lives and money. In a July 2 interview with Military Times, Obama said: “If current trends continue and we’re in a position where we continue to see reductions in violence and situations and stabilizations and continue to see improvements on the part of the Iraqi army and Iraqi police, then you know my hope would be that we could draw down in a deliberate fashion in consultation with the Iraqi government, at a pace that is determined in consultation with Gen. Petraeus and the other commanders on the ground and it strikes me that that’s something we can begin relatively soon after inauguration. If, on the other hand, you’ve got a deteriorating situation for some reason then that’s going to have to be taken into account.” After all that, he still says before visiting Iraq that 16 months remains his timetable. (Cue music.) A drawdown of troops is now becoming a possibility, thanks to the surge and President Bush’s refusal to buckle under political and media pressure. But that’s no credit to Obama. He’s undecided.

Trade does reveal much about both sides Thu, 24 Jul 2008 11:07:19 -0500
It was a ghastly trade, flesh and blood for two boxes of bones. Many criticized it. Some could not bear to watch it. But if anything showed the difference between Israel and Hezballah in last week’s exchange of two dead Israeli soldiers for five live prisoners and 199 corpses, it was not the trade itself. It was the reaction. In Israel, where the bodies of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev arrived in black coffins, the mood was, according to reports, somber and mournful. Candles were lit. Prayers were recited. These two young soldiers, both students and reservists at the time, were captured in a cross-border raid two years ago by Hezballah guerrillas, setting off a small war that left 160 Israelis and 1,000 Lebanese dead. Because the Israeli military vows to never leave a soldier on the battlefield, negotiations were held to get the two men back, even though most believed they were dead. Hezballah, which captured the two men to use them as bargaining chips, held firm to its demand that Israel free several prisoners, including Samir Kuntar. Not Kuntar, many Israelis said. He was serving life sentences for murdering three people in 1979: a police officer, a civilian named Danny Haran and Haran’s 4-year-old daughter, whose head Kuntar smashed on rocks and with his rifle butt. Haran’s wife, hiding her other baby from Kuntar, covered her mouth to stop her whimpering. The child suffocated. Kuntar’s killings were regarded in Israel as the most brutal form of terrorism. The thought of freeing him went against every fiber of justice. But last week, after almost 30 years behind bars, Kuntar was allowed to go by the Israeli authorities. And on Wednesday, he walked down a red carpet in Beirut and was kissed by the Hezballah leader and cheered like a rock star. “Samir! Samir!” the crowd reportedly yelled. This for a man convicted of smashing a child’s head into pieces. You can take whatever side you like in the Israeli-Palestinian debate. You can argue who is entitled to land and statehood and borders. But you cannot defend the frenzied lovefest that took place for Kuntar in Lebanon, as if he were some long-lost statesmen, instead of a common murderer who did the worst thing you can do: take the life of a child. What religion condones that? What holy book says that is a good thing? A banner in Beirut, according to the New York Times, read “God’s Achievement Through Our Hands.” What God would have a child’s murder on anyone’s hands? How do people celebrate such a killer? Is it because the little girl was Israeli - and Israel is the enemy? Since when does a 4-year-old know of politics or war? Is it because Arab children get killed by Israelis? Yes, children undeniably die in bombings - on both sides. But an Israeli soldier who deliberately smashed a child’s head on a rock should - and likely would - be tried as a criminal, not cheered like a hero. The total disregard for life of anyone who does not believe what Hezballah believes stands in stark contrast to the value of life - and even of its demise - that Israel demonstrated in bringing those two bodies back. The families of Goldwasser and Regev were able to put their sons in the ground, to say good-bye, to end the wondering. That small act meant something to the government, which voted on the exchange. In the midst of the never-ending conflict Israel faces, that says an awful lot. Meanwhile, here is what Kuntar said to the cheering crowd: “I return from Palestine only to go back to Palestine. I promise families in Palestine that we are coming back, me and my brothers in the resistance.” You’ll note he never says the word “Israel.” To men like Kuntar, Israel does not exist and should never exist. He and the terrorist group that freed him (and you can install Hezballah into all the government seats you want, a terrorist group is still a terrorist group) want a world in which Israel has no place. The Jews should be driven into the sea. With a philosophy like that, it may be hard to expect remorse. But if you can justify Hezballah calling a national holiday to cheer home a child murderer, there is no talking to you. There is only mourning - as there was over two coffins last week - for a world in which such things and such thinking can take place.

Inconvenient goals Thu, 24 Jul 2008 21:46:00 EST
Bold vision is required in tackling environmental challenges the world faces today. With his newly announced energy challenge to the nation, former Vice President Al Gore just one-upped boldness.

Recession indeed Thu, 24 Jul 2008 21:46:00 EST
The editorial "The power of art" noted the film "The Dark Knight" broke the opening weekend record with $155 million. It then inserted in parentheses "Recession? What recession?" implying that everything must be well with America.

'People of Berlin . . . this is our moment' Fri, 25 Jul 2008 01:27:00 EST
I come to Berlin as so many of my countrymen have come before. Tonight, I speak to you not as a candidate for president, but as a citizen -- a proud citizen of the United States, and a fellow citizen of the world. …

Vital city needs vital preservation movement Thu, 24 Jul 2008 21:47:00 EST
Bauer's Restaurant, Wayside Christian Mission, the Ouerbacker-Clements Mansion, and the Vogt-Lemon Building have kept those concerned about the community's appearance and history extremely active over the last few months.

Lunch With...Dr. David Casey Thu, 24 Jul 2008 21:37:00 EST
It's relatively easy to determine whether a person has dementia. But it's not always easy to determine what kind of dementia a person has. It's common to have a little bit of uncertainty. That's been a problem in our field. It's a problem with our diagnostic technology.

His fault.. Thu, 24 Jul 2008 21:29:00 EST

Readers' views Fri, 25 Jul 2008 02:24 EDT

Time to protest: Thought Police hard at work

I read 1984, by George Orwell, when I was in high school. I was pleased that 1984 came and went without Big Brother. Twenty-four years later, I realize that the Thought Police have been busy for years without my even being aware of it.

It is time to do something to reaffirm the principles on which we celebrate our independence. Go to the Web site: www.tortureisamoralissue.org, and read and sign the petition.

We fought for independence from any authority that would violate habeus corpus rights, treat us as pawns in a larger game, not consider our humanity as valid and valuable. For more than 200 years, we have strengthened that independence, extending those rights to people of whatever race, sex, national origin or disability.

Attract math, science teachers Thu, 24 Jul 2008 02:51 EDT

This editorial appeared in the Kansas City Star.

College graduates with engineering, math and science degrees find jobs more quickly and at higher pay than graduates in most other fields.

But rosy employment prospects haven't enticed enough students to major in science and math curriculums.

Unlocking the secret of past life on Mars Thu, 24 Jul 2008 02:51 EDT

This editorial appeared in the Kansas City Star.

A mere 422 million miles from Earth, NASA's phenomenal planet-searcher, the Phoenix Lander, is busy giving scientists valuable information about life on Mars.

No, not life now, we don't think. But billions of years ago, there were large bodies of water, one of the key substances for life as we know it. Because of what Phoenix has been busy doing since it touched down May 25, scientists now can confirm the past existence of all this water.

Sad farewell to Dawahares Fri, 25 Jul 2008 02:24 EDT

Dawahares Inc. was more than a family-owned Kentucky department store chain.

For many Kentuckians, it was family. For almost a century, the chain served small towns that were neglected by national retailers. Clerks knew their customers' names as well as their tastes and preferences.

No surprise, as columnist Tom Eblen wrote, that when word spread that Dawahares wouldn't make it out of bankruptcy, customers responded as if they'd lost a relative or close friend. They went to stores across Kentucky to .pay their respects,. company president and CEO Harding Dawahare said. .They just came in to share stories about how much they loved Dawahare's..

Respect, yes, but also admiration for surviving as a family-owned business in a field so punishing that few make it even half as far as the Dawahare family did.

Publisher's Notebook: YMCA needs to design working business model

CHEERS and JEERS: 3 planes bomb Gov.’s PR tour
We hope someone turned off the lights in Frankfort before flying to Pikeville last week.

New Batman film is no joke
It could not have been better.

Chinese Dir