diagenesis

Holdings: Doth it profit man?

2011-12-06T22:10:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday, we wrote about modern-day dynasties, dictators, and despots and, in particular, singled out the Administrations of Presidents Marcos (dynasty and dictator), Estrada (dynasty), and Arroyo (dynasty), plus Middle East-North Africa rulers: Tunisia (dynasty, dictator, despot); Egypt (dynasty, dictator, despot); Libya (dynasty, dictator, despot); and Yemen (dynasty, dictator, despot). Nearing the end-game is Syria (dynasty, dictator, despot) now under tight sanctions from the UN, Arab League, EU, US, and others because of heinous crimes and violence by the state against civilians.

To all these erstwhile Heads of State/Government do apply most pointedly the Words of Wisdom (WOW) of Leo Oracion, the first Filipino to climb Mt. Everest – which deserve repeating. He memorably asserted: “Getting to the top is optional, but coming back down is mandatory -- because no one stays at the summit forever.”

Source http://www.mb.com.ph/articles/343515/holdings-doth-it-profit-man

World champion Giants extinguish themselves in fiery wreck of a game, filing a missing persons report, etc.

2011-10-04T20:48:00.000-07:00

A team looks flat when it doesn’t hit. It looks lethargic and impotent. Uncaring, even.

When you don’t hit for an entire season, as the Giants have failed to do in 2011, it has a cumulative effect. It’s slow poison, leeching confidence and belief from the body.

But as the Giants displayed Saturday night at Chase Field, it looks a whole lot worse when you don’t pitch.

The games go from dull to disastrous. Eric Surkamp couldn’t find the plate and he was slow in his attempts to do so, leading to a flurry of walks and stolen bases in the first inning – along with one comical form tackle by Mike Fontenot on a much bigger land-bound mammal in umpire Bruce Dreckman.

It got worse from there. Not only were the Giants officially extinguished with their 15-2 loss, but they self-immolated in excruciatingly slow fashion. The freaky, 28-minute power outage delay wasn’t their fault. But those 13 walks – tying the San Francisco-era franchise record for a nine-inning game – were very preventable.

Several months ago, I asked Bruce Bochy which position player would be first in line as an emergency pitcher. He said Miguel Tejada.

And you thought they took too long to release Tejada! Turns out they could have used him Saturday night.

What does a night like this underscore for me? Well, that the Giants really, really pitched incredibly, unbelievably well to be eliminated in their 158th game. Without the best staff in the league, this could’ve been a 100-loss season. Easily.

After the game there weren’t a whole lot of choices for everyday players to interview for perspective on being officially eliminated. That’s because the Giants have had just one truly “everyday” player all season – and it’s Aubrey Huff, whom the New York Times recently called the least valuable hitter in the league.

This is astounding: Huff is the only player on the roster who has compiled enough plate appearances to qualify for the batting title. He’s the only Giant who will finish with more than 500 plate appearances this season.

That is rare. Here’s how rare:

The Giants would become the 14th team since 1920 to have just one player or fewer with 500 plate appearances. (The 1972 Mets and 1957 Kansas City A’s didn’t have anyone reach that mark.)

This is not a good list upon which to find yourself, by the way:

2010 Indians 69-93 (Choo)
2009 Pirates 62-99 (LaRoche)
2007 Cardinals 78-84 (Pujols)
2006 Rays 61-101 (Crawford)
2005 Dodgers 71-91 (Kent)
2003 Reds 69-93 (Casey)
1991 Indians 57-105 (Baerga)
1986 Dodgers 73-89 (Sax)
1972 Mets 83-73 (none)
1961 Phillies 47-107 (Callison)
1957 A’s 59-94 (none)
1954 Orioles 54-100 (Abrams)
1952 Tigers 50-104 (Groth)

As you can see, 12 of those 13 teams had losing records. Ten of them lost 90-plus games. Five of them lost 100. Their aggregate winning percentage was .403.

Makes the Giants’ 84-74 record look downright amazing, huh?

You’ll probably be able to add one more team to this distinguished group. The 2011 Houston Astros have only Carlos Lee above 500 plate appearances, and Clint Barmes probably won’t get there.

Oh yeah, one more detail: The Astros are 55-103.

Just like those ’72 Mets, who had Tom Seaver, Jon Matlack and Jerry Koosman still at or near the height of their powers, it took Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Madison Bumgarner and Ryan Vogelsong to keep this 2011 Giants season from becoming a total calamity.

–
I looked back at the first page of my scorebook. I’d forgotten Pablo Sandoval was the No.8 hitter on opening day. If only he’d really been the Giants’ eighth best hitter.

Here’s how it went for that lineup:

Andres Torres – DL (twice), 40 games missed
Freddy Sanchez – DL, 94 games missed
Aubrey Huff – COMPLETELY HEALTHY!
Buster Posey – DL, 110 games missed
Pat Burrell – DL, 43 games missed
Miguel Tejada – DL, and released, but only 25 games missed due to injury!
Brandon Belt – DL, 34 games missed, plus two demotions
Pablo Sandoval – DL, 40 games missed.

With the exception of Huff, every player missed at least a quarter of a season.

I used the game story to focus on Bruce Bochy’s answers to some pointed questions about whether he had any regrets or second-guesses. They were valid questions to ask. But given all you’ve just read, it’s obvious that no amount of managerial maneuvering could be expected to salvage this season.

–
Freddy Sanchez is rehabbing here in Arizona, where he lives. We were told he’d be at the ballpark during the Arizona series, cheering on his teammates as they fought to remain alive.

But nobody has laid eyes on him.

Maybe that would sit better with some folks around here if Sanchez were a free agent after the season. But he’s under contract for 2012.

–
The Giants will finish in second place, officially, because the Dodgers lost. Matt Kemp fell behind in the Triple Crown quest, too. His average is at .325. Ryan Braun is at .331 and Jose Reyes is at .330.

–
Tim Lincecum would’ve pitched on short rest Saturday if the Giants had won Friday night. Instead, he’ll make his final regular-season start on Sunday, with something big at stake.

Lincecum’s 2.59 ERA is in between the marks he posted in his two Cy Young seasons. Yet he’ll take the mound hoping he doesn’t finish the year with a sub-.500 record. He’s 13-13. It’s both sad and amazing. Samazing?

–
Instead of Lincecum on short rest, we got Eric Surkamp. I think the rookie will be learning a slide step in spring training. He nibbled and Arizona ate him alive on the basepaths.

The Giants entered 4-0 in Surkamp’s starts, but he’d been walking way too many batters. That surprised me given the way he has pounded the zone all through his minor league career.

He had a 165-44 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 142.1 innings at Double-A Richmond.

In the big leagues, it’s 17 walks, 10 strikeouts in 22 innings.

–
The Diamondbacks drew a sellout crowd – their third of the season.

The Giants have 78 sellouts this season.

If the Giants’ players have any issue getting motivated for these final four games, well, there you go.

“We owe it to our pitchers, our fans and our ownership to go out and play four good games,” Bochy said.

–
Ian Kennedy improved to 21-4 by beating the Giants on Saturday, ensuring he’ll end up on nearly every Cy Young Award ballot. As a voter for the Cy this year, I’m very glad the ballot has expanded from three to five slots. Kennedy deserves recognition, but it’s clear to me he wouldn’t crack a top three of Clayton Kershaw, Cliff Lee and Roy Halladay.

I’d think hard about listing Lincecum ahead of Kennedy, too. Better ERA and more strikeouts.

We all know wins don’t tell the whole story.

–
The Diamondbacks can’t match the Giants’ payroll, but I think they could be a top contender in the NL West for a long time.

Not only have they assembled a good, young rotation, but they have more high-level minor league arms than anyone in the system. Jarrod Parker, a 22-year-old former top-10 pick, will make his major league debut when he starts on Tuesday. Tyler Skaggs, who arrived along with Joe Saunders from Anaheim in the Dan Haren trade, saw his stock soar with a huge minor league season. And Trevor Bauer, the No.3 overall pick in June, has unique, Lincecum-like stuff.

Meanwhile, the Giants’ rotation, while still intact beyond 2011, is getting crazy expensive. And they don’t have much impact pitching left in their system, especially after trading Zack Wheeler for two months of Carlos Beltran. Surkamp was the most promising, and … well, yeah.

–
With the main story mostly pulling back and looking at how Bochy managed the season, I used the notebook space to summarize the particulars of a very ugly game.

In the notes, I mentioned Fontenot’s collision with umpire Bruce Dreckman, who looked like he was made of rubber as the 5-foot-7 Fontenot bounced off him.

Had Fontenot been involved in a play like that?

“Not where I did a form tackle on the umpire,” said Fontenot, who remained stunned on the ground for a minute. “I think he won. He didn’t budge.”

It was a 2-1 game at the time. The collision turned a ground out into a two-run single. You could argue it made a big impact on the final outcome.

But this was elimination day – the ultimate final outcome. And if you’ve followed the Giants this season, you know it too well:

There are only so many “if onlys…” to go around.

Source http://blogs.mercurynews.com/extrabaggs/2011/09/24/postgame-notes-world-champion-giants-extinguish-themselves-in-fiery-wreck-of-a-game-filing-a-missing-persons-report-etc/

In a war-torn Libya, long-repressed Berbers feel free to express their ancient heritage

2011-07-22T02:18:00.000-07:00

In a packed classroom on a cool evening near the front line in Libya’s civil war, 15-year-old Mira is teaching children to spell out the names of animals in the ancient Berber script, an act that once could have landed her in one of Muammar Qaddafi’s jails.

The indigenous people of North Africa, known to others as Berbers and among themselves as Amazigh, were brutally suppressed under Mr. Qaddafi, who considered the teaching of their language and culture to be a form of imperialism in his Arab country.

They have become crucial supporters of the rebellion seeking to topple Mr. Qaddafi, with their stronghold in the Nafusa Mountains southwest of Tripoli emerging as one of the main fronts.

Berber was the main language of North Africa before Arabic arrived with the Muslim conquest in the 7th century. It is still spoken in the Sahara and in mountainous parts of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, as well as Libya.

Activists say most of the Arabs of North Africa are in fact descended from Amazigh peoples who were there before the arrival of Islam.

Today, the rebel-held town of Jadu, normally home to about 20,000 people but now swollen with refugees from areas within shelling range of Colonel Qaddafi’s troops, has become the centre for the rebirth of Amazigh culture and language. Many shops have freshly painted Amazigh signs above their doors.

For a few weeks now a radio station has been broadcasting from here in both Arabic and Amazigh, in what Berber activists believe are the first conversations in their language over Libyan airwaves in four decades.

An Amazigh publishing house has printed four books so far during the past month, billed as Libya’s first publications in the language since Colonel Qaddafi seized power.

And there is Mira’s school, where classes are held six evenings a week from 5:30 to 7:30 pm.

The children study the Amazigh language at basic and advanced levels, as well as English, and sing songs in the courtyard. Their teachers learned Amazigh in secret from their parents at home.

Nearby is a museum, with local artifacts defiantly labeled in the once-banned script, items bearing the distinctive geometric patterns that Berbers say are part of their heritage.

Early in his rule, Colonel Qaddafi declared that anyone studying the Amazigh language was drinking “poisoned milk from their mother’s breast”, explained Fathi Anfusi, a 48-year-old Amazigh activist who escaped Tripoli and arrived in Jadu last month.

Mr. Qaddafi accused Amazigh activists of being on the payroll of Western intelligence agencies and seeking to divide the country. Berber activists were rounded up and jailed.

The hero of their movement, a poet and journalist named Said Mahrooq, was paralyzed after being run down by a car. Even giving children Amazigh names was forbidden.

Mr. Anfusi, an agronomist by profession, wanted to name his daughter Tala, a Berber name meaning “fountain.” He was forced to register her with the Arabic name Hala instead.

Even the Berber name of the Nafusa mountain range was banned. On Colonel Qaddafi’s maps, the region is known only as the Western Mountains.

Colonel Qaddafi’s government still uses hostility to the Amazigh as part of its propaganda, warning Arabs in nearby towns that Berbers are coming out of the hills to attack them.

Inside rebel-held territory, Arabs and Berbers say they are united. Rebel units from Berber towns such as Yefren and Jadu have been fighting side by side with units from Arab towns in the mountains, such as Zintan.

All fly the same pre-Qaddafi flag and profess similar goals of creating a democratic state.

But although they fight side by side, the units are still kept separate. When they captured the village of Al Qawalish last week, one of the first acts of the rival units was to hurriedly spray-paint the names of their Arab or Berber home towns on village walls.

An Arab rebel fighter in Zintan winced when this reporter referred to the Nafusa Mountains.

“Never say the Nafusa Mountains. That’s what the Berbers call it. We call it the Western Mountains,” he said.

But aren’t you all friends?

“We are friends for now,” the fighter replied, pausing for a moment to consider. “For the revolution. Mr. Anfusi acknowledges that hostility between Arabs and Berbers will probably outlast Qaddafi’s time in power.

“We will discover about each other. This will need time. Maybe we need five years. Maybe 10 years to build our country. This is our opportunity,” he said.

But in his own way, Colonel Qaddafi had inadvertently helped. The Libyan leader’s crackdown on the rebellion this year had united the Arabs and Berbers of the mountains for the first time, Mr. Anfusi said.

“The people, they all hate Qaddafi.”

Source http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/07/12/157324.html

Ben Ali Trial: Is ben Ali a dictator or a drug dealer?

2011-07-05T23:56:00.000-07:00

The drugs and gun running trial in absentia of Tunisia's ousted President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali has opened in the capital, Tunis. It was initially set to open on Friday but was pushed back following a Tunisian judges' strike.

Ben Ali was the first leader to be ousted in the "Arab Spring", and fled to Saudi Arabia in January following weeks of protests, a country that has so far failed to extradite Ben Ali, despite a request by Tunisia's new interim government.

Ben Ali's wife Leila Trabelsi was also convicted last week on the corruption charges as money and jewellery were found at their palace outside Tunis, which the police searched after the popular uprising forced the presidential couple to flee.

Following a first day of trial, they were then fined $66m (£41m) for embezzlement and misuse of public funds and Mr Ben Ali was sentenced to 35 years in jail.

Ben Ali denies harbouring drugs and weapons at his palace in Tunis during his rule and in court, his lawyer, Hosni Beji, described the drugs and gun-running charges as "irrational", before adding that he had a list of witnesses to prove Ben Ali never owned or kept drugs.

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"How can we imagine that a president holding power can have two kilogrammes of cannabis resin of mediocre quality [with intentions] of selling it," the AFP news agency quotes him as saying.

However, the lawyer also insisted he needed more time with his client.

"I will ask for an adjournment to a date that will allow me to have contact with my client and his family and prepare with him" a solid defence, Beji said.

Mr Beji added that he has a list of witnesses that should be able to prove Ben Ali "never owned or kept drugs."

Regarding the weapons charges, Benji said most of the weapons found at Ben Ali's palace in the Carthage neighbourhood north of Tunis were personal gifts from high-ranking international officials. He cited the Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika and the Saudi Interior Minister Prince Nayef Ben Abdel Aziz has amongst the officials that gave the former head of state weapons.

However, proving that the Tunisian people are still extremely angry at their former leader and those who support him, Reuters news agency reported that members of the public in the courtroom heckled Ben Ali's lawyers, shouting: "Get out! You have betrayed Tunisia by defending Ben Ali!" and "You should have defended the young people killed by Ben Ali's weapons!"

The former leader's lawyers walked out of the courtroom after the judge refused their request to delay the case so that they had more time to prepare their defence.

However, last week the former presidential couple's first sentence was highly criticised by rights groups and commentators, partly because the conviction was handed down after only six hours' deliberation.

Now that Ben Ali is sued for possession of marijuana with intention to sell, the trial is set to become even more bizarre. Surely, this does not represent the Tunisian people's primordial grievances. While the trial of the former Tunisian head of state could have been historical it is now turning into a joke. By the time the trial ends Ben Ali will probably be sentenced to hundreds of years of prison but will almost certainly never even have to set a foot in one.

While the Tunisian judicial system was here given a chance to prove it was now free from the presidential pressure and its dictates, has it succumbed to the new interim government's demands for a hasty trial?

Ben Ali's presidency was marred by human rights abuses and a lack of democracy, not by his incline for marijuana, so it does sound right for the prosecution to focus on the human rights violations he committed rather than on his drug habits.

Source http://uk.ibtimes.com/articles/173980/20110704/ben-ali-trial-is-ben-ali-a-dictator-or-a-drug-dealer.htm

Playfair Reports Initial Drill Results From Seal Lake

2011-04-19T21:24:00.000-07:00

Playfair Mining Ltd. (TSX VENTURE:PLY) is pleased to provide an update of the ongoing drill program at its 100% owned copper-silver Project at Seal Lake in Central Labrador. To date 20 holes, totalling 3,430m metres have been completed; analyses have been received for 10 of these holes. A total of 24 widely spaced holes are planned for this winter 2011 drill phase.

Results have been received for the initial tendrillholes. All ten drillholes intersected the favourable reduced Adeline Island Formation rocks with cumulative thicknesses ranging from 40.1 metres in drillhole SL-11-06 to 4.65 metres in drillhole SL-11-08. In addition to the results listed below, the seven remaining drillholes all contain anomalous amounts of copper within the favourable reduced rocks relative to the other sedimentary rocks in the area.

These results provide support to Playfair's exploration theory that the extensive copper-silver mineralization at Seal Lake is syngenetic or diagenetic (that is formed at the same time as the host rocks or shortly afterwards) and not epigenetic (that is formed at a considerably later time than the host rocks). The implication is that the copper silver mineralization occurs throughout the Seal Lake basin and that considerable tonnage can potentially be developed. Potentially economic copper and silver grades were intersected in three of Playfair's drillholes.

Source http://pr-usa.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=683914&Itemid=29

SANTA ANITA STABLE NOTES (Saturday April 2, 2011)

2011-04-05T20:28:00.000-07:00

Premier Pegasus enhanced his role as favorite for the Santa Anita Derby with a sizzling five-furlong workout Saturday morning at the 8 o’clock break on Santa Anita’s main track. The impressive winner of the San Felipe Stakes was timed in a bullet :59.20 under regular rider Alonso Quinonez.

The move was the fastest of 13 recorded works at the distance, the average time of which 1:00.56.

“We talked to Alonso before the work and told him to get a nice, easy work. We wanted a slower work but I don’t think we could get anything slower than that,” said Raxon Cho, 17-year-old son of owner/trainer/breeder Myung Kwon Cho, who was at his son’s side.

”I’m very happy with the horse,” the elder Cho said. “I liked the horse from his first race, but I didn’t expect him to accomplish as much as he’s had so far. I love him now.”

Raxon, an accomplished musician who plays saxophone, cello and piano, is enjoying the ride which he hopes will take Team Cho to the Kentucky Derby on May 7.

“Horse racing has always been exciting for me, but having a horse with this kind of capability is an amazing feeling, especially after how he ran in the San Felipe,” he said. “We always wondered if he could go two turns or not, because you never know until they do it.

“Now we know we have a good horse and we’re looking forward to next Saturday.”

Probable for the Santa Anita Derby: Anthony’s Cross, Joel Rosario; Bench Points, Rafael Bejarano; Celestic Night, Joe Talamo; Comma to the Top, Corey Nakatani; Indian Winter, Patrick Valenzuela; Mr. Commons, Mike Smith; Offlee Wild Boys, no rider; Premier Pegasus, Alonso Quinonez; and Silver Medallion, Garrett Gomez.

In other Santa Anita Derby news:

Jaycito, who could run in either the Santa Anita Derby or the Wood Memorial the same day, worked six furlongs at Santa Anita Saturday in 1:13.40. “He worked nice,” Bob Baffert said. “We’ll know (where he runs) tomorrow.”

Bench Points, third by nine lengths in the San Felipe, worked five furlongs in :59.80 for trainer Tim Yakteen.

David Hofmans said there is a “50-50” chance Quail Hill would run in the Santa Anita Derby.

At Hollywood Park, Celestic Night worked six furlongs in a bullet 1:12 under Joe Talamo for trainer Mike Mitchell.

Trainer Eoin Harty said Robert B. Lewis Stakes winner Anthony’s Cross was scheduled to have his final major drill for the Santa Anita Derby Monday, five furlongs, at Hollywood.

Source http://www.horseraceinsider.com/Press-Release/article/santa-anita-stable-notes-saturday-april-2-2011

Digging deeper into bone fossils

2011-03-23T21:08:00.000-07:00

The accuracy of studies on ancient bones of interest to archaeologists and paleontologists can be improved thanks to a new procedure designed by scientists in France.

Ancient human and animal bones give us an idea of what the climate and environment were like throughout geological history. They can also give us information on past diets and lifestyles. Unfortunately, the changes that occur to bone once it has been buried in the ground, called diagenesis, can modify bone fossils and limit their use as proxies.

Matthieu Lebon, from the National Museum of Natural History in Paris, and colleagues, have applied a method currently used in modern biomedical applications called synchrotron radiation Fourier transform infrared (SR-FTIR) microspectroscopy, to understand the fossilisation process of ancient bone.

The team prepared samples for analysis by impregnating the bone with a resin and then cutting off very thin sections. This allowed them to sample sites within the bone, irrespective of the preservation state, without affecting the structure.

They then applied SR-FTIR microspectroscopy and found that they could determine the molecular composition and structural properties of the bone at the microscale, a resolution not possible with other techniques. They observed different patterns of collagen-phosphate ratios and crystallinity levels in the bone, which could help in understanding the different effects that diagenesis has on ancient bone, and also in selecting the best sections for carbon dating and palaeo-diet analysis.

'The information provided by fossil bone composition plays an increasing role in current archaeological and paleontological research. Understanding fossilisation processes and evaluating preservation state are crucial when selecting the sample or the part of the sample that can provide the more reliable information, particularly in the framework of palaeo-isotopic studies,' says Lebon.

Matthew Collins, from the University of York, UK, who studies the decay of archaeological materials comments: 'The team's work elegantly highlights the heterogeneous nature of bone decomposition and opens up the possibility to investigate patterns of bone diagenesis and molecular survival.'

Lebon hopes to apply the procedure to more varied fossil samples. The team's goal is to be able to model diagenesis according to specific climate and sediment in archaeological sites.

Source http://www.rsc.org/chemistryworld/News/2011/March/18031104.asp

Sub-Saharan African workers targeted in Libyan unrest

2011-03-08T19:49:00.000-08:00

On the edge of the temporary tent camp 10 kilometres from Tunisia's border with Libya, Augustine Emianah stands in line, waiting to make a free phone call to his parents in Ghana.

The 30-year-old plasterer had left his hometown Accra in 2010, snaking across Burkina Faso and Niger by bush taxi, minibus and on foot to reach Libya, searching for work.

'It wasn't an easy journey,' he says. 'But I thought it would be worth it. I planned to stay in Libya for several years and earn enough money to send to family back home.'

Like most of the 1,000 Ghanaians who have fled to safety in eastern Tunisia, Emianah didn't expect to leave Libya so soon. But less than a year after his arrival in Libya, he has been driven out by continuing unrest that has exacerbated racism towards migrant workers from sub-Saharan Africa.

When he left his rented apartment, he packed his mobile phone, CD player, radio and wallet into his holdall. By the time he crossed the border, strung out between olive groves, scrubland and low-slung white mosques, all he had were the clothes he was carrying.

'When we reached the border, the security guards took everything,' he says.

Other West Africans at the camp have similar stories. Leaning against the eucalyptus trees that thrive on the edge of this scrubby patch of hamada, between date palms, aloe vera plants and growing mounds of trash, they share memories of what they have lost.

They make up a small representation of Libya's migrant workers from sub-Saharan Africa. According to UNHCR, about 100,000 were working legally or illegally in Libya until recently.

But Human Rights Watch says that evacuation efforts have not adequately included the plight of African workers.

'Sub-Saharan African workers are in dire need of evacuation because of the threats they face in Libya,' said Peter Bouckaert, the group's Emergencies Director. He said they are particularly vulnerable amid reports that Moamer Gaddafi flew in black mercenaries to attack anti-government protesters.

'We experienced racism from both sides,' says Emianah. 'The government does not like us because we are black and the others are afraid of us because we are black. We had no choice but to leave.'

For Kwame Apeah, life as a migrant worker in Libya was good until about two years ago.

'For a while after I arrived, things were great. I had steady work, something I rarely had in Ghana, and I'd made Libyan friends,' he said.

'But then the police started cracking down on black workers in Tripoli. They didn't want to see us, and accused us of trying to reach Italy. Some friends were rounded up and thrown in jail. Another friend was shot in the arm,' he added.

Another refugee migrant worker, Franco Apoko, 27, adds, 'I'm going to Ghana with empty hands. I started to worry about what my family would think, and then I realised that's not important. I didn't save any money while I was there, but I saved my life.'

Thousands of African migrants still have no idea if they will be able to leave Libya.

'There are hundreds of thousands of African workers in Libya, and very few have shown up at the borders,' UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres told Al Jazeera.

In Benghazi, a separate camp for displaced sub-Saharan Africans has been established for at least 1,200 migrant workers, including those from Somalia, Ethiopia, Niger, Mali, Cote d'Ivoire and Sudan.

On the other side of the camp, 32-year-old Charles Chuka, from Nigeria, is singing: 'Oh, my home, my home, When can I see back home?'

A group of Bangladeshi migrant workers looks on quietly from their place in the food line. Although the 200-strong Nigerian group pales in comparison to the 10,000 Bangladeshis awaiting evacuation, the Nigerians' presence is palpable.

They staged a protest at the camp Saturday, appealing for assistance from the Nigerian government in returning home.

'We spent years in Libya but it was in vain because when we reached the border, security forces took our belongings and our savings,' Chuka says.

'We've been here for 12 days but nobody's talking about us. Most of the Egyptians have now gone. What will happen to us?' he asked.

'Some people are trying to head into Tunisia, they're looking for a way to get to Europe. We don't need to go to Europe, we just want to go to Nigeria. We don't want our record to be spoiled, like in so many other countries. We have so much pain in our minds.'

And if Libya finds peace? 'I wouldn't go back,' he says. 'I went to Libya hoping to earn a few thousand dollars. But I wouldn't go back if they paid me a million.'

Source http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/africa/news/article_1623920.php/Sub-Saharan-African-workers-targeted-in-Libyan-unrest

Arab youth, don't lose momentum now

2011-02-22T21:02:00.000-08:00

I was born the same week Hosni Mubarak came to power. Arabs of my generation grew up with a keen awareness of two realities: that we did not have any say in choosing our leaders, and that our countries were still living the colonial present, still not free from foreign control.

Something we couldn't get hold of was preventing us from representing ourselves or defending our rights. Some dark force seemed to be imprisoning us metaphorically, while if we protested this state of affairs or campaigned to change our fate we were imprisoned in the literal dungeons of the Abu Zabal prison, or countless others police stations across the Arab world. Many of us are stuck in the much larger jail that is Gaza. Since Camp David, a very special breed of security states were built, all geared towards the direct containment of our aspirations for freedom. Our generation knew nothing other than these regimes, which to us appeared eternal, omniscient, and omnipotent.

Older generations knew things were not always this way. Sometimes they would discuss, in lowered voices, the days of Gamal Abdel Nasser when Egypt was at the helm of Arab resistance. In other moments, they would tell stories of the Palestinian revolution of the 60s and 70s. Yet, they too were bitterly disappointed at our present, feeling disempowered, unable to tell us what happened, and how it was lost.

To be sure, the past gave us a tradition of which we were proud. Yet, that tradition seemed ever so distant, its legacy of hope and achievement way beyond our reach. How many of us watched films and documentaries about this era, reading old books, all the while dreaming of being young and Arab in that extraordinary hour when Egypt launched its epic confrontation with colonial rule in 1952; or when the Suez canal was nationalised and the British, French and Israeli aggression was defeated in 1956; or at that heady moment when Algeria celebrated independence in 1962; or when thousands joined the struggle for Palestinian liberation in the 60s and 70s?

The tradition to which those moments of hope belonged was so vivid in our imagination, but so far from our reality. For the past 30 years, those who fought for freedom were imprisoned, tortured, mocked or marginalised.

Those of us who campaigned for change were ignored and brutalised. Yet, by the grace of this Egyptian revolution and its Tunisian sister, the struggles of the last decades have been vindicated and the tradition has been reclaimed. Popular movements now will begin a new chapter of legitimacy and honour in a struggle for genuine representation. We are living a dream.

Against all the odds two tyrants have so far been overthrown; and Arab youth across the world are exchanging excited messages. "Mabrouk" (congratulations) is the word of the day and 11 February 2011 will be permanently marked as an anniversary of celebration and joy, a milestone in the international history of democracy.

This Arab quest for freedom and liberation has always had powerful opponents; our dreams are their nightmares. They know as well as we do that the Egyptian revolution represents not just the overthrow of the ancien regime, but the decolonisation of the country. The first condition of true representative democracy is independence. But this is not something that the American, Israeli and other foreign governments wish for Egypt or any other Arab country, in spite of the attempts at presenting the Egyptian military establishment as a free-standing independent actor.

Yet, it may still be possible to realise our dream if we can keep close to popular consensus, which in Egypt's case has growing influence within the lower ranks of the army, who are overwhelmingly patriotic. The challenge for this generation of Arab youth is not to lose the momentum: our generation has finally rediscovered the lost revolutionary heritage of our parents and grandparents. Today, hundreds of thousands are struggling for their freedom in Bahrain, Libya, Yemen, Iraq and Palestine. If the Tunisian and Egyptian revolutions have taught us anything, it is that we organise without respite until the rest of the Arab world is also free: we carry the dream.

Source http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/feb/18/arab-dreams-revolutionary-heritage

Prize pints

2011-02-15T02:20:00.000-08:00

MALTED barley, hops, water and yeast – the ingredients for brewing beer are refreshingly simple, and yet the myriad blends can drive our taste buds into a wild frenzy with the smooth, pleasant taste of this fermented drink.

A crowd pleaser with no social boundaries, a beautifully chilled, crafted beer offers a flavourful experience we can all look forward to at the end of the day.

For lager lovers taking time-out from their favourite watering hole, here are some slim, long necks that offer depth of flavour – and chime with the famous 1958 war film Ice Cold In Alex where the hero dreams of an ice-cold beer.

A temple to pale ale, Greenwich brewer Meantime has a new bottled lager, Meantime London Lager (£3.50, 4.5%, 33cl, visit www.meantimebrewing.com). Adopting the traditions of Bavarian lager production, this London brew marries Goldings hops from Kent with East Anglian malt, and delivers a taste sensation of – you guessed it – malt and hops. The bee’s knees in malty beers.

The historic market town of Bury St Edmunds is home to Greene King’s Very Special India Pale Ale (£1.73, 7.5%, 50cl, Tesco). It’s made using a modern-day recipe tweaked from the days of the British Empire when huge amounts of ale were shipped to India. Less hoppy than the original, this amber beauty has a biscuity maltiness and a fruity finish. As the name implies, this strong ale is a perfect match with curry.

Nestled in the heart of Staffordshire, Freedom Brewery has introduced a choice new six-pack to its line up. The gift box (£10 for six, Oddbins) includes two bottles of the award-winning Pilsner (5%, 33cl), Organic (4.8%, 33cl) – so velvety and tasty – and Organic Dark Lager (4.7%, 33cl). Handcrafted with Burton spring water, drinkers can toy between the crisp, citrus taste of the Pilsner, the golden, caramel notes of the Organic, and the sumptuous, toffee nuances of Organic Dark.

For a bigger thirst, try Schneider Weisse (£1.81, 5.4%, 50cl, Sainsbury’s) from Germany. A classic Bavarian wheat beer with the freaky taste of bananas, it’s bitter, aromatic and definitely one for the boys.

The distinctive Hobgoblin (£1.54, 5.2%, 50cl, Morrisons) from Wychwood Brewery, in Oxfordshire (David Cameron’s a big fan, it’s brewed in his local constituency), has lingering chocolate notes, once you’ve sipped through the heavy duty, roasted malt. Fresh and fruity, it’s deceptively easy drinking.

If you relish the idea of something more exotic, try Japan’s trophy brew, Kirin Ichiban (£1.39, 5%, 33cl, www.beersof europe.co.uk). It is made using the Ichiban Shibori process, which means the beer is made from a single first pressing of the finest ingredients and contains less bitter-tasting tannins. Very smooth and pleasing, the delicate flavours have enough zest to sink winter stalwarts like bangers and mash.

Let’s lighten up and cheer for a beer.

Source http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/2129324?UserKey=

Amnesty for Tunisian political prisoners and parties

2011-02-08T02:43:00.000-08:00

There have been emotional scenes outside a Tunisian jail as freed political prisoners were reunited with their families. The country’s new government has offered a blanket amnesty.

All banned political groups will be recognised, including the Islamist opposition. But there have been complaints that only a few hundred of those imprisoned during former President Ben Ali’s 23 year rule have so far been released.

Three days of mourning have been declared for the victims of the “jasmine revolution”.

Its roots lie buried in an olive grove outside the town of Sidi Bouzid. The protest by vegetable seller Mohammed Bouazizi, who set himself alight after being prevented from trading, sparked a national revolt.

“Mr Bouazizi, he was a martyr, he was a hero, he is a symbol, I thank him, because he freed me of my fear,” said one woman proudly.

In Tunis and other cities, protesters have kept up the pressure for a government free of ties from Ben Ali’s old guard.

All ministers from the former regime have resigned from the ex leader’s RCD party. But they remain within the government, apart from one who said he was standing down in the “nation’s supreme interest”.

Source http://www.euronews.net/2011/01/21/amnesty-for-tunisian-political-prisoners-and-parties/

Remarks to the Washington Center's "Politics and the Media" Seminar Students

2011-01-18T23:09:00.000-08:00

As Prepared for Delivery

Good morning. I am delighted to be here to speak with you and through C-SPAN to the viewing audience around the United States. The daily briefings I do are on C-SPAN every day and feature snappy repartee with reporters who are a professional and talented group, who have been covering foreign policy in some cases longer than I have been in and around government. And this is my 34^th year in some facet of national security policy.

I came to appreciate the difference between the State Department Press Corps and journalists who cover other agencies or branches of the government. I was answering a question on NATO and casually threw in what I thought was a nice garnish. I said simply that NATO was the most successful military alliance in history.

“Really,” the dean of the State Department Press Corps thundered. “What about the Hanseatic League?” Now, I come to the podium each day well briefed and prepared to engage on a wide range of foreign policy challenges – Iran, North Korea, Venezuela, and the Middle East Peace Process, not so much on the Hanseatic League, which held its last formal meeting in 1669, 120 years before the establishment of the Department of State. I still believe I was right, since the Hanseatic League was more of an economic alliance, while NATO is of course a security alliance.

What I do every day is to enunciate the United States Government view on world affairs. As events permit, I look to see if we can find some humor in a situation. When President Obama was selected to receive the Nobel Prize, I said it was better to have these kinds of accolades thrown our way than shoes. When President Hugo Chavez suggested Venezuela would pursue a space program, I suggested he stick with terrestrial rather than extraterrestrial pursuits. President Chavez called me ridiculous – by name – high praise indeed. The other day, Iran invited diplomats from a handful of countries, but not the United States, to visit some nuclear facilities as an alternative to full cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency. I termed it the Magical Mystery Tour.

Today we use a variety of media to communicate to governments and people around the world – formal briefings that are covered by traditional media, as well as social media to bypass governments and communicate directly with people. And Chuck Todd and Savannah Guthrie late last year recognized me for the Tweet of the Year, in part because they couldn’t believe the State Department Spokesman actually had a sense of humor.

After President Carter traveled to Pyongyang to rescue an American citizen jailed there, following President Clinton who brought home two journalists the year before, I tweeted that the American people should heed our travel warnings. After all, we only have so many former Presidents. In a shameless attempt at self-promotion – I am currently hundreds of followers behind our UN ambassador and my friend, Susan Rice – feel free to follow me @pjcrowley.

In my view, success in the 21^st Century depends on effective governance. A free and vibrant press plays an important role around the world in the development of civil society and accountable governments. As a general rule, the freer the press, the more transparent and more democratic the government is likely to be. In the context of this seminar, Media and Politics, think of the places around the world recently where existing governments are clearly guilty of substantial election fraud, fraud that either skewed the results to a significant degree, or stole elections outright. This involves the election in Iran in June 2009, where the government harassed the traditional media as they covered the election and the fraud that was evident, as well as the opposition that very effectively used social media during the campaign, and has refused to be silenced to the present day.

Dictatorships understand the power of the media, where in Burma, the ruling junta held an election in November for which it refused to allow Aung San Suu Kyi to participate, nor allowed outside media to cover. The result was a kind of election laundering, where the existing military government attempted to use the election to transform itself into a civilian government. But it lacks the legitimacy that only civil society, backed by a vibrant press, can bestow. Unfortunately there is no shortage of present-day examples, from Cote d’Ivoire to Belarus, where the media continues to document the actions of repressive governments that in one case refuses to accept the results of an election that it did not expect to lose, and in the other has literally jailed every opposition figure that dared run against Europe’s last dictator.

The former Yugoslavia is my best example of a case where the investment in independent media helped to transform a country and we hope over time a region, contributing to the dynamic that led to the end of the rule of Slobodan Milosevic, and his transfer to The Hague where he died in prison while facing charges for crimes against humanity. We also know that the media can be used to incite ethnic violence, as we saw tragically in the 1990s in Rwanda. We continue to have concerns regarding state-controlled, particularly in the Middle East, that continue to foment religious tension across the region.

No one is a greater advocate for a vibrant independent and responsible press, committed to the promotion of freedom of expression and development of a true global civil society, than the United States. Every day, we express concern about the plight of journalists (or bloggers) around the world who are intimidated, jailed or even killed by governments that are afraid of their people, and afraid of the empowerment that comes with the free flow of information within a civil society.

Most recently, we did so in the context of Tunisia, which has hacked social media accounts while claiming to protect their citizens from the incitement of violence. But in doing so, we feel the government is unduly restricting the ability of its people to peacefully assemble and express their views in order to influence government policies. These are universal principles that we continue to support. And we practice what we preach. Just look at our own country and cable television. We don’t silence dissidents. We make them television news analysts.

Some in the human rights community in this country, and around the world, are questioning our commitment to freedom of expression, freedom of the press and Internet freedom in the aftermath of WikiLeaks. I am constrained in what I can say, both because individual cables remain classified, and the leak is under investigation by the Department of Justice. But let me briefly put this in context and then I will open things up for questions. WikiLeaks is about the unauthorized disclosure of classified information. It is not an exercise in Internet freedom. It is about the legitimate investigation of a crime. It is about the need to continue to protect sensitive information while enabling the free flow of public information.

We remain arguably the most transparent society in the world. The American people, through innovations including C-SPAN, are a well-informed citizenry, which is crucial to a functioning democracy. We can have a discussion about how well our democracy is functioning, and whether political figures are spending more time pandering or posturing on television than actually governing.

And, of course, in the aftermath of the tragedy last weekend in Tuscon, we pray for the recovery of Congresswoman Gabby Giffords. I am not going to speculate about what led this troubled young man to do what he did, but we should recommit ourselves to improve political discourse going forward so we can sustain a functioning democracy that is important both in the context of our national interests, but in our collective ability to solve global challenges for the benefit of our people and others.

This transparency relies upon a vibrant independent fourth estate that serves as a vital check and balance in our democracy. The First Amendment created deliberate tension in the relationship between the media and government. This tension helps to sustain effective oversight of government. When I stand up each day and answer questions about U.S. policy and actions, in a small way, I am part of this process where government is accountable to its people. And, trust me, the system works. I have the fan mail to prove it, particularly when I appear on FOX. Some FOX viewers now have me on speed dial.

Transparency does not mean there are no secrets. Whether you are a government or a business, there is proprietary information that is vital to your day-to-day function. Coca-Cola has its secret formula. Google has its search algorithm. Their success is based on these secrets. As a government, we are no different. In the conduct of our diplomacy, we have confidential interactions around the world every day. These conversations, with government officials, civil society activists, business people and journalists, help us make sense of the world and inform our policy-making. These confidential exchanges are rooted in our values and serve our national interest. They are based on mutual trust, trust that the confidence will not be betrayed.

Someone inside our government violated their sworn oath to protect the national interest and protect classified and sensitive information that is an inherent part of the conduct of our national security policy. We can debate whether there are too many secrets, but no one should doubt that there has been substantial damage in the unauthorized release of a database containing, among other things, 251,000 State Department cables, many of them classified.

We have encountered leaks before, and worked through them. We will do so in this case as well. But this case is different, in its volume and scope. Unlike the past, where someone might have smuggled out a document or file about one subject and given it to one reporter, in this case, the database contained documents that touched every part of the world, every relationship we have around the world and almost national interest. The reaction has varied country by country, but human nature being what it is, there will be impact for at least a time. Governments will be more cautious in sharing sensitive information. Why is this important? It was the sharing of information last year that enabled the United States, working with other governments, to intercept a plot to blow up cargo aircraft over Chicago. If less information is shared in the future, our policies and our actions could be less effective.

The release of this information has placed hundreds of people at risk, in many cases the very civil society activists that WikiLeaks has suggested it wants to empower around the world. We interact regularly with people in all walks of life who are trying to reform repressive societies, both inside and outside government. In some cases, their names have been withheld, but many have been exposed and are now at risk. The mere fact that classified documents now reside in unclassified and less secure databases means that this information can be intercepted by a foreign security service. So the fact that only 2,700 documents have been publicly released is small comfort to the people who have been needlessly exposed.

We are tracking hundreds of people around the world who we believe, in one way or another, are now in danger - reaching out to as many as we prudently can and helping ensure to the extent we can that they remain safe. The founder of WikiLeaks has claimed that no one has lost his or her life due to these releases. That is true as far as we know, but that is not the only measure of the impact.

Real lives and real interests have been compromised by what has been done here. We are doing everything we can to mitigate that impact, but as the Secretary of State said this week, it will take years to move beyond it.

We are a nation of laws, and the laws of our country have been violated. Since we function under the rule of law, it is appropriate and necessary that we investigate and prosecute those who have violated U.S law. Some have suggested that the ongoing investigation marks a retreat from our commitment to freedom of expression, freedom of the press and Internet freedom. Nonsense.

These are universal principles and our commitment is unwavering. These freedoms have always coexisted with the rule of law and the application of laws is in no way intended to deny access to readily available information or silence legitimate and necessary political discourse. But our belief in Internet freedom does not include the right to use the Internet to illegally inflict harm. We must exercise these rights responsibly.

WikiLeaks reminds us of the on-going challenge of how to protect vital information, whether personal or classified information, while also promoting the free flow of information that can empower people to form global communities and change the world for the better. We believe it is possible and necessary to do both.

Source http://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2011/01/154258.htm

January-February 2011 GSA Bulletin highlights

2011-01-11T03:00:00.000-08:00

The Jan.-Feb. 2011 GSA Bulletin focuses on river geomorphology; submarine landslides and submarine uplift; the Sangamon paleosol in the Lower Mississippi Valley; the nature and formation of basins, plateaus, cratons, and mountains around the world, including continent building, plate tectonics, and subduction zones, and magmatism; charcoal accumulation rates and teleconnections among regional climates; zircon dating of Amazon River sand; the Messinian salinity crisis; and characteristics of the Sierra Madera impact structure.

Keywords: Sandy River, Sangamon paleosol, Budva Basin, submarine landslides, Green River Basin, western Tethys, Alborz mountains, Peloritani Mountains, Great Divide Basin, Purana basins, Xunhua and Linxia basins, Ellis Bay Formation, Hirnantian Isotopic Carbon Excursion, STEEP study, granite, charcoal accumulation rates, Macquarie Island, Mexican volcanic arc, Amazon River, Central Asian Orogenic Belt, Zuccale fault, Messinian salinity crisis, Sierra Madera impact structure

Highlights are provided below. Representatives of the media may obtain complimentary copies of GSA Bulletin articles by contacting Christa Stratton at the address above. Please discuss articles of interest with the authors before publishing stories on their work, and please make reference to GSA Bulletin in articles published. Abstracts for issues of GSA Bulletin are available at http://gsabulletin.gsapubs.org/ . Contact Christa Stratton for additional information or assistance.

Non-media requests for articles may be directed to GSA Sales and Service, gsaservice@geosociety.org.

Source http://www.physorg.com/wire-news/55684728/january-february-2011-gsa-bulletin-highlights.html

GPO head Tapella resigns

2011-01-04T02:55:00.000-08:00

Bob Tapella, the public printer of the United States and head of the Government Printing Office, has announced his resignation after more than three years on the job.

Paul Erickson, the deputy public printer, has been named the acting public printer, effective immediately.

Tapella had been with the agency for eight years, including five years as a senior executive. During his tenure, GPO launched the Federal Digital System, a portal for published government information. Tapella also was instrumental with helping improve GPO's financial situation, according to a statement released by GPO officials on Dec. 29.

“I want to thank the hardworking men and women of GPO who have transformed an agency that opened in 1861 into a 21st century printing, digital media, secure credentialing and ISO 9001 premiere manufacturing organization," Tapella said in the statement. "I believe the successful launch of FDsys positions GPO to meet the challenges of the Digital Age.”

Source http://fcw.com/articles/2010/12/30/gpo-bob-tapella-public-printer-resigns.aspx

FDsys: GPO’s Official System of Record

2010-12-28T00:24:00.000-08:00

GPO is pleased to announce several new accomplishments regarding its Federal Digital System (FDsys). As of December 20, 2010, FDsys has become GPO’s official system of record for online Government information. This new phase is characterized by a fully stood-up and implemented system foundation with failover and is accompanied by a brand new logo, FDsys tag line, and a re-designed, more user-friendly interface. Visit FDsys, and access “America’s Authentic Government Information” .

December 20, 2010 also begins the countdown to the sunset of GPO Access. For the next several months, GPO Access will continue to be updated in parallel with FDsys, and in mid-2011, GPO Access will be officially retired.

Stay tuned to FDLP-L and the FDLP Desktop for upcoming information about the sunset of GPO Access and the upcoming availability of new FDsys brochures and promotional items!

Source http://web.resourceshelf.com/go/resourceblog/62835

President Obama is the only grown-up in Washington

2010-12-22T00:23:00.000-08:00

“Politicians are not stupid. Politicians are not stupid. Politicians are not stupid.” This is the first rule of political analysis.

They know when to cover their behinds. Usually, this is all too apparent, but these past few weeks the folks in Congress have been acting so crazy, I have to keep repeating this mantra to myself.

And caught in the middle, vilified by both sides (even his own), is President Obama – the only grown-up in the room.

Self-righteous indignation

The Democrats are ticked at their party’s leader, Mr. Obama, for working out a compromise with the party of small government and big tax cuts. Never mind that the deal may just keep the economy from slowing to a standstill. Wasn’t it just a few weeks ago that everyone was talking about the sluggish economy as the reason that Democrats lost so many seats?

Even some of the same Democrats who voted for Bush’s original tax cuts have apparently found religion and were full of self-righteous indignation that Obama agreed to a two-year extension of their vote. I know they are supposed to look after their own interests, but can this be smart? They seemed so angry to me that I actually think their feelings were hurt.

I’ve heard that the Obama administration has been terrible at communicating with Democrats on Capitol Hill, and I know that liberals have had to settle for a good bit of moderate legislation, but do they really think they could have gotten something better?

Of course, the liberals aren’t alone in this theater of the bizarre.

Confusing hypocrisy

Right when I think that shared governance has brought the Republicans back to the land of responsibility and compromise, they go and vote against a bill that would grant federal aid to 9/11 workers and victims who are sick because of the time they spent at ground zero.

When I first read that headline, I thought surely there must be a logical explanation for an otherwise monstrous-sounding move. Sure enough, there was a reason; the federal aid would add something in the neighborhood of $7 billion to the budget deficit. Remember this was two days after Republicans had fought for and won a tax break extension for millionaires that would add hundreds of billions to the deficit.

Drawing lines in the sand

It may be that Democrats and Republicans are cynical actors playing their roles for the folks back home, but if so, the constituents they're listening to are the outliers. There is some evidence that the tax deal is popular among the general public and it is hard to imagine that the 9/11 aid bill would not be, which makes me think that something closer to the heart is involved. Both groups feel like they have been forced to draw a line in the sand.

Of course, this is nothing new for the Republican leaders. They have lately marketed themselves as ideological purists. The only reason they will vote against their principles is if President Obama agrees with them. Still, in this case they have outdone themselves. Maybe the sponsors of the retooled 9/11 aid bill should consider reintroducing it as part of a large tax break for the rich. That would win Republican support!

The Democrats are obviously less experiences at this ideological posturing. Republicans vote “No” and walk away. Democrats pass a non-binding resolution, walk away, and keep looking back with expectant eyes. When asked about the deal, they don’t say, “It’s dead!” They say they want a better deal. Still, like their ideological rivals, they are talking about core values and loyalty to principle.

Politician as prophet

Almost a hundred years ago, Max Weber wrote an essay called “Politics as a Vocation” in which he contrasted the work of a politician with that of a prophet. The latter is loyal to the cause, come what may. The politician, on the other hand, is loyal to the cause but also aware of his responsibility for consequences. There are no prophets in the House or the Senate, but every now and then lots of folks up there like to play one, especially on TV. These politicians may be smart, but they are certainly not wise.

These past few weeks it has seemed that President Obama is virtually the only political grown-up on the scene. Like most parents, he’s got his rules and principles, but in a crisis he recognizes that compromises have to be made if the family is to survive. He realizes that responsible leadership in a divided government requires compromise even with your ideological rivals.

Deficit commission: Four things both sides may agree on

“But he should have fought!” is the common response from the president’s progressive critics. I agree that politics is about more than policy and point scoring. It is about justice. And the tax deal signed into law last week is onerous because it represents another case in which the powerful are granted an exemption, at a time when many Americans are carrying heavy burdens. This should give us pause, and to be fair, the president might have paused a bit longer. But he recognizes what all people should: that our power is limited.

There are campaigns to be waged and positions to be extolled, but in the end, deals have to be struck with one’s opponents. Such is the life of politicians – and grown-ups.

Source http://www.csmonitor.com/Commentary/Opinion/2010/1221/President-Obama-is-the-only-grown-up-in-Washington