#4 Lol! So I gather that you're saying I'm a rightie loon.
Well I never said that, now did I? :) The UN aint a peach, its a bureaucracy, with a lot of problems. But it aint the tranzi conspiracy aspiring to rule the world either. Its a lotta guys looking to get pensions, and serving time. And reporting to their boss, who is, ultimately, the UNSC, NOT the US, so naturally they say and do things we dont like from time to time. Whether its worth every penny or not is another matter.
The French govt IS an ally today in Lebanon, AFAICT. An ally is somebody whos advancing the same side as you in a particular conflict, for their OWN ends, which may lead them to oppose you elsewhere. Its NOT someone who loves you, or is advancing the same side as you in a particular conflict out of love for your leadership of the world. The standards you guys set for what is an "ally" would mean that there really arent any allies anywhere in the world.
Im a centrist? I dunno. I call myself a liberal here, but thats mainly based on the local context. Id say most folks would call me a centrist, and most liberals would call me a conservative. But I guess to folks who think that John McCain and Lincoln Chafee and Arlen Spector are flaming liberals, Im a radical of sorts :) |
UN envoy Terje Roed-Larsen called Monday for "timely" elections in Lebanon following Syria's troop withdrawal which Damascus has promised to complete in less than four weeks. On the ground, the Syrian pullout continued in what Roed-Larsen termed a "speedy process" while the Lebanese and Syrian army commands agreed on a withdrawal plan for the next phase running from April 7-30. The special envoy held talks with Lebanese leaders on Syria's troop withdrawal under international supervision, a day after Damascus promised its last soldier would be out by the end of this month. Roed-Larsen also insisted on "timely" elections as he started a three-day mission by meeting President Emile Lahoud and Foreign Minister Mahmud Hammoud. The talks focused on the sending of a team of UN experts to verify the full withdrawal of Syrian troops and intelligence assets. "We are discussing now the practical modalities on how to do this," the envoy said. Roed-Larsen said he and Lahoud also agreed on holding elections "in a timely fashion" for the sake of Lebanon's security.