Colombia Primer Author: Cristobal Campos Posted: Feb 8, 2003 This article is the first of three in a series that will attempt to provide a background on the ongoing events in Colombia. It is by no means exhaustive. There is no way a 40-year civil war can be summed up in a few pages. It…
Commentary
The Places
Press Freedom in China
by lukebrown •
Reading the English version of China’s People’s Daily on the Internet, one gets the heartening impression that the Chinese government is tackling the growing AIDS crisis head on. Headlines like “Facing AIDS, Silence is Death” and “China Warned of 12 Million HIV Carriers in 8 Years if no Measures Taken” attest to this new openness.…
The Politics
Colombia: Turning a Shining Face to War
by Cristobal Campos •
Colombia. To some, the mere name conjures up images of coca fields and swarthy-looking men with slicked-back hair and a long pinky fingernail exchanging briefcases full of cash for brick-sized packages wrapped in duct-tape. Others think of an RPG ambush on white, USGOV Suburbans or of pink t-shirts, covered by cheap suit jackets, a la…
The Players
Aum Shinrikyo Update
by Brandon Watson •
RECENT ALEPH DEVELOPMENTS Aleph has made headlines recently on several occasions that are uniformly noteworthy. As the Justice Ministry in Japan slowly uncovers more and more pertinent information we can expect the intentions of Aleph to become clearer to the discerning individual or agency. As of now, Aleph is still shrouded in secrecy, their intentions…
The Places
North Korea: Roll over Kim Il Sung
by lukebrown •
One wonders how advocates for centrally planned economies still gain a voice. The concept that a relative few on a committee of sorts should be given the power to effectively manage a country’s economy is seen by many as a good thing. The justification for this point of view is largely an emotional one, often…
The Places
Peace in Sri Lanka?
by lukebrown •
Founded in the 1970s and commencing their armed struggle for an independent Tamil state in the north and east of Sri Lanka in 1983, against the Sri Lankan government, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have wrought havoc upon this small island off the coast of India, for the last two decades. A brutal…