diario - journal
What you'll read on this page are either reflections on personal events or on stuff I read in the news. Any opinions reported herein are merely personal, and subject to change, since that's how my brain works.
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- Mimas and Titan
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The Cassini spacecraft landed yesterday on Saturn's largest moon, Titan, on what appeared to be a mud-like surface. Other photos are coming back from this incredible enterprise to get a closer look to other planets around our system. A few days ago it was another of Saturn's moons, Mimas.
Here at home (I mean on Earth), we are plagued with less pleasant things. The other day, on the radio, there was a program on the legacy of Colin Powell, the guy who did a presentation to the U.N. about the clear evidence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Weapons which, of course, were never found. In England, weapons expert David Kelly had the guts to commit suicide, when it was found out that all the "intelligence" gathered was false. The U.S. lost already about 1,300 soldiers in Iraq for...?
I didn't like Saddam Hussein, but if we tout the West as the right-doer, we have to follow certain guidelines, one of them being not to do what we blame others for, like... lying. Then again, I don't understand why we have 11,000 multinational troops in Afghanistan, where the September 11 terrorists got training, and we have more than double that in Iraq. Osama bin Laden and Mullah Omar are still lost in the mountains of Pakistan, still sending their love messages to us, from time to time...
President Bush is preparing a lavish inauguration ceremony costing tens of millions of dollars, when people are voicing their disapproval in a time of war and after the Tsunami disaster in Southeast Asia. Where does he live? Franklin Delano Roosevelt, in 1945, cancelled his inauguration dinner and served cold chicken salad at a White House dinner with no inaugural ball.
Entered on: Sunday, October 29th, 2006 at 10:02. - The Tragedy in Southeast Asia
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While in Italy over Christmas break, I noticed something interesting: When the news were still fresh that a lot of people had died in Southeast Asia because of the Tsunami, Italian newspapers displayed pictures of the brutality of the disaster (dead people everywhere, the ruins of houses, boats on top of trees and strewn across roads). Notice that the Italian Government, within hours of the tragedy had sent airplanes, food, and medical personnel from the "Protezione Civile" to the area. No photo of them on the newspapers.
Then, as soon as American soldiers got in the picture, after international criticism that the U.S. didn't respond to this crisis, every day the major Italian newspaper (Corriere della sera) championed photos of American soldiers holding children in their arms, giving medicines to sick people, etc. What was that about? What about all the people from other organizations and other governments who were there. within hours of the disaster, helping out...
The Alberto Gonzales Confirmation Hearings Another piece of news that caught my attention recently was the confirmation hearings of Alberto Gonzales as Attorney General. (You can read the original text of some of his memos at http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/torture/powtorturememos.html) Notice how the title of the page I quote makes the assumption that these memos are a green light for tortures on members of the Taliban and Al-Quaeda. The memos Alberto Gonzales writes are actually describing why the Geneva Convention should not apply to Taliban and friends. Now, that may not mean much to some people, but whatever. I thought it was interesting to read this guy telling Bush and Powell that the Taliban were not a Government or that they didn't represent their country in the fight. I have a feeling they would do what they wanted anyway...
Entered on: Sunday, October 29th, 2006 at 10:02. - Values from The Past
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I just came back from a luncheon with people I was working with at the Family Start Learning Center, an adult education program for parents of Head Start children (Head Start is a federally funded pre-school program). I realized that, besides a few grey hairs, had we walked out of our office 7 years ago, we were the same people, with the same idealism, the same phylosophy. That was reassuring. I feel that too often we are driven to believe that we have to achieve higher and higher goals, when in fact the treasures that make us happy are right in front of our noses.
Just like that high school kid I was helping getting started on a computer project the other day in the school library who, embarassed, told me he could not spell the word "period"... At the moment, I felt I had to rush off to finish other tasks I had started. Now, after reflecting, after talking to old friends, I realize that in other times I would have offered to help him after school. Yes, that would have made more sense.
Entered on: Sunday, October 29th, 2006 at 10:02.
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