After combating multiple accusations of extra-marital affairs, which he still maintains are false, Cain chose to drop out rather than continue with so many “distractions” surrounding his campaign. This was not the only questionable aspect of candidate Cain, however. His inability to answer general questions on the situation in Libya, as well as his lack of political experience left people wondering what the poll frontrunner would be like. But he’s not the only problem. What about the other Republican candidates? It seems as though the bid for 2012 has already gotten out of hand, and we still have 11 months until the general election.

Michele Bachmann believes that HPV vaccines cause mental retardation, Rick Perry does not know the names of some of the national government’s most important departments, and Newt Gingrich is facing accusations that he received up to $1.8 billion from connections to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Further more Mitt Romney has had a difficult time proving to conservatives that he is in fact, conservative himself, as he has shown to be very moderate. All the top candidates seem to have some sort of “problem,” yet they are still quite popular among voters.

Of course no candidate is going to appeal to everybody. The question is, how did this happen? Few of the presidential hopefuls seem to be taking this election seriously. Donald Trump is even going to be hosting a presidential debate, telling the Today Show‘s Matt Lauer that if the “right” candidate is not nominated, he’d consider running as an independent.

The 2012 election already seems to be more entertainment than news. We are still choosing the next leader of our country right? There seems to be some sort of drama surrounding everyone running. As we move even closer to the Iowa Caucus and the official start of the campaign season, it will be interesting to see how each candidate fares on the path to nomination.

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This news comes via a report released by Human Rights Watch Friday accusing Syria of crimes against humanity. Protestors in Syria, and other Middle Eastern countries, took to the streets to urge the Arab League to suspend Syria’s membership, until human rights abuses have been ceased. Human Rights Watch has been one of the loudest of voices, calling on the League to consider harsher penalties for Syria; especially given the escalation of violence by the Syrian government, despite it’s November 2 agreement to the Arab League plan that included promises to remove all security forces from the streets and cease its firing on protestors.

As the New York Times reports, “the period has become one of the deadliest of the uprising, with activists counting at least 104 deaths.” After eight months of violence, citizens are growing desperate, and doubts continue to arise that the Syrian government will halt its actions until more concrete steps are taken.

American officials are backing up the citizens, hoping for a decisive act from the Arab League. Assistant Secretary of State Jeffrey D. Feltman testified to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee this week stating, “If the regime continues to spurn this most recent ‘last chance,’ we hope that the Arab League will take additional, clear measures to express its condemnation of the Syrian regime and solidarity with the Syrian people.” In addition, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch, have both suggested that the Arab League refer Syria to the International Criminal Court for its crimes.

Despite Western support, an Arab diplomat told the New York Times that at this point, suspension of Syria seemed unlikely; especially with increased opposition by Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Algeria, Yemen, and other nations who are concerned with the possible effect of an escalation in violence that might follow such action. The Arab League has called an emergency meeting for Saturday, to  consider suspension among other alternatives such as economic sanctions, should the situation not improve.

Whether sanctions or suspension would have enough power to halt the regime, Arab League Secretary-General Nabil el-Araby expressed concern, noting that “If you want to tell a government — any government — to stop what they are doing and they are not persuaded and if you need to enforce — it’s outside our league. We don’t do that.”

Despite concerns, it is important for the Arab League to continue to make steps denouncing the actions of Syria. Symbolic or not, at this crucial moment in human rights history, the world must step up and let the people of Syria know their plight is not going unnoticed. The international community cannot afford to turn their heads to the systematic abuses being inflicted on the people of Syria by the al-Assad regime, and the continued action of the Arab League must pave the way for a move towards peace in this region.

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geology.com

Ban Ki-Moon, Secretary General of the United Nations, called on Libya to start a new chapter, “Based on national reconciliation, justice, respect for human rights and the rule of law.” These calls rang loudly as numerous heads of state and officials praised the Libyan people for their perseverance during this transition of power, and reflected on the abuses committed during the Qaddafi regime.

Things are looking promising from Libya; the transitional government has already issued a list of state crimes committed by Qaddafi, that include public hangings of students and other citizens, massacres of officers and mass executions of political prisoners. Many of these officials are, “Motivated by a conviction that a new nation cannot be built unless light is shed on the dark corners of the old.”

In examining post-conflict transformation and reconciliation models from other nations such as South Africa, Chile and Argentina, leaders such as Mohammed al-Alagi, the Libyan interim justice minister, prioritize coping with crimes committed by former regimes through an investigative committee. Al-Alagi hopes this body would show the public the realities of living under Qaddafi’s oppressive rule. “You can’t imagine how people suffered,” he said, “They raped women in front of their fathers and brothers.”

Yet the Transitional Council is being cautious not to impose massive waves of indictments to every guilty party, as some nations have done in the aftermath of past conflicts. Taking note of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission that was largely successful in post-Apartheid South Africa, they are being careful to note that the indictments are not based on punishment and revenge.

The Council has begun by calling on the public to refrain from retributive actions against those whom they might believe to be guilty of crimes committed under the old regime, and it seems to be working. Alagi notes that “Most of the people who were with the previous regime are still walking around, which is a good sign of tolerance.”

There is recognition, however, that a well-structured justice system will need to be put in place to prosecute those with “blood on their hands,” or those who were responsible for killings and rapes. This standard of culpability, The New York Times notes, has been used in other nations struggling with reconciliation, including post-Holocaust Germany. The focus of the prosecutorial team will be, no doubt, on the officials responsible for the worst violations.

Alagi emphasized that, “What is most important to us are the people who are leading these crimes.” Fair, open trials that Alagi says he wants the entire world community to see will go a long way in legitimizing the new government, and it’s new place in the world.

In his speech, Ban Ki-Moon told the Libyan people that “the road ahead is full of challenges, but also opportunities.” The next few months will be the most crucial in determining if the Libyan government is ready and able to take advantage of these new opportunities.

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To the senior class of 2012, and the few kids that feel like they need a break from the college grind, check out the movie “I Didn’t Come Here To Die” and think about joining AmeriCorps NCCC!

The film is supposedly based off the experience of AmeriCorps NCCC (pronounced Ameri-CORE, N triple C), a federal service organization where teams of 18-24 year olds are sent throughout the nation to serve on community projects. Personally, I thought the movie was spectacular; exactly what a gore junkie would want to see and everything an NCCC Alum can expect in an AmeriCorps horror flick.

This film features a team of young volunteers (Indiana Adams “Julie,” Kurt Cole “Danny,” Madi Goff “Miranda,” Nico Red Star “Chris,” Jeremy Scott Vandermause “Steve”) dressed in gray uniform and their fiercely attractive team leader in green (Emmy Roberts “Sophia.”) The team has been assigned to an obscure little plot of land to build a campsite for inner-city kids. Within no time, the film establishes the eeriness of the project site, the clashing personalities, and the subtle presence of axes and chainsaws. The stage is set for eye-popping havoc. Rules are broken, recklessness ensues, and the title line is finally said, “I didn’t come here to die!”

Bradley Scott Sullivan, the director, crafted the movie excellently. The use of flashback permitted the chain of events to play out cleverly in a gory, cringe-but-you-like-it kind of way. Sullivan also incorporated a metal trinket motif to tie the series of events together. All in all, scenes proceeded neatly like the domino effect.

The federal program of AmeriCorps NCCC does not recognize the film to be a representation of the Corps, but the director did graduate from the NCCC program. I suspect he had some worries to express about his AmeriCorps projects set in the middle of nowhere…and he used film as his artistic outlet.

Photo courtesy of http://smellslikescreenspirit.com

Moreover, this movie explains why many little rules and regulations govern AmeriCorps, and any service organization involving 18-24 year olds. Basically, everything that could go wrong in AmeriCorps NCCC, did go wrong with the volunteers in this film. For example, NCCC Corps Members are trained to use chainsaws with a specific emphasis on safety. Pretending you are fending off zombies with a chainsaw while hungover is definitely a big no-no.

Now why would I tell you to join this program if there’s a movie out there that hints at how you could possibly die from being apart of it?

Because it’s IRONIC.  You’ll especially appreciate the irony once you’ve gone through the Corps.

Plus, the chances of you turning into an AmeriCorpse are slim.

Disclaimer: Louise was an AmeriCorps NCCC Corps Member: Denver Campus Class XVII

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But American involvement in Africa is just getting started. Last week, President Obama drafted a letter to the Speakers of the House of Representatives and Senate announcing the authorization of, “A small number of combat-equipped U.S. forces to deploy to central Africa to provide assistance to regional forces that are working toward the removal of Joseph Kony from the battlefield.”

In Central Africa, the name Joseph Kony carries chilling memories and continued fear of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), of whom Kony is the dictatorial commander. Since 1987, the LRA has been responsible for horrific atrocities in Northern Uganda in its war against the Ugandan government. Since the inception of the war, the violence has targeted civilians with intended brutality. Men, women and children alike are tortured and slaughtered indiscriminately. Adolescents bear the worst hardships at the hands of Kony and his cronies: kidnapped and recruited as soldiers for the rebel army, they are ripped away from their homes and forced to participate in the killings and other forms of brutality involving their families, neighbors, and other villagers as combatants. Beaten, starved, raped and repeatedly drugged, these children are often permanently maimed or left for dead when they can no longer carry out their duties. Hundreds of thousands of children have endured this experience, and it’s time that the international community stands up for their rights.

Anneke Von Woudenberg, senior researcher at Human Rights Watch, emphasizes that the, “Impact of the LRA across the region is disastrous.” In the past twenty years, the violence has manifested itself in varying ways and has traveled across borders into the neighboring nations of the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and South Sudan. According to Human Rights Watch, there are currently over 200,000 displaced persons who have fled the cruelty of the rebels, and who are currently living in camps in these nations where they believe they might be able to find safety.

Referred to as the longest running war in African history, its effects have created an environment of continuous instability, not to mention an immense security threat to multiple surrounding nations. In May of 2010, Barack Obama signed into law the Lord’s Resistance Army Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act of 2009 to attempt to find a solution to these ongoing atrocities. Garnering unanimous support in both the House and the Senate, Resolve notes that this bill was the most widely cosponsored piece of African legislation in the last 37 years.

In addition to apprehending Kony and other top commanders, the Act includes a variety of mechanisms to help bring justice and reconciliation to these communities, which could prove crucial to creating peaceful communities in the future. It calls for funds to support a transitional justice process, as well as aid that would be funneled through local governments to encourage recovery efforts. The bill has dedicated approximately $10 million per year for the next three years to accomplish these goals.

Many citizens of the nations affected by the violence have spoken up, and called out for help from the United States to intervene on their behalf. Von Woudenberg notes, “To them, Obama is their hero. They want him to hear their voices … they want his help.” Human Rights Watch has compiled a video of these pleas in which a man simply asks, “I wish you could put an end to this war, because we are living in fear.” Invisible Children, an organization working to expose the plight of children affected by this violence, have set up an interactive website the LRA Crisis Tracker, where atrocities ranging from civilian deaths to LRA sightings are reported with a nearly up-to-the minute accuracy; the Crisis Tracker was developed with the cooperation of the policy-driven advocacy group Resolve, which also works to bring an end to the violence in central Africa by educating U.S. policy makers about the issues surrounding these nations.

While the American people may be hesitant to commit more troops to an overseas conflict while the nation is still reeling from its occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan, this operation has the promise to end years of suffering and brutality for millions of residents in Central Africa. Specifications of the operations haven’t been released, but Obama emphasized that even though the troops will be equipped for combat, their orders are to, “Not themselves engage LRA forces unless necessary for self-defence.”

The goal is to provide tactical support to regional forces for the eventual capture or kill of Kony. Without him, many say, the movement will collapse from within. The deployment duration has not yet been specified, but BBC quotes a military spokesman who says the forces will stay as, “Long as necessary to enable regional security forces to carry on independently.” Colorado Spring’s The Gazette reports that, while the United States hasn’t commented, the forces involved in the mission will most likely be a Special Forces Group, such as the 10^th Group out of Fort Carson, who have been credited with numerous successes in tracking down insurgent leaders in the past after their work in helping to dismantle the structure of Al-Qaida in Iraq.

Some wholeheartedly support this troop deployment and herald it as one of Obama’s chief contributions to the areas of humanitarianism, and others, such as John McCain, are wary of humanitarian intervention repeating the pattern of tragedy that occurred in Lebanon and Somalia in the 1980’s and 90’s, respectively. Others, like Erin Baines, co-founder of the Justice and Reconciliation Project in Gulu, Uganda, worry that the soldiers might not understand the complexities of the conflict and have a hard time distinguishing a kidnapped child from a soldier. “I would feel much more relief,” she says, “If I was reassured that their tracking technologies are equipped to help those being held against their will – some who have been there for decades, others only months – to find their way home.”

As for me, after having studied child soldiers and the atrocities of the LRA for the past few years, I call it a step in the right direction. Every conflict is ripe with its difficulties, and no intervention will ever be perfect. The important factor is that the United States has committed itself to a course of action in a scenario where they have the ability to prevent these atrocities from reaching hundreds, even thousands more people in the future. The next step in this process is devoting the time and money that has been promised to Uganda to cultivate healing and reconciliation efforts after the decades of violence they have experienced. Military power will never be able to accomplish this tricky piece of the puzzle alone. It will take many dedicated individuals and the continued (and increased) support of the international community until these nations will truly be at peace once again.

To learn more about the history of the rebel group and their war against the army of Uganda, check out Invisible Children’s Website and Human Rights Watch for more information.

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And so the story of his incredible life of campaigning for gay rights began. After being fired, Kameny refused to keep quiet, petitioning the U.S. Civil Service Commission, Congress, and the White House. His was the first civil rights claim based on sexual orientation, and it went all the way to the Supreme Court. “Although the court declined to hear the case,” Metro Weekly says, “an activist was born.” In 1961, he co-founded the Mattachine Society of Washington, widely regarded as one of the earliest gay rights organizations in the district. He took his agenda straight to the White House in 1965 when he and 25 other activists picketed for protection of gay rights. As one of the most active voices of his generation, he spearheaded the 1973 removal of homosexuality as a mental disorder under the American Psychiatric Association and worked to overcome the stereotype of homosexuality as a sickness. He was an active participant in the Stonewall riots and a contributing part of President Bill Clinton’s executive order allowing security clearances to be distributed to homosexuals.

Through his catchphrase, “Gay is good,” Kameny exacted change in nearly every aspect of the gay rights movement. David Catania, the first openly gay member of the D.C. Council, emphasized, “He was a stubborn and impatient person, and that was the recipe for his success. He was never going to be content with second-class citizenship.”

In a recent interview with the Washington Post, Frank said that the world was a much better place to be a gay member of society than what he encountered as a young man. Explaining that he particularly resented that he had, “To lie in order to serve in a war effort,” that he supported wholeheartedly, Kameny proudly attended a historic moment for gay service members when the Obama administration repealed DADT in December of 2010.

He even got the government to admit they were wrong:

In 2009, Kameny received a formal apology by the U.S Office of Personnel Management (the successor to the agency responsible for his firing in 1957) for being dismissed based solely on his sexual orientation.

Today, The Library of Congress  has over 77,000 items from his attic chronicling his struggles as one of the most outspoken activists for gay rights that our century has seen. “The fundamental theme underneath all of that is simply equality,” Kameny told reporters about the exhibition of his gay rights belongings.

At age 86, Kameny died peacefully of natural causes at his home in Washington D.C. this past Tuesday, October 11. Frank Solmonese, HRC President, eloquently described the effect one man can have on the improvement of an entire society in his statement, “As we say goodbye to this trailblazer on National Coming Out Day, we remember the remarkable power we all have to change the world by living our lives like Frank – openly, honestly and authentically.” Kameny certainly proves that one individual truly has the power to change the world after all.

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In a press conference, Chris Christie told the people of New Jersey, “Whether you like it or not, you’re stuck with me,” and cited his commitment to his home state as one reason for passing up the opportunity to run. Palin, however, said her concern for her family’s safety and happiness topped the list of reasons for not running. In a recent joint Washington Post and ABC News poll, 66% of Republican/GOP leaning respondents admitted they were not interested in Palin as a presidential candidate. This combination of factors seemed to deter the former Governor from seeking a Republican nod.

Given these recent announcements, what’s next for the Grand Old Party? While Republicans seem to be focusing their attention on front-runner governor’s Mitt Romney (Massachusetts) and Rick Perry (Texas), a newcomer to the field is garnering a fair bit of attention. Herman Cain, a Tennessee-born, Georgia-raised Republican, seems to have emerged out of nowhere. The self-proclaimed, “People’s candidate,” he has shown impressive early polling numbers in the South, but with no political experience and a neglect of the most important primary states, many believe his surge will be short lived. Whether that’s true or not, we’ll just have to wait and see. We won’t have to wait for long, especially with a recent announcement that the Iowa primary might be as early as this December, putting the official start of the race for Presidency much earlier than 2008, when Iowa held their primary on January 3.

In the midst of the recent announcements, Michele Bachmann’s campaign seems to be stumbling. As an early tea party favorite, the Congresswoman from Minnesota won an early straw poll in Iowa, but since then has stagnated among her radical right views. Recently, her comments regarding Gardasil, an HPV vaccine, drew unwanted attention from the medical community when she claimed women could suffer mental retardation after receiving the vaccine; she received this information from a mother who claimed her daughter had endured averse effects after getting the injection. Agreeing with supporters who want to impeach President Obama and placing gay and lesbian rights at the center of her campaign, Bachmann is appealing less and less to the average Republican, as she drives her message farther away from the moderate camp.

With all these possibilities, the Republican Party will certainly have their hands full in the pre-primary months as the candidates fight it out on stage and in the news. In the mean time, if you want to learn more about each of the candidates and their views, ABC News has short bios of each of the runners. The next Republican debate will occur October 11 at Dartmouth College and will air on Bloomberg TV. A bit later this month, CNN will be airing a debate on October 18 at 8pm EST. The participant list hasn’t been released for either of these debates, but we can assume it will certainly include Mitt Romney, Rick Perry, and Michele Bachmann. Others such as Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich, Jon Huntsman, Rick Santorum, and Herman Cain are expected to round out the field. It’s already shaping up to be an exciting political season, so keep your eyes peeled for what happens next!

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Sounding a lot different than in his State of the Union address, Obama this time mainly emphasized on drilling more oil from already leased offshore lands, cautious extraction of natural gas in huge amounts, renewable biofuel, and increased energy efficient consumption. And even though there was a great deal of laughter throughout, the conspicuous absence of GHG emission issues in his speech did not go unnoticed amongst environmentalists. Solar and wind energy got only a few mentions towards the end, and there was zero coverage of the prolonged fight in Congress over the EPA’s bleak future. But considering the fact that Obama recently announced his presidential reelection bid, it is worth pondering whether his “Winning the Future” speech was only about winning the hearts of voters.

To watch Obama’s “Winning the Future” speech, click here.

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Senators John McCain and Joseph Lieberman are among the people who have called for more stringent actions on Libya’s ruling government (watch the video here), saying that the international community needs to play more important role in determining the direction Libya’s uprising takes. Responding to what many call a “humanity crisis” in Libya, the UN Security Council has already imposed a set of sanctions and arms embargo on Libya and has frozen foreign assets of people close to Gaddafi. Many countries, including the United States and Britain, have halted their consular services in the capital Tripoli and, with the reference to the International Criminal Court, Gaddafi has once again become an outcast.

Ahmed Jadallah/Reuters

But even though these efforts by Western powers might seem futile to Gaddafi, who has rejected the sanctions as “null and void”, the West should seriously consider possible consequences in case the opposition government is to receive military aid. Conditions in Libya are already violent, to say the least, with brutal murders and lynching cases from both sides widely reported, indicating that an increased supply of arms will only fuel chaos if there is no proper monitoring of all the arms given. In addition, there is no single group heading the opposition, and hence no major party to be held accountable for any possible abuse of military supplies.

Gaddafi, like Saddam Hussein, is known for using tribal rivalries to acquire followers and the possibility of any kind of tribal conflict in a post-Gaddafi power vacuum should be a factor worth discouraging any plans of injecting more military supplies to the population. A country with huge numbers of immigrants from South Asia, China and other African countries, Libya is now seeing hundreds of thousands of its migrant population setting up refugee camps on its borders with neighboring countries. Amidst this confusion, it will be difficult to stop people from using violent means to meet their daily needs, especially if guns and armaments are in their reach. Furthermore, leakage of arms to other African countries might result through Gaddafi’s imported mercenaries from some of the Sahelian countries.

Libya has a history of yielding to international sanctions and is aware that, without international support, the government can’t sustain. In 2002, Gaddafi took responsibility for the Lockerbei bombings and agreed to pay compensations to the victims’ families under the condition that the US and the UN suspend sanctions that were imposed on Libya. Even now, he has schemes such as giving money to Libyan families in wake of uprisings in order to appease the general population. He also knows that his days are numbered and that using violent forces will only make matters worse for him. However, how long will it take for him to acknowledge his defeat, only future can tell.

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Justice Clarence Thomas, Class Participation: F

It has been 5 years and 19 days since Justice Thomas asked a question in oral argument. The current court is particularly active while hearing cases, asking an average of 133 questions per hour-long argument. While the other Justices hone the fine points of the case through oral questioning, Justice Thomas normally leans back in his chair, stares at the ceiling, or whispers to Justice Breyer. Some may call it respect for the presenting lawyers; others call it part of his image. Either way, class participation means speaking up.

Chief Justice John G. Roberts, General Hilarity: A

While I rarely agree with his opinions, I must admit one thing that I like about the Chief. Turns out that this guy is hilarious! Not necessarily Adam Samberg, please-host-a-talk-show hilarious, but given this guy has to wear a full-on robe to work; his level of humor is astronomical. This video gives you a little snippet.

He incorporates the humor into his opinions, as well. A recent case involved the Freedom of Information Act and AT&T. AT&T contended that the corporation could be considered a person, and therefore didn’t have to release information that would violate the company’s personal privacy. The relationship between the words ‘person’ and ‘personal’ garnered their own discussion within the argument, and the final ruling. My favorite is the conclusion of the opinion. “The protection in FOIA against disclosure of law enforcement information on the ground that it would constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy does not extend to corporations. We trust that AT&T will not take it personally.”

I mean, slay me.

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