Roberto Abraham Scaruffi

“Zero Dark Thirty: Torturing The Facts – OpEd” plus 29 more : Eurasia Review

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• Zero Dark Thirty: Torturing The Facts – OpEd
• Ralph Nader: Apps, Inanities And Dependencies – OpEd
• Syria: “Mr. Obama, Tear Down These Sanctions!” – OpEd
• Top US Lawmaker: We Have Serious Reservations About Hagel Nomination‏ – OpEd
• US, Pakistan And The Afghan Future Nightmare – Analysis
• Quetta Witnessing Sit In By Shias – OpEd
• Deadliest Day In Pakistan – OpEd
• Hindus Welcome Saudi Arabia Move Of Appointing Women To Shura Council‏
• Housing Bubble On The Horizon – OpEd
• U.S Ill-Prepared For Skyrocketing Cyberattacks Against Critical Infrastructure
• Iranian Delegate Rejects “Cyberattacks” Accusation
• The United States, China, And India: Unintended Consequences Of Great Power Politics – Analysis
• French-Backed Mali Government Forces Launch Counter-Offensive
• U.S. Support Role In Afghanistan Moved Forward, To Begin This Spring
• Morocco’s Nizar Baraka Selected As Best Finance Minister In Middle East – OpEd
• Three Years Later, Haiti Still Struggling
• Hindus Upset At BBC Calling Yoga “Fad”‏
• Please Write To Forgotten Prisoners In Guantánamo On 11th Anniversary Of Opening Of Prison – OpEd
• US Air Force Leaders To Deliver Budget Guidance To Force In Days
• Myanmar: The War With The Kachins – Analysis
• Theology Professor Sheds Light On ‘Les Miserables’ Bishop
• Welcome, Chuck – OpEd
• Should Obama Swear On Das Kapital? – OpEd
• NATO Chiefs Of Defence Meeting On Jan. 16-17
• European Court To Rule On Controversial Christian Freedom Cases
• Eni Signs Mid-Term Agreement For Sale Of LNG To Japan And South Korea
• BRICS: Towards Political And Security Muscle? – Analysis
• A World Connected Through Economics – OpEd
• Why Does Moroccan Autonomy Plan Have Support Of International Community?‏ – OpEd
• Vietnam RWB Says Can Prove Innocence Of Convicted Blogger Paulus Le Son

Zero Dark Thirty: Torturing The Facts – OpEd Posted: 11 Jan 2013 10:32 PM PST On January 11, eleven years to the day after George W. Bush sent the first detainees to Guantanamo, the Oscar-nominated film Zero Dark Thirty is making its national debut.  Zero Dark Thirty is disturbing for two reasons. First and foremost, it leaves the viewer with the erroneous impression that torture helped the CIA find bin [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Ralph Nader: Apps, Inanities And Dependencies – OpEd Posted: 11 Jan 2013 10:17 PM PST Redundant, trivial, overcomplicated and dependency-inducing apps (computer applications) are flooding the internet. Some apps associated with deceptive and harmful claims are even drawing the attention of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). Consumers beware! The prevalence of apps in consumer markets both reaches new levels of absurdity and invites [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Syria: “Mr. Obama, Tear Down These Sanctions!” – OpEd Posted: 11 Jan 2013 10:13 PM PST This observer has learned from time in this region that if one wants to learn what is happening on the ground politically and socially it is fine to speak with government officials, journalists, long tenured academicians, NGO’s, and people on the street. But I have learned that one of the best sources of objective information [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Top US Lawmaker: We Have Serious Reservations About Hagel Nomination‏ – OpEd Posted: 11 Jan 2013 10:10 PM PST Responding to the nomination of Senator Chuck Hagel to Secretary of Defense, Congressman Trent Franks (R-Ariz.), chairman of the House Subcommittee on the Constitution, voiced serious reservations on Thursday regarding Hagel’s fitness to serve. “As a member of Congress and the House Armed Services Committee, I join many of my Congressional colleagues in holding the [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

US, Pakistan And The Afghan Future Nightmare – Analysis Posted: 11 Jan 2013 09:56 PM PST Amid a nation-wide surge in anti-state violence, Pakistan released eight Taliban prisoners, including former justice minister Nooruddin Turabi in order to facilitate a peace process in neighbouring Afghanistan. The release of the new bunch of Taliban is part of the “Peace Process Roadmap to 2015,” drawn up in secret by Kabul and Islamabad recently. The [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Quetta Witnessing Sit In By Shias – OpEd Posted: 11 Jan 2013 09:49 PM PST Armed with the unimaginable weapons and the dead bodies of their loved ones who were brutally killed in the Quetta blasts, Shias are staging a sit in Quetta, instead of rushing to bury them. It is the sign of the abnormality and desperation of one aspect of Pakistan’s current condition, that beleaguered brothers and sisters, fathers, [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Deadliest Day In Pakistan – OpEd Posted: 11 Jan 2013 09:46 PM PST Thursday will go down as one of the deadliest day in the history of Pakistan when nearly 100 were killed in various blasts and another 200 severely injured. The death toll is on the rise and so is the level of discomfort among the people. The gravity of situation is evident from an AFP photo [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Hindus Welcome Saudi Arabia Move Of Appointing Women To Shura Council‏ Posted: 11 Jan 2013 09:43 PM PST Hindus have welcomed Saudi Arabia’s reported historic announcement of appointing for the first time 30 women to the previously all-male influential advisory 150-member Shura Council. Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, termed it as a “step in the right direction” for the desert kingdom. Zed, who is President of Universal [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Housing Bubble On The Horizon – OpEd Posted: 11 Jan 2013 09:40 PM PST The US Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s rule defining a “qualified mortgage”, which was announced on Thursday, creates vast new opportunities for the nation’s biggest banks to engage in predatory lending practices with impunity. While the mainstream media describes the rule as an attempt to protect borrowers from the risky types of loans that caused the [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

U.S Ill-Prepared For Skyrocketing Cyberattacks Against Critical Infrastructure Posted: 11 Jan 2013 09:39 PM PST Cyberattacks against the United States’ critical infrastructure are increasing, but even the Department of Homeland Security is reporting that the country is ill-prepared to respond. America’s cyberdefense situation is in need of improvement, according at least to a newsletter published by the Homeland Security Department’s Industrial Control Systems Cyber Emergency Response Team, the ICS-CERT Monitor [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Iranian Delegate Rejects “Cyberattacks” Accusation Posted: 11 Jan 2013 02:26 PM PST Iran’s UN representative has denied recent allegations that Iran is involved in cyberattacks on U.S. financial institutions. Iranian media reported on Friday January 11 that Iran’s permanent UN representative has issued two separate responses to The New York Times and CNN to deny their recent reports about Iran’s involvement in cyberattacks on U.S. banks. He [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

The United States, China, And India: Unintended Consequences Of Great Power Politics – Analysis Posted: 11 Jan 2013 02:14 PM PST By Franz-Stefan Gady October 2012 marked the 50th anniversary of the 1962 Sino-Indian War. Communist China launched a surprise attack across the Himalayas to “teach India a lesson”, according to Chinese Premier, Zhou Enlai. After 32 days of fighting and embarrassing Indian defeats, the Chinese announced a unilateral ceasefire and withdrew behind the McMahon Line [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

French-Backed Mali Government Forces Launch Counter-Offensive Posted: 11 Jan 2013 02:07 PM PST Backed by French forces, Mali government armed forces Friday launched a counter-offensive to take back control of the city of Kona, which was seized yesterday by Islamist rebels, according to the Malian and international media. France’s foreign minister, Laurent Fabius, confirmed the French air force has carried out an air strike in Mali to support [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

U.S. Support Role In Afghanistan Moved Forward, To Begin This Spring Posted: 11 Jan 2013 01:55 PM PST U.S. President Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzi have agreed on a plan to shift the U.S. military mission in Afghanistan to a support role this spring, which is a few months earlier than expected. Obama said after that, U.S. troops would focus on training, advising and assisting Afghan forces. He said it would [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Morocco’s Nizar Baraka Selected As Best Finance Minister In Middle East – OpEd Posted: 11 Jan 2013 12:42 PM PST The work carried out in 2012 by the Moroccan Minister of Economy and Finance Nizar Baraka has been paid its fair value. Nizar Baraka was elected by the magazine The Banker as the “best Minister of Finance in the Middle East” and “Minister of Finance 2012-Global Award.” This double award recognizes the work done by [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Three Years Later, Haiti Still Struggling Posted: 11 Jan 2013 12:36 PM PST Three years after Haiti’s devastating January 12, 2010 earthquake that killed over 217,000 people and left 1.5 million homeless, Haiti continues to struggle despite – and partly because of – the failures of the international aid and reconstruction effort, Center for Economic and Policy Research Co-Director Mark Weisbrot said today. “The numbers are an indictment [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Hindus Upset At BBC Calling Yoga “Fad”‏ Posted: 11 Jan 2013 12:25 PM PST Hindus have criticized British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) for labeling “yoga” as “fad”. BBC News-World website posted a video on January 10 under its “Watch/Listen”, which was titled as “Man behind yoga and other new age fads”. Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) today, pointed out that terming yoga as one of [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Please Write To Forgotten Prisoners In Guantánamo On 11th Anniversary Of Opening Of Prison – OpEd Posted: 11 Jan 2013 12:07 PM PST Friday January 11 is the 11th anniversary of the opening of the Bush administration’s “war on terror” prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, an ongoing legal black hole, and an experimental prison for holding Muslim men and boys without rights, and subjecting them to torture and other forms of coercion and abuse, and medical and psychological [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

US Air Force Leaders To Deliver Budget Guidance To Force In Days Posted: 11 Jan 2013 12:00 PM PST By Jim Garamone Air Force leaders will deliver guidance to the force in a few days to begin prudent planning for the uncertain budget environment ahead, Air Force Secretary Michael B. Donley said here today. Donley and Gen. Mark A. Welch III, the Air Force chief of staff, briefed Pentagon reporters today on the state [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Myanmar: The War With The Kachins – Analysis Posted: 11 Jan 2013 11:57 AM PST By C. S. Kuppuswamy “The decision to use air power against ethnic militias, a tactic unheard of even under military rule, runs counter to reformist President Thein Sein’s assurances that troops were acting only in self defence.” – Martin Petty – Reuters. Introduction The war between the Myanmar Army and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Theology Professor Sheds Light On ‘Les Miserables’ Bishop Posted: 11 Jan 2013 11:49 AM PST By Hillary Senour In a recent op-ed for the Wall Street Journal, Dr. Doris Donnelly drew attention to the clerical hero of “Les Miserables;” a character she says has been significantly “pared down” in the musical and film versions. Although the pious Bishop Bienvenue is central to the plot of Victor Hugo’s “Les Miserables” – [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Welcome, Chuck – OpEd Posted: 11 Jan 2013 11:46 AM PST I find Chuck Hagel eminently likeable. I am not quite certain why. Perhaps it’s his war record. He was decorated for valor in the Vietnam War (which I detested). He was a mere sergeant. I find it elating to see a non-commissioned officer become Minister of Defense. Like so many veterans who have seen war [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Should Obama Swear On Das Kapital? – OpEd Posted: 11 Jan 2013 11:44 AM PST If anyone doubts that L awrence O’Donnell hates Christianity, then he should go to the website of The Daily Caller and watch him in action. A transcript of his diatribe does not do justice to what possesses him—you have to see him strut his stuff to get a sense of his true pathology. O’Donnell starts [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

NATO Chiefs Of Defence Meeting On Jan. 16-17 Posted: 11 Jan 2013 09:47 AM PST NATO and Partners’ Chiefs of Defence will gather at NATO Headquarters for the first Military Committee in Chiefs of Defence format of 2013. General Knud Bartels, Chairman of the Military Committee, will chair the discussions on NATO Transformation post 2014, Afghanistan, and partnership. Admiral Jim Stavridis, Supreme Allied Commander, Europe and General Jean-Paul Paloméros, Supreme [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

European Court To Rule On Controversial Christian Freedom Cases Posted: 11 Jan 2013 09:44 AM PST Judgment in the cases of four UK Christians will be handed down at the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg at on Tuesday 15th January 2013. The cases are being carefully watched across the world. Of particular interest will be the interpretation of how the very strong provision for ‘freedom of thought, conscience and [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Eni Signs Mid-Term Agreement For Sale Of LNG To Japan And South Korea Posted: 11 Jan 2013 09:40 AM PST Eni has signed a tripartite agreement with Korea Gas Corporation and Chubu Electric Power Company for the sale of 28 cargoes of LNG (or 1,7 Mton of LNG) over the period 2013-2017. Under this agreement, which is the first joint purchase contract between Japan and South Korea, Eni will source the cargoes from its global [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

BRICS: Towards Political And Security Muscle? – Analysis Posted: 11 Jan 2013 09:36 AM PST By Rahul Bhonsle The first tentative moves by BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) to find a political voice and influence security discourse were evident in New Delhi on 10 January 2013, with the BRICS Meeting of High Representatives (HR) on National Security. Briefing the media India’s National Security Adviser (NSA) Shiv Shanker [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

A World Connected Through Economics – OpEd Posted: 11 Jan 2013 09:29 AM PST If there was ever a doubt about a connected world look no further than the globalization of the financial markets as proof. On any given Monday, a depressed economy in Greece can have a direct impact on the American stock market. That in turn can determine whether or not an individual will have a serious [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Why Does Moroccan Autonomy Plan Have Support Of International Community?‏ – OpEd Posted: 11 Jan 2013 09:25 AM PST Nobody denies Morocco’s efforts over decades, and that is still unfolding, for the sake of reaching a final solution to the Sahara issue. One problem is a real drag on the entire area of ​​North Africa and also obstruct the necessary dynamics of cooperation that must exisit between Maghreb countries. The will shown by Morocco [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.

Vietnam RWB Says Can Prove Innocence Of Convicted Blogger Paulus Le Son Posted: 11 Jan 2013 09:23 AM PST Reporters Without Borders is appalled at the groundless verdict handed down yesterday by a court in northern city of Vinh against eight bloggers and cyber dissidents. They were among a total of 14 Catholic activists sentenced to between three and 13 years’ imprisonment. The press freedom organization is in a position to prove the innocence [...] To continue reading this article, click on the headline.