AIDemocracy.org | United States

Hillary Clinton to the Rescue?

November 25, 2012 by Ali Leave a Comment

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton delivers remarks at the State Department in Washington

Tuesday, November 20th President Obama announced that he is sending Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to the Middle East in the hopes of a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Clinton is scheduled to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, Palestinian officials in Ramallah, West Bank and Egyptian leaders in Cairo. President Obama has also reached out to newly elected Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi, encouraging him to play a calming role with Hamas. Although the United States supports Israel’s right to defend … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: gaza, isreal, United States

National Census Recognizes Third Gender in Nepal: So what?

March 26, 2012 by Carly James 3 Comments

National Census Recognizes Third Gender in Nepal: So what? What’s the difference between sex and gender? That’s right—think back to that obligatory biological anthropology class you took freshman year. Sex is strictly related to physiology and biology. Gender, however, refers to socially constructed ways that a given society deems appropriate for expressing one’s sexuality (i.e. through roles, behaviors, activities). This distinction, too often overlooked, is crucial to understanding the way other cultures conceptualize sexuality and gender, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Less, Sex and Justice Tagged With: discrimination, Gay, Gender, LGBT, minorities, rights, Sexuality, Social, Stigma, Thailand, tolerance, United States

Upcoming Iranian Elections Pose New Questions about Country’s Press Freedoms Part 1

February 20, 2012 by Emily 4 Comments

By Milad Avazbeigi (DSC_6986_resize) [CC-BY-SA-2.0 (www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

SOPA. PIPA. ACTA. PCIP. In the United States, any piece of legislation designed to restrict first amendment rights is certain to be met with the cries of enraged protesters pouring down crowded city streets. Public demonstrations in response to such acts, such as those staged by Wikipedia and Google in the past month, have raised awareness and concern about America’s increasingly draconian Internet regulations. Do these bills indeed violate American press freedoms or do they truly serve “to promote prosperity, creativity, entrepreneurship, and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Less, Security Tagged With: Candidates, community, Corruption, election, Government, internet, Iran, Islam, law, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, media, Political Participation, United States

Too early for Taliban negotiations?

January 30, 2012 by Emily 2 Comments

“Our jihad has two targets. One is America and the other is the Foreign Ministry of the Taliban.” In his statement before the 9/11 attacks, Osama bin Laden exemplified the incongruity between Taliban members who once harbored bin Laden and members of their Foreign Ministry, the branch which with the U.S. has historically negotiated. Today, America is once again hoping to engage the Taliban through negotiations with the Afghan government. Given the reality of America’s past attempts with the Taliban, it may seem rash to restart negotiations, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Less, Security Tagged With: 9/11, Afghanistan, Government, Guantanamo Bay, Islam, Middle East, NATO, Obama, Pakistan, Peace, security, Taliban, terrorism, United States

Recent summit raises questions about North Korea’s growing nuclear program

January 13, 2012 by Emily 1 Comment

A summit the week of January 9 between South Korea and China raised discussion about a free trade agreement, diplomatic relations, and perhaps most importantly, North Korea’s nuclear program. As the two countries discuss the importance of a bilateral trade agreement, they will undoubtedly examine ways to confront the growing problem of North Korean nuclear proliferation. While both countries want peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula, their views diverge on how to achieve these goals. Beijing’s foremost concern is protecting its own … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Less, Security Tagged With: aid, China, Food Aid, free trade, Government, humanitarian aid, Japan, North Korea, nuclear, nuclear proliferation, Peace, policy, refugee, Russia, sanctions, United States

U.S. Foreign Policy Alternatives in Iran Part 1: From Carter to Obama

January 8, 2012 by Emily 1 Comment

On New Year’s Eve, President Obama enacted new sanctions against Iran in a repeated effort to halt the growth of Iran’s nuclear program. The imposition of sanctions, however, has long fueled controversy among American foreign policy officials. Recent failures, combined with the Carter administration’s failed attempt to resolve the Iranian Hostage Crisis of 1979 and the subsequent failure of the Reagan administration to restore diplomatic relations with Iran, have cast a shadow over American foreign policy in regard to the nuclear crisis. Some … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Less, Security Tagged With: diplomacy, economy, EU, Europe, foreign policy, Government, human rights, India, Iran, military, nuclear, Obama, oil, sanctions, technology, United States

UNESCO: Palestine in, US backs out

November 4, 2011 by Ernie 3 Comments

On October 31, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) approved Palestine's application for membership. An overwhelming 107 member-states voted in favor of admitting Palestine as a member-state and only fourteen member states voted against the decision. The remaining 52 voted in abstentia. In order for Palestine''s membership to take effect, Palestine must sign and ratify the UNESCO's constitution. At this juncture, it is important to remember that because Palestine is currently not a member-state of the United … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Less, Security Tagged With: Middle East, Palestine, Peace, United Nations, United States

Qaddafi Out, US In

August 25, 2011 by Patrick McDermott Leave a Comment

There have been a lot of news stories that have dominated the headlines this week. An East Coast Earthquake that shook all of DC and went as far north as Toronto, Steve Jobs resigning as CEO of Apple (particularly sad for an Apple geek like me), and the anticipation about where Hurricane Irene will make landfall. However, the one headline I believe has the most impact of all of them is how the Libyan rebellion forced Muammar al-Qaddafi out of Tripoli. The rebellion hasn't found him yet, but they believe he is hiding in his hometown of Sirte. And if the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Less, Security Tagged With: Bahrain, Egypt, foreign policy, Government, Iraq, Libya, NATO, Syria, United States

My Big Fat European Debt Crisis

June 24, 2011 by Rachel Merker 3 Comments

All you need to do is turn on the news to know that Greece is in financial crisis. But with European leaders locked in negotiations over how to rescue the nation's flailing economy and keep the debt emergency from spreading across the Euro zone, the future is anything but clear. And for those of us here in the US, the confusion is just made worse by the economic jargon dominating its media coverage. Read on for a 101 on Greece’s financial woes and what they might mean for the rest of the world. The Anatomy of a Debt Crisis Ten years ago, Greece … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Blog, Featured Less, Hunger Tagged With: economy, EU, Europe, financial crisis, IMF, international financial architecture, United States

30 years in, we are still learning from AIDS

June 2, 2011 by William Tsang Leave a Comment

The New York Times recently published an article called “30 Years In, We Are Still Learning From AIDS” by Laurence K. Altman. This summary timeline, although brief, gives us an idea of how the US dealt with the rise of this epidemic and where it stands when it comes to understanding and combating HIV/AIDS. Those who study the history of AIDS in the US can fill in the blanks regarding the scientific inconsistencies and mass hysteria surrounding the disease. Once it was discovered that seroconversion (changing from HIV- to HIV+) could occur through … [Read more...]