The Arab American News
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The sad, unfortunate State of the Union
The State of the Union address is officially a big deal. And it is always accorded an appropriate measure of attention by the television networks, members of Congress and the American people. But some State of the Union addresses are more equal than others. When George Bush addressed Congress in 2005, he did so as the most powerful man...Playing politics with the race card
An interesting article appeared recently in the liberal-lefty news website, Alternet, on the dirty tricks of Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, designed by her to undermine her main rival, Barack Obama on racial and gender grounds during the Nevada primary. In it, Steven Rosenfeld wrote about how the Nevada State Education...Secretary of State wants to ease travel document requirements
LANSING Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land has urged swift approval of legislation that eases the identification burden on residents traveling to Canada, and also allows those who are in the U.S. legally but temporarily to apply for a driver's license or ID card. "Protecting our borders is critical in this post-911 world," Land told...Fed cuts rates twice in one week
WASHINGTON (AP) The Federal Reserve delivered powerful new relief to people and businesses squeezed by the ailing economy Wednesday, cutting interest rates ever deeper in an effort to avert or at least soften the blow of a recession. The bold, half-point reduction approved by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and all but one of his...Creating a great Arab city
Dubai can serve as a model for growth elsewhere DUBAI I always find it exhilarating to visit Dubai, one of the most dynamic and visually spectacular examples of rapid urban growth in the world. Especially coming from Beirut, where I live, the contrasts are sharp and immediately felt: security vs. chronic political...Mike Gravel is right choice for Arabs, Muslims
As the Michigan Co-Director of the Mike Gravel for President campaign, I am writing to take issue with William Fisher's article, "American Muslim voters left out in the cold," and his statement, "Among candidates, the single exception appears to be Democrat Dennis Kucinich, an Ohio congressman and former mayor of Cleveland. He has...
Obama nixes Palestinian right of return
February 5th, 20080 Rudy Giuliani, the Republican former mayor of New York, and John Edwards, the Democratic former North Carolina senator, both dropped out of the U.S. presidential race this week. Giuliani, who finished third in Florida's Republican primary, endorsed John McCain, Arizona's senator, in his battle for the nomination. "John McCain...Security Council loses credibility over Iran, Israel
UNITED NATIONS (IPS) The 15-member U.N. Security Council (UNSC) is set to lose its credibility once again as it prepares to impose a third set of sanctions on Iran while failing to pass any strictures on Israel for its continued heavy-handed repression of Palestinians in Gaza. "Many ask whether the UNSC still...
The breaking of the Rafah wall
February 5th, 20080 It looked like the fall of the Berlin wall. And not only did it look like it. For a moment, the Rafah crossing was the Brandenburg Gate. It is impossible not to feel exhilaration when masses of oppressed and hungry people break down the wall that is shutting them in, their eyes radiant, embracing everybody they meet to feel so even...How Qatar helped Katrina victims
"We Are All Witnesses," a new book produced by the Qatar Katrina Fund, serves as a first hand account of the rebuilding of the areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina. In the wake of the hurricane, which hit the north-central Gulf coast in August of 2005, the State of Qatar was among the first countries to commit financial support to the...Hastings, Dingell urge Bush to address Iraqi refugee crisis
Washington Congressman Alcee L. Hastings (D-FL), Chairman of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (U.S. Helsinki Commission) and Special Representative on Mediterranean Affairs for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe's (OSCE) Parliamentary Assembly, and Congressman John D. Dingell (D-MI), Chairman of...U of M students protest for Gaza
DEARBORN "Peace and Justice UMD, not until Gaza's Free." Students at University of Michigan-Dearborn (UMD) screamed and protested Tuesday, January 29. They chanted all sorts of slogans in the midst of the cold and rain. They chanted for unity, justice, peace and freedom. They said they came together not only as Arabs but also as...Oakwood names corporate directors
Dearborn Oakwood Healthcare Inc. (OHI) has appointed Lisa Rutledge and Roy Sexton to leadership roles in directing Oakwood's communications, planning and community outreach services. Rutledge was named corporate director of community outreach in October 2007. In this role, she oversees community outreach efforts, including community...Tax assistance provided at ACCESS
DEARBORN The Accounting Aid Society is scheduled to begin holding free income tax preparation assistance sessions at ACCESS, 2651 Saulino Court in Dearborn, starting Saturday, February 2. Assistance will be available every Saturday in February from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to low income families and individualsup to $40,000 annual income...Iran’s war on drugs; three decades of failure
TEHRAN In an attempt to check the effects of strong new varieties of illicit drugs that are flooding the market, the government of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has revived some of the punitive methods seen in the early days of the Islamic Revolution. Yet neither punitive action nor the continued use of preventive strategies introduced......
Iraq: Police and army getting sidelined
BAQUBA (IPS) New military operations in Diyala province north of Baghdad have exacerbated a growing conflict between U.S.-backed Sunni fighters on the one hand and Iraqi army and police forces on the other. The U.S. military commenced a large military operation Jan. 8 in the volatile Diyala province. Seven U.S. battalions led an...Pre-emptive nuclear strike a key option
The West must be ready to resort to a pre-emptive nuclear attack to try to halt the "imminent" spread of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction, according to a radical manifesto for a new NATO by five of the West's most senior military officers and strategists. Calling for root-and-branch reform of NATO and a new pact drawing......
Breaking the siege
January 28th, 20080 Hundreds of thousands cross downed Gaza wallArab street erupts in protests supporting Palestinians Thousands of Palestinians continued to cross into Egypt for a second day on Thursday to buy much needed supplies. Egyptian officials have warned that the border with the Gaza Strip, breached by Palestinian fighters seeking to end an...
American Muslim voters left out in the cold
January 28th, 20080 The seven million strong constituency could make a significant difference NEW YORK (IPS) In an electoral campaign system tactically dominated by "niche politics," major candidates for their party's presidential nominations are running as fast as they can from one potentially influential constituency. The constituency is the...City announces plans for Wards building
DEARBORN β Nearly seven years after Dearborn's massive Montgomery Ward department store at Michigan Avenue and Schaefer Road closed its doors and began deteriorating from the inside out, the city, which acquired the building in 2005, is on the verge of closing a deal to sell the property and have it redeveloped into a major...Hamtramck passes ordinance against profiling
The Hamtramck City Council passed an ordinance Tuesday prohibiting city employees from policing or denying services to people based on their appearance, immigration status and other factors. Council on Islamic-American Organizations-Michigan Executive Director Dawud Walid speaks to Hamtramck City Council during a hearing on an......
America’s finances: A house of cards
America today is not the only empire, but it is one that has consistently formulated itself around the ideologies of corporate business, the military, big government, and religious self-righteousness, mass marketing itself and mass exploiting others with military back-up when needed to make itself the biggest and most powerful ever...Israeli pianist Daniel Barenboim takes Palestinian citizenship
JERUSALEM Daniel Barenboim, the world renowned Israeli pianist and conductor, has taken Palestinian citizenship and said he believed his rare new status could serve a model for peace between the two peoples. "It is a great honor to be offered a passport," he said after a Beethoven piano recital in Ramallah, where he has been active......
Peace groups call for mass tax revolt
WASHINGTON A coalition of national peace groups honored the legacy of the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. this week by stepping up a new campaign for a tax revolt to protest the Bush administration's war in Iraq. CODEPINK: Women for Peace, the 2008 War Tax Boycott Campaign, United for Peace and Justice and a host of other...Chertoff warns of new rules
As of February 1, Canadians and Americans who have been visiting Canada will face enhanced identification requirements at land crossings. That is what Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff told a Toronto Globe and Mail reporter on January 18. Anyone over 19 crossing the border by land will need a document with a photo......