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Obama's April 5 speech at Prague Castle's Hradčanské náměstí

IMCista | 14.04.2009 16:19 | Analysis | Climate Chaos | Energy Crisis | World

A Prague resident's personal view -

" ...his main argument was aimed at Czech citizens in an effort to explain and justify the construction of a United States radar station in Czech Republic."

(April 5th)
This morning at 10 o’clock Mr Obama, the United States president made his first open speech in Europe.

I went to this speech as a European citizen, concerned for the future of our world as well as interested in finding out information about this new but important politician: who was he, what was his level of corruption and what was his political agenda?

The atmosphere was good and relaxed, the level of control also. Three giant screens gave the opportunity to everyone present to follow the speech without any difficulty.

The presentation was structured in three (three and half) parts: one quarter introduction, one quarter to discuss financial and ecological crisis (two or three sentences maximum) and the last half aimed at stating the danger of nuclear weapons and his current political agenda to reduce them.

Mr Obama’s speech was partly presenting to Europe his general point of view about our world future. However his main argument was aimed at Czech citizens in an effort to explain and justify the construction of a United States radar station in Czech Republic. This radar station is part of a military project developed under the Bush administration, and as you can imagine such a project has encountered some resistance from Czech citizens.

Therefore his main introduction was intended at underlining the existing connection between him, the United States and Czech Republic. This connection was made possible through the fact that 20 years ago, before Prague’s revolution, no one would have considered possible the visit and speech of a black American president in Prague. In a word(?) the world has changed for the best thanks to the strength of peoples dreams and drive for freedom and equality.

A good point was made by him in reminding people how strong they can be when working together and how they can peacefully change the world even when opposing their own leaders.

The second part of the speech examined briefly the world's present financial crisis and even more briefly the future world ecological crisis.

Mr Obama succinctly mentioned the financial crisis and the proposition for stronger financial regulation. He was here following openly European’s Leader view. On an added American point of view and perhaps more personal one, he described how necessary establishing support to the poorest countries was. Here the USA's first concrete measure was announced as the creation of a special support fund.
A point particularly important for the Czech Republic was made when he also mentioned the imperativeness of economical support to countries with emerging economies.

The Czech Republic, although generally economically stable, considers herself as a country with an emerging economy and is relatively concerned by neighbouring countries recently added to the European Union like Bulgaria or Lithuania who are suffering severely from the financial crisis.

With reference to climate change, the present progress here is, sadly, the fact that the United States president openly admitted the problem. Climate change was described as a danger to our world, the reduction of the use of fossil fuels was expressed as essential as well as development of new ways for harvesting energy: wind and solar power were mentioned in a one sentence solution. Alas no concrete measure was announced and the urgency of the entire situation was not acknowledged.

Mr Obama’s attitude can be understood when we start to look at the last but most important part of his speech. He has not realised the urgency of climate threat as he seems totally preoccupied by the risk of nuclear war and the danger of nuclear weapons and their proliferation. This position speaks well for him, as the matter is without doubt important but in my opinion the relevance of this restricted position is yet to be proven.

And it is in this last part of the speech that we finally hear about the United States concrete measure to better the future of our world. USA in an effort to convince other nations will reduce concretely his nuclear arsenal and will urge Russia to do as such. Mr Obama is seeking a world of peace free from the danger of nuclear weapons where fissile raw material production will be, for the first time, tightly controlled and later if possible totally forbidden.

Using the threat of terrorist access to nuclear weapons as well as the danger caused by Iran and North Korea Mr Obama is then underlining in detail the importance of this famous radar station. This one that will be, he assured, dismantled in the case of total eradication of these mentioned dangers. Case made.

In an effort to fight nuclear weapon proliferation and the danger of climate change Mr Obama finally presented us with a clever solution that should lead our world to peace and prosperity. I believe that Mr Obama through his position of president of United States can be regarded as the spokesman of what Mr Gilles Deleuze (*) had called politely in … “Those who look after us”. Therefore this point was extremely important to me.

Well the plan aimed to discourage new countries from producing new nuclear weapons is simple, good nations who will agree with the world reduction of nuclear weapons will have open access to the world economy and political international scene and above all will have access to cheap nuclear energy. Nuclear energy will be used as money of exchange to encourage countries to stop nuclear weapons development.

Such is the solution proposed by the United States and the rest of the occidental world leaders: producing cheap nuclear energy to stop possible future nuclear war in addition to reduce use of fossil fuels therefore saving our world from climate change.

I thought that I was going to cry, wouldn’t you? This is the only solution world leaders and economical leaders are working on: nuclear energy. Their short-sited view on the future of our planet leaves me sad, bitter and near to despair and you can clearly understand why.

As Mr Obama is concerned, if I try to look at him with a positive eye I can say that he is perhaps a genuine young and idealistic politician. His idealistic views are of equality, peace, economic wealth and freedom for all. His politics will follow these ideals and will promote them as being of the USA, but with such an ideal it is very easy to see the world with a deformed eye. Besides such idealistic views can be easily manipulated to conform to another darker view of the world, one of weapons and energy manufacturers.


This is the solution they are feeding us with; this is the lie that they are believing in.

IMCista

Comments

Hide the following comment

Obama: Iran’s nuclear & ballistic missile activity is a real threat to its neigh

14.04.2009 16:45

Times, 11 April 2008
Times, 11 April 2008


 http://dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/2009/04/07/obama-irans-nuclear-and-ballistic-missile-activity-poses-a-real-threat-to-its-neighbors/

Obama: Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile activity poses a real threat to its neighbors


“So let me be clear: Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile activity poses a real threat, not just to the United States, but to Iran’s neighbors and our allies.”

[US President Barack Obama’s speech in Prague, 5 April 2009] [1]

“The peace of the region will also be advanced if Iran forgoes any nuclear weapons ambitions. Now, as I made clear in Prague yesterday, no one is served by the spread of nuclear weapons, least of all Turkey.”

[US President Barack Obama’s speech to Turkey’s parliament in Ankara, 6 April 2009] [2]

_____________

from the archives:

“We find the latest package offered [to Iran] by the five permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany positive. [...] The time is running out, don’t miss this opportunity. Bush might strike [Iran] before leaving office. If the US were to strike, they would strike fiercely. As your neighbour, we wouldn’t want Tehran to be devastated like Baghdad.”

[Turkey’s President Gul meets Iran’s President Ahmadinejad in Istanbul, 17 August 2008] [3]

“[T]he Iranian way - I will say this loud and clear - is seen as undermining its neighbor’s hegemony. Turkey gives rise to hope, Iran gives rise to fear.”

[Israeli President Shimon Peres' speech to Turkey's parliament in Ankara, 13 November 2007] [4]

“Like other countries and especially the United States, we have been following Iran’s nuclear efforts with serious concern. Turkey can never welcome an Iran who possesses nuclear weapons. The nuclear states axis starting from North Korea, passing through Iran and extending to other possible powers in our region poses sensitivity on part of Turkey.”

[Turkey’s (then-Deputy) Chief of General Staff Ilker Basbug, 6 June 2005] [5]

______________

“While our public is regularly provided alarming media reports of nuclear dangers in Iraq, North Korea or Iran, what is supposed to be a well-informed western audience is living in ignorance of the destructive power of thousands of potential Hiroshimas stored in their backyards.”

[excerpt from the Mayors for Peace petition launched on 6 December 2007 by the European Mayors on whose territory US nuclear weapons are deployed, namely:

Stefano Del Cont (Aviano, ITALY), Anna Giulia Guarneri (Ghedi, ITALY), Theo Kelchtermans (Peer, BELGIUM), Dr. Joke W. Kersten (Uden, NETHERLANDS), Heinz Onnertz (Buechel, GERMANY) and Vedat Karadag (Incirlik, TURKEY) ] [6]

_________________

US Nuclear Weapons in Europe 2008

Country Air Base Estimated Weapons

Belgium Kleine Brogel 10-20
Germany Büchel 10-20
Holland Volkel 10-20
Italy Aviano 50
Ghedi Torre 20-40
Turkey Incirlik 50-90

source: Hans Kristensen, “U.S. Nuclear Weapons Withdrawn From the

United Kingdom”, Federation of American Scientists, 26 June 2008

 http://www.fas.org/programs/ssp/nukes/_images/EuroNukes.pdf

______________

Percentage of population desiring Europe to be nuclear free:

88.1% in Turkey
71.5% in Italy
70.5% in Germany
64.6 % in Belgium
63.3% in Netherlands

source: Hans Kristensen, “US Nuclear Weapons in Europe: A Review of Post-Cold War Policy, Force Levels, and War Planning”, Natural Resources Defense Council, February 2005

 http://www.cnduk.org/pages/binfo/nato2005.pdf

_____________

related link:

CSIS report: Turkey would be the optimum route for a possible Israeli attack on Iran

16 March 2009

 http://dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/2009/03/21/csis-report-turkey-would-be-the-optimum-route-for-a-possible-israeli-attack-on-iran/

_____________

NOTES:

[1] Remarks by President Barack Obama in Prague as Delivered

White House website, 5 April 2009

 http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Remarks-By-President-Barack-Obama-In-Prague-As-Delivered/

[2] Remarks by President Barack Obama to the Turkish Parliament

White House website, 6 April 2009

 http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Remarks-By-President-Obama-To-The-Turkish-Parliament/

[3] ‘Tehran shouldn’t be devastated like Baghdad’

by Ugur Ergan, Hürriyet, 17 August 2008

 http://dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/2008/10/15/president-gul-turkey-is-nobody%25e2%2580%2599s-launching-pad/

[4] President Speaks to the Parliament in Ankara, Turkey, November 13, 2007

President of the State of Israel website, 13 November 2007

 http://www.president.gov.il/defaults/default_en.asp


[5] Luncheon remarks by General Ilker Basbug, Deputy Chief of Turkish General Staff

Turkish General Staff website, 6 June 2005

 http://www.tsk.mil.tr/eng/konusma/gnkurIIncibsk_atckonusmasiogleyemegi_eng__06062005.htm

[6] European mayors want withdrawal of US nukes from their territory marking INF 20th anniversary

2020 Vision Campaign website, 6 December 2007

 http://www.2020visioncampaign.org/pages/319

_________________


dandelion salad
- Homepage: http://dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/2009/04/07/obama-irans-nuclear-and-ballistic-missile-activity-poses-a-real-threat-to-its-neighbors/


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