Interesting Discussion on HH XIV Dalai Lama's Visit

Democracy Now! hosted a very interesting discussion with Robert Barnett, director of the Modern Tibetan Studies Program at Columbia University. The discussion focuses around several issues involving Tibet and His Holiness, including democratization, international security, economics, and water politics. The interview is approximately 11 minutes long but worth watching in its entirety.

Unacceptable

The Pentagon's inspector general released a report three days ago faulting KBR, a former Halliburton subsidiary, for providing our soldiers unclean water. The water was only used for washing and shaving, but still may have been responsible for "38 reported illnesses that 'an attending medical official said could be attributed to water, such as skin abscesses, cellulitis, skin infections and diarrhea.'"

Instead of expressing anger, disappointment, or anything remotely sensible, Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell defended KBR, saying that no definitive connection had been found linking KBR's water and the soldiers' medical problems, and that servicemen "are constantly reminded only to drink bottled water"...Even though they weren't drinking it, merely showering in it.

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