Congrats Pres Obama 08-11-4

Congratulation President-Elect Obama

Mirza A. Beg
Tuesday, November 04, 2008

Dear President-elect Obama,

Congratulations on a very well deserved victory. More importantly, it is a very convincing affirmation of the lofty ideal of the founding of the United States of America.

The ideals that led to the declaration of independence, later enshrined in the American constitution have often suffered on the shoals of populism constricted by deeply ingrained prejudices. It has been a protracted struggle for the United States as well as other democracies. It has taken America a long time to overcome many deep-rooted prejudices to elect you as the next president.

It is indeed a new dawn for our country. The world has looked up to the idea of America and the ideals of the American creed, but has been disappointed and rebuffed many times. Particularly the last eight years have been an antithesis of American Ideals.

This is a bitter sweet moment for you. The passing of your grandmother, a day before your well earned victory is indeed very sad. A modicum of satisfaction for you is that she knew you are what she had dreamed and hoped for you to be.

You are about to assume the leadership of a great country that suffered the indignity of being lead by a coterie of narrow-minded thugs who violated every principle this great country stood for. They were able to do it by fear mongering to exploit the tragedy of 9/11. The foreign policy is in shambles. In the name of fighting terrorism they abandoned all moral principles to the extant that the world sees us as a nation led by a rogue President. They handed the economy to the Kleptocrats on the Wall-street in the name of deregulation. These are very tough times for our country and the world.

The good news is that the world still is waiting for a sane and principled leadership. The greatest gift of our democracy is that every four years we get a chance to chart a new course. About four years ago in the last election Americans stirred from a nightmare but were frightened into closing their eyes to fall into a deeper nightmare. Finally we have been shaken up from our worst nightmare to reject the purveyors of fear.

This is our opportunity to pull back from the precipice of the misguided Bush doctrine of leading by brawn in the manner of a small-minded street fighter. A great leader leads by thoughtful principled analysis of problems. You have proven your capabilities in the last two years of grueling campaign.

You are starting with a national mandate and universal goodwill. The challenges are enormous and our resources are stretched very thin. You have no time to relax in the glow of this historic victory.

You have to devise an economic program that gives people hope, provides job, rewards hard work, curbs greed and punishes those who exploit our freedoms and the economic system.

You have to reassure the world that America values principles and respects all nations and peoples who want to live in peace and justice. You need to take strong steps to resolve the festering Israeli-Palestinian problem equitably. It is the key. It has not only hampered the American ability to solve many other problems, but has helped create many of the festering problems of the last few decades.

The wars are not always avoidable, but they should be the last resort, only when all else fails and the nation is in mortal danger. Unprincipled wars of supremacy are feudalistic and can not succeed in the age of instant communications. The Iraq war needs to end as you promised. The war in Afghanistan needs a very strong component of diplomacy and mercy towards those who can be drawn back from Taliban’s cruelty, so that we do not create more enemy as we have been doing by indiscriminate bombing of civilians almost on a monthly basis. It only weakens our cause and makes the enemy stronger. As you said we need to negotiate with our enemies on the basis of equity and not supremacist ultimatums.

We have supported you in the hope that you will govern with courage, thoughtfulness and justice. We will offer our constructive criticism as citizens of a great and free nation. We stood up against the intimidation of the last eight years to elect you. We intend to protect that precious right and will show dissent in the best and most valuable American tradition when warranted. With best wishes to you and our country, Mirza

Mirza A. Beg can be contacted at mab64@yahoo.com or through the blog http://mirzasmusings.blogspot.com/

McCain V/S McCain 08-10-27

McCain Fighting Against Two Opponents

Mirza A. Beg
October 27, 2008

Tuscaloosa news, Friday, October 31, 2008
http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/article/20081031/NEWS/810312952

Birmingham News, Sunday, November2, 2008
http://www.al.com/opinion/birminghamnews/letters.ssf?/base/opinion/1225617405132400.xml&coll=2

One can not, but feel sad for McCain. He is fighting against two men with compelling biographies. Every one knows about Senator Barack Obama, who has run a principled and stoic campaign.

But the more formidable opponent is the maverick John McCain of the 2000. He has at least an equally compelling biography. He withstood torture in North Vietnamese prison. He suffered the subterranean slander by the Bush- Karl Rove machine in the primaries in 2000. He honorably castigated the agents of rightwing intolerance especially Pat Robertson and late Jerry Falwell. He opposed Bush tax cuts for the rich in 2002, and strongly opposed torture of detainees in Guantanamo bay Gulag. And he lost the Republican Primaries in 2000.

Then in 2007 he decided to run for the Presidency. To win the Republican nomination, he made a Faustian bargain with the rightwing of the Republican Party. He hired Bush-Rove protégés, who had slandered him in South Carolina Primary to slander Obama. He praised the right wing agents of intolerance, kissed and made up. He advocates making the Bush tax cuts permanent, and he even voted for the CIA’s ability to torture.

It is the Maverick McCain of the year 2000 that is defeating the McCain of 2008.