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Archive for October, 2008
Death of a Giant & Petty Politics
October 12, 2008major general janaka perera, sri lanka’s most distinguished & beloved soldier, was killed by a suspected ltte suicide bomber last week. for those of you not in the know, he served as chief of staff of the sri lankan army and under his guidance, the sla recorded numerous victories against the ltte. unfortunately, despite being one of the most brilliant & decorated soldiers sri lanka has ever seen, he was not exactly in favour with the powers that be.
the ruling party(ies) saw his popularity and (perhaps) judged him as a potential threat to their political future. and it did not help matters that he was constantly (perhaps unfairly) linked with the main opposition party during his latter part of his career. perera retired in 2001 after being overlooked for promotion to army commander and was made sri lanka’s high commissioner to australia and later, indonesia, but was recalled before his term ended, mainly due to political reasons.
perera did eventually enter the political arena as an opposition party candidate and contested the post of chief minister for a local province. although he gained the most preferential votes, his party failed to gain a majority in the council, therefore he became the opposition party leader of the provincial council.
he had everything a politician needed. verve, charisma, a proven track record of honesty & service (unlike so many others …) and (despite numerous unproven & baseless accusations) a genuine respect for all communities of sri lanka. much was expected from him. unfortunately, like so many others before him, perera’s political future was cut short by a terrorist bomber.
he may have been a hero to the masses. unfortunately the government did not see him in that light. it did not (apparently) forgive him for rejecting them and joining up with the opposition. click here to read about the petty politics that surrounded him even in death.
sad, really…
pics of the funeral of the late major general (courtesy sri lanka army website)
The Real John McCain?
October 10, 2008the following is an article about john mccain which i’ve taken from rolling stone magazine. and before anyone accuses me of being bias against him i should point out that i have no say in the upcoming elections as i’m NOT an american citizen. (and i’m still searching for a similar article about barack obama BTW!)
i really hope americans will think long and hard before casting their votes in the upcoming elections, elections that have an impact on virtually everyone on this planet either directly or indirectly….
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a closer look at the life and career of john mccain reveals a disturbing record of recklessness and dishonesty
at fort mcnair, an army base located along the potomac river in the nation’s capital, a chance reunion takes place one day between two former POWs. it’s the spring of 1974, and navy commander john sidney mccain III has returned home from the experience in hanoi that, according to legend, transformed him from a callow and reckless youth into a serious man of patriotism and purpose. walking along the grounds at fort mcnair, mccain runs into john dramesi, an air force lieutenant colonel who was also imprisoned and tortured in vietnam.
mccain is studying at the national war college, a prestigious graduate program he had to pull strings with the secretary of the navy to get into. dramesi is enrolled, on his own merit, at the industrial college of the armed forces in the building next door.
there’s a distance between the two men that belies their shared experience in north vietnam — call it an honour gap. like many american POWs, mccain broke down under torture and offered a “confession” to his north vietnamese captors. dramesi, in contrast, attempted two daring escapes. for the second he was brutalized for a month with daily torture sessions that nearly killed him. His partner in the escape, lt. col. ed atterberry, didn’t survive the mistreatment. but dramesi never said a disloyal word, and for his heroism was awarded two air force crosses, one of the service’s highest distinctions. mccain would later hail him as “one of the toughest guys I’ve ever met.”
on the grounds between the two brick colleges, the chitchat between the scion of four-star admirals and the son of a prizefighter turns to their academic travels; both colleges sponsor a trip abroad for young officers to network with military and political leaders in a distant corner of the globe.
“i’m going to the middle east,” dramesi says. “turkey, kuwait, lebanon, iran.”
“why are you going to the middle east?” mccain asks, dismissively.
“it’s a place we’re probably going to have some problems,” dramesi says.
“why? where are you going to, john?”
“oh, i’m going to rio.”
“what the hell are you going to rio for?”
mccain, a married father of three, shrugs.
“i got a better chance of getting laid.”
dramesi, who went on to serve as chief war planner for u.s. air forces in europe and commander of a wing of the strategic air command, was not surprised. “mccain says his life changed while he was in vietnam, and he is now a different man,” dramesi says today. “but he’s still the undisciplined, spoiled brat that he was when he went in.”
mccain first
this is is the story of the real john mccain, the one who has been hiding in plain sight. it is the story of a man who has consistently put his own advancement above all else, a man willing to say and do anything to achieve his ultimate ambition: to become commander in chief, ascending to the one position that would finally enable him to outrank his four-star father and grandfather.
in its broad strokes, mccain’s life story is oddly similar to that of the current occupant of the white house. john sidney mccain III and george walker bush both represent the third generation of american dynasties. both were born into positions of privilege against which they rebelled into mediocrity. both developed an uncanny social intelligence that allowed them to skate by with a minimum of mental exertion. both struggled with booze and loutish behaviour. at each step, with the aid of their fathers’ powerful friends, both failed upward. and both shed their skins as episcopalian members of the washington elite to build political careers as self-styled, ranch-inhabiting westerners who pray to jesus in their wives’ evangelical churches….
click here to read the entire article
