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Posted March 4, 2002
Malic Book
Many thanks for printing the Nebojsa Malic columns on the Balkans. He throws much light on this subject. I hope that he will eventually publish a book (if he has not already) on this unfortunate area of Europe.
Nebojsa Malic replies:
Well, that's an idea. Maybe a Balkan Express collection, published by Antiwar.com? I've been wanting to do a book about the Bosnian war, specifically, but it's not yet time. Thanks.
Bears and Berries
As usual, today's [February 28] article, involving "bears and berries," was well-written and a pleasure (?) to read. While I totally agree with you, and share your pain and frustration, regarding the constant meddling of the Empire in this part of the world, I cannot offer an answer. Post 9/11 has officially sealed the fate of a once proud-to-be-free nation. Collectively, we are a country of sheep people. We will be controlled, and heroes will be impaled. I suppose it is the same over there. It must be, otherwise, why was Milosevic handed over to the Hague by his very own countrymen?
Sadly, without American, British and German interference, Milosevic could have been the Abraham Lincoln of the Balkans. Apparently, it was never meant to be. But, in other countries around the world, such a personality may not go unnoticed. Maybe not in my lifetime, but his was a gallant effort that may one day come back to haunt the Empire, and transform its very foundations. One can only hope. After all, the Empire continues to spread its tentacles in a thin manner. Like ancient Rome, it will collapse to the satisfaction of freedom-loving people everywhere.
Headlines
...Your site is important. I think that the fact that American media is (at times frustratingly) diluted and biased makes it more important than ever to constantly strive to understand conflicts from a variety of perspectives. With the plethora of world news agencies outside of the US (many of which are often difficult to locate), your site succeeds in bringing together headlines from a wide range of sources around the world. For this, I am very grateful.
The only constructive suggestion that I would give is that it might be beneficial if there was a feature which allowed a user to view the headlines pertinent for a specific topic. ...It can be difficult to comprehend things in a reasonable way when reading the articles in the order they appear. Often subjects are wide-ranging (as a comprehensive survey of world conflicts invariably would be) and jumping from subject to subject lends a tendency toward the confusion of ideas and details. However, if all the headlines for a given subject (say the Indo-Pak standoff) were organized together, the sustained/sequential exposure to the topic would promote deeper consideration and insight into the roots of the conflict.
...I often find myself trying to review past articles on a given topic, only to find it a trying task. For example, this morning I was trying to review the details from the previous week about the unfolding events in the Hindu-Muslim violence which has recently erupted in India. I found it quite difficult to search through the interface for this purpose. This is another way in which an additional topic-based presentation would benefit the deeper understanding of world affairs. I realize that your site strives to get links to articles up as soon as they are made available. Perhaps something as simple as prefacing headlines with the topic to which they are relevant might be more practical (i.e. "Indo-Pak Conflict: Headline").
News about Yugoslavia
Continued thanks for keeping news about Yugoslavia in the forefront during these crummy times. The same war for oil and power now being played out in Afghanistan, Georgia, and elsewhere, seems conspicuously similar to the war the U.S. waged in the former Yugoslavia. Similar, that is, in the relationship between overt description and covert intention. Publicly, it's called "fighting terrorism" or "nation-building," "Human Rights Watch" or "Black Hawk Down." Privately, however, it has names like the "AMBO" consortium or the "Trepca" mine complex, names few Americans have ever heard of. Fortunately, it's getting easier to see through the deception and to the agenda. When would-be nation builders like the United States, United Kingdom, and (re)united Germany set about disuniting countries like the former Yugoslavia, the global strategy becomes almost too obvious. Surely that's one reason for a Pentagon "Office of Strategic Influence." The opening of the Milosevic trial has, regrettably, given the same unfortunate people who championed Yugoslavia's dismemberment/destruction the chance for a second round of "strategic influence." To justify the bombing of Serbia's civilian population and infrastructure, you can be sure that they will again frame their commentaries so as to again frame the Serbs.
Could you send me the e-mail address of Michael A. of California. I would like to ask him of his other sources of news that we don't get from our regular mass media outlets. Indeed, it seems to me one reason our views expressed here on Antiwar.com don't get the coverage to the greater US public is the absence of a major media outlet that published the truth in newsreporting as we enjoy on this message board. Maybe . . . Antiwar.com could aspire to be the next FOX or CNN television channel....
The 'Backtalk' editor replies:
Letter-writers can request that we include an e-mail link with their signature. Michael A. did not do this, so we can't share his e-mail address.
Transcripts
...Thank you and Rep. Ron Paul for your honesty and refreshing approach....
Also, can you please direct me to a source that may have the Hague transcripts for the Milosevic trial?
~ George R., Illinois