"UNNNGHH.." The sound you just heard is Bush {{{{flexing}}}} his war president {{{{muscles}}}}.. A missile test today is a message to the world. A Minute Man three intercontinental ballistic missile was fired today from Vandenburg Airforce base in California. It traveled 4,800 miles to a target in the Marshall Islands.
There's a little info on the Minute Man three missile on the other side of the fold:
http://www.fas.org/...
The three warheads were "unarmed". The press release said the test was a success, which I assume means it hit where they wanted, when they wanted. The crossing took 30 minutes.
http://cbs13.com/...
I wonder what the 60,000 people who live in the Marshall Islands thought about this "test"? I wonder if they were warned ahead of time that it was going to take place? Were they all herded into bomb shelters just in case? Do they have bomb shelters?
The president of the Marshall Islands was just in Seattle, WA with his wife visiting on June 11.
The Seattle trip was kicked off by President Note with a visit to Seattle's largest public elementary school, Bryant. A kindergarten class at Bryant is studying presidents and President Note visited with the class to give them a chance to meet a president and ask questions. The questions ranged from: "What money are you on?" to "Where did you go to kindergarten?" Although there are no Marshallese students at Bryant Elementary School, President Note indicated that it is important to give back to the communities where Marshallese live and show that the purpose of our visit is not just to see how we can help ourselves, but also to demonstrate that we care about our friends." To this end, President Note's delegation also dropped off sandwiches and drinks to homeless in downtown Seattle.
President Note and his delegation visited Federal Way High School to meet Marshallese and other Pacific Islander students. Federal Way School Department bussed in Marshallese and other students from other high schools so that more than 200 students were in attendance. President Note talked to the students about the importance of finishing their education, not just high school but also higher education, so they can be productive citizens wherever they live. High school students had many questions for the President, too, such as "When can the RMI expect to have its first McDonald's restaurant?"
Beyond education, another motivation for the trip to Seattle was to explore opportunities to strengthen the healthcare services in the RMI either through partnerships or the sharing of information and ideas. President Note visited a diabetes care center at the University of Washington which sees many Marshallese clients as well as a cancer research and treatment facility at Seattle Cancer Care Alliance where Marshallese currently receive treatment. President Note talked to the cancer facility about the U.S. National Cancer Institute study that predicts hundreds of cancers in the future as a result of the U.S. nuclear weapons testing program.
http://www.yokwe.net/...
Where is President Note today? Is he back home at his island atoll, or safely elsewhere in case the test went wrong?
President: Kessai Note
Marshall Islands President Kessai Note
Kessai Note is serving his second term
Kessai Note was elected to a second, four-year term in November 2003. He became the first commoner to hold the post in 2000.
Mr Note, from the ruling United Democratic Party, said his priorities were to curb the "handout mentality" of the islanders and to make the country self-reliant.
He also pledged to root out corruption and to create good governance.
# Foreign minister: Gerald Zackios
# Interior minister: Rien Morris
# Finance minister: Brenson Wase
http://news.bbc.co.uk/...
The Marshall Islands harbors the Reagan Missile test site at the Kwajalein Atoll :
http://www.globalsecurity.org/...
After WWII, the US used part of the Islands as an open test area for ARMED nuclear weapons. In the 1980's a 150,000,000.00 compensation package was paid to the islanders who were harmed by nuclear fallout. The people live by subsistance farming and fishing. I can't imagine dropping even unarmed missiles can be very good for fishing. It's got to be a real killer of the tourism trade. This is one of the only other kinds of trade with the rest of the world, the people could support themselves with. The island life that carries with it the continued stress of missile testing, must create a dependency relationship with the military presence.
Bikini, which is one of the islands is so radioactive from the testing of armed missiles and bombs, it is uninhabitable. What happened when today's missile hit that soil, and threw the dirt up into the air? Is radioactive dust floating on the trade winds as I type this question? Why is the news so silent coming out of the Islands themselves? Did they clobber one of the other non-radioactive islands?
These islands are made of coral atolls. With the worlds' coral reefs already dieing in mass sections, what are we doing shooting a missile at one !?!.
http://www.env-econ.net/...
Here's a report right from the Marshall Islands posted while I was putting this together. Even though that website is right there, they chose to post the press release from the US military, instead of using local civilian imput:
http://www.yokwe.net/...
There's that sound again! Can you hear it?
"UNNNGHH.."
Bush {{{{flexing}}}} his war {{{{muscles}}}} . The message to the world, "see what I can do!...."
Too bad he won't flex the muscle between his ears!
This is cross posted at:
http://www.choicechanges.com