In East of Havana, Producers Charlize Theron; Clark Peterson; Megan Riley-Grant and Juan Carlos Saizorobatoro, through the provocative photography of Christophe Lanzenburg, tell the story of the rap group (tribe) called El Cartel whose goal is to unify all HipHop Culture in Cuba to strengthen the people in their bid to revolutionize the tiny Island Nation of Cuba.

Possessing the undeniable talent and charisma of pop icons, three fearless performers push self-expression to its sharpest, riskiest, and most triumphant point. East of Havana is a blunt, unflinching close-up on the lives of these young rappers compelled to address their generation’s future from the confines of a Cuban ghetto. Soandry, Magyori, and Mikki are the defacto leaders of Cuba’s rebellious underground hip hop movement.

The crisis in Darfur has escalated into one of the worst displays of human rights crisis. In one of the most remote places in Africa, an insurgency began unnoticed under the shadow of the war in Iraq in 2003, killing 350,000 to 400,000 people in 29 months by means of violence, malnutrition, and disease in the first genocidal rampage of the 21st century.

As I promised, I will give you periodic updates about my experience of my first deployment overseas. I am truly proud to be traveling on a mission of peace sustainment. I am not sojourning to wage war; I am not voyaging to conquer an empire, nor am I peripatetic for violence in hopes of finding an invading force to attrit and break. I am departing to stabilize a fledgling democracy that has, much like the United States, found it necessary for one people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with another.

Hip-hop in Cuba has grown partly as a result of state subsidies through the creation of the Cuban Rap Agency, as well as a record label, “Asere Productions,” and a rap magazine called “Movimiento.”However state subsidies of rap in Cuba comes with a price.

If there is one notion emerging from the George W. Bush administration that has been excoriated from the left and the right, it was the effort to democratize tyrannical states. The left viewed this stratagem as a manifestation of arrogance, a form of imperial assertiveness. The right (at least some on the right) characterized democratization as utopianism, an unrealistic exercise in overreaching.

When spokesmen for the Obama administration are asked to comment on various aspects of foreign policy, they invariably resort to an incantation which begins and ends with reference to engagement. “We are engaged in discussions…” are the first five words employed in every area of foreign policy from Iran to North Korea.

by Herbert London The 2009 election in Iran has exposed the problematic dimensions of President Obama’s “soft power” approach. By any standard this election of Ahmadinejad appears to be a sham. Millions of votes were counted in just two hours after the polls closed. Internet sites were shut down. Protestors were beaten and arrested. And [...]

by Herbert I. London Based on hints, feints, public pronouncements, and off the record commentary, the administration’s stance toward Iran is coming into focus. Without any question, military action against Iran is off the agenda. The Obama administration will do nothing to prevent the further enrichment of uranium by Iran’s mullahs, notwithstanding who is elected [...]

HT – The Libertarian blog Booker Rising D-Day. Shortly after dawn on June 6, 1944, the soldiers of the all-black 320th Battalion (pictured) – the U.S. armed forces were racially segregated at the time – landed on the beaches of Normandy, France as part of the Allied Forces effort to liberate Europe from Nazi occupation [...]

By Brandon Brice President Kim Jong Il’s disregard for the six party talks are creating an atmosphere of non-compliance from international parties. North Korea has recently transitioned its advanced missles to aim directly at United States territory, while President Obama does nothing more than watch these last two signs of potential aggression. Just think of [...]

by Lenny McAllister Problems with the Taliban in Pakistan are leading the United States to take matters into its own hands, even at the risk of damaging relations with the Pakistani government. Is it worth it? Pakistan has been struggling in its effort to stem the advancement of the Taliban within its borders. This failure [...]

By John S. Wilson The Obama administration has admitted that in the coming months it will unveil a modified military tribunal system to try Guantanamo detainees. Modifications include increased flexibility for suspects to hire counsel of their choosing, relaxing of hearsay rules to better protect them, and the banning of information that is obtained through [...]

Condoleezza Rice was at my dorm for a reception/dinner with some students, and this is some of the footage I got.

Download MP4 Version By all accounts (including his own), President Barack Obama had a great time during his recent trip to France. And elite opinion at places ranging from Newsweek to The Economist to the Brookings Institution is urging Obama to make America more like France and Europe. Should the United States become the next [...]