Coverage of the 64th UN General Assembly (FinalCall.com)

COVERAGE OF THE 64TH UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

***

U.S. President Barack Hussein Obama's first address to the UN General Assembly on, U.S., he told world leaders that he was aware of the expectations that accompanied his Presidency – rooted in a discontent with a status quo that had allowed people to be increasingly defined by their differences and outpaced by their problems.

http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/videos/obama_unga2009_6470.shtml

***

Leader of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Col. Muammar Gadhafi's first appearance before the United Nations General Assembly.

http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/videos/gadhafi_unga2009_6467.shtml

Al Jazeera Interview with Col. Muammar Gadhafi

Col. Gadhafi answered questions regarding his UN speech, the African Union, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and other topics.

http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/videos/gadhafi_video_6469.shtml

***

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad addressed to the United Nations General Assembly on September 23, 2009. Among the topics addressed were the evils of "unbridled capitalism"the end of the age of empires and the continued oppression against the Palestinian people.

http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/videos/ahmadinejad_unga2009_6470.shtml

***

Venezuelan President Hugo Rafael Chávez delivered a spirited address at the 2009 United Nations General Assembly. The popular Venezuelan leader outlined his thoughts on the recent coup in Honduras and the global "ideological warfare currently under way."

http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/videos/chavez_unga2009_6468.shtml

***

Gambia's President Yahya A.J.J. Jammeh addressed the United Nations General Assembly on September 24, 2009. He expressed the relevancy of global collaboration but condemned the exploitation of Africa's natural resources by multinational corporations in the name of globalization. He stated that the UN must come to the rescue of Africa otherwise we Africans stand ready to liberate ourselves from eternal bondage at any cost.

http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/videos/jammeh_unga2009_6471.shtml

Black People welcome Muammar Gadhafi at the UN

Desperate and Insecure: Whites See Country Slipping Away (FinalCall.com)

WWW.FINALCALL.COM

Here is what you will find in this issue of The Final Call :

Desperate & Insecure: Whites See Country Slipping Away
When a virtually unknown Republican Congressman, Joe Wilson from South Carolina shouted the words "You lie!" during a September 9 speech by Pres. Barack Obama, it was the latest example of the uncivil tone and rancorous atmosphere created by many of the president's opponents on the right.

Gadhafi: Love for Africa, or a Personal Agenda? Part I by A. Akbar Muhammad
Expert historical information and analysis regarding Col. Muammar Gadhafi, and his efforts to establish the African Union despite opposition. Col. Gadhafi is scheduled to speak at the United Nations on Sept.23.

Ludacris: We can all help someone.
Hip-hop artist Ludacris does his part to help others during these trying times by giving away vehicles through his foundation.

Ignorance, White Rage and Race Fuel Opposition to Obama by Dr. Ron Daniels

Liberation, Not a Fictitious Palestinian State
An analysis by Hasan Abu Nimah and Ali Abunimah

Message to the So-Called Latino
Real talk from David J. Muhammad

Remembering the Tragedy of September 11, 2001

Remembering the Tragedy of September 11, 2001
By Ashahed M. Muhammad

We all remember the tragedy of September 11, 2001. I was actually in Atlanta, Georgia eight years ago when the news came that something happened to one of the World Trade Center Towers. At first, news reports simply said, “there was an explosion” near the WTC site. As the world watched, a second airplane hurling through air had been turned into a missile. With great speed it slammed into the second WTC Tower.

It became apparent at that moment, if it wasn’t already, that America had been attacked. Instinctively, everyone living in America, even those who have been critical of its social, economic and political conditions knew that life would never be the same. For Muslims, it was clear that things were going to change significantly and perhaps most drastically for them.

Three-hours later, both WTC towers had collapsed. My thoughts went back to a friend of mine that I met one summer who attended Seton Hall. She worked at the World Trade Center when a bomb went off there back in 1993. She survived the 1993 attack, but I remember her telling me that the attack scared the hell out of her. I lost contact with her, but when looking at the names of the close to 3,000 who perished as a result of the coordinated attacks and simultaneous hijacking of four airliners, thankfully, her name was not one of them.

I am certain that on this day, for the families who have lost loved ones, nothing can describe the experience of feeling that someone you know or care about died in such a terrible way. To the best of my knowledge, I was fortunate, I did not lose anyone in the worst terrorist attack on American soil.

The announcement was made that the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan would be speaking a few days later, on September 16th to deliver a message regarding the 9-11 attacks. I along with two other brothers (you know who you are) were able to secure extremely cheap airplane tickets round trip from Atlanta to Chicago in the days following 9-11. Everyone was afraid to fly, and if you recall, after the attack, North American airspace was closed to civilian aircraft for several days. In fact, I think our flight was one of the first to go up after air travel was again permitted.

When we got on our early morning flight at Atlanta’s Hartsfield/Jackson Int'l Airport. It was just us three, and a few other civilian passengers on the plane. The rest were pilots and stewardesses who had been stranded in their respective cities. There couldn’t have been over 20 people on the flight. We weren’t afraid to fly, we were just trying to get to Chicago to directly hear Minister Farrakhan’s message to the world.

Minister Farrakhan was the first Muslim leader with the courage to speak out immediately after the attacks on the Pentagon and WTC. He spoke in a rational manner and his words were filled with guidance to lead all sides through a particularly troubling period in the history of the United States.

I have been impacted by the 9-11 attacks, and so has my family. I remember one time when my daughter, at the tender age of 4 was “randomly” picked, probably because of her name, to have special security screening prior to an airplane flight we were about to take. To his credit, the TSA representative apologized profusely and was upset that he had to wand my child down. He was a decent human being. I was very vigilant, and she took it all in stride.

After again checking the names listed of those who died, I lost no family members, or even friends, in the 9-11 attacks, however my sympathies are with those who lost friends and loved ones in such a horrendous manner.

Read the entire text of Minister Farrakhan's message, including the Q&A period with the media at: http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/Perspectives_1/article_6422.shtml

War in Afghanistan: Obama and Victims on both sides

The cost of the War in Afghanistan.

Watching the coverage of the War in Afghanistan, listening to the different perspectives, and reading the differing opinions, it is strange to see and hear the liberal left and the conservative right both increasingly vocal in their criticism of Pres. Barack H. Obama.

The fact that he inherited the mess in Afghanistan after 8 years of mismanagement by the Bush administration seems to be lost on many of the commentators who appear more interested in assigning blame to the president than discussing and identifying real solutions.

A recent CNN poll found that 57 percent of the American people are against the war and with four months left in in the year, 2009 has been the deadliest for military personnel there since "Operation Enduring Freedom" began on Oct. 7, 2001.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen held a press briefing at the Pentagon on Sept. 3 and, like good military men, reiterated their support for Pres. Obama’s strategy in the region.

At one point during the briefing, Secretary Gates said the following:

"I think what is important is for us to be able to show, over the months to come, that the president's strategy is succeeding. And that is what General McChrystal is putting in front of us, is how best we can, at least from the military's standpoint, ensure that we can show signs of progress along those lines. But I think it is also -- there is always a difference between the perspective in terms of timing in this country (U.S.) and certainly in this city (Washington D.C), and what's going on in the country (Afghanistan). And I think what's important to remember is, the president's decisions were only made at the -- on this strategy were only made at the very end of March.

Our new commander appeared on the scene in June. We still do not have all of the forces the president has authorized in Afghanistan yet, and we still do not have all the civilian surge that the president has authorized and insisted upon in Afghanistan yet.

So we are only now beginning to be in a position to have the assets in place that -- and the strategy or the military approach in place to begin to implement the strategy. And this is going to take some time. By the same time (sic), no one is more aware than General McChrystal and certainly the two of us that there is a limited time for us to show that this approach is working, and certainly for the secretary of State and the president as well, because there is this broader element of the strategy that goes beyond the military."

Admiral Mullen then added:

"The only thing I'd add to that is, this has been a mission that has not been well-resourced. It's been under-resourced almost since its inception, certainly in recent years. And it has -- and part of why it has gotten more serious and has deteriorated has been directly tied to that. President Obama has approved the troops, approved the civilians that, as the secretary indicated, are literally in many cases just arriving on scene."

So I ask the following questions:

- Who will address the humanitarian crisis of the suffering Afghan people and the hundreds of civilian casualties being caused by Hellfire missiles raining down from unmanned predator drones?

- What will be the solution to limit the effectiveness of an evolving and battle hardened enemy (the Taliban) that seems to be able to strike American troops and assassinate Afghan government officials at will?

- How many American mothers and fathers are willing to lose their sons and daughters in the mountainous regions of Afghanistan in a war that appears to have no end in sight?

Remember, in this war, even the definition of success is subjective.