Illinois and Integrity

In what might be called a revolutionary step towards good behavior by the justices of Chicago area courts, Rahm Emanuel was banned from seeking the office of mayor even after his organized attempt at rooting out Democratic opposition both electorally and in the judiciary. After a long period of decadent corruption in the city and general region, citizens across the U.S. may begin to see a real change in the manner that the state pursues business.

The former chief of staff will hopefully be denied a change in ballot names by the Illinois Supreme Court, an occurrence which would likely sink his bid for office altogether and make a political comeback difficult at best. Emanuel's no nonsense behavior has given him a reputation as one with little respect for the rules which restrict his own advancement, but finally those tenets have come to bring him down at his finest hour.

It is still viable that Emanuel will fight the ruling and attempt to win a reversal in superior courts,yet the likelihood of his success even as the ballots are now being printed is extremely slim. The zeal which surrounds the man will be lessened when he crashes to defeat in several weeks. A write-in campaign has also been deemed mostly irrelevant, as his timing would need such precision and mobilization that at this point it is entirely worthless for consideration.

Regardless of what may come next for the slick president's man, he has just suffered the blow which may come to eclipse the remains of his vicious and unrelenting political career. By the time the office opens up again, he will be helplessly outnumbered by the more prestigious guns of the Democrats--as well as the incumbent mayor, creating a quagmire of dramatic proportions that promises to make his future political life problematic.

Illinois may remain a hotbed of political corruption and criminal activities, but the prevention of Emanuel from seeking the office of mayor is a small turn of effort to redeem the state from its past grievances. Wrong has been struck a deft yet firm blow; it only remains to be seen what more shall come of it.



Andrew Rimmer

National Alliance Vice President for Communications

The Beginning of a Revolution

Recent reports have included notes of a deadly "sniper virus" known as the Stuxnet has already began tampering with Iranian system controls, affecting what is estimated to be at more than sixty thousand computer units in the Tehran. Alongside this, several nuclear scientists have slowly been disappearing, with many blaming Mossad and the Israelis for both occurrences. Intentions aside, there are few reasons to doubt the validity of this claim--nor to condemn its reality. Iran's internal struggle with theocracy may just be coming to an end, leaving the world with a far better future.

Considering the number of strongly pro-western students who reside within the country's borders, it is unsurprising that non-militant activities to cripple the government of Iran are resulting in far more effective methods of deterring the radical power than a directed military assault against its position on the globe. In this manner freedom may very well take hold of the political reins even as not a single shot--or at least few, are fired.

Among the Iranian youth, the desire for freedom is evident even to the least insightful. After a dramatic Green Path of Hope movement in the capital city, hundreds of thousands in the nation joined hands to stand against the oppression of their president and decried his zealous desire to gain hold of nuclear power. Furthermore, the population levels are truly stunning, with over 70% of the population under the age of twenty-five, a clear warning of how beneficial wisdom-driven western influence could become if guided properly.

American foreign attitudes have perhaps too often devolved into a broad view of the Middle East in which all Muslims in the region are grouped into a large pro-terroristic mob with little sense or appreciation of civility. While this is only true in pockets of the general area, it is almost entirely inaccurate when applied to the realities of the state of Iran. Being predominantly Persian, the people have a very different view than their heavily Arabic neighbors; westernized attitudes melded with Islam to forge a more peaceful assessment of what should be done to curb violence in the global district.

Therein lies the terrible reality for the Ayatollah and his presidential stooge. Without an ability to further their radicalized concepts unto the rebellious youth of the country, the co-viceroys will be no match for the internal revolution just waiting to spring forth. Just as the brutal and iron-fisted Shah was no match for the organized clerics, the Ayatollah's waning grasp over the people will collapse as young Persians overthrow and reject his principles.

The battle is not yet won, but maintaining a solid foreign policy which seeks to systematically dismantle the nation without excessive force will allow the international world to watch as Iran's government disassembles itself and is replaced by true democracy.



Ayla Samadi

National Alliance Vice President for Domestic Affairs

Saad Hariri: A Model Leader

Reuters has just released a report that Saad Hariri will stand once again to become Prime Minister of Lebanon for a second term--and by God he should receive it. While it bears noting that the young leader has not been perfect in his own ways or pursuits of weapons for the nation, the man is the only thing keeping Lebanon from descending into a helpless chaos which is both anti-western and furiously against the existence of Israel.

The State of Israel is not entirely blameless for parts of the conflict both in Gaza and on the West Bank, yet allowing a force as irrational as Hezbollah to coalesce in the north is asking being a glutton for pain and tormenting strife. Lebanon's Christian population made the surprise move of endorsing much of the Hezbollah attempt at seizing power due to claimed disagreements between their camp and Hariri's on the issue of a military tribunal to convict the assassins of his father, who was slain in 2005.

In a brave move, the Sunni Muslim swatted Hezbollah in the face and went forward with the prosecution, a rightful action considering their mostly evident crimes against the state, but now he remains desperate for survival as the paramilitary organization may enter government to succeed him.

Despite a weak electoral showing two years past, Hariri's Future Movement Party is striving for the key to stability by introducing westernized principles to balance the zealous fundamentalism of the Shiite Hezbollah. Removing him from power will only jar Lebanon's historically stable position out of line for a ridiculous notion such that criminals need not be brought to justice. The man's movement has stood for moderation and a reasonable approach to foreign policy in the past, both gold items which must not be thrown away for the sake of passions rising up among the people.

In many ways, the Middle East needs more leaders like Hariri rather than a swift means of throwing them out of power. While western-friendly rulers like the Sha were systematically brutal, Hariri represents a hopeful future in which capitalist ideals can mix with Middle Eastern religion without causing civil unrest. Adding more men like the Georgetown-educated prime minister may become key to the future, and Lebanon seems like an ideal place to start with a political system in which Muslims of both sects--and Christians, cooperate together for the good of the nation.

Lebanon cannot afford the dangers of a Hezbollah supported coalition, and neither can the rest of the Middle East. Destabilizing a neutral and multicultural power will only serve as a means of making the journey towards successful negotiations absolutely narrow and difficult to travel in the future.



Michael Veramendi

National Alliance Vice President for Foreign Issues

The Phantom Inferiority Complex: Ron Reagan

Yesterday Ron Reagan, son of the famed America president and stalwart liberal, came out and claimed that his father was suffering from Alzheimer's Disease while he held the reins of the Oval Office, and that the condition affected his ability to make decisions as chief executive. While many sources around the late president have denied this, including his other son Michael, the vicious slurring of his father's legacy simply reaffirms a long since proposed theory about the ardent left-winger: that jealously guides his activism today.

From the start, perhaps the world of his parents was simply too much for Ron's young mind to fathom. As the son of Hollywood stars, he would only have nine years to live before his father swept into the governor's office of California, beginning a political legacy which would last for decades and see him through to a place as one of the most respected world leaders of the 20th Century--and indeed beyond that as well.

Unfortunately, this surge of success and respect was apparently too much for young Ron, and he chose to drop out if Yale University (a more prestigious school than his father's) to pursue a career as a ballet dancer. Throughout the Reagan Presidency, he raised hell for the first couple by appearing on less than flattering entertainment shows and mocking his patriarch's work for the nation and world.

Adding insult to the open wound, Ron made his next concentration be a jump into current events by helping to start Air America, a liberal talk radio channel famous for personalities like Al Franken--and for its bankruptcy in 2004.

Had the younger Reagan's focus been at least on on actual political career, he might still command some respect today, yet his insistence on taking a low road and tearing at his father's legacy only diminishes the potential of his own person.

In fact, despite his sensational disagreement with his father, Reagan Jr. loves to use the family name to benefit himself financially--and to pick up some poor excuses for attention from networks such as MSNBC. As with the latest comment, Ron loves to play as though he knows his father well, yet all reports suggest that he shunned the president and remained distant till the elder man passed away in 2004.

Children may sometimes find the successes of their familiars too much to accept, yet Ron Reagan truly has now valid justifications for his actions. His father's legacy has helped him even while he chooses to drag it through the mud, and that is something no American can be proud of.



Andrew Rimmer

National Alliance Vice President for Communications

Democracy Prevails: Southern Sudan

For nearly seventy years, international bodies tried without significant avail to reach a peaceful discourse between the northern and southern regions of Sudan, yet in 2005, a movement towards the right solution finally took flight. Although not a push for unity, the measure has culminated into the secessionist election of this present week, which for all intents and purposes looks set to result in a new southern province.

Southern Sudan has shown the world that oppression can be overcome by the people, though sadly without even the slightest inclusion of much UN action, which has become commonplace in these areas of genocide and abuse. Fusing activism and governmental principles, the people of the strongly African state have managed to prove their own tenacity in overthrowing the Arab-controlled north, according to most reports.

In a strong promise of democratic rule, the region's executive, Salva Mayardit, has pledged to be an open and free ruler of the new country who will tolerate almost all self-expression by its citizens. The region's oil may also become a valuable source of its economy, potentially overpowering the less resource-laden north by means of its control.

Steps still remain to the country's penultimate freedom however, as a six month program of negotiations must first take place before the new country becomes fully recognized by international bodies. Both sides will need to decide how to fairly split the remaining oil fields and who will control most of the new nation's foreign affairs. These further milestones need to be reached carefully and without angering one side so that the current hate is permanently engendered between the two ethnic and geographic groups.

The international world should join with the southern province in celebrating the new activities and developments achieved by sacrificial decisions by so many citizens over the past three generations in particular. Sudan has accomplished an admirable victory against the forces of overwhelming corruption who sadly infest much of the world in the present day.

America has much to look forward to, so today is the time to welcome this new country into the world as a strong ally for democracy.

Ayla Samadi

National Alliance Vice President for Domestic Affairs

Defeating Hunger With the Green Revolution

In the wake of the Haiti disaster and now Southern Sudan's upped need for food, international agencies must consider the option of Green Revolution farming, a method that uses a combination of critical resources to grow larger amounts of a given crop and thus feed more individuals at a given time. The measure has been known now for about thirty years, but it has yet to be fully applied to the situations of today, and it's hard to think of a better time.

Green Revolution farming first originated in the 1950s after researchers concluded the present agricultural production would not be enough to satisfy demands of population surges in India and Africa. Twenty years later, the program took a second stage of development, helping India to double its food supply in an average year through enhanced techniques.

Based on a system of highly-charged particles and chemical fertilizers, the farming tool rapidly grows usable crops before restarting the tilling area for a second wave of plants, thus ensuring that something is always thriving regardless of the time. Scientists place the seeds alongside pellets of modified materials underground to ignite a chain reaction to speed the maturity of a focus plant, thus providing an average of twice as much food to a single family or farming area.

Because it alleviates the massive cost of foreign aide, the farming project is also a dynamic way through which nations of the world might shave off parts of their annual expenditures which might otherwise have to focus on providing one-time deliveries of food. The plants continue to reproduce which continued injections almost without limit, leaving a less  problematic situation behind during which they would be forced to regularly replant specimens for its total effect.

Although the program is not without its own demerits, the long-term goal is of foreseeable change in the seemingly unending cycle of poverty and hunger through many countries. Population must eventually be brought to a reasonable limit, but this program will help young children in poverty to not suffer due to their parents' decisions.

Hunger is a terrible travesty in the world, and it is our time to use the resources available to combat it.


Michael Veramendi

National Alliance Vice President for Foreign Issues

The Dangers of Jones and Paul

If one message showed most clearly in the terrible events of the January 8th Tuscon tragedy it is that anti-antisemitism is alive and well in the modern world, continuing to pose a threat to the Jewish People even years after Hitler's defeat and the end of the Nazi Holocaust. Perhaps the most shocking element to it all is that political figureheads within the United States of America seem to be actively aiding the vile spread if such poisonous language through their masses of tangles conspiratorial theories about a so called New World Order and the part which Jewish individuals have to play in it. At the forefront are both Alex Jones and Ron Paul, two men whose views have begun to verge into a vitriolic hate which places Jewish Americans in particular in danger.

The basis of the arguments spun by both men is that Jews control too much power or fall under the greedy stereotype all too much of a regularity in classics by authors such as Charles Dickens and Oscar Wilde. They continually stipulate that Semitic persons are responsible for the financial meltdowns and control both the media and government through their elitist educational ties.

While these claims have been proven inaccurate time after time, the mere presence of the views as they sink into an implied conservative body has left many Americans believing them to be an integral part of the right-wing in this country. As anyone might expect, their views pollute the environment of political dialog by confusing people about where they should best stand on the issue. People who consider an elected official like Ron Paul to be above the fray so to speak may cave to his borderline anti-Semitism because they believe him to be a guru on all other issues and cannot bear to leave his side on this one.    

It is not to say that Congressman Paul has been as furiously anti-Jew as his talk show associate, yet his focusing on particular issues and lack of support for the state of Israel seem to betray a marked disinterest in firmly rejecting the notion that Jewish people should be spat upon or in any way harmed. More flauntingly, Paul and Jones are helping to stitch the far right and left fringes together in order to construct a united front of skepticism towards Jews and Israel in general that damages both American unity and encourages anger to be focused on the ethnic and religious group.

Ron Paul needs to come out and reject this vicious hate for Jews which is simmering up from among his support groups because it places the American mission to the Middle East in jeopardy. If we are to win a war against terrorism and alongside Israel then we cannot have citizens in large numbers who question the merits of our closest ally in the region, as well as our only true fellow democratic nation there.

In today's world, another Holocaust is only one oppressive mob away from occurring, and America needs to quash it before it grows more problematic than a simple fringe group. Even now a Jewish congresswoman may never recover because of the hateful attitude towards Jewish people and six others are dead. For their sake, this nation has a responsibility to reverse this trend towards violence targeting Jews and Israel.



Matthew Keller

National Alliance Vice President for Religion and Spirituality 

The Heroism of Gabrielle Giffords

According to the most recent reports available, Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords of Arizona is recovering from critical injuries sustained after she was shot at a public meeting place earlier today. While six other have tragically died from the gunman's bullets, the representative is doing well after receiving medical attention. There is no doubt that this is a sad day for the entire country, and everyone, no matter their views, should appreciate the service of the congresswoman and her family, and keep them in prayers.

Since her election in 2006 on a political wave, Mrs. Giffords has worked hard for her constituents in the district of southern Arizona with high rates of drug violence and other crime. Making no efforts to simply stand in line, she has gone above and beyond the call of duty with a series of attempts at improving public safety measures and combating crime as well as delivering economic supplements to the voters in her constituency.

Perhaps of deeper interest is the fact that she has not served for only her party but for her district and country. Representing an area with such rampant problems is not a simple task by any means, and the work put in by the congresswoman would make more secure members of the national body cringe with discomfort--yet she bears it honorably. In fact, Mrs. Giffords truly represents a unique difference between the general arguing and disruption all too familiar in Washington. Instead of going there to draw arms and fight in a partisan manner, she spent her time advocating for those who elected her; a great ideal to say the very least.

To respond to this cowardly act, Americans must come together and lay aside this terrible path towards hate due to varying ideologies which has so stringently gripped the nation over the past thirty years. Progress for all Americans can only be achieved by Americans working together--not partisan banner holders.

Because at present her condition still hangs in the balance, it is imperative that all citizens come together in prayer and keep their thoughts centered on family and surrounding relatives. Mrs. Giffords is married to astronaut Mark Kelly and has two children, so they must be kept in mind as well.

Nothing can come close to expressing enough appreciation to the congresswoman for her tireless efforts; they attempt to build and new era of dialog rather than boisterous complaining over trivialities in debate. Let us unite around the heroic record of her career and hope as well as pray that her recovery is smooth and painless.


Jessica Yui

National Alliance Vice Chairman