Morning Joe: May 13, 2009
Hopeful Moment for Tireless Nuclear Abolitionists
Stories we're following today:
The Fierce Urgency of Disarmament - The Nation [link]
- For more than five years, the Weapons of Mass Destruction Commission (WMDC) and its Chairman, Dr. Hans Blix, have worked to generate proposals for reducing the dangers of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons.
- It's critical that the disarmament movement seize this opportunity to push its agenda.
U.S. open to limited direct dialogue with North Korea: envoy - Reuters [link]
- "It is clearly understood the possibility of a direct dialogue between the U.S. and DPRK (North Korea) is very much with us," Bosworth told reporters in Tokyo as he wrapped up his visits to China, South Korea and Japan.
- "That of course would be done within the framework of the six-party process"
Imbalance of power - Foreign Policy's Steven Walt [link]
- Why does the United States spend more on national security than the rest of the world combined, and why do so many members of the foreign policy community believe that it is either in our interest or our responsibility to interfere in so many places around the world?
Why Iran Freed Roxana Saberi - Karim Sadjadpour from the Carnegie Endowment [link]
- Going back to the 1979 hostage crisis, hard-line factions in Tehran have a history of provoking international incidents to advance their domestic political agendas.
Torture: A National Guard officer responds to Krauthammer - Foreign Policy's "Best Defense" [link]
- Torture has no place in America, and Americans have no reason to employ it. War ain't fair, but we have to fight it while maintaining a level of dignity and humanity, jus in bello.
Sharing Congress’s Research - New York Times Editorial [link]
- A resolution has been introduced in the Senate to make these reports freely available online. It would be an important step forward for government openness, and it would narrow the information gap between Washington insiders and ordinary Americans.