Likely US troops’ pull out from Iraq

AS EXPECTED, days after Democrats’ gaining control of the US Senate, President George W. Bush is planning to revise his military strategy in Iraq and as demanded by the Democrats, Washington may pull out its troops from the war-torn country within four to six months. The new strategy may include seeking cooperation from Syria and Iran the two states with whom Bush Administration had hitherto refused talking directly. According to London’s Observer, George W. Bush had been advised by British Prime Minster during their telephonic discussions over the weekend about involving Syria and Iran in ensuring stability of the war-ravaged state where bloodbath continues to rise and expand entailing mounting losses of American troops.
Meanwhile, Baker Committee constituted by the US Administration to review Iraq strategy is likely to recommend opening up dialogue with Iran and Syria to find ways of finding a solution to the Middle East conflict including the Iraqisation of the security arrangements in the oil-rich country where coalition troops are totally bogged down. Various leading Senators of the Democratic Party are expressing hope that US troops will start pulling out from Iraq within the next few months. The Democrats swept into control of the powe5rful US Senate on account of their opposition to the American military involvement in Iraq.
The coalition troops’ withdrawal being opposed by the US-installed regime will surely leave the country in a state of anarchy. Nevertheless, the foreign troops did miserably failed to bring any order either. Iraq continues to burn and bleed. Suicide bombing, explosions, rocket attacks, ambushes by resistance fighters, etc. continue to be on the rise. Hundreds of Iraqis perish in raging violence every week. American body count is also sharply rising. The security situation is beyond control of the coalition and Iraqi Government troops.
The wiser course for the coalition troops is to pull out and leave Iraq to Iraqis. The Bush strategy lies in ruins. The US President must thank his stars that Democrats’ win in the midterm elections in the US has given him an escape route. While George W. Bush was convinced that military involvement in Iraq was disastrous he did not have the moral courage to accept defeat.
Simultaneously, his anti-Iran and Syria bashing were also divorced from ground realities. The two important neighbours of Iraq could not be ignored if a meaningful settlement of the Iraq problem was the objective. US Administration should find an opportunity to resolve the Middle East crisis with the cooperation of Iran and Syria. The results of the US midterm elections have raised hope for a settlement of the crises in Iraq and in Palestine. It is time the American authorities realize that diplomacy and not use of force can help achieve peace.

The medicine war

While the rest of the world is embracing traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), in its birthplace it is facing a life-or-death situation.
An Internet petition to remove traditional medicine from China’s healthcare system has brought the predicament into the spotlight. Its vanishing legacy, the problematic situation of both TCM practices and the medicine market, and its restricted development due to the prevalence of Western medicine remind us that TCM is in danger in China and something must be done to save it.
The issue of abolishing TCM is not a new topic. About 100 years ago, when Western scientific concepts were introduced to China, some Chinese already insisted on eliminating the use of traditional medicine. The pattern of judging TCM from the perspective of Western criteria still exists in today’s argument.
With its deep roots in Chinese culture, the millennia-old traditional medicine has developed its own rules and system. The Chinese people have long benefited from traditional medicine. TCM is more than just technology, and it involves the traditional philosophy of preserving health and the way the Chinese perceive things.
TCM, which on the surface seems out of date and even is deemed to be a pseudoscience, does have certain magical effects in dealing with some medical problems, especially viral infections and chronic diseases. The four procedures of TCM diagnosis—observing, smelling, consulting and pulse-taking, while limited in their functions, are used pretty effectively by some veteran practitioners.
TCM and Western medicine, while two different systems, both have the same objective: human health. To measure traditional medicine by the criteria of Western medicine is unscientific and even ridiculous.
Furthermore, even though it is an age-old tradition, TCM is ahead of the time in some of its concepts, theories and methodology. There has been a growing international interest in and study of TCM. Its philosophy and “eco-medicine” concept can be used as a strong weapon to combat worldwide medical crises. There is no reason to disregard this traditional medical legacy. To discard these medical traditions is to abandon the quintessence of a nation. No one is willing to see that happen.
The petition case is sending a warning signal. It is urgent to improve the management of TCM to get it out of its current predicament. The diminishing of TCM hospitals is attributed to the poor cultural environment in which they operate. There will be no inheritance or innovation of a culture if it doesn’t win general recognition from the people. Therefore, we need to popularize education in Chinese traditional culture and TCM alike to integrate the ancient medical practice into our modern society and to foster a favorable environment for its development.

—Beijing Review