Is Bush Right?

[nunechka]

no no, we dont want a rich man from texas stearing his money into the white house, ohhh NO!!! lol! ohh boy... thats great!

WHAT ABOUT BUSH! AHAHAHAHH!

[nunechka]

we need to get rid of this freakin electorate, and then we must institute this new way of voting, where you would vote for the people you would be comfortable with and the persone with the most vote would still win, but this will give more people a chance...

[nunechka]

At War: Armenian troops on the ground in Iraq

By Aris Ghazinyan
ArmeniaNow Reporter

The Armenian military contingent dispatched to Iraq began service within a Polish battalion on March 1, Press Secretary of the RA Ministry of Defense Colonel Seyran Shahsuvaryan told ArmeniaNow.
Forty-six “non-combatant” Armenians went to Kuwait for special training in mid-January.
Joining the “coalition of the willing”“After passing a course of adaptation to the new conditions as well as a short preparatory course, the Armenian contingent accompanied by a Polish battalion crossed the southern border of Iraq and on March 1 began implementing their direct duties,” Shahsuvaryan said.
That representatives of the armed forces of Armenia, unlike Georgian and Azeri servicemen in Iraq, will not participate in military operations.
“Armenia is not going to send to Iraq a strictly military contingent, which should be involved in military operations,” said Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian last September. “The matter concerns only humanitarian assistance to this country and Armenia’s participation in the post-war rehabilitation of Iraq.”
The Armenian deployment includes one general commander, one liaison officer attached to the Polish division’s staff, one platoon commander, three doctors – a cardiologist, a physical therapist and a psychiatrist, 10 sappers and 30 drivers.
“It was originally planned that Armenian drivers would operate military vehicles at the disposal of Armenia’s Ministry of Defense, however we had to abandon this intention, as the fact of their being unfit for specifically desert areas with sand surface and conditions of sharp daily fluctuations in temperature became apparent,” said Shahsuvaryan. “In particular, our vehicles are largely meant for passing sections typical for Armenia, and they lack parts essential for desert areas.”
The decision about sending Armenian peacekeepers to Iraq was made by the Ministry of Defense on April 26, 2004. On June 9, the Government supported this decision and endorsed the proposal. President Robert Kocharyan ratified the proposal last August 9.
Various politicians and groups have opposed sending Armenians to the war in Iraq, stating that to do so would jeopardize relations for the community of Armenians in Iraq, some 25,000.
But on December 24, with a vote of 91-23 and one abstention, the National Assembly gave its approval. Most deputies who opposed sending troops worried over how Armenia’s participation would affect relations with Russia, who has opposed the war.
The Minister of Defense saw his troops offNational Assembly Vice-Speaker, ARF Dashnaktsutyun faction member Vahan Hovhannisyan said in this connection: “Armenia is entitled to make decisions proceeding from its interests in the matter of sending an Armenian contingent to Iraq. Russia itself rendered much assistance to this country writing off the bulk of Iraq’s state debt.”
The prospect of national communities in Arab countries and problems of security of the contingent itself aroused much more concerns in Armenian society. In an editorial, “Azg” daily, raised a question: “Who will assume the responsibility if one day we see a prisoner from among our compatriots pleading for indulgency on one of the Arabic TV channels?” The fact that representatives of the Armenian contingent are not immediately involved in military operations, in the opinion of not only political analysts, but also many citizens of Armenia cannot serve as a guarantor of peace.
“Almost every month we witness on television people being taken prisoner, and the victim, as a rule, is a journalist representing a pacifist newspaper or a member of a humanitarian mission far from military affairs,” says 55-year-old Rita Manaseryan from Yerevan. “I watched the joyous farewell party for our guys on television on January 18 and did not understand the point of the celebrations. I think that the fact of our children’s non-participation in military operations cannot calm our authorities.”
(Armenian also has a 34-member platoon on duty in Kosovo as part of a Greek battalion, with a rotation of new troops expected March 12.)
Armenia’s financial obligation “does not exceed $600,000” and includes only payment of salarires, said Armenia’s Defense Minister Serge Sargsyan late last year. “I should mention that the Parliament of Armenia gave its consent only for a year’s stay of Armenian peacekeepers in Iraq. A rotation of the personnel will take place after six months from the day of leaving and the personnel will be replaced with a new one.”

[nunechka]

i am so proud!

[Anonymouse]

I think it would be wiser for Armenians to worry about their border issues as opposed to Iraq.

[nunechka]

no way genius!?!? really?

how many people would one terrorist bomb kill in yerevan?

[winoman]

Its humanitarian assistance - and I'm sure its well needed....

They are playing the game...trying to be noticed supporting the US...for future considerations etc - thats how its done...distasteful as it may be...would you rather see Turks there?

...certainly not without some risks though (political or otherwise...)

[Anonymouse]

no way genius!?!? really?

how many people would one terrorist bomb kill in yerevan?

Obviously no one nerfbrain, which is what this all about.

[ArmoBarbi]

I really dont want Armenians fighting in anything dangerous. Havent we been through enough? Not to mention what we are still going through...

[Anonymouse]

I really dont want Armenians fighting in anything dangerous. Havent we been through enough? Not to mention what we are still going through...

To quote nunechka, "no way genius!?!? really?"