I enjoyed the video conference with Rick Barton last week. He was informative about the Iraq Study Group and where the United States and Iraq are today.The press conference took place in Innovation room 455 upstairs where a two-way televised video feed was available. Steve Scully, a senior political editor at C-SPAN was able to mediate the discussions. It was exciting that the video conference included GMU, University of Denver and Pace University. Luckily, I was able to ask the question: What are the most effective conflict resolutions and how do they differ in Iraq and Pakistan?
Rick Barton discussed his work to improve conflict situations by the international community. He provides active strategies for Iraq, Sudan and Sri Lanka and analyzes countries like Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria. Barton was able to discuss the reality of each situation through analysis rather than avoidance. Barton also acknowledged that learning more a
bout the culture helps. This reminds me of the Camp David 2000 Summit where former president Bill Clinton met with Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat and former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak. There was no final solution, but at least there were people discussing the situation in a peaceful manner. On ther other hand, it was a great experience to learn about the study group and Iraq.
1 comment:
Well said.
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