Global Outreach 2012

League of Women Voters^®
of La Plata County

Global_Outreach_12

Enabling and educating local citizens in a global world
To reference the 2007-2011 LWV-LPC activities related to Global Outreach, click on the Global Outreach Archive pages to your left.

Upcoming Events. Great Decisions 2012. US Global Positions. Global News. LWV Positions. La Plata County Outreach. Correspondance. Past Events. Reference Info.

Upcoming Events

Great Decisions 2012

*January 2012: Please note that the January 2012 Great Decisions Update is now available from the Foreign Policy Association
*Our 2012 Great Decisions Series has begun on Tuesday, January 19 and Thursday, January 21 in Program Room 2 at the Durango Public Library. Please join for the follow-on sessions from 11:45AM to 1:45PM.
Topics for the 2012 session include:

Middle East realignment January 17 & 19
Promoting democracy January 31 & February 2
Mexico February 14 & 16
Cybersecurity February 28 & March 1
Exit from Afghanistan & Iraq March 13 & 15
State of the oceans March 27 & 29
Indonesia April 10 & 12
Energy geopolitics April 24 & 26

US Global Positions

*1/13/12 NY Times:U.S. Restores Full Ties to Myanmar After Rapid Reforms By STEVEN LEE MYERS and SETH MYDANS
WASHINGTON -- The United States restored full diplomatic relations with Myanmar on Friday, hours after the new civilian government took a major step in its rapid campaign of political and economic changes, releasing many of its most prominent political prisoners. The announcement is the latest in a series of cautiously choreographed steps that have eased tensions between the United States and Myanmar and that could remake American diplomacy in Asia, where the Obama administration has sought to refocus its foreign policy.
President Obama, in a statement, welcomed the presidential pardon and release on Friday of 651 prisoners, including prominent leaders of student protests against the country's military rulers in 1988, a signal uprising. It was the most significant release of political prisoners by the newly elected government and answered a primary demand of Western nations and the opposition leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Mr. Obama called it "a substantial step forward for democratic reform."..

Global News

*2/17/12 Washington Post: U.S., Europeans welcome Iranian proposal for new nuclear talks By Joby Warrick, Published: February 17
U.S. and European officials on Friday cautiously welcomed a 200-word letter from Iran proposing talks about its nuclear program, a request that appeared to spark a flicker of hope for resuming long-stalled diplomatic engagement with Iranian leaders.
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and European Union foreign affairs representative Catherine Ashton expressed wary optimism in their first public response to the Iranian proposal, which arrived at E.U. headquarters Wednesday.
"We think this is an important step, and we welcome the letter," said Clinton, appearing with Ashton at a joint news conference at the State Department on Friday morning. Clinton said discussions were underway with allies about a formal response, adding that any resumption of talks "will have to be a sustained effort that can produce results."...

*1/18/12 NYTimes:Mexico's Drug War Bloodies Areas Thought Safe By RANDAL C. ARCHIBOLD
MEXICO CITY -- The Mexican drug war that has largely been defined by violence along the border is intensifying in interior and southern areas once thought clear of the carnage, broadening a conflict that has already overwhelmed the authorities and dispirited the public, according to analysts and new government data.
Last week, two headless bodies were found in a smoldering minivan near the entrance to one of the largest and most expensive malls in Mexico City, generally considered a refuge from the grisly atrocities that have gripped other cities throughout the drug war.
Two other cities considered safe just six months ago -- Guadalajara and Veracruz -- have experienced their own episodes of brutality: 26 bodies were left in the heart of Guadalajara late last year, on the eve of Latin America's most prestigious book fair, and last month the entire police force in Veracruz was dismissed after state officials determined that it was too corrupt to patrol a city where 35 bodies were dumped on a road in September.
The spreading violence, believed to largely reflect a widening turf war between two of the biggest criminal organizations in the country, has implications on both sides of the border, putting added pressure on political and law enforcement leaders who are already struggling to show that their strategies are working...

LWV Positions

La Plata County Outreach

Correspondance from our Members

Past Events

Reference Information

Comments, suggestions, questions? Contact our webmaster. Last revised: February 18, 2012 15:53 PST.