Does anyone in the Slavic newsgroups care or even know what you're
referring
to?
With all sincerity and no intention to insult you - but NATO's mission is
way way way over - I'd say since about 1989-1990 after the fall of the
Berlin Wall.
I took a peak at your web-site with an open mind but almost all military
action these days require United Nations involvement and those silly
"resolutions". The latest Eastern European countries to join NATO have
been
burned over and over again by Bush Jr.
Better for Europe that they invest their energies in building a stronger
EU.
That's the natural conclusion - a united Europe including European Russia.
Germany has licked its wounds and has recovered from its post W.W.II guilt
trip - the post W.W.II generation has no reason to feel responsible (just
as
the post W.W.II Japanese). Germany is obviously the stronger of the EU
members - well, someone's got to get the rest of the participating
countries
together. France and Spain and Italy are pretty much along for the ride -
and Britain has always has always resisted being associated with the
"common" mainland - too beneath the Great Kingdom.
The natural order geopolitically is a united North America - too bad we
treat our immediate neighbors (Canada, Mexico) like crap - so much for
NAFTA, - a united South America, a united Pacific Rim Asia (China, Japan,
Korea), - a united South-East Asia, - a united Middle East, - a united
Central Asia, etc.
My point is NATO served a purpose no longer necessary, now NATO risks
carving up the world and creating un-natural cultural associations, much
the
terrible way the French and Brits did with Africa, the Mediterranean, and
the Middle East.
Eastern Europe jumped on the already dead skeleton of NATO only to be
badly
burned with no substantial gain. NATO - big deal - joining the EU - now
that's something alive, true economic cooperation and sup****t, and pretty
much DE-FACTO at this point.
Now if only the U.S. major news networks would take interest in European
events [that don't always have to involve the U.S.] and give those events
U.S. broadcast time - then maybe I'd buy into hooray for NATO. I instead
have to resort to international satellite broadcasts to find out what's
really going in Europe (and the rest of the world).
I see all the Slavic newsgroups you post to - you should sign up for the
center for Slavic studies newsletter from UC Berkeley - it's good reading
as
well as a good bunch of people.
With all that said - You do have a very nicely designed web-site :-)
aburch@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
(first generation American born - Polish parents)
"ESLa****te" <esla****te@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
news:j1Jbc.11060$yN6.4782@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> Happy April Fourth one and all!
>
> On April 4th, 1949, shortly after 3 o'clock, with some 1500 diplomats,
> cabinet people, members of Congress looking on, the 12 men who were to
sign
> the North Atlantic Pact came forward. Some excerpts from their speeches
are
> below. Below are excerpts from speeches of the twelve signers of the
North
> Atlantic Pact:
>
> British Foreign Minister, Ernest Bevin:
> "Countries whose representatives are signing this great pact today are
> composed of peace loving people with spiritual affinities, but who also
have
> great pride in their skill and their production and in their
achievements
in
> mastering the forces of nature and harnessing the great resources of the
> world for the benefit of mankind.
> Our peoples do not glorify war, but they will not shrink from it if
> aggression is threatened."
>
> US Secretary of State, Dean Acheson:
> "This Treaty is a simple document. The Nations which sign it agree to
abide
> by the peaceful principals of the United Nations, to maintain friendly
> relations and economic cooperation with one another. . .we have no
purpose
> of aggression against others. To suggest the contrary is to slander our
> institutions and defame our ides and aspirations.
> The nations represented here are bound together by ties of long
standing.
We
> are join together by a common heritage of democracy, individual liberty
-
> and the rule of law. This pact we give them formal recognition."
>
> Paul- Henri Spaak, the Belgian Prime Minister :
> "The North Atlantic Pact is an act of faith in the destiny of western
> civilization. Based on exercise of civil and political liberties, on
respect
> for the human person, it cannot perish.
> The North Atlantic Pact places in the service of this civilization the
most
> powerful means of defense that has ever been created.
> The people represented here detest war, and their governments share
their
> sentiments.
> Democracies are essentially pacific. Where people have something to say,
> where thought is not in chains and opposition is not muzzled. . .If the
> whole world accepted and practiced democratic principals which are ours
> there would be no more war."
>
> Canada's Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Lester Pearson :
> "We in the North Atlantic community. . .must jealously guard the
defensive
> in a progressive nature of our league. There can be no place for power
> politics and imperialist ambitions on the part of any of its members.
This
> is more than a treaty for defense.
> We are a North Atlantic community of 12 nations and 350 million people.
We
> are strong in our lands and resources, in our industry and manpower. We
are
> strong above all in our tradition of liberty, in our common belief of
the
> dignity of the individual, in our common heritage of social and
political
> thought and in our resolve to defend our freedom together."
>
> Gustav Rasmussen, Foreign Minister of Denmark:
> "When today, I sign the North Atlantic Treaty, I do so as it is an
> instrument of peace. . .a solemn reaffirmation of the pledges by those
> countries under the United Nations Charter."
>
> France's Foreign Minister, Robert Schuman:
> "The exclusive concern of France is to make impossible any invasion of
her
> own territory or of the territory of peace-loving nations. Our aim is to
> cannot be restricted to to the winning of a war. . .a war which would
leave
> Europe ravaged and depopulated. We want to avoid such a war by coming
> together, strong enough together to safeguard peace.
> Who, in justice, could reproach us for such an attempt? What sincere
friend
> could take offense in it?"
>
> Count Carlo Sforza, the Foreign Minister for Italy:
> "Signing a pact is not enough. Life shall have to be circulated through
it,
> as a result of a constant free collaboration in the service of peace
between
> all its members, present and future.
> Not only would we fail the spirit of the pact, we would belittle is
force
> and consider it only as a protective umbrella. We must pray to God that
this
> pact will prove like the English Magna Charta on one side intangible,
one
> the other side a continuous creation."
>
> Luxembourg's Foreign Minister Joseph Bech:
> "Grouped around the most powerful democracies in the world, the states
> signatory to the Atlantic Pact constitute at once the most formable and
the
> most sincerely peaceful coalition of material and moral forces that have
> ever been set by nations to insure their security and spare the world
the
> horrors of war."
>
> Dirk U. Strikker, the Foreign Minister of the Netherlands:
> "Its opponents are clamoring that this treaty aims at war . That is a
lie.
> It aim is peace. . .but peace now and from now on.
> We who are vitally interested in security of the North Atlantic area,
> henceforth stand united in our resolve to repel aggression, just as we
stand
> united in our resolve to not attack others.
> Such then, is the treaty's unshakable moral basis. We shall with a clear
> conscience in the face of God.
> We rejoice at the thought that North Americans and Western Europeans
have
> found each other in a common edifice dedicated to peace."
>
> Halvard M. Lange, Foreign Minister of Norway:
> "I am about to sign, on behalf of the Norwegian government, the North
> Atlantic Pact. I strongly feel that it is a logical sequence to a line
which
> we have followed since the liberation of our country in May 1945. The
five
> years of Nazi occupation had given our people a deeper conception of
> freedom, law and democracy.
> And so we were determined that never again must Norway risk the loss of
her
> freedom and all that goes with it."
>
> Jose Caelro da' Matts, ****tugal's Foreign Minister:
> "May the thought which has made these nations living examples of true
social
> progress, in work, in freedom, and in peace, keep in tact the ties which
are
> being formed today and ensure that this pact may bear fruit which we
expect
> of it."
>
> Iceland Foreign Minister, Bjarnl Bendiktsson: "My people are unarmed and
> have been since the days of our Viking forefathers. We neither have nor
can
> have and army. My country has never waged war on any country. In truth
we
> are quite unable to defend ourselves from any foreign armed attack."
>
> ---
>
> At about 4:25, President Truman came into the auditorium, led by Secret
> Service men to the tune of "Hail to the Chief."
> After Truman spoke, Mr. Acheson indicated that it was time to sign the
> Treaty. As each man came forward to sign the Treaty, starting with Mr.
> Spaak, the State Department's Treaty Officer, Mr. John Foley, handed
each
of
> the men a pen and indicated the place to sign. In two instances, the men
> signed with their own pens, but were given their souvenir pen. This
mix-up
> amused the onlookers and brought a chuckle to a "solemn ceremony."
> Account of the signing ceremony and speeches was from the pages of the 5
> April 1949, Wa****ngton Post, obtained from microfiche (1)
> The entire text of Lester Pearson's speech can be found in his 1970 book
> Words and Occasions U. of Toronto Press: Toronto, CA. (p. 88-89).
>
> From: DATELINE April 1949: The Signing of the North Atlantic Treaty.
> http://www.pronato.com/NATreaty/NATceremony.htm
> Page with details of the events and people surrounding the 4 April 1949
> signing of the North Atlantic Treaty. The people who typed up the
Treaty,
> the lighting and ceremonial people are just "folks" like you and me.
>
> Happy April Fourth!
>
> Erin La****te
> The NATO Citizen - www.pronato.com
> "Long live the entangling Alliance!"
> "Long live NATO!"
>
>
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