Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - November 6, 2006, Winnipeg, Manitoba A13 Winnipeg free press comment editor monday november 6, 2006 Gerald flood 697-7269 and beyond Harvard promotes study of religion lessons of War Dos and Don to for Canada Learned from Iraq quagmire u a. President George w. Bush can teach Canadian politicians a lot about manag ing the War in Afghanistan. Mostly he can teach them what not to do. Bush a Republican party May lose control of the House of representatives and even the Senate in tuesdays mid term elections. The reason pollsters and Pun dits agree is his handling of the Iraq War. Many americans Are convinced they Are losing the War in Iraq because of Bush a bungling. I a a journalist not a general. What i be done in this column is pull together the changes the . Has made recently in the War or says it plans to make. The problem is that Many of the changes Are too late. And that brings us to the first piece of Good advice. Don to be afraid to make changes stay the course one of Bush a Favourite phrases has proven to be really stupid. Originally it meant i suppose that America would stay in Iraq until the Job was done. Later it came to mean that America would to change tactics even ones that weren to working. The phrase has become so odious that last week the White House said the president would no longer use it. Keep your goals As specific As possible when Bush said America would finish the Job it want Clear what the Job was. Sometimes he said Ameri Ca was going to bring democracy and Prosperity to another Middle Eastern nation. This was Codswallop. More recently the . Says it is in Iraq to try to control violence to help build up Iraq a Security forces and to push iraqi politicians into making an Oil Revenue sharing Deal. These goals seem much More realistic. Unfortunately Canadas goals in Afghanistan Are still far too Broad. We re supposed to help make Afghanistan a democratic country acceptable to the worlds leading nations. Develop goals not Only for your own troops but also for your friends Only now according to the new York times is the administration drafting a timetable for the iraqi government that would set milestones for Progress such As disarming militias and meeting economic goals. Iraqi prime minister Nouri Al Maliki has been reluctant to step Between his shiite faction and the sunnis in his nations growing sectarian violence. He has let . Forces do a lot of the heavy lifting. This situation is a version of the Cyprus syn drome. For years Canadian forces had to hang around in the country to prevent fighting Between the two main factions. The result was that because canadians were keeping the peace the factions involved did Little or nothing to resolve their differences. . Ambassador to Iraq Zalma Khalil Zad said recently that iraqi leaders have agreed to develop a timeline for Progress by the end of this year with measurable milestones a process he said was critical to getting some of the 160,000 . Soldiers Home. Good idea but late. A warning sign for us Afghanistan a president Hamid Karzai has admitted he has fallen behind in his plans for his nations police Force. As Well judges and prosecution need better salaries to put them beyond the temptation of corruption. Don to be afraid to ask for More troops the .?s troop Levels Haven to varied much even though Many former . Generals say there Are not enough troops in Iraq to do the Job. Canadian for eign affairs minister Peter Mackay has been Quick to push nato for More troops in Afghanistan. The Issue he says will be front and Centre when prime minister Stephen Harper and natos 25 other leaders meet in Latvia next month for their annual Summit. Don to be afraid to ask for advice Only now is the Bush administration looking for advice outside its precincts. James Baker an accomplished Secretary of state in Bush administration and Lee Hamilton a former democratic legislator from Indiana Are preparing a report on Iraq but it wont coping with White and Brown guilt be ready until after the mid term election. Don to disparage your critics Bush suggested critics of his War were unpatriotic. He does to do that any More. Nip Leader Jack Layton who wants Canadian troops to leave Afghanistan can be a pest but there a no reason to believe that he a not As patriotic As any other Canadian. Don to become obsessed with casualties this is Tough advice to follow. But ordering your officers not to take casualties Means you May save some lives but you will lose the War. Cautious generals Call in air strikes whereas action on the ground May have resulted in fewer civilian casualties. Troops whizzing through a Community at High speeds can to meet residents a highly important task. Forces confined to a few Large military establishments lose control Over what is happening in the Countryside. And if you Are too worried about casualties you can to keep control Over territory that you fought hard to get. Too often in Iraq . Troops act like firefighters ? racing to emergencies then Retreat ing behind their bunkers. Don to forget economic development Eric Davis a professor at Rutgers University estimates 60 per cent of iraqis in some areas Are unemployed ? and 60 per cent of them Are under the age of 25. The . Military had a few programs he says to help employ people but they were Cut even though Vio Lence in the area of the programs dropped sharply. Gen. James Jones the ramrod straight Marine who commands natos forces says the most pressing Challenge for the Alliance is to make More Progress in reconstruction. If you asked me if i wanted 5,000 More troops or $50 million More to build schools and roads carry out judicial reforms and move against corruption and crime id take the Money he said. Last month 103 . Troops were killed in Iraq the fourth worst month since the War began. Three years of sacrifice have Cost the . More than $319 billion 2,300 dead and 21,000 wounded. And it still cannot control the violence. As a result the republicans May be hit hard in tuesdays mid term election. Much More importantly though hundreds of thousands of iraqis have died because of american mistakes. Indeed there a much our government can learn from . Efforts in Iraq. Tom Ford is managing editor of the issues network. Aboriginal buddy of mine a n moved to sunny St. James last summer. One of his first experiences was so memorable he called me to Tell me about it. Since he and his wife took out a Mort Gage to buy their spacious Bungalow they wanted to save a Little Cash when it came to their moving costs. They asked friends and family to help them move their furnishings into their new House. One of his friends who in to aboriginal helped with unloading the furniture off my friends decrepit half ton he kept As a backup vehicle. Soon All the moving caught the Atten Tion of others in the neighbourhood. A Bright eyed woman came Over to offer greetings to her new Neighbours. What a Friendly woman. She says a Quick hello and rushed Over to shake her new neigh Bours hands. Welcome to the neighbourhood and All that. Except its not my friends hand she a shaking. Its his White Friend who volunteered his afternoon to help with the move. My Friend said he watched with mild amusement for a few seconds and then explained it was actually his new House ? not his White Friend. Of the horror. Apparently the woman a Cheeks turned really Bright red with embarrassment right about then. This was followed by a sputtered apology. Maybe a Little bit of the White guilt i told my Friend. White guilt what a that he asked. I told him some not All you should see some of the hate mail i get non aboriginal people develop a sense of guilt when they learn the reality of How natives were dispossessed when Canada was colonized. Canadian author Victoria Freeman wrote a whole Book about it called Dis Tant relations How my ancestors colonized North America. I a not saying White guilt is right but it does exist. In the ., White guilt is Felt by some White americans when confronted with their country a history of slavery and racism against Black americans. Its a fiery topic that always stirs up angry debate. But at least they re talking about it. White guilt causes anxiety when say ing or doing something that could be seen As racist. Exactly what seemed to happen to my friends new Neighbour. Although my Friend laughed it off i think it made him feel uneasy. Id noticed when he a Given us a tour of the place he was a Little unsure about buying the place. It was so far from where he a lived before. Did he really belong in that neighbourhood then of course i say to my Friend there a Brown guilt too. What a that he says again. That a something i be noticed from time to time. There Arent any books out about that yet. Brown guilt is the guilt some aboriginal people feel when they get higher paying jobs work hard and accumulate wealth ? or move to More comfortable neighbourhoods. I get other emails from aboriginal people apologizing for living in St. Vital or Charleswood. Just because you grew up on a Reserve the West end or the North end does to mean you have to live there for the rest of your life if you Don to want to. My Friend deserves that House and a Nice car too. He should raise his family in any neighbourhood he chooses. There a nothing to be ashamed about. You be got to remember Brown guilt does to help anyone. Or White guilt for that matter. Just acknowledge it. Help others. Always move Forward. by John i. Jenkins and Thomas Burish w hat should a properly educated College graduate of the Early 21st Century know a Harvard curriculum committee recently proposed an answer to that question stating that among other things such a graduate should know the role of religion in contemporary histor ical or future events ? personal Cul Tural National or to that end the committee recommended that every Harvard student be required As part of his or her general education to take one course in an area that the committee styled reason and whether that becomes policy remains to be seen but the significance of the recommendation should not be under stated. Harvard is the drum major of american higher education where it leads others follow. And if Harvard says taking a course in religion is necessary to be an educated person its a Good bet that Many other colleges and universities will soon make the same discovery. We Hope they will. The Harvard committee rightly noted that students coming to College today struggle with an Academy that is profoundly this was not always the Case at Harvard or at Many other universities. For centuries scholars scientists and artists agreed that convictions of Faith were wholly compatible with the highest Levels of reasoning inquiry and creativity. But in recent Cen Turies this Assumption had been challenged and assertions of Faith marginalized in and even banished from academic departments and University curricula. Requiring courses in reason and Faith would be a Welcome step toward reintroducing Faith to the Academy. What should be the Content of such courses the Harvard committee has tens to explain that its proposal is not for religious rather the courses it envisions would offer an examination of the interplay Between religion and various aspects of National and or International culture and they would Deal not so much with the relationship Between reason and Faith As with reasoning about Faith religion and religious institutions and their Impact in the world. Such courses Are unquestionably needed. We Are in an Era in which misunderstanding conflict and turbulence characterize our interaction with the islamic world. Debates continue about the teaching of evolution. And religious beliefs play an important role in disputes Over Stem cell research abortion euthanasia and same sex marriage. At the same time religious communities in this country Are important Cen tres for personal and communal religious growth As Well As for strength ening social cohesion and civic culture and for providing a variety of Community services particularly to the needy. Today a students must understand religious beliefs and institutions if they Are to meet the challenges and seize the opportunities the future will present. But universities can do More than just familiarize students with the worlds Reli Gions in Survey course fashion. The Rise of religious fanaticism stems in part from a failure of intellectuals within Var ious religious traditions to engage the faithful of their traditions in serious and reasoned reflection inquiry and Dia Logue. The marginalization of Faith with in universities contributes to this failure. A recent Survey by Duclas higher education research Institute found that 79 per cent of College freshmen believe in god and 69 per cent Pray and find strength support and guidance in their religious beliefs. Religion will remain a powerful Force in the personal lives of these students Long after they graduate. If Faith is shunned by the institutions whose role it is to Foster reason and the life of the mind if universities do not equip students to integrate their Faith with the knowledge and reasoning skills they acquire we should to be surprised if unreasonable or fanatical forces gain influence in communities of Faith. Its time for universities to explore the reasoning that is possible within a tradition of Faith and to help their students appreciate this possibility and the Rich resources in great religious traditions. Such efforts would enhance the ability of those with Faith to engage in reasoned and self critical spiritual reflection. At the University of notre Dame and other academically rigorous religious colleges and universities we strive to make room for such scholarly inquiry and discussion. We work to create classes that will convey the intellectual riches of a religious tradition and help students engage in reasoned reflection from within the perspective of Faith. This approach too has legitimacy within a Core curriculum. Indeed Edu Cating students on the reasoning inherent in particular faiths is critical if we want students to be Able to understand and engage their own and other religious traditions in meaningful ways. The Rev. John i. Jenkins is president of the University of notre Dame. Thomas Burish is the University a Provost ;