The Top 10 Stories You Missed in 2009

A few ways the world changed while you weren’t looking.

BY JOSHUA E. KEATING | DECEMBER 2009

America Joins Uganda's Civil War

In January, the New York Times' Jeffrey Gettleman broke the story that the U.S. military had helped plan and fund a Ugandan military attack against an infamous rebel group, the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), in eastern Congo. The attack was poorly executed, allowing the rebel leaders to escape and murder 900 civilians in retaliation. It was the first time the United States had directly participated in actions against the LRA, which is designated a terrorist group by the United States. The LRA's religious fundamentalist leader, Joseph Kony, has abducted tens of thousands of children to serve as fighters and sex slaves in his decades-long guerrilla war against the Ugandan government.

The United States' new Africa Command (Africom) defended its role in the mission, saying that the Ugandan attack would have happened anyway and that it was "too early to bring a final judgment" about U.S. support. But if some members of the U.S. Congress get their way, Africom's role in the conflict may expand. A pending bill co-authored by Sens. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) and Sam Brownback (R-Kan.) and enjoying wide bipartisan support would commit the United States to "eliminating the threat posed by the Lord's Resistance Army ... through political, economic, military, and intelligence support."

Although few disagree with bringing Kony to justice -- he has refused to leave his jungle hideout since the International Criminal Court indicted him for crimes against humanity -- the bill raises questions about the proper role of Africom, which has thus far functioned in a mostly advisory capacity, and commits the United States to involvement in one of Africa's bloodiest and most complex conflicts. Some debate is probably warranted.

LIONEL HEALING/AFP/Getty Images

 SUBJECTS:
 

Joshua E. Keating is deputy Web editor at Foreign Policy and edits FP's Passport blog.

ALWAYSSKEPTICAL

1:53 PM ET

November 29, 2009

flooding?

"The environmental consequences -- increased flooding in coastal regions around the world..."

The melting of the Artic ice will not cause flooding. The ice would displace the same amount of water in liquid form as it now does in solid form.

 

JACKERHACK

6:47 AM ET

December 18, 2009

Oh no, it will

You forget that about 1/9th of ice floats above water. When it melts, it will cause the water level to rise.

 

DARCYLARCY

1:21 AM ET

December 22, 2009

Actually...

If the ice and sea water were of similar-enough composition, then once the ice melts, the resulting "new" water would be exactly the same volume as the water that was deplaced by the floating ice. In other words, the increasing density of the ice as it melts would exactly offset the difference in volume. The threat of sea level rise has nothing to do with the volume difference of ice and water (at least, not so directly).

However, water's freezing process partitions out much of the salt content. Therefore, what melts from floating sea ice is fresher, less dense water which *does* have a larger volume than the salt water that it displaced when it was solid. While it's not really my field, I believe that the volume difference should be on the order of 2.5%, based on the densities of sea water (64 lbs/ft3) and fresh water (62.4 lbs/ft3).

 

GRANT

4:24 PM ET

November 29, 2009

I don't see quite so much

I don't see quite so much cause for concern on the Feingold-Brownback* bill, as long as the U.S doesn't see the need to engage itself to heavily in the fighting. Though there are few things I would love to see more than Kony on trial the U.S doesn't have the best record when it comes to operations with other nations. Also, if memory serves one of the reasons why the U.S has had so much trouble finding a base for Africom is partially out of memories about U.S operations during the Cold War (as well as anti-U.S sentiment in the nations).

In re. to ALWAYSSKEPTICAL: We shouldn't presume that yet. The planet isn't so simple as to be measured by human perspective, and island nations are beginning to see changes in water.

*That's what they'll call it, you heard it here first.

 

W_NELSON

10:47 AM ET

November 30, 2009

NW Passage has been open for years:

Correction:

-------
Only one problem: The Northeast Passage has been opened for commerce since 1934 – and never ‘closed’.
-------

From here:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/10/06/times_thermageddon_r_us/

 

F1FAN

10:20 AM ET

December 1, 2009

I'm surprised

I'm surprised that 'climategate' isn't on this list. The media in the US has categorically ignored it.

 

MUGWAMP

1:55 PM ET

December 3, 2009

rising coast lines

It is true that the Arctic sea ice is floating and already contributing to the current coastal levels. It is also true that if the Arctic sea ice is melting, then the ice on massive Greenland and Canada's northern islands will also melt. That is the source of concern. Worse yet, is that once the reflective ice and snow are gone from the tundra regions of the north, large amounts of methane will be released. The oceans also have large amounts of frozen methane that could be released, as we move to a higher temperature range. Methane is a much more potent green house gas than CO2. Humans may have started this pattern, but Mother Nature has the means to extend it. Finding ways to adapt to the inevitable, while we try to slow the pace of climate change is the challenge.

 

LINKBUILDINGSERVICES

4:32 AM ET

December 12, 2009

surprising

Its surprising to see that some people still taking the
The environmental consequences lightly.

 

SANDNESSC

4:06 PM ET

December 14, 2009

A ROTC for spies

My question is in regards to this line in the section titled "A ROTC for spies"

"The U.S. intelligence community already funds national security studies programs at more than 14 U.S. colleges and universities."

The question is does anyone have a list of the 14 colleges that this article is talking about.