Fall 2006
Volume 2, Issue 1
L M i\ ' ^^^^^^ Knowledge Report
Students for International Knowledge
Message from the President ofSIK
Welcome to the new year! SIK is proud and excited to issue our third edition of the Global Knowledge Report
(GKR). We're now printing once a quarter and will also be accepting faculty and staff submissions in the
future. Earlier this year we hosted the Fall $500, which saw over 150 people attend to soak up knowledge on
the 2006 Lebanon War. 10 lucky attendees also walked away with a $50 gas card, while one able-minded
person won a $100 cash prize for his success in the games. We have a lot more excitement coming your way,
so stay tuned as we keep the coverage going in the pursuit of knowledge through education.
- Andre Castillo, President of Students for International Knowledge
SIK at the Fall $500, SIK's P^ Innaugural Also in the picture is Dr.
Michael Provence of UC San Diego, who spoke on the lebanon War
In This Issue
Understanding Religious Terrorism: Hamas
By Andre Castillo p.2
About Buddhism
By Brandon Fryman p.4
From Bangladesh to California
By Mohammad Shamsuzzaman p. 5
North Korea 's Nuclear Ambitions
By Joel Herrera p.6
IK was founded in
2006 by a group of
students from Cal
State San Bernardino
to educate students,
faculty and staff
about international
news and events not
readily available to
the CSUSB campus.
Questions, Comments, Concerns, Suggestions? Contact SIK. Donations Welcomed. ^
URL : Csusbsik.wordpress.com Email : csusbsik@gmail.com Phone : (909) 534-8955
5500 University Pkwy., SU-203 San Bernardino, CA 92407 ^^
Understanding Religious Terrorism: Hamas
By Andre Castillo
Hamas supporters
celebrate election victory
earlier this year. In a
strange twist of fate, the
US and the E. U are now
leading a boycott against
Hamas and the Palestinian
government after Hamas
was encouraged to run in
the Palestinian national
elections.
(al-REUTERS/Ahmed
JadallahJJadallah)
"Hamas has been an
organization that revolves
around social services and
religious educuation. "
A map of Israel-Palestine,
the former in burgundy and
the latter in orange
(excluding the top right,
which is officially part of
Syria).
(Universidad Carlos III de
Madrid,
http.V/www. ucSm. es/)
2 of 8
In the last issue of the GKR I wrote of a
terrorist organization by the name of the
Jewish Defense League. Here I will
discuss their ideological counterpart, the
Palestinian-Muslim organization Hamas.
As the current majority party-elect in the
Palestinian legislature within the greater
Palestinian Authority (PA), Hamas has
in the span of a few months
exponentially gained in international
importance. As a result, it's important to
know the organization's history, it's
operations, and it's future objectives to
gain a better understanding of current
events in Israel/Palestine.
The word "Hamas" itself means "zeal"
and is an acronym for "Harakat al-
Muqawama al-Islamiya," or The Islamic
Resistance Movement. Hamas is a
fringe-right wing organization born out
of the Palestinian struggle for
independence, officially forming in
1987. Hamas' origins can be traced
back to the Egyptian social welfare and
religious education organization of the
Muslim Brotherhood, founded in 1923
by Hassan al-Bana. The founder of
Hamas, Sheikh Ahmed Yasin, was a
member of the Brotherhood in the 1960s
and 70s and served as a social worker
and head of al-Mujamma' al-Islami (the
Islamic Center) under the umbrella of
the Muslim Brotherhood's wing in the
Gaza Strip of Palestine. At this point
both the Brotherhood and Yasin were
non-violent in nature and more
interested in direct social work for the
poor and the needy than in political
violence.
Seeing a weakened Palestinian
Liberation Organization (PLO) after
their expulsion from Lebanon in 1982
and an increasingly brutal Israeli
military occupation, Yasin gradually
began to turn towards violence and
began stockpiling arms in 1983. By
1986 Yasin had formed an internal
security apparatus within the Islamic
Center — ^the Munazzamat al-jihad wal-
da'wa (the Organization of Jihad and
Da'wa) — ^which committed acts of
arson, kidnapping, and executed
Palestinians suspected of collaborating
with Israel.
Dating back to its roots in the Muslim
Brotherhood, Hamas has been an
organization that revolves around social
services and religious education. Hamas
helps fund schools, sports, hospitals, and
provides general welfare benefits for
impoverished Palestinians, primarily in
the Gaza Strip. Conversely, Hamas has
also been an extreme proponent of
violence against Israel, its citizens, and
its collaborators through the Izz al-Din
al-Qassam Brigade, the military wing of
Hamas. Since its inception in 1987
Hamas' violence against Israel has
totaled 555 attacks, 2,905 injuries, and
603 fatalities. 84% of those attacks have
been directed at Israeli civilians and
property. Less than 2% of Hamas' 555
attacks have been directed at the Israeli
government or military. Hamas is
perhaps best known for its spectacular
bombings within Israel proper, most
notably a number of suicide bus
bombings beginning in 1995, each of
which killed dozens of Israeli civilians
and wounded dozens more. Another
tactic of Hamas involves firing crude
Qassam rockets aimed at Israeli schools,
streets, and neighborhoods fired from
within the Gaza Strip, which terrorize
local Israeli communities but cause only
minor damage.
With their victory in the January 2006
Palestinian national elections, Hamas
has now officially displaced Fatah as the
dominant force in Palestinian politics.
Hamas also agreed to a ceasefire with
Israel and the Palestinian Authority in
2005. This has created an enormous
tension between Hamas, Israel, the
United States, and the European Union,
however, as Hamas lists its objects in its
charter as:
The fighting against the false
[Zionism and the State of Israel],
defeating it and vanquishing it so that
justice could prevail, homelands be
retrieved and from its mosques
would the voice of the mu'azen
emerge declaring the establishment of
the state of Islam.
Furthermore, it states that Hamas rejects
all "initiatives, and so-called peaceful
solutions and international conferences"
and argues that "there is no solution for
the Palestinian question except through
Jihad" by Hamas' definition, which is
one of armed struggle ( "jihad" in
English translates to "struggle" and not
"holy war" as is often stated). Hamas'
mission is to liberate all of the land
historically known as Palestine through
violent resistance to Israel, including
Israel's destruction, as Hamas considers
it sacred land under Islam.
However, within the past three years,
Hamas has conceded that it would be
willing to accept an independent
Palestinian state within pre- 1967
borders with a return of Palestinian
refugees. Ismail Haniya, the current
Prime Minister of the PA and leader of
Hamas, further stated that he would also
recognize Israel and accept a 99-year
ceasefire if these conditions were met
shortly after the funding was stopped by
the European Union (EU) and the
United States. As a Hamas mayor in
Gaza stated in early 2005, "if the
Israelis withdraw, why do we need the
resistance?" Hamas has backtracked
recently, however, stating that it "was
not favorable to the two-state solution
because that would entail recognition of
Israel". Clearly these concessions are at
odds with their charter, but it seems
Hamas has not ruled out a political
solution just yet. This is in large part
due to tremendous pressure on the part
of the United States, Israel, and the EU,
and the current crisis facing the
Palestinians.
Since June of this year, when Hamas
kidnapped an Israeli soldier near the
Gaza Strip, Gaza has been under siege
by the Israeli military. The United
Nations Human Rights Council has
called the siege a "savage response."
The only power plant in Gaza (which
supplied 43% of Gaza's daily electricity)
has been destroyed, as well as the
main water pipelines and sewerage
networks, government offices,
educational institutions, bridges, roads,
and large parts of Gaza International
Airport. In addition, Israel has closed
Gaza's primary international crossing
(Rafah, bordering Egypt), prevented
Palestinian fishing, and killed 1 84
Palestinians (over half civilian,
including 42 children) while seriously
injuring 720. One Israeli soldier has
been killed and 25 injured. The Israeli
military has also practiced collective
punishment against the civilian
population, including massive shelling
and F-16 generated sonic booms. As a
result, poverty in Gaza has reached
75% of the population. Israel also
recently kidnapped 8 Hamas Cabinent
ministers and 26 members of the
Palestinian legislative council in
Ramallah in the West Bank, though
some have since been released. The
Palestinian Authority, dependent on
foreign aid to survive, has been denied
funding from the US and the EU while
Israel has also refused to deliver
hundreds of millions of dollars in taxes
it has collected from Palestinians on
behalf of the PA As a result, the
United Nations has labeled the
situation in Gaza and the West Bank a
humanitarian crisis. In the meantime,
Hamas forces are clashing with Fatah
forces in the Gaza Strip and have led
to many deaths on both sides. The
situation is untenable; Palestinian
society is on the verge of collapse.
Though Hamas initially showed
changes toward moderation, it remains
to be seen whether the current boycott
by the US, the EU, and Israel will
encourage Hamas to moderate its
stance vis-a-vis Israel, or if it will have
the opposite effect and weaken its
more moderate leadership and shift it
back into the hands of radicals, not
unlike what happened with the US -led
diplomatic boycott of Yasir Arafat and
the secular Fatah just a few years ago.
With the formation of a Hamas-Fatah
unity government about to emerge, a
renewal of the peace process may be
on the horizon.
Hamas Prime Minister
Ismail Haniya represents the
pragmatic wing of Hamas
and is sometimes in conflict
with the more radical
Khaled Meshaal, a Hamas
leader currently exiled in
Syria. Haniya has recently
promised to step down as
PM in favor of Muhammad
Shbeir to end the boycott
against the PA
(BBC News, Jerusalem)
"// remains to be seen
whether the current boycott by
the US, the EU, and Israel will
encourage Hamas to
moderate its stance vis-a-vis
Israel, or if it will have the
opposite effect and weaken its
more moderate leadership. "
3 of 8
"Buddha is not considered
a god, he is the man that
g_ : found the path to
^ enlightenment. "
The traditional Lotus
Mantra pose by Buddha is
practiced by many to
achieve a peaceful mind.
fwww.questliving.comj
"Other smaller sects oj
this religion usually
incorporate their own
previous religion to form a
new type of Buddhist
thought, for example the
Japanese merged
Buddhism with Shinto
ideals. "
m 4 of 8
About Buddhism
Bv Brandon Frvman
When you hear of the religion of
Buddhism, what do you think? Did you
know that there are many types of
Buddhist denominations practiced
around the globe, just like the different
forms of Christianity? Buddhism is
known as the fourth largest religion in
the word with roughly five hundred
million followers. However, most
would not consider Buddhism a
traditional religion, rather a belief
system that is defined by moral codes
and personal convictions.
The oldest, most traditional form of
Buddhism is that of the Theravada
school of thought, which is mainly
practiced in Thailand and Sri Lanka.
Buddhism stems from the Hindu religion
because the founder, Buddha, was raised
as a Hindu. As a Hindu, Buddha
believed in karma, reincarnation,
Samsara, the Four-Caste system, animal
sacrifices, and polytheism. Karma is the
sum of all that an individual has done, is
currently doing and will do.
Reincarnation holds the notion that some
essential part of a living being can be
reborn in a new body, and Samsara is
known as the perpetual, never-ending
cycle of being reincarnated. The four-
caste system of India is the traditional
hereditary system of social stratification
of India, in which social classes are
defined into four hierarchical
endogamous groups.
When contemplating life and his beliefs,
Buddha felt depressed and became an
ascetic. He found a way to end Samsara
and reach Nirvana or "enlightenment."
Nirvana is an enduring, transcendental
happiness, or state characterized by
freedom from or oblivion to pain, worry,
and the external world. Buddha
wandered India, teaching his
enlightenment around 560 B.C.E.
Buddha no longer believed in many gods
nor in there being a high spiritual being
at all, and did away with animal karma,
reincarnation, and Samsara. However,
he introduced a way to end Samsara
which is through Nirvana. Buddha is not
considered a god, he is the man that
found the path to Enlightenment. He
created the doctrines of Buddhism,
which are The Four Noble Truths (the
causes of suffering). The Eightfold Path
(the solution to suffering), and The Five
Precepts, which are for the laity to
follow.
As Buddha is said to have taught The
Five Precepts out of compassion, rather
than a desire to control his followers,
they are to be undertaken voluntarily
rather than as commandments from a
god. They are as follows: 1) the precept
to refrain from taking the life (killing) of
living beings; 2) the precept to refrain
from stealing; 3) the precept to refrain
from sexual misconduct (adultery, rape,
etc.); 4) the precept to refrain from false
speech (lying); 5) the precept to refrain
from intoxicants which lead to
heedlessness.
All other types of Buddhist sects stem
from the Mahayana school of thought,
which comprises the more liberal
teachings of Buddha, all of which have
added the Lotus Sutra. The Lotus Sutra
introduces bodhisattvas, which are other
monks who have reached Nirvana or
almost reached Nirvana and stopped
before they actually reached, to help
others reach Nirvana. Mahayana
Buddhists look up to these bodhisattvas
as helpers, one can pray for their help,
intervention, and guidance, amongst
other things. Other smaller sects of this
religion usually incorporate their own
previous religion to form a new type of
Buddhist thought, for example the
Japanese merged Buddhism with Shinto
ideals.
In Theravada Buddhism, mandatory
services are not held like in many other
religions. They do not have what some
would term a preacher who preaches to
the people who come for the services.
Temples are places where people can
come to meditate, or to make offerings
to the monks. The temples are more
like a community for people who want to
practice meditation or have a place to go
to get in touch with Buddhism. Every
week, the laity (followers) and the monks
get together and have a potluck for the
monks, which is a form of good karma on
behalf of the laity.
Buddhism is practiced in many temples
throughout the United States. One of the
more traditional local temples is the
Buddhist Temple of America, in Ontario
California. When attending an evening
chanting service at the temple in which
monks hold every night of the week at 6
p.m., one must take off their socks and
shoes, as it is a custom. Services last
about an hour and half, which includes a
half an hour of traditional chanting in the
Pali language (an old language of Sri
Lanka), followed by an hour of silent
meditation. They have pamphlets inside
the temple that will have the English
translation of what is being chanted.
As a famous saying of Buddha's goes,
Buddhist doctrine "makes no distinction
between high and low, rich and poor; it is
like the sky, it has room for all; like water
it washes all alike," and anyone is
welcome to practice the teachings of any
age, race, class, gender, sexual
orientation, or religion. To visit the local
temple: The Buddhist Temple of America
5615 Howard St., Ontario, CA 91762,
Phone (909) 988-7731.
From Bangladesh to California
By Mohammad Shamsuzzaman
As a child, all I knew about America
was that it was the Utopia of the world
where dreams find their destination.
However, my first visual exposure to
America came through the Cable News
Network (CNN) in 1991 when the
government of Bangladesh officially
started to telecast the channel. What I
knew about America and what I watched
on TV were not at all alike. I started to
unlearn the fact that it is an affluent
country where everyone can mint his or
her own fortune. Rather, having had the
exposure to some of the traits of
American culture, I realized that that it
is, in fact, a springboard of knowledge. I
then formed a conviction that I would go
to America for my intellectual
enrichment. I completed my M.A. from
the University of Dhaka, Bangladesh in
English Literature in 2000. I proceeded
to pursue my goal but because of the
changing political scenario due to 9/11,
nothing went in my favor. After a while,
I eventually reached California on the
12th of September, 2005.
The other reason for coming to
California was a physical obligation. I
am one of those people who are
vulnerable to the increased air pollution
of the city of Dhaka. I became a victim
of chronic headache, my blood pressure
used to creep up abnormally, and my
insomnia intensified. My situation
worsened when I contracted a peculiar
nasal disease. It is peculiar in the sense
that there are few victims of this disease
found in America or Europe. The vast
majority of the victims reside either in
Asia or in Africa. I had to undergo nasal
surgery four times but could not get rid
of the disease. According to the doctor,
I must live in a country where air
pollution is relatively low or non-
existent, so I chose California. Though
San Bernardino's air is not the greatest,
compared to Dhaka's, it is heaven!
Strangely enough, California did not
welcome me warmly. Literally, my site
of salvation became a place of sobs and
sniffles. As I went to the Social Security
Administration to apply for my Social
Security Number, I was informed that
my last name was misspelt in the
immigration record and was advised to
go to Los Angeles. I was too new of a
person to find any place in San
Bernardino, let alone in Los Angeles.
But eventually, I went on the 18th of
November. When I returned to my
dorm, I discovered to my dismay that my
flash drive containing my entire first
semester files was lost. Confounded, I
cried. On the 19th of November, I got
hit by a car while crossing a road and did
not cry at all. I just wondered why the
paradise of many had become a
"pinjrapole" (A place where animals
languish to death) for me.
Am I romanticizing my sorrows? Yes,
The Byodo-in Temple in
Oahu Island Hawaii.
fOTLouns)
Mohammad
Shamsuzzaman, or
Zaman for short, is a
Masters student at
CSUSB in TESOL
(Teaching English to
Speakers of Other
Langauges).
"As a child, all I knew
about America was that it
was the Utopia of the world
where dreams find their
destination. "
Sof
Bangladesh has a population of
more than 147 million people.
(CNN.com)
certainly. I never before faced life alone
and isolated. In Bangladesh my life was
rather easy and enjoyable since my
family members used to help me in all
my affairs. Having arrived here, I found
myself in a completely different
situation in which I did not have an iota
of firsthand experience. This is why I
was unable to cope. I started to lose my
composure. But gradually I learned to
collect myself and thought, after earning
A's in all my courses, had I not been
here, I would not have known this
flipside version of life.
Because of my seven-month stay in
California, I have experienced an
epiphany — in life, nothing is granted.
Life changes as does our destiny.
Observing the people here, I have come
to the conclusion that with hard work
and perseverance anyone can win over
any crisis. I perceive that because of the
untoward situation I have gone through,
my resilience has become stronger.
A culture diametrically different from
mine is not something I should continue
to complain about. The scenic beauty of
California, its soothing weather, and
cooperative people are becoming
familiar and friendly to me. I miss my
culture, my country, but I am no longer a
victim of culture shock. Because I know
adjustment is the key, I am trying to
adjust to the culture and climate of
California. This place is gradually
becoming a part of my inner entity.
California is no longer caustic to me;
instead it is captivating.
North Korea 's Nuclear Ambitions
By Joel Herrera
"The current leader, Kim
Jung II maintains a
centralized and highly
authoritative communist
government replete with
human rights violations. "
China, North Korea 's
main ally, was warned
only twenty minutes in
advance of North Korea 's
October 9^^ nuclear test
and disseminated the
information to Washington
and Japan soon after.
North Korea, located between Japan and
China, remains isolated from the
international community, and, as 20th
century history has shown, has
maintained a stubborn and aged
economy that is fighting desperately to
remain autonomous while projecting an
uncompromising and intensifying
military image. The current leader, Kim
Jung II, maintains a centralized and
highly authoritative communist
government replete with human rights
violations. The country is sealed shut
from the international community.
Current events have intensified
speculation, once again, that North
Korea is in the prospects of developing a
nuclear weapon. The world witnessed
the testing of two long-range missiles in
July 2006. On October 9th, it was
reported that a successful nuclear blast
took place, bringing us to the current
debate over sanctions in the United
Nations Security Council. Stringent
economic and military sanctions could
be imposed on North Korea with China,
North Korea's only significant, powerful
ally, serving as a diplomatic haven for
six party talks and a possible nuclear
deterrent. The blast sparked an instant
instant response from the UN, which
then passed Security Council Resolution
1718, which forces North Korea to give
up all nuclear weapons and ballistic
missiles while requiring that all cargo
going in and out of the country be
inspected. The resolution's actual
application and level of severity depends
on China's success, or desire, in
deterring North Korea's nuclear
ambitions.
Back in 1994, the North Korean nuclear
crisis took a surprising turn when it
refused to let the International Atomic
Energy Agency inspect certain areas
suspected of producing weapons-grade
plutonium. The widely known Agreed
Framework was then established with
the US and North Korea proclaiming
that if North Korea halts its nuclear
program, the United States would
provide heavy fuel oil and two light-
water reactors. The contract brought
North Korea back to the negotiating
table but did not see much success in the
proceeding decade. The framework
abruptly ended in 2002 when the United
States accused North Korea of defying
the contract by restarting its nuclear
program. However, a study conducted
By the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
found that the allegations in October
2002 were misleading, if not outright
false, because the "North Korean
electricity grid is far too small and
simple to run such a large and
potentially hazardous [unit]." The
journal also noted that the shipments of
heavy fuel oil to North Korea by the
United States "contained significant
amounts of sulfur and other impurities
that accelerated the corrosion of North
Korea's heat exchangers [which were
designed] to use coal," significantly
reducing the heat exchanger's efficiency.
However, intelligence on North Korea is
spotty, at best. And as Foreign Affairs
writer Selig S. Harrison writes, "[t]he
[Bush] administration's underlying
mistake — in the case of the North
Korean uranium mystery, as in Iraq —
has been treating a worst-case scenario
as revealed truth."
As the US debates the North Korean
nuclear crisis, very few news outlets
have given a significant historical
context. The current situation stems
back to the Korean War of the 1950s
when the United States military fought
the Soviet backed North Korean military
and China from invading the south. This
started a scathing anti-American
propaganda campaign within North
Korea, which still lives vividly in the
state-controlled media. The North
Korean news outlet KCNA Pyongyang
claims the US was comp licit in war
crimes against the North Korean people,
stating that "[t]he US imperialists spread
various species of germs in at least 400
places in the northern part of Korea on
700 occasions in two months from 28
January to 31 March in 1952. They
massively dropped napalms and poison-
gas bombs." In addition, KCNA says,
"According to AP from Washington on
17 May 1951, [the United States]
conducted more than 3,000 experiments
against [prisoners of war] in the waters
off Koje Island." These assertions,
according to various human rights
organizations, have some veracity and
remain a major part of North Korea's
history as the state-run media keeps
these images in the forefront.
So the US is dealing with more than just
another potential nuclear rouge state —
but an entire mass of people
indoctrinated with selective history
promulgated through a propaganda
campaign. Consider, in addition, that
the US president in 2002 called North
Korea a part of an "axis of evil," which
also encapsulates another country
currently under US occupation. Further
consider that current US foreign policy
has streamlined military aggression
through "anticipatory self-defense"
(preemptive war) as defined by the US
National Security Strategy of 2002. It is
not hard to imagine that a country in
North Korea's economic condition
sought to obtain nuclear weapons to
increase its own leverage militarily and
economically while responding to the
nuclear arsenal of the world's only
superpower. As Hans Blix, the former
head United Nations weapons inspector
in Iraq, stated on C-SPAN shortly after
the October 9th nuclear test, "if a
country perceives that its security is
guaranteed, it won't need to consider
weapons of mass destruction. This
security guarantee is the first line of
defense against the proliferation of
weapons of mass destruction."
China is seen as possessing the critical
diplomatic leverage with North Korea
because of its role as the principal
supplier of food and aid to the country.
Unlike North Korea, China has opened
its markets to countries around the
world. For example, China became a
member of the World Trade
Organization in 1995. North Korea has
remained isolated and without any type
of economic reform since the fall of the
Soviet Union, which was a key
economic supporter to North Korea.
China, in the last decade, has been
offering a great deal of food and aid to
the impoverished North Koreans and
remains a key economic partner,
supplying 32.9 percent of North Korea's
imports and home to 45.6 percent of its
exports. Other than China, North
Korea's list of allies runs thin, which
helped precipitate a severe famine from
1995-96 when an estimated two milhon
North Koreans died of hunger.
In 1950, North Korea
invaded the South,
sparking the Korean
War that eventually saw
1 7 countries, including
the US and China,
battle to a stalemate at
the division of the 38^^
parallel. The campaign
helped lead to the defeat
of President Harry
Truman in the 19 52
Democratic primaries.
(CBC News, cbc.ca)
Kim Jong-il, North
Korea 's president and son
of Kim II Sung, has been in
power since 1997. The
now-deceased Kim II Sung
was the founder of the
Democratic People 's
Republic of Korea (North
Korea 's formal title)
(The Assocated Press)
7 of
Students for
International
Knowledge
Ik, su-203
5500 University Pkwy,
San Bernardino, CA 92407
Phone: (909) 534-8955
j^mail: csusbsik@gmail.com
For more information and a
list of upcoming events visit
us at:
csusbSIK.wordpress.com
SIK on the Radio!
"The World Abroad" airs
Mondays, 5 -6pm On:
coyoteradio. csusb. edu
SIK on TV! With
Alternate Focus
Middle East Documentaries on
San Bernardino Public Access TV
For show times and listings, see
csusbsik.wordpress.com/siktv
The country's main exports,
minerals and various produce,
seem just as emaciated; only 16
percent of the land is suitable for
agricultural development and
most of the production houses,
factories, and power generators,
once supplied by the Soviet
Union, are aging and in need of
repair. It is difficult to imagine
that a country with such a
precarious power grid and with
daily rolling blackouts could
manage to produce an effective
nuclear weapon. The want is
certainly there; however, the
technology, as Hans Blix has said
recently, is five years away.
About SIK
The situation could quickly
escalate if further threats of
violence and strangulation
through sanctions continue to
flood the rhetoric and actions of
both countries. China could
possibly be the deterrent, but it
will not work with the absence of
a practical and pragmatic change
within US foreign policy that
assures a commitment to less
violent means that also do not
further the country's economic
isolation, a result of which could
indirectly hurt the Korean people
and further the government's
ambitions for nuclear weapons.
Students for International Knowledge (SIK) is a student group organized to
provide education to Cal State San Bernardino and the Inland Empire on
international politics, cultures, and history. We do this in four ways: a quarterly
newsletter, videos/documentaries, a Coyote Radio show, and events. The 2005-
2006 director of the CSUSB Student Union once labeled SIK "the pinnacle of
intellectual thought on our campus." To join, just email csusbsik@gmail.com .
The Newsletter Committee
Brandon Fryman (L), Joel Herrera (C), and Andre Castillo (R) put in many
hours of work to make this possible. If you have any comments, suggestions,
or would like to make a submission, .. _ _ ■
email csusbsik@gmail.com and one of ' '^^^^' -^iJi^ ^^^^^
us will be happy to respond. For
submissions, please be aware that space |
is limited and articles are checked and
edited thoroughly for quality.
Come to our Discussion Series!
Tuesday nights from 7-8 p.m. in SU-210, SIK invites students and faculty to
give presentations on international issues. This quarter SIK has covered Islam
and the West, Afro-centrism, the US occupation of Iraq, and Sudanese atrocities
in Darfur. Come join us while checking csusbsik.wordpress.com for updates.
Disclaimer
Associated Studies, Incorporated ("ASI") does not exercise editorial control over, nor is ASI
responsible for, the content of this publication. The opinions, views, ideas, etc. expressed within
this publication are solely those of the author(s) and the Students for International Knowledge.
8of8~^
SIK
