A special Veterans Day salute

Last night I received an email from one of those organizations that think bloggers have nothing better to do than read up on every horror story to emerge in the 21st Century. Generally I only read the subject line before deleting the email. This time, though, they got to me with the header: "NEW ‘BREED’ OF SUICIDE BOMBERS - U.S. Military: al-Qaeda Has Tried Explosives Inside Dogs."

I went into a blind rage when I read the Daily Mail report about what was done to two dogs, who died from the bombs and timers the terrorists inserted in their stomachs.

At my age I can't afford to fly into a blind rage so I exclaimed, "Don't dwell on the darkness, you fool!"

That didn't help.

Then I reminded myself that one dog has more noble qualities than all the al Qaeda girly-men put together, which brought my blood pressure down a bit. At that point I got the idea for a special tribute for this Veteran's Day.

With profound gratitude to all those men and women who have served in our nation's armed forces and to the dogs who served along with them.

Rags at Fort Hamilton

I have excerpted the following account from the website Rags: Dog Hero of World War One.

On July 14th of 1918 a picked battalion of the American 1st Infantry Division took part in the Bastille Day ceremonies in Paris. One of the participants was Private James Donovan, a Signal Corps specialist, who had somewhat over-stayed his time in Paris.

That evening he found himself lost in a cul-de-sac in the dark streets of Montmartre. In the darkness he stumbled over what at first appeared to be a pile of rags. When the pile of rags emitted a whimper and then a bark Donovan realized it was a small dog. As Donovan bent to examine his newly found shaggy-haired friend three rather unfriendly American military policemen arrived upon the scene. They immediately ascertained that Donovan did not have a pass and was officially A.W.O.L.

The quick-thinking U. S. Army private used the existence of his new friend to create an excuse for his missing pass. He convinced the M.P.'s that the little terrier dog was the missing mascot of the 1st Division and that Donovan was part of a search party. He also very ingeniously came up with a name for the dog, Rags. The ruse worked and Rags and his new owner were escorted back to Donovan's unit.

In this way a French dog of the streets of Paris became the mascot of one of America's most honored fighting divisions. In the next few months Rags would more than earn his right to be the division mascot.

Upon returning to his unit Donovan was called before his commanding officer and was prepared for a stiff reprimand. Instead the young captain informed him that they were both moving up to division headquarters to establish a special communications service between infantry and artillery units of the 1st Division. The captain also gave Donovan permission to keep Rags. The dog's shaggy coat, moist, black nose and wagging tail won over the officer. His friendly manner would continue to win over officers of even higher ranks throughout Rags' military career.

It did not take long before both Donovan and Rags underwent their introduction to the trench warfare of the Western Front. Both of them became involved in the Franco-American 2nd Battle of the Marne that was waged from July 18th to August 6th of 1918.

During this time they were active in the sector from Ville-En-Tardenois to Soissons. Donovan's job was to string communications wire between the advancing infantry units of the 26th Infantry Regiment and the supporting 7th Field Artillery Brigade. He was responsible for stringing and repairing the wire as it was damaged by shellfire. At first he tried to leave Rags in the rear area with headquarters troops but Rags would inevitably sneak off and join Donovan.

Donovan soon decided to put Rags to good use. When the communications wire was badly cut by shellfire the only way to get messages through was by runners. But the runners had difficulty getting through barbed wire and frequently were killed or wounded by rifle, machine gun or shellfire.

Donovan began training Rags to carry written notes from Donovan back to the 7th Field Artillery. Rags, usually contemptuous of learning tricks that the doughboys tried to teach him, seemed to grasp the importance of the job. He soon learned to take the messages towards the sound of the American guns and had little trouble finding Donovan with return messages.

In late July of 1918, during a counterattack driving towards the Paris-Soisssons road, Rags was to deliver the first of the messages that was to make him famous throughout the 1st Division.

Rags and Donovan found themselves with a group of advancing infantry that had been cut off and surrounded. The only officer surviving was a young lieutenant. From the wording of his message it is probable that he was an artillery forward observer. Wire communications had been cut off by the Germans. The following message was written out and attached to Rags' collar:

"I have forty-two men, mixed, healthy and wounded. We have advanced to the road but can go no farther. Most of the men are from the 26th Infantry. I am the only officer. Machine guns at our rear, front, right and left. Send infantry officer to take command. I need machine gun ammunition."

It was during this campaign that Rags came under fire for the first time. At first he simply learned to imitate the men around him, who would drop to the ground and hug it tightly upon hearing the sound of an incoming shell. Then the soldiers observed Rags hugging the ground with his paws spread out in front of him before anyone had heard the sound of an incoming round. This caused some laughter until they realized that with his acute and sensitive dog's hearing Rags could hear the incoming shells before they could.

The doughboys quickly learned to keep their eyes on Rags and he became a World War I early warning system and ingratiated himself even more to the appreciative soldiers.

After the end of the Marne fighting elements of the 1st Division rested in the area around Domartin-La-Montagne. Rags had time to practice his message carrying and was fitted for a special gas mask that was adapted from a regular soldier's mask.

With Donovan's help Rags learned his own form of saluting. He had frequently seen soldiers saluting in his travels about the rest area and Donovan had little trouble in teaching Rags to join an activity he had so often observed. Instead of raising his paw to shake hands like a civilian dog, Rags would just raise it a little bit higher and closer to his head.

The story soon circulated that Rags had even exchanged salutes with the new C.O. of the 1st, Major General Charles P. Summerall, who had a reputation of being the most demanding general in the A.E.F.

During the rest period Rags began a ritual that he was to carry out for the rest of his life. He would tour the various mess halls and eliminate from his tours those whose fare did not appeal to him or whose personnel did not meet his standards of hospitality. It was on one of these tours that he became involved with the pet cat of a division staff officer, Col. Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. After this incident Donovan had to restrain Rags' wanderings but soon after the division moved back into action and Rags regained his freedom.

From the 12th of September until the 16th of September Rags and Donovan participated in the first all American offensive of the war, the drive to eliminate the St. Michel salient. After the opening artillery barrages the Germans began an immediate withdrawal and pulled their big guns out first. The fighting was mainly hand to hand infantry actions as the advancing Americans caught up with retreating Germans.

For four days Rags and Donovan moved forward with the infantry units of the 1st Division. Twice Donovan became engaged in hand to hand combat as Rags barked, snarled and grabbed Germans' legs with his teeth. The Germans, usually out of food and ammunition, did not put up all-out resistance.

From this point on Rags greeted any gray-uniformed figure with a low growl and snarl. He had ample opportunity as the U.S. soldiers captured 15,000 German soldiers in the four-day offensive.

The final American campaign of W.W. I, the Meuse-Argonne, lasted from September 26th until November 1918. Donovan and Rags would be in at the start but by the time of the armistice both would be in the same military hospital.

The two companions were again serving as the communications link between the 26th Infantry and the 7th Artillery. Unlike the St. Michel action the U.S. forces from the start faced strong German resistance and progress was slow. Rags was used several times to take messages through the mist shrouded, rugged terrain of the Argonne Forest. On October 2nd he carried the following message:

"From C. O. 1st Bn. 26th Infantry Oct.2-12:30
To Captain Thomas, Intelligence Officer

Have artillery that is firing in small, oblong-shaped woods, directly in front and on right of first objective, lenthen range and pound hell out of woods. Machine gun nests are located there.
Legge, Cdg."

The requested artillery rounds were delivered and the 26th secured its objective. Once again Rags had helped a 1st Division unit to succeed and surely saved the lives of a number of American doughboys.

The war was to come to an end for Donovan and Rags on October 9, 1918. They were working with elements of the 26th Infantry that were engaged in cleaning out the Argonne Forest. A thick fog hung over the entire region. The 26th had captured Hill 263 and were preparing to repel a German counterattack. Artillery support was needed to keep the Germans from mounting an attack. As the fog and terrain made it almost impossible to find any breaks in the communication wire it was decided to send Rags back with a message.

As he was headed back the Germans began their attack by firing in gas shells. Rags was without his gas mask and was mildly gassed as he scurried towards the rear. Before Rags could reach the 2nd Battalion of the 7th Artillery on the rear of Hill 212 an all-out artillery barrage was launched by the Germans. A round exploded not far from Rags and his forepaw was cut by a shell splinter, his right ear was mangled and a needle-like sliver was embedded under his right eye.

Rags continued his journey but was then dazed by the concussion of a second round. An American infantryman found him and delivered both Rags and the message to the 7th Artillery. Donovan, who was still with the forward elements of the 26th, was more severely gassed and was futher wounded by shell fire as he was carried to the rear. Members of the 7th Field Artillery placed Rags on Donovan's stetcher and bearers carried the two towards a dressing station behind the lines.

As Donovan and Rags made their way through the various stages of medical evacuation Rags' reputation and demeanor gained him exceptional attention. Whenever anyone took exception to giving such treatment to a mere dog the words "orders from headquarters" were quickly invoked. In the early part of the journey this was interpreted to be the 1st Division C.O. As the duo moved farther to the rear, "headquarters" was taken to mean Gen. John Pershing himself. [lol]

By the time they arrived at a French hospital far to the rear Rags had had the shell splinters removed but would be blind in his right eye and deaf in his right ear for the rest of his life. His paw soon healed and Rags' condition continually improved. Donovan, on the other hand, grew rather worse than better. The winter climate of France was not good for his gas-damaged lungs and he was labeled as a priority case to be shipped home as soon as possible.
[...]
There is much more to the saga. Read it at the website I mentioned above. And for those who can't stand the suspense, Rags lived to the ripe old age of 20.

Okay; one more, from the U.S. War Dogs Association website: the saga of America's first official war dog, who served in World War One:

Sgt. Stubby

America's first war dog, Stubby, served 18 months 'over there' and participated in seventeen battles on the Western Front. He saved his regiment from surprise mustard gas attacks, located and comforted the wounded, and even once caught a German spy by the seat of his pants. Back home his exploits were front page news of every major newspaper.

Stubby was a bull terrier -- broadly speaking, very broadly! No one ever discovered where he hailed from originally. One day he just appeared, when a bunch of soldiers were training at Yale Field in New Haven, Connecticut; he trotted in and out among the ranks as they drilled, stopping to make a friend here and a friend there, until pretty soon he was on chummy terms with the whole bunch.

One soldier though, in particular, developed a fondness for the dog, a Corporal Robert Conroy, who when it became time for the outfit to ship out, hid Stubby on board the troop ship.

So stowaway Stubby sailed for France; after that Cpl. Conroy became his accepted master, even though he was still on chummy terms with every one else in the outfit and in the same spirit of camaraderie that had marked his initial overtures at Yale.

It was at Chemin des Dames that Stubby saw his first action, and it was there that the boys discovered he was a war dog par excellence. The boom of artillery fire didn't faze him in least, and he soon learned to follow the men's example of ducking when the big ones started falling close. Naturally he didn't know why he was ducking, but it became a great game to see who could hit the dugout first. After a few days, Stubby won every time. He could hear the whine of shells long before the men. It got so they'd watch him!

Then one night Stubby made doggy history. It was an unusally quiet night in the trenches. Some of the boys were catching cat naps in muddy dugouts, and Stubby was stretched out beside Conroy. Suddenly his big blunt head snapped up and his ears pricked alert. The movement woke Conroy, who looked at the dog sleepily just in time to see him sniff the air tentatively, utter a low growl, then spring to his feet, and go bounding from the dugout, around a corner out of sight.

A few seconds later there was a sharp cry of pain and then the sound of a great scuffle outside. Conroy jumped from his bed, grabbed his rifle and went tearing out towards the direction of the noise.

A ludicrous sight met his eyes. Single-pawed, in a vigorous offensive from the rear, Stubby had captured a German spy who'd been prowling through the trenches. The man was whirling desperately in an effort to shake off the snarling bundle of canine tooth and muscle that had attached itself to his differential. But Stubby was there to stay.

It took only a few moments to capture the Hun and disarm him, but it required considerably more time to convince Stubby that his mission had been successfully carried out and that he should now release the beautiful hold he had on that nice, soft German bottom.

By the end of the war, Stubby was known not only to every regiment, division, and army, but to the whole AEF. Honors by the bale were heaped on his muscled shoulders. At Mandres en Bassigny he was introduced to President Woodrow Wilson, who "shook hands" with him. Medal and emblemed jackets were bestowed upon him for each deed of valor, plus a wound stripe for his grenade splinter. Not to be left out, the Marines even made him an honorary sergeant.

After the Armistice was signed, Stubby returned home with Conroy and his popularity seemed to grow even more. He became a nationally acclaimed hero, and eventually was received by presidents Harding and Coolidge. Even General John "Black Jack" Pershing, who commanded the American Expeditionary Forces during the war, presented Stubby with a gold medal made by the Humane Society and declared him to be a "hero of the highest caliber."

Stubby toured the country by invitation and probably led more parades than any other dog in American history; he was also promoted to honorary sergeant by the Legion, becoming the highest ranking dog to ever serve in the Army.

He was even made an honorary member of the American Red Cross, the American Legion and the YMCA, which issued him a lifetime membership card good for "three bones a day and a place to sleep."

Stubby At Georgetown!

Afterwards, Stubby became Georgetown University's mascot. In 1921, Stubby's owner, Robert Conroy was headed to Georgetown for law school and took the dog along. According to a 1983 account in Georgetown Magazine, Stubby "served several terms as mascot to the football team." Between the halves, Stubby would nudge a football around the field, much to the delight of the crowd.

Old age finally caught up with the small warrior on April 4th, 1926, as he took ill and died in Conroy's arms.

It's said that Stubby and a few of his friends were instrumental in inspiring the creation of the United States 'K-9 Corps' just in time for World War Two.

President Obama's visit to Indonesia: Complete text of speech at University of Indonesia

Transcript published by Jakarta Globe.President Obama's speech was given to an audience of about 6,000, mostly students:

Thank you for this wonderful welcome. Thank you to the people of Jakarta. And thank you to the people of Indonesia.

I am so glad that I made it to Indonesia, and that Michelle was able to join me. We had a couple of false starts this year, but I was determined to visit a country that has meant so much to me. Unfortunately, it’s a fairly quick visit, but I look forward to coming back a year from now, when Indonesia hosts the East Asia Summit.

Before I go any further, I want to say that our thoughts and prayers are with all of those Indonesians affected by the recent tsunami and volcanic eruptions – particularly those who have lost loved ones, and those who have been displaced. As always, the United States stands with Indonesia in responding to this natural disaster, and we are pleased to be able to help as needed. As neighbors help neighbors and families take in the displaced, I know that the strength and resilience of the Indonesian people will pull you through once more.

Let me begin with a simple statement: Indonesia is a part of me. I first came to this country when my mother married an Indonesian man named Lolo Soetoro. As a young boy, I was coming to a different world. But the people of Indonesia quickly made me feel at home.

Jakarta looked very different in those days. The city was filled with buildings that were no more than a few stories tall. The Hotel Indonesia was one of the few high rises, and there was just one brand new shopping center called Sarinah. Betchaks outnumbered automobiles in those days, and the highway quickly gave way to unpaved roads and kampongs.

We moved to Menteng Dalam, where we lived in a small house with a mango tree out front. I learned to love Indonesia while flying kites, running along paddy fields, catching dragonflies, and buying satay and baso from the street vendors. Most of all, I remember the people – the old men and women who welcomed us with smiles; the children who made a foreigner feel like a neighbor; and the teachers who helped me learn about the wider world.

Because Indonesia is made up of thousands of islands, hundreds of languages, and people from scores of regions and ethnic groups, my times here helped me appreciate the common humanity of all people. And while my stepfather, like most Indonesians, was raised a Muslim, he firmly believed that all religions were worthy of respect. In this way, he reflected the spirit of religious tolerance that is enshrined in Indonesia’s Constitution, and that remains one of this country’s defining and inspiring characteristics.

I stayed here for four years – a time that helped shape my childhood; a time that saw the birth of my wonderful sister, Maya; and a time that made such an impression on my mother that she kept returning to Indonesia over the next twenty years to live, work and travel – pursuing her passion of promoting opportunity in Indonesia’s villages, particularly for women and girls. For her entire life, my mother held this place and its people close to her heart.

So much has changed in the four decades since I boarded a plane to move back to Hawaii. If you asked me – or any of my schoolmates who knew me back then – I don’t think any of us could have anticipated that I would one day come back to Jakarta as President of the United States. And few could have anticipated the remarkable story of Indonesia over these last four decades.

The Jakarta that I once knew has grown to a teeming city of nearly ten million, with skyscrapers that dwarf the Hotel Indonesia, and thriving centers of culture and commerce. While my Indonesian friends and I used to run in fields with water buffalo and goats, a new generation of Indonesians is among the most wired in the world – connected through cell phones and social networks. And while Indonesia as a young nation focused inward, a growing Indonesia now plays a key role in the Asia Pacific and the global economy.

This change extends to politics. When my step-father was a boy, he watched his own father and older brother leave home to fight and die in the struggle for Indonesian independence. I’m happy to be here on Heroes Day to honor the memory of so many Indonesians who have sacrificed on behalf of this great country.

When I moved to Jakarta, it was 1967, a time that followed great suffering and conflict in parts of this country. Even though my step-father had served in the Army, the violence and killing during that time of political upheaval was largely unknown to me because it was unspoken by my Indonesian family and friends. In my household, like so many others across Indonesia, it was an invisible presence. Indonesians had their independence, but fear was not far away.

In the years since then, Indonesia has charted its own course through an extraordinary democratic transformation – from the rule of an iron fist to the rule of the people. In recent years, the world has watched with hope and admiration, as Indonesians embraced the peaceful transfer of power and the direct election of leaders. And just as your democracy is symbolized by your elected President and legislature, your democracy is sustained and fortified by its checks and balances: a dynamic civil society; political parties and unions; a vibrant media and engaged citizens who have ensured that – in Indonesia -- there will be no turning back.

But even as this land of my youth has changed in so many ways, those things that I learned to love about Indonesia – that spirit of tolerance that is written into your Constitution; symbolized in your mosques and churches and temples; and embodied in your people – still lives on. Bhinneka Tunggal Ika – unity in diversity. This is the foundation of Indonesia’s example to the world, and this is why Indonesia will play such an important role in the 21st century.

So today, I return to Indonesia as a friend, but also as a President who seeks a deep and enduring partnership between our two countries. Because as vast and diverse countries; as neighbors on either side of the Pacific; and above all as democracies – the United States and Indonesia are bound together by shared interests and shared values.

Yesterday, President Yudhoyono and I announced a new, Comprehensive Partnership between the United States and Indonesia. We are increasing ties between our governments in many different areas, and – just as importantly – we are increasing ties among our people. This is a partnership of equals, grounded in mutual interests and mutual respect.

With the rest of my time today, I’d like to talk about why the story I just told – the story of Indonesia since the days when I lived here – is so important to the United States, and to the world. I will focus on three areas that are closely related, and fundamental to human progress – development, democracy, and religion.

First, the friendship between the United States and Indonesia can advance our mutual interest in development.

When I moved to Indonesia, it would have been hard to imagine a future in which the prosperity of families in Chicago and Jakarta would be connected. But our economies are now global, and Indonesians have experienced both the promise and perils of globalization: from the shock of the Asian financial crisis in the 1990s to the millions lifted out of poverty. What that means – and what we learned in the recent economic crisis – is that we have a stake in each other’s success.

America has a stake in an Indonesia that is growing, with prosperity that is broadly shared among the Indonesian people – because a rising middle class here means new markets for our goods, just as America is a market for yours. And so we are investing more in Indonesia, our exports have grown by nearly 50 percent, and we are opening doors for Americans and Indonesians to do business with one another.

America has a stake in an Indonesia that plays its rightful role in shaping the global economy. Gone are the days when seven or eight countries could come together to determine the direction of global markets. That is why the G-20 is now the center of international economic cooperation, so that emerging economies like Indonesia have a greater voice and bear greater responsibility. And through its leadership of the G-20’s anti-corruption group, Indonesia should lead on the world stage and by example in embracing transparency and accountability.

America has a stake in an Indonesia that pursues sustainable development, because the way we grow will determine the quality of our lives and the health of our planet. That is why we are developing clean energy technologies that can power industry and preserve Indonesia’s precious natural resources – and America welcomes your country’s strong leadership in the global effort to combat climate change.

Above all, America has a stake in the success of the Indonesian people. Underneath the headlines of the day, we must build bridges between our peoples, because our future security and prosperity is shared. That is exactly what we are doing – by increased collaboration among our scientists and researchers, and by working together to foster entrepreneurship. And I am especially pleased that we have committed to double the number of American and Indonesian students studying in our respective countries – we want more Indonesian students in our schools, and more American students to come study in this country, so that we can forge new ties that last well into this young century.

These are the issues that really matter in our daily lives. Development, after all, is not simply about growth rates and numbers on a balance sheet. It’s about whether a child can learn the skills they need to make it in a changing world. It’s about whether a good idea is allowed to grow into a business, and not be suffocated by corruption. It’s about whether those forces that have transformed the Jakarta that I once knew –technology and trade and the flow of people and goods – translate into a better life for human beings, a life marked by dignity and opportunity.

This kind of development is inseparable from the role of democracy.

Today, we sometimes hear that democracy stands in the way of economic progress. This is not a new argument. Particularly in times of change and economic uncertainty, some will say that it is easier to take a shortcut to development by trading away the rights of human beings for the power of the state. But that is not what I saw on my trip to India, and that is not what I see in Indonesia. Your achievements demonstrate that democracy and development reinforce one another.

Like any democracy, you have known setbacks along the way. America is no different. Our own Constitution spoke of the effort to forge a “more perfect union,” and that is a journey we have travelled ever since, enduring Civil War and struggles to extend rights to all of our citizens. But it is precisely this effort that has allowed us to become stronger and more prosperous, while also becoming a more just and free society.

Like other countries that emerged from colonial rule in the last century, Indonesia struggled and sacrificed for the right to determine your destiny. That is what Heroes Day is all about – an Indonesia that belongs to Indonesians. But you also ultimately decided that freedom cannot mean replacing the strong hand of a colonizer with a strongman of your own.

Of course, democracy is messy. Not everyone likes the results of every election. You go through ups and downs. But the journey is worthwhile, and it goes beyond casting a ballot. It takes strong institutions to check the concentration of power. It takes open markets that allow individuals to thrive. It takes a free press and an independent justice system to root out abuse and excess, and to insist upon accountability. It takes open society and active citizens to reject inequality and injustice.

These are the forces that will propel Indonesia forward. And it will require a refusal to tolerate the corruption that stands in the way of opportunity; a commitment to transparency that gives every Indonesian a stake in their government; and a belief that the freedom that Indonesians have fought for is what holds this great nation together.

That is the message of the Indonesians who have advanced this democratic story – from those who fought in the Battle of Surabaya 55 years ago today; to the students who marched peacefully for democracy in the 1990s, to leaders who have embraced the peaceful transition of power in this young century. Because ultimately, it will be the rights of citizens that will stitch together this remarkable Nusantara that stretches from Sabang to Merauke – an insistence that every child born in this country should be treated equally, whether they come from Java or Aceh; Bali or Papua.

That effort extends to the example that Indonesia sets abroad. Indonesia took the initiative to establish the Bali Democracy Forum, an open forum for countries to share their experiences and best practices in fostering democracy. Indonesia has also been at the forefront of pushing for more attention to human rights within ASEAN. The nations of Southeast Asia must have the right to determine their own destiny, and the United States will strongly support that right. But the people of Southeast Asia must have the right to determine their own destiny as well. That is why we condemned elections in Burma that were neither free nor fair. That is why we are supporting your vibrant civil society in working with counterparts across this region. Because there is no reason why respect for human rights should stop at the border of any country.

Hand in hand, that is what development and democracy are about – the notion that certain values are universal. Prosperity without freedom is just another form of poverty. Because there are aspirations that human beings share – the liberty of knowing that your leader is accountable to you, and that you won’t be locked up for disagreeing with them; the opportunity to get an education and to work with dignity; the freedom to practice your faith without fear or restriction.

Religion is the final topic that I want to address today, and – like democracy and development – it is fundamental to the Indonesian story.

Like the other Asian nations that I am visiting on this trip, Indonesia is steeped in spirituality – a place where people worship God in many different ways. Along with this rich diversity, it is also home to the world’s largest Muslim population – a truth that I came to know as a boy when I heard the call to prayer across Jakarta.

Just as individuals are not defined solely by their faith, Indonesia is defined by more than its Muslim population. But we also know that relations between the United States and Muslim communities have frayed over many years. As President, I have made it a priority to begin to repair these relations. As a part of that effort, I went to Cairo last June, and called for a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world – one that creates a path for us to move beyond our differences.

I said then, and I will repeat now, that no single speech can eradicate years of mistrust. But I believed then, and I believe today, that we have a choice. We can choose to be defined by our differences, and give in to a future of suspicion and mistrust. Or we can choose to do the hard work of forging common ground, and commit ourselves to the steady pursuit of progress. And I can promise you – no matter what setbacks may come, the United States is committed to human progress. That is who we are. That is what we have done. That is what we will do.

We know well the issues that have caused tensions for many years – issues that I addressed in Cairo. In the 17 months that have passed we have made some progress, but much more work remains to be done.

Innocent civilians in America, Indonesia, and across the world are still targeted by violent extremists. I have made it clear that America is not, and never will be, at war with Islam. Instead, all of us must defeat al Qaeda and its affiliates, who have no claim to be leaders of any religion – certainly not a great, world religion like Islam. But those who want to build must not cede ground to terrorists who seek to destroy. This is not a task for America alone. Indeed, here in Indonesia, you have made progress in rooting out terrorists and combating violent extremism.

In Afghanistan, we continue to work with a coalition of nations to build the capacity of the Afghan government to secure its future. Our shared interest is in building peace in a war-torn land – a peace that provides no safe-haven for violent extremists, and that provides hope for the Afghan people.

Meanwhile, we have made progress on one of our core commitments — our effort to end the war in Iraq. 100,000 American troops have left Iraq. Iraqis have taken full responsibility for their security. And we will continue to support Iraq as it forms an inclusive government and we bring all of our troops home.

In the Middle East, we have faced false starts and setbacks, but we have been persistent in our pursuit of peace. Israelis and Palestinians restarted direct talks, but enormous obstacles remain. There should be no illusions that peace and security will come easy. But let there be no doubt: we will spare no effort in working for the outcome that is just, and that is in the interest of all the parties involved: two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security.

The stakes are high in resolving these issues, and the others I have spoken about today. For our world has grown smaller and while those forces that connect us have unleashed opportunity, they also empower those who seek to derail progress. One bomb in a marketplace can obliterate the bustle of daily commerce. One whispered rumor can obscure the truth, and set off violence between communities that once lived in peace. In an age of rapid change and colliding cultures, what we share as human beings can be lost.

But I believe that the history of both America and Indonesia gives us hope. It’s a story written into our national mottos. E pluribus unum – out of many, one. Bhinneka Tunggal Ika – unity in diversity. We are two nations, which have travelled different paths. Yet our nations show that hundreds of millions who hold different beliefs can be united in freedom under one flag. And we are now building on that shared humanity – through the young people who will study in each other’s schools; through the entrepreneurs forging ties that can lead to prosperity; and through our embrace of fundamental democratic values and human aspirations..

Earlier today, I visited the Istiqlal mosque – a place of worship that was still under construction when I lived in Jakarta. I admired its soaring minaret, imposing dome, and welcoming space. But its name and history also speak to what makes Indonesia great. Istiqlal means independence, and its construction was in part a testament to the nation’s struggle for freedom. Moreover, this house of worship for many thousands of Muslims was designed by a Christian architect.

Such is Indonesia’s spirit. Such is the message of Indonesia’s inclusive philosophy, Pancasila. Across an archipelago that contains some of God’s most beautiful creations, islands rising above an ocean named for peace, people choose to worship God as they please. Islam flourishes, but so do other faiths. Development is strengthened by an emerging democracy. Ancient traditions endure, even as a rising power is on the move.

That is not to say that Indonesia is without imperfections. No country is. But here can be found the ability to bridge divides of race and region and religion – that ability to see yourself in all individuals. As a child of a different race coming from a distant country, I found this spirit in the greeting that I received upon moving here: Selamat Datang. As a Christian visiting a mosque on this visit, I found it in the words of a leader who was asked about my visit and said, “Muslims are also allowed in churches. We are all God’s followers.”

That spark of the divine lies within each of us. We cannot give in to doubt or cynicism or despair. The stories of Indonesia and America tell us that history is on the side of human progress; that unity is more powerful than division; and that the people of this world can live together in peace. May our two nations work together, with faith and determination, to share these truths with all mankind.

November 10, 2010
Jakarta, Indonesia

Au revoir, India

Thank you for reminding Americans that we are still young at heart

.

President Obama's visit to India: U.S. Treasury Secretary's speech at meeting organized by Confederation of Indian Industry

The Hindustan Times report on Geithner's speech emphasized the world picture while the Wall Street Journal's report focused on India. Readers who are focused on the war need to pay close attention to this financial stuff because as the WSJ reporter pointed out America's financial woes are part of the reason for Obama's visit to India -- the longest visit to any foreign country he's made since taking office. The United States is asking much of India, both on the economic and defense fronts.

Before I quote the reports here's some background from a November 8 Bloomberg summary of headlines:

>India’s more than 20 percent growth in earnings and slowing inflation will spur further gains in the nation’s equities after the benchmark stock index surged to a record, according to Franklin Templeton Investments.

> India’s decision to tighten limits on home loans is boosting confidence that regulators are addressing asset bubbles, cutting the cost to protect bank debt from default and supporting a rally in government bonds.

The summary also mentions that the fears of a looming "spat" at the G20 have been eased by the U.S. and China deciding to back away from the brink:

U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner refrained from pushing for current-account targets while China softened its stance on the Federal Reserve’s quantitative easing days before a summit of the Group of 20.

I'm not entirely persuaded this means the G20 attendees won't be packing flak jackets in their suitcases. But between that news and a better than expected report last week on U.S. jobs, which has given a spark of hope in world financial markets that the USA could be turning the corner, the prospects have improved for at least a civil meeting of the G20. Me, I'd still pack my flak jacket to be on the safe side, but I must say that Geithner and Obama are doing everything but kissing babies as they attempt to smooth their arrival at the meeting.

Nov 8, The Hindustan Times:

US upbeat on trade balance

Amid worldwide concerns on protectionism and currency wars, US treasury secretary Timothy Geithner said on Monday he was confident that a consensus can be hammered out for a global trade “rebalancing plan” in the [two-day] G20 summit of elite economies that begins [on Thursday] in Seoul. ... The US has proposed a model that would allow the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to frame guidelines to set up an early warning system to distortions in global trade.

“I am very confident you are going to see very strong consensus on this basic framework,” Geithner told business leaders at a meeting organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to mark US President Barack Obama's visit.

“What we have proposed is a framework which incorporates early warning indicators of large surpluses or deficits which can then be monitored,” Geithner said. He made it clear that the US would not press for imposing specific targets to address global trade imbalances.

“You can’t set quantitative targets for external balances — it makes no economic sense,” he said.

Geithner had written to G20 counterparts to change exchange rate policies in those nations that are running major trade surpluses. Though he did not mention nations, that is seen as targeting China....

November 8, The Wall Street Journal

Delhi Business Conference: Geithner’s Thumbs-Up for IndiaBy Amol Sharma

U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner praised what he called India’s “very careful, very pragmatic” approach to economic reforms and said the country’s plans to create a multi-billion dollar fund to raise long-term infrastructure financing could galvanize its broader debt markets.

Speaking to Indian and U.S. business leaders Monday shortly before President Barack Obama was scheduled to deliver a speech in India’s parliament, Mr. Geithner said India has a highly capable bureaucracy that’s trying to move forward economic reforms quickly.

“It will require more reforms in the financial sector and elsewhere to sustain that,” he said. That was a soft message compared to the refrain heard from some U.S. executives in recent days that India’s reform moves—which lately have consisted mostly of issuing “discussion papers” to jumpstart debate among stakeholders—are too tepid.

Mr. Geithner supported an idea Indian policymakers have been batting around: creating an infrastructure fund to bring long-term debt financing to India to support major projects like the construction of roads, airports, ports and power projects. He said that would also have the benefit of “catalyzing” India’s dormant corporate debt markets. “I think it’s a necessary part of India’s growth,” he said.

Mr. Geithner didn’t address who would be buying up all that long-term paper, since India hasn’t made reforms in pensions and insurance to facilitate greater institutional investment in secondary debt markets.

“We need more institutional demand for corporate bonds,” Naina Lal Kidwai, India country head of HSBC bank, said in an interview on the sidelines of the conference.

Mr. Geithner also addressed what has become a touchy subject in the Group of 20 inance ministers -— the U.S. government’s call for countries running large trade surpluses and deficits to make necessary adjustments in fiscal and exchange rate policy to come closer to equilibrium with trade partners.

The U.S. runs a large current account deficit, of course, and is trying to expand its exports in whatever ways it can. That’s part of what Mr. Obama’s trip to India is about.

Mr. Geithner said emerging economies in Asia and elsewhere are recovering faster from the global recession than more developed counterparts, and those who run major trade imbalances through, for example, artificially weak exchange rates, risk destabilizing the global economy and exacerbating trade tensions.

“If you allow large excess imbalances in the major economies to re-emerge,” growth will likely slow down, he said. “Balance matters a lot to the sustainability of (economic) expansion,” he said.

Mr. Geithner said that countries running trade deficits, like the U.S., can also make improvements such as trying to increase their domestic savings rates.

He said Mr. Obama’s trip to India, which was used to announce $10 billion in U.S. exports to India -- mostly sales of military and civilian aircraft and jet engines -- has helped “illustrate for people the tangible benefits that come with the rapid expansion of trade” between countries. The White House says those India deals will support more than 50,000 U.S. jobs. [...]

Transcript: Speeches by President Obama and First Lady Michelle to students at St. Xavier's College, Mumbai; includes Q&A session

Today's edition of The Hindu reports that on November 7 the White House released the transcript, which the paper published in its entirety, as follows:

Remarks by the President and the First Lady to Students at St. Xavier's College
Mumbai, India
11:45 A.M. IST

MRS. OBAMA: Hello, everyone. Namaste. It is a pleasure and an honor to be here in India. Everyone, please sit, who can sit. Rest. It’s warm. We are thrilled to be here and to have a chance to spend time with so many outstanding young people from St. Xavier’s College and so many other schools across Mumbai.

Now, this is my first trip to India, but it is not my first exposure to India’s wonderful culture and people. See, I grew up in Chicago, which is a city with one of the largest Indian-American communities in our country. And of course, last year, as you know, we were proud to host Prime Minister Singh and Mrs. Kaur for our very first state visit and dinner. It was a beautiful evening under a tent on the South Lawn of the White House, and we got to hear some pretty great Bhangra as well. I danced there, too. (Laughter.)

So I have really been looking forward to this trip for a very long time. The time that we spend with young people during our travel is very special to both me and to the President. When I was your age, I never dreamed of traveling to countries like this and meeting with young people like all of you. In fact, there were a lot of things that I had never imagined for myself growing up, including having the honor of serving as my county’s First Lady.

My family didn’t have a lot of money. My parents never went to college. I grew up in a little bitty apartment in a working-class neighborhood on the south side of Chicago. My parents worked hard to pay the bills and to keep a roof over our heads. But even though my parents couldn't give us material things, they gave us something much more precious -- they gave me and my brother strong values. They taught us to treat others with dignity and respect. They taught us to push for excellence in every single thing we did. They taught us to be humble and to be grateful for everything we had. They taught us to put every last bit of effort into our education and to take pride in our work. They taught us that our circumstances didn’t define us, and that if we believed in ourselves, if we made the most of every single opportunity, we could build our own destinies and accomplish anything we put our minds to.

And I try every single day to take those lessons to heart. And the fact that all of you are here today tells me that we all share these same values, that we all learn these same lessons. You're here today because, like me and my husband, you believe in your dreams and you're working hard every single day to fulfill them. More importantly, you’re here because you’ve committed to something greater than yourselves. You're here not just because of your academic and extracurricular activities and achievements, but because of what you’ve done to give back to your schools and to your communities.

Your willingness to serve is critical for all that lies ahead once you finish your education. Because the truth is pretty soon the responsibilities for building our future will fall to all of you. Soon we're going to be looking to your generation to make the discoveries and build the industries that will shape our world for decades to come.

We'll be looking to you to protect our planet. We're going to be looking to you to lift up our most vulnerable citizens. We're going to be looking to you to heal the divisions that too often keep us apart. And I believe that you and your peers around the world are more than up to the challenge, because I've seen it firsthand right here in India.

Just yesterday I had the wonderful opportunity to visit an organization called Make A Difference. It’s an amazing program designed and run by young adults who recruit other young people, outstanding college students like themselves, to mentor and teach children who, as the founder said, haven’t had the same chances in life as many of the mentors have had.

These young volunteers understand and believe in something very simple, that all children, regardless of their circumstances, deserve the same chance to get educated and to build productive and successful lives. And I know that many of you here today are doing equally important work in your communities and your schools -- everything from holding camps for kids in need to teaching computer literacy skills, to finding new ways to conserve energy.

And let me tell you, this work is amazing, and it is vitally important. And that is why, as First Lady, I have tried my best to engage young people not just in the United States but around the world, letting them know that we believe in them, but more importantly, that we need them. We need you. We need you to help solve the great challenges of our time.

And that's also why when my husband travels abroad, he doesn’t just meet with heads of state in parliaments and in palaces. He always meets with young people like all of you. That's why he’s been working to expand educational exchanges and partnerships between the United States, India, and countries around the world.

Right now, more Indian students like you come to study in the United States than from any other country. And I'm proud to see that so many American students are doing the same thing right here in India, building the types of friendships and relationships that will last a lifetime. Our hope is to provide more Indian and American young people with these types of opportunities to continue to connect and share ideas and experiences.

And finally, my husband is also working to encourage young entrepreneurs everywhere to start businesses, to improve the health of our communities and to empower our young women and girls because it is never too late or too early to start changing this world for the better.

So I want to end today by congratulating you all -- congratulating you on everything you do. We are so proud of you. I want to encourage you to keep dreams -- keep dreaming big huge, gigantic dreams -- not just for yourselves, but for your communities and for our world.

And finally, I want to urge you today to ask my husband some tough questions, all right? (Laughter.) Be tough. He loves doing events like this. This brightens his days. But you got to keep him on his toes, all right?

So if you promise me that, without further ado, I would like to introduce my husband, the President of the United States, Barack Obama. (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, everybody. Thank you so much. Thank you. (Applause.) Thank you very much. Everybody, please have a seat. Have a seat. Namaste.

AUDIENCE: Namaste.

THE PRESIDENT: It is such a pleasure to be here. Now, I have to say, first of all, I don't like speaking after Michelle. (Laughter.) Because she’s very good. Also because she teases me. You notice how she said for you to all ask tough questions. If you want to ask easy questions, that's fine. (Laughter.)

But on behalf of Michelle and me I want to thank St. Xavier’s University. I want to thank Rector DeSouza. I want to thank Principal -- I want to get this right -- Mascarenhas. (Laughter.) But it’s a little smoother than that, when you say it. I want to thank Vice Principal Amonka and all of you for being such gracious hosts.

And I know it’s hot out here today. For you to be so patient with me, I’m very grateful to you. I also want to thank the city of Mumbai and the people of India for giving us such an extraordinary welcome.

In a few minutes, I’ll take some questions. I come here not just to speak, but also to listen. I want to have a dialogue with you. And this is one of the wonderful things that I have a chance to do as President of the United States. When I travel, we always try to set up a town hall meeting where we can interact with the next generation, because I want to hear from you. I want to find out what your dreams are, what your fears are, what your plans are for your country.

But if you will indulge me, I also want to say a few words about why I’m so hopeful about the partnership between our two countries and why I wanted to spend some of my time here in India speaking directly to young people like yourselves.

Now, as Michelle said, we have both looked forward to this visit to India for quite some time. We have an extraordinary amount of respect for the rich and diverse civilization that has thrived here for thousands of years. We’ve drawn strength from India’s 20th century independence struggle, which helped inspire America’s own civil rights movement. We’ve marveled at India’s growing economy and it’s dynamic democracy. And we have personally enjoyed a wonderful friendship with Prime Minister Singh and Mrs. Kaur, over the last two years.

But of course, I’m not just here to visit. I’m here because the partnership between India and the United States I believe has limitless potential to improve the lives of both Americans and Indians, just as it has the potential to be an anchor of security and prosperity and progress for Asia and for the world.

The U.S.-India relationship will be indispensible in shaping the 21st century. And the reason why is simple: As two great powers and as the world’s two largest democracies, the United States and India share common interests and common values -- values of self-determination and equality; values of tolerance and a belief in the dignity of every human being.

Already on this trip, I’ve seen those shared interests and values firsthand. We share a commitment to see that the future belongs to hope, and not fear. And I was honored to stay at the Taj Hotel, the site of the 26/11 attacks, and yesterday, in meetings with some of the survivors, I saw firsthand the resilience of the Indian people in overcoming tragedy, just as I reaffirmed our close cooperation in combating terrorism and violent extremism in all of its forms.

We also share struggles for justice and equality. I was humbled to visit Mani Bhavan, where Gandhi helped move India and the world through the strength and dignity of his leadership.

We share a commitment to see that this era after globalization leads to greater opportunity for all our people. And so yesterday, at a summit of business leaders and entrepreneurs, we discussed the potential for greater economic cooperation between our two countries -- cooperation that could create jobs and opportunity through increased trade and investment, unleashing the potential of individuals in both our countries. And even as we are countries that look to the future with optimism, Americans and Indians draw strength from tradition and from faith.

This morning, Michelle and I enjoyed the chance to join young people here in Mumbai to celebrate Diwali -- a holiday that is observed not just here in India but also in the United States, where millions of Indian-Americans have enriched our country. I have to point out, by the way, those of you who had a chance to see Michelle dance, she was moving. (Laughter.) And it was just an extraordinary gift for these young people to perform and share this wonderful tradition with us.

Tomorrow in New Delhi, I’ll have the opportunity to meet with Prime Minister Singh and many other leaders, and I’ll have the privilege to address your parliament. And there I will discuss in greater detail our efforts to broaden and deepen our cooperation and make some specific announcements on important issues like counterterrorism and regional security, on clean energy and climate change, and on the advance of economic growth and development and democracy around the globe.

Just as the sites I’ve seen and the people I’ve met here in Mumbai speak to our common humanity, the common thread that runs through the different issues that our countries cooperate on is my determination to take the partnership between our two countries to an entirely new level. Because the United States does not just believe, as some people say, that India is a rising power; we believe that India has already risen. India is taking its rightful place in Asia and on the global stage. And we see India’s emergence as good for the United States and good for the world.

But India’s future won’t simply be determined by powerful CEOs and political leaders -- just as I know that the ties among our people aren’t limited to contacts between our corporations and our governments. And that’s why I wanted to speak to all of you today, because India’s future will be determined by you and by young people like you across this country. You are the future leaders. You are the future innovators and the future educators. You’re the future entrepreneurs and the future elected officials.

In this country of more than a billion people, more than half of all Indians are under 30 years old. That’s an extraordinary statistic and it’s one that speaks to a great sense of possibility -- because in a democracy like India’s -- or America’s -- every single child holds within them the promise of greatness. And every child should have the opportunity to achieve that greatness.

Most of you are probably close to 20 years old. Just think how the world has changed in those 20 years. India’s economy has grown at a breathtaking rate. Living standards have improved for hundreds of millions of people. Your democracy has weathered assassination and terrorism. And meanwhile, around the globe, the Cold War is a distant memory and a new order has emerged, one that’s reflected in the 20 members of the G20 that will come together in Seoul next week, as countries like India assume a greater role on the world stage.

So now the future of this country is in your hands. And before I take your questions, I want you to consider three questions I have for you -- questions about what the next 20 years will bring. First, what do you want India to look like in 20 years? Nobody else can answer this question but you. It’s your destiny to write. One of the great blessings of living in a democracy is that you can always improve the democracy. As our Founding Fathers wrote in the United States, you can always forge a more perfect union.

But if you look at India’s last 20 years, it’s hard not to see the future with optimism. You have the chance to lift another several hundreds of millions of people out of poverty, grow even more this enormous middle class that can fuel growth in this country and beyond. You have the chance to take on greater responsibilities on the global stage while playing a leading role in this hugely important part of the world.

And together with the United States, you can also seize the opportunities afforded by our times: the clean energy technologies that can power our lives and save our planet; the chance to reach new frontiers in outer space; the research and development that can lead to new industry and a higher standard of living; the prospect of advancing the cause of peace and pluralism in our own countries but also beyond our borders.

Which brings me to a second question. Twenty years from now, what kind of partnership do you want to have with America? Just before I came to speak to all of you today, I visited two expos right in another courtyard here that underscore the kind of progress we can make together. The first focused on agriculture and food security, and I was able to see innovations in technology and research, which are transforming Indian farming.

A farmer showed me how he can receive crop information on his cell phone. Another showed me how tools appropriately sized and weighted for women are helping her and other female farmers increase their productivity. Many of these innovations are the result of public and private collaborations between the United States and India, the same collaboration that helped produce the first Green Revolution in the 1960s.

And tomorrow, I will be discussing with Prime Minister Singh how we can advance the cooperation in the 21st century -- not only to benefit India, not only to benefit the United States, but to benefit the world. India can become a model for countries around the world that are striving for food security.

The second expo I toured focused on the ways that innovation is empowering Indian citizens to ensure that democracy delivers for them. So I heard directly from citizens in a village hundreds of miles away, through e-panchayat. I saw new technologies and approaches that allow citizens to get information, or to fight corruption, monitor elections, find out whether their elected official is actually going to work, holding government accountable.

And while these innovations are uniquely India’s, their lessons can be applied around the world. So earlier this year, at the U.N., I called for a new focus on open societies that support open government and highlighted their potential to strengthen the foundation of freedoms in our own countries, while living up to the ideals that can light the world. And that's what India is starting do with some of this innovation.

We must remember that in some places the future of democracy is still very much in question. Just to give you an example, there are elections that are being held right now in Burma that will be anything but free and fair based on every report that we’re seeing. And for too long the people of Burma have been denied the right to determine their own destiny.

So even as we do not impose any system of government on other countries, we, especially young people, must always speak out for those human rights that are universal, and the right of people everywhere to make their own decisions about how to shape their future, which will bring me to my final question, and then you guys can start sending questions my way.

How do you -- how do each of you want to make the world a better place? Keep in mind that this is your world to build, your century to shape. And you’ve got a powerful example of those who went before you. Just as America had the words and deeds of our Founding Fathers to help chart a course towards freedom and justice and opportunity, India has this incredible history to draw on, millennia of civilization, the examples of leaders like Gandhi and Nehru.

As I stood in Mani Bhavan, I was reminded that Martin Luther King made his own pilgrimage to that site over 50 years ago. In fact, we saw the book that he had signed. After he returned home, King said that he was struck by how Gandhi embodied in his life certain universal principles that are inherent in the moral structure of the universe, and these principles are as inescapable as the law of gravitation.

You have that power within you. You, too, must embody those principles. For even within this time of great progress, there are great imperfections, the injustice of oppression, the grinding punishment of poverty, the scourge of violent extremism and war. King and Gandhi made it possible for all of us to be here today -- me as a President, you as a citizen of a country that's made remarkable progress. Now you have the opportunity and the responsibility to also make this plant a better place.

And as you do, you’ll have the friendship and partnership of the United States, because we are interested in advancing those same universal principles that are as inescapable as the law of gravitation.

The lives that you lead will determine whether that opportunity is extended to more of the world’s people -- so that a child who yearns for a better life in rural India or a family that's fled from violence in Africa, or a dissident who sits in a Burmese prison, or a community that longs for peace in war-torn Afghanistan -- whether they are able to achieve their dreams.

And sometimes the challenges may be incredibly hard, and in the face of darkness, we may get discouraged. But we can always draw on the light of those who came before us. I hope you keep that light burning within you, because together the United States and India can shape a century in which our own citizens and the people of the world can claim the hope of a better life.

So thank you very much for your patience. And now you can take Michelle’s advice and ask me some tough questions. Thank you very much. (Applause.)

So we have I think people in the audience with microphones, and so when they come up, if you could introduce yourself -- love to know who you are. And we'll start with that young lady right over there.

Q: Hi, good day, sir. Hi, my name is Anna and I’m from St. Davis College. My question to you is, what is your take on opinion about jihad, or jihadi? Whatever is your opinion, what do you think of them?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, the phrase jihad has a lot of meanings within Islam and is subject to a lot of different interpretations. But I will say that, first, Islam is one of the world’s great religions. And more than a billion people who practice Islam, the overwhelming majority view their obligations to their religion as ones that reaffirm peace and justice and fairness and tolerance. I think all of us recognize that this great religion in the hands of a few extremists has been distorted to justify violence towards innocent people that is never justified.

And so I think one of the challenges that we face is how do we isolate those who have these distorted notions of religious war and reaffirm those who see faiths of all sorts -- whether you are a Hindu or a Muslim or a Christian or a Jew or any other religion, or your don't practice a religion -- that we can all treat each other with respect and mutual dignity, and that some of the universal principles that Gandhi referred to -- that those are what we’re living up to, as we live in a nation or nations that have very diverse religious beliefs.

And that's a major challenge. It’s a major here in India, but it’s a challenge obviously around the world. And young people like yourselves can make a huge impact in reaffirming that you can be a stronger observer of your faith without putting somebody else down or visiting violence on somebody else.

I think a lot of these ideas form very early. And how you respond to each other is going to be probably as important as any speech that a President makes in encouraging the kinds of religious tolerance that I think is so necessary in a world that's getting smaller and smaller, where more and more people of different backgrounds, different races, different ethnicities are interacting and working and learning from each other.

And those circumstances -- I think all of us have to fundamentally reject the notion that violence is a way to mediate our differences.

All right. Yes, I may not get to every question. I’ll call on this young man right here. Right there, yes.

President Obama's Q&A

Q: Good morning, sir. My name is Jehan (phonetic). I’m from H.R. College. So my question is more about spirituality and moral values. We see today in today’s world, there more of a materialistic frame of thought when it comes to generations -- budding generations. So what do you believe is a possible methodology which governments, rather yours or any other governments in the world, they can adopt to basically incorporate the human core values, the moral values of selflessness, brotherhood, over the materialistic frame of thought which people work by today?

THE PRESIDENT: It’s a terrific question and I’m glad you’re asking it. India is making enormous progress in part because, like America, it has this incredible entrepreneurial talent, entrepreneurial spirit. And I think we should not underestimate how liberating economic growth can be for a country.

In the United States, I used to work with a lot of churches when I was still a community organizer, before I went to law school. And one of the common phrases among the pastors there was, it’s hard to preach to an empty stomach. It’s hard to preach to an empty stomach. If people have severe, immediate material needs -- shelter, food, clothing -- then that is their focus. And economic growth and development that is self-sustaining can liberate people, allow them -- it forms the basis for folks to get an education and to expand their horizons. And that's all for the good.

So I don't want any person here to be dismissive of a healthy materialism because in a country like India, there’s still a lot of people trapped in poverty. And you should be working to try to lift folks out of poverty, and companies and businesses have a huge role in making that happen.

Now, having said that, if all you’re thinking about is material wealth, then I think that shows a poverty of ambition. When I was visiting Gandhi’s room, here in Mumbai, it was very telling that the only objects in the room were a mat and a spinning wheel and some sandals and a few papers. And this is a man who changed history like probably no one else in the 20th century in terms of the number of lives that he affected. And he had nothing, except an indomitable spirit.

So everyone has a role to play. And those of you who are planning to go into business, I think it’s wonderful that you’re going into business and you should pursue it with all your focus and energy. Those of you, though, who are more inclined to teach or more inclined to public service, you should also feel encouraged that you are playing just as critical a role. And whatever occupation you choose, giving back to the community and making sure that you’re reaching back to help people, lift up people who may have been left behind, that’s a solemn obligation.

And by the way, it’s actually good for you. It’s good for your spirit. It’s good for your own moral development. It will make you a happier person, knowing that you’ve given back and you’ve contributed something.

Last point I would make -- I think this is another thing that India and the United States share, is there’s a healthy skepticism about public servants, particularly electoral politics. In the United States, people generally have -- hold politicians in fairly low esteem -- sometimes for good reason, but some of it is just because the view is that somehow government can’t do anything right. And here in India, one of the big impediments to development is the fact that in some cases the private sector is moving much faster than the public sector is moving.

And I would just suggest that I hope some of you decide to go ahead and get involved in public service -- which can be frustrating. It can be, at times, slow -- you don’t see progress as quickly as you’d like. But India is going to need you not just as businessmen but also as leaders who are helping to reduce bureaucracy and make government more responsive and deliver services more efficiently. That’s going to be just as important in the years to come. Because otherwise you’re going to get a imbalance where some are doing very well but broad-based economic growth is not moving as quickly as it could.

Excellent question.

I’m going to go boy-girl-boy-girl, or girl-boy-girl-boy, just to make sure it’s fair. Let’s see. This young lady right there -- yes.

Q: Hello. I actually wanted to ask you -- you mention Mahatma Gandhi a lot usually in your speeches. So I was just wondering how exactly do you implement his principles and his values in your day-to-day life, and how do you expect the people in the U.S. to live in those values? Thank you.

THE PRESIDENT: Well, it’s a terrific question. Let me say, first of all, that he, like Dr. King, like Abraham Lincoln, are people who I’m constantly reading and studying, and I find myself falling woefully short of their example all the time. So I’m often frustrated by how far I fall short of their example.

But I do think that at my best, what I’m trying to do is to apply principles that fundamentally come down to something shared in all the world’s religions, which is to see yourself in other people; to understand the inherent worth and dignity of every individual, regardless of station, regardless of rank, regardless of wealth, and to absolutely value and cherish and respect that individual; and then hopefully, try to take that principle of treating others as you would want to be treated and find ways where that can apply itself in communities and in cities and in states and ultimately in a country and in the world.

As I said, I often find myself falling short of that ideal. But I tend to judge any particular policy based on, is this advancing that spirit; that it’s helping individuals realize their potential; that it’s making sure that all children are getting an education -- so that I’m not just worrying about my children; that I’m thinking, first and foremost, about the United States of America, because that’s my responsibility as President, but I’m also recognizing that we are in an interrelationship with other countries in the world and I can’t ignore an abuse of human rights in another country. I can’t ignore hardships that may be suffering -- that may be suffered by somebody of a different nationality.

That I think more than anything is what I carry with me on a day-to-day basis. But it’s not always apparent that I’m making progress on that front.

One of the other things I draw from all great men and women, like a Gandhi, though, is that on this journey you’re going to experience setbacks and you have to be persistent and stubborn, and you just have to keep on going at it. And you’ll never roll the boulder all the way up the hill but you may get it part of the way up.

This gentleman in the blue shirt. Do we have a microphone? Oh, here we go. Thanks.

Q: Good afternoon, Mr. President.

THE PRESIDENT: Good afternoon.

Q: It’s an honor to question you. What my question would be is, when you were being elected as President, one of the words you used a lot was “change.” After your midterm election, the midterm -- it seems that the American people have asked for a change. The change that you will make, how exactly is it going to affect young India, people from my generation?

THE PRESIDENT: That’s an interesting question.

Q: Thank you.

THE PRESIDENT: The United States has gone through probably the toughest two years economically as we’ve gone through since the 1930s. I mean, this was a profound financial crisis and economic shock, and it spilled over to most of the world. India weathered it better than many countries. But most of the work that I did with Prime Minister Singh in the first two years in the G20, we were focused on making sure that the world’s financial system didn’t collapse.

And although we’ve now stabilized the economy, unemployment in the United States is very high now relative to what it typically has been over the last several decades. And so people are frustrated. And although we’re making progress, we’re not making progress quickly enough.

And one of the wonderful things about democracy is that when the people are not happy, it is their right, obligation, and duty to express their unhappiness, much to the regret sometimes of incumbents. But that’s a good thing. That’s a healthy thing.

And my obligation is to make sure that I stick to the principles and beliefs and ideas that will move America forward -- because I profoundly believe that we have to invest in education, that that will be the primary driver of growth in the future; that we’ve got to invest in a strong infrastructure; that we have to make sure that we are taking advantage of opportunities like clean energy.

But it also requires me to make some midcourse corrections and adjustments. And how those play themselves out over the next several months will be a matter of me being in discussions with the Republican Party, which is now going to be controlling the House of Representatives. And there are going to be areas where we disagree and hopefully there are going to be some areas where we agree.

Now, you asked specifically, how do I think it will affect policy towards India. I actually think that the United States has a enormous fondness for India, partly because there are so many Indian-Americans and because of the shared values that we have. And so there is a strong bipartisan belief that India is going to be a critical partner with the United States in the 21st century. That was true when George Bush was President. That was true when Bill Clinton was President. It was true under Democratic and Republican control of Congress.

So I don’t think that fundamental belief is going to be altered in any significant way. I do think that one of the challenges that we’re going to be facing in the United States is at a time when we’re still recovering from this crisis, how do we respond to some of the challenges of globalization? Because the fact of the matter is, is that for most of my lifetime -- I’ll turn 50 next year -- for most of my lifetime, the United States was such a dominant economic power, we were such a large market, our industry, our technology, our manufacturing was so significant that we always met the rest of the world economically on our terms. And now, because of the incredible rise of India and China and Brazil and other countries, the United States remains the largest economic and the largest market but there’s real competition out there.

And that's potentially healthy. It makes -- Michelle was saying earlier I like tough questions because it keeps me on my toes. Well, this will keep America on its toes. And I'm positive we can compete because we've got the most open, most dynamic entrepreneurial culture; we've got some of the finest universities in the world; incredible research and technology. But it means that we're going to have to compete.

And I think that there’s going to be a tug of war within the United States between those who see globalization as a threat and want to retrench, and those who accept that we live in a open, integrated world which has challenges and opportunities and we've got to manage those challenges and manage those opportunities, but we shouldn’t be afraid of them.

And so what that means, for example, is on issues of trade, part of the reason I'm traveling through Asia this week is I believe that the United States will grow and prosper if we are trading with Asia. It’s the fastest-growing region in the world. We want access to your markets. We think we've got good products to sell; you think that you’ve got good products to sell us. This can be a win-win situation.

So I want to make sure that we're here because this will create jobs in the United States and it can create jobs in India. But that means that we've got to negotiate this changing relationship. Back in the 1960s or ‘70s, the truth is the American economy could be open even if our trading partners’ economies weren’t open. So if India was protecting certain sectors of its economy, it didn’t really have such a big effect on us. We didn’t need necessarily reciprocity because our economy was so much larger.

Well, now, things have changed. So it’s not unfair for the United States to say, look, if our economy is open to everybody, countries that trade with us have to change their practices to open up their markets to us. There has to be reciprocity in our trading relationship. And if we can have those kinds of conversations, fruitful, constructive conversations about how we produce win-win situations, then I think we'll be fine.

If the American people feel that trade is just a one-way street, where everybody is selling to the enormous U.S. market but we can never sell what we make anywhere else, then people in the United States will start thinking, well, this is a bad deal for us. And that could end up leading to a more protectionist instinct in both parties -- not just among Democrats, but also among Republicans. So that's what we have to guard against.

All right, it’s a young lady’s turn. This young lady with the glasses -- yes.

Q: A very warm welcome to you to India, sir.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you so much.

Q: I'm from H.R. College of Commerce and Economics. We were the privileged college to host Mr. Otis Moss this January. Sir, my question to you is why is Pakistan so important an ally to America, so far as America has never called it a terrorist state?

THE PRESIDENT: Well -- no, no, it’s a good question. And I must admit I was expecting it. (Laughter.) Pakistan is an enormous country. It is a strategically important country not just for the United States but for the world. It is a country whose people have enormous potential, but it is also, right now, a country that within it has some of the extremist elements that we discussed in the first question. That's not unique to Pakistan, but obviously it exists in Pakistan.

The Pakistani government is very aware of that. And what we have tried to do over the last several years, certainly -- I'll just speak to my foreign policy -- has been to engage aggressively with the Pakistani government to communicate that we want nothing more than a stable, prosperous, peaceful Pakistan, and that we will work with the Pakistani government in order to eradicate this extremism that we consider a cancer within the country that can potentially engulf the country.

And I will tell you that I think the Pakistani government understands now the potential threat that exists within their own borders. There are more Pakistanis who’ve been killed by terrorists inside Pakistan than probably anywhere else.

Now, progress is not as quick as we’d like, partly because when you get into, for example, some of the Northwest Territories, these are very -- this is very difficult terrain, very entrenched. The Pakistani army has actually shifted some of its emphasis and focus into those areas. But that's not originally what their armed forces were designed to do, and so they’re having to adapt and adjust to these new dangers and these new realities.

I think there is a growing recognition -- but it’s something that doesn’t happen overnight -- of what a profound problem this is. And so our feeling has been to be honest and forthright with Pakistan, to say we are your friend, this is a problem and we will help you, but the problem has to be addressed.

Now, let me just make this point, because obviously the history between India and Pakistan is incredibly complex and was born of much tragedy and much violence. And so it may be surprising to some of you to hear me say this, but I am absolutely convinced that the country that has the biggest stake in Pakistan’s success is India. I think that if Pakistan is unstable, that's bad for India. If Pakistan is stable and prosperous, that's good.

Because India is on the move. And it is absolutely in your interests, at a time when you're starting to succeed in incredible ways on the global economic stage, that you [don’t] want the distraction of security instability in your region. So my hope is, is that over time trust develops between the two countries, that dialogue begins -- perhaps on less controversial issues, building up to more controversial issues -- and that over time there’s a recognition that India and Pakistan can live side by side in peace and that both countries can prosper.

That will not happen tomorrow. But I think that needs to be our ultimate goal.

And by the way, the United States stands to be a friend and a partner in that process, but we can't impose that on India and Pakistan. Ultimately, India and Pakistan have to arrive at their own understandings in terms of how the relationship evolves.

Okay. I've got time for one more question. It’s a guy’s turn. This young man right here, in the striped shirt.

Q: Good afternoon, Mr. President. It’s an absolute honor to hear you, and I must say this, that one day I hope I be half as good as a leader as you are today.

THE PRESIDENT: Well, you're very kind. Thank you.

Q: Mr. President, my question relates to your Afghanistan policy. In light of your statements that the troop withdrawal would start in 2011, there have been recent developments that would indicate that USA has been in talks with Taliban so as to strike out a stable government in Afghanistan as when you withdraw. Now, does this point to the acceptance of the inevitability of the U.S. to fulfill the vision which they had, with which they invaded Afghanistan in 2001? Does it point out to their inability to take a military control of all the southern regions so that we can install a stable government? You notice that in Iraq where there’s a lot of instability now. So does it point to a sort of tacit acceptance of U.S. inability to create harmony in Afghanistan?

THE PRESIDENT: First of all, I want to just unpack some of the assumptions inside the question because they were broadly based in fact, but I want to be very precise here.

I have said that starting in the summer of next year, July 2011, we will begin drawing down our troop levels, but we will not be removing all our troops. Keep in mind that we ramped up significantly because the idea was that for seven years we had just been in a holding pattern; we’d had just enough troops to keep Kabul intact but the rest of the countryside was deteriorating in fairly significant ways. There wasn’t a real strategy. And my attitude was, I don't want to, seven years from now, or eight years from now, be in the exact same situation. That's not a sustainable equilibrium.

So I said, let’s put more troops in to see if we can create more space and stability and time for Afghan security forces to develop, and then let’s begin drawing down our troops as we’re able to stand up Afghan security forces.

Now, in fact, it turns out that in Iraq -- you mentioned Iraq as a parallel -- in Iraq, we have been relatively successful in doing that. The government is taking way too long to get formed, and that is a source of frustration to us and I’m sure to the Iraq people. Having said that, though, if you think about it, it’s been seven months since the election, and violence levels are actually lower in Iraq than they’ve been just about any time since the war started -- at a time when we pulled back our forces significantly. So it shows that it is possible to train effective, indigenous security forces so that they can provide their own security. And hopefully politics then resolves differences, as opposed to violence.

Now, Afghan, I think is actually more complicated, more difficult, probably because it’s a much poorer country. It does not have as strong a tradition of a central government. Civil service is very underdeveloped. And so I think that the pace at which we’re drawing down is going to be determined in part by military issues, but it’s also going to be determined by politics. And that is, is it possible for a sizeable portion of the Pashtun population in Afghanistan that may be teetering back and forth between Taliban or a central government, is it possible for them to feel that their ethnicity, their culture, their numerical position in the country is adequately represented, and can they do that within the context of a broader constitutional Afghan government.

And I think that's a worthy conversation to have. So what we’ve said to President Karzai -- because this is being initiated by him -- what we’ve said is if former Taliban members or current Taliban members say that they are willing to disassociate themselves with al Qaeda, renounce violence as a means of achieving their political aims, and are willing to respect the Afghan constitution so that, for example, women are treated with all the right that men are afforded, then, absolutely, we support the idea of a political resolution of some of these differences.

Now, there are going to be some elements that are affiliated to the Taliban that are also affiliated with al Qaeda or LT or these other organizations, these extremists that are irreconcilable. They will be there. And there will need to be a military response to those who would perpetrate the kind of violence that we saw here in Mumbai in a significant ongoing way -- or the kind that we saw on 9/11 in New York City.

But I think a stable Afghanistan is achievable. Will it look exactly as I might design a democracy? Probably not. It will take on an Afghan character.

I do think that there are lessons that India has to show not just countries like Afghanistan but countries in sub-Saharan Africa. I mean, some of the incredible work that I saw being done in the agricultural sector is applicable to widely dispersed rural areas in a place like Afghanistan and could -- I promise you, if we can increase farmers’ yields in Afghanistan by 20 percent or 25 percent, and they can get their crops to market, and they’re cutting out a middleman and they’re ending up seeing a better standard of life for themselves, that goes a long way in encouraging them to affiliate with a modern world.

And so India’s investment in development in Afghanistan is appreciated. Pakistan has to be a partner in this process. In fact, all countries in the region are going to be partners in this process. And the United States welcomes that. We don’t think we can do this alone.

But part of our -- and this is probably a good way to end -- part of my strong belief is that around the world, your generation is poised to solve some of my generation’s mistakes and my parents’ generation’s mistakes. You’ll make your own mistakes, but there’s such incredible potential and promise for you to start pointing in new directions in terms of how economies are organized, in terms of how moral precepts and values and principles are applied, in how nations work together to police each other so that they’re not -- so that when there’s genocide or there is ethnic cleansing, or there are gross violations of human rights, that an international community joins together and speaks with one voice; so that economic integration isn’t a source of fear or anxiety, but rather is seen as enormous promise and potential; where we’re able to tackle problems that we can’t solve by ourselves.

I went to a lower school -- do you call them high schools here? It’s sort of a high school. And Michelle and I saw this wonderful exhibit of global warming and the concerns that these young people have -- they were 14, 15. And their energy and their enthusiasm was infectious. And I asked them, which one of you are going to be scientists who are going to try to solve this problem? And all of them raised their hands. And I said, well, this is hugely important for India. And they said, no, not for India -- for the world.

You see, their ambitions were not just to be great scientists for India. Their ambition was to be a great scientist for the world -- because they understood that something like climate change or clean energy, that’s not an American problem or an Indian problem -- that’s a human problem. And all of us are going to have to be involved in finding solutions to it.

And as I listen to all of you, with your wonderful questions, I am incredibly optimistic and encouraged that you will help find those solutions in the years to come.

So, thank you very much for your hospitality. Thank you, everybody. (Applause.)

END 12:45 P.M. IST

President Obama's visit to India, Day 3: Bully for Bob "Iron Foot" Gibbs

(AP Photo)

By MICHAEL D. SHEAR
New York Times
November 8, 2010

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs is known for his angry tirades directed at [American] reporters. But Mr. Gibbs turned his famous intensity on Indian security officials Monday morning — in defense of the American press corps — after the officials tried to bar reporters from attending a meeting between the leaders of the two countries in New Dehli, according to reporters on the scene.

American and Indian officials had agreed to allow a group of eight American reporters, known as the “pool,” into the beginning of the meeting between President Obama and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

But when the time came for them to enter, Indian officials refused to allow more than five of them. Gibbs loudly protested the change, and at one point threatened to pull Mr. Obama out of the meeting with the prime minister if the security officials did not relent.

“At one point, Gibbs literally had his foot lodged in the closing front door, asking if the Indian security officials pushing hard to shut it were going to break his foot,” reports Scott Wilson of the Washington Post. “More angry words ensued, and after Gibbs convinced them, through high volume and repetition, that he was serious about pulling POTUS, we all made it inside.”

... Mr. Wilson reported, half in jest, that the American reporters have begun calling themselves “the White House eight” to reflect the difficulties with the Indian officials. Earlier in the trip, the group of White House reporters clashed with Indian officials on the tarmac of the airport.

Security in India around Mr. Obama’s visit has been exceedingly tight — and no wonder, given India’s strong memories of the Mumbai terrorist attacks of two years ago. Reporters and others attending Mr. Obama’s joint conference with Prime Minister Singh on Monday were subjected to intense pat-down searches.

White House reporters and the president’s press secretary are usually considered adversaries. But it is not uncommon for White House officials to become protective of the American press corp while overseas.

Still, the threat by Mr. Gibbs to intervene as boldly as he did on behalf of the press was a unique moment in press-White House relations.

And as the group of reporters drove to their next destination on the trip – the parliament building for a speech by Mr. Obama – they had an extra passenger in the press van, just in case: Mr. Gibbs.

Politico's report on the same incident adds:

... The incident follows repeated confrontations between Indian security and the White House press corps since Obama arrived in the country on Saturday.

White House reporters were held outside the entrance to Obama and Singh’s joint press conference Monday for two hours because Indian officials refused to allow them in and repeatedly changed the rules for entry, such as whether or not laptops were allowed inside.

At the airport in New Delhi, Indian officials refused to allow members of the White House press pool that travels on Air Force One to stand under the wing of the plane to photograph Obama’s exit and greeting of officials on the tarmac, including Singh. U.S. officials also had to overcome several obstacles put up by Indian officials to clear in members of the press corps to Obama’s town hall with students in Mumbai on Sunday. ...

Erica Werner's report for AP on the incident adds that the eight reporters were allowed inside "for all of about one minute" and:

Local reporters said their White House counterparts were being treated that way because Indian journalists suffered through similar treatment when Singh visited the White House last year.

A minute is better than nothing. I'd always assumed Gibbs was a bit of a milquetoast. Clearly I hadn't watched enough of his press briefings.