Will Hillary "evolve" on her support for cluster bombs?

[HooptieWagon]

That was quite an appalling vote. Cluster bombs kill and maim a high number of civilians...especially children.
http://www.berkeleydailyplanet.com/issue/2008-03-18/article/29503?headline=Commentary-Hillary-Clinton-s-Shameful-Vote-on-Cluster-Bombs--By-Paul-Rockwell

[stonecutter357]

1. Will Bernie Sanders evolve on being a gun nut?

[wyldwolf]

2. doubtful. Many gun nuts would consider cluster bombs to be protected by the second amendment

Bernie probably feels sportsman in VT are more responsible with cluster bombs than (dog whistle) people in Chicago and LA.

[morningfog]

3. At least you are finally calling him a racist.

You tapped around it long enough. Good to see you have the gumption to come out and say it.

[karynnj]

6. asinine argument as Sanders would not be part of that group

Which may very well exist. Please provide a link that shows VT gun owners support bombs, much less cluster bombs. I suppose you think it clever to use the argument that Sanders, like Dean used in a strange way.

Also note that many Democratic vets, including West Point grad Reed, John Kerry and Tom Harken all voted against it. This was not a good vote.

[Agschmid]

4. Another day another OP which isn't going to do anything..

to change the way people are going to vote.

You can, and should do better...

Have at me.

[Cerridwen]

5. "Let me be clear, this amendment does not place a ban on cluster bombs." Feinstein, Amd. Author

From the Congressional Record regarding the Feinstein/Leahy amendment to the Department of Defense Appropriations act, referred to as "a senate bill" the article: https://www.congress.gov/congressional-record/2006/09/06/senate-section/article/S8992-2

<biggish snip>
I ask this question: Is this the source of legacy we want to leave
behind in Iraq and Afghanistan?
Let me be clear, this amendment does not place a ban on cluster
bombs. It is a simple step that will give the Pentagon time to develop
specific guidelines to ensure that cluster bombs are not used in or
near populated areas. Does anyone in this Senate believe that a cluster
munition should be used in a civilian populated area? That person can
stand up and talk to that point of view. It is unconscionable. It is
immoral. It is beyond the laws of warfare. If somebody wants to argue
that point of view, so be it. If that is the kind of country a Member
wants to represent, so be it. It is not the country I want to
represent.
This is a simple amendment which says no funds will be used until
there are rules of engagement that say that these munitions will not be
used in civilian areas where death and maiming is apt to result.
This amendment will go a long way toward ensuring only prudent
battlefield use. I hope this amendment has an opportunity to pass.

<more big snip to much more at link>

The final appropriations bill as passed: https://www.congress.gov/bill/109th-congress/house-bill/5631/text (Summaries of the various version can also be read at this link)

What the US is doing regarding demining:

Overview of U.S. Humanitarian Demining Program
To Walk the Earth in Safety: The United States Commitment to Humanitarian Demining
Bureau of Political-Military Affairs
September 2002
Report

<snip>

Generally, DoD funds a humanitarian demining program's start-up costs, and DOS provides subsequent funds to procure the necessary equipment for mine-affected countries to conduct mine-clearance operations. From 1994 through 2001, DoD spent more than $115,000,000 on mine-action programs in more than 30 countries. An additional $32,000,000 was appropriated for DoD-sponsored demining operations in Fiscal Year (FY) 02, including $12,600,000 for humanitarian demining technology research and development (R&D). The components of the DoD humanitarian demining program are: (1) mine-awareness education; (2) MAC development; (3) civil-military cooperation; (4) victim assistance; and (5) demining training—or train-the-trainer—the core of the program. More than 4,000 indigenous trainers have benefited from this core program.

The U.S. Government has now approved programs to assist 43 landmine-affected countries and northwest Somalia. Through its Humanitarian Demining Program and Emergency Demining Initiative, the list of recipients is expected to expand as the United States approves more applicant countries each year. To Walk the Earth in Safety describes the extensive history of the U.S. commitment to humanitarian demining in these 44 locations. The following table depicts all U.S.-funded humanitarian demining support since FY93, support intended to promote our interests in peace, prosperity, and regional stability.

Secretary of State Remarks at the Release of the Tenth Edition of To Walk the Earth in Safety Report

<snip>

Excess and unstable munitions, along with the countless number of landmines still buried around the world, pose a grave danger to the lives and safety of men, women, and children everywhere. In areas recovering from conflict, loose weapons increase the threat that groups or individuals might reignite hostilities. And around the world, landmines render thousands of acres of land unusable and literally tear away the fabric from communities unable to farm land, unable to walk safely from village to village.

But we are making important progress. Over the last decade, we have helped decrease the worldwide number of landmine casualties from around 15- to 20,000 annually to approximately 4,000 in each of the last two years. That is still an unacceptably high figure. But the progress we made is due in no small part to the commitment of the United States Government and partner organizations to clear hundreds of thousands of anti-personnel and anti-vehicle landmines.

This report documents the $201 million in aid the United States provided in 2010 to help 49 countries clear explosive remnants of war and destroy excess stockpiles of weapons and munitions. And there are a lot of good news stories to tell coming out of this.

<snip>

Now, clearing and destroying conventional weapons is only one part of our work to support civilians who live in dangerous areas with explosive remnants of war. We are raising awareness about the threat of unexploded ordnance so that, whenever possible, we can prevent injuries from occurring. And when they do occur, we strive to help survivors and their families rebuild their lives.

Our humanitarian action includes medical rehabilitation and vocational training for landmine survivors. Forty landmine victims in Bamyan Province, Afghanistan, half of whom were women, recently graduated from a program where they learned to tailor clothes and repair motorcycles. These kinds of assistance programs give landmine survivors new skills to help them provide for themselves and their families, and it also helps reintegrate them back into society.

<snip to much more at link>