Lee Webber, the retired publisher of the Pacific Daily News, contends in his column of Aug. 23 that I have experienced "a change of heart" and suddenly decided to support the Guam military buildup/realignment. This is based on a letter I wrote concerning use of CNMI airports to divert plane traffic in the event of a typhoon or attack on Guam and not part of military buildup plans at all.
As the record that Webber either doesn't share or doesn't know shows, I, as well as the Guam Chamber of Commerce, have supported the proposed military buildup from the beginning of the discussions in 2007, provided that it is reasonable and fair to the people of Guam.
As Webber said, the Guam Chamber has asked candidates for the 32nd Guam Legislature to answer yes or no on whether they support a "proposition" in favor of "any program by our military to enhance its presence in the Mariana Islands."
Two statements from 2007 show that I and the Guam Chamber have long shared similar positions and support a military buildup that is a "win-win" for both the military and the people who make their home in Guam. That is not a statement approving everything the military wants to do in advance, as Webber and some of his like-minded colleagues are demanding from Guam's elected leadership.
?April 2007: "I want it well understood that I fully support the movement of the 8,000 Marines and their dependents from Okinawa to Guam. As a patriotic American and a devoted Guamanian I believe that we will welcome our Marines 'home' with our noted hospitality." (My statement).
?Aug. 13, 2007: "The Guam Chamber of Commerce pledges its full support for the planned U.S. military buildup, subject to the reasonable adjustments required to satisfy mutual concerns of the military and residents of Guam and the CNMI." (Statement by Stephen Ruder, chairman of the Guam Chamber of Commerce Board).
When I became chair of the Guam Military Buildup Committee of the Guam Legislature in 2009, I again took the position that Guam should benefit from the buildup: "Our primary responsibility will be to make sure that Guam truly benefits from the buildup. The motto for the committee is 'If it is not win-win, we both lose.'"
And this was echoed in a 2010 "white paper" by the Guam Chamber of Commerce supporting the buildup: "We believe that it is in our interests, the interests of the larger community that we serve and, in many respects, the interests of the government of the United States and its Department of Defense (DOD) to adjust the proposed actions in such a way as to enhance the benefits and reduce the potential negative impacts of said actions for Guam's civilian community."
As I told the Guam Chamber of Commerce in my submission this week, these statements by both myself and the Chamber "reflect positions that emphasize support for a positive and sustainable buildup. I continue to stand by my statements and I applaud the Chamber's like-minded position -- they read just as well today as they did when they were originally made."
The Chamber's proposition also suggested that if Guam allows the military to do anything it wants with no advance conditions, it will help us win U.S. statehood. I've been an active and vocal supporter of Guam statehood for many years, and while I agree with the Chamber's hope that support of the Guam military buildup would be a factor that "will open the doors, too long closed to us, to being recognized as a constructive and integral part of the United States," no true U.S. entity with full representation and constitutional rights would be expected to agree to such conditions as allowing the military to do absolutely anything it wants to do in Guam.
Reasonableness and fairness to the people of Guam must guide the military in designing and executing the military buildup in Guam. This is the commitment made by Department of the Navy Undersecretary Robert Work to all Guam residents during his visit to our island in January 2011. This has been and continues to be my position since the beginning of the buildup discussions in 2007.
Judith P. Guthertz is a senator in the 31st Guam Legislature.
Source: http://www.guampdn.com/article/20120825/OPINION02/208250318/1014/rss03
dash diet how to make moonshine joel osteen emmy rossum jay z and beyonce the big chill tony blankley
কোন মন্তব্য নেই:
একটি মন্তব্য পোস্ট করুন