David Sedaris is coming!

Seattle on October 26th... who wants to come with me?

progress in Africa?

A few days ago, Britain and France announced an UN mandate for a 26,000-strong peacekeeping force to protect Darfur. But unfortunately, the resolution has been modified to appease Sudan (and China). The unanimous vote came after negotiations secured the support of China, which has a veto on the Security Council and strong economic interests in Sudan.

Changes to the resolution:

• The new force will not have the right to disarm the militias and it does not have the powers to pursue and arrest suspected war criminals indicted by the International Criminal Court.

• Deletion of a provision on a threat of "further measures," a code word for sanctions, against rebels or the government if they obstruct a peace process.

I'm still hopeful this effort will bring stability to Darfur, and the rest of the world will continue to push for a political solution.

In other African news... Sierra Leone's UN-backed war crimes court found two ex-leaders of a pro-government militia (Civil Defense Force) guilty of crimes committed during the country's 1991-2002 civil war. A few weeks ago, three senior members of the rebel group (Armed Forces Revolutionary Council) were tried and jailed for 45-50 years. Although the focus should be on rebuilding the country, I'm glad guilty people are being held responsible for their actions.