Sardinia Says It's Time for the U.S. Navy to Leave Port

[dArKeR]

Sardinia may be best known as a lush playground for the rich and famous who cavort amid its pristine waters and secluded beaches, but it also plays host to U.S. nuclear submarines and more military installations and activity — American, Italian and NATO — than anywhere else in Italy. Plans to draw down the U.S. military elsewhere in Europe and in the United States do not apply here.

That does not sit well with the man who governs Sardinia and a small but growing movement of activists who say the soldiers and sailors have overstayed their welcome.

"The real issue for us is, after 30 years, we still have an American base here in our archipelago. Is that necessary?" Sardinia's regional president, Renato Soru, said in an interview in Cagliari, the capital city at the opposite end of the island from La Maddalena.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/latimests/20050717/ts_latimes/sardiniasaysitstimefortheusnavytoleaveport

[wli]

1. oh but of course

Surely this has nothing to do with the Gladio/CIA scandal about the "rendition" of Mullah Omar to Egypt to be tortured.

[Judi Lynn]

2. How do you uninvite someone who has invited himself?

They've earned their freedom, after putting up with this for 30 years. The area's wishes should be respected.

[donsu]

3. agree

nt

[Supersedeas]

8. yep

[Javaman]

9. In NY we say, "get the hell out!", but that's just me LOL

[OKthatsIT]

4. Who can blame any country wanting the US off their land.

Our Govt's foreign policy simply can't be trusted anymore.

[K-W]

5. Bud didnt they get the memo, US occupation is a wonderful thing. nt

[realFedUp]

6. Too hot in Sardinia

snip

But Sardinia is not for the faint-hearted. In summer, the heat can be blistering. Winter winds are some of the most vicious in the Mediterranean. Hotels and restaurants can be either outrageously expensive or dismally primitive. Public transportation is unreliable and moves at a snail's pace. Even getting to the island can be arduous, especially in summer when ferries and planes are packed. Sardinia is for adventurers, for those of us who like to feel we've accomplished something when we travel, those who want to push just a little bit farther than the crowd, those who are intrigued, not frightened, by civilizations that initially may seem inexplicable. Sardinia, it seems, is just the kind of place In Italy's readers are looking for.

[realFedUp]

7. I thought the Caspian Sea was the playground of special forces now....

so hard to keep track of.

[Chicago Democrat]

10. Yay! I love Sardines

good for them... amazing art