Anchor Country - Argentina

I have not written about anchor countries in a while, but Argentina's recent actions certainly win it a place in this category for some of the worst countries on earth. The actions I am talking about are the child's tantrum the country and its President are throwing because the UK won't hand over the Falkland Islands, simply because the Argentinians are demanding it.

Argentina’s industry minister called for British imports to be banned, in the latest attempt to compel Britain to negotiate over the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands as tension rises ahead of the 30th anniversary of the 1982 war. Britain responded by summoning Osvaldo Marsico, charge d’affaires at the Argentine embassy in London, to receive a formal protest at the Foreign Office. “We made clear that such actions against legitimate commercial activity were a matter of concern not just for the UK, but for the European Union as a whole, and that we expect the EU to lodge similar concerns with Argentine authorities,” said a Foreign Office spokesman. - The Telegraph

In addition to the calls to boycott UK goods, Argentina has recently refused entry to their ports to cruise ships that have called the Falklands as well as have refused entry for Falklands fishing vessels, a port ban that has spread to neighboring countries as well. All actions that will probably hurt the Argentine economy more than that of the Falklands. 

A couple of weeks ago there was a press storm over a Falkland Island paper labeling Argentina's President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner a bitch. But lets be realistic now. IT is Argentina that is creating this conflict by harassing the Falkland Islands again. Argentina lost a war about 30 years ago over the islands and is now upset that it appears that the UK will defend their possession of the islands again if pushed to do so. 'Bitch' might be a raw word to describe the President of Argentina, but more mainstream words are not much nicer, just more accurate. Such as troublemaker, bully and instigator. 

It is President Kirchner's actions that are threatening peace in stability in the region. Given Argentina's past history and current actions, it is prudent that the UK send reinforcements to the area. The big question is, will President Kirchner start another war over the Falkland Islands? A war her country is likely to lose and put her people and country through more hard times. Anyway, I'm not planning any trip to Argentina in the near future. However, if I were, I would seriously reconsider, as I would hate to be caught in a country, unable to leave and be a sitting duck in a country that decided to poke the UK a little too hard one time too many.

 The latest moves by Argentina's President Kirchner do nothing but confirm my thoughts that she is hell-bent on damaging Argentina. It is not enough that she is stilling up old friction with the UK over the Falklands, but now she is attacking an ally against English rule over the Falklands, Spain:

Facing intense criticism over the nationalization of its biggest oil firm, Argentina on Thursday ordered the seizure of YPF Gas, another group controlled by Spain's Repsol, a move expected to further inflame tensions. - Yahoo News

When a country starts taking over industry, you can bet that anyone who can more their money out of the country will be desperate to do so before the Government seizes their assets as well. Good luck in making this plan work. I just don't see a positive outcome for the country. It will just end badly for the population. And it is kind of hard to feel sorry for them given that they voted for this lunatic. Good luck anyway. At least I hope she is smart enough not to pick another fight with the UK.

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Obama to Third World: No Electricity for You!

President Obama has demonstrated his hate of the coal industry before by declaring his intention to bankrupt it. However, for the moment, he is unable to attack the domestic coal industry like his fellow Democrats in Congress would like, given that their efforts would only kill thousands more jobs if they could get their way. And given the current recession, job destruction will just hurt them that much more come election time in November.

This however, does not stop the Obama Administration from attacking the coal industry abroad. And leave it to Obama's team of activist advisors to find a way how to do it, by coming out against coal fired power plants in the third world.

NEW DELHI: Close on the heels of the inconclusive end to the Copenhagen Accord, the US government has stepped up pressure on the World Bank not to fund coal-fired power plants in developing countries.

In a letter sent to the World Bank, a copy of which is with TOI, United States Executive Director Whitney Debevoise said, "The Obama Administration believes that the Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs) have a potentially critical role to play in the future international framework for climate finance, and, in particular, to assist developing countries in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and strengthening their economies' resilience to climate risks.'' - The Times of India

This is a pretty big F.U. to the third world, which were pretty big supporters of the President. I am not sure what they were expecting to get from him, other than to make them feel better. One way to make their lives better is to give them power. With that comes communication, light and refrigeration with will improve the quality of life as well as extend the working day. Obama however plans to make it much harder to develop the third world by taking away their most likely source of power, coal.

For starters, coal is the mail source of fuel for power plants in the US. Much US electricity is made using coal power. Take a look at this Electricity Flow diagram for 2007. Coal is the largest fuel source for electricity production. Remember that it is domestic and not imported coal.

Coal is not simply chosen as a fuel source for any old reason. It is chosen because often it is the only viable choice to make. The other main choice also a fossil fuel, being natural gas. Gas is much greener than the others, but as for actual 'green' choices, most locations have none. Really, unless a region has a viable location to place a dam for hydro power, then they have no green options. There is nuclear, but I do not see the US being real excited about building nuke plants throughout the third world. (The sliver on the bottom left is the contribution that renewable energy makes in powering America.)

So is the Obama Administration fighting to keep the world's poor in the dark? It sure looks that way. And that is a shame as giving the poor power is one of the major requirements for getting people out of poverty and countries into the modern world.

There is one more thing to keep in mind:

* The U.S. is, after all, the Saudi Arabia of coal. We have more than 200 years of coal reserves at our current burn rate. There are 440 coal-fired plants across the nation, with proposals to build 153 more in 42 states over the next decade, at a cost of $137 billion, to provide electricity to 93 million homes and support our energy-guzzling lifestyles. - Time

So, not only can the US help modernize the third world by helping to give them power and light. The US can also profit in the process. This way, everyone wins.

This is poor policy. Instead of cutting off coal, the US should strive to make coal greener. At least until there are some viable alternatives to choose from. At the moment there are none and that means that the world's poorest are left sitting in the dark.

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French Navy 'Operation Earthquake Haiti 2010' - Photos

Over the weekend the response to the earthquake in Haiti picked up.

Much of the coverage has been centered on aid arriving by air. Basically that is because it only take a couple hours for aid flights to start arriving. However, it will be via sea that the bulk of the rescue/relief equipment and supplies will have to arrive given the quantity needed.

Much of the coverage has been of the US response. Here are some photos of the initial French Naval response.

Under the emergency aid decided by France on behalf of victims of the earthquake that struck Haiti January 12, armed forces have launched Operation Earthquake Haiti 2010.

The priorities are to route emergency resources to locate missing persons, medical aid, to secure relief, repatriation of our nationals and preparing the organization of humanitarian aid.

Some military and civilian chartered mobilized since January 13 to route emergency resources, personnel and cargo to Haiti and repatriate nationals.

Actions planned January 16, 2010

Maritime assets:

The BATRAL Francis Garnier, left Fort de France yesterday, he joined the Guadeloupe in the night to complete her cargo of humanitarian cargo, and resumed his journey to Haiti. It carries about fifty military forces in the West Indies with engineering equipment (3 and 2 mini backhoe loaders) and vehicles (truck maintenance, 2 P4, a 4X4), a medical team and an ambulance, 700 tents and cargo for the benefit of the Red Cross.

The TCD Siroco, who was off the Senegalese coast, began to rally Haiti yesterday. It offers medical capacity (2 surgical blocks and 50 hospital beds), capacity of freight transport (2,000 tons) and passenger (2000), and command capability. It also carries 4 helicopters (2 Puma Gazelle 2). - French Forces website (Translated from French)

Seems they ran into trouble trying to offload pallets of water. Maybe they could not get a forklift to navigate the ramp. The logistics of water can be very tricky, given both it's importance to survival as well as the weight penalty for carrying it. Take this photo from another French Forces post on a flight of water to the quake area.

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Haiti - Get the People Out - Take the Country over...

Haiti was a disaster well before the earthquake destroyed what little there was on the island was destroyed by the earthquake.

All efforts at the moment are centered on getting aid to the island. I think at some point serious thought needs to be given to the idea of getting as much of the population off the island as possible.

Other than that, a serious rethink of what to do about Haiti is needed. Perhaps the US should take control of the country. The Government was and is broken and the population pays the price for that, without any ability to fix it and improve their fate. Making the country a colony of the US is probably better for the population than trying to prop back up the current Government there.

Throwing money at the country is not going to make the population less poor or improve their quality of life much. If this had happened in the US, we would work hard to get evacuated. Given that we call them our neighbors, why should the people of Haiti receive any less compassion?

Yes, making these comments are easy. Turning them into action is a whole other issue. That said, someone has to throw the ideas out there first. Evacuation might not be a practical answer, but importing US control very well might be.

Update: 15 January 2010

Drudge is now reporting that Haitians are being told that they can't evacuate.

This is just plain stupid. You can't evacuate everyone, but every plane and ship coming to aid the country is arriving full and departing empty. How about filling them up with those who need medical aid as well as families with children. Yes this will cause problems where they are dropped off, but they can be distributed and it will surely help relieve the pressure in Haiti itself.

Update: 16 January 2010

Seems that some voices of sanity are starting to be heard. This is a good step:

"Operation Pierre Pan," as its being called, is an effort to relocate the thousands of children likely orphaned by the natural disaster in Port-au-Prince. Many of the children could already have relatives in Miami and around the U.S.

A similar effort occurred decades ago when "Operation Pedro Pan" was launched to help the children of Cuba during the political upheaval in that island neighbor. Some 14,000 children were relocated to the United States, many of them settling in South Florida.

While advocates mobilize for a push to help find the children new families if not reunite them with stateside relatives, there are several hurdles that need to be overcome.

The movement would need the approval of the U.S. government to at the very least grant the orphans temporary status in the country. - NBC Miami

This is a good start. However, measures should be taken to drastically improve the quality of life for all Haitians. Hugh Hewitt is another one calling to bring Haitians to the US, having the same idea of airlifting those most in need to the US:

The idea I put forward below of an immediate, ongoing and large airlift of injured Haitians to hospitals across the U.S. has generated some negative responses. But it still seems much more sensible to me than trying to airlift in all the medical supplies and professionals necessary to save lives in the country. Rather than trying to take a functioning, modern medical system to the Haitians who need it, why not simply stabilize and bring the seriously hurt Haitians to the functioning, modern medical system we already have a relatively short plane ride away.

Send a C-130 full of patients to New York, then one to Boston, then one to Cleveland, then to Detroit etc. The local medical communities could figure out how to distribute the patients and the efficient use of the relief assistance would be guaranteed. - Hugh Hewitt

One thing that you can do is donate a couple bucks to the Red Cross. It takes only a couple minutes and the nice thing is that most everyone can find an amount that they are not going to miss. Really, you are not going to miss $10, maybe $25 or even more. Using this reasoning we ended up donating twice as much as we initially planned.

AMERICAN RED CROSS - Haiti Relief and Development

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Facebook Group - "World Leaders"

This is very funny. The only thing is that it appears that a couple 'World Leaders' like dictator Robert Mugabe have yet to accept their invitation to this group! (Click to enlarge to a readable size)

Here is the whole thread. Click to enlarge.



Found on Facebook here.

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Obama - Chavez - Ahmadinejad (Photo)

I'm sure you have all seen this photo of President Obama making good with the socialist President of Venezuela, Hugo Chavez. They are probably smiling because they both want to see the US brought down. Note the brother-style handshake. I guess the press was too slow to catch the 'fist-bump'.

Venezuelan Presidency Press Office-issued photo shows US President Barack Obama (left) and his Venezuelan counterpart Hugo Chavez shaking hands before the opening of the 5th Summit of the Americas in Port of Spain, Trinidad, on April 17. (AFP/HO/Prensa Miraflores) - Yahoo News

So how long is it before we see more photos of the world's worst criminal leaders hanging out with the President of the United States? How long will it be before we get a picture of President Obama hugging Iran's maniac President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad? Who knows, we might be seeing this at the next annual meeting of the United Nations:

Guess who else hugs Mahmoud? That's right, his socialist buddy Hugo Chavez.

And what kind of dictator would these guys be without having good relations with Putin's Russia.

We are going to have a huge mess to clean up after four years of an Obama Administration.

The jackasses in Congress (Both Democrat and Republican) aren't helping things either. Keep in mind, these are leaders who are actively working against the United States.

Update:
Look who else was fighting for facetime with Venezuela's socialist President.



Maybe she is hoping to get some pointers on 'winning' a Presidential election.

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Lesson Unlearnt - Pakistan is a Terrorist Haven

I have written a couple times about Pakistan. The country is a mess and it is a haven for terrorists. I have pointed out the simple fact that 'It is NOT OK to let your son go to Pakistan'. Little good can come from it. Whatever the reason your kid might be giving for wanting to go to Pakistan, it is a lie. And by letting your child go to Pakistan, you are supporting terrorism by providing them with another recruit.

This view of Pakistan is one that they have wholly earned. No less than Nigeria has earned for being a scam state for their bogus emails promising millions. And since Pakistan has earned this reputation, they should be treated accordingly. Every Pakistani and every person going to and coming from Pakistan should be considered suspect. And yet, we still have terrorists coming from Pakistan because Governments don't take the right precautions because leftists will complain that actually investigating if someone might be a threat is not politically correct.

Suspects being questioned today after one of the biggest anti-terror operations since the July 7 attacks exploited lax student visa regulations to enter the UK from Pakistan, Whitehall sources said yesterday.

As police continued searches in ­Liverpool, Manchester and Clitheroe, Lancashire, after the raids on Wednesday, the Home Office said student visa checks had been tightened in the last fortnight because of widespread abuses of the system.

There are concerns inside government and the security services that the 11 Pakistani nationals being held in the north of England could have gained entry on student visas in order to form a sleeper cell. Gordon Brown talked of the police having foiled a "very big terrorist plot". - Guardian

JUST - PLAIN - STUPID.

If my memory serves me right, all of the latest terrorist plots are linked to Pakistanis and activity inside Pakistan. Pakistan has taken the place of Afghanistan. Unfortunately, other than the ever increasing number of missile strikes, not much is being done about it, partly because the country claims to have a working Government. That's a shame, because that was pretty much the same scenario we ran for Afghanistan until they attacked on September 11.

As for using the poor conditions inside the country as a defense for the actions of it's people, that is total B.S. Either they can be in charge of their lives and their country or others will come and force civilization down their throats. And yes Islam is part of the problem. Much is what is backwards about Pakistan can be traced back to Islam. This religion either has to change greatly or be wiped from the planet. The religion as it is practiced there is incompatible with the first world. (Clearly muslims can live in the West and fit in with society. Perhaps that brand of Islam can be exported...)

Previous:
It is NOT OK to let your son go to Pakistan - 10 Aug 06

Update:
The UK's stupidity was even greater than I thought:

Members of the alleged Al Qaeda cell suspected of plotting a Bank Holiday terror atrocity worked for a firm based at Manchester Airport.

At least one drove vans for a cargo company which has access to sensitive locations.

A further two had passed security industry checks which enabled them to guard premises overnight, further raising fears that members of the gang - all but one of them Pakistani students - were planning to infiltrate high-profile targets before an attack. - The Daily Mail via Gateway Pundit

The story also claims that these guys have links to established terrorists, and all sorts of other red flags. Not only that, but they are not even sure if they have stopped the plot entirely yet. What a bunch of assclowns. It would be funny, but these progressives keep getting people killed and all they are concerned about is how they can hug these terrorists better.

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How to Tell when Russia is Lying

How can you tell when Russia is lying?

 - They are lying every time they say something you want to hear.

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Forgotten Korean War POW Escapes - 55 Years After Being Captured!

A South Korean soldier who was captured by North Korea during the Korean War escaped earlier this month, 55 years after being captured.

By Kim Sue-young, Staff Reporter

A prisoner of war (POW) escaped from North Korea 55 years after being captured and is currently staying in China awaiting entry to South Korea, the association of abductees' family members said Tuesday.

Kim Jin-soo, 74, who fought in the Korean War (1950-53) at the age of 17, crossed the Tumen River on June 14 and is now in China, Choi Sung-yong, leader of the association, told a press conference in Seoul.

Choi said Kim was taken to the Stalinist state with a gunshot wound before the armistice was signed in July 1953. The South Korean army reported he was dead and included him in the roll of fallen soldiers.

After being dragged to the reclusive state, Kim received medical treatment in Pyongyang and was dispatched to coal mines including the Sanghatan mine in North Pyeongan Province for nearly 40 years. In the early 1990s, he did farming in North Hamgyeong Province, Choi said. - Korea Times

You would think that this would be big news. It is certainly a newsworthy event. When I was young I remember a news report about a Japanese soldier from WWII who finally after 30+ years of hiding, decided to come out and surrender. That was big news. But he was not a prisoner like this poor fellow. And yet, there is close to no coverage at all. Google News only lists the one story by the Korea Times quoted above.

NEWS.com.au also covered the story with "PoW 'escapes after 55 years'" noting that:

North Korea denies holding any South Koreans against their will, though some have managed to escape and come South. - NEWS.com.au

I suspect the lack of coverage is because this guy upsets the real message in that it is President Bush who is the evil leader. Take our detention of suspected terrorists during wartime. There are currently over 14,000 news stories for "Guantanamo bay Cuba detainee" listed in Google News. Clearly, not all prisoners rights are considered equal by the press.

Coverage of this story only brings forward the fact that nobody is pushing North Korea's leader Kim Jong Il to abide by his past agreements and call him to account for his country's rogue behavior. I only found out about this story as it was covered by the Blog One Free Korea in their post "Paroled from Death, Or Worse".

The anniversary of Kim Il Sung’s invasion of South Korea is a fitting time to post about just the latest South Korean prisoner of war to return home after being held in North Korea since a 1953 Armistice agreement in it agreed to return its prisoners. - One Free Korea

I am willing to bet that there are leftists who are not happy that this guy managed to escape. You can tell that there is no excitement in celebrating his escape since he is currently trapped in China and has to beg his own country's President to help get him back home. What a joke. Just imagine the reaction in the US if an American POW all of a sudden shows up in China. And even if the US Government turned it's back on him, there would be no shortage of Korean War vets who would waste no time in getting this guy back, despite being in their 70's themselves. There seems to be no real newsworthy outcry so far from South Korea. I bet that this won't even be an agenda item in the next talks with the North. After all, they have gone as far as admit to kidnapping foreigners, and despite this admission, refuse to release all of them or even provide full details. Still, there is no shortage of useful idiots who still manage to get a seat at the negotiating table, all too willing to overlook over 50 years of criminal behavior because they are the ones who are finally going to get a workable agreement. So I guess I should say shame on us as well.

(Note: The following two paragraphs were written once before here)

If this had been the other way around (A North Korean soldier escaping from South Korea), you can surely bet that the North Koreans would openly be demanding that heads roll, in addition to demanding that the offending (responsible) person be removed from the talks, never to appear again. Too bad that the North Koreans know all too well who they are dealing with. For well over a decade, the US and other parties have been pretty soft-armed when it has come to disciplining North Korea. Another very dangerous problem is that it seems that too many people want to think that the North Koreans actually want a deal. That they are negotiating either in good faith, or at least with a goal towards betterment of their people. Well perhaps a review of the 2 minute extract from the Korean War 'Pork Chop Hill' is in order:

Video - Direct Link

The video makes a number of good points that are still relevant today. One of those is the answer to the question: what does North Korea have to lose by getting caught holding prisoners of war they agreed to release decades ago? Apparently nothing by the looks of the lack of pressure on North Korea to do anything they agreed to as part of the six-party talks. This soldier has at least gotten out of North Korea. What about the rest still trapped there?

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Previous:
North Korean Snipers Killing Refugees Along the Chinese Border - 24 May 08
Most Disturbing Part of North Korea-Syria Connection - 29 Apr 08
Anchor Countries - 27 Sept 07
The UN Cannot Save the North Koreans (So Stop Trying) - 1 Feb 07
Unconditional surrender – The only way to end Military Operations - 1 May 05
Seeing things in Black and white instead of in shades of gray. - 19 Dec 04

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North Korean Snipers Killing Refugees Along the Chinese Border

As the world still whines about 'US cruelty' at Guantanamo, they continue to ignore the crimes against humanity taking place in North Korea. Perhaps because they are all accomplices in sustaining the North Korean regime. Well, as things normally go when going badly, they get worse:

Credible reports of “shoot-on-sight” order given to NK border patrol re: NKRs trying to cross the border illegally. One activist reported that snipers are now being posted at elevated positions above the river, giving them a wider view and a longer time to train their scopes on fleeing NKRs. This same activist reported finding several NKRs floating in the Tumen River with telltale small bullet holes in one side of the body at the entry point, and a much larger hole at the bullet’s exit. Even in the five days I stayed near the river, I saw ample evidence of high-powered searchlights at night on the NK side and was later informed by local CN [Chinese national] residents that the searchlights are used to detect NKRs seeking to approach the river under the cover of darkness. - One * Free * Korea

The North Koreans are doing this because they know that they can. Because they know that no one is going to stop them. They know this because EVERY SINGLE TIME they have been caught red-handed, whether counterfeiting currency, smuggling drugs, selling weapons to rogue states, even killing US soldiers without being subject to any sort of punishment that meant anything to the country's leadership. It is that country's leadership that has held its citizens hostage. It is a relationship that has worked pretty well for them to this point, even getting the US to start delivering food again to them recently. This of course was out of some misguided attempt to try and save the North Korean people. As I pointed out before, you cannot save the North Koreans as long as the current Government remains in power.

This is what I wrote early last year:

Now I am going to make a safe guess and say that none of the UN Programs in North Korea have benefited anyone other than North Korea's leadership. Sure, you can point out all the food aid that has been delivered to the country, but you can't prove that it actually made it to the people, instead of say, being diverted to their army. Even if the food did make it to people last year, what about this year? The aid is just delaying a poor outcome. - 1 Feb 07

I guess that this is what I meant by delaying a poor outcome: Most of the population starving and those desperate enough to try and escape to China are being shot down like dogs.

The US, UN, South Korea and others might as well be giving the North Koreans the bullets to do it. Because giving the North Korean Government food, is freeing up food to feed the shooters.

NOTE: Read the whole story at the link below, including information on how the Chinese are aiding the North Koreans, partly to protect the Olympics.

Link:

Murder, Plain and Simple: North Korean Snipers Killing Refugees Along the Chinese Border - One * Free * Korea

Previous:
Most Disturbing Part of North Korea-Syria Connection - 29 Apr 08
Anchor Countries - 27 Sept 07
The UN Cannot Save the North Koreans (So Stop Trying) - 1 Feb 07
Unconditional surrender – The only way to end Military Operations - 1 May 05
Seeing things in Black and white instead of in shades of gray. - 19 Dec 04

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Anchor Countries - Burma (Myanmar)

I originally wrote about Anchor Countries last September here. One anchor country I failed to list was Burma. Actually it is unfair to use the country's proper name in this case as a properly run Burma would most likely never end up on a list of anchor countries. Instead, the country, and its population have been held hostage by a military dictatorship that prefers to call itself Myanmar.

So now as everyone knows, Myanmar has been hit by a devastating cyclone. For those who are not familiar with cyclones, think hurricane and typhoon. They are all the same type of storm. Being a low lying country, much of the coastline has been swamped and remains underwater. This leaves over a million people in desperate need of aid and rescue.

As bad as the storm was and the number of deaths caused by it, the total is going to pale in comparison to the deaths that the Government of Myanmar is going to be responsible for, caused in one of the most insidious ways possible, through inaction.

It seems that the Government of Myanmar is out to prove that inaction is one of the most effective and deadliest forms of mass-murder. Well, it is not exactly true that they are doing nothing, as they are working hard to keep foreign and UN aid workers out of the country. This kind of puts the military rulers of Myanmar in a class all to themselves. Hell, even Iran let US Aid workers into their country after they suffered a devastating earthquake in 2003. Myanmar is letting almost nobody in. They just want donors to fly aid in and leave it for them to distribute as they see fit. Unfortunately for them, no one thinks that they will do anything to help the majority of people in distress, mainly because they do not have the resources to do so. Needed most are helicopters, but the only country ready to offer helicopter relief flights is the US, which is not welcome, even if it means the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people.

Most unfortunate is that only recently has the UN bothered to be seriously concerned about the state of the country. This is where other anchor countries quickly came to their aid: (Noted anchor countries marked with an '*')

In January 2007, Russia* and China* vetoed a draft resolution before the United Nations Security Council calling on the government of Burma to respect human rights and begin a democratic transition. South Africa* also voted against the resolution, arguing that since there were no peace and security concerns raised by its neighbors, the question did not belong in the Security Council when there were other more appropriate bodies to represent it, adding, "Ironically, should the Security Council adopt [this resolution] ... the Human Rights Council would not be able to address the situation in Myanmar while the Council remains seized with the matter." The issue had been forced onto the agenda against the votes of Russia and the China by the United States (veto power applies only to resolutions) claiming that the outflow from Burma of refugees, drugs, HIV-AIDS, and other diseases threatened international peace and security. - Wikipedia

Speaking of the United Nations:

This is the one entity that was supposed to help lift the world towards the 'modern society'. Instead, it is helping countries drift down to the lowest common denominator. This is the Organization that protects the 'rights' of Myanmar and the other anchor countries to abuse and hold hostage their own populations (In violation of UN Conventions) as well as abandon them while their leaders suck these countries dry of assets. This is great for the UN, which can then better reinforce its own need by assuming the responsibility to provide for these people, through the World Food Program and UN Development Program. This may even give those causing the tragedy another income source if the aid agencies pay bribes or facilitation fees to get aid to those they wish to help. Worse, a good portion of the aid may never reach those they intend to help, instead being diverted, again to Government authorities. (Paraphrased from my post here)

One surprising part of this whole disaster is the relative silence of the international community. Sure, some western Governments and the UN are voicing concerns and even outrage that aid workers are being prevented from gaining access to the area, but where is the voice of the rest of the planet? Look at how much outrage the global community mustered against the US over Iraq and still is able to harness over the detention center in GITMO. Those are trivial issues compared to this disaster which seems to leave activists unmoved. That is a shame, because the leaders of Myanmar should be charged with crimes against humanity, or at the very least removed from the leadership of their country or simply eliminated. This is a case where dropping bombs will save many more lives than they will take. The planet will truly be a better place without them. Too bad the UN will never garner up the will to go after the criminal that run the country. Criminals who, while still refusing most aid and offers of assistance, continues to export desperately-needed rice.

The military regime of Myanmar will stick to its commitment to export rice to Sri Lanka, despite having its main rice-producing region severely damaged by the Nargis cyclone a week ago, the Burmese Media reported.

This comes in the light of foreign media reports that thousands were left starving and homeless by the cyclone and farmers have been left desperate for food. The reports quoted civilians who said that all they received from the government was half a pound of rotten rice. The military junta which has a monopoly on rice export will proceed with the exports to Sri Lanka and Bangladesh as arranged previously. - Daily Mirror (Sri Lanka)

Maybe the price the world has to pay for a better planet is the deaths of the neglected in Myanmar. Maybe this act is the driving force that removes a murderous dictatorship from yet another country. Shame on Myanmar. Shame on China. and most of all, shame on the UN and those member state who protect criminal regimes such as this one. It is the UN who is ultimately responsible for this humanitarian crisis, for protecting bad governments from any serious pressure to change.

Anchor Countries - 27 Sept 07

China's African Genocide Trifecta

China is once again in the news for playing an important supporting role in continuing instability in Africa. This time for attempting to supply Zimbabwe's renegade Government with a shipload of weapons while that Government refuses to disclose unfavorable election results. Here is a statement that the Chinese have released no the matter:

The Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a statement in a fax to the Reuters news agency saying that China and Zimbabwe have normal trade relations, that the Chinese government takes a "prudent and responsible" position on arms deals and that it does not involve itself in the internal affairs of other countries. - CNN

Prudent and Responsible eh? The trick in being able to say something like that is that they are not being any less 'prudent and responsible' than they normally are at home. Oppression in Tibet? Nope, that is just some more prudent and responsible actions on their part. We in the West just don't recognize it as such. Shame on us. So lets take a look at some other past Prudent and Responsible actions China is and has taken in Africa's recent past

Darfur, Sudan:

China has emerged as the primary supplier of weapons to the Sudanese government, providing fighter jets and as much as 90% of light weapons used in the conflict. Human rights advocates and opponents of the Sudanese government portray China's role in providing weapons and aircraft as a cynical attempt to obtain oil and gas just as colonial powers once supplied African chieftains with the military means to maintain control as they extracted natural resources. According to China's critics, China has offered Sudan support threatening to use its veto on the U.N. Security Council to protect Khartoum from sanctions and has been able to water down every resolution on Darfur in order to protect its interests in Sudan. - Wikipedia

Rwanda:

It was during 1993, in the year that the Arusha Accords were negotiated, that a project began to import into Rwanda a huge number of machetes and other agricultural tools. The purchase of these tools took place in eighteen separate deals, and by companies not usually associated with agriculture; the same companies had made no imports in either 1991 or 1992. As well as machetes they imported razor blades, nails, hoes and axes, screwdrivers, scythes, saws, spades, knives, pliers, pincers, scissors, hammers, and shears. These tools came into the country under government import licenses headed "eligible imports". The overwhelming majority of the tools were imported from China. As an illustration of the sheer volume involved, the total number of machetes imported in 1993 weighed 581.175 kilos and cost US$725.669: there was an estimated one new machete for every third male in the country. - The book "Conspiracy to Murder: The Rwandan Genocide" By Linda Melvern

Of course they only needed enough machetes for a third of the male population given that they were planning to kill off a good portion that wasn't going to get machetes. You might wonder why didn't they import guns instead? Well follow the link and read into the next page which describes how the purchases were paid for with World Bank aid money, which the World Bank never noticed was being so openly diverted until much later on.

Now we have China helping Zimbabwe:

A Chinese cargo ship believed to be carrying 77 tonnes of small arms, including more than 3m rounds of ammunition, AK47 assault rifles, mortars and rocket-propelled grenades, has docked in the South African port of Durban for transportation of the weapons to Zimbabwe, the South African government confirmed yesterday. It claimed it was powerless to intervene as long as the ship's papers were in order.

Copies of the documentation for the Chinese ship, the An Yue Jiang, show that the weapons were sent from Beijing to the ministry of defence in Harare. Headed "Dangerous goods description and container packing certificate", the document was issued on April 1, three days after Zimbabwe's election. It lists the consignment as including 3.5m rounds of ammunition for AK47 assault rifles and for small arms, 1,500 40mm rockets, 2,500 mortar shells of 60mm and 81mm calibre, as well as 93 cases of mortar tubes. - Guardian

There are also some reports that armed Chinese soldiers have been spotted in Zimbabwe. They are surely up to no good.

The question is, how long is China going to be allowed to get away with this? This is the kind of world China wants. The rest of the world should forcefully reject their actions. Boycotting the Chinese Olympics is one way to do that.

Previous:
China Supplying Zimbabwe with a Shipload of Weapons - 18 Apr 08
IOC: We support China's Oppressive Regime, So Should You - 17 March 08
South Africa - Zimbabwe in Slow Motion - 23 Jan 08
Iraq, Zimbabwe, Mexico and Venezuela - 8 Jan 08
Anchor Countries - 27 Sept 07
Iraq, Zimbabwe and Mexico - 21 Sept 07
Why is the UN Pleading for Food for Zimbabwe? - 2 Aug 07
Zimbabwe photos - Land reform - 22 Aug 06

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China Supplying Zimbabwe with a Shipload of Weapons

As if there weren't already enough reasons to protest the Olympics being held in China already, it now comes out that China has sent a shipload of weapons to Robert's Mugabe's Zimbabwe.

A Chinese cargo ship believed to be carrying 77 tonnes of small arms, including more than 3m rounds of ammunition, AK47 assault rifles, mortars and rocket-propelled grenades, has docked in the South African port of Durban for transportation of the weapons to Zimbabwe, the South African government confirmed yesterday. It claimed it was powerless to intervene as long as the ship's papers were in order.

Copies of the documentation for the Chinese ship, the An Yue Jiang, show that the weapons were sent from Beijing to the ministry of defence in Harare. Headed "Dangerous goods description and container packing certificate", the document was issued on April 1, three days after Zimbabwe's election. It lists the consignment as including 3.5m rounds of ammunition for AK47 assault rifles and for small arms, 1,500 40mm rockets, 2,500 mortar shells of 60mm and 81mm calibre, as well as 93 cases of mortar tubes. - Guardian UK

Once again this makes the Chinese look really bad, especially since they approved the shipment long enough after Zimbabwe's election to know that Mugabe was killing the election results, results which still have not been released.

The An Yue Jiang is seen anchored outside Durban harbor, South Africa on April 17, 2008. Photograph: AP - Guardian UK

The news of this shipment broke when the ship arrived in South Africa to be unloaded. This is because Zimbabwe is a landlocked country with no seaport of its own. So you might think that South Africa would prevent the shipment from transiting through their country considering that Mugabe appears to be getting ready to stay in power after losing the election, and has a proven track record of using force. But with this being morally bankrupt Africa, the President of South Africa, sees not problem in giving an assist to a person committing crimes against humanity:

CAPE TOWN, South Africa: South Africa will not intervene to stop a shipment of Chinese-made weapons from reaching Zimbabwe, even though the political situation in the neighboring nation is "dire," a government spokesman said Thursday.

Spokesman Themba Maseko said as long as administrative papers are in order, South Africa cannot intervene to prevent weapons being transported through its territory to its landlocked neighbor, despite concerns about mounting tensions in Zimbabwe. - International Herald Tribune

This is par for the course for South Africa turning a blind-eye to the actions of its neighbor. At least there are others in South Africa with a sense for right and wrong and they are in a position to at least delay this shipment:

Union refuses to unload Zim arms ship - DURBAN - Opposition to a shipment of arms being offloaded in Durban and transported to Zimbabwe increased on Thursday when South Africa’s largest transport workers union announced that its members would not unload the ship.

SA Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) general secretary Randall Howard said: “Satawu does not agree with the position of the South African government not to intervene with this shipment of weapons.

“Our members employed at Durban Container Terminal will not unload this cargo neither will any of our members in the truck driving sector move this cargo by road.” - The Citizen

In addition a team of lawyers are in court arguing that South Africa is wrong to have approved the movement of these weapons to Zimbabwe. South Africa's President has gotten lots of criticism for not doing more to end the crisis in Zimbabwe, mainly by ending his shielding of Mugabe. Now, he has been flushed out as an active accomplice. Serves him right for playing such an irresponsible game.

This shipment should truly impress on everyone that Mugabe needs to go, perhaps by force if necessary. (He seems to have no problem with using force himself.) The man has run his country into the ground and appears ready sacrifice everyone to stay in power.

So far there has been no criticism of China but there certainly should be. China is the main power defending the criminal regime in The Sudan as they commit genocide in Darfur. In addition to standing up for the Sudan in the UN's Security Council, China is also Sudan main weapons supplier. Surely, the world is not interested in China following the same path with Zimbabwe. China is looking to showcase what a wonderful country it is by its hosting of the Olympics. How did they ever expect to accomplish that while playing host with blood on their hands.

Previous:
South Africa - Zimbabwe in Slow Motion - 23 Jan 08
Iraq, Zimbabwe, Mexico and Venezuela - 8 Jan 08
Anchor Countries - 27 Sept 07
Iraq, Zimbabwe and Mexico - 21 Sept 07
Why is the UN Pleading for Food for Zimbabwe? - 2 Aug 07
Zimbabwe photos - Land reform - 22 Aug 06

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Anchor Countries

One dream, especially in Europe, is of the future society, a Modern Society. Part of getting there, for them, was the formation of the European Union. The EU would fulfill many goals for getting to this Modern Society, including fostering a healthy growing economy, standardization of all sorts of things, facilitate free trade and eliminate the threat of wars with the eventual benefit of not needing military forces.

The United Nations was also setup for many similar reasons. While maybe not including the Modern Society, surely for the advance of mankind in the lesser-developed parts of the world, which in itself helps the rest of us advance even farther.

The world can easily be on the path to a modern society with the United States around. Most likely, the US will be a major contributor of what is required to get us to the level of a modern society. For all the criticism, the US does way more good that bad. The good being the norm and the bad being the exception. Even with the bad, the US goes to great lengths to correct any wrongs its responsible for.

Then you have these countries here listed below. They are examples of what is wrong with this planet. Some of them are bad actors. Others are taking advantage of the situation by protecting them from sanctions. Nonetheless, the result is Governments that really have no place in a modern society. Good lucking reaching a Utopia with them guys around. So here is a short list on the countries I believe are preventing the World from evolving into a much better place.

The Bad States:

Zimbabwe - Total self-destruction
Venezuela - Actions that will take it down the similar path that Zimbabwe took
Cuba - Communist oppression
Sudan - Genocide
North Korea - Communist oppression, State-sponsor of terrorism
Iran - State-sponsor of terrorism
Syria - State-sponsor of terrorism
Mexico - Exporting its population

Then you have the countries that Should Know Better:

Spain - Backing Cuba's human rights abuses. Support of Venezuela, ......

China - Backing of Sudan, Burma's Myanmar Government and North Korea. Lack of human rights.

Russia - The Russian mafia is infamous for its ruthlessness. Now we have Putin's Russia acting like mafia thugs. Executing unfriendly media. Sending assassins abroad. Using energy supplies as a weapon. Ignoring their responsibilities to clean up the nuclear waste in their own backyard, instead leaving the West to pay for it. This attitude goes back to the foundation of the post-communist Russia, when they demanded that Poland pay the expense of withdrawing the Russian Army from Poland. Providing Iran with nuclear technology and weapons.

South Africa - Demands that African countries alone should deal with African problems yet does nothing to stop Zimbabwe's downward spiral other then demand that other nations not act.

Two of the countries listed above are permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. When the UN fails to adopt a resolution against a 'rogue' state, it is normally one of these two that stopped the UN from acting.

Putin and Ahmadinejad - Each the other's most Useful Idiot

Speaking of the United Nations:

This is the one entity that was supposed to help lift the world towards the modern society. Instead, it is helping countries drift down to the lowest common denominator. This is the Organization that protects the 'rights' of the countries listed above to abuse their own populations (In violation of UN Conventions) as well as abandon them while the leadership sucks the country dry of assets. This is great for the UN, which can then better reinforce its own need by assuming the responsibility to provide for these people, through the World Food Program and UN Development Program. This may even give those causing the tragedy another income source if the aid agencies pay bribes or facilitation fees to get aid to those they wish to help. Worse, a good portion of the aid may never reach those they intend to help, instead being diverted, again to Government authorities.

United Nations Human Rights Council

This council knows of no human rights violation on this planet other than those claimed to be committed by Israel.

The council is so problematic that even the new UN Secretary General has criticized its work.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon joined Western nations on Wednesday in criticizing the world body's own Human Rights Council for "picking on Israel" as part of an agreement on its working rules.

The European Union, Canada and the United States have already attacked the deal reached in Geneva on Monday under which Israel's actions would become a permanent item on the Human Rights Council's agenda.

A UN statement said: "The Secretary-General is disappointed at the council's decision to single out only one specific regional item given the range and scope of allegations of human rights violations throughout the world." (June, 2007) - Haaretz

Now these anchor countries claim that positions like mine above are typical of the Western Nations meddling in their internal affairs while at the same time blaming the Western nations for any problems they might admit to having. Yet as bad and imperialistic as it sounds, the world would be a much better place, if these third-world countries would be a little bit more like the United States. (Or Canada, or Australia, or New Zealand, or the UK, Ireland, Estonia...)

And finally, lets not forget the International Press, which in many cases completely fails to investigate the countries above, or fails to report information damaging to these rogue state. Take this one recent example during an interview with Iranian President Ahmadinejad:

When an Israeli journalist asked him something, he just smiled and said: "Next question."

Then the wife of an Israeli soldier abducted by Hizbullah got up and asked Iran to cooperate with the Red Cross to discover his fate. But her question was ignored, and she was drowned out by more questions. - Guardian (As spotted at LGF)

There would far fewer problems in the world if the press reported the news fairly and accurately, instead of distorting stories and sitting on others. Of course, they would not get such a free pass if it were not for all the moonbats parroting their false messages. The Israeli soldiers held hostage by Hamas and Hizbullah is a perfect example.

We have a far way to go before we reach that Modern society as long as these parties listed above have anything to do with it.