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| India-Pakistan | |
| Leftists tell U.S. carrier Nimitz to "Go back" | |
| 2007-07-03 | |
| CHENNAI (Reuters) - Hundreds of communists, shouting "Go back", held a noisy demonstration on Monday in Chennai to protest the port call of USS Nimitz, the first U.S. aircraft carrier to visit India. The nuclear-powered Nimitz's visit this week has been termed a landmark step in India-U.S. ties and a sign of a closer diplomatic and military relationship between the two powerful democracies. But the country's vocal communists say the visit is a move by Washington to bring New Delhi under its strategic umbrella. "By allowing the ship, the Manmohan Singh government has compromised on India's independent foreign policy and shown itself to be a spineless government," David Pandian, a senior communist leader, told reporters outside the Chennai port. Nearby, protesters shouted "Down with U.S. imperialism" and burnt effigies of the huge ship -- which can carry 90 aircraft, including the F-18 "Super Hornet" -- as well as the U.S. flag.
Some port workers in Chennai, off which the Nimitz is anchored, have also expressed environmental fears about the nuclear-powered ship. New Delhi has stationed a naval vessel to monitor radiation levels in the air and water around USS Nimitz. The U.S embassy has said the safety record of American nuclear-powered warships was "outstanding". | |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #14 Nearby, protesters shouted "Down with U.S. imperialism" and burnt effigies of the huge ship -- which can carry 90 aircraft, including the F-18 "Super Hornet" -- as well as the U.S. flag Ima concerned about ships of lesser capacity. Can they carry ammo, sailors and a flag too? Or does the flag have to go? How heavy are these flags, anyway? |
| Posted by: Frank G 2007-07-03 20:37 |
| #13 that would be a bad thing. on the flip side, let the natives merely accuse a US Sailor or marine of an attack, assualt, rape, whatever and watch the festivities begin. Got to participate in a 4 hooker line up when one was found dead in a Mediterranean port and the only statement given to the policia was that it was an American... we all had to parade around the f'csle of the Nimitz (as luck would have it) while these 4 whores looked us all over to id the 'perp'. turned out to be aa German merchant seaman did it, but i do not recall any apology. nowadays, the poor Squid wouldn't even make it back to the ship before a crowd did him in..... |
| Posted by: USN, Ret. 2007-07-03 16:56 |
| #12 USN, and all it would take is a couple of sailors getting attacked on shore by the communists. |
| Posted by: Rambler 2007-07-03 15:56 |
| #11 rjs: and you should see the agony if / when the CO of said carrier secures liberty: all that $$ NOT going ashore makes all the shop owners and host-a-tutes whine and whine........ |
| Posted by: USN, Ret. 2007-07-03 14:47 |
| #10 I read somewhere that a carrier group on port call can spend up to a million bucks a day. I'm sure the business sector in Chennai will be very pleased. |
| Posted by: rjschwarz 2007-07-03 14:03 |
| #9 Just call it "Operation King Canute" |
| Posted by: Tarzan Cliter5395 2007-07-03 12:10 |
| #8 I'll bet you could get hundreds of commies in any US port near a college town. BFD. |
| Posted by: Gary and the Samoyeds 2007-07-03 09:01 |
| #7 The commies are trying to stoke anti-nuke fears but the Indian Navy is actually building a nuclear powered submarine. In the past it operated an SSN - the Chakra - (Charlie class) leased from the Russians. The "monitoring" vessels are actually there to prevent a Cole style attack on the escort vessels.. but the port workers union has not yet figured that one out. Ditto for the Chicommies coming down en masse from the Tibetan Plateau. Actually the Indian communists supported the Chinese. "China's chairman is our chairman" they said. |
| Posted by: John Frum 2007-07-03 06:45 |
| #6 In the meantime, the Indian Navy is thinking to itself, "I gotta get me one a' dese!" |
| Posted by: Mike 2007-07-03 06:17 |
| #5 I am not concerned about "hundreds" of anything in India given. I work with Hindus and most are pro America and sympathetic to GWOT because Indians confront the jihad menace in Kashmir. |
| Posted by: McZoid 2007-07-03 03:29 |
| #4 "By allowing the ship, the Manmohan Singh government has compromised on India's independent foreign policy and shown itself to be a spineless government," David Pandian Nearby, protesters shouted "Down with U.S. imperialism" and burnt effigies of the huge ship Some Indians believe they are superior but I'm sure the Nimitz is quite an intimidating wake up call. So red bastards, spit at us, burn effigies all you want, that's about all you can do. BTW, if you didn't get the memo, we won the Cold War. |
| Posted by: Snereck de Medici6366 2007-07-03 03:14 |
| #3 90 aircraft on a Nimitz class carrier, 20 Harriers on a sea control Wasp LHD. Isn't it wild that the two largest and most capable aircraft carrier fleets in the world are both US : Navy and Marine Corps. |
| Posted by: Shieldwolf 2007-07-03 02:12 |
| #2 Programs! Programs! Can't tell the Trotskyists from the Stalanists without your programs! |
| Posted by: Secret Master 2007-07-03 01:50 |
| #1 Reminds me of Robin Wiliams' post 9-11 skit on FRANCE, on how the Frenchies hate and despise the USA until the Germans start streaming over the borders. Ditto for the Chicommies coming down en masse from the Tibetan Plateau. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2007-07-03 00:42 |