The caretaker government not only failed to fulfil the promises it had made at the time of 1/11 changeover, but also suffered a moral defeat, said speakers at a dialogue yesterday.
The speakers observed that the government also impaired its anti-corruption drive by releasing from detention graft suspects like Tarique Rahman, through which move it lost the moral ground for keeping any other person in jail on charges of graft.
They however observed that bringing Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia to a table for a dialogue might help to initiate a new political culture in the country replacing the current culture of 'walking out of the parliament'. But they noted that release of the two former premiers from detention alone will not ameliorate the country's current political crisis.
The comments came from a dialogue arranged by BBC Bangla Sanglap in Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre in the capital. AL Presidium Member Abdur Razzak, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Bangladesh Mujahidul Islam Selim, Action Aid Bangladesh Country Director Farah Kabir, and former energy adviser Mahmudur Rahman were the panel of dialoguers in front of a live audience.
The speakers said formation of the Truth and Accountability Commission (Tac) gives an impression that any corruptionist will finally be absolved at the end of the day. They said the government's lack of planning and strategy, and its disorientation regarding the projects it took up has resulted in the present crisis in the country, with corruption suspects getting freed hampering the anti-graft drive severely.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/14/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
I should slow down my scan rate, cuz I thought it said "anti-gravity drive."
#2
Sheikh Hasina's bravely decamped -- I think she's in the USA, in fact. The original intention of the EC, I'm pretty sure, was to run both the harridans out of the country and let some sort of normal political life evolve.
Khaleda simply refuses to go haunt somebody else's house. She intends to win by default, and likely will because she's the more determined of the two. She's also the more evil of the two.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/14/2008 11:00 Comments ||
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#3
Sounds like Khaleda should beware of ruby slippers and falling houses.
#2
I found it more interesting that Miliband seemed to be flaunting his marxist credentials as if that somehow would matter to the soviets. You are no longer useful, idiot.
#3
It is late and I am tired... but it seems to me that we are seeing a major change in the dynamic as far as Russia is concerned. I realise that on one level that is a no &&& Sherlock. But what I am finding interesting is the fact that the Russians no longer seem to be willing to humor the the useful idiots that they courted for well over half a century.
We see changes in the dynamic in our own country on a regular basis and it often takes our enemies a long time to get with our program. For example ...Carter to Reagan or Clinton to Bush. Yet, despite the changes there is still a consistency in the American Way that continues no matter who is in charge.
And I would say that the same is true for Russia. Unlike Americans, who have a soft spot for democracy and freedom, the Russians have a history of cruelty and extortion.
Are we seeing a new phase where the Russians who are now in power no longer see a value in courting their western useful idiots? It almost seems as though that is the case.
People get old and die and as they do the dynamic changes. It seems to me that the useful Marxist idiots of the Stalin era are no longer deemed to be as useful to the current Soviet power brokers. Perhaps the young bucks see that their grandfather's investment in these fools did not provide the dividends that they once believed possible.
#4
Are we seeing a new phase where the Russians who are now in power no longer see a value in courting their western useful idiots?
Yes and no I think. Russia and China are no longer great experiments in the Marxist social ideal, they're all capitalists of one sort or other now. Thus they'd have much less use for useful idiots who share their failed statist ideology and more for useful idiots of other sorts.
#7
The Russians have little to be happy about. They were destroyed in the Second World War, they lost the Cold War without a shot, they couldn't make the transition to modernity so they've reverted to tsardom, and they've stopped reproducing while their enemies prepare to overwhelm them from the south and east.
#8
And massive pollution and destruction of once-fertile lands in the western part of the country. The loss of Lake Baikal as an ecosystem doesn't get much press but is representative of the devastation left by the Soviet approach to industrialization.
#11
Well, some peacenik guy just said that some Repuclican said that Goergia started the war and since I'm a republican stooge, I now support the Commies on this one.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
09/14/2008 12:10 Comments ||
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(Xinhua) -- The United States should take the initiative to improve ties with Russia strained by the recent Russian-Georgian conflict over South Ossetia, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said.
"In conditions of global crises mutual interests prevail over some contradictions," Putin said in an interview with the French newspaper Le Figaro. "I wait for the relations to improve. They (the United States) marred them, and they should improve them," he said in the interview published Saturday.
Russia and the United States "always would turn out to be together" when global crises emerged, Putin said, noting that the two countries were allies in both WWI and WWII. "Here in Russia, we never forget it. We would also like our U.S. partners to remember that too," he said.
Meanwhile, the Russian premier said the country's gross domestic product (GDP) will be doubled compared to 2003 by the year of 2010. The aim will be achieved in late 2009, or according to other calculations, in the first quarter of 2010, Putin said. "Russia is developing at a rapid pace. In 2003, I said that we set a mid-term goal to double the gross domestic product. And we really are achieving the aim," he said.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/14/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
OK Vlad - you're short of cash, how much for Siberia?
#2
The rapidly falling energy prices are going to put a slight delay in your GDP predictions.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
09/14/2008 0:52 Comments ||
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#3
I remember reading in the 1980's that from birth rate data and actuarial tables starting in the early 1900's the Soviet should have had 100 million more people than it did. That the Communist wars and purges wiped out, or never caused to be born because of the early deaths of their parents, 100 million souls is something that is almost incomprehensible.
No thanks, Vlad. The Russian soul is much too dark and requires too much human sacrifice. I'd rather keep you as far away as possible.
Posted by: ed ||
09/14/2008 1:08 Comments ||
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#4
Soviet = Soviet Union
Posted by: ed ||
09/14/2008 1:09 Comments ||
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#8
I love the whole "yeah, we invaded but it's your fault!" theme he's got going on, not to mention his new and improved "seven year plan" that will be achieved ahead of schedule.
I hate to admit it, but both me and the Tsar am impressed by the style of Volodya's bullshit.
Posted by: Swamp Blondie in the Cornfields ||
09/14/2008 11:23 Comments ||
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#9
Personally I think the Russians should stop obsessing over the US like some jilted lover. Europe has culture and needs balls. Russia has balls and desperately needs culture. They should become fast friends with European cash putting Russian peacekeepers wherever the UN needs so Europe can feel they are doing something (without any pesky casualties) and Russia can be a big player again (without those pesky costs.
Also Russia should be cozying up with Japan. Russia has some worthless islands the Japanese really, really want. Russia has unpopulated wasteland connected by a rickity old trans-siberian railway. Japan has cash and the engineering to build a bullet-train that could connect Moscow with the Pacific and make Russia a proper two-coast nation.
Lastly Russia should be cozying up with India and Latin America. Anyone that wants to immigrate to Siberia but doesn't have a territorial claim on the area (that means no Chinese) or tend to be problems (that means Islam) should be invited to come in and become Russian citizens to help reverse some of the downward economic trends and populate the Pacific Coast of Russia.
Instead Putin pisses off the world and now has to semi-grovel hoping to restore relations.
#1
Among the victims was General Gennady Troshev, a former top commander of Russia's war in Chechnya and advisor to ex-president Vladimir Putin, Interfax news agency reported, citing Russia's transportation ministry. - AFP link
Russian troops withdrew from the region around Georgia's Black Sea port of Poti on Saturday, within a Sept. 15 deadline set for the first phase of a pullback brokered by France.
Georgia's interior ministry confirmed the Russian withdrawal from five key posts they held in the west of the country. "I can confirm that the five Russian checkpoints on the Poti-Senaki axis have been removed. The Russian troops are heading towards Abkhazia," Georgian interior ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili told AFP.
A Reuters reporter saw troops in armored personnel carriers (APC) and trucks pull out from positions on the outskirts of Poti after dawn. The reporter said Russian forces had also left another three positions on the way to nearby Senaki.
On Monday, Moscow agreed to withdraw its troops from "security zones" inside Georgia around South Ossetia and a second breakaway region, Abkhazia, within a month.
The deal, brokered by French President Nicolas Sarkozy on behalf of the European Union, included a commitment to pull out by Sept. 15 from "monitoring posts" in the Poti region, where an oil and dry grain shipment port is considered vital to the Georgian economy.
"This is an example of Europe being united, and the aggressor having to retreat," Georgian National Security Council Secretary Kakha Lomaia told Reuters. "I'm optimistic the other troops will be withdrawn," he said.
Russia followed up Monday's pullback deal a day later by saying it would station about 7,600 troops in South Ossetia and Abkhazia, both of which the Kremlin recognized last month as independent states.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/14/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
within a Sept. 15 deadline set for the first phase of a pullback brokered by France.
I'm sure that our warship nearby had absolutely nothing to do with their decision.
Japan's navy tracked a submarine that intruded into its waters for nearly two hours and then lost track of it without identifying its nationality, a military official said. The Naval vessel Atago spotted the submarine in Japanese waters at 6.56am (0756 AEST) but the craft did not raise a national flag or surface, breaching international laws, a defence ministry spokesman said.
Atago, an Aegis-equipped warship, chased the submarine off the coast of Kochi prefecture in western Japan, facing the Pacific Ocean, until about 8.40am (0940 AEST) , he said. "We have not identified the nationality of the submarine and we are still searching for it," the spokesman said.
Using sonar, Atago confirmed that the submarine does not belong to the Japanese navy nor its ally the US Navy, he said. "We will make a protest against the country through a diplomatic route" once Japan identifies the nationality of the submarine, Defence Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said, according to Jiji Press.
The Ruritanians have nuclear subs? Who knew?
It was the first time in four years that a foreign submarine had intruded into Japanese waters, according to the official. In November 2004, a Chinese nuclear-powered submarine entered Japanese waters. Beijing apologised less than a week later.
#1
Just wait until that Chinese submarine surfaces to discover large graffiti painted on the side saying something rude in Chinese, along with a picture of "Hello Kitty".
Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
09/14/2008 10:54 Comments ||
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Or someone forgot to print in Spanish the message 'do not use contents' on one of those South American drug smuggling submarines. It was the fumes, man, the fumes.
When asked to characterize Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's qualifications to be the Republican vice presidential nominee, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., stated flatly that Palin isn't ready to be vice president.
"She doesn't know anything," Wasserman Schultz said on CBS' Face The Nation, responding to a charge by a fellow guest, former Mass. Gov. Jane Swift, that Palin has been forced to undergo scrutiny in the media that some would characterize as sexist.
"There shouldn't be a double standard," Swift said. "We shouldn't ask of her questions about her ability to do the job that we wouldn't ask a guy in a similar circumstance.
"But I think that we also have to acknowledge that, because we've had so few women running for these high-level offices, although this is a great year on that front, that we're also not attuned to hearing women's voices and to seeing them in these positions.
"So it may be that we have to be most attuned to not having a double standard, to not asking any female candidate of either party to clear a bar that we wouldn't ask a male candidate in the same situation to clear."
Wasserman Schultz disagreed that Palin has had to meet an unfair standard. Now I know who Wasserman-Schultz reminds me of...
Aughra from, "The Dark Crystal"
#4
Ya know I am not surprised at teh attacks on Palin. If they didn't attack her people wopuld get bored and start asking about O'messiahs school records or business dealings.
But things have changed. First, America is very close to flat out winning in Iraq. This shouldn't be a partisan data point, but it is, and Republicans are starting to hold their chins high, thanks to the success of the surge, which, far more than the war, was an almost purely Republican initiative.
Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi have managed to drive Congress' approval ratings to near absolute zero. Also, if you don't actually think Barack Obama is a higher life form, listening to the press talk like Princess Leia for a year - "Help us Obama Wan Kenobi, you're our only hope!" - can get really old. Republicans feel a lot like Elaine in that Seinfeld episode where she was the only person in the world who didn't understand why everyone fawned over "The English Patient."
Changing everything was Sarah Palin. Oh, her. Suddenly, conservatives not only found something to love on the GOP ticket, but the boldness of the pick suggested that the outcome wasn't written in stone.
The tectonic plates are definitely rumbling. Partisan Democrats may not believe it, but independents and dispirited Republicans now see the McCain-Palin pick as a sharp break with Bush (McCain now has a double-digit lead over the "post-partisan" Obama among independents).
The Democrats' advantage in party identification has been cut from the mid-high teens earlier this summer to a mere five points, and the shrinkage continues. Gallup's generic poll asking voters whom they'd vote for for Congress may be even more telling. Last month, Democrats led by 11 points; now the GOP is down 3 points among registered voters. And among likely voters, Republicans are actually a full five points ahead.
Now, obviously, this is all a snapshot of the race, as they say, but sometimes you can tell a lot from a snapshot. Take a snapshot of the fans at a baseball game sometime right before they think they've lost, and compare it to a snapshot taken right after a game-changing home run, and you'll see what I mean.
#1
Republicans feel a lot like Elaine in that Seinfeld episode where she was the only person in the world who didn't understand why everyone fawned over "The English Patient."
#2
Trust me, it did. Made no sense historically, on a number of levels, which I would go into in depth, at the risk of boring everyone *S&&&less. (like, a combat field hospital would drag along a dying burn patient for a year or two? Like there weren't any big hospitals in the rear with the gear in Egypt. Oh don't get me started. You'll rue the day, et cetera, et cetera.)
And the book was even more impenetrable.
H/T Powerline. If this is true, the SS Obama is sinking faster than I thought. And I thought it was sinking pretty fast.
A new Star Tribune Minnesota Poll shows that the race is now a dead heat between Barack Obama and John McCain, each supported by 45 percent of likely voters in the state. The new poll likely will stoke both sides' efforts during the final 51 days until the election, triggering a barrage of advertising, grass-roots politicking and, potentially, stepped-up visits by the candidates. And, of course, a barrage of anti-Palin hit pieces in the Strib.
They'd do that anyway ...
The poll found that McCain has made gains across the board since a May Minnesota Poll that showed him trailing by 13 points. Part of the rise in McCain's fortunes nationally has been attributed to his choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate, a move that has energized his party's conservative base. Palin has energized the "conservative base", whatever that is. And, oh, about twenty million American women from Bangor to Honolulu.
But the Minnesota Poll found that the choice of Palin was essentially a wash among the state's voters. While 30 percent said it made them more likely to vote for the Republican ticket, 26 percent said it made them less likely to do so. For the rest, it didn't make much difference. If your poll shows that Palin isn't making a difference, you need to hire a new pollster.
Posted by: Matt ||
09/14/2008 16:48 ||
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#1
If your poll shows that Palin isn't making a difference, you need to hire a new pollster.
Well, it is the Strib, they've always needed new pollsters.
Posted by: Mike N. ||
09/14/2008 18:40 Comments ||
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#2
The American owmen thing is over played. Would people have been this enthusiastic if he'd chosen K. Bailey Hutchison? I think it's more the Beer issue.
#4
Alternate title :
Obama campaign dead, McCain draws even in Minnesota. GOP has not carried this state in Prez Election since 1972, and before that - 1956...
#5
I hope so - but let's not get cocky. A lot can happen between now and the election. I'm hopeful but we have a lot to do between now and then to make this happen.
#6
I'm still not putting a lot of stock in the polls. They could be cooking them to make a Obama "comeback" all that more exciting.
Or they could just be plain stupid.
Either way, the fact that tons of people have been re-energized for McCain/Palin and are lukewarm or over Obama/Biden does not bode well for the dhimocrats.
Front-page 'news' on Sunday. I print the whole thing so you don't have to do all their ads.
WASILLA, Alaska -- On Sept. 24, 2001, Mayor Sarah Palin and the City Council held their first meeting after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. The council condemned the attacks and approved a $5,000 gift to a disaster relief fund. Palin said she would try to obtain materials from both attack sites to include in the town's "Honor Garden."
And then the council and mayor returned to their normal business: approving funds to upgrade the public well, issuing a restaurant permit and taking up a measure forbidding residents from operating bed-and-breakfasts in their homes. After a lively debate, the bed-and-breakfast measure lost, 4 to 1. I suppose she should have invaded Russia? Continued on Page 49
Posted by: Bobby ||
09/14/2008 11:37 ||
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#1
So what's the murder rate in Wasilla and that of your own little burg, Da Capital [DC]?
#3
Sally, Sally, Sally. No need to get so bitchy, dahlink.
Posted by: Swamp Blondie in the Cornfields ||
09/14/2008 12:53 Comments ||
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#4
If they are going to mock Palin, why not simply refer to her as a former high-school basketball player and failed beauty queen. Refering to her as a former mayor comes dangerously close to implying she might have actual experience making decisions and doing actual things. Not to suggest that sitting around with a bunch of fellow community activists and making jaw-jaw about how to divy up the pie and who to extort money from next isn't doing stuff.
#5
The Democrats/MSM are coming to grips with the fact that, due to Palin, they have lost the middle. It should prove an entertaining 7 weeks as they increasingly lose their grip on other things.
Baring unusual levels of fraud, this election is over.
Posted by: Minister of funny walks ||
09/14/2008 16:14 Comments ||
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Another example of the way that Obama plans to win. As a reminder, although McCain/Palin accepted public funds, you can still donate to their/the RNC's compliance fund if you so choose. Those monies will pay for lawyers etc. to observe, detect and challenge this sort of thing. We all lose if either party gets away with throwing elections in this fashion.
Keep an eye on this. Obama has a large ground organization and can draw on Soros etc. funding. Add in voter registration and vote casting fraud by the likes of ACORN and it's obvious that this election won't be won or lost until election day itself - or in the courts afterwards unless there is a very clear victory by one or the other side.
#3
The Washington State Governor's race of '04 was a template of what I expect Obama and the Chicago machine to utilize fully.
There they 'recounted' until King County's election's office (includes Seattle and is a fiefdom of the Democratic County Executive) 'found' enough D votes (and lost enough R votes) to turn the tide in favor of the Democrats.
Then of course the courts refused to consider unless the Republicans can tell how each and every {found|lost|dead|imaginary} vote (in a secret ballot) actually voted.
#4
CF - remember that the KC Dems kept "finding" piles of ballots jammed behind furniture, tossed in filing cabinets, etc., etc., etc.? And also the hordes of transients registered to vote using the King County admin building as their mailing address? And it's looking more and more like the Obamabots realize their only hope of winning this election is to steal it - apparently ACORN has recently been very, very busy in Ohio...
Posted by: Ricky bin Ricardo (Abu Babaloo) ||
09/14/2008 15:57 Comments ||
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#5
due we even have any federal body responsible for investigating and prosecuting vote fraud? It doesn't seem like it. Everyone knows Acorn cheats and no one does anything about it.
#6
Voter registration is a state responsibility. The feds can get involved in certain cases where civil rights issues are raised, but only after the fact IIUC.
#7
Voter Registration is easy. If someone really wanted to vote, they could do it themselves. The number of sick, lame, and crazy that can't be bothered to register on their own, but will actually vote on election day will always be limited.
Then there is the matter of registering the dead etc. I wonder if some of these group's "volunteers" are being paid by-the-piece for application submissions that go nowhere. And even if accepted, unless a fraudulent registration is followed up by a fraudulent ballot, it makes no difference in the end.
The Detroit Free Press had an article that fraudulent ACORN applications had already been caught during verification. If ACORN is being busted in Detroit(!), they have a problem
Posted by: Minister of funny walks ||
09/14/2008 16:44 Comments ||
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#8
due we even have any federal body responsible for investigating and prosecuting vote fraud?
Actually we do. However, that is why those Federal DAs were fired for NOT pursuing the issue. Something that disappears in the bogus media and Donk storm that followed about a President firing Presidential appointees.
Oscar winning actor Matt Damon says as a US citizen, he is frightened to see Republican Sarah Palin a heartbeat away from the presidency.
"I think there's a really good chance Sarah Palin could become president, and I think that's the really scary thing," Damon said.
Since Republican presidential candidate Senator John McCain announced two weeks ago that first-term Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin would be his running mate, Democrats have pointed to his advanced age, saying that the 44-year-old governor could soon be just 'a heartbeat away from the presidency'.
John McCain, who celebrated his 72nd birthday on August 29, has made it clear that should he win the White House bid in 2008, he would not seek a second term.
According to the actuarial tables insurance companies use to evaluate customers, there is a roughly 1 in 3 chance that a 72-year-old man will not reach the age of 80 - without factoring in individual medical history, such as McCain's lengthy battles with potentially lethal skin cancer.
"I know that she was a mayor of a really, really small town. And she is the governor of Alaska for less than two years... I think the pick was made for political purposes, but in terms of governance, it is a disaster," Matt Damon continued.
Palin managed to raise eyebrows on Thursday in her first televised interview since she was named to the GOP ticket; she said the US would have to go to war with Moscow if Georgia becomes a NATO member and comes under Russian attack.
"It's like a really bad Disney movie. The hockey mom, you know, 'oh, I'm just a hockey mom' and she is the president and she is facing down (Russian Prime Minister) Vladimir Putin," Damon added.
A spokeswoman for Palin later rejected Damon's comments as 'name-calling'. Maria Comella accused Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama and 'his celebrity supporters' of inventing ideas about the Alaskan governor.
"It's clear they're threatened by a candidate who actually has a record of achieving reform and change, while Barack Obama just talks about it," Comella said.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/14/2008 00:00 ||
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#2
Matt hasn't considered how many small towns or states his hero Obama has governed. A little clue for you Matt - zero.
And, talk about bad movies. Imagine BO: He's just a community organizer and he's staring down Putin.
Riiiight.
Posted by: Thomotch Scourge of the Jutes4046 ||
09/14/2008 0:53 Comments ||
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#3
And who would know more than Matt about bad Disney movies. Still, I loved him as The Little Mermaid. And wasn't he brilliant as the wooden and emotionless spy in The Good Shepard? (see #1 for screen shot)
#4
"I think there's a really good chance Sarah Palin could become president, and I think that's the really scary thing," Damon said.
The 'establishment' said the same thing about Teddy Roosevelt. You know Matt, that last head upon Rushmore. Ever contemplate why he's up there and will last [much like the Sphinx] well beyond your existence .
#8
"I think there's a really good chance Sarah Palin could become president, and I think that's the really scary thing," Damon said.
And he's absolutely correct. If, that is, you are interested in maintaining the status quo. Or if you are a socialist, hate America, and want the gov't to continue it's corrupt policies while you milk MY tax dollars to feather your own nest.
But real change is always scary. Sen. Obama's "The same old change we always promise" means nothing. There's no change involved there.
The thing that has me scratching my head is this:
Why do people care what some sub class of person, who's work involves lying to themselves until they believe it, has to say? Seriously, WTH qualifies Ed Bagely, Kevin Costner, et. al. to comment on "Climate Change"? Does any of them have a degree in meteorology? Why do I care what Mr. Damon has to say on politics, does he have a degree in PolitSci?
No that that qualifies him for gassing like he does.
Posted by: Albert Clavins5664 ||
09/14/2008 10:58 Comments ||
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#10
Insulting her by comparing her to a Disney movie?
Next, he should insult her for being patriotic, Christian, enjoying apple pie and milk, and for having children. Then sneeringly call her fat and that she wears ugly shoes on her big feet, and complain that she doesn't "mind her place" when men are around.
"Now get back in the kitchen and make me some pie!"
Then, for the rest of his life, he could wonder why random women approach him on the street and punch him before walking off, muttering to themselves.
#11
Matt Damon. Along with Ben Affleck and Tom Cruise. Major turn offs. Don't bother to see any movie with one or more of these in it. I can't even be bothered renting a DVD with one of them.
Posted by: Aussie Mike ||
09/14/2008 17:39 Comments ||
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#13
Matt and Ben should have stayed together as a couple. I blame JLo.
Posted by: ed ||
09/14/2008 18:07 Comments ||
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#14
The problem with Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, and Tom Cruise is that they really do think they are the characters they play in movies. They actually eat their own bullshit - with relish!
#16
Excuse my ignorance, but just WHO is Matt Damon? I know I don't go to movies or keep current on who's doing what to whom in hollywierd, but just who is this doofus??? Neverheardofhim.
Posted by: Old Patriot ||
09/14/2008 20:04 Comments ||
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#17
Dear Matt__
Life isn't like the movies. And movies aren't like life. Get out of the Hollywood hothouse and get a (real) life.
A Moroccan Islamic theologian, Mohamed Ben Sheikh Abderrahman Al Maghraoui, has caused a great stir by stating "A nine-year-old girl has the same sexual capacities as a woman of 20 and over"
He issued a fatwa (Islamic edict) where he "legalizes" the union between a child and an adult male. "We found that girls of that age give better benefits than adult women," he says. "Consequently they are so trained to marry as young of 20 years."
In the Islamic world, especially in the Arabian Peninsula, marriage between girls and adult males is relatively common, but Muslim theologians have not gone so far in justifying the practice.
Al Maghraoui, a well-known Salafist sheikh, and the author of half a dozen books of theology, posted the fatwa on the website of his association Preaching in the Koran and Sunna. His critics argue that he probably has done it to defend, from a religious point of view, the marriage contracted in secret by one of his friends.
His pronouncement has caused a major scandal in Morocco, but so far there has been no reaction from the authorities. The radical theologian bases his edict in the example of the prophet Muhammad. Aicha, recalls, had only six years when she became her fiancée but was not married until she turned nine.
There are "vicious theologians who are capable of putting religion in the service of paedophilia" writes the socialist daily Al Ittihad al Ichtiraki. "The era of our Prophet is completely different from ours. These days a marriage of the kind would be a true injustice towards the girl. A true aberration says Naji Adib, who heads the association No ones touch my Children, who campaigns in Morocco against this scourge.
"This type of people look at Islam from the point of view which is convenient for them. It is a restrictive vision of Islam. And it is bad. Fatwas like these show the lack of reasoning from those who issue them. I cannot understand via what intellectual road or for what mental construction they come to such aberrations" she added.
Faced with the passivity of the authorities, a lawyer from Rabat, Mourad Bakouri, has taken the initiative to denounce Al Maghraoui for "violation of the Family Code and violation of children's rights." The new Moroccan law, which came into force in 2005, stipulates that the minimum age for marriage is 18 years.
#1
Not a surprise as MOhammad liked 'em young. I think it would do everyone a world of good to be more informed with this side of the Religion of Peace.
Former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim works to complete his comeback. Keep an eye on this; the change in government from a Malay-majority corrupt elite to a coalition of ethnic Indians, Chinese and Islamists could introduce some fair bit of instability.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/14/2008 00:00 ||
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(Xinhua) -- Thailand's core ruling party, People Power Party (PPP) is set to decide on its candidate for the prime minister post on Monday, after party leader and disqualified premier Samak Sundaravej declined the nomination amid strong opposition, said a deputy party minister on Saturday.
Sompong Amornwiwat, a PPP deputy leader and caretaker justice minister, said that the PPP nomination, once decided and sent to the other five coalition parties, will be submitted to the House of Representatives for voting.
He also said that all the six parties in the caretaker coalition government, led by PPP, will make a statement at a joint press conference on Tuesday, he said.
The selection of a new premier started after Samak was forced out of job with a verdict of the Constitutional Court on Sept. 9 which found him violate the charter by hosting two TV cooking shows while in office.
Samak had been embattled by the anti-government People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) with continuous street protests since May, calling for the step-down of him and his cabinet, accusing the administration of a proxy of former premier Thaksin Shinawatra, who had faced mass protests led by PAD and was finally ousted in a military coup in Sept. 19, 2006.
The PPP declared on Thursday that it would renominate Samak as the new premier candidate at Friday's voting, and Samak accepted it later.
However, it was met with opposition by fractions of PPP and the other five coalition parties in the coalition government, now a caretaker one, who boycotted a parliament voting session scheduled on Friday morning, leading to the abortion of the voting for lack of quorum.
The voting to elect a new prime minister was rescheduled on Sept.17
Samak then reportedly withdrew his bid to be reinstalled, and speculation held that he would soon declare a resignation from the PPP party leader post.
On Saturday, PAD leaders Chamlong Srimuang and Somsak Kosaisuk said at a press conference that the group maintained its stance that the entire caretaker cabinet must resign unconditionally.
They also renewed urges for the new administration to implement its so-called "new politics" concept -- to have a partly-appointed, partly-elected House of Representatives, with the appointed MPs outnumbering elected ones. They claimed it was to protect the country from domination of corrupted politicians, but critics see it as a step backward in the country's democracy.
Posted by: Fred ||
09/14/2008 00:00 ||
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In a rushed bid to ride out the storm sweeping American finance, 94-year-old Merrill Lynch & Co. agreed late Sunday to sell itself to Bank of America Corp. for roughly $44 billion.
The deal, which was being worked out in 48 hours of frenetic negotiating, could instantly reshape the U.S. banking landscape, making the nation's prime behemoth even bigger. The boards of the two companies approved the deal Sunday evening, according to people familiar with the matter.
Driven by Chief Executive Kenneth Lewis, Bank of America has already made dozens of acquisitions large and small, including the purchase of ailing mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp. earlier this year. In adding Merrill Lynch, it would control the nation's largest force of stock brokers as well as a well-regarded investment bank.
A combination would create a bank of vast reach, involved in nearly every nook and cranny of the financial system, from credit cards and auto loans to bond and stock underwriting, merger advice and wealth management. It would also show how the credit crisis has created opportunities for financially sound buyers. At $44 billion, or roughly $29 a share, Merrill would be sold at about two-thirds of its value of one year ago, and half its all-time peak value of early 2007. Merrill shares changed hands at $17.05 each on Friday, after falling sharply in the wake of Lehman's looming demise.
Posted by: Steve White ||
09/14/2008 21:59 ||
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Rumors were Friday that Bank of America was the leading rube suitor for the failing Lehman Brothers.
Now it appears the last hope was Barclays, and they walked along with BOA when Paulson said no to backstopping the purchase; and the "end game" is in sight.
#1
An note to Rantburgers: though the odds are not great, a peculiar situation may yet evolve that is in essence a worldwide collapse in credit, affecting governments, corporations and individuals all at once.
From the individual point of view, other than some degree of economic catastrophe, greater or lesser, faster or slower, what would this mean?
Ironically, massive and truly unbelievable deflation.
That is, imagine if all at once, the major credit card companies invalidated ALL credit cards, concluding all existing sales.
This would mean that the only way for anybody to purchase anything would be with debit cards, instant debit checks, and cash.
Of course, that vast majority of transactions would have to be by debit card, which would be the bulk of our national economic activity. But far fewer merchants are currently able to do instant debit checks.
This leaves cash. And how many people would you guess have over $500 in cash in their homes? But for at least a month or two, or more, cash would suddenly be worth far more than face value. A penny might be worth a dollar, because everyone would *have* to have cash.
It sounds utterly bizarre, yet the "credit society" has only existed since WWII. Before then, cash was generally how transactions were done.
And the US mints are right now working at full capacity. The government is *incapable* of producing more paper money without opening new mints. We are talking something on the order of $500 billion dollars, with corporations shuttling around suitcases full of $100,000 bills, only redeemable with government authorization.
In any event, the reason I bring this up is because, for the next six months to a year, it would probably be a very, very good idea to keep a few thousand dollars CASH in a safe place.
If the credit crunch doesn't happen by then, you will only be out a few dollars interest, so no biggy.
But if it does happen, who knows? You might be able to buy a new car for $200, a really nice house for $5000, or an s-load of gold for the price of lead.
#4
I would argue that we are undergoing deflation right now. It is possible to have deflation with rapidly rising prices which can be tied to a supply and demand event, which we have in the case of our recent oil price spikes.
So, what is deflation?
I went through a deflationary event in Oklahoma during the oil bust.
Looking back on it, it wasn't bad: housing fell, wages were worth much more; you just couldn't borrow money because frankly no one had any to lend.
That may well be what the USA faces, and even in that event we could still be in a rising price environment.
If companies here cannot borrow to fund inventories, then manufacturers can't make stuff; then we have shortages or supply events and higher prices.
The solution is obvious. Government is crowding out private businesses with its voracious appetite for money, so that appetite much be curbed.
It will happen. Whether it is by an act of Congress or an act of the Fed is the choice we face now.
Government cannot continue to expand or even spend at it current level. It is hurting the economy and crowding out any chance the private economy will have to get back on its feet.
#5
Barclays has a lot of stuff marked to fantasy (i.e. fancy financial assets on/off its balance sheet that cannot easily be valued because of their complexity, but are clearly worth less than the amounts they owe to their creditors). Make no mistake - they are in deep doo-doo. For them to take on Lehman's liabilities would be like adding weight to a sinking ship. At the same time, if Lehman liquidates, Barclays will have to switch from marking its assets to fantasy to marking its assets to Lehman liquidation values. Barclays may not want to buy Lehman, but it was probably hoping that somebody else would.
Bank of America is buying Merrill, though. The rumor is that BAC has so many massive derivative trades with Merrill that it can't afford to let Merrill go under.
#6
Lehman survived, even prospered for 150+ years through depressions, panics, etc. and in periods when the govt was borrowing more than it is now as a percentage of total spending.
It is a mistake to blame govt borrowing. It is the company itself, especially the executives who awarded themselves many millions of bonuses. Certainly the govt bears responsibility for the Community Reinvestment Act which basically requires lending quotas and for several other govt actions that made things worse and, of course there is the Fannie and Freddie problem which was sort of a govt chartered and govt. coddled non govt agency.
#7
It is a mistake to blame govt borrowing. It is the company itself, especially the executives who awarded themselves many millions of bonuses.
Lehman's executives destroyed it. Period. They got carried away with leverage and also got involved in investments outside of their area of expertise where they, not the other participants, were the rubes. For once, Main Street got to stick it to the city slickers on Wall Street.
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
When asked to characterize Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's qualifications to be the Republican vice presidential nominee, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., stated flatly that Palin isn't ready to be vice president.
In a rushed bid to ride out the storm sweeping American finance, 94-year-old Merrill Lynch & Co. agreed late Sunday to sell itself to Bank of America Corp. for roughly $44 billion.
