Some residents of Chicago's largely Hispanic Pilsen section are upset over a new doll in the popular American Girl series because her storyline says the Mexican-American youngster and her family left the "dangerous" neighborhood for a better life in the suburbs.
Many in the West Side neighborhood say the characterization is insulting and inaccurate.
"It's very offensive and it's really a slap in the face to the hardworking people of the Pilsen community," said Alvaro R. Obregon, who lives near where the doll, Marisol, supposedly lived before setting out for suburban Des Plaines.
According to the biography that accompanies the doll, which was introduced just after Christmas, she is the daughter of a transit worker and an accountant. One day her mother tells Marisol the family is leaving their apartment for a house in the suburbs.
The old neighborhood "was no place for me to grow up," the doll's story says. "It was dangerous, and there was no place for me to play."
American Girl officials said that they never intended to insult the community.
"Our feeling is that when people read the book in its entirety, I think they'll see the picture that we painted of Marisol in the book is from a very warm, lively and very close-knit community," American Girl spokeswoman Stephanie Spanos said Wednesday.
Spanos added that the "dangerous" comment was a reference to traffic in the big city and that Marisol's parents moved to Des Plaines because they wanted a house and a yard for their daughter to play in.
...Rodrigo Herrera, who runs a small debt-collection business in Caracas, Venezuela, has no such bailout policy. His business name is Dr. Diablo, Spanish for Dr. Devil. He is perhaps one of the world's most effective, and most unusual, bill collectors.
Dr. Diablo doesn't break your bones, or shoot holes in your kneecaps. He embarrasses you to death.
Let's say that you are really behind on your car payments. The car dealership hires Dr. Diablo, who shows up at your office, or home, or maybe even your church, dressed as the devil and accompanied by a carload of women in skintight costumes and a vicious dog.
He makes lots of noise with the siren on his SUV, which is painted with hellfire flames. In general, Dr. Diablo makes sure that your neighbors, or your boss, know that you, until now a pillar of the community, are actually a deadbeat.
While its previous owners considered adult entertainment "immoral," Adelphia Communications Corp., the country's fifth-largest cable television provider, last week became the first to offer hard-core adult films on pay-per-view to its subscribers.
"It's a very lucrative source of funds," said Dennis McAlpine, a media and entertainment industry analyst. "The cable companies and the satellite companies are programming agnostics in the sense that they don't care what the programming is. It's what the viewers want to see."
Viewers can watch such sexually explicit movies in the Hilton and Marriott hotel chains on video services like LodgeNet or on "On Command," which is owned by Liberty Media, formerly a part of AT&T; at home via DirecTV, which is owned by Rupert Murdoch's Newscorp; or via virtually every cable company, including Cox, Time Warner and Comcast.
Sexual content at Hiltons. How inappropriate.
Posted by: Phil Fraering ||
02/08/2005 10:18:04 PM ||
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From the ever-informative Khaleej Times. Hat tip to Beautiful Atrocities If your horoscope is looking a bit worrying for the coming Lunar New Year, a Hong Kong company has just the thing to put it right: feng shui underpants. "Our feng shui master says that having something lucky in contact with your skin would bring spiritual balance, so we thought lucky underpants would be ideal -- they are as intimate as you get," said Amy Law, a spokeswoman for the company.
On Wednesday millions of Chinese around the world will welcome the new year of the rooster, the next in a recurring 12-year horological cycle, each of which is represented by a different animal of the zodiac. Ancient belief has it that each year reflects the character of its associated beast and as roosters are considered unpredictable, the coming 12 months are expected to [be] volatile. The underpants, which come in red, grey and white and in boxers for men and briefs for women, depict a dragon on the front in accordance with Chinese belief that the mythical creatures balance out the erratic nature of roosters. "If you have a dragon on your underpants, you will be protected," said Law.
There was a "well proportioned" bikini (it was red) sort of attached to a girl (early 20's-I'm 51 so I can call her a girl) at the beach last summer, and a very obvious but petite snarling dragon peering out from... well... you know what I am getting at?
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals is featuring a nude Dennis Rodman in its new anti-fur ad. Rodman -- shown seated, in profile -- urges people to, "Be comfortable in your own skin and let animals keep theirs." PETA says Rodman is the first man and the first sports star to pose for its anti-fur campaign. "Think Ink, Not Mink," says the ad featuring a tattoo-covered Rodman. The ad was timed to coincide with fashion week in New York City.
Thankfully, there is no link to the picture.
Posted by: Steve ||
02/08/2005 10:24:50 AM ||
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#1
Ewww....
The thought of that alone makes me want to kill some squirrels.
#2
Killing the squirrels over that thought is an insult to squirrels. Maybe if you killed a hippy instead...
Posted by: Charles ||
02/08/2005 11:26 Comments ||
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#3
Kill and skin a hippy?
What would you do with the meat? It's not like you could let it rot and animals wouldn't eat something that filled with drugs . . . and it will never go away . . .
Posted by: Jame Retief ||
02/08/2005 11:43 Comments ||
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#4
I never thought I'd say this, but . . . "Dennis, put the wedding dress back on!"
Posted by: Mike ||
02/08/2005 12:19 Comments ||
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#5
A pierced and tattooed basketball has-been immitating a Mastiff dog for animal rights nutballs.
#8
All right Goddamit! This PETA shit has gone toooo far. I went to the site The Muckster linked re. Mercedes Benz cloth seats, and about choked on my Copenhagen. As the owner of 2 Merks with REAL cow hide seats, I feel betrayed by Mercedes for even thinking about pandering to these SpecialPrecious slimy little noodle-nosed greasy haired scum wads. By the way you fuckerheads, I hope that I ate a chop or burger from one of the steers that gave their life so that my butt could be comfy when I'm out Benz'in around.
#9
Aw hell, Bodyguard. You should have upgraded to the baby fur seal seats. They're worth every penny.
Posted by: ed ||
02/08/2005 20:15 Comments ||
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#10
Bodyguard-
As my sirloin stealing grey & white shorthair cat would say... "N-Gow!" (I Agree) - Joined in majority opinion by the dogs, GERMAN SHEPHERD, and Poodle...
Only in dissent is the Persian Cat (Islamic?) who has her own attitude...would probably appreciate PETA
Seriously -- remember Benz is a German company, and we know they have been in the P. C. wilderness since shortly after the wall fell...
#11
Next time a PETA nut complains about your leather jacket or fur point out to them how nice you are to the planet. Within 50 years after you throw it away it is composted. 10,000 years from now their polyethylene fiber coat will still be uncomposted in the landfill!
Posted by: Fred ||
02/08/2005 00:00:00 ||
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#1
Hey, mebbe next time, eh Ladies? Of course, your vote will only count as 1/4 of a man's vote. But the House of Saud is on the march, setting the standard for truly backward barbarians and female castrationists everywhere, reforming and instituting that democracy stuff and dressing up every window in the hundreds and hundreds of palaces throughout the Kingdom thingy. When they're done, well then, stand back -- equality will not be far behind, I'm sure.
#2
yo --its progress [hehe]--to think before he became a self appointed king abdul aziz was just the emir of rehyahd--then the hijaz--mecca--medina--tomorrow the world--i'm just sayin'
Posted by: SON OF TOLUI ||
02/08/2005 2:44 Comments ||
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A lieutenant has been disciplined after using an Army helicopter to deliver a pizza to his girlfriend. The incident on 25 January saw the unnamed officer divert from a routine training flight over Stanford, Norfolk, to take the fast food. The Ministry of Defence refused to name the officer, from 659 Squadron, or divulge how he was punished. A spokesman said: "The chain of command doesn't condone these sorts of actions. The individuals have been disciplined."
The lieutenant may be delivering pizza for a living now.
He added: "During a routine low-level training sortie, somebody decided it would be an opportunity to use it for a delivery." The extra cost caused by the diversion is not known. The pizza was understood to have been delivered to a female officer cadet at an Army range at Thetford, Norfolk.
I guess we all know what kind of tip our young lieutant was hoping for.
The Ministry of Defence spokesman did not confirm what toppings were on the pizza.
Posted by: Steve ||
02/08/2005 9:20:23 AM ||
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#1
When I was an undergraduate, a recent AFROTC graduate came by one Sunday morning and visited his old frat house . . . in an F-4 Phantom. I happened to be on the sidewalk in front of the house when he went by with the afterburners lit.
I understand he spent the rest of his enlistment in non-flight status.
Posted by: Mike ||
02/08/2005 9:41 Comments ||
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#2
The English really mean it when they say "Delivery in 30 minutes or less."
Posted by: ed ||
02/08/2005 9:45 Comments ||
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Posted by: Barbara Skolaut ||
02/08/2005 20:14 Comments ||
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#10
True Story: When I was stationed in Michigan in the late 70s-mid 80s, there was a XXX drive in in the little town of Mio that had an interesting policy: if you came in in a military vehicle of any kind, you got in for free, no matter how many people were in it. The owner kept a gallery of pics of the winners, the all time grand prize being TWO CH-47s with about twenty guys each aboard.
Mike
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski ||
02/08/2005 22:58 Comments ||
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"It's not? It's not Australia? I thought it was Australia. Don't you have kangaroos and such here?... New Zealand? Really? What do they have in New Zealand?... Kiwis? And sheep? And those fruits that look like great big hairy grapes?"
Cherie Blair opened her controversial Australasian speaking tour last night with a spectacular gaffe, forgetting which country she was in. Diners at the charity event in New Zealand listened in shock as she confused them with their arch-rivals in Australia. The Prime Minister's wife, despite charging a reported £125,000 for her six-date tour of the two countries, then made the same mistake again. "Calling us Australians was the worst faux pas you can imagine - and she did it twice," said a businessman after the speech. "I don't think she benefited herself with her presentation. And it was boring. I give her a two out of 10." Cherie's brand of platitudinous, illogical and nonsensical PC mind-farting is feted by the UK's chattering Guardianista class. Count yourselves lucky you don't get to hear more of it.
British newspaper journalists were removed from the Auckland Convention Centre shortly before the half-hour speech began. [L]ater, after a dinner of prawns, rack of lamb and pistachio cheesecake, she struggled to live up to her superstar billing, according to members of the audience. "I thought Cherie was very poor," said Caroline Canning, 34, an insurance executive. "She flogged her book, and for a woman of her credentials she could have had a lot more weight and talked about her work with human rights. Instead it was all about who painted which walls in Downing Street - peripheral crap. Sharlene McDonald, 45, also an insurance executive, said: "I'd give her three out of 10. We were expecting nine out of 10." A local celebrity chef, Peta Mathias, said: "I was expecting something more intellectual. I had no idea she would be talking about the book." Mrs Blair, wearing a bright turquoise silk coat and dress, entered the conference hall alongside the prime minister, Helen Clark, to a standing ovation and the strains of a song called You Are Amazing. An amazingliability, perhaps.
Ticket sales in Auckland and the proceeds of a charity auction have already raised nearly £180,000 from Mrs Blair's New Zealand visit, without counting commercial sponsorships. It has been reported that she will receive a third of proceeds, the same proportion as the charities.
Posted by: Bulldog ||
02/08/2005 6:12:09 AM ||
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#1
Wait a minute. Mrs. Blair is allowed to accept £125,000 for speechifying while her husband is the UK Prime Minister? It seems to me she runs the risk of people paying her in order to influence her husband. Does she have plans to talk in Paris about her wonderful wall painter?
Posted by: ed ||
02/08/2005 6:36 Comments ||
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#2
"I was expecting something more intellectual. She arrived in Perth, Western Australia where I live today. The sound bite at the airport portrayed her as a typical witless Pom. 'The weather is really nice here.' Like she had no idea it is always hot and it never rains in the summer here. Human Rights Lawyer must be an undemanding profession.
Otherwise I am hoping that all the Iraq war supporters get re-elected. It will be a historic rejection of the left's agitprop So far Aznar is the only exception due to the special circumstances of Madrid, but I really have to stretch things to hope Blair gets re-elected
#4
Human Rights Lawyer must be an undemanding profession.
Well, duh. Half the time you just ask for money so you can "fight American imperialism" and the other half you suck off the Saudi teat while defending jihadis in court.
Posted by: Robert Crawford ||
02/08/2005 8:58 Comments ||
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From the Sofia News Agency
Greek Parliament has elected Karolos Papoulias President of Greece with 279 lawmakers voting in support of his candidature. Papulias, 76, will replace Konstantinos Stefanopoulos as head of state, Greek media informed. Papulias has had close relations with PASOK's founder Andreas Papandreou. His active political career dates after his return from Germany in 1974, when the colonels' dictatorial regime was ended. In 1981 he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs in PASOK's government and stayed there until 1989. When his party returns to power in 1993, Karolos Papoulias takes on again the country's top diplomatic job until 1996. Papoulias is lawyer by profession and speaks also German, Italian and French.
#2
Didn't they (PASOK party) used to have actress Melina Mercouri (Movie - Zorba the Greek) as the culture minister griping about the corrupting influence of American Levi Bluejeans on Greek culture?
Severely EFL A government-appointed board of inquiry investigating the partial collapse of a Paris airport terminal [the futuristic Terminal 2E at Charles de Gaulle airport] found serious errors in construction, including concrete that had not been sufficiently reinforced. Airports of Paris, the company that operates the major airports in the capital, said it had not received a copy of the report and had no other comment. Falling glass, steel and masonry killed four travelers - two Chinese, one Czech and one Lebanese - and injured three others on May 23, 2004 when a roof collapsed in the departure hall. A preliminary report by experts released in July said that a weakness in the concrete that formed the terminal's vaulted roof may have contributed to the collapse.
#1
Make it a 30-hour work week, Jacques, it'll spread the deaths over a longer period of time, yielding a lower death rate. Might even meet EU regulations. Lessee, how many deaders does it take in what time period to qualify for "genocide"?
$100 million Cash-for-Favours Scandal. Schadenfreude is a shameful vice -- but I just don't like Chretien, who is related to Jacques Chiraq by marriage.
Two feuding Canadian prime ministers will this week add spice to a probe into a cash-for-favors corruption scandal which threatens the future of the minority Liberal government.
Prime Minister Paul Martin and predecessor Jean Chretien will appear before the inquiry, which is looking into how C$100 million ($80 million) in government funds was funneled to firms with close Liberal links at a time when Chretien was in power.
Voter anger over the scandal cost the Liberals their parliamentary majority in last June's election and Martin confidants fear the longer the probe continues, the less chance the Liberals will stand at the next vote.
Transport Minister Jean Lapierre, a close ally of Martin's, said over the weekend that the daily testimony was like "water torture" for the party. "It's very difficult to have a positive message when every night the reputation of (Liberal) politicians is at stake," he told the Canadian Press.
He may well have been referring to sensational headlines above the testimony of senior Chretien aide Jean Carle, who admitted last Friday he had created a false paper trail to hide one particular C$125,000 deal. "If this had been a drug deal that (the paper trail) would have been called 'money laundering'... it's the same principle, isn't it? Am I wrong?" he asked Carle. "You're not wrong," replied Carle. The inquiry started last September and is supposed to end in December 2005.
Most of the C$100 million was spent in the French-speaking province of Quebec as Ottawa mounted a public relations campaign to boost its image in the wake of a failed 1995 independence referendum.
"In Canadian terms a corruption issue doesn't get much bigger ... so the stakes for the Liberal Party are amazing," Chretien biographer Lawrence Martin told CBC television.
Chretien aides say he will try to blame bureaucrats for the scandal but those close to Martin -- who has been at odds with his arch rival since the two men ran for the leadership of the Liberals in 1990 -- said last year the former prime minister must bear some of the responsibility.
The scandal erupted on Feb. 10 last year, shortly after angry Martin supporters forced Chretien to retire early. Martin immediately set up the inquiry and said there must have been some political direction behind the scandal.
Chretien -- who sacked Martin as finance minister in June 2002 -- is scheduled to testify on Tuesday and possibly Wednesday and Martin will appear on Thursday. It will be the first time a sitting and a former Canadian prime minister have given evidence at the same inquiry.
Congressional anger with the European Union over strategic security issues is boiling over again after talk in Brussels that the EU might lift its arms embargo on China.
Lawmakers say this would put U.S. security interests directly at odds with those of the Europeans.
Sen. Jon Kyl, chairman of the Republican Policy Committee, circulated a paper last week saying that if "the EU ignores U.S. security concerns, the United States will once again be forced to reduce its reliance on collective institutions such as the EU" and the United Nations.
Should the EU lift the ban on the Beijing dictatorship, the Arizona senator added, it would force the United States "to redouble its efforts to build ad-hoc coalitions of the willing on key tests and issues in the U.S. national interest."
Kyl's use of the term "coalitions of the willing" was a reference to the Iraq war, which has pitted many European governments against the United States.
The 10-page paper came after a House resolution passed 411-3 earlier in the week deploring a possible lifting of the arms embargo, which could happen as early as June.The resolution stated, "Such a development ⊠is inherently inconsistent" with U.S. policy and "would necessitate limitations and constraints" on U.S.-European relations.
#1
Time to remind the fellows about the Alabama incident. The Alabama was a commerce raider ship built in England in the Civil War. Left England manned by English sailors and commanded by Confederate officers, to spread destruction among America's merchant marine. So effective was the Alahama and her sister ships that vast numbers of American shipping reregistered under the English flag. It would take a world war to reverse that effect. The American government sought redress of this destruction. Of course the English government refused to pay for their part in the affair. Until - a confrontation arose with France later in the century. The American government then pointed out that if the English held that their participation was legitimate in the Alabama affair, then the entire east coast ship building capability and manpower would be available to their pending opponent. The matter was resolved. If the French and Germans would like to become the merchants of death with the Chinese, there can be an opportunity in the future for the Americans to sell the finest military equipment on the planet to someone who is not as tolerant of French or German whines as we are.
#3
Time to find out who the 3 @$$h@t$ are who voted against it. Lemme wager that one is Barbara Lee.
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
02/08/2005 17:11 Comments ||
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I am glad that Sen. Kyl is bringing this to the forefront. I am also heartened that the House resolution passed 411 to 3. I wonder who the three were that voted against it, and why. 16 years after Tianamen square, things have not changed for people under the Chicoms. The EU is hurtin' for funds because of the loss of market from Saddam.
PS4664, your comment is right on. There is a serious price to be paid for selling out one's allies and oneself for some silver.
Posted by: Alaska Paul ||
02/08/2005 17:14 Comments ||
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#5
uh, but PS, we're not currently at war with China.
#6
And yet, here we are, hat in hand, on bended knee, supplicants to European favor this week. Our move is either delectably dishonest or disgustingly submissive.
#7
HR 57 - the three nays : McKinney (of course), Oberstar, and Paul
Posted by: Frank G ||
02/08/2005 17:26 Comments ||
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#8
condi aint on no bended knee. Shes trying to reconcile based on shared interests, which is perfectly right. Theres a middle ground between submission and hostility.
#13
Obviously we're not at war w/China. I think the Taiwan equation comes into play anytime anyone wants to give the Chicoms any new toys that we may have to find a counter measure for. Hence, it's a security concern and the French et al know it.
#15
Jarhead-I usually like what you have to say, so maybe I am off base here. I just wonder how long a list those "common interests" make, and whether that list isn't trumped by declared intent by certain EU members to see the US weakened. This is one sure way of doing it, and seems to follow the European model of heading down a dangerous road with no Plan B.
#17
The great powers have always armed native potentates. None of this shiny new weaponry prevented any of the great powers from beating the natives, though. We will simply have to spend more on defense, and not sell it to the Europeans. That will hit them where it hurts - in their pocketbooks. Is there anyone who thinks we can't beat the EU in an arms race? Dismantling NATO might be another useful step.
#18
There is a serious price to be paid for selling out one's allies and oneself for some silver.
But wait! I thought *we* were the money-grubbing capitalist warmongers eager to sell our grandmothers for a coin. What a topsy-turvey world!
Of course, the EU knows it can get away with this because it will not be them cleaning up the mess when push comes to shove. Same with selling nuke tech to the Iranians. Same with Saddam. At least Oil For Food sounded noble.
I'm not sure if I said something in the past about "common interests" or if that was LH. For my part I think we have legit serious concerns about chicoms getting more EU technology because of the Taiwan situation. I think that's obvious. I feel that you're quite correct, the French/German govts know this and are playing on it because one, they need the capital & two, it may be a way of snubbing us. Like you said about no plan b, if we get into a possible conflict w/china, that would be disasterous for the world economy imho. I don't know if the EU is looking fifty years down the road by doing this. In the mean time, France for her part has made numerous assertions about counter weighing the U.S. A typical Allie in my thought might think such a thing but to openly make that statement brings a latent hostility to the discourse. I think that's the way many Americans read that as well.
My political thought is that countries never really have friends, they have interests, when those interests are shared by other countries alliances can be made.
#21
Zhang-Isn't that an ironic reversal of what we did to the Soviet Union? Only this time, WE would be the ones spending ever-increasing amounts of money in an attempt to outrun another country's military capabilities? Is there a tipping point, economically, beyond which that won't be feasible for the US? Just asking...
If it played out that way, there would be a second irony. Indirectly, Europe would have actually brought Bin Laden's fondest wish to fruition: destruction of the US through economic means.
#22
Is there anyone who thinks we can't beat the EU in an arms race?
That depends. If the arms race is being financed by China using surplus dollars to pay the Euros [Germans are not shabby technologists or arms makers, as I recall] for technology they can then pirate or mass produce with low cost labor while we fail to resolve the Social Secuirty issue, it could become interesting.
I could see Pat Buchannan gaining a larger following.
Posted by: Mrs. Davis ||
02/08/2005 18:18 Comments ||
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#23
This is a tacit admission that the US sees China as its #1 potential enemy. And this is official notice to Europe that they had better be DAMN careful which side of this potential conflict they pick. Trying to play the middleman, like they did with supplying arms and permitting smuggling with Iraq is no longer acceptable. This could literally destroy most of the major internationalist organizations, such as the UN, NATO, the WTO, and any number of economic, military and political organizations. It even begs the question: Are you declaring your alliegence to China against the US?
#24
I've been hoping that the EU would come to its senses over this - looks like it's not going to happen.
The consequences of lifting the embargo - for what, 20-30 billion dollars worth of arms sales? - so completely outweighs the benefits that you have to wonder if they're sane.
So long as it kills internationalist organisations, that's fine with me, as the Coalition of the Willing is working, and I agree with Jarhead - countries have interests, not friends.
Posted by: Tony (UK) ||
02/08/2005 18:36 Comments ||
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#25
It seems to me there is a concerted effort in certain European Governments to undermine the U.S. I think they want to return to a time when Europe called all the shots worldwide. This is a way for them to play the role of the the person in the schoolyard who was always trying to pit the 2 strongest ones against each other so he could come out on top. They can't challenge the U.S. directly so they do it through their proxy, China. This is a very dangerous game because the proxy may become strong enough to turn on it's handlers.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
02/08/2005 19:01 Comments ||
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#27
J187: Zhang-Isn't that an ironic reversal of what we did to the Soviet Union? Only this time, WE would be the ones spending ever-increasing amounts of money in an attempt to outrun another country's military capabilities? Is there a tipping point, economically, beyond which that won't be feasible for the US? Just asking...
If it played out that way, there would be a second irony. Indirectly, Europe would have actually brought Bin Laden's fondest wish to fruition: destruction of the US through economic means.
The Soviet Union was spending about a third of its economy on defense. The rest of the economy was being run into the ground by Party apparatchiks convinced that the Party knew best. Great talents were imprisoned, sent to Siberia or shot for not being politically-correct. (That is the traditional meaning of politically-correct - anyone who deviated from the Party line was putting himself in danger of physical harm up to and including death). Ultimately, the Soviet Union fell, not because of it spent too much on defense, but because its economy fell apart. Spending too much on defense merely accelerated that collapse. Thanks to Reagan's efforts, the Russian empire did not get the breathing space necessary to reconstitute itself as a capitalist dictatorship, unlike China. Russia fell apart, and is no longer a great power except for its nukes. And once the missile defense system becomes comprehensive, any Russian pretensions to superpower status will effectively have vanished.
We spent 50% of our GDP on defense annually for four years while fighting WWII - outproducing friends and enemies combined. We are spending about 4% today, and have a vigorous non-government run private sector that can sustain much larger defense expenditures. At the height of the Cold War, we spent about 8%. There's no way the EU can outspend us - we have a bigger, stronger and more dynamic economy than theirs.
#29
Well fuck them -- yeah, I know this sounds like "my country right or wrong," laugh it up -- but does anyone see a good counter to this? And I don't mean Zenster-level either ... I mean something that could actually be done. :P
#30
Ron Paul is a nut, first-class, clueless, not evil like the Lefty Dems, just lives on a different planet, and is best ignored. This is why I stayed Republican and did not join the Libertarians. Totally naive on foreign policy.
The rumor is that, because he is such a space case, the Saturn moon Titan has petitioned to become part of his district in Texas. The residents there consider we owe them since we landed a probe there, and made a mess of a favored recreation spot... {facetious snicker}
He is also the only Republican who voted against congratulating the Iraqis on their election...
Hs was the ONLY MEMBER OF CONGRESS who didn't congratulate Yushchenko on winning the Ukraine presidency. Even the leftie nutcases like McKinney voted for that one...
#31
This is a very dangerous game for the Euros to play, but I think their greed will not let them do otherwise. We have to look at what technology they actually sell. Will it be super-quiet coastal subs that threaten our carrier operations near Taiwan? Will it be aircraft that we can blow out of the sky with our currently superior craft? Tanks? SAM's? I guess other than the subs I am not overly concerned by any of this. If the Chicoms get the Eurofighter, the F-22 will blow it out of the sky. If they get the Leapord or Challenger II tank, I will put my money on the Abrams, A-10 and Apache. One other thing is that, at some point, this is going to piss off the Russians too. Then Europe might really be squeezed.
#32
One other thing is that, at some point, this is going to piss off the Russians too.
You got it Remoteman...
Tsar Vlad I will get a might testy about any sino-European deals...
I think W & his team should keep an eye on this point and play it to our advantage...
#34
MD: That depends. If the arms race is being financed by China using surplus dollars to pay the Euros [Germans are not shabby technologists or arms makers, as I recall] for technology they can then pirate or mass produce with low cost labor while we fail to resolve the Social Secuirty issue, it could become interesting.
The gains for the EU will be limited. The Chinese will use the EU as a bargaining chip against Russia. Note that Russia makes pretty good stuff, but has been reluctant to hand over the production technology to China. Once the EU agrees to sell stuff to China, Chinese leaders will pressure Russia to hand over the production technology as a condition of buying arms from Russia. I see China getting stronger and making more arms indigenously using Russian and EU technology, but the likelihood is that both parties will end up selling at or below cost and transferring their production to China. (The Chinese drive a very, very hard bargain). And in time, China will end up pushing the EU and Russia out of the low end of their traditional markets. I don't think this is really such a big deal - the EU is going to regret opening this Pandora's box.
#35
I was over at the OECD site. Could it just be naked economic motivation on the part of the Euros? With the Euro becoming more expensive, the EU 15 are now running a (admittedly tiny) trade deficit (as of Oct 2004). Internal markets are shrinking due to depopulation. Germany is running a surplus, but has record unemployment -- reunification is still hurting them. I think that they're more desperate than we know.
#36
Remoteman: This is a very dangerous game for the Euros to play, but I think their greed will not let them do otherwise. We have to look at what technology they actually sell. Will it be super-quiet coastal subs that threaten our carrier operations near Taiwan? Will it be aircraft that we can blow out of the sky with our currently superior craft? Tanks? SAM's? I guess other than the subs I am not overly concerned by any of this. If the Chicoms get the Eurofighter, the F-22 will blow it out of the sky. If they get the Leapord or Challenger II tank, I will put my money on the Abrams, A-10 and Apache. One other thing is that, at some point, this is going to piss off the Russians too. Then Europe might really be squeezed.
This is a setback in the sense that we'll have to spend more money on weaponry. I suspect we're going to have to ramp up defense expenditures to about 6% to deal with it. I'm putting my money on China as the new Russia, in terms of the conventional arms rival to beat. Once the Euros and the Russians start fighting each other over to build armaments plants in China, you are going to see a China that is the new weapons exporter to reckon with. From then on, it won't just be mortars, RPG's and AK's. The Euros are going to regret this, big time.
#37
11A5S: I was over at the OECD site. Could it just be naked economic motivation on the part of the Euros? With the Euro becoming more expensive, the EU 15 are now running a (admittedly tiny) trade deficit (as of Oct 2004). Internal markets are shrinking due to depopulation. Germany is running a surplus, but has record unemployment -- reunification is still hurting them. I think that they're more desperate than we know.
Trade surpluses don't mean a thing. We were running huge trade surpluses during the 50's and the 60's, and the European economies were growing faster than ours. The Japanese economy is running big trade surpluses, and its economy has been on hold for the better part of 20 years. For many developed economies, a trade surplus is an indication that the domestic economy is doing so badly that consumers don't feel confident enough to spend any money.
Posted by: john ||
02/08/2005 20:30 Comments ||
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#39
Welcome to the Big Show, Condi!
Posted by: john ||
02/08/2005 20:31 Comments ||
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#40
ZF, you are absolutely right that the EU is going to set up their own competition. If the Russians play the same game, they will too. The current and projected Chinese manufacturing capability is being ignored by both. Once they get the local production capability, watch out. And yes, we will have to retain/build the capability to deal with massed conventional arms. This will have to be done in combination with our focus on asymetrical warfare/nation building.
#41
My take, based on things I've read here and there, is that China is struggling internally, and the struggle will only get worse, in several dimensions:
1. Demographics: Because the one-child thingy followed hard on Mao's original call for large families, there is a huge baby boom type bump in population that soon will have to be supported in its old age by a much smaller number of spoiled "little emperors" and "princesses". And following hard on that is the multi-million deficit of females, which means lots of unhappy men without the moderating influence of wife and family to care for.
2. Environment: unregulated factories polluting air, water and soil throughout the country; overuse of farmland and fertilizers causing severe erosion and wearing out the topsoil; lack of water for power and consumption (that's why they built that huge dam ... the missile magnet whose name escapes me at the moment), coupled with continued severe flooding, which destroys housing and industry, and causes further erosion of the soil.
3. Discontent: as the gross inefficiencies of the Communist economy continue to be shaken out, huge numbers of people have lost their jobs -- and there is no safety net that I am aware of. These people are, naturally enough, not very happy with their government. Separately, the hyper-successful educated class is learning to think independently along the financial/business metric, and will soon translate that -- along with technological/computer savvy -- to independent political thought. The combination of unhappy intellectuals with unhappy masses is what led to the success of Mao Tse Tung's communists in the first place -- the thought of what is to come cannot be conducive to peaceful slumber in the bedrooms of China's current rulers.
Not to mention the quiet inflation caused by the severe imbalance between exports and imports, and the increasing, and increasingly visible, gap between rich and poor... As I re-read this post, I am beginning to wonder if China will be able to survive in its current form long enough to wage the war that they are now working toward.
I hope for educated criticism of these thoughts which I've thrown out for you. Just please be gentle ... you all know my limitations are vaster than my abilities.
#43
The answer to your question, trailing wife, as to whether China will survive, from an American whose parents immigrated from Taishan:
I DAMN WELL HOPE NOT.
Posted by: Edward Yee ||
02/08/2005 21:26 Comments ||
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#44
The EU hopes to distract and weaken the US. They do not see the PRC as a threat to themselves.
Responses? About $0.15 of every dollar that WalMart (and all the others) sends to China goes to the PLA. The PLA is investing heavily in advanced manufacturing capabilities as well as buying foreign weapons ie. they now produce their own Su-27 and Su-30 aircraft.
We could decide that our security is more important than our cheap crap at WalMart.
We might consider 300 Pershings with the appropriate business ends to Taiwan.
Japan could be large scale nuclear in less than 12 months.
#45
Dismantling NATO might be another useful step.
Precisely what I was thinking.
Once freed of NATO obligations, we could then remove ALL U.S. military personnel and equipment from Europe; to leave them to their future, whatever that might be. The Poms would probably be worthy of support if needed, but that would be IT.
TGA, if this were to happen, you'd better get your ass over to the U.K. or over here to our shores as soon as practicably possible.
#46
MD: 1. Demographics: Because the one-child thingy followed hard on Mao's original call for large families, there is a huge baby boom type bump in population that soon will have to be supported in its old age by a much smaller number of spoiled "little emperors" and "princesses". And following hard on that is the multi-million deficit of females, which means lots of unhappy men without the moderating influence of wife and family to care for.
This is largely wishful thinking. If there's one thing that humans are good at, it's making babies. The Chinese can turn on a dime on this issue. And babies are prized in Chinese culture. If the government were to stop population control, the population will ratchet right up again. China isn't overpopulated either - its population density is one of the lowest in East Asia.
MD: 2. Environment: unregulated factories polluting air, water and soil throughout the country; overuse of farmland and fertilizers causing severe erosion and wearing out the topsoil; lack of water for power and consumption (that's why they built that huge dam ... the missile magnet whose name escapes me at the moment), coupled with continued severe flooding, which destroys housing and industry, and causes further erosion of the soil.
This is Earth-worshippers engaging in wishful thinking - that humans deserve to be punished for disrespecting Gaia. This kind of thing is easily fixable once China moves up the development scale. The same kind of thing happened in other developing countries in East Asia before they got rich enough to start protecting the environment. And this kind of thing makes a lot of sense. Who even remembers the mercury poisoning at Minamata, Japan, during the 1970's? Did that herald the complete destruction of Japan's environment? If Israel can make farmland out of the Negev Desert, China can reverse whatever damage it does in its dash to development. Northern New Jersey is full of Superfund sites where manufacturers who did not know any better dumped heavy metals in the soil (this is why New Yorkers refer to New Jersey as the Garden State with a snicker). All this handwringing is just wishful thinking.
TW: 3. Discontent: as the gross inefficiencies of the Communist economy continue to be shaken out, huge numbers of people have lost their jobs -- and there is no safety net that I am aware of. These people are, naturally enough, not very happy with their government. Separately, the hyper-successful educated class is learning to think independently along the financial/business metric, and will soon translate that -- along with technological/computer savvy -- to independent political thought. The combination of unhappy intellectuals with unhappy masses is what led to the success of Mao Tse Tung's communists in the first place -- the thought of what is to come cannot be conducive to peaceful slumber in the bedrooms of China's current rulers.
At no time in Chinese history, have safety nets been part of the existence of ordinary Chinese. Even during the full-blown Communist era, every able-bodied Chinese had to work for his rations. China doesn't have a problem with unemployment - anyone who is willing to work can find work. Some people who have had cushy jobs at state enterprises are now somewhat dissatisfied because their sinecures are no longer available. But the reality is that China has held together for over 2200 years because its administrators are skilled in applying the right mixture of coercion and compromise. The shortest-lived indigenous dynasty has lasted 200 years. I think the Communist Party is going to be around for a while, yet.
TW: Not to mention the quiet inflation caused by the severe imbalance between exports and imports, and the increasing, and increasingly visible, gap between rich and poor... As I re-read this post, I am beginning to wonder if China will be able to survive in its current form long enough to wage the war that they are now working toward.
I'm not sure what the trade surplus means for Chinese buying power, but every major exporter in East Asia has seen major increases in their buying power. The gap between rich and poor is one of those things left-wing journalists and assorted journalists harp upon in their quest to make respectable taking money from people who've earned it, and handing it to people who haven't. The reality is that revolutions are fueled by incompetent governments, not the gap between rich and poor. Throughout China's history, revolutions have been fueled by famines, not periods of prosperity, when the gap between rich and poor was at its greatest. Bottom line, I don't think we should expect China to fall apart.
It may seem that I've become much more pessimistic about China (from the standpoint of US national interests). Well - I am. I used to take the press's commentary on China as gospel. I put my knowledge of Chinese history on hold and accepted what journos reported at face value. But I've been there quite a few times in past few years. Every time I've gone, I've seen improvements in infrastructure - unflashy things that speak to local government officials that understand what economic growth requires. My feeling is that China will approach Malaysia and Thailand's per capita GDP in the next decade. Multiplied by 1.2B people, China will become a power to be reckoned with.
Tony Blair will this week throw his weight behind the embattled United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan, after a report castigated the UN for mismanaging billions of pounds in the oil-for-food programme for Iraq. The Prime Minister and Jack Straw, the Foreign Secretary, will appear alongside Mr Annan at a day-long seminar in London's Banqueting Hall on Thursday to discuss UN reforms. The joint appearance will be seen as a powerful gesture of British endorsement for Mr Annan in the face of calls from US Congressmen for him to resign because of the oil-for-food (OFF) scandal. "We fully support Kofi Annan as secretary general. The Prime Minister has made clear that the secretary general is doing a good job," said a Downing Street spokesman. Mr Blair appears to have decided that Mr Annan should be supported in trying to overhaul the UN bureaucracy along the lines suggested by a panel of "wise men" last year. This includes admitting more permanent members of the Security Council and drawing up a common definition of terrorism.
Posted by: Bulldog ||
02/08/2005 5:48:54 AM ||
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#1
"...the secretary general is doing a good job..."
Hmmmmmmm. Perhaps I do not understand the Position Description. What are a UN SecGen's duties?
1. Provide cushy positions for relatives.
2. Protect employees engaged in criminal acts.
3. Work against the USA and Israel.
4. Protect genocidal regimes.
5. Protect dictatorships.
#2
Mebbe Cherie still hasn't learned how to hum "God Save the Queen" while twirling tassels with counter-rotation for balance and wearing the French Maid outfit he likes so much. Or perhaps she can't get the hang of snapping the riding crop properly. Tony's distinctly irregular performance in Foreign Affairs (from the US POV) may be the product of, and synched with, his success and failure cycle in far more domestic affairs. Since she's out of town, I suggest the Tories kidnap him and get him properly laid. Clear the man's mind of the fog. Purely for therapeutic purposes in the interests of National Security, you understand.
Nothing else explains such a rank obvious stupid statement. Jackass.
#4
.com, there's an election coming up, and Tony has to keep the looney left happy a little while longer -- if not happy, at least off his heels. He's just tossing them a bone for now, my guess.
Posted by: Steve White ||
02/08/2005 9:57 Comments ||
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#5
Actually keeping Kofi in charge has many advantages:
1. It embarrasses the pro UN leftists.
2. A threatened Kofi tends to make fewer anti American and anti Israeli remarks.
3. A threatened Kofi will find it harder to ignore other UN outrages.
4. Leftists are less likely to defend UN inaction in Darfur.
Taxpayers funding Washington's $20,000-per-household budget have long known they are not getting their money's worth. Farm subsidies are among the most wasteful uses of taxpayer dollars. The budget-busting $180 billion farm bill enacted before the 2002 elections not only encourages the crop overproduction that depresses crop prices and farm incomes, but also undermines trade and encourages other nations to refuse American exports.
Perhaps worst of all, farm subsidies are not distributed to the small, struggling family farmers whom lawmakers typically mention when defending these policies. Rather, most farm subsidies are distributed to large farms, agribusinesses, politicians, and celebrity "hobby farmers." This paper analyzes how Washington distributed farm subsidies in 2002 and illustrates that farm subsidies continue to represent America's largest corporate welfare program.
Snip
Higher incomes. In 1999, the average farm household earned $64,437--17 percent more than the $54,842 average for non-farmers. Incomes were even higher among the 136,000 households with annual farm sales over $250,000--and who also receive the largest subsidies. Their 1999 average income of $135,397 was two-and-a-half times the national average.2 (See Chart 1.) Farmer incomes are not only high, but also quite stable from year to year, despite agricultural market fluctuations.
Very interesting. read it all at the link. I have a small farm and I get no subsidy while Ted Turner gets millions.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
02/08/2005 4:44:58 PM ||
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#1
This has been going on for a long time and occurs in all developed countries for example, a cow in Norway gets a government subsidy of more than USD1,000. Why urban electorates are willing to massively subsidize affluent and frequently rich rural residents is a complete mystery to me.
LOME: Togo's Faure Gnassingbe was formally sworn in as president on Monday after his father's sudden death, despite strong condemnation from former colonial power France and African leaders who branded the succession unconstitutional.
Yep. It's all over but the shootin'...
Posted by: Fred ||
02/08/2005 00:00:00 ||
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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.
If your horoscope is looking a bit worrying for the coming Lunar New Year, a Hong Kong company has just the thing to put it right: feng shui underpants. "Our feng shui master says that having something lucky in contact with your skin would bring spiritual balance, so we thought lucky underpants would be ideal -- they are as intimate as you get," said Amy Law, a spokeswoman for the company.
A lieutenant has been disciplined after using an Army helicopter to deliver a pizza to his girlfriend. The incident on 25 January saw the unnamed officer divert from a routine training flight over Stanford, Norfolk, to take the fast food. The Ministry of Defence refused to name the officer, from 659 Squadron, or divulge how he was punished. A spokesman said: "The chain of command doesn't condone these sorts of actions. The individuals have been disciplined." 
A government-appointed board of inquiry investigating the partial collapse of a Paris airport terminal [the futuristic Terminal 2E at Charles de Gaulle airport] found serious errors in construction, including concrete that had not been sufficiently reinforced. Airports of Paris, the company that operates the major airports in the capital, said it had not received a copy of the report and had no other comment. Falling glass, steel and masonry killed four travelers - two Chinese, one Czech and one Lebanese - and injured three others on May 23, 2004 when a roof collapsed in the departure hall. A preliminary report by experts released in July said that a weakness in the concrete that formed the terminal's vaulted roof may have contributed to the collapse.
Tony Blair will this week throw his weight behind the embattled United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan, after a report castigated the UN for mismanaging billions of pounds in the oil-for-food programme for Iraq. The Prime Minister and Jack Straw, the Foreign Secretary, will appear alongside Mr Annan at a day-long seminar in London's Banqueting Hall on Thursday to discuss UN reforms. The joint appearance will be seen as a powerful gesture of British endorsement for Mr Annan in the face of calls from US Congressmen for him to resign because of the oil-for-food (OFF) scandal. "We fully support Kofi Annan as secretary general. The Prime Minister has made clear that the secretary general is doing a good job," said a Downing Street spokesman. Mr Blair appears to have decided that Mr Annan should be supported in trying to overhaul the UN bureaucracy along the lines suggested by a panel of "wise men" last year. This includes admitting more permanent members of the Security Council and drawing up a common definition of terrorism.
