"A scary anecdote from Iran. A trusted colleague – who is married to an Iranian-American and would thus prefer to stay anonymous – has told me of a very disturbing episode that happened to her friend, another Iranian-American, as she was flying to Iran last week. On passing through the immigration control at the airport in Tehran, she was asked by the officers if she has a Facebook account. When she said “no”, the officers pulled up a laptop and searched for her name on Facebook. They found her account and noted down the names of her Facebook friends."
Antony Loewenstein
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He said, she said, we said, they said, some said...blah blah blah
ReplyDeleteThis shows one of the weaknesses of dissent in the age of the internet-it makes the job of those in power much easier. Surveillance is sooo much easier. In the old days, you had to have an infiltrator to know what each group of troublemakers were up to. Now you only need a few people who know a little about internet technology to keep an eye on everybody.
ReplyDeleteAnd of course...
ReplyDelete[O.K., Wingnuts! All together in the key of C major...]
THIS COULD NEVER HAPPEN HERE (in USA)!!!
Forgive me for interrupting the thread to bring Honduras back into the limelight:
ReplyDeleteFiguring prominently in the 18th paragraph of the NYT:
[three officials close to the talks] said Mr. Arias told Mrs. Clinton that the United States had to make clear to Mr. Micheletti [Wingnut hero of the coup forces] that elections held by an illegitimate government would themselves not be considered legitimate.
The fact that Oscar Arias has been lauded by just about everyone across the political spectrum for contributing to resolve the deep conflicts in the Central American region, will not dissuade the Wingnuts from placing him as member [ex-oficio] of the Cuban Communist Party. :-D
tick tock tick tock - but I am glad someone instructed Mrs. Clinton regarding her "duty."
ReplyDeleteGood lord Marcatu, so now you feel the need to bring your hated wingnuts up in every single post? That doesnt sound mentally healthy.
ReplyDeleteBad news: The USA is still here. And it/we will be here tomorrow. And the next day, And the next day. And so on. Wingnuts and all, we will be here, stronger than ever. Oh, and please, do forecast our collapse, our imminent demise, our imposion into the abyss, to your hearts content. I love good fantasy/fiction.
So sayeth the chief wingnut! LOL Actually places like Goldman will help with that, who take bailout money out and say they "earned" it in the market. You can fool some of the people all of the time, but not all of the people all of the time.
ReplyDeleteAre these guys wingnuts?
ReplyDelete<h2>International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI)</h2>
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2009/jul2009/aria-j11.shtml
Are these guys wingnuts?
ReplyDeleteInternational Committee of the Fourth International (ICF)
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2009/jul2009/aria-j11.shtml
Regarding Hnduras:
ReplyDeleteThis gentleman makes a lot of sense:
<h3>The Careful U.S. Diplomacy on Honduras</h3>
http://www.cfr.org/publication/19753/
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<div class="js-singleCommentText">Regarding Honduras:
This gentleman makes a lot of sense:
The Careful U.S. Diplomacy on Honduras
http://www.cfr.org/publication/19753/</div>
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More on Honduras:
ReplyDeleteThis gentleman makes a lot of sense:
The Careful U.S. Diplomacy on Honduras
http://www.cfr.org/publication/19753/
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More on Honduras:
ReplyDeleteThis gentleman makes a lot of sense:
The Careful U.S. Diplomacy on Honduras
http://www.cfr.org/publication/19753/
You need to install a flushing device on your temple...LOLOL
ReplyDeleteA Song On the End of the World
ReplyDeleteby Czeslaw Milosz
On the day the world ends
A bee circles a clover,
A fisherman mends a glimmering net.
Happy porpoises jump in the sea,
By the rainspout young sparrows are playing
And the snake is gold-skinned as it should always be.
On the day the world ends
Women walk through the fields under their umbrellas,
A drunkard grows sleepy at the edge of a lawn,
Vegetable peddlers shout in the street
And a yellow-sailed boat comes nearer the island,
The voice of a violin lasts in the air
And leads into a starry night.
And those who expected lightning and thunder
Are disappointed.
And those who expected signs and archangels' trumps
Do not believe it is happening now.
As long as the sun and the moon are above,
As long as the bumblebee visits a rose,
As long as rosy infants are born
No one believes it is happening now.
Only a white-haired old man, who would be a prophet
Yet is not a prophet, for he's much too busy,
Repeats while he binds his tomatoes:
No other end of the world will there be,
No other end of the world will there be.
Logic knows no ideology:
ReplyDeleteCaribbean observers and some leaders say the pull factor is less about ideology and more about money. ALBA's English-speaking members are part of the nine-nation bloc known as the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). With a highly educated population of about 600,000, the tiny islands are also highly indebted.
The reason why you are highly indebted, even while highly educated, is because over all of thes years there has been no provision for advance in the islands under the colonial "tutelage." The plan was not to be self-sustaining, but eternally dependent, with a small core of beneficiaries to make sure it remains the same way. We cab discuss this if you like, but the evidence is overwhelming. Did you think the dominant mainlands who had this plan for their own people had something different in mind for you?
ReplyDeleteThe reason why you are highly indebted, even while highly educated, is because over all of these years there has been no provision for advance in the islands under the colonial "tutelage." The plan was not to be self-sustaining, but eternally dependent, with a small core of beneficiaries to make sure it remains the same way. We can discuss this if you like, but the evidence is overwhelming. Did you think the dominant mainlands who had this plan for their own people had something different in mind for you?
ReplyDelete...de facto Honduran President Roberto Micheletti's attempt to convert the Honduran National Congress into an Constitutional Assembly in 1985 whose principal goal was to extend the term of then-President Roberto Suazo Córdova.
ReplyDelete...And for you English speakers.
" The plan was not to be self-sustaining, but eternally dependent, with a small core of beneficiaries to make sure it remains the same way."
ReplyDeleteWhat rubbish. You have no idea what "the plan" was. Or even if that there was one. Its 100% conjecture on your part. Unless you have tape recordings or memos?
You see v, the 'facts" can be what they are, but that doesnt mean there was intention behind the results. Sometimes shit just happens, you know.
OK, proceed with telling me how stupid I am and gullible to elitist tripe, blah blah blah. You dont have any evidence of any of what you claim, and only declare as proof the results, as if they could only come about as the result of some dastardly machinations by the "powers that be".
Sad to say, V, but your schtick is so far off the rails its at the point of being comical.
Gee I wish I could listen to you but nah!! Not to someone who voted for Dubya twice!! TWICE FOR GOOZSAKE! The first time might have been just stupidity, what's the excuse for the second? HUH?
ReplyDeleteWhat a strange person you are fleming, I never say anything without having adequate proof, and you have found that out numerous times. See - West Indies Associated States Council of Ministers (WISA) in 1966 and the Eastern Caribbean Common Market (ECCM) in 1968. Note the content of theTreaty of Basseterre . You cannot come up with any other conclusions.
ReplyDelete"“For this reason, the concept of special and differential treatment has long become an established feature in the international trade lexicon. We must therefore be wary of trade arrangements that abandon the recognition of this principle, emphasize reciprocity among unequal partners, and are therefore devoid of an adequate development dimension. To this end, ways must be examined and means found to ensure that the World Trade Organisation (WTO) performs a role that is more conducive to development,” the minister said."
ReplyDeletehttp://www.caribbeannetnews.com/news-17372--13-13--.html
In other words fleming, none of the institutions like the IMF (to which the gretest amount of debt is owed), nor the WTO, etc. etc. etc. ARE CONDUSIVE TO ONGOING DEVELOPMENT. They are not designed that way - they are not designed that way throughout the world, they are designed to keep the top dogs on top. Or, as I have said before, it is a "kicking away of the ladder," so no one can follow. A week or so ago Mara and I had this conversation, check the archive.
"The first time might have been just stupidity, what's the excuse for the second? HUH?"
ReplyDeleteAh yes. There it is. I was waiting for it. You know, that attitude of "we are right, and anybody who disagrees with us can only be stupid". So very....unattractive.
It seems TGIA believes he has the superior perspective on who should be US president from his vantage point in Australia. Next election must I seek both your input, and approval, on whom I cast my vote, tgia? In order to ensure I dont behave stupidly, of course. I mean I only want to do that with which the "entire world" agrees, right!!
<address>It may be unfathomable to you tgia, but there are millions and millions of americans who did the same as I. Not all had IQs under 80! Also, not everyone (most, in fact) determines their vote on what the candidate's views are toward Israel. Believe it or not, sometimes we base our decisions on other things altogether - like economic and tax policies, domestic energy policy, national defense, etc. </address>
The biggest disagreements I had with GWB were stem cell research and USG spending. He also turned out to be a pretty poor salesman for his own policies. And of course under his watch the housing market got way out of control. One could argue no one could have seen that coming, but some in fact did.
You just made my point V. There is no smoking gun. You do not have proof. You claim "You cannot come up with any other conclusions". Of course one can. People come to different conclusions about all kinds of things (Was OJ guilty?) which seem obvious.
ReplyDeleteYou dont have anything near proof, per se, but only your "conclusions" based on...your conclusions. You READ intent into things, as if you have special insight into people's minds. It is impossible for ANYONE to know what anyone else is thinking, or what their intentiions are. After all, you cannot see into peoples' minds, can you?
In fact, you read into what you WANT to read into it. That is obvious to all. Are you a trained lawyer v? Are you expert at reading, interpreting and drafting documents such as these? Do you understand all the nuances and liabilities of such treaties? Does it make ANY sense whatsoever that the primary parties would be careful in drafting them so as not to open themselves up to frivilous lawsuits or other actions which might cause them harm, economically or otherwise?
The language of the document does not support your position. YOU make your conclusions based upon your extreme perspective, as if there can be no other.
Frankly, your claims of "I know what the other party intended because I can read between the lines and into their souls" would not only not stand up in court, it cant even stand up under the weak glare of a public blog.
Pass..
ReplyDeleteFleming, don't you ever get tired making silly arguments like this? I mean really, this is almost embarrassing (or it would be for me). You have used this same old canard constantly, and each time to have been beaten with facts within an inch of your miserable existence and left screaming like a little school girl that has skinned her knee.
ReplyDeleteFirst, I did not make this statement, but individuals intimately involved in these relationships with these robber baron agencies who live in these region(s) (see reference). Suffice it to say, you do not know more than they do. Second, you cannot have a history of oppression in these regions like we have had with anglo-American alliance and just sweep it under the carpet - which once again means you know zero about the history. Third, if these policies were an "accident," you do not keep repeating the same "accident" over and over again for over a hundred years! That amount of time denotes intent and policy, not "oops, we did it again syndrome."
Yes, i think I am aware of all of the nuance and liabilities of these agreements - all of the benefits fall to the colonial cadre, and all of the liabilities fall to the people. It is just like it is here in the states, your money is no object when it comes to their needs. Now, do you want to be slapped around like before (on other subjects) with the facts specifically - keep in mind, it is not my job to educate you especially when you seem to learn nothing in the process.
Nice one V! ;)
ReplyDeletePhlegming, You sad little donkey clown :'(
(Sorry for the insult to donkeys, which I like ;) )
So one party accuses another, and because I dont have " the knowledge" to counter their claim, the claim is by default valid. Again, what utter absurdity and nonsense.
ReplyDelete---------------------------------------------
"Third, if these policies were an "accident," you do not keep repeating the same "accident" over and over again for over a hundred years! That amount of time denotes intent and policy, not "oops, we did it again syndrome." "
Pure conjecture and assumptive, biased "conclusions". You cannot prove intent! It is like trying to "prove" that you love someone. Words, and even deeds, are truly not sufficient. Only that person's heard and mind know the truth.
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"i think I am aware of all of the nuance and liabilities of these agreements - all of the benefits fall to the colonial cadre"
Really? Really? Amazing, you not being a lawyer, or an international trade person and all. So do tell, what other superpowers do you possess?
By not conducive to development do you mean that there are actually covenants in the documents which require the loans be repaid on a timely basis? My my, isnt that just terribly unfair.
hahaha...you are worthless fleming :)
ReplyDelete