HisSelf

Given your reference to Voltaire, I'm wondering if you are just a bit tongue in cheek here. Banning journalists and closing borders is never a good sign. The Burmese did it when their monks started acting up and the US military practised a version of it when they invaded Iraq. Nobody in their right mind would trust what comes out when the only voice is that of the government. Any government. The demonstrations have been spreading to provinces inside of China in sympathy, which is a sure sign that life in the Middle Kingdom is not as happy as the Chinese would have us believe and that many are fed up. Tibetans are very unhappy living under a government run by another ethnic group and in which they have absolutely no say. Anti-government protest is a basic human right. The Chinese have a lot at stake in the Olympics, or at least they think they do. So you agree, Xul, that the Tibetans should have a voice in government? I thought Pelosi's visit to India was an interesting development. Looks like none of the presidential candidates are going to bite though. Who could blame them considering the mess the US is already in.

Me too!

So if I respond to a thread entitled "What went wrong for Obama" I agree that something went wrong for Obama? I sure do wonder what the political scene might look like if we could just get rid of the spin doctors. I surely do. Might we be able to reclaim democracy?

The problem is not what you do to address the marketplace, but what the marketplace actually is and how it is maintained. The Brits built an empire on controlling the marketplace. The Yanks have done the same, well at least so far... Can there ever be a truly free marketplace? And what exactly is a truly free marketplace? I'd sure as hell like to know.

High five!

Well what the hell. They parachuted Ignatieff in, didn't they? I'd love to see McCain battle Ignatieff. A man who has actually been somewhere against somebody who has never really been anywhere. Guess which is which.

I suppose it all depends on where yer from, but my guess is that a lot of them suck because they get so much of their budget from the feds and the provos.... My favourite muni politico has to be whatever incarnation of Richard Daly was running Chicago when a lot of bulldozers showed up in the middle of the night and plowed to fertilizer an airport runway some guy was trying to install on waterffront land. That's what I call balls...

Do you really think UNWRA is only interested in the Middle East? And why do you see Israel as a Bramble? Brambles protect bunnies, no? Do you have some sort of thistle affiliation? Do you have a kilt? Can you play the pipes?

Maybe there is another thread on Tibet. It's not on the first page. The Globe and Mail frontpaged an article yesterday quoting the Dalai Lama saying he would resign if things do not calm down; he thinks it is important to have good relations with China. Today, the Chinese are saying that if things let up in Tibet, all might be good. So China to Dalai Lama.... "Get this thing under control and welcome home!" So does Tibet want to be a country or does it want to be a "distinct society" part of China What can we say? Rene liked to smoke too. There should be another Olympic medal: The political push. I am completely serious.

What do you mean by owning air space? Do you mean the height to which you can build? My guess it that it is limited by the height bylaws in your community. A few bribes (oops, election campaign contributions) should take care of that...

Boy these threads really do seem to wander don't they?

I saw an interesting bit on the BBC the other night. Your intrepid BBC reporter was stumping around (Basrah, I think) and, with British armored vehicles zooming around in the background, interviewed a handul of local Iraqis. "How has your life changed since the invasion?" they were asked. "Very little." was the answer. Also of interest is the cost of the war. The figures vary wildly but the US Administration seems to be willing to own up to 800 billion, while a recent book by Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stieglitz, puts it at 3 trillion. For thos of you who have trouble grasping that number here is what it looks like: 3,000,000,000,000. There are about 30 million people in Iraq, so if you were to figure out the cost per Iraqi, it comes to $100,000. As one commentator put it, you could buy a lot of peace for $100,000 per Iraqi. If you were an Iraqi, you'd probably be dumbfounded. Even if you take the US Administration's number, you are talking over $25K per Iraqi. Not chump change to an Iraqi, to be sure. Was it all worth it? Well maybe if the US is willing to stay there as long as it did in Germany and Japan after WWII. But then, a lot more countries had a lot more at stake in that adventure. Just the fact that even the Brits are pulling out of Iraq tells you that things are not the saem in Iraq.

First of all, and I am addressing the OP here, if you are interested in Tibet, why don't you start a thread about Tibet? Or Darfur? To compare the Israeli/Palestinian conflict with what is going on in Tibet is really stretching it, Xul, but if you want to do so, you would have to take note of the fact that when the Tibetans declared themselves sovereign and independent in 1911, nobody recognized them, while Israel did get recognition when it did so in 1948. Even Kosovo has gotten recognition now. But then, Serbia didn't have any friends in the US (Oops NATO) administration. It is important that the Chinese Qing dynasty set up the Dalai Lama as the spiritual and cultural ruler of Tibet back in the 1700s, but it is also important that the Tibetans do not want Chinese rule. Also of note is the fact that the Chinese have been busily moving large masses of CHinese nationals into Tibet over the past few decades in order to make it more Chinese.This is why Qiangba Puncog, the Chinese-installed governor of Tibet, has been talking about "racial harmony". Harmony is a code word with the Chinese. It means shut up and sit down or we'll kill you and send your mother a bill for the bullet. Another matter of some importance is that part of the area that China claims as its own (as a part of the 'Autonomous Region of Tibet') is actually Arunachal Pradesh, which is currently within the borders of India. Those of you with an interest in China-India relations might want to investigate this little cul-de-sac of history. Anyways, comparisons of the Middle East to Tibet are not particularly relevant, since Tibet has elements of both the Israeli and the Palestinian circumstance. Both are very thorny problems but one is a thistle while the other is a bramble.

Why is it that Canada has to be a Western, English speaking culture? What evidence do you have that this is what would be best for us? I look at Europe and I see polyglot countries like Holland, Denmark, etc. and I see them doing very well with far less resources than we have. Holland for crying out loud! This is a country whose only major asset is adaptability. And look at them. Their companies span the globe. If China can model itself after Singapore, why can't we model ourselves after Holland?

If he did, this thread would be a lot longer. Tony Blair is going to fade to black when Bush leaves office.

It is awash with po' folks. Compare their numbers to those of the big money Rosedale crowd. The folks who live on the hill have the money to pay for a big media campaign, and they usually have their way until a really good populist shows up.... So the folks who live on the hill are currently backing the Libs.... At least one of the Toronto Hills....

Well you just gotta love it! David Paterson has announced that he has had extra-marital affairs in the past, and his wife has announced that she has too! Finally, the perfect comeback for the cuckolded political spouse. If only Hilary had thought of this! Hot damn! Make this woman a senator!

I agree. At least with some of you. Spitzer is an idiot. He prosecuted something he was participating in. But this is not why I started this thread. Back to the topic.... Is it time to legalize prostitution?

I lived in Ontario during the Harris/Eves years. I know what kind of guy Jim Flaherty is. Harper made a big mistake when he put Flaherty in charge of Finance. Sure it feels good. But then you get the doctor's report....

We've seen Tony Blair try to find his voice after being rejected by the British electorate. Since then, he has tried to mount the podium to speak on important world issues... My personal take on Blair is that he is good at identifying critical world issues, but has lost creds when it comes to picking winners... Blair is the guy who rings the bell, but he is not the guy who says when the bell should be rung... He has diminished, rather than enhanced the position of Great Britain in foreign affairs... So who will step into the breach?

This case is predicated on US Agents coming into our country and inveigling a Canadian citizen into committing a crime against US law. This is not about Canadian law. It is about US law. An unfortunate juxtoposition of Bush and Harper, as far as I can see. The case is unsupportable under our law and is against our economic interests.

Or if you look like you don't have any money. Let's not forget that this is a government agency.....

I haven't read all of the posts in this thread. Did anybody mention that this seminary has a high profile for supporting the Israeli Settler movement? ...

Left and lefter, I agree. But then if you were Lou Dobbs, whom else would you chose? Jim Falherty? LOL.

I read a few pages of this thread. Where did it go? Good golly. I still think it's time to legalize prostitution. It is a victimless crime. Yes, there is the white slave trade, but we have other ways to deal with that. If a beautiful girl voluntarily gives up her time to make men pay for the pleasure of having her company, why would the opinion of some religious right toad be more important? After all, the toad is only talking about somebody else's business...