Archive for the ‘International Affairs’ Category
The Abandoned City of the Chernobyl Disaster | Pripyat, Ukraine
Pripyat, Ukraine - once home to 50,000 people was swiftly abandoned immediately after the Chernobyl disaster in 1986 (Wiki).
For the past 22 years the city has been totally uninhabited with the exception of a few (about 300 or so) elderly people who returned to their homes in surrounding villages.
Today Pripyat remains an empty and dreary desert of concrete, wild animals, and rampant flora. There are plants busting through pavement to reach the sky and wild horses roam free through vast open fields…untouched for 22 years by manking, perhaps for the better.
These are some photos I pulled together from various sources around the interwebs - enjoy!
Cuba’s Reforms, Solidarity in Latin America, and Declining US Influence
Raul Castro has officially been president of Cuba since February 25, 2008, when his brother Fidel Castro stepped down from the post for good. Just before retiring from his presidential post Fidel ensured his nation that “this is not my farewell” - and even today there is no doubt that Fidel’s influence remains significant, if not compulsory. That said, Raul Castro is making a lot of changes to the the way Cuba operates - we’re witnessing a slow departure from communism and the simultaneous introduction of capitalism into Cuba’s economy - quite similar to the situation in China.
Domestic Reforms.
Some recent changes include the legalization of cell phone usage throughout Cuba, increasing the amount of state land available to private farmers, and the allowance of some citizens to seek title for their homes. Perhaps one of the most impressive moves was today’s announcement that Cuba is abandoning the egalitarian ’same wage for all’ scheme - now all workers will be entitled to compensation based on skill and performance - an essential component of free market capitalism.
Read the rest of this entry »
Pakistan, Motivation to Succeed, and US Intervention
There is no doubt that the US has been earning itself a poor international reputation…and this most recent decade of bad PR has definitely helped to negate just about everything ‘good’ the US has sponsored throughout the world. For example, USAID is one of the main reasons behind the success of two of Pakistan’s most elite business schools, including the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS). It is also the source of funding for efforts to improve maternal health and water quality - just two of the terrible ailments that keep the bulk of Pakistanis at the very bottom of the pyramid.
There are many potential reasons for the current dilapidated state of the nation, in fact, the left, right, conservative and liberal populations often have overlapping theories. Each political party selects facts that appreciate their respective agendas, whether it’s the sixty years of overwhelmingly out of touch rule, a consistently increasing percentage of poverty (currently at least 25%), or the shameful 50% adult literacy rate - all ideas seem to point to a consistently increasing divide between the upper class (ruling class) and lower class (majority).
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The Failed States Index for 2008 | Pakistan Rejoins the Top 10 & Impoverished African Nations Remain ‘Failed’
An interesting change in the Failed States Index (published by The Fund for Peace) is #9 Pakistan. Pakistan was at #13 in 2007, from a quick analysis of the index it is clear that a huge economic downturn is the main reason for Pakistan’s move to a premier position amongst the Top 10 failed states. There are no surprises in the top 10 for 2008 as they are the usual suspects…as a matter of fact the top 10 have remained pretty much the same since 2006…Haiti left the Top 10 in 2007 and Guinea got pushed out simply because of Pakistan’s horrible year.
Here’s the Top 10 (No surprises here!):
1. Somalia
2. Sudan
3. Zimbabwe
4. Chad
5. Iraq
6. D.R. Congo
7. Afghanistan
8. Cote d’Ivoire
9. Pakistan
10. Central African Republic
European Union backs New Sanctions on Iran
European Union (EU) nations decided on Monday to impose new sanctions on Iran for its failure to comply with demands to cease its nuclear program. The new sanctions will prevent people associated with the nuclear program from entering EU nations and will freeze the assets of Bank Melli, Iran’s largest bank.
Hagel to Bush: Begin Unilateral and Unconditional Talks with Iran | Leaked Letter
Senator Chuck Hagel’s letter to President George Bush has leaked. In the straightforward letter, Hagel insists that the time has come to engage Iran in a one-on-one conversation to address the sour relationship between the two countries. It seems like his point his fairly obvious - he wants to stop beating around the bush and initiate direct dialogue with Iran’s government in order to prevent a seemingly inevitable ‘clash of civilizations.’
Hagel expresses support for Bush’s efforts in Iraq and Iran and respectfully points out that our current policy towards Iran is not producing results:
I am increasingly concerned, however, that this diplomatic strategy is stalling.
Hagel continues to explain that this hostile situation can erupt at any time if it is not handled appropriately:
Unless there is a strategic shift, I believe we will find ourselves in a dangerous and increasingly isolated position in the coming months.
Here is the text of Chuck Hagel’s letter to George Bush: Read the rest of this entry »
Girl from Ecuador Assaulted on train in Barcelona - El Racismo no es Blanco y Negro
Random Act of Violence
On October 7th in Barcelona, Spain a young lady of 16 years old was attacked for no apparent reason by a man, that claims he was drunk - but is not remorseful of his actions. It’s sad to watch this video of the innocent girl getting kicked, punched, and spat on…the reporter narrating the video explains that the man was heard yelling out racial slurs in Spanish (of course).
Iran-Pakistan-India: Laying the ‘Peace Pipeline’
Iran and Pakistan have decided to go through with the Pipeline without India (Link 1, Link 2)
A Natural Gas Pipeline that will connect these three critical nations.
Iran, Pakistan, and India, collectively known as the IPI, are very close to finalizing the ‘Peace Pipeline’ plan that would drop a critical natural gas supply line that would run through the three neighboring countries. As always, there is a catch (or several) - and India is weary of signing on because of the Price Revision Clause being imposed by Iran that would base the price of the natural gas on a formula that utilizes Japan’s gas market as a benchmark. Nevertheless, India’s participation in the ‘Peace Pipeline’ doesn’t seem to matter as much to Iran and Pakistan as they continue bilateral talks that suggest India’s role as merely an added bonus that would sweeten the deal. Pakistan’s ambassador to Iran, Shafkat Saeed, insists that if India rejects the terms of the deal, the oil will be routed through China instead.
�We have informed Iran that we are prepared to transfer Iran�s gas to China through this pipeline should India decide not to join the gas project.� [ Associated Press of Pakistan, Oct 2007 ]
Though India has assured that it will take part in the TAPI (Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India) gas pipeline - it is clear that the TAPI pipeline is not a replacement for the Iran-Pakistan-India pipeline, and their lack of an absolute decision in light of U.S. pressure is proof that the IPI pipeline stands to bring benefit to the Indian economy. Read the rest of this entry »
Armenian Genocide Resurrected, Blamed on Ottomans, Turkey’s Government is Upset
The details of the brutal and tragic mass genocide of Armenians in 1915 are discussed in exhaustive detail on the Armenian Genocide wiki page.
Armenia’s president, Robert Kocharian, is adamant at proving his point - whatever it is! He’s looking to bring accountability to Turkey’s government for facilitating the genocide of 1.5 million Armenians…and he wants these evil acts ‘acknowledged fully in U.S. policy toward Turkey’. So on Wednesday, October 11, the bill to condemn the massacres was voted on by the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the majority supported the measure.
Turkey feels insulted. They sent a U.S. envoy home and forced him to leave the country, insisting that the action was not to indicate a deterioration in relations between the two nations. And many people, including president George Bush disapproved of this action - perhaps not for the same reasons but the disapproval was there. Read the rest of this entry »
Exporting Democracy to Iraq
Lately there has been much talk about exporting the essence of the U.S. democratic system into other countries across the globe, in particular, the most recent commotion has had to do with Iraq.
After the removal of Saddam Hussein in December 2003, the United States’ most immediate goals in Iraq became the elimination of the pro-Hussein insurgency and the installation of a functioning democratic government.
In March 2003 the majority of Americans (72%) supported armed involvement in Iraq to achieve these goals; nevertheless, conditions have become more realistic and the Gallup poll conducted on July 8th reported that the majority of Americans (62%) believe this whole Iraq situation was a ‘mistake’ (Iraq War Gallup Poll, July 2007). Read the rest of this entry »
