Buscaraons

26.4.03

Traiq Aziz: bagged another bigwig

Well, I was completely wrong to think that Aziz died in the first missiole strike. It makes me wonder how many of the other regime bigwigs never escaped from Iraq. In any case, the facty that Aziz is in a cell is a positive development. I wonder how much prision time he'll face?

SRAS: Lastman a raison

Depuis que l"OMS a émis une directive mondiale dans laquelle l'organisme internationale de la santé a préconisé d'éviter à séjourner à Toronto à moins de circonstances exceptionelle. La réaction du Lastman et les autres dirigeants ontariens ont raison de se plaidre de cette decision. L'OMS n'a jamais envoyé des enquêteurs sur les lieux afin de vérifier à première main la situation. Donc, cette directive donne une fausee impression que Toronto est carrément un ville tiers-mondiane quand elle ne l'est pas. En tout cas, le dommage a été fait et je me demande combien de temps tarderait-il avant que Toronto recupère sa réptutation.

¶ 17:45

24.4.03

Fascism: so did it really die after WW II?

James Bennett raises a disturbing topic. That fascism really wasn't killed off after WW II but went went into remission and hid itself. During the run up to the Iraq war, the facist sentiments erupted once more throughout Europe.

It's an interesting angle to understand the vociferous anti-Americanism that pervaded Europe. However, I'm still unconvinced at the Industrial counter-revolution and its anti-liberal attitude. First, I find it maddingly vague and doesn't answer the question why and how? How could Europe's backward link development lead to anti-liberal thought? To be forthright, I don't see the connection between, for example the German struggle to resolve the sulpher problem in its coal in order to ensure high quality steel and the Third Reich? It's a little too farfetched to see the linkages.

Second, why did European industralization provoke the opposite effect? How come it didn't take the Anglopshere path of greater liberties, greater social mobility and more opportunities for wealth creation? The only thing that comes to mind is that backward link development requires more government intervention because the national bourgeoise are either to weak or lazy and the development patterns are much more capital intense than the British and American industralizations.

In any case, it's a depressing read becaue it gives the impression that Europe is inherently facistoid when maybe it's not.

La punition de la France par les Américains

Cato a posté un article sur l'affirmation du Powell que les États-Unis punira la France pour son opposition contre la guerre en Irak. Comme j'ai commenté à Cato, je m'oppose de cette punition car elle reforcera l'attitude que les Américans appuyent le libre-échange lorsqu'ils bénéficent. En outre, une fois accomplie la margainalisation de la France quoi d'autre? Auraient-ils contemplé les implications d'une France internationalement marginalisée, économiquement estropiée et isolé politiquement au sien des institutions internationale? Comment le monde devient-il plus sécuritaire avec un France affaiblie et appaurvie? Si les Americans qui advoque la position puntive peuvent rasionner de façon claire et non-equivoque, on les appréciera. Sinon, ce la soif de vengence qui avegule la prudence politique de ne pas agacer trop des alliés reclacitrants.

Perque el món malfia del capitalisme americà

Mark Bryon escrigué una bona comparició entre els capitalismes europeu i americà. Una de les caràcteristiques del capitalisme americà que cita es l'innovació en la qual les petites botiques dispereixen per deixar lloc al grans superfíces que vénen les mateixes coses menys cares. Sí però es perd la memòria institicional i la passió per l'ofici. Per exemple si a la gran botiga no té un producte en la basa de dades no existeix i el vendador s'en fot un miqueta. Per el, tant li fa si ven sabates como la quinquilleria. I aixó es molestós i exaspera els clients que han de còrrer per tota la ciutat amb una busquéda infrutosa per el producte/servei.
No dic que el capitalisme europeu sigui millor que l'americà. Cadacsu poesseix els seus convenients i defectes.

¶ 16:47

21.4.03

America as an idea as well as place: comments by a fellow democratic citizen

Martin Devon at the Patio pundit posted an article that compels me, as a fellow democratic citizen to comment. I vehemently disagree with the Martin's assestertion that America as an idea rather than a place. I flaty disagree that America has a 'genetic' predisposition against colonialism. Really?! From the 1812 War onwards, America dynamism has sometimes transform,ed into a predatory aggressivism. If America eschewd anti-colonialism, it would've never fought the Mexican American war; nor would the country, with Britian's connivance, declared the Monroe doctrine to make Latin America an Anglophone sphere of influence; fought the Spanish-American war and end up turning Cuba into a brothel and casino; treating the Spanish colonial legacy in the Phillipines and Puerto Rico as unnatural interregia that would magically disappear once the Americans showed up.

I'm insulted by comments like wesgeorge's (scroll down as there's no permalink to his name)His attitude denigrates the other democracies and their contributions to a better world. Just because the other democratic polities don't constanlt trumpet loudly of their basic decencies doesn't deny their inherent goodness either
More bluntly, I categorically deny that America has the moral duty to bring decency to the world. I'm exasperated by this messanic prepotency that's arises from time to time whereby America is the Lighthouse of the world and the only one with a conscience. Under such circumstances, here is the modest and good sense that Americans are rightly known for? Further it's odious for Americans to arrogate for themselves humanity, decency, goodness and the other virtues and conclude that they a mission civiliatrice to remake the world in America's image.

Indeed, I'm irked that Americans are committing the same mistake, as citizens of other hegemonic powers, of universalizing their way of life, their political institutions, they society as applicable to all..

Finally, while there's much to admire about America's dynamism, it can be so overpowering that it becomes becomes destructive. Like algae in a lake. Too much and the body of water stagnates into a marsh; so it is with other countries. Indeed, I sometimes detect a latent contempt against those that don't embrace the American lifestyle ethusiastically. Wearing Chicago Bulls' T shirts or drinking Coke or listening to Backstreet boys, doesn't signify that the world want to Americanize. Americans would benefit if they remembered their Burkean traits.

Comment l'histoire se repète

Paul Kennedy a écrit un article dans lequel il préviens les Américans comment il y avait 80 ans, les Britanniques ont presque dit l'identique aux Arabes. Le résultat c'est le sommaire de toute l'histoire contemporaine du région. Il a raision de dire que l'histoire ne se répète pas exactement; non mais parfois, elle spirale et on se rend au même endroit- comme des personnes qui auraient perdu dans le labyrinthe.
Je suis d'accord que ce le temps que les soi-disant faucons se calment et il baissent le ton de leur rhétorique. Il existe des limites du pouvoir et ce qu'une superpuissance peut faire. Elle ne peut pas résoudre tous les différends ni imposer une paix perpetuelle.

SARS: Very dismaying

I watched CNN yesterday when it reported that the Signaporean government quarantined the workers of the country's largest vegetable wholesalers and closed the outdoor market for 10 days. In Ontario, A nurse took the GO commuter train and may have infected 4 of her passengers. I'm quite dismayed that no one seems to have a handle on it. Dad, who's never really scared about diseases (he's a retired doctor), is quite worried about SARS.
I hope that we can at least create a dectection kit and eventually find a vaccine.

¶ 18:13