re: "Islam’s sterilizing homogeneity."

Col. B. Bunny at Eternity Road examines history and culture.

Money quote(s):

"The Golden Age of Islam. Puhleez. More like the Gold Age of Plunder plus living off the doomed remnants of local Persian and Egyptian scholars and artists who had a chance at independent thinking before the Islamic Curtain of Intellectual Darkness descended."

Yeah, that's kind of the under-mentioned part of the PC "cultural and scientific contributions of Islam" riff. And they're off to a great start doing it to Europe, btw.

"As we all know by now, outright rejection of Muslim doctrine is apostasy and it and its country cousins are a green light to the murder of the apostate by the do-it-yourselfers perpetually on duty in Muslim lands for housecleaning of this type. A fatwa by some imamical jackass in the Hindu Kush seems to be sufficient authorization for DIY teams (aka mobs) in Morocco to dispatch too-independent thinkers, though I get the impression that a “boys will be boys” approach will be taken in the case of too much local initiative, too much zeal in the service of Allah. There’s no shortage of Islamic zeal anywhere in the world and what’s one more dead infidel in a crowded world anyway?"

This is one of those under-mentioned downsides to Sharia. Next slide please.

"Also good for anyone in Muslim lands to avoid is blasphemy, an exceedingly elastic concept, that encompasses, for example, Christians who get into neighborhood, land, water, or business disputes with Muslims. After reading about several cases, I gather that it is a common practice for Christians in disputes with Muslims to try to gain a psychological advantage over their Muslim opponents by insulting to Mohammed or Islam. An example of this might be, “Sir, kindly permit me to say that I think your idea of the boundary line between our two properties is in error. Let us obtain an actual plat of the properties and see where the line lies.” Naturally, blasphemy charges (with death penalty) are brought when Christians insist on such reckless and insulting ways of settling disputes."

In a seminar-type setting today, a colleague made an ignorant comment about how the U.S. tries to implement U.S.-style democracy in other countries. She was referring, I believe, to Iraq and/or Afghanistan.

Hello? In neither case have we done anything like establishing a U.S.-style representative democracy. In both cases we've helped establish European-style parliamentary democracies, which are not the same things at all.

(Don't believe me? Tell me who America's prime minister is?)

re: "Gates of Vienna News Feed 2/7/2011"

Baron Bodissey at Gates of Vienna ("At the siege of Vienna in 1683 Islam seemed poised to overrun Christian Europe.We are in a new phase of a very old war.") has a follow-on development on the big news from Munich this week.

Money quote(s):

“British Prime Minister David Cameron followed up on his declaration that Multiculturalism has failed in the UK by ordering the removal of funding from suspicious Muslim community groups. Such groups have previously received state funds in a bid to reach troubled youth and discourage them from turning to extremism, but the prime minister believes they may be soft on terrorism.”

This takes Angela Merkels comments about the failure of multiculturalism to another level entirely.

JO - Retired politicians don't always make good envoys

From my archive of press clippings:

Jamaica Observer

Retired politicians don't always make good envoys

Wednesday, March 10, 2010

A certain prime minister of Jamaica, who shall be nameless, is reported to have said that it is not important who is appointed ambassador because he had a telephone.

Read the whole editorial here.

Snippet(s):

"Although this is patently absurd, it has become an axiom of an approach to foreign policy by succeeding governments since the 1970s. Most unfortunately, it has been practised with disastrous results in the capitals of some of the countries that are most important to Jamaica, namely Washington, DC; London; and Ottawa."

"This dumping policy is not received well in foreign capitals because the "host" country knows what is being passed off and is insulted. The fog that engulfed United States-Jamaica relations has not yet cleared in Washington, DC.

Ambassadorial postings cannot be a pension plan for retirees or for politicians with other infirmities such as health problems. Even undistinguished backbenchers have become ambassadors if they are willing to accept less attractive postings. We have seen some who acceded to the diplomatic life without any aptitude, and even when they do not perform they are retained or offered another prestigious posting.

Some of these appointees regard their positions as a reward for work already done and do not exert themselves, to the detriment of Jamaica. Their verbal incontinence is an embarrassment to their country and their sartorial eccentricities a source of derision among their countrymen in the Diaspora. These retirees have not even been aware of their shortcomings while "enjoying" the privileges. They conflate the ceremonial with the cerebral and confuse the deference given to the office with respect for their person.

They are disparaged in dispatches to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs by their own staff who file demeaning reports critiquing their conduct and work ethic, disregard for proper procedure and an ignorance of protocol."

&

"We are looking to Prime Minister Bruce Golding to put a stop to these types of appointments and to refrain from rewarding or condoning failure with inappropriate appointments. One bad term does not deserve another. There must be some other form of pension or local sinecure for retired politicians. Jamaica will not be taken seriously or get on any country's foreign policy agenda if we do not have effective representations.

The persons appointed as ambassadors/high commissioners, especially in Washington, DC; London; Ottawa; and at the United Nations, must be suitably qualified persons who could include competent politicians but not those in need of a pension."

JG - The PMs' club versus the US

From my archive of press clippings:

Jamaica Gleaner

The PMs' club versus the US

Published: Sunday April 11, 2010


Patterson
Seaga
Manley
Golding


Gary Spaulding, Senior Gleaner Writer

JAMAICA IS no stranger to conflicts, disagreements, or diplomatic rows with the mighty United States or powerful US-backed organisations.

Read the whole article here.

Snippet(s):

"Past diplomatic stand-offs between the two countries have created graphic imagery of the oft-recited biblical David and Goliath story.

And as it was with much smaller David, Jamaican leaders have refused to back down claiming nobly that they have principle on their side.

Former prime ministers - Michael Manley, Edward Seaga and P.J. Patterson - have, during their tenures, boldly squared off with the United States or its organisations."

"(T)he Bruce Golding administration faces its own dilemma with the US."

&

"Ironically, as the Bruce Golding administration continues to be enmeshed in the knotty diplomatic row with the United States, over another extradition request, the attorney general and justice minister, Dorothy Lightbourne, is using the 1992 experience to defend the Government's position on the high-profile extradition request for celebrated Tivoli Gardens leader Christopher 'Dudus' Coke."

JO - Antigua political crisis deepens.

From my archive of press clippings:

Jamaica Observer

Antigua political crisis deepens


Documents on judge's ruling missing


BY RICKEY SINGH Observer Caribbean correspondent


Sunday, April 04, 2010


BRIDGETOWN, Barbados -- The political crisis in Antigua and Barbuda which emerged last week with a High Court judge's invalidation of three seats belonging to the governing United Progressive Party (UPP) has now deepened with the mysterious disappearance of vital court documents.

Read the whole article here.

Snippet(s):

"The documents include three certificates prepared by Justice Louise Blenman for the speaker of the House of Representatives informing him that she had declared vacant three of the UPP's seats -- including that of Prime Minister Baldwin Spencer -- on the basis of petitions on the outcome of the March 12, 2009 general election.
The two other UPP parliamentarians affected by Justice Blenman's ruling are Education Minister Jacqui Quinn-Leandro, and Tourism Minister John Maginley."

JO - Dominica: A Whale of A Pride

From my archive of press clippings:

Jamaica Observer


Dominica: A Whale of A Pride


Sir Ronald Sanders


Sunday, March 29, 2009


IT'S not often that the leader of a small country is bold enough to resist the desires of larger or richer countries. But Dominica's prime minister, Roosevelt Skerritt, did just that on March 23rd.

Sir Ronald Sanders

Speaking in Dominica's capital, Roseau, at the opening of an Environmental Conference entitled "International Ocean Life Symposium", the prime minister declared that his government would no longer be supporting the whale-killing position of the Japanese government in the International Whaling Commission (IWC). He said that his government would be acting in his country's "national interest".

Read the whole article here.

Snippet(s):

"For several years now, it has been alleged that several Caribbean countries - the members of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and Suriname - have been supporting Japan at the IWC because the Japanese Whaling Association (JWA) provided them with fish refrigeration facilities. It has also been claimed in British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) programmes that the JWA paid the IWC membership fees for some of these countries as well as the cost of their delegations' attendance.

These claims were upheld in Dominica by environmentalists who have followed closely the country's participation in IWC meetings. Among these persons is a former environment minister of a Dominica government, Atherton Martin, who resigned in 2000 in protest over the issue."

_____

Sir Ronald Sanders is a consultant and former Caribbean diplomat.


Responses to: ronaldsanders29@hotmail.com

JO - Is it over or just starting?

From my archive of press clippings:

Jamaica Observer

Is it over or just starting?

MICHAEL BURKE

Thursday, March 26, 2009

So Daryl Vaz has returned to Parliament by a larger margin and by almost 1,000 more votes. But is it over or is it just beginning? Will the prime minister call an election to take advantage of the glory of the victory or will he not take the chance? If Golding does not announce an election by weekend he might not call it for this year. I believe if he were calling it, he would do so before the budget debate.

MICHAEL BURKE

Why would he wait until the hype is deflated? In 1983 Edward Seaga called a snap election for December 15 that year and by December 31 there was a hike in the price of gasoline. Everyone is expecting a tight budget this year. Politicians tend to call elections before such occurrences, not after. And this is actually part of what is called "political science" by those who love to put nice titles on actions that might be called less likeable words.

Read the whole article here.

Snippet(s):

"(T)here are other dual citizenship cases among members of parliament. Would Golding wait until each one has been heard and then call by-elections in which his party may not be as fortunate as it was last Monday? Does Golding hope that those cases will take so long to get to court that by the time it is done, it would be time for the general election anyway? And by the way, all election petitions come to an end with the dissolution of Parliament which precedes a general election."
_____

ekrubm765@yahoo.com

JO - The slippery slope of preventive detention

From my archive of press clippings:

Jamaica Observer

The slippery slope of preventive detention

CLAUDE ROBINSON

Sunday, June 22, 2008

Prime Minister Bruce Golding is right about the urgency and absolute necessity of the state regaining control over every nook and cranny of Jamaica.

CLAUDE ROBINSON

"There are communities where there are others who are in control, and the security forces will have to take back control and demonstrate that they have that control," the prime minister told Parliament Tuesday in a previously unannounced major policy statement on crime and security management.

Read the whole article here.

Snippet(s):

"(I)n communities where violence had erupted, intelligence pointed the security forces to those responsible.

But while investigations were taking place, potential witnesses were killed."

"No self-respecting state could tolerate such a situation, and the Government would be in clear dereliction of its duty to provide a safe and secure environment for citizens to go about their lawful business if it did nothing."

&

"Among the measures proposed by the prime minister are an extension of the period of detention, without charge, of persons suspected of murder and gun-related charges; restriction of bail in relation to specified charges; minimum sentences; majority guilty verdicts for non-capital murder; speedier authorisation of interception of communications and the removal of right to silence in certain cases."

re: " "Overwhelmed" "

George Smiley at In From the Cold ("Musings on Life, Love, Politics, Military Affairs, the Media, the Intelligence Community and Just About Anything Else that Captures Our Interest") weighs in on the gifts gaffe.

Money quote(s):

"Every new administration--and president--goes through an adjustment process, but this is ridiculous."

Ouch.

"(I)n regard to Obama's meeting with Gordon Brown, there is no excuse for the diplomatic faux pas. Both the White House and the State Department have permanent, professional protocol staffs who work these events on a daily basis. If the Obama team was unsure of how to "handle" a meeting with a British Prime Minister, all they had to do was ask.

Apparently, no one did, since Mr. Brown was not afforded the press conference or formal dinner that normally accompany a U.S.-British summit. Additionally, protocol experts could have prevented the embarrassment over those cheesy DVDs given by Mr. Obama to the British leader."

There's also such a thing as "managing upwards."

Did no one in a protocol position at either the White House or State Department know that PM Brown was going to visit?

I hate to sharpshoot the guys/gals whose responsibility this was; I read the job description for State's protocol officer during last summer's bidding season and, despite protocol and ceremony being an interest of mine (perhaps rising to the level of a hobby), I'd take that job only if someone very senior to me asked me to do so (and if said senior official was someone I both liked and respected). It's the kind of job that'll make you lose your hair.

re: "Obama Gives PM Gordon Brown a Crummy Box of DVDs"

LT Nixon at LT Nixon Rants ("Looking for truth and starting controversy since 1980!") is under-impressed with this treatment.

Money quote(s):

"It pretty much goes without say that the Brits have been one of our best allies ever since that whole unpleasant War of 1812 business. World War I, World War II, standing united against communist expansion, fighting side by side against terrorism, and other "minor" mutual understandings to name a few. But Obama's staff neglected to pull out the stops when PM Gordon Brown was in town and gave him what looks like a box of used DVDs from a Virginia flea market. Not exactly the V.I.P. treatment for a Prime Minister. Perhaps Obama should've screened his staff for protocol experience instead of whether or not they ever owned a firearm."

""

re: "Gordon Brown Obama Meeting"

beth at Blue Star Chronicles ("a way from me to vent and journal the experience of having a son in the military, stationed in Europe and deployed to Iraq as part of the Global War on Terror") is pretty unhappy with Pres. Obama.

Money quote(s):

"Barack Obama hosted his first foreign leader yesterday and today and managed to insult British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and the entire United Kingdom."

&

"I’m sure that its no accident that the very first time Obama hosted a foreign leader, it was British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Obama has to be broken in to dealing with foreign leaders, protocol and all things diplomatic, so best to start out with those who are going to be friendly with us even if there is a faux pas here and there. But what to do when its all just one big faux pas that can’t be over looked or looked over?"

JG - The Caribbean and Europe: Talking about poverty

From my archive of press clippings:

Jamaica Gleaner

The Caribbean and Europe: Talking about poverty

published: Sunday May 25, 2008

Robert Buddan POLITICS OF OUR TIME

Bruce Golding was one of four CARICOM prime ministers to attend a summit with Latin American countries and the European Union in Peru between May 16 and 17.

Read the whole article here.

Snippet(s):

"The meeting was important enough for the prime ministers of Trinidad and Tobago, the Bahamas and Antigua and Barbuda, along with other top government officials from Suriname, Barbados, Belize, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Guyana's ambassador to Brazil, to attend."