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Showing posts tagged protesters

If you get the chance, watch “Battle in Seattle” to see how civil disobedience and protests are sometimes dealt with in the US.

9 notes

Posted at 12:03am
Tagged Battle in Seattle protesters disobedience freedom of speech right to assemble WTO Black Swan Event

 


Why Libya and NOT DARFUR? Bahrain? Sierra Leone? Nigeria?

I try to stay away from politics on this blog and just watch events and patterns, but I have to say this. 

When the genocide in Darfur began in 2004, the UN and the US turned a blind eye to rape, genocide, and Sudanese planes bombing rebel villages. They actively stayed out of it. The Bush administration had a long record of avoiding the issue and ignoring it in any significant way as it was happening.

Now, perhaps it is the current administrations position to take issues such as this more seriously than the previous administration did, but we have Republicans such as John McCain advocating for military intervention in Libya. Others have advocated restraint.

Still yet, of all the civil wars with human rights atrocities at the center, why have we seen increasing rhetoric and pressure to intervene with military action?

Right now troops from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have entered Bahrain, at the invitation of the Bahrain government and enacted of martial law to control protesters there. The army is openly shooting protesters there.

Why would be care about Libya when the same thing is happening in numerous other places all over the globe? Why do we move so quickly in this instance and not the others? 

Consider this:

Libya has the largest proven oil reserves in Africa but most analysts agree that the country is still underexplored. 

There is a long list of pros and cons for intervention, and this cheat sheet for the main arguments bears reading, but I cannot see how it would be anything but detrimental for the US to over extend itself and enter yet another country in the Middle East.

Despite the sadness and suffering of the people there, this is their war. My heart breaks for those people. It really does. However, the fact remains, there are many others in which we have taken no action. Why set foot in another Muslim quagmire when it’s obvious we are at an impasse in Iraq and Afghanistan? 

Say no to the no-fly zone. Say no to more American soldiers in Middle Eastern countries. It’s not about protecting civilians from Qadafi. The US government doesn’t give a shit about civilians. We care about controlling the oil supply. 

Just. Say. No.

 
5 notes

Posted at 11:07pm
Tagged bahrain Libya no-fly zone Darfur Sierra Leone civil war US Foreign Policy Middle Eastern war US wars military genocide protesters demonstrators

 


Rising Oil Prices Pose the Latest Threat To U.S. Economy - NYTimes.com

The outlook is cheery.  lol

If the recent rise in oil prices sticks, it will most likely slow a growth rate that is already too sluggish to produce many jobs in this country. Some economists are predicting that oil prices, just above $97 a barrel on Thursday, could be sustained well above $100 a barrel, a benchmark.

Even if energy costs don’t rise higher, lingering uncertainty over the stability of the Middle East could drag down growth, not just in the United States but around the world.

But other sources of economic uncertainty besides oil prices have come into sharper focus in recent days. After a few false starts, housing prices have slid further. New-home sales dropped sharply in January, as did sales of big-ticket items like appliances, the government reported Thursday.

Though the initial panic from last year has faded, Europe’s deep debt problems remain, creating another wild card for the global economy. Protests turned violent in Greece this week in response to new austerity measures.

Budget and debt problems at all levels of American government also threaten to crimp the domestic recovery. Struggling state and local governments may dismiss more workers this year as many face their deepest shortfalls since the economic downturn began, and a Congressional stalemate over the country’s budget could even lead to a federal government shutdown.

5 notes

Posted at 11:22pm
Tagged depression economy home sales prices protesters unrest oil fuel prices

 


Food Riots Threaten Latin America on Surging Commodities in UN Assessment - Bloomberg

The world faces a “real risk” of a food crisis as agriculture-commodity prices climb, increasing the likelihood of riots in developing countries, French Agricultural Minister Bruno Le Maire said earlier this month. Rising prices have pushed 44 million more people into “extreme” poverty indeveloping countries since June, the World Bank estimates.

1 note

Posted at 5:52pm
Tagged food shortage food supply famine developing countries Latin America food riots protesters

 


Army deploys after Bahrain police raid protest camp | Reuters

So, there’s an established pattern of messing around in the political affairs of other countries when it’s in our interests, or those of our allies, but in other quarters we support protesters seeking regime change as “freedom and democracy seekers”.

This backfired on us in Iran and Iraq - both US supported dictatorships back in the day.  It almost did in Egypt, since we’ve been supporting Mubarak  forever as well.  

I’m sure the CIA will be supporting Saudi Arabia if they step in so we don’t have to play the heavy. 

  Inspired by popular revolts in Tunisia and Egypt, the unrest in Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy’s Fifth Fleet, will alarm Saudi Arabia and the United States, which both see the island’s al-Khalifa dynasty as a bulwark against Shi’ite Iran.

 “I’m not saying that Bahrain is on the brink (but) should it become clear that the regime is in danger, the Saudis will step in,” said Gala Riani, senior Middle East analyst at IHS Global Insight in London.

Posted at 5:12pm
Tagged Bahrain protesters regime change Middle East civil unrest