#3
The wise man built his house on a rock. The foolish man built his on sand....
The History Chan or Geographic (I forget which) recently had an article about building big in that country. It seems they didn't hit bedrock after 1500 feet of building for some high bldging our other so they just pounded zillions of 100 ft piers into the seabed then made a cement cap and an island around the cap. One good quake and its domino time.
#5
Taken cumulatively, the condition of the Pakistani, Indian, Sri-Lankan and Bangladeshi workers who make projects such as Burj Dubai possible expose the ugliest and most repugnant face of supposed progress in the Gulf States.
Ummm ... no. That "honor" belongs to the persistence of shari'a law but far be it from any editorWestern or notto point out such a glaring fact.
#8
Minor quibble with Ms. Zakaria: current thinking is that the pharaonic workers were not slaves, but free men working during agricultural slack periods and permanent tradesmen living in their own towns. There have been numerous examples of graffiti found indicating pride of accomplishment in the work squads.
They ought to be afraid. They have more foreign workers then they have native citizens. A fair number of those workers are non-Muslims. Not that I'd ever start something, but if the Hindooos ever got the idea how much power they had there ...
#1
I have always been surprised that the UAE did not workout a seconding deal with the UK about the Gurkhas in the 1980s or 90s, when the Brits reduced the number of Gurkha units. A British-officered Gurkha Battalion or two would really stiffen and improve the UAE's own military, and reduce the threat of outsiders trying to intervene.
A Bangladesh Bank (BB) investigation found gross irregularities and forgeries in purchasing shares of IFIC bank by former lawmaker and BNP leader Mosaddak Ali Falu and his associates. The central bank investigation report revealed that Falu and his associates illegally purchased the shares in the name of a Malaysia based company violating both the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act and the Money Laundering Prevention Act.
Sources in the central bank said they are considering forfeiture of the shares illegally purchased by Falu and others.
According to the Bank Company Act, any individual, company or members of a family cannot hold over 10 percent shares of a company. But Falu and his associates, AB Bank and AB Bank Foundation, and Beximco Group still hold more than 10 percent shares of IFIC bank each, the investigation report said.
The government owns 34.54 percent shares of IFIC bank, while Falu and his associates own 13.71 percent, Beximco group owns 12.74 percent, AB bank owns 18.31percent and family members of Aga Yusuf and of the directors of Islam Group own 3.56 and 2.21 percent respectively of the remaining 65.46 percent shares.
Dhaka Shanghai Ceramics Ltd, Build Trade Engineering Ltd, Diaper Ltd, and Bel Construction SDN BHD own 4.98 percent of the shares owned by Falu and his associates, while the rest are owned by the directors of these companies and their family members.
Falu, Arafat Rahman Koko, son of former prime minister Khaleda Zia, Enaytur Rahman, and Lutfar Rahman are the owners of these four companies.
Besides, the investigation found that Falu and his associates purchased 1.22 percent shares of the bank in the name of Bel Construction SDN BHD, a Malaysia based company. Falu, who became the chairman of the bank after striking a deal in October 2006, holds only 0.62 percent shares in his own name.
When Bel Construction SDN BHD was listed in Malaysia, two Bangladeshi citizens -- Osman Kaiser Chowdhury, and engineer Ashraful Alam -- were the owners of the company. But when this company purchased shares of IFIC bank in October 2006, Mosaddak Ali Falu, Enayetur Rahman, and Ekramul Haque were the signatories on behalf of Bel Construction.
The central bank''s investigation team however did not find any document proving Falu''s ownership of the company.
The report raised the question, how Mosaddak Ali Falu and Enayetur Rahman became directors of Bel Construction while they were active directors of IFIC bank too. The investigation team however did not find any provision in the bank''s documents against holding such dual positions.
The BB report explained that Bel Construction is a company listed in Malaysia by Bangladeshi private entrepreneurs. But when the company purchased IFIC shares, it did not take any permission from any government authority.
According to the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, if a foreign investment company wants to buy shares of a locally listed company, its investment should come to the country through non-resident investors account. And then the investment should be converted into local currency to buy shares of the locally listed company. But the BB investigation team did not find any documentation of such a transaction in the bank''s records. The BB investigation team assumed that the foreign company purchased the IFIC shares through collecting money locally, a practice which is illegal. The report said the bank did not even treat Bel Construction as a foreign investor.
Interestingly, the transactions of Bel Construction were conducted by Brotherhood Securities, a company owned by Falu. The report said it is quite mysterious how a Bangladeshi citizen became a director of a company listed in Malaysia and how he remitted the necessary capital to that country.
Posted by: Fred ||
08/07/2007 11:11 ||
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The United Kingdom should lose its independent voice at the United Nations and hand over its seat on the Security Council to the EU, according to the new Foreign Office Minister, Lord Malloch-Brown.
Last October, when Lord Malloch-Brown was the UN's deputy secretary general, he told EU diplomats in Brussels that the EU was heading towards one single seat within the UN institutions. "I think it will go in stages. We are going to see a growing spread of it institution by institution," he was reported as saying. Lord Malloch-Brown said he hoped it would happen "as quickly as possible. I'm a huge fan of it."
William Hague, the Conservative foreign affairs spokesman, said it was "alarming" that Mr Brown had chosen to put in charge of UN reform "the man who thinks we should give up our UN Security Council seat to the EU." Downing Street said there was "no question of Britain giving up its seat". The Foreign Office said Lord Malloch-Brown had made the comments before he was made a Government minister.
#3
Maliki-Brown must want GB to be able to avoid ANY responsibility for UN actions, since only the SC really means anything.
Perhaps he's right - get rid of the SC altogether and then ignore the UN entirely.
Posted by: Natural Law ||
08/07/2007 8:00 Comments ||
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#5
Maliki-Brown does not believe that Britain is no longer an exceptional nation. And if he and Bean Brain Brown are allowed to stay in office, they may be correct. It is a very sad thing to see. I still have the pink globe of my youth and shake my head at the results of today's rainbow.
#7
Glenmore and Nat'l Law nail it. Give up ye seat and close the stinking hell-hole down. Nothing but grief ("Palestine"), misery and rape (Sudan), dictator-induced famines (Zimbobwe) and eternal skirmishes (Iraq, the Koreas, Somalia, Bosnia, etc.) occur wherever the UN sticks its nose in. Shut 'er down, pack her up and move to Brussels, ya creeps.
Posted by: BA ||
08/07/2007 8:21 Comments ||
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#8
While I'd prefer shutting down the UN, or at least relocating it to ZimBobWay, given the EUssr I think the proper move is to throw ALL EUssr states out entirely.
Give them 1 seat in the GA and 1 on the SC and then add either Japan or India to the SC.
#11
I'm sitting here watching the UN become the "one world government" that the lefty nutjobs are always pissing and moaning about. The irony is that they couldn't be happier about it.
Read this one to judge just where London is trending these days. The young man rose from the inner city to become not only a very talented equestrian but also a youth worker mediating on tough streets. Key sentence:
Nathan is the 17th teenager to be murdered in London this year.
But of interest here is not the level (quite low by most standards) but rather the British author's sense that this was a worsening trend. And the killing was brazen in execution.
#2
The tail end of the article mentioned previous incursions into the Pankisi Gorge. If my memory serves me - that's where the worst of the Chechens would hide.
So the situation was not that much different from the Pak Tribal Lands problem
An international tribunal has ordered Russia to release a Japanese fishing vessel seized off Russia's Kamchatka peninsula two months ago. The ruling, by the Law of the Sea tribunal, based in Germany, came in response to a complaint by Japan. The Russians alleged that the boat had exceeded its allowed catch.
The tribunal ordered the Japanese side to pay a bond equivalent to about $400,000 (£197,000) to secure the vessel's release. That is less than half the sum demanded by Moscow. Sergey Ganzha, Russia's consul general in Hamburg, where the court is located, said Russia accepted the ruling but believed the bond should have been higher.
A Japanese official said Tokyo was "basically satisfied" with the tribunal's ruling.
The Hoshin Maru 88 and its crew of 17 was captured at the beginning of June. The court said the complaint by Russia that the Hoshin Maru had illegally declared 20 tonnes of raw sockeye salmon as cheaper salmon "should not be considered as a minor offence or as an offence of a purely technical nature".
Russia and Japan have had frequent disputes over fishing rights, with Russian coast guard ships often moving in on Japanese trawlers.
#1
Fish poaching has really jumped in recent years, with the market offering huge sums for what were common fish. Japan actually faces a shortage of tuna, because demand has skyrocketed far beyond the ability of wild stocks to fill with over fishing.
#1
Typical Dems. If you lose the vote, just change the totals. I dearly hope they are made to pay in Nov '08. They are not the 'democratic' party. They don't believe in democracy. They are elitists and autocrats. Damn, I thought nothing the Pelosi crowd did would enrage me anymore, but this just goes beyond the pale.
#2
The Dem leadership should be escorted from the chambers in handcuffs. If they can pull this and get away with it as the country looks on then we are dead as a nation. This is truly a frightening bunch we have in office. Unbelievable.
Posted by: Rex Mundi ||
08/07/2007 19:31 Comments ||
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#2
"Neither would be better." Nice sentiment, but we have no choice. The price I pay for natural gas to heat my home has gone up from $2 per 1000cubic feet to $13 since 1980. Everyone knows what has happened to the price of motor fuel. The current situation is not due to either mandates or taxes, but mostly from supply/demand imbalances. The cash we pay to import petro products is funding most of the Jihad.
The price the US pays for energy, both in cash and lives, will continue to rise over the next 20 years, regardless of what our esteemed and honourable representatives do. Measures taken now can lessen the pain a great deal, but the vast majority of the electorate is just not interested. One major question is, will the US economy, submerged in vast debts, survive?
#4
One of the biggest drawbacks with government mandates is there is a rush to get out a product that meets government standards but is less efficient. Right now there is a big push on to eliminate standard light bulbs with "snowcone" type flourescent bulbs. I have tohose type of bulbs and they are not as bright as a standard bulb so I wound up putting in more lamps. The same can be said for the "water-saving" toilets. They don't really save water as people flush more. Shower heads are another bad idea. Less flow means more time in the shower. No water saved. What is really happening here is we either pay willingly to get more energy efficient appliances or the government will force it on us. I prefer to let the free market decide. As demand for more efficient stuff grows there is more incentive to produce them. The government providing subsidies is an invitation for scams and rip-offs.
Posted by: Deacon Blues ||
08/07/2007 14:50 Comments ||
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#5
The government providing subsidies is an invitation for scams and rip-offs.
Exactly, Deacon. I can't think of a single such govt. swindlesubsidy that had the actual desired effect - ethanol, anyone? The last thing we need is any more govt. involvement in energy policies and incentives.
#6
Pebbles - that's one of the issues in the US economy. I recently saw a graph of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, measured in both $ and euros, it looks really bad as measured in euros. Part of the escalating price of oil to the USA is an implicit devaluation of the dollar, the price in other countries' currency isn't nearly as bad. The $ is being devalued as we speak. Much larger devaluations of the $ are probably inevitable.
Deac - Agree with you on energy-efficient appliances & such. They don't do their jobs very well. In June 2007 Consumers Reports had this to say:
Not so long ago you could count on most washers to get your clothes very clean. Not anymore. Our latest tests found huge performance differences among machines. Some left our stain-soaked swatches nearly as dirty as they were before washing. For best results, youll have to spend $900 or more.
No, thanks.
The energy market is not a free market. Texas was one of the first places where oil production was regulated by legal manipulation, to prevent excessive production and ridiculously low prices. The US government has been subsidizing the extravagant use of petroleum since automobiles became popular, mostly by paying for highway construction. Oil fields have been nationalized in many parts of the world. OPEC is a cartel. Etc.
#7
Deacon,
Regarding those compact fluorescent bulbs, they have a warm-up curve, unlike incandescent bulbs. The seem to me to be about as bright as advertised once they warm up. That makes them best used in places where they stay on for extended periods (eg. front door light) or don't care much how bright they are (eg. closets), and not places where you turn them off in 10 minutes (eg. bathrooms).
I figure they are a temporary phenomenon anyway - the cost-capability function of LED arrays is improving in giant steps and should end up with better energy efficiency, lower cost and cleaner environmental performance before too many years. They are already moving into certain niches (stage lights, traffic lights).
#8
Just for kicks I have run compact fluorescents in open fixtures along with incandescent lights of (supposedly) the same light output. The fluorescents have always appeared dimmer than the incandescents, and this gets worse as the bulbs age.
#10
Part of the escalating price of oil to the USA is an implicit devaluation of the dollar, the price in other countries' currency isn't nearly as bad.
Say what? The price of gasoline in England is roughly about $5 to $7 bucks depending on which part of England you're talking bout, higher prices as you're nearer London. Hell worldwide we're close to the bottom of the range of prices.
#11
I was not referring to the price at the pump, the upper limit of which is under the control of the taxing authorities. It doesn't matter if England charges the equivalent of $100 a gallon to its motorists, the price of imported petroleum has roughly the same price worldwide. England will pay less for what little they import since the value of the British pound has been improving with respect to the US $, the same has been happening with the Euro. The US will suffer more because it imports such a large share of the worldwide export market.
SLAMABAD: In a daring and unprecedented move, Islamabad has embarked on a legal battle in India against New Delhi for unlawfully declaring Super Basmati rice, a purely Pakistani brand, its own produce, a senior government official told The News.
Islamabad has served a formal notice on New Delhi for inflicting huge damage on Pakistan as India has illegally registered Super Basmati, undisputed Pakistans brand, under its Export Act. Indias this act is feared to deprive Pakistan of exporting Super Basmati rice to the worlds largest market of European Union, thus subjecting Pakistan to huge financial loss.
Under Section 80 of Indian Penal Code, serving a notice to the Indian government is mandatory prior to moving a court of law in India, which is why Islamabad served formal notice to Indian ministry of commerce on July 19, 2007.
On behalf of Pakistan, TCP, Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP) will be petitioners and Fazal Abbas Mekan Trade Minister High Commission of Pakistan in New Delhi has been authorized on their behalf to proceed with case, which would be filed in a court of law in India. Secretary Commerce Asif Shah confirmed this to The News. However, he said the both countries have decided to get Basmati rice registered jointly as many of the countries have come out to get Basmati registered to have the right to export it.
Asif Shah explained that Super Basmati is a kind of rice that is purely Pakistans brand and a commodity with regard to its geographical Indication (GI), which is why Pakistan has decided to wage a legal battle against India.
Posted by: john frum ||
08/07/2007 21:17 ||
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NEW DELHI: Signalling an impetus to defence ties with Israel, the Commander-in-Chief of Israeli Navy, Vice-Admiral David Ben Bashat, is on a maiden visit to India.
On Tuesday, Vice-Admiral Bashat will be briefed at the Indian Navys Maritime Operations Centre and he will also present his views on the maritime scenario in the region. He will call on Defence Secretary Vijay Singh and meet the three Service chiefs. He is expected to visit the Mumbai-based Western Command.
The Navy is expected to exchange views with Vice-Admiral Bashat on the Israeli equipment being inducted, including the air-to-air Derby missiles on its Sea Harrier fighters.
In the past five years, India has imported defence equipment worth $5 billion from Israel. It has made innovative use of unmanned aerial vehicles provided by Tel Aviv. Their range has been extended up to 300 nautical miles (over 550 km) by deploying control stations aboard ships.
India is also deploying Barak anti-ship missiles on its warships and jointly developing the next generation of the missile with Israel.
India, Israel for strengthening economic ties
JERUSALEM:
India and Israel on Monday said efforts should be made to fully utilise the potential for enhanced economic cooperation between the two countries, especially in the fields of solar energy and agriculture.
During a meeting with Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Ashwani Kumar here, Israeli President Shimon Peres also lauded India as a unique example of a nation that has achieved high economic growth consistent with its cultural values.
The two leaders said efforts should be made to fully utilise the potential for enhanced economic cooperation. Solar energy, water technology, nanotechnology, agriculture, including organic farming, and medicine were outlined as some of the key sectors for increased Indo-Israeli cooperation.
India has grown consistently with its commitment to democracy and cultural values. The rest of the world could take pride in the history of pluralism and tolerance in India, Mr. Peres, a Nobel peace laureate, said.
Israeli sources said Mr. Peres re-scheduled his programme to meet Mr. Kumar, which was a reflection of the importance that the veteran leader attached to the growing Indo-Israel ties and his appreciation of all that India stood for.
Israeli Deputy Prime Ministers Ellie Yishai and Shaul Mofaz also called upon the Indian Minister. The common message of all these meetings is that Israel seeks a comprehensive partnership with India based on recognition and appreciation for Indias role in shaping the new global order, Mr. Kumar said.
Mr. Yishai, also the Minister for Trade and Industry, proposed a Free Trade Agreement with India which, Mr. Kumar said, New Delhi would actively consider.
Israel is also mulling opening a second trade office in India, most probably in Bangalore.
During his meeting with Mr. Kumar, Mr. Peres emphasised that the economic growth in India is based on the strength of the people and is oriented towards benefiting the people while maintaining its cultural identity and its soul.
The President has warm personal relations with Mr. Kumar, whom he met in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh last year, Israeli sources said.
Mr. Kumar is visiting Israel with a high-level FICCI delegation, which is taking part in the Indo-Israel Joint Business Council meeting that also saw the participation of more than 100 leading Israeli businessmen.
Several leading Israeli companies have approached Mr. Kumar expressing their desire to invest in India, sources said.
Posted by: john frum ||
08/07/2007 07:36 ||
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The United States Navy has been banned from using a type of sonar that wildlife supporters say harms whales. The injunction issued by a federal court outlaws use of the sonars in exercises off the California coast.
It is a victory for environmental group Natural Resources Defence Council (NRDC), which filed a lawsuit in March claiming the navy did not do enough environmental testing of the equipment.
The sonar is used to detect underwater objects such as submarines and is critical to readiness training, navy officials said. "The US navy's use of sonar, and the ability to test and train with it, is critical to the national security of the United States," the government argued before the start of the hearing in the US District Court in Los Angeles.
Three tests have taken place off California and 11 more were scheduled through 2009.
But the NRDC claims the sonar, which shoots bursts of sound, is so loud it kills whales. "Scientists all agree that mid-frequency sonar causes whales to strand and die," said Joel Reynolds, the NRDC's head of marine mammal protection. The NRDC filed a similar suit in Hawaii, where a court told the navy to implement measures to protect whales before proceeding with its exercises. "This is among the most biologically rich areas in the country," Mr Reynolds said of the area off the California coast.
Activists with ties to the principal of the city's controversial new Arabic-themed school are hawking T- shirts that glorify Palestinian terror, The Post has learned. The inflammatory tees boldly declare "Intifada NYC" - apparently a call for a Gaza-style uprising in the Big Apple.
The organization selling the shirts, Arab Women Active in Art and Media, shares office space on Brooklyn's Third Avenue with the Saba Association of American Yemenis. Dhabah "Debbie" Almontaser, principal of the Khalil Gibran International Academy - which is scheduled to open in Brooklyn next month - is a board member and spokeswoman for Saba.
Members of AWAAM refused to comment. But Almontaser downplayed the significance of the T-shirts. "The word [intifada] basically means 'shaking off.' That is the root word if you look it up in Arabic," she said. "I understand it is developing a nega tive connotation due to the uprising in the Palestinian-Israeli areas. I don't be lieve the intention is to have any of that kind of [violence] in New York City. I think it's pretty much an opportunity for girls to express that they are part of New York City society . . . and shaking off oppression."
AWAAM's co-founders, Rama Kased and Mona Eldahry, are also active in the more militant pro-Palestinian group, al-Awda, whose main U.S. office is in California. That organization, according to the Anti-Defamation League, is an active supporter of the terrorist groups Hezbollah and Hamas. "The T-shirt is a reflection of a movement that increasingly lauds violence against Israelis instead of rejecting it. That is disturbing," said Oren Segal, a spokesman for the ADL.
Almontaser, a community activist and Muslim, has said the new grade 6-12 public school will be modeled on other dual-language city schools and have no religious component. But the shirt sales are giving new ammunition to critics who fear Almontaser's school will teach a biased view of Middle Eastern history. "Intifada is a war. Isn't that what Arafat had?" said Pamela Hall, a Manhattan mom opposed to the academy on the grounds that it violates separation of church and state.
A Department of Education spokeswoman defended Almontaser, saying her link to the T-shirt was tenuous.
Posted by: ryuge ||
08/07/2007 01:13 ||
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#1
And these are the same sort of people who go apes**t when the word "crusader" is bandied about?
#2
Oh. That...ummmmmmmmmmm...pisses people off? Oh. Ummmmmmmmm...sorry.
The principal of an Arabic-language public school due to open next month is under fire for taking what several Jewish groups are condemning as a soft stance on the violent Palestinian Arab uprising known as the intifada. The principal, Debbie Almontaser, was quoted yesterday interpreting T-shirts that say "Intifada NYC" as not an endorsement of violence but rather "an opportunity for girls to express that they are part of New York City society ... and shaking off oppression." She followed the word's literal Arabic meaning, which is "struggle" or "uprising."
In a statement late yesterday afternoon, Ms. Almontaser backed away from her comments, reported by the New York Post, saying she regretted suggesting the T-shirt slogan was appropriate. "By minimizing the word's historical associations I implied that I condone violence and threats of violence," she said. "That view is anathema to me and the very opposite of my life's work."
#3
You know, about 20 yrs ago, a group of nazi skins tried to 'muscle in' to NYC. I think they were the confederate hammers, but I'm not sure about that. Set up shop here in the East Village.
Within a week, there were gang-bangers down here playing 'knock-down' (where you run down the sidewalk as fast as possible and utterly DECK motherf*ckers- in this case any skinhead.)
Cops just laughed. Skins left in about a week or so. (heh)
Is it too much to hope for a repeat?
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
The United Kingdom should lose its independent voice at the United Nations and hand over its seat on the Security Council to the EU, according to the new Foreign Office Minister, Lord Malloch-Brown.
SLAMABAD: In a daring and unprecedented move, Islamabad has embarked on a legal battle in India against New Delhi for unlawfully declaring Super Basmati rice, a purely Pakistani brand, its own produce, a senior government official told The News.
