patrick.net

Robert C,

Hey! Great having you back!

Okay... so maybe it's the lesser of two evils now. The Dems are in the spotlight and they've talked some big changes so let's see if they can put our money where their mouths are. At least W got an ass whoopin and that made me smile. If we can get out of Iraq that's a good start and with that asswipe Rummy out of the way it might happen.

M. Cote,

"No, it only puts Boxer/Feinstein, at best, in double digits. "

Back up your insults. You're treading awfully close to "all cheese is smelly" territory.

"Pelosi is so leftist she’s have to stand tippy toe to catch a glimpse of liberal on the far right hoizon.

Your idea of moderacy is not exactly reflective of the electorate, esp. the blue state electorates. I don't think anybody in the Democratic party is planning to roll out 80% marginal income taxes or putting people in communes.

Hopefully Carl Rove will resign next. Those yahoos who gave him bad advise and kept things from him and it effected policy need to go. Senate investigative hearing to follow especially war policy. I can't wait for all the dirt to come out..

SP Says:
DS said:
Burma’s regime still survives because foreign companies are still willing to invest in Burma.

SP

well, singapore is burmas's largest investor. other investors include japan, US, UK, canada, france, malaysia, thailand, australia and the netherlands mostly in the form of trans-national oil companies. oh, there's that 'oil' word again.

American firms include Amoco, Texaco, Unocal, Tyndall and Apache. I couldn't say if China has gotten involved in that country lately.

For example:

"The nine multinational oil companies that signed the first contracts with the SLORC in 1989 included Amoco (United States), Unocal (United States), Idemitsu (Japan), Royal Dutch Shell (Netherlands/United Kingdom), Yukong Oil (South Korea), Broken Hill Petroleum (Australia), Petro Canada (Canada), Croft Exploration (United Kingdom) and Kirkland Resources (United Kingdom). These firms were reported to have paid between $5 million and $8 million each in signing bonuses to the Burmese regime.

Since 1989, a number of other companies have also signed contracts with the SLORC. These include Premier Oil (United Kingdom), Nippon Oil Exploration (Japan), ELF (France), Petronas (Malaysia), and most recently International Petroleum Corp. (Canada), Apache Oil (United States), Tyndall International (United States) and Texaco (United States).

Human rights groups argue that oil development has direct impacts on the people of Burma. A Green November 32 statement notes, "recent reports from inside Burma indicate that human rights violations are being perpetrated by the SLORC army in association with the oil companies' planned and actual activities. Genocidal offensives are being carried out as part of the junta's efforts to clear potential oil bearing areas of their indigenous inhabitants. ... Tens of thousands of Burmese people are being forced to labor on roads for less than subsistence wages for the benefit of the oil multinationals and the junta."

But as a Green November 32 statement explains, "When a multinational oil company with the financial and political influence of Texaco invests in a country like Burma, it makes it substantially more difficult toeffectively pressure a government led by someone like George Bush ... into applying the sanctions that have been repeatedly and loudly called for. Obviously sanctions would not be good for those U.S. oil companies - Texaco, Amoco, Unocal, Tyndall, and Apache - that have invested so many millions of dollars in their relationship with the SLORC regime."

Multinational oil development remains key to the SLORC's expansion of the military, and control over the people of Burma. Without foreign exchange from oil investments, the regime would be much more dependent on foreign aid, which is often tied to political reforms.

Until some form of international trade or investment sanctions are passed by the United Nations or individual countries such as the United States, however, multinational oil companies will continue to fuel Burma's military machine."
TNCs at work in Burma

so what do you know, SP?

@DinOR and HARM

Thanks for the replies and links about refi's. I will be checking them out later.

Sorry for the delay in the reply - had to stop blogging to look after the kids - ones now asleep, the other ones doing an after school activity and the dinner is in the oven - so I'm free to catch up.

I've come to the conclusion that blogging is detrimental to family life if one is not careful! What will I do once the housing market has really crashed and I've bought a house? Mind you, the rate it's going here I may be priced out forever, or it could be quite a few years before I buy.

Can't comment on politics - not allowed to vote. Besides aren't the two parties right and far right? :-)

He was a poet. You’re not. Besides, the knee-jerk socia1ism get a bit tiring.

and the knee-jerk market fundamentalism and imperialistic apologetics doesn’t? and the hypocritical whinging about house prices while trading shares like mad and putting down anyone beneath my social stratum as not deserving of any assistance and lucky not to get the death penalty? (despite the fact that is is definitely not 'knee-jerk')

i promise to slow down and capitalise more often… since it seems to make all the difference…

Just so it is clear, I am not objecting on any moral grounds to the Chinese pursuit of their own self interest. I am merely entertaining myself for a while by turning over a rock that the leftists usually are hesitant to touch.

i'm no fan of the chinese govt or their rotten attempt at implementing a socia1ist state that breaks so many ethical rules. another reality today tho is that the chinese are putting infrastructure into places like africa in a way that the west has never done (in exchange for commodities). it remains to be seen what the next few decades will hold for the world re the rise of china. increasing industrialisation and prosperity seems to bring about fundamental changes in social structures and understandings -- e.g. heightened individualism and expectations. will china's human rights record improve as material conditions improve? will the conditions of 'satellite' countries like burma be lifted by the tide? remember that things weren't so hot for the average worker in the west 100 years ago. 100 years ago atrocities were being committed by leopold III of belgium in the congo in the interests of colonialism...

and nor am i a fan of the US directions and assumptions of entitlement of pre-eminence and the neocon PNAC project of 'world strategic dominance' or whatever it was...

oops, sorry, caps next time...
atleastiusethespacebaricouldhavebeeneconomisingtheretoo

Your McMansion has quartz counter tops. I didn’t know such a thing existed. Must be whoppin’ large quartz crystals.

Is it Zodiaq by DuPont? It is now my favorite.

Re:
DS,
Re: DS

Don’t forget he’s an aussie. When he says “you”, he’s rejecting his own government’s troop contribution (which was important politically but negligible militarily).

let's not go there. some 96% of troops in iraq are US, 6% are british, and the remaining 2% are from the rag-tag coalition of the coerced and arm-twisted unwilling. let's not forget it was the neocons who pressured other countries into participating against UN agreement. tony blair has paid for his decision to go along quite dearly with the population. john howard certainly never put the question to referendum or popular vote -- the outcome would have been very different in a true democracy. however, the average australian joe sixpack is fairly indifferent about iraq, simply because 1) they're quite stupid, self-interested and apathetic, and more worried about their mortgage, and 2) very few troops have been committed, there have been virtually no casualities, and they are crack SAS troops for the most part. john howard clearly isn't that stupid -- he keeps his strategic allies happy, gives the SAS a run in real battle conditions, and minimises collateral damage at the same time. however, having said that, there were huge public protests in britain, and huge protests in australia. if anything, this war has shown the power of propaganda and the extent to which we are living in a 1984-style society. further, other parties here have not been cheerleaders for the war in anything like the way so many US Dems, afraid of unpopularity, were pro-war. the argument in the US has been deliberately contained in the MSM and political debate to niceties on how it should have been conducted rather than analysing motives and determining whether it was the right thing to do at all. i'm amazed at the newsfeeds i see. very colonial victorian indeed...

and the knee-jerk market fundamentalism and imperialistic apologetics doesn’t?

Actually, not to me. ; )

and the hypocritical whinging about house prices while trading shares like mad and putting down anyone beneath my social stratum as not deserving of any assistance and lucky not to get the death penalty? (despite the fact that is is definitely not ‘knee-jerk’)

Can you exagerrate any more than you already are?

It really is too bad that people have bought into both political parties rhetoric and pigeon hole people without any critical thinking at all. Everybody who cannot think for themselves will pay for it in the coming years.

Uh, dude this is America.

Thinking doesn't matter.

Actually I take back my last comment - that was pretty negative.

But still, if critical thinking mattered in this country, people wouldn't pay to see people like Robert Kiyosaki speak.

Now, I’m not a geologist, but isn’t silica quartz also called sand?

I guess it comes in many different forms.

I know nothing about geology though. Geomancy sounds more interesting.

M. Cote,

Boxer and Feinstein are not dummies, and their public service record is at least as good as that of most GOP senators. Ditto Pelosi, there's very little evidence that indicate she would be a bad leader. In fact, in her time as minority leader, she has been able to exert more control over the ranks than Dick Gephert and his hopelessly out of date (rust belt labor union) politics.

I don't think she'll be a Tip O'Neill or a LBJ...at least not overnight, but that woman is pretty, and that's exactly what the Dems need if they are to dig themselves out of Bush's pile of poop. Niceness and cordiality won't get GOP cooperation.

@ConfusedRealtor,

Nice of you to selectively provide us with that useless information. Yes, I saw that Apple and Yahoo are up to. Too bad that doesn't affect the average homebuyer, who still doesn't want to buy much right now:

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2006/11/08/BUGT3M7LPQ1.DTL&type=business

Are the commissions drying up? Can't make the sportscar payments?

SFWoman,

I'll take engineered quartz. It's probably much cheaper and easier to care for compared to real stone.

I can't wait until engineered diamond countertops become the norm...

I don’t think she’ll be a Tip O’Neill or a LBJ…at least not overnight, but that woman is pretty

Yeah, if you like the plastic surgery fake face type.

"Can’t make the sportscar payments"

Good point skibum. I wonder what kind of sportscar it is...

skibum,

something got cut off

That was supposed to be "pretty tough"

She was rather attractive while young, and she's gotten good work done, but I wouldn't call her pretty even if I was a male octogenarian shopping for a third wife.

I can’t wait until engineered diamond countertops become the norm…

I rather have a self-cleaning countertops.

And just to clarify, I'm not a male octogenarian shopping for a third wife...

"I rather have a self-cleaning countertops."

Aren't those called maids?

Aren’t those called maids?

Maids can be used as countertops? How?

And just to clarify, I’m not a male octogenarian shopping for a third wife…

but u never know. it's the internet, fer gawd's sake. do octogenarian's use all lowercase?

You obviously haven't seen Blackadder the Third: Dish and Dishonesty.

@astrid,

RE: Pelosi, seriously, I find her almost as disingenuous as GWB, although in a very different way. He's a fake back-slapping Texan who has that fake "I'm determined" squint and lip pursing. She's got that wealthy urban liberal fake concern for the masses thing going.

Two great tastes that taste great together!

Can you exagerrate any more than you already are?

No, i'm not, and not exaggerating either... and not the first to remark on it...

skibum,

Real Texan or fake Texan, Texas as a state voted for Bush again and again.

I don't know too much about Pelosi. I agree that she's not my favorite for leading the House, but she seems to have done a good job thus far. I doubt she's in a position to put in national rent control or similar "fake concern for the masses" stuff, there's way too much damage control to get to now.

SFWoman,

I'm holding out for Diamondique :)

@ConfusedRealtor,

Nice. I like the fake implication that you make at least $550K. Or are you really saying the this $55K "new" car was purchased for, say, $5K and you generated only $50K in commissions last year as a realtwhore (TM).

Of course, you'll need to drive clients (buyers, whatever few who are left still looking) around in a nice comfortable "family car."

Can you ever be honest and upfront about anything you post? Oh yeah, you're a realtor. It's not in your nature.

What I do not understand is, when the U.S. topples a totalitarian regime for geopolitical purposes, why don’t those on the far left at least cheer for the secondary benefits? For example, those who had been rightly bemoaning the oppression of women in Afghanistan for decades–why did they not throw their weight behind the U.S. military effort? They could think to themselves: “Toppling the Taliban is the right thing to do, but the U.S. is doing it the wrong reasons. But in the interest of those Afghani women, I will support this effort.”

oh, gimme a break...

Instead, what I hear is complaining about any U.S. intervention, but an unwillingness to provide an alternative.

i see, there are no peaceful or ethical alternatives put forward such as diplomacy, aid, aid with strings, education, even trade sanctions, etc etc. There is no such thing as the UN, UNICEF, or aid or awareness groups... of course, the 'blast 'em boys' military approach wins heart and minds like nothing else and doesn't create enormous suffering and lingering resentment and a new wave of terrorist foment... wrong thing for the wrong reasons...

DS,

most of the Chinese dealings in Burma are not publicized. PRC is THE supplier of arms to the military regime, simple as that. When a mine is opened in Burma, Chinese get the first dip, customarily.

I am sure you are aware of the much circulated wedding footage of the general's daughter. Most of her wedding gifts were acquired from Shanghai, because a lot of PRC inner circle "pals" foot the bill.

The only entertaining thing about this election is, Bush the dumb ass gets his well-deserved public humiliation. But obviously this is not good enough, I'd like to see him jailed at some point, if not more.

I am a GOP, and I think Bush is the worst leader of the world, ever, because he is a dumbed down, uncharismatic, unsuccessful version of Hitler.

The Iraq war is a war of his f*cking ego, it has nothing to do with terrorism. It just proves to the world how effective a leader that Saddam is. Those who think that America needs to get involved in different parts of the world have never spent a single day with their fat ass out of this country. They don't know anything about the world beyond America, certain parts of the world need to be run a certain way because historical, cultural and many other reasons.

+because of

Rumsfeld is smart to bail out now rather than later. Bush is going to be the ultimate scapegoat for the deep doo doo we are in, and deservingly so.

Americans need a scapegoat bad, real bad. Whoever in power later needs to take a bath and pinpoint all sins to a person out of favor, and by sinking that person in front of the world we can all be sin free and start from a clean slate. Since he is such a devout Christian, it will be most fitting for him to get crucified for the good of us all.

OO,

Bush is a lot of things, but he's nothing like Hitler. That's not saying he's better or worse than Hitler, but I see absolutely no resemblance between the two. A comparison to Mussolini seems more apt.

I've just been reading a journal article entitled 'Selective conscientious objection':

British SAS soldier Ben Griffin refused to serve in Iraq, was expcted to be court-martialled, but instead was permitted to quit the army with a glowing testimonial from his Commanding Officer, "describing him as a 'balanced, loyal and determined individual who possesses the strength of character to have the courage of his convictions.'" Griffin had served 3 months in Iraq, and had formed the opinion that illegal tactics were being used by US troops, namely, being "trigger happy".

This is a crack SAS soldier, mind you. Very easy for the chickenhawks who stay at home to wax lyrical about the 'benefits' of a war of aggression against another sovereign power and conveniently overlooking the actual practices of troops and the not-so-hidden agenda which violates both individual and sovereign rights. "We only want to help the poor untermenschen, not get at their oil or set up convenient strategic military bases for decades to come to help achieve global supremacy and gain resources for ourselves..."

SAS soldier quits Army in disgust at 'illegal' American tactics in Iraq - The Telegraph

An SAS soldier has refused to fight in Iraq and has left the Army over the "illegal" tactics of United States troops and the policies of coalition forces.

After three months in Baghdad, Ben Griffin told his commander that he was no longer prepared to fight alongside American forces.

Ben Griffin told commanders that he thought the Iraq war was illegal
He said he had witnessed "dozens of illegal acts" by US troops, claiming they viewed all Iraqis as "untermenschen" - the Nazi term for races regarded as sub-human.

The decision marks the first time an SAS soldier has refused to go into combat and quit the Army on moral grounds.

It immediately brought to an end Mr Griffin's exemplary, eight-year career in which he also served with the Parachute Regiment, taking part in operations in Northern Ireland, Macedonia and Afghanistan.

But it will also embarrass the Government and have a potentially profound impact on cases of other soldiers who have refused to fight.

On Wednesday, the pre-trial hearing will begin into the court martial of Flt Lt Malcolm Kendall-Smith, a Royal Air Force doctor who has refused to return to Iraq for a third tour of duty on the grounds that the war is illegal. Mr Griffin's allegations came as the Foreign Office minister Kim Howells, visiting Basra yesterday, admitted that Iraq was now "a mess".

Mr Griffin, 28, who spent two years with the SAS, said the American military's "gung-ho and trigger happy mentality" and tactics had completely undermined any chance of winning the hearts and minds of the Iraqi population. He added that many innocent civilians were arrested in night-time raids and interrogated by American soldiers, imprisoned in the notorious Abu Ghraib prison, or handed over to the Iraqi authorities and "most probably" tortured.

Mr Griffin eventually told SAS commanders at Hereford that he could not take part in a war which he regarded as "illegal".

He added that he now believed that the Prime Minister and the Government had repeatedly "lied" over the war's conduct.

"I did not join the British Army to conduct American foreign policy," he said. He expected to be labelled a coward and to face a court martial and imprisonment after making what "the most difficult decision of my life" last March.

most of the Chinese dealings in Burma are not publicized.

Sure, everyone's had a turn... My point is that there are lots of examples of oppression around the world that are not adequately being dealt with, and it doesn't have to be by military intervention, that would be the method of absolute last resort. My point is that most multinationals and govts initially use realpolitik mainly to get at resources. It's usually NGOs who raise the alarm over human rights abuses first, and who do their utmost to publicise them for lobbying effect. The latest rhetoric from Rice that 'for 60 years the US has pursued stability at the expense of democracy in the Middle East' misses the mark of cultural difference and the political evolution of the Middle East for one, and glosses over the fact that the West needs stability in the Middle East mostly to get at oil and gas resources.

The Dems will be stuck with a big mess to clean up. Besides personal BKs, many lenders will go bust and need a bail out like we had when the S&Ls failed.

Most political 'resignations' are either sackings, or a bailing out before the SHTF to save what's left of the reputation of the party, as the next guy to step in can't then be blamed directly. The 'resignation' is often a party decision of the sacrificial lamb. Anyway, how's Rummy going with that $350M aspartame lawsuit...