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| ON THE OTHER HAND |
| Weird
By Antonio C. Abaya Written on June 30, 2008 For the Standard Today, July 01 issue When was the last time you saw a head-of-state or head-of-government holding a press conference on the sidewalk of a foreign city that he/she is visiting in her official capacity? I honestly cannot recall any such incident, except perhaps in Eastern Europe as the Communist regimes collapsed in November 1989, or perhaps Manhattan after the attack on the World Trade Center in September 2001.. Yet, on the front page of the Philippine Daily Inquirer of June 25 � a perfectly normal day in the US- is a color photo of our very own President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo holding a press conference on the sidewalk of what appears to be a downtown street in Washington DC.. There are two stand-up microphones, into one of which she is talking, standing up There is no lectern, no chairs, no tables, no presidential seal. And in the background are motor vehicles moving about in city traffic. The caption of the Inquirer photo is: "LIKE SHE NEVER LEFT HOME. President Arroyo briefs Philippine media about search/rescue/relief efforts back home in the wake of deadly Typhoon 'Frank' in Washington. With her (from left) are Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte, Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo and Press Secretary Jesus Dureza." The photo is credited to Malacanang Photo. "Like she never left home." Why, does President Arroyo hold press conferences on the sidewalk outside Malacanang? Weird. The Inquirer does not explain why the press conference was being held on a sidewalk, al fresco. Was the hotel where she was staying fully booked? Surely as a visiting head-of-state and head-of-government, she was entitled to pull rank over the other guests and be accommodated in a function room or the hotel lobby. Or was this sidewalk outside Negroponte's office at State? What a bigger insult that would be. Deputy Secretary Negroponte was one of the bigwigs that President Arroyo was supposed to meet with during her 10-day working visit � as listed in a Malacanang-produced schedule - with whom she was supposed to discuss the "war on terror," and other weighty matters of state. Presumably, they carried on their discussions inside his office, and not on the sidewalk, standing up. One other Washington bigwig that President Arroyo met with was Defense Secretary Robert Gates, with whom she spent, according to the Inquirer, 30 minutes in his office in the Pentagon, discussing US military aid to the Philippines. This I find also weird. She is head-of-state and head-of-government. He is only a department head, albeit a very powerful one. Shouldn't it be Sec. Gates visiting her at her hotel, instead of she calling on him at his office, assuming he really wanted to meet with her? If President Bush were to visit Manila before his term expires, or if his successor (Obama or McCain) were to do so in 2009 or 2010, would he go out of his way to visit Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro in his office in Camp Aguinaldo? That would be weird. In fact, I would say that President Arroyo's trip was weird, in the sense that it was not necessitated by matters of state, only by some personal psychological reasons. After all, George W. Bush is on his way out. He, in fact, was recently visiting several countries in Europe earlier in June, precisely to say goodbye to the political leaders with whom he had been officially liaising in the past years. Why would President Arroyo go out of her way to visit Washington and see President Bush who has been saying goodbye to European leaders. Was she afraid he wasn't going to say goodbye to her? Weird. And if he wasn't going to, so what? After withdrawing from Bush's Coalition of the Willing in Iraq, after signing an agreement with Beijing for the joint exploration for oil in the Spratlys, after personally endorsing (by her physical presence at the signing) a graft-ridden contract with a Chinese firm � one of 29 contracts with the Chinese � for a national broadband network (a contract that was subsequently scrapped after the scam was exposed) that would have given the Chinese an electronic ringside view of American military and political moves in the Philippines �..does President Arroyo really believe that President Bush and the neo-cons would have a soft spot in their hearts for her? Good for her that the exiting Bush was gallant enough to give her 50 minutes of his time. Not quite the two hours that Malacanang had said had been allotted for her. But those 50 minutes should assuage her bruised ego for earlier snubs and earlier 20 minute one-on-one 'summits' that were unilaterally cancelled by the Americans or had inexplicably shrunk to seven-minute pull-over photo-ops. But John McCain, the presumptive Republican heir to the presidency, who has been adopted by the neo-cons, gave President Arroyo only 15 minutes of his time, according to the Inquirer, in a hotel lobby in Washington on June 28, which should be considered a measure of the low regard that the neo-cons have of her At this point, it has to be assumed that both McCain and Obama have Fil-Ams in their staffs, and that both candidates know all about the 2004 elections, the Hello Garci tapes, the ZTE contract, the Spratlys oil, the Chinese connections, plus revelations from electronic intercepts of the National Security Agency, Joc Joc Bolante and FBI-spy-turned-double-agent-for Erap, Leandro Aragoncillo. Some observers have suggested that President Arroyo has a schoolgirl crush on Barack Obama, to meet whom face-to-face was the real reason for her trip. If so, she is not alone. Even the likes of Caroline Kennedy and Scarlett Johansson are swooning over Obama. And so are tens of millions of other white American girls and women. But Caroline and Scarlett are merely celebrities, Gloria Arroyo is a sitting head-of-state and head-of-government She is expected to behave with more dignity Which she has done, as far as Obama was concerned. She did not meet with him on a sidewalk or in his office. In fact, she did not get the chance to meet with him at all. He was a no-show at their only scheduled 'possible' meeting. And he kept on being somewhere else whenever she went to New York or to Washington.. Was he avoiding her? But he did call her on the phone and they talked, according to Malacanang, for 30 minutes. Not being an expert on schoolgirl crushes, I do not know if the sound of his voice on the telephone was sufficient compensation for the long trans-Pacific and trans-continental journey. But from the geo-political perspective, I would say that if her goal was to protect her flanks in 2009 or 2010, as I had speculated last week, the bare-bones welcome that she got from McCain and Obama suggests that neither The Great White Father nor The Great Black Brother will look with favor on martial law in the next two years. And probably no asylum in San Francisco either. Perhaps, Guam. ***** Reactions to [email protected]. More articles in www.tapatt.org and in acabaya.blogspot.com. . To subscribe, send as blank email with the subject heading Subscribe. To unsubscribe, send a blank email with the subject heading Unsubscribe. OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Reactions to "Weird" Reactions to "Champions" Perspective on Oil China in Africa Tony, It's BULLSEYE! I aired the same info on radio last week. Keep on punching! God bless. Erick San Juan, (by email), June 30, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww You wrote: "When was the last time you saw a head-of-state or head-of-government holding a press conference on the sidewalk of a foreign city that he/she is visiting in her official capacity?" There are a couple of old sayings that explain it very well: "Con buena hambre no hay mal pan." and "Beggars can't be choosers." Bobby Manasan, (by email), Burke, Virginia, July 01, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Tony and All: Please find a group that will sponsor the attached Anti-Dynasty Initiative so that none of those junketers can run for office again in 2010. Herewith attached: File A26, People's Anti-Dynasty Initiative. Yes, you are right "It's time to take back our country!" from the TRAPOS without delay - ASAP Marlowe Camello, (by email), Homeland, CA, July 02, 2008 A26- People's Anti-Dynasty Initiative.pdf 117K View as HTML Download wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Mr Abaya: President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo forgot her good manners in her U.S. trip. Of the many people in her entourage, wasn't there an official protocol officer to guide her in meetings with American officials? I am flabbergasted that she put the Philippines in bad light, being the head of state, by not following proper protocol. What's got into her? Shame on her. Martin Celemin, (by email), Las Vegas, Nevada, July 02, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Ahhh Tony, why do you have a knack for hitting the bullseye? Noted those too and actually found it insulting to both the person and office she reps. But then again, given what she has done to be in power all these years, which is clearly her sole obsession and only priority, she has damned herself and, in the process, dishonored the office and shamed the nation before the world. In referring to "she", I include her ilk, national and local, past and present, public and private, allies and ex-es, who have harmed the nation in every imaginable way - politically, economically, socially. That diplomatic cold-shoulder or extreme downgrade is as good as telling her "Alis Dyan!" But it also gives us pause for reflection on what we, as a nation, have to purge for good to redeem ourselves and reclaim the future. Best regards, Raffy Alunan, (by email), July 02, 2008 Former Secretary of the Interior and Local Government wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Mr. Abaya, Perhaps one glaring conclusion to your keen observation is that the Philippines has sunk so low in terms of international credibility that our leaders command no more respect than the CEO of a small cap corporation in Wall Street. We can only command respect if we respect ourselves, and it seems the people in our government are so notoriously perceived such that most of the western leaders snicker in contempt and sometimes are actually unable to hide it as in the comments of Bush to Gloria in the most recent official call in the White House. Our president is regarded no more than a visiting nanny returning to see how the kids have grown up, or worse asking for some help between jobs. It is not only the Philippines, but half of all the corrupt countries in Asia, Africa, the former Eastern Bloc, and the Middle East. What I think you lament is that once upon a time we did command respect far and above any country in the developing world. Those were the years from 1946 to 1966. Given the third stringers in our bureaucracy today, it will take many generations to climb out of the cesspool the country has dug itself into. The government has to attract the kind of talent that will first require a credible structure, and respectable salaries. As it is, our people pretend to pay taxes, and the bureaucrats pretend to work. Even worse is we have a sea of mediocrity that is hell bent on preserving the status quo. Many of our people really do not care how the government is run as long as it is one-of-them. They don't care if she/he is a thief, polygamist, adulterer, murderer, drug king, etc, as long as they can identify with these crooks as coming from their ranks. They don't want a return to the old times because whether they were better-off or not, they perceived that to be a master-slave situation. Our crooked politicians have successfully polarized the people into an "us versus them" crusade. Because of our failed educational system, generations of the masses have come to expect no better. Our people have to grow up, and whether that is possible given the surrounding misery is anybody's guess. For the foreseeable future we can expect to be even more humiliated in the international arena. Maybe next time, our leader will only rate a meeting with the security guard/office secretary. Maybe the next interview will be held in a Macdonald's because conducting it on the sidewalk is obstructing pedestrian traffic. As uncouth as these Americans are, they perceive our leaders are of even lower stock. The CIA knows where every tin horn leader hides his money, and the lies these leaders feed their people. That is why the American government never feels the need to acquit itself. It's "OK so we're dirty but you are worse." LAS [email protected], July 02, 2008 LSGH68 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Sir, Hahahaha! You've summarized the whole Arroyo term, her team and current politicians in one word - weird. Best regards, Jenifer Xavier, (by email), July 02, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Tony: I think we should demand from Gloria a statement of cost and benefit for her recent trip to USA to see if the trip was justified in the face of the typhoon Frank's destruction and deaths in the country while she was gallivanting abroad. I have a suspicion she and her husband and the 59 congressmen just wanted to see the Pacquiao-Diaz fight in California. Didn't she leave California Sunday or just after the fight? Amado Cabaero, (by email), July 03, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww (Forwarded to Tapatt by Perry Diaz) Her visit to the US was a big zero. We briefed the members (e.g., John Kerry, Nancy Pelosi, Mike Honda, David Wu, Dan Akaka, Dan Inouye, Gary Miller, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, John McCain, among others) of Congress about what is going on in the Philippines, and being an election year in the US, they do not want to displease their Filipino-American constituents by giving legitimacy to a crooked administration and her family. As a matter of fact, the Philippines is held in low regards by the current personnel of government. Very few attend functions/events at the Philippine Embassy in Washington to convey our unhappiness with the current administration in the Philippines. Rawley Soberano, (by email), July 03, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Ah, Tony, wholesomely naughty, you. But of course, this visit was a non-event, from the American perspective. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, she of Georgetown University, is just in love with anything connected to the U.S. She came here just for the publicity, just for fun, no important issues involved. As you mentioned, Bush is on the way out, why would Gloria Macapagal Arroyo waste Philippine peso just to say goodbye. Weird indeed. But it is not weird when you think of the delegation she brought with her. This group traveled on the starving Filipinos' expense. It is not weird, Tony, it is obscene. These parasites live off the hard earned pesos of the poor Filipino, just so they can enjoy a free visit to the U.S. A bunch of stinking parasites. Obscene. Fred Montenegro, (by email), July 04, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Hahahaha! I love it! I will have this circulated to all my internet friends. Narciso Ner, (by email), Davao City, July 04, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Reactions to "Champions" Well said, Tony. There is no substitute to competition, because if there is none, or if a team always wins, there is no incentive to excell further. Our basketball teams used to compete internationally (Number 2 or 3 in the world championships held in Brazil sometime in the '50s; within the top 3 in Asia up to the '70s). We had competitive baseball (the MBBL), college wrestling, boxing and soccer (football) in the past. Even in tennis. We had the first open golf competition in all of Asia before World War II. We used to have a world class international cycling competition. Those days are gone, because other countries have improved and we have stagnated. Sounds like everything else Philippine, I'm ashamed to admit. But thanks to Manny Pacquiao, and some occasional bowling and billiard events, and a handful of world class men and ladies golfers, we sometimes show that we have not totally disappeared from international sports. We must continue to encourage these. Having had some collegiate wrestling exposure, I once volunteered to coach the wrestling team in 1964 when I was assigned at the PMA, as I thought the team needed honing. We practiced and trained, but "unfortunately", after the first 2 or 3 tournaments with other schools, I realized there was no competition at all. That explained the apparent complacency I saw within our team. There was no challenge to futher train and improve, unlike in track and field and swimming, where you can improve your record time (or other criteria like distance or, as in the pole vault, height) even without competition. I once (in 1989) even officially proposed to have a Philippine international annual military marathon. I'm sure foreign countries would be willing to send individuals at their own government's expense, and it would help improve tourism. So you are absolutely right. Our sports need support, either to convince schools to make them going concerns and/or government to fund some or most sports. High School and college competition in tennis, swimming, football, boxing, wrestling, track and field, gymnastics, etc. Even golf, as Korea is doing, resulting in Korean players now being world class, especially in the Ladies PGA. Chuck Agustin, (by email), July 04, 2008 President, National Defense College of the Philippines wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Tony, I like your column on Manny Pacquiau, because you express therein your dislike for boxing. I am like you, I hate boxing because I feel it is a brutal sport, like Fr. Picardal from Davao has expressed this openly. I did not watch the show on TV but I was forced to see some scenes when I watched the news. I turned away my eyes. They are like savages, like the gladiators during the Roman empire, forced to play like that for entertainment. I don't like to say this openly, because all Filipinos are crazy about boxing. I don't want to offend them. I believe it gives also a bad image to the Filipino. The Filipino is not brutal and violent by nature. Like a European I love to watch soccer, like you. I wish they would promote this sports more in the Philippines, because I believe the Filipino would learn to like and appreciate that sport and raise also in this way their awareness for sportsmanship and fair play. Thank you again, Tony, for raising this issue. Arnold van Vug, (by email), Cagayan de Oro City, July 04, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Tony, I'm with you on this. I just can't appreciate this pugilistic sport. It's actually no different from cockfighting, except that the contenders are humans. The government can really focus on developing wholesome sports in the country by training the youth. It is remiss in this area, just like in the arts. Filipino artists do not get the care and credit they deserve. What a pity for a country which is never short of talents. Think of the accolades they can generate for the Philippines. Best, Yett Montalvan, (by email), July 04, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Manny deserves a historical place in the country's heritage. Not only that he was able to beat his foes on foreign territiories, he has united our country. Even for just one Sunday. However, the sight of politicos raising his hands like Atienza and Singson is shameless. Nagamit pa ni atienza si manny for her son's mayoral candidacy. Yuck... One can't blame a person from General Santos na d rin naman nakapag aral and can be spinned off by this kadiri politicos. That is what I hate with Manny's winning. Nagagamit and nagpapagamit naman. Hey, I used to like Mr. Lito, but his trapo-like approach with his son's candidacy put a big splash on his accomplisments as the former Manila mayor. Manny deserves the praises, but he does not deserved to be used. Konti naman sanang respeto. Mike Delgado, (by email), July 04, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Tony, Let me correct you about World Class Golf Champions: - Frankie Minoza has been playing the PGA Japan Tour which is the second richest golf tour outside the US PGA. He is also considered among the 50 top players outside the U.S. He is also a champion in the Asian Golf Circuit. - Dorothy Delasin and Jennifer Rosales won the Ladies Golf World Cup played South Africa earlier this year (2008). In the tournament, the best lady professionals representing practically all golfing countries ( US, Canada, Australia, UK, France, Japan, Korea, China etc.). The Filipina pair came from behind and rallying in the last five holes of the final match battling their Japanese, Canadian and French rivals with 4 five straight birdies. Both ladies have won major championships in the US Ladies PGA tour and continue to compete creditably. Dorothy was trained by her dad, Sonny Delasin, who is a red blooded Pinoy but an immigrant family in California while Jennifer was trained by local pros in the Camp Aguinaldo driving range. Of course, she won a golfing scholarship to a US university where she got further training. Just to set the record straight . Gus Cosio, (by email), July 04, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Thanks very much!!! Great ideas, sir Wilson Lee Flores, (by email), July 04, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww You caught me off-guard on this one, Tony. How can you understand the masses when you don't partake of their greatest triumphs in recent past? Watch Manny Pacquiao, if only to know what makes the Filipino nation tick. Watch the blow-by-blow action to understand why the hopes and aspirations of the Filipino nation rest on the metaphorical feinting and slipping in of a Manny Pacquiao booming left punch. Watch the carnage wrought on the face of David Diaz to understand what our nation relishes in a momentary extravagance: the feeling that we can afford to be compassionate because we have thoroughly demolished the opposition. Watch the videos of past Manny Pacquiao fights to understand why there is a lilt in the way Filipino men saunter in supermaket aisles. If you don't watch the exploits of Manny Pacquiao, you cannot possibly understand why Filipinos all over the world feel in their hearts that there is hope for our beloved Philippines. Cesar Lumba, (by email), July 04, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Hi Mr. Abaya! It's not only in sports like boxing, billiard and bowling where Filipinos excelled that this administration has failed to exploit but also in many other endeavors like in arts, science and music. How many talented Filipinos who earned accolade and recognition in foreign countries but were just featured in a section of a newspaper. Under this corrupt and immoral administration, that is not surprising. Have you heard of that incident where our players in the Asean Games (or was it in another sporting event) had to spend their own money for their uniforms? By the way, I watched your interview with Ricky Carandang and I do agree that we must have a Constitutional Convention and not Con-Ass after 2010 when that "evil" "bitch" is no longer in power. Best regards to you and the family. Boy Ner, (by email), Davao City, July 04, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Tony, I fully agree with you. But at the moment, and even in the past, all one can make in this country, are suggestions. We are still looking for a patriotic champion. And it is becoming tiresome, isn't it? Regards, Cesar Sarino, (by email), July 05, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww How about swimming? The Philippines, after all, is an archipelago. I think swimming should be a sport Filipinos can excel in. Why a nation of short people should be so hung up on basketball beats me. Alex Menez, (by email), July 04, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Sir, The reason Manny Pacquiao succeeded is because of lack of government 'meddling' in the pro sports. We all know that the golden age of amateur sports here died with the Apo. One of the Apo's good appointments was Michael Keon. No one else had made the same impact on amateur sports ever since. Robbie Tan, (by email), July 07, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Tony: Re your column of July 3, yes, you got the fighters' names right ~ Floyd Patterson v Archie Moore. Patterson won by KO in the seventh (I think) round and, at the time, became the youngest world heavyweight champion at 21. Moore, at the time, had been the oldest world heavyweight champion. And what a night it was! By the way, I'm still active with boxing. I help an Anglican parish priest, Father Dave 'Fighting Padre' Smith, keep youth off the streets in a Sydney suburb by teaching them the 'body and soul' of boxing. I took your son Hochie to our Holy Cross Gym a few years ago. Yes, I'm must confess that I still love the game so much that I still climb the ring and spar with the kids on Tuesday nights. And it helps build character ~ theirs and mine. In the late 1960s, Alex Villacampa and Gene Puyat of the Amateur Boxing Association of the Philippines (ABAP) sent me to a ghetto in Tondo to teach tough guys the art of boxing, and I enjoyed the experience. Father Miguel, a Spanish Catholic priest who spoke fluent Tagalog and ran a youth refuge there, was my guardian. But to get to your vision of more sincere Government intervention to develop sporting talent among gifted Filipinos, I couldn't agree with you more. It's one answer to our spiraling low esteem as a nation. Keep punching with your whopping columns, brother. You're a champion, too. Jimmy Pimentel,(by email), Sydney, Australia, July 10, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Tony, I'm sorry to disturb you but it seems my forwarding this article to you is already late since Olympic Games is fast approaching. You know, I had been sending this to the Inquirer and to all available emaill addreses I've known since April 2008, but to no avail. In fact the original title of this article is "How to Win Our First Olympic Gold Medal", and had been changed after Pacquiao won his WBC Lightweight crown from David Diaz hoping to attract timely interest, but still to no avail. You be the judge if someday I won't be telling the whole country "I TOLD YOU SO" with clear conviction and a tinge of vengeance. Thanks. Sincerely, Jerome L. Escobedo, (by email), Lapu Lapu City, Cebu, July 17, 2008 A GOLDEN LEGACY FOR MANNY PACQUIAO Ever since the country took its silver medal in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics courtesy of boxing, it had been struggling in its quest for a first-ever gold medal in any sport for that matter. Boxing has been touted as one of the most promising sports to achieve this elusive dream, and yet, it had not lived up to its reputation as shown by defeats suffered by our boxers in the Olympics qualifying held in Thailand and Kazakhstan. The best it could offer as the lone golden hope in the coming 2008 Beijing Olympics is Harry Ta�amor. I believe below is a sensible formula on how to win our first gold medal even with only Harry as our bet in the most popular sports in the country today. 1. Appoint Manny Pacquiao as major sponsor for Harry. 2. Hire Freddie Roach as trainor. 3. Train Harry the way he trained the Pacman in the U.S. There's still plenty of time in training before the Olympics begins in August this year. This is a "win-win" chance for the country and especially for Pacquiao. It could be his best legacy for the country and the sports he truly loved. For Manny and the whole country, an Olympic gold medal is equally priceless as his recent 4th world title conquest and worth more than any of his epic fights with Mexican warriors and future megafights in higher divisions. Jerome L. Escobedo Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Perspective on Oil Think about it... The OPEC minister may look you in the eye and say, "We are at war with you infidels and have been since the embargo in the 1970s. You are so arrogant you haven't even recognized it. You have more missiles, bombs, and technology; so we are fighting with the best weapon we have and extracting on a net basis about $700 billion/year out of your economy. We will destroy you! Death to the infidels! While I am here I would like to thank you for the following: Not developing your 250-300 year supply of oil shale and tar sands. we know if you did this, it would create thousands of jobs for U.S. citizens, expand your engineering capabilities, and keep the wealth in the U.S. instead of sending it to us to finance our war against you infidels. Thanks for limiting defense department. purchases of oil sands from your neighbors to the north. We love it when you confuse your allies. Thanks for over regulating every segment of your economy and thus delaying, by decades, the development of alternate fuel technologies. Thanks for limiting drilling off your coasts, in Alaska , and anywhere there is an insect, bird, fish, or plant that might be inconvenienced. Better that your people suffer. Glad to see our lobbying efforts have been so effective. Corn based Ethanol. Praise Allah for this sham program! Perhaps you will destroy yourself from the inside with these types of policies. This is a gift from Allah, praise his name! We never would have thought of this one! This is better than when you pay your farmers NOT TO GROW FOOD. Have them use more energy to create less energy, and simultaneously drive up food prices. Thank you, U.S. Congress! And finally, we appreciate you letting us fleece you without end. You will be glad to know we have been accumulating shares in your banks, real estate, and publicly held companies. We also finance a good portion of your debt and now manipulate your markets, currency, and economies for our benefit. THANK YOU, AMERICA ! Ray Eced, (by email), July 02, 2008 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww China in Africa I have been enjoying your most informative articles for quite a while, especially touching the ever-as-interesting Philippines econo-political situation and on the other hand more global issues related to environment, renewable energy etc. I have to admit that I have forwarded many of them to my friends in Finland who have some connections to the Philippines. They have 100% shared my "enjoyment". I just received the attached article and thought it might be to some interest to you as well. You may have it already, but just in case. During my resent travels in East Africa, I have to admit that the Chinese companies' presence there cannot be underestimated. They are very, very strong; have to hope that they act in a responsible manner also from the environmental perspective. As there is much co-operation between Philippines and PRC, it might be good to look into these matters here as well; there is always a risk that due to lack of policies, or rather lack of their implementation, things could get out of control and short term economical development goals may over run long term environmental issues. Shortcut to: http://www.csr-asia.com/weekly_detail.php?id=11416 Best regards Simo Hoikka, (by email), July 03, 2008 Nokia Philippines OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO All reactions to [email protected]. To subscribe, send a blank email with the subject heading Subscribe. To unsubscribe, send a blank email with the subject heading Unsubscribe. |