European Tribune - Community, Politics & Progress.

Now you'll make me say that blogging is doing, since you write about these issues, spreading information and furthering understanding. And if you can't afford to go, you can't. No reason for feeling guilty.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 09:39:41 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Sunday Open Thread (none / 0)

thanks. I appreciate that, but I can't stop feeling guilty.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 09:47:57 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Well... Go at it full tilt for an hour or so, and see if you can't wear it out.

Unless that's hideously cynical of me.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 10:31:46 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Sunday Open Thread (4.00 / 3)

It's always problems everywhere
You're jugglin' every one
You do your best each day but
when the sun goes down it's done, it's done
and then, what slips through the cracks is just gonna go ahead and fall
Don't let it keep you up nights,
when you know my friend
You cannot win 'em all

- Steve Forbert

Jesus died for somebody's sins but not mine - Patti Smith

by dvx (dvx.clt ät gmail dotcom) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 10:38:47 AM EST
[ Parent ]

A friend posted a Transgender Day of Remembrance diary on the F-word, a well known UK feminist site. nd the first response was this;-

Normally, we consider people who use their emotions in place of reason to be utter fucking morons.
The basic premise of transgender ideology is that girl and boy brains exist, and are different from each other. Girl brains luv pink, and are rilly soft and gentle. Boy brains luv blue, and are rilly hard and aggressive.
The basic premise of feminist ideology is that no such difference exists. Oops, we have a discreptancy!
Since some women are quite the aggressive fuck, they must be a boy. Therefore, they are transgendered. Amazingly enough, wanting a penis is not required for women to be an aggressive fuck, so something is quite illogical regarding your theory.
Perhaps insanity is the answer.

Because so many feminists think like this, I am not a feminist

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 11:35:57 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Long silence on that one.

It speaks volumes.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 02:17:35 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Sunday Open Thread (4.00 / 3)

"Because so many feminists think like this, I am not a feminist"

Reading this I thought I would be surprised if MANY feminists really thought like THAT.

Out of curiosity I found the site. You don't mention that that comment, and your reply, were followed by a whole series of comments severely criticising the nasty comment and some explicitly stating that such attitudes had nothing to do with feminism:

It doesn't matter why people are trans what matters is that they are punished and killed for it and that is not okay and we all need to work to change that
Also there is no feminist Ideology your feminism has nothing in common with my feminism.

If you can't say something respectful about people who were MURDERED for not following gender binaries, hello, call yourself a feminist? Or are lives only of worth if people define gender in the same way you do?
HelenG, I know you know this, but mAndrea doesn't speak for all cis feminists. We will remember, and we will add our voices to yours.

Do you actually call yourself a feminist? I would remind mind you that for centuries men did the same to women. You telling a trans woman that she cannot know her own truth is the same as a man dismissing you for being a weepy weak woman who doesn't know her own mind. Does that piss you off? It should.
Of all the posts in the world, you choose to troll the one where we remember murder victims. Have you no heart? No soul? You choosing this day of all days; this post of all posts; only underscores not only your transphobia but also your inhumanity.

Why only quote the one vicious comment and not even mention all the sympathetic ones? It gives a rather distorted view of feminists. There have been some vicious people who called themselves socialists, it's not a good reason for rejecting socialism.

Maybe it's because I'm a Londoner - that I moved to Nice. Blog - Nice Experience

by Ted Welch (tedwelch-at-mac-dot-com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 05:31:01 PM EST
[ Parent ]

people who use their emotions

This is not a feminist by any reasonable person, but a self-demeaning, emotional rageaholic; not exactly reason-able, nor stable, so her (?) claimed platform is irrelevant. A mature person integrates both.

You are fighting in the front lines of change and you are bound to run into the extremists of the opposition, but I have not run into a feminist like that, male or female, in my entire life. Generalizing about all feminists because of such types is not reasonable either.

If you are not a feminist, what other choices are there that won´t work against you?

Our knowledge has surpassed our wisdom. -Charu Saxena.

by metavision on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 07:39:46 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Unfortunately there do seem to be a fair few of them. I don't necessarily mean these deranged hate-mongers or even their fan clubs but those who have been brought up in feminism 2.0 (essentialism) that reigned from 1972(-ish) through till the early 90s and who retain the same anti-trans prejudices bindel trots out every so often. I know that there are many forms of feminism, and it also varies considerably given cultural values, but this is what I experience.

A good example of that variation is that essentialism was never the dominnant form of feminism in the US as it was in the UK. I say that despite the annual hoo-hah of Michigan womyn's music fest. I suspect it happened because women in the US had different equality battles to fight which shaped the politics that drove it. Also essentialism had been largely discredited by race theory in the 60s and so feminists there never really took on the intensely ideological identity politics that happened here where mangled socialism based essentialist separatism gained a stranglehold.

So my experience is with my feminist peer group in the UK, where casual prejudice against trans is widespread. The transphobic journalist J. Bindel gets her credibility by writing for this group. It is funny that so many criticised m Andrea, even if two of them supported her prejudice but felt able to criticise the way she said it (like, thanks) Yet support from feminists when we were criticising Bindel was rare because they felt that trans-people shouldn't criticise bindel cos she's a vaulable feminist voice in the mainstream. I mean seriously...? how is that not a cis-privileged argument ? It's the equivalent of saying "Shut up you noisy trannie or we'll stop pretending to treat you like an equal". Course it could be an age group thing, younger feminists of third wave persuasion have less time for transphobic prejudice, but they also tend to wave it by as not being "their concern".

I'll believe I'm beginning to be accepted by feminists when I can go to a Reclaim the Night march without feminist groups sending out warnings on their website promising physical violence to any transgendered woman who dares join in. It may be a minority, but they go armed with hammers. I'll take them at their word and know I am unwelcome.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Mon Nov 24th, 2008 at 05:43:51 AM EST
[ Parent ]

That few is not representative of the majority. Aggressive and hostile forms of any activism have the effect of appearing larger through being louder but it is enough to keep people out and to intimidate others who would try to challenge them.

But I experience the same (although without the threat of violence) from a small minority of the Deaf Community, who make it clear that I am not one of them, and it is enough to keep me away or at least on the edge. Ditto with being bi and dealing with lesbians who loathe me for that.

Ad astra per aspera

by In Wales (inwales aaat eurotrib.com) on Mon Nov 24th, 2008 at 08:42:19 AM EST
[ Parent ]

It is difficult to know what is representative; with a lot of feminists it still appears to be the default option where they need a reason to be trans-accepting. This dates from the 70s through to the mid 90s where nearly all forms of feminism rejected trans people completely. Whilst a new generation coming through are more accepting, they only seem to unequivocally protest transphobia when it becomes as gratuitously offensive as m Andrea's. Generally we see a grey scale of degrees of conditional acceptance where there severe reservations remain.

It's my impression that some ideas of feminism are inherently transphobic, yet I'm not sure that there is one that is trans-positive. Therefore while questioning remains a widespread ideologically consistent position, acceptance remains an individual act. It will require a philosophical change for feminism as a whole to accept us. And that's why I reject feminism. Trans people didn't declare war on feminism; feminists declared war on us. So it is ridiculous for me to claim a sisterhood I am comprehensively denied.

Feminism has a social dimension as well as an individual declaration. Sarah Palin isn't a feminist, however much she claims it, because what she believes is anti-woman. If I can't join a Reclaim the Night march without a threat of violence, if it means that every contact with feminists has to be cautious and subject to negotiation as if I were still male, then the social acceptance part is lacking : How can I be a feminist ?

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Mon Nov 24th, 2008 at 10:13:35 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Sunday Open Thread (none / 0)

It would have been better to do the decent thing and say: "Yes, the overwhelming majority of responses were sympathetic and condemned the nasty post and I should have mentioned them at least."

Instead we get more twisted logic from you.

"It is difficult to know what is representative"

It certainly is if we rely on your selection of evidence. You have no problem presenting evidence when it suits your distortions, e.g. the quotation, but it is generally remarkably absent - because it wouldn't sustain your generalisations.

"with a lot of feminists it still appears to be the default option where [that?] they need a reason to be trans-accepting."

It doesn't appear that way from the responses on the site.

"nearly all forms of feminism rejected trans people completely."

"nearly all forms" "completely" ?! Any evidence that it was that dominant?

"It's my impression that some ideas of feminism are inherently transphobic"

It could be that this "some" amounted to very few and accepted by very few. Some of the ideas of feminism of those responding didn't see it as inherent.

"Therefore while questioning remains a widespread ideologically consistent position acceptance remains an individual act."

Ah yes, any negative examples are not just opinions but examples of the ideology of feminism, positive examples can be dismissed as merely personal opinions. Not biased at all.

"It will require a philosophical change for feminism as a whole to accept us."

Just another assertion - which again doesn't fit the responses.

"Trans people didn't declare war on feminism; feminists declared war on us."

Absurd exaggeration - "feminists" (in general) didn't declare "war" on you. You mean, of course, that a small minority have been antagonistic.

"If I can't join a Reclaim the Night march without a threat of violence, if it means that every contact with feminists has to be cautious and subject to negotiation as if I were still male, then the social acceptance part is lacking : How can I be a feminist ?"

Still ridiculous logic - of the minority of feminists who are antagonistic an even smaller minority will threaten violence - and don't amount to an excuse to reject feminism or feminists in general. If someone said they rejected socialism because of the actions of a small, violent sect calling themselves socialists, I'm sure you'd be the first to point out the lack of logic.

Why don't you post your set of allegations about feminism on the feminist site - if you can't provide any evidence perhaps they can. It would be interesting.

Maybe it's because I'm a Londoner - that I moved to Nice. Blog - Nice Experience

by Ted Welch (tedwelch-at-mac-dot-com) on Mon Nov 24th, 2008 at 05:22:05 PM EST
[ Parent ]

There are a number of reasons why I don't identify myself with the feminist movement. But I have to say that I don't think that person is a feminist - just an obnoxious jerk (who spells badly).

by Maryb2004 on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 08:39:13 PM EST
[ Parent ]

A tale of 3 festivals (4.00 / 4)

this has bee na busy weekend of over-consumption for me so I'm taking it easy today.

First Fair
Friday I went to the French Wine producers fair. It's principally for small producers who don't get supermarket or even wine trade deals to market directly to the public.

My first impression when I walked in was that it was huge, there were 130 stalls there and with the best will in the world it was impossible to even consider trying to get around all of them.

So as I've been impressed with the younger vintners around I decided to go for Languedoc wines as they seem to have all the action lately. Until a decade or so ago this region has largely been churning out gutrot Vin de Pays. However, without the mark of quality, it meant that the land was cheap. so innovative winemakers have been going in and been trying new techniques and really owrking the wine. A lot of organic wine is there and even biodynamic is getting a foothold.

Even restricting myself like that I must have tried the best part of 70 odd wines. Aside from just slowly getting tipsy on breathed in fumes my palate just stopped registering anything after a bit.

Nevertheless I ended up buying 9 bottles (more than I should but....) and have strained my arm bringing it home.

Second Fair
The Royal horticultural society have a garden a few miles away and they held a chilli festival. So naturally, as chilli is a primary part of my diet, I had to go. It was small but quite good fun. I bought some seeds for sowing next year but the great find was a chilli sauce that is very reminiscent of a fondly remembered curry shop from Manchester, the infamous and feared Plaza. Of the muliple biriani strengths, mild, medium, hot, suicide, killer, cremation and cahrlie's special. This sauce falls somewhere between suicide and killler, which suits me fine. Ah, happy memories.

Third fair
Rochford beer festival. I only went for a few pints..honest.....ho hum. headache today.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 09:46:31 AM EST

Re: A tale of 3 festivals (4.00 / 2)

The Plaza occupied a prime spot on the way between Manchester city centre and the major student accommodation areas. Their curries were intended to be consumed after beer. I made the mistake of having my only Plaza biryani stone cold sober.

Two mouthfuls, anyway, the second to confirm that the first was really that foul...it was probably my second mistake to order the mild and be able to taste the ingredients...

by Sassafras on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 04:57:26 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: A tale of 3 festivals (none / 1)

You weren't really meant to order the mild, it wasn't strong enough to disinfect the food. It'd make you ill.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 05:34:46 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: A tale of 3 festivals (none / 0)

I can't remember his name, but legend has it that the proprietor sat over those who had, in beer-induced bravado, ordered something a teensy bit on the hot side and made them finish every mouthful.

Yeah. Probably he didn't mind killing off the wusses with food poisoning.

by Sassafras on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 05:57:42 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: A tale of 3 festivals (none / 0)

It was charlie (RIP), I used to know his surname but that's long forgotten now.

I was given a charlie's special one night when I complained about the weakness of the suicide I'd had the week before. He didn't sit over me, but did come by a lot. I thought I did very well to eat a third of it, but I must have lost a couple of stone in sweat eating it.

And I used to drive a lot in those days so I was often stone cold sober when I had them. They were so hot that the first few mouthfulls would make your eyes cross and cause a dixxying rush of blood to the head.

Mind you, the next day invariably gave new definitions of pain. I must have been deranged to go back so often, but... youth eh ?

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 06:23:35 PM EST
[ Parent ]

I've been working on final things for the party next week. And tidying the flat, making food, as you do. I may go for a nap now, just because I can.

Ad astra per aspera

by In Wales (inwales aaat eurotrib.com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 09:54:34 AM EST

Re: Sunday Open Thread (4.00 / 3)

Just because I can...

The sense of entitlement of some people just knocks me backwards.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 10:34:12 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Saxby Shameless (4.00 / 2)

Words fail me:

Martin's daughter, for the record, was abducted when she was eight years-old.

Be nice to America. Or we'll bring democracy to your country.

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 10:06:38 AM EST

What do you expect ? Decency, compassion, humanity ? From the party that suggested that a man who gave 3 limbs in military action wasn't a patriot ?

Repugs don't get in the gutter when things get bad, they start in the sewer and go lower.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 10:32:56 AM EST
[ Parent ]

I know, but this is low even by Republican standards. To his credit, McCain apparently vetoed the use of Jeremiah Wright, and his ads, while occasionally ugly and offensive, were never anywhere near this. Most of the really offensive stuff from the McCain campaign came from his completely unhinged running mate.

Chambliss is a special kind of disgusting. But, yeah, after Max Cleland, I guess that's to be expected.

Be nice to America. Or we'll bring democracy to your country.

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 10:46:47 AM EST
[ Parent ]

From the party that suggested that a man who gave 3 limbs in military action wasn't a patriot

Not only a party that did that, this is the actual guy who did that to Cleland.

Be nice to America. Or we'll bring democracy to your country.

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 01:30:06 PM EST
[ Parent ]

What justification does he give for that?

Ad astra per aspera

by In Wales (inwales aaat eurotrib.com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 12:33:55 PM EST
[ Parent ]

He's a republican, we do nasty cos it's easy

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 01:14:26 PM EST
[ Parent ]

No idea. But he doesn't really need any.

Be nice to America. Or we'll bring democracy to your country.

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 01:29:01 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Not too lazy for me, since I'm cleaning all day, but I suppose that's making up for laziness yesterday and the day before.

Short week for me, too. Going up to the middle of nowhere in NE Connecticut on Tuesday for a big Thanksgiving family get-together, so only one workday for me this week. Haven't really taken a day off in a couple months, so I've been in shock the last few days not really knowing what to do with myself.

My new neighbor apparently enjoys blasting the Red Hot Chili Peppers' Californication loud enough to literally shake the walls on the nearby apartments. It's one of my favorite records, too, but after about the 50,000th or so play, I'm seriously thinking of buying a speaker system for the computer and escalating this.

Which is good, because that means I have to go out and see the sad little faces of Maryland fans after Florida State beat them like a rented mule in last night's football game. As there are a huge number of trash-talking Maryland alumni, work is going to be extra fun tomorrow. :D

Be nice to America. Or we'll bring democracy to your country.

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 10:41:42 AM EST

Citi watch? (none / 0)

I was planning to do a thread on the citi death watch, but there are no news whatsoever coming. The NYT has a front page article on how Citi failed to control its risk-taking, but nithing about negotiations presumably going on this week-end over the future of the bank.

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes

by Jerome a Paris (etg@eurotrib.com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 12:17:27 PM EST

Re: Citi watch? (none / 0)

Bloomberg had this, yesterday:

Citigroup May End Up With U.S. Government Rescue
Nov. 22 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. government may step in to rescue Citigroup Inc. after a crisis in confidence erased half the bank's stock-market value in three days, according to investors and analysts.
Citigroup's $2 trillion of assets dwarfs companies such as American International Group Inc. that got support from the U.S. government this year. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke may favor a rescue to avoid the chaotic aftermath of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.'s bankruptcy in September.
"Citi is in the category of `too big to fail,'" said Michael Holland, chairman and founder of Holland & Co. in New York, which oversees $4 billion. "There is a commitment from this administration and the next to do what it takes to save Citi."

But no details yet.

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes

by Jerome a Paris (etg@eurotrib.com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 12:19:47 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Citi watch? (none / 1)

Isn't amazing how we live in an era in which "too big to fail" means it probably will?

George Orwell eat your heart out.

Jesus died for somebody's sins but not mine - Patti Smith

by dvx (dvx.clt ät gmail dotcom) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 12:37:17 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Citi watch? (none / 0)

What's worrying is that a lot of banks seem to be working hard to get mergers going, making even more of the industry "too big to fail".

I suppose it actually makes sense, if being too big means the govt will bail you out, then it's worth the hassle of merging to ensure a safety net.

keep to the Fen Causeway

by Helen (lareinagal at yahoo dot co dot uk) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 01:12:33 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Citi watch? (none / 0)

I posted that one last night in the Salon. There was nothing else worth picking up on Citi at the time.

by afew (afew(a in a circle)eurotrib_dot_com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 01:13:46 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Finally some news (none / 1)

itigroup, U.S. in Talks to Create 'Bad Bank'
Citigroup Inc. is nearing agreement with U.S. government officials to create a structure that would house some of the financial giant's risky assets, according to people familiar with the situation.
While the discussions remain fluid and might not result in an agreement, talks were progressing Sunday toward creation of what would essentially be a "bad bank." That structure would help Citigroup cleanse its balance sheet of billions of dollars in potentially toxic assets, these people said.
The bad bank also might absorb assets from Citigroup's off-balance-sheet entities, which hold $1.23 trillion. Some of those assets are tied to mortgages, and investors have worried such assets could cause heavy losses if they land on the company's balance sheet. Citigroup also has about $2 trillion in loans, securities and other assets on its balance sheet as of Sept. 30.
Behind the push is a broad effort to shore up faith in the New York company, which saw its stock price tumble by 60% last week to a 16-year low.
Under the terms being discussed, Citigroup would agree to absorb losses on assets covered by the agreement up to a certain threshold. The federal government would cover losses beyond that level, people familiar with the matter said. One person said the new entity is expected to hold about $50 billion of assets.

Hey, it's only 3 times the Crédit Lyonnais... and it's not government-owned.

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes

by Jerome a Paris (etg@eurotrib.com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 06:00:04 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Richardson (none / 0)

as Secretary of Commerce

In the long run, we're all dead. John Maynard Keynes

by Jerome a Paris (etg@eurotrib.com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 12:22:05 PM EST

Re: Richardson (none / 0)

Kind of a weird spot for him. I don't see the logic other than as an "I owe you something, so take Commerce" deal.

Be nice to America. Or we'll bring democracy to your country.

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 12:26:50 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Does he have any particular opinion/expertise in re trade agreements?

Jesus died for somebody's sins but not mine - Patti Smith

by dvx (dvx.clt ät gmail dotcom) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 01:35:41 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Richardson (none / 0)

He was in Congress during NAFTA, if I'm not mistaken, and was one of the negotiators on it, but Richardson's thing is supposed to be diplomacy.

Be nice to America. Or we'll bring democracy to your country.

by Drew J Jones (myfriends@thisispancakes.com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 01:50:54 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Well, that's something I guess. I imagine trade negotiations are going to be big.

Jesus died for somebody's sins but not mine - Patti Smith

by dvx (dvx.clt ät gmail dotcom) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 01:57:30 PM EST
[ Parent ]

This is a double tragedy. We get a loose cannon at State while we waste at Commerce one who IMNSHO might have been one of the great Secretaries of State.

Somewhere in cyberspace, the ghost of de Chardin is smiling.

by budr on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 01:19:00 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Bill Richardson - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

I don't know anything about it, but I like your idea that people are being placed in incorrect roles. Any chance of an ET "Who Should Be in Position X?"

It could be compared to the actual results, see who goes up, who goes down (for those interested) and I do believe that more and more the powers that be take their cues from the internet zeitgeist, and the zeitgeist is where the interest is at, so...if ET can add anything to the U.S. zeitgeist....think of the Obama vicotry as a wave preceding larger waves, it isn't THE wave, it's a bigger wave, with (potentially) bigger waves behind, enlightenment running as fast as we can.

! I like your IMNSHO. Could you say why you think he'd make a great Secretary of State? Remember: the roles aren't officially filled. If the wrong person gets the job, the time to complain is now.

Hope things are well in budrland!

Don't fight forces, use them R. Buckminster Fuller.

by rg (leopold dot lepster at google mail dot com) on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 07:22:49 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Richardson (none / 0)

Somewhere in cyberspace, the ghost of de Chardin is smiling.

by budr on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 09:52:43 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Richardson (4.00 / 3)

Oops. Javascript, gotta love it...

Richardson has his warts, as all politicians do, but he has earned a solid reputation as a skilled and successful negotiator. Given the multiple, overlapping crises that we face around the globe, we need someone of his caliber at State to help us find multinational, multilateral solutions. Hillary, on the other hand...

Clinton in turn sent Richardson on various foreign policy missions, including a trip in 1996 in which Richardson traveled to Baghdad with Peter Bourne and engaged in lengthy one-on-one negotiations with Saddam Hussein to secure the release of two American aerospace workers who had been captured by the Iraqis after wandering over the Kuwaiti border. Richardson also visited Nicaragua, Guatemala, Cuba, Peru, India, North Korea, Bangladesh, Nigeria, and Sudan to represent U.S. interests and met with Slobodan Milosevic.^[5] Due to these missions, Richardson was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize three times.^[5]

In 1997, Clinton appointed Richardson as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations. As ambassador, he represented the United States in UN proceedings regarding the Palestinian National Authority and the State of Israel,^[9] the completion of negotiations that strengthened the role and mandate of the United Nations Environment Programme regarding ecologically sustainable development,^[10] as well as other duties of an ambassador to the UN.

In 2000, Bill Richardson was awarded a United States Institute of Peace Senior Fellowship. He spent the next year researching and writing on the negotiations with North Korea and the energy dimensions of U.S. relations.

He supported LGBT rights in his career as governor; he added sexual orientation and gender identity to New Mexico's list of civil rights categories. During the summer of 2003, he met with a delegation from North Korea at their request to discuss concerns over that country's use of nuclear energy. At the request of the White House, he also flew to North Korea in 2005, and met with another North Korean delegation in 2006. On December 7, 2006, Richardson was named as the "Special Envoy for Hemispheric Affairs" for the Secretary General of the Organization of American States with the mandate to "promote dialogue on issues of importance to the region, such as immigration and free trade."^[21]

In January 2007, at the request of the Save Darfur Coalition, he brokered a 60-day cease fire between al-Bashir and leaders of several rebel factions in Darfur, the western Sudanese region. The cease-fire never became effective, however, with allegations of breaches on all sides.^[27]

Somewhere in cyberspace, the ghost of de Chardin is smiling.

by budr on Sun Nov 23rd, 2008 at 09:55:40 PM EST
[ Parent ]