Burma

[ludermor]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7016608.stm

Where is George W now?
Scary to see the start of the country for the past few years when you read about its past history

[Square Ball]

Been watching a lot of this on the TV, fair play to those Monks for standing up to the army.One of the things they were on about on the news was that they are building a new city for the top members of society only, complete with new man made lakes and rivers.

wonder what way it is going to end, can see the military arresting more monks and then killing a few hundred civilians and its all over.

[SouthArmaghBandit]

If what you're saying is right Square Boy it sounds like Animal Farm!

[J70]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7016608.stm

Where is George W now?
Scary to see the start of the country for the past few years when you read about its past history

Didn't Bush put the boot into Burma/Myanmar during his speech at the UN the other day? (He gave them more attention than Iraq anyway!)

[Louth Exile]

You have to admire their bravery. The whole world will watch and the super powers will do nothing. The authorities are trying to restrict information getting out. They have shut down internet access to the monasteries and if they do get access to the internet most sites are blocked. No press visas are being given out and estimated that only 20 members of the international media in the country at the moment

[ludermor]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7016608.stm

Where is George W now?
Scary to see the start of the country for the past few years when you read about its past history

Didn't Bush put the boot into Burma/Myanmar during his speech at the UN the other day? (He gave them more attention than Iraq anyway!)

Its easy to put the boot in from a pulpit, words mean nothing. This has been going on for years but its not in the 'axis of evil'. A bit like Mugabe they are left to their own devices.

[stew]

When are the Irish going to weigh in on this? What is the Irish government going to do? You would think with the amount of richeous indignation on here the Irish were in the trenches defending the rights of the Monks and the innocent civilians, they are not, we are not so get off your feckin soap boxes.

The super powers have to intervene but they will probably stand idly by whilst these poor people get slaughtered but I fear that the only thing that will happen is that economic sanctions will be implemented that will hurt those who need help the most. This is fast becoming an absolute nightmare and I applaud the monks for taking the stance they have but they will pay a heavy price I fear.

[Bacon]

Stew. Thank you for your comments. 

[behind the wire]

dont think stew is too far wrong. we hear all the time about the evil in iraq, iran etc but we hear very little about the real suffering in the world i.e. zimbabwe, sudan, burma etc.

events in burma would be similar to another peaceful march many years ago, only on a much more vicious scale.

[balladmaker]

When are the Irish going to weigh in on this? What is the Irish government going to do? You would think with the amount of richeous indignation on here the Irish were in the trenches defending the rights of the Monks and the innocent civilians, they are not, we are not so get off your feckin soap boxes.

The super powers have to intervene but they will probably stand idly by whilst these poor people get slaughtered  but I fear that the only thing that will happen is that economic sanctions will be implemented that will hurt those who need help the most. This is fast becoming an absolute nightmare and I applaud the monks for taking the stance they have but they will pay a heavy price I fear.

Hold on till we locate the current position of our sole naval boat....probably on manouvers out around Rockall!

Agree with what you say, some leader needs to stand up and get this sorted.  If there were billions of gallons of oil beneath Burma, the US would be well in. Shame on the international community. 

[Hardy]

Realpolitik check - China and Russia have massive interests in Burma/Myanmar. I think you can take it they will not be enthusiastic about a popular revolution. They have graciously consented to allow  some verbal condemnation at the UN and a UN apparatchik to visit. That'll be it.

It's not just the US that conducts its foreign policy on the basis of its own interests. We all do. Nations and states have never had, and politics has never been about, principles. It's always about interests. It's how the world works, for better or worse. Mostly worse.

[Billys Boots]

It's always about interests.

I know it wasn't he who 'invented' the concept, but was it Roosevelt that used the phrase 'enlightened self-interest' initially to (erroneously) describe US Foreign Policy?

[Declan]

For those interested - take a picture of the crowd and send it to stew!!!


Burma protest to be held in Dublin

Burma Action Ireland is to hold a protest in Dublin tomorrow over the military junta's clampdown on democracy activists.

Organisers say they wish to show Ireland's support for the people of Burma and to maintain international pressure on Burma's military to end violence and start a process of national reconciliation.

The protest begins at 4.00pm on O'Connell Street.

Other Burma solidarity groups are to hold similar peaceful protests across Europe tomorrow.

The leader of Burma's National League for Democracy, Aung San Suu Kyi, was awarded the Freedom of the City of Dublin in 2000. The award was accepted by her son as she is under house arrest.

[Hardy]

It's always about interests.

I know it wasn't he who 'invented' the concept, but was it Roosevelt that used the phrase 'enlightened self-interest' initially to (erroneously) describe US Foreign Policy?

Just looked it up:
http://www.learningtogive.org/papers/index.asp?bpid=23

Alexis de Tocqueville, apparently.
[Edit] Of course Roosevelt may have used it too.

Not that I'm suggesting the fathers of America were worse than any other empire-builders, but they did have a way with a mealy-mouthed phrase. "Manifest destiny" was how they described their self-assigned right to wipe out the native tribes.

[stew]

When are the Irish going to weigh in on this? What is the Irish government going to do? You would think with the amount of richeous indignation on here the Irish were in the trenches defending the rights of the Monks and the innocent civilians, they are not, we are not so get off your feckin soap boxes.

The super powers have to intervene but they will probably stand idly by whilst these poor people get slaughtered  but I fear that the only thing that will happen is that economic sanctions will be implemented that will hurt those who need help the most. This is fast becoming an absolute nightmare and I applaud the monks for taking the stance they have but they will pay a heavy price I fear.

Hold on till we locate the current position of our sole naval boat....probably on manouvers out around Rockall!


For those interested - take a picture of the crowd and send it to stew!!!

Apparently Declan thinks that a few hundred Irish civilians gathering together in Dublin gives us all the right to piss and moan about what W is not doing in Burma and other troubled spots in the world and also that the irish have done their bit to sort the problem out.

Balladmaker on the other hand seems to think that we are not in a position to help from a military perspective so because we are toothless we can bitch away to our hearts content without being held accountable for changing the very issue we are so passionate about from our armchairs.

Heres what the Irish can do. They can have their leader  stand up in front of the world and demand that action be taken, he could highlight the abject horror that is going on in Burma and he can take Bush and his cohorts to task about his stance on terrorism and ask if they are empty words or if they actually mean something.

Balladmaker and Declan. Lets continue to moan and complain and do nothing to help the situation but in the process point fingers at world leraders who are doing about as much to help as we are. Somebody needs to stand up and be counted and it may as well be Bertie but i wont hold my breath as he is only interested in lining his own pockets.