For those that labour under the misconception that the Olympics and politics are not interwoven, one need only point to the IOC’s ridiculously ambiguous position regarding Chinese government imposed internet restrictions during the upcoming games.

Today the President of the IOC Committee, Jacques Rogge, claimed that the IOC had accepted no deal with regards to internet restrictions. For those of you that are unaware, the Chinese government had promised the foreign media unrestricted access to the web while reporting on the games, a promise that they are refusing to uphold. While some restrictions have been eased – the BBC’s Mandarin website is now accessible, for example – numerous other sites deemed ‘sensitive’ remain blocked.

Rogge’s pathetic attempt at avoiding the issue was to claim that the IOC consists of idealists and therefore could be accused of being somewhat naïve. Of course, while confronting the issue he praised the Chinese at the same time, claiming that the Olympic village was the best that he had ever seen and that the organization of the games was excellent. One wonders if the excellence of that organization includes the massive restrictions being placed on public protests as well?

North Korea has been removed from the auspicious “Axis Of Evil”. After handing over documentation regarding its nuclear practices to Chinese officials, the Bush Administration announced that it will be lifting key trade sanctions against Pyongyang. Of course, the North Korean regime still possesses a nuclear arms capability, and while their willingness to surrender information to the Chinese is seen by the US as a beginning, it is by no means an assurance that the North Koreans are going to abandon their possession of nuclear weapons full stop.

Mind you, they have said that are willing to ‘blow up’ the large cooling tower at their Yongbyon facility on live television. The irony, of course, is that the reactor at Yongbyon has already all but been disabled. In reality, the North Korean regime is getting somewhat of a pass, and that is something that should not be overlooked as it pertains to US led pressures with regards to the imposition of sanctions against the Iranians and their work through back channels to quietly support overt Israeli threats of preemptive military action.

Bush did say that the North Koreans will be monitored and that, in the future, as in - when he is out of office, renewed restrictions will be placed on them if they refuse to fully comply with the process of disarmament. But that’s the future. As it stands now, the United States is set to remove North Korea from the State Department’s list of nations that sponsor terrorism in 45 days, which will significantly ease trade sanctions that fall under the auspices of the Trading With The Enemy Act.

Who knows, perhaps Donald Rumsfeld is back on a board of advisors at some huge multinational that’s looking to do business with them. After all, he was a non-executive director for ABB, based out of Zurich, when it secured a $200 million dollar contract with the North Korean regime to provide the design and components for light water nuclear reactors prior to his becoming Secretary of Defense.

The United States and the UK have today warned Iran that if they do not comply with UN resolutions regarding its nuclear program then tougher economic sanctions will be implemented, including oil and gas sanctions. The Bush Administration has also employed rhetoric suggesting that tougher measures are also a consideration and that ‘all options are on the table’.

In completely related news, oil hit a record high today, reaching almost $140 dollars a barrel before falling off at the end of the day to $134.57. Some experts have speculated that at some point during the summer, prices could climb as high as $200.00. Iran, of course, is the fourth largest producer of crude oil in the world, and while economic sanctions against its oil exports might hurt the Iranian populace, their affects will most certainly be felt globally, driving oil prices higher. With that, of course, comes the adverse affect that it will have on other commodities, as oil is required to produce them, causing their prices to increase. Ultimately, that will only push the United States closer to a recession, no matter how adamantly the government and the Fed claim otherwise.

It’s a dangerous game, especially given the fact that the Iranians know they have a card up their sleeve – that China, a permanent member of the UNSC, is one of Iran’s larger oil importers, and that in 2004 Iran and China’s Sinopec Group signed an agreement that it would purchase 250 million tons of liquefied natural gas over thirty years from the Iranians to develop the Yadavaran field. Given the precedent set by China with regards to Sudan and its oil exports from that country, it is a stretch to think that the Chinese would lend their weight to a unanimous UNSC resolution that, in any significant way, would seriously damage the Iranian oil sector.

Like it or not, the Iranians have room to maneuver. As The Telegraph reported today, the Iranians are not completely rejecting out of hand the recent overtures of the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Javier Solana. While many in the country have called the package a waste of time; others have claimed that its merits should be debated as a method with which to keep channels of negotiation open. But one message that does remain very steadfast is that the Iranians consider their right to develop nuclear power an internal matter and not one that should be decided by foreign powers, especially the United States given its military occupation of Iraq, threats of military action, and support of Israel. Of course, the flip side is that the Iranians are well known supporters of Hezbollah, and that (in the post 9/11 climate) the West fears that the Iranians might gift such a group a nuclear device or simply use one themselves to directly strike Israel. That, of course, is territory that I have covered exhaustively in previous entries, so use the search feature if you’re at all interested in my thoughts on the matter.

The numbers regarding both the disasters in Burma and China have been, unfortunately, updated. In Burma, some 78,000 people are now reported dead with a further 56,000 missing. The United Nations is estimating that the death toll is above 100,000. The number one threat to those survivors in the area of the country that was hit remains access to clean water.

In China, just over 22,000 people are being reported dead with an estimated 5 million people left homeless. The death toll is expected to reach 50,000 or more.

It’s eight o’clock in the morning. I have no idea what I am doing up, other than the fact that I went to bed pretty early. I watched The Other Boleyn Girl last night after rehearsal and prior to passing out. Why is it that no one can portray the Tudors with any historical accuracy?

Recent Catastrophes

Matters in China are looking grimmer by the day, as are conditions in Burma. One searches for words to put such catastrophes into context, but there are few. The best that I can offer is to suggest donating to the following relief efforts:

Oxfam
The Red Cross

Oxfam
The Red Cross

News Of Note

Congratulations are due the Supreme Court Of California who ruled yesterday that the State law banning same sex marriage is unconstitutional.

According to a recent report, the United States has detained some 2,500 children in Afghanistan, Iraq, and at the US facility at Guantanamo Bay since 2002. While that number has decreased, there are still some 500 juveniles being detained in Iraq, 10 at Bagram Air Force Base in Afghanistan, and of the 8 youths detained at Guantanamo, only two remain that were under 18 years of age when they first arrived. Of course, such detentions fly in the face of International Law as it pertains to Child Soldiers and juveniles, but there really is not point in arguing that fact being that the tenets of International Law only apply to those situations that the Bush Administration considers to be in their interest.

Speaking of juveniles, it seems that the United States is violating an international protocol forbidding the recruitment of youths under the age of 18 for service in the military. In the report entitled Soldiers Of Misfortune, it was found that the military is also disproportionately targeting poor and minority public school students. This, of course, should come as absolutely no surprise to anyone. It’s conveniently always the “dregs of American society” that seem to be “compelled” to defend the “American way of life” while middle and upper class white kids sit at home watching them die on television. The sad reality of modern American wars is that if you want to see one brought to an abrupt end, have rich white kids come home in metal boxes.

The “N” Word

President Bush, who recently claimed that he gave up golf because he thought it sent the wrong message to those that have lost loved ones in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, addressed the Israeli Parliament yesterday claiming that negotiating with militant organizations and radical governments was no different than the appeasement of the Nazi’s…

“Some seem to believe that we should negotiate with the terrorists and radicals, as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all along,” Mr. Bush said. “We have heard this foolish delusion before. As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in 1939, an American senator declared: “Lord, if I could only have talked to Hitler, all this might have been avoided.” We have an obligation to call this what it is — the false comfort of appeasement, which has been repeatedly discredited by history.”

As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in 1939, Mr. Bush, the United States did nothing. It did not declare war on Germany, nor would it until Germany declared war on the United States on December 11th, 1941, four days after the attack on Pearl Habour. It would not act when France and the low countries were invaded and occupied, nor would it act when British cities were being decimated by German bombers.

For almost three years, while members of my family were in uniform, and their comrades were being stranded on French beaches having the crap kicked out of them only to be evacuated by civilian pleasure craft, the people of the United States wanted nothing to do with what was transpiring in Europe. By the time the “appeasement”, that you so casually referred to yesterday, had taken its toll, and Western Europe and parts of Africa were in German hands, the American public was still overwhelmingly against US involvement. Let’s also not forget that while Germany was being “appeased” by governments that had seen an entire generation devastated by war not two decades prior, major US financial institutions and corporations were doing business with the Reich, and would make millions in the process while those that would eventually fight along side American troops were being killed.

The reason, Mr. Bush, that you evoked the word “Nazi” yesterday was solely because you were in Israel, which is rather ironic being that an American company, that being IBM, sold the very machinery to the Nazi’s that they would later use to calculate the number of Jews, and others, eliminated during the Holocaust. Even more, that your own grandfather was the director of the Union Banking Corporation, with a convenient single share to his name, the assets of which were seized in 1942 under the Trading With The Enemy Act.

Like it or not, an American President addressing the Israeli Parliament is little more than a corporate president addressing shareholders.

I’ve been busy with rehearsals and exhausted afterwards, so haven’t been able to update the site at all. In fact, I haven’t even checked my email since Friday. Anyway, a few things…

Welcome to the new Canada. Today, in Halifax, the Prime Minister announced the Canada First Defense Policy, which is a major shift in Canadian military spending and commitment to global military affairs. It is, without question, extremely alarming.

Listening to the Prime Minister talk this morning I was deeply troubled at his alignment of economic growth with the bolstering of the defense industry – that it will benefit all Canadians, providing jobs. Of course, we wouldn’t dare nationalize the oil sector, but the government can promote the growth of the defense industry by spreading military contracts throughout the country. The Prime Minister also stated that export possibilities would also be providing economic opportunities – meaning that we’re going to start cashing in on arming others to help bolster our economy through the development of the defense sector.

When I have time to sit down with a draft of the policy I will comment further and in more detail.

Also of note this morning is the devastating earthquake that has struck China’s Sichuan province. An estimated 8,500 people are dead, though that number will most likely increase.

I’ll do my best to return to updating the site on a more routine basis in the days ahead.

After months of research, the origin of the 2008 Beijing Olympic symbol was finally discovered…

While a lot of people find them inappropriate, the protests that have been held along the Olympic torch route are, to me, a positive. Given China’s human rights record, occupation of Tibet, and recent events in that beleaguered land, I think them more than appropriate. In fact, I think them necessary. Because despite China’s transgressions, this country, and many others, continue to do enormous business with the Chinese while, at the same time, feebly condemning it in an attempt to play both sides of the fence. Let it also not be forgotten that, with regards to Sudan, Chinese economic ties with its government have played a significant role in handcuffing the UN. China is, of course, the largest exporter of Sudanese oil and its largest arms provider.

The torch is set to pass through twenty different counties on its way to Beijing. Let’s hope its presence is met with similar responses in each…

“Beijing has said no force can stop the world relay of the Olympic flame as it faces new protests on the Californian leg of its journey.

Seven Pro-Tibet demonstrators were arrested in San Francisco after tying anti-Chinese banners to the cables of the Golden Gate Bridge.

The flame is due to arrive in the city shortly following a troubled relay through Paris and London.

The torch was put out three times in Paris because of pro-Tibetan protests.”

Steven Spielberg, who was supposed to be an artistic advisor for the opening and closing ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics, has opted out of the role over his belief that China is not doing enough to pressure the Sudanese government with regards to the genocide in Darfur.

I commend him for it.

For those of you that are unaware, China is Sudan’s chief oil exporter (it is responsible for purchasing two-thirds of the country’s oil) and is Sudan’s largest arms supplier. Recently, in an attempt to better their international profile, they have sent forces to aid in UNAMID and undertaken publicity campaigns to better their profile regarding the matter.

But the facts remain incontrovertible…

“Because of this strong relationship, Chinese leaders have traditionally resisted international pressure to use their clout to bring peace to Darfur, where there is conflict between government-back militias and rebels.

Beijing has even used its veto at the UN Security Council - to block moves to impose sanctions on Sudan if it fails to stop the fighting in the troubled region.

China’s stock response to outside criticism about its Darfur policy always used to be that other countries should not involve themselves in Chinese affairs.”

It should also not be overlooked that in January of this year, Musa Hilal, who is accused of being complicit in helping coordinate the Janjiweed militias in Darfur, was given a senior position within the Sudanese government.

Listen, having been interviewed countless times over the last decade-plus, I know full well what it’s like when something ridiculous escapes your mouth. There are times when you utter something that, as soon as it passes your lips, you realize that it was a bad idea.

Then again, I’m a musician, not the Prime Minister.

When one is the leader of a country, one should always remember to think before they speak. Not only is it always to their benefit, but can quite often save them from total embarrassment.

Case in point – Mr. Harper’s recent comment about the Dalai Lama…

“When Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper tried to explain in a year-end interview why he’d met the Dalai Lama in his Ottawa office, it was clear he wanted to show respect for the exiled Tibetan leader.

Unfortunately, it didn’t quite come out that way.

“I met the Dalai Lama in my office but I meet everyone in my office. I don’t know why I would sneak off to a hotel room just to meet the Dalai Lama. You know, he’s not a call girl,” Harper told OMNI television.”

What should be telling about that statement is not that the Prime Minister accidentally equated one of the world’s foremost spiritual leaders to a call girl, but that the comparison of sneaking off to a hotel to meet one would pop into his head so quickly. Time to check the books at the Chateau Laurier or the Westin?

Perhaps.

I also found this rather interesting (from the same article)…

“Harper is a strong critic of China’s human rights record and what he calls the “undemocratic regime” in Beijing.”

Interestingly, and despite this, Statistics Canada tells a different story…

“Canada’s total merchandise trade with China has soared in the last decade, reaching $42.1 billion in 2006 and accounting for 5.0% of Canada’s world trade. In 1997, China was Canada’s fourth largest trading partner, with total merchandise trade of $8.7 billion. By 2003, the country had emerged as Canada’s second largest trading partner, surpassing the U.K. and Japan. Imports from China were five times higher in 2006 than in 1997, while exports to the country had tripled.

A significant part of trade between Canada and China can be related to the globalization of production. In 1997, 34.3% of Canada’s exports to and 37.6% of imports from China involved two-way trade within the same commodity groups. By 2006, with exports four times their 1997 level and imports more than eight times their 1997 level, the two-way trade accounted for over 45% of exports and over 57% of imports. Leading commodities in the two-way trade include: organic and inorganic chemicals; plastic and rubber materials; iron and steel and articles made of iron and steel; industrial and agricultural machinery and equipment; electronics; automotive equipment and parts; optical, photo, medical and surgical instruments; wood products, paper and paperboard; and fish products.

The commodity mix of exports to China has changed little in the last decade. Indeed, of the 30 leading commodities exported in 1997, 25 remained in the list of 30 leading commodities exported to China in 2006.

In 1997, China accounted for 1.8% of Canada’s total imports of machinery and equipment (in classes 84 and 85 of the Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System) from the world. Imports of machinery and equipment from China accelerated over the last decade and, by 2006, the country’s share in Canada’s total imports in that category grew to 13.6%. Imports from China in machinery and equipment also became more intensive between 1997 and 2006. The share of this commodity group in Canada’s total imports from China advanced from 23.6% in 1997 to 40.5% in 2006.”

Strong criticism, as usual, doesn’t include economics. Thanks Milton Friedman.