Posted by bosskitty on July 4, 2008
(CNN) — How would the likes of Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin feel about the way the United States has turned out 232 years after declaring its independence?
Most Americans say they’re proud to be citizens, but most Americans also think the Founding Fathers wouldn’t be pleased. Not pleased, a majority of Americans recently polled said.
- Poll: 69 percent of respondents think Founding Fathers would be disappointed
- Still, 61 percent say they’re extremely proud to be an American
- 41 percent: Presidential candidates should always wear flag pin when dressed up
These Incumbent Senators are NOT our Friends
These powerful Senators remain in place to make our Founding Fathers roll in their graves.They focus on promoting misguided paranoia about a war that was really about oil, power, money and a sick religous agenda. The 4th of July should remind Americans about the original intention of our Founding Fathers.
Fourth of July Celebrations Database
Excerpts from:
Declaration of The Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms
July 6, 1775
Honour, justice, and humanity, forbid us tamely to surrender that freedom which we received from our gallant ancestors, and which our innocent posterity have a right to receive from us. We cannot endure the infamy and guilt of resigning succeeding generations to that wretchedness which inevitably awaits them, if we basely entail hereditary bondage upon them.
In our own native land, in defence of the freedom that is our birthright, and which we ever enjoyed till the late violation of it — for the protection of our property, acquired solely by the honest industry of our fore-fathers and ourselves, against violence actually offered, we have taken up arms. We shall lay them down when hostilities shall cease on the part of the aggressors, and all danger of their being renewed shall be removed, and not before.
Posted in Accountability, America, Bush, Cheney, Declaration of Independence, Democracy In Action, Founding Fathers, GOP, GREED, Great Depression, Human Rights, Hypocracy, Iraq, Mismanagement, Pentagon Corruption, Politics, Tax Dollars, US Government, United States, War, War Cost, consequences, foreign policy, gas prices, history, infrastructure, social policy | No Comments »
Posted by bosskitty on June 28, 2008
What will happen when dissatisfaction reaches the top? This country was born from dissatisfaction. Some people were exiled and others fled to this continent. Entrepeneurs flocked to make their fortunes. The only difference now is that there is no place to go. Where will an American go to flee the discomfort?
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A very revealing article from Harpers in 2004 [Here]
Expatriates are choosing to call the UAE ‘home’ for increasingly longer periods of time and investing more in their homes than they have in the past, due to a shift in salary packages on offer from employers.
A recent survey on the salary packages of multinational companies in the Middle East has revealed the traditional focus of high basic salaries and cash allowances is shifting towards long-term incentives and ‘protection’ benefits which are enticing expats to stay longer.
Many employers are motivated to focus on benefit provision, not only to respond to competitive pressures but also erosion in value of cash-based remuneration paid in local currencies which are pegged to the weakening American dollar.
Almost all companies in the Middle East provide additional perks and allowances to their expatriates. These vary between countries and employers, but the majority provide allowances for housing, schooling and flights home. In the UAE specifically, 86 percent of multinationals in the survey provide housing allowances, while 90 percent provide support with schooling. All participants, without exception, provide allowances for return flights to expatriates’ home country.
Will a new administration bring some expats home? Not all expats are in good shape out there. It depends on where you are.
If you are an expat, please share your experience. Are you better off?
Posted in America, Clash of Philosophies, Human Rights, Politics, consequences, critical resources, economics, expatriate, global community, social science, taxpayers | No Comments »
Posted by bosskitty on May 5, 2008
Southeast Asian countries are struggling to curb food prices as energy costs climb. Many governments have banned rice exports to safeguard supplies, but economists say restrictions only drive world prices higher.
The rice fields that blanketed this remote mountain village for generations are gone. In their place rise neat rows of young rubber trees _ their sap destined for China.
As Beijing scrambles to feed its galloping economy, it has already scoured the world for mining and logging concessions. Now it is turning to crops to feed its people and industries. Chinese enterprises are snapping up vast tracts of land abroad and forging contract farming deals.
This quest raises both hope and criticism.
- Laos’ communist regime touts rubber as a miracle crop that will help lift the country from the ranks of the world’s poorest nations. China is expected to consume a third of the world’s rubber by 2020, become its largest car market and put 200 million vehicles on the road.
- Some Laotian farmers are losing their ancestral lands or being forced to become wage workers on what were once their fields. Chinese companies are accused of getting rubber concessions from officials and not compensating farmers. They are also accused of violating laws, human rights and the environment, under conditions described by experts as “anarchic.”
- From Southeast Asia to Africa, the Chinese are farming oil palm, eucalyptus, teak, corn, cassava, sugar cane, rubber and other crops. As in Laos, the industrial-size farms are variously viewed as an ecological nightmare or a big step toward slashing poverty.
- In Congo, a Chinese telecommunications giant, ZTE International, has bought more than 7 million acres of forest to plant oil palms.
- In Zimbabwe, state-owned China International Water and Electric Corp. reportedly received rights from the government to farm 250,000 acres of corn in the south.
- Indonesia is moving to develop biofuel plantations with The China National Overseas Oil Corpora
