DISQUS

hector · 1 year ago

Germany and other industrialized nations are desperately trying to brace themselves against the threat of a collapse of the global financial system. The crisis has now taken its toll on the German economy, where the weak dollar is putting jobs in jeopardy and the credit crunch is paralyzing many businesses. The Bundesbank, Germany's central bank, doesn't like to see its employees working too late, and it expects even senior staff members to be headed home by 8 p.m. On weekends, employees seeking to escape the confines of their own homes are required to sign in at the front desk and are accompanied to their own desks by a security guard. Sensitive documents are kept in safes in many offices, and a portion of Germany's gold reserves is stored behind meter-thick, reinforced concrete walls in the basement of a nearby building. In this environment, working overtime is considered a security risk.
http://www.spiegel.de/international/business/0,...

Indigo · 1 year ago

Merkel! Ausgezeichnet! (I hope I spelled that right!)
Excellent!

OlderAndWiser · 1 year ago

Well, they're ready to condemn China and boycott the Olympics, but where have they been during the tenure of the Bush regime?

I agree that China has a human rights problem, but the trend in the US seems to be "follow China's lead" and not the other way around. Democracy can always be trashed when there's money to be made.

vaporlock · 1 year ago

"first hand experience with a bully regime maintaining power over another country. "

Merkel is a "Right Wing" nutcase as is the government of Poland, and furthermore Tibet WAS a part of China until England got involved in the early 20th century. How could you support having a "religious monarchy"? Human rights is to be applied consistently not just where the "Western World" wants it to be applied. Lets start with the biggest disaster in human rights and work down from there. Hello Iraq!

BuKen · 1 year ago

Was Tibet a part of China? Just ask the Tibetans.

Tibet is no more a part of China than the Ukraine is a part of Russia. Chancellor Merkel is from the former East Germany, she should know about bully regimes first hand.

It is sad to hear 17th century feudal mentality expoused in this global age.

Dave of the Jungle · 1 year ago

I don't want to be part of China.

jr · 1 year ago

I wish some of the high profile athletes would speak out against China's barbarism

gingerchrismc · 1 year ago

Merkel is not boycotting the Olympic opening ceremony, she never planned to attend in the first place and this has nothing at all to do with Tibet or bully regimes!

"German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said Friday neither he nor Chancellor Angela Merkel planned to attend the Beijing Olympics opening, but implied this was not linked to Tibet.

"The sports minister does not plan to participate, and I don't think the chancellor or I will," he told reporters as he arrived in Slovenia for two days of talks with his EU counterparts.

He said there had been "no need to scrap anything" as there had never been any plans to attend."

truthseeker · 1 year ago

There are a couple questions here. Should countries boycott the ceremony? Should countries boycott the games themselves?

Boycotting the opening ceremony is silly and useless. Boycotting to boycott is not productive. A boycott should be calculated to actually cause change. Boycotting a ceremony, while allowing the country to compete, seems to me meaningless.

This leads to the next point. Boycotting, I think, tends to harm the athletes of the boycotting country more than the country being boycotted. These athletes have worked unbelievably hard for four years (often more). That's unfair to them. China wouldn't care.

If the world wants to really impact China with a boycott, don't trade with them. Don't buy their goods, don't invest in their country, close off diplomatic relations. Until China actually feels the pain of a boycott, it's nothing more than actions taken to make one doing the boycotting feel good.

Hangtown Danile · 1 year ago

Mostly in only tune in for the Bike races and the fencing. This year I am watching the whole games. Then I am writeing a letter telling every single suporter of and any ads I see that I am boycoting there products and will be sending e-mail to the folks in my electronic mail lists to do the same.
China is the WORST nation on the planet when it comes to human rights violations. The main reason I do not go to Wall Mart is that most of there products are made in China by child slave labor. There is nothing at all redeaming about that nation.
-they far surpass any other nation on the planet as far as greenhouse gas emitions.
-There record on human rights violations is more deplorable that the Hitlers tratment of the Russins.
-They are well known to work 12 year old boys 18 hr. days makeing the crap white trash pepole buy at Sprall Mart.
-Anything you buy made in China will be hard pressed to last more than a week if at that.
-That is if it is not laden with poisons like lead.

All in all Mr Who the "President" of that vial nation is the worst dictator currently holding office on the planet.
There is nothing about China that I can find redeeming except the pepole.
Unforunetly for said pepole the best that they can hope for is a shallow grave and a quick shot to the back of the head.

P993 · 1 year ago

To: 'senator@biden.senate.gov'; 'senator_lugar@lugar.senate.gov'; 'john_kerry@kerry.senate.gov'; 'sen_dodd@dodd.senate.gov'; 'senator@feinstein.senate.gov'; 'senator@feingold.senate.gov'; 'senator@boxer.senate.gov'
Cc: 'sf.nancy@mail.house.gov'; 'mullint@nrf.com'; 'barak_obama@obama.senate.gov'; 'john_mccain@mccain.senate.gov'; 'hillary_clinton@clinton.senate.gov'; 'president@whitehouse.gov'
Subject: Peoples Republic of China - A Year in Review

To my honorable representatives,

I am writing to express in the strongest terms my exasperation on how the United States of America is conducting both business and diplomacy with The People’s Republic of China. I have lived, studied, and worked both in China and Taiwan for over 10 years. I have studied Chinese history for much longer than this, becoming fluent in spoken Chinese, and worked closely with China based IT businesses. I respectfully suggest that my experience allows me the right to address certain matters which our current administration is either unwilling or unable to grasp. Finally, as you can see from my email address, I work at the world’s largest software company and we most certainly have a dog in this fight.

Allow me to list a few of the many items that would suggest that continuing with the current course of appeasement of the PRC’s outrageous behavior is ineffective and can no longer be tolerated.

The primary issue must be the continued brutal subjugation, minimization, and oppression of Tibetans by the PRC. An entire generation of Tibetans now have never been able to (legally) view a picture of their spiritual leader. They have been forced to speak a foreign language, and are belittled and treated like second class citizens in their own country. They are quite frankly an endangered species. This reprehensible behavior toward a peaceful, gentle, and humble population which are great friends of the United States must stop.

This behavior by the PRC, not only to Tibet, but similarly to Taiwan, and Urumqi, is rooted in paranoid insecurity which all communist regimes seem to have. Coupled with their fear of losing the single party monopolistic power – and all the perks which are inherit with a monopoly, clearly suggests the only effective diplomacy with the PRC must include economic deterrents (not just verbal diplomacy).

Ladies and Gentleman, many carefully worded public statements have been made by yourselves and other well intended senior Whitehouse officials, but words as we have seen, are not enough. Indeed, our words, selected and spoken so carefully as they are, will always interpreted incorrectly/differently by the PRC leadership due to their paranoia, hate-based nationalistic propaganda, and poor understanding of the International landscape, which is evidenced by their repeated diplomatic blunders over the past year. Sanctions with an economic effect is the only message that would seem to be effective and received without error.

While paling in comparison with the above atrocity, here are further reasons that our methods of dealing with the PRC must change. This is a highlight of PRC’s 2007 Report Card:

• Espionage: Attempts by the PRC’s military to gain illegal access to Pentagon computers, continued recruitment by the PRC of Chinese Americans to spy and steal industrial secrets from their U.S. employers. They also hope to gain technological equilibrium with us under the label ‘technology transfer’.
• Violation of Intellectual Property/Trademark infringement: This needs no elaboration. Entire companies have been ruined because of this.
• Product Tampering/Substandard Products: Continued adulteration of consumer products and foods with damaging consequences (real as well as consumer confidence) pet food, lead in toys, anti-freeze in tooth paste, adulterated pharmaceuticals, substandard tires, contaminates added to food products. Note that all of this is for the sake of maximization of profits at the expense of everything else. During my days in China, I even purchased fake bottled water! (trust me, you don't want to know)
• Diplomatic Hostilities: Recent “demands” by the PRC for the U.S. to “report” every action from shooting down satellites to miss-shipping parts to Taiwan, all in the last year, refusal of port of entry on scheduled visit to Hong Kong by the USS Nimitz.
• Hostilities toward Taiwan - another great friend of the United States – with over 1000 ballistic missiles poised and ready for firing at Taiwan, and the continuing interference in Taiwan’s democratic process.
• Hostilities toward the United States – manipulation of RMB values, arbitrary and unfair import taxes on various US products (while we have no such taxes), glee and celebration over the 9/11 attacks (yes, I was working in Beijing at the time and saw this with my own eyes).

These are just a few of the actions that have taken place in the U.S. in the past year; there are many others with equal or direr effects to the people of the United States. But, my friends, despite all of the above, the PRC continues with business as usual, treating human worldwide, and the international community, as nothing more than an economic transfer ‘point of sale’ – and mind you, with no warranty!

I urge you to take measurable financial actions that will show clearly that the US shall not continue on this course with our largest trading partner who is also clearly an enemy Human Rights, Freedom, and Rule of Law. Finally, I wish to correct the misplaced notion among many in our current Administration is that increased economic wealth in China will increase desire for freedom. This is not correct, and infact has the opposite effect. Increased wealth and growing middle class in China both validates the communist leaderships existence, and gives citizens more to lose when fighting for change. Historically in China, the lowest most impoverished classes have always initiated change. Any casual observer of Chinese history knows this to be true. Why some in our administration are oblivious to this is beyond me.

Also, why is it that no other communist dictatorship in the world benefits from their unconscionable actions, both in the trade arena and the geo-political arena like the PRC does?. Ronald Reagan would never have let us get into this mess we are in now, but there is still hope. May I suggest we start with removal of their Most Favored Nation Status? I understand that the National Retailer Association will apply pressure to avoid any disruption of their PRC supply chain, however surely there is something more important to the United States of America (its leaders and its people) than being able to buy cheap Chinese goods.

It is the responsibly of managers to maximize profits, but it is the responsibility of our political elected officials to maximize life, liberty and the pursuit of freedom not only for Americans, but for our less fortunate friends.