Clipmarks | mona's 'politics' clips

Word wars - susbsidiarity

Sat, 07 Jun 2008 16:21:47 GMT

clipped by: mona
clipper's remarks: Having studied politics at University, I practically grew up with the concept of subsidiarity. It strikes me as absurd that this should be deemed a nonexistent word and one that should be abolished at that. If anything, can't it just be created for the sake of argument?

Clip Source: blogs.telegraph.co.uk

The Assembly of European Regions has the world’s dictionaries, especially Microsoft’s UK spellchecker, in its sights. I quote below and the letter, by Klaus Klipp, the AER’s Secretary-General, was not written in green ink.

“We are writing to draw your attention to the word “subsidiarity”, which we regretfully note is not listed in your dictionary.

“The principle of subsidiarity has been a pillar of social, theological and political thought for centuries, and is these days referred to in legal statutes, national constitutions and international treaties. The EU’s proposed Treaty of Lisbon, for example, mentions the word “subsidiarity” no less than 30 times.

“We are therefore puzzled that the word, despite its frequent use in European politics and law in particular, has been excluded from numerous dictionaries in languages across Europe and the world.

George Orwell, in his 1946 essay on Politics and the English Language had it right.

This word should be kept out of the political dictionary.

Tags: english, language, puzzling, dispute

changing times

Wed, 12 Dec 2007 15:30:08 GMT

clipped by: mona

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Venezuela and the politics of time

Schoolchildren in Caracas will be waking up in daylight this week following a decision by the country's president, Hugo Chavez, to shift the entire country into its own unique time zone.

The move to put the clocks back half an hour adds Venezuela to a small club of nations out of sync with global standardised time.

These states - which include India, Iran, Afghanistan, Burma, Sri Lanka and parts of Australia and Canada - operate in what are known as fractional time zones.

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

It seems that having a time zone where the clock strikes noon as the sun hangs highest in the sky is a rare luxury, these days.

CHANGING VENEZUELA

Name: Became Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela

Flag: Added star and altered coat of arms

Time: Shifted clocks half an hour back

Currency: Bolivar fuerte or strong bolivar to be introduced

Tags: powerhungry, politicians, overstepping, the, boundary

boredom complaints as election tactic?

Mon, 02 Jul 2007 23:31:09 GMT

clipped by: mona

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Kenyan deputy ministers 'bored'

At least 30 assistant Kenyan ministers have written a letter to the president, complaining they have no work to do.

"I just go to the office and read newspapers," said Abu Chiaba, an assistant fisheries minister.

President Mwai Kibaki promised a lean government when he took power in 2002, but instead increased the number of jobs to reward his coalition partners.

Kenya has 50 assistant ministers serving in 33 ministries, as some ministries have two appointed assistants.

"I'm treated like a shadow and only learn of issues in my ministry through the press," said assistant Tourism and Wildlife Minister Kalembe Ndile.

But some Kenyans are wondering why they have taken so long to complain about their lack of work, only raising the issue six months before general elections are due.

Tags: kenya, election, politics,

ooops - poland mentions the war

Fri, 22 Jun 2007 19:00:29 GMT

clipped by: mona

Clip Source: www.news.com.au

Oops... Poland mentions the war

GERMANY'S Nazi past sensationally returned to haunt the European Union summit yesterday.

A vitriolic outburst by Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski revealed the World War II bitterness that still strains the heart of Europe.

He accused the Germans of "incomprehensible crimes" against his country, turning what was already set to be an acrimonious meeting into a confrontation between historical enemies.

Mr Kaczynski stunned other EU leaders by claiming that Poland has 28 million fewer people than it should have as a result of the slaughter inflicted by Germany between 1939 and 1945.

He breached one of the great taboos of the EU - don't mention the war - and highlighted Poland's tortured relations with Germany.

It was the German invasion of Poland in September 1939 that triggered the war.

"It was the Germans who inflicted unimaginable injury, terrible harm, on Poles - incomprehensible crimes and Poles like Germans, while Germans do not like Poles," he said.

Tags: eu, politics, political relations, european union, hostory, poland, germany

mungiki jailing sparks murder of 11

Fri, 22 Jun 2007 17:19:29 GMT

clipped by: mona

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Kenya murders after sect jailing

At least 11 people have been murdered in Kenya in overnight attacks in the capital and its outskirts.

Police say eight people were killed in a Nairobi suburb when gunmen opened fire on drinkers in a bar.

Three others were murdered in Banana Hill, a town about 30km from the capital, one of them was beheaded.

The killings come a day after the ex-leader of the Mungiki, the banned sect blamed for recently beheading some 30 people - was jailed for five years.

The police have not confirmed if members of the outlawed sect were linked to the overnight killings.

KENYA'S SECRETIVE MUNGIKI

The Mungiki are thought to be militants from Kenya's biggest ethnic group, the Kikuyu. The sect was banned in 2002.

Some commentators have linked them to politicians wanting to cause unrest and fear ahead of December elections.

Tags: kenya, mungiki, politics, sect

UK minister evokes Monty Python to defend Rushdie

Wed, 20 Jun 2007 17:32:52 GMT

clipped by: mona

Clip Source: www.reuters.com

UK minister evokes Monty Python to defend Rushdie

NEW YORK (Reuters) - From Salman Rushdie to Monty Python, free speech even if offensive is worth protecting, Britain's interior minister said on Wednesday, defending a knighthood for Rushdie which has drawn protests from Muslims.

Angry protesters took to the streets in Pakistan and Malaysia on Wednesday to denounce Britain's award of a knighthood to Rushdie, whose novel "The Satanic Verses" outraged many Muslims worldwide and prompted death threats.

"We have a set of values that accords people honors when they contribute to literature even if we don't agree with their point of view," Home Secretary John Reid said

"A lot of people were upset when John Cleese made 'Life of Brian,'" Reid said

many Jews were upset by the work of Mel Gibson, whose 2004 film "The Passion of the Christ" drew charges of anti-Semitism.

"We have to be sensitive to the views of people of religion, people who have very strong views," he said.

Tags: uk politics, religion, opinion

china demolishes tibetan statue

Sun, 17 Jun 2007 11:14:58 GMT

clipped by: mona

Clip Source: www.breitbart.com

Group: China Demolishes Tibetan Statue

BEIJING (AP) - Chinese authorities have demolished a statue of a Buddhist master at Tibet's oldest monastery, an activist group said Friday, the latest act in what critics say is an effort by Beijing to dilute Tibet's unique Buddhist culture.

Chinese authorities said in a statement posted on the Web site of the China Tibet Information Center that the statue's construction was against the law.

Tags: china, tibet, buddhism, religion, authorities, politics

Rwanda abolishes death penalty

Mon, 11 Jun 2007 09:13:51 GMT

clipped by: mona

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Rwanda scraps the death penalty

Rwanda's parliament has voted to abolish the death penalty, with the ban to take effect at the end of July.

But there has been strong opposition to the scrapping of the death penalty from many survivors of the genocide.

Under the new law, Rwanda's 800 death-row prisoners will automatically have their sentences changed to life in jail.

Rwanda last implemented the death penalty in 1998 when 22 people found guilty of genocide crimes were put before a firing squad.

The law still needs to be passed by the senate, which has never before contested the lower chamber's decisions

Tags: politics, africa, rwanda, death penalty

first president of Somalia dies

Mon, 11 Jun 2007 09:07:42 GMT

clipped by: mona

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

First president of Somalia dies

Somalia's first president, Aden Abdulle Osman, has died aged 99 in a Kenyan hospital where he had been in a coma.

He was also the first African leader to voluntarily relinquish his post after he lost the 1967 presidential election - Somalia's last democratic poll.

Tags: somalia, politics, president

Sex, Death and Oil at Venice Biennale

Sat, 09 Jun 2007 11:42:17 GMT

clipped by: mona

Clip Source: www.spiegel.de

SEX, DEATH AND OIL

Bizzare Worlds at the Venice Biennale

The German Pavilion in Venice, designed by Isa Genzken, is a surreal world of mysterious cases, hovering spacesuits and rubber reptiles. In the British Pavilion Tracey Emin explores sex, desire and gender, while France's Sophie Calle examines the female reaction to rejection. Just some of the many enticing exhibitions at this year's Biennale.

DPA

Germany's entry to the Venice Biennale is an installation by Isa Genzken entitled "Oil."

Tags: venice, biennale, art, politics, political

In a Virtual Universe, the Politics Turn Real

Fri, 08 Jun 2007 11:15:22 GMT

clipped by: mona
clipper's remarks: not a gamer myself..........but from a political science/ sociological point of view, i find this fascinating!!

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

In a Virtual Universe, the Politics Turn Real

The kingdom is in crisis. After pledging to treat its citizens equally, the government stands accused of unfairly favoring one powerful, well-connected political faction. Many citizens have taken to open dissent, even revolt, and some are threatening to emigrate permanently.

This specter of corruption has emerged most recently not in some post-colonial trouble spot but in the virtual nation of an Internet game called Eve Online

So now, in a sociological twist, the company that makes Eve

says it will tackle the problem the way a democracy would. In what appears to be a first, the company plans to hold elections so that players can select members of an oversight committee.

“Perception is reality, and if a substantial part of our community feels like we are biased, whether it is true or not, it is true to them,

Eve Online is not a computer game. It is an emerging nation, and we have to address it like a nation being accused of corruption.

Tags: eve online, politics, virtual, reality, democracy, computer, game

List of unrecognized countries

Thu, 19 Apr 2007 10:54:11 GMT

clipped by: kwonsu

Clip Source: en.wikipedia.org

Partially recognized states with de facto control over their territory

Republic of China, which governs only Taiwan

Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

Unrecognized states with de facto control over their territory

Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan

Somaliland (since 1991). Located in northwest Somalia.

Unrecognized states with partial control over their territory

Abkhazia in Georgia

Tamil Eelam in Sri Lanka

Transnistria is a de-facto independent country

South Ossetia in Georgia

Partially recognized states largely under military occupation

Western Sahara

Palestine

Internationally administered territory

Kosovo,

Partially unrecognized states

People's Republic of China

Israel

Vatican City -

Tags: unrecognized, countries, politics, separatism, religion, nacionalism

Self-proclaimed Bin Laden's Election Campaign

Wed, 18 Apr 2007 17:24:30 GMT

clipped by: mona

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

Bin Laden name used to lure voters

Campaign poster shows Lanao Del Sur Board Member candidate Agakhan Mangondato Sharief in Manila.

MANILA, Philippines (AP) -- Philippine elections are largely a battle of name recall, so Agakhan Sharief has chosen a moniker he thinks will capture the attention of voters well beyond his backwater southern province -- Osama bin Laden.

Unlike the world's most-wanted terror suspect, Sharief is known by many in Lanao del Sur province as a peacemaker who has helped broker truces when sporadic clashes have erupted between government troops and Muslim insurgents.

He owes his nickname partly to President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, Sharief said.

"Oh, I see, the young bin Laden of Mindanao," Sharief quoted Arroyo as saying. The crowd erupted in laughter and applause.

"When I walked out of that meeting, I had a different name -- bin Laden," Sharief told The Associated Press by telephone.

"He is the other Osama; he's a peacemaker," Dolorfino said.

Tags: bin laden, politics, philippines, election, elections, manila, news

Chomsky on Choice

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 13:21:31 GMT

clipped by: mona

Clip Source: www.thirdworldtraveler.com

"If you assume that there is no hope, you guarantee that there will be no hope. If you assume that there is an instinct for freedom, there are opportunities to change things, etc., there's a chance to contribute to the making of a better world. That's your choice."

Noam Chomsky

Tags: choice, power, politics, freedom, hope, chomsky, individual, society

Chomsky on Democracy

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 13:18:55 GMT

clipped by: mona

Clip Source: www.thirdworldtraveler.com

" The most effective way to restrict democracy is to transfer decision-making from the public arena to unaccountable institutions: kings and princes, priestly castes, military juntas, party dictatorships, or modern corporations."

Noam Chomsky

Tags: democracy, chomsky, politics, decision-making, dictatorship, public