Wednesday, December 28, 2005

News of the Day (December 28)

Canada file (sort of): It may be a stretch, but I think I figured out why Canadian jet-setter Maurice Strong thinks water will soon be rationed by armed guards. Strong "spends much of his time in Beijing, where he keeps an office" (Western Standard). Well, according to the Epoch Times, Communist China is now suffering under a water shortage of more than 1.5 trillion gallons. Of course, what Strong is unwilling to admit is that said water shortage is caused in large part by rampant pollution that, according to hydrologist Wang Weluo, has led to "about 700-800 million people in China . . . drinking polluted water" (see also seventh item). Meanwhile, the Communists' own State Environmental Protection Administration is now admitting that "underground water supplies of around 90% of China's cities have been polluted" (BBC). Of course, given Communist China's rampant overdevelopment, of the kind no free market would sustain (twenty-ninth, thirtieth, last, and seventh items), and things like the Jilin and Shaoguan poison spills (seventh, fourth, ninth, fourth, fourth, fifth, fourth, fifth, third, seventh, tenth, sixth, and ninth items), this really shouldn't surprise anyone. However, if one thinks Communist China as the wave of the future, things like water rationing start to make sense.

"Wisp Wind" announces new political party; drafts constitution for "New China": Assuming "Wisp Wind" is a pseudonym, an anonymous dissident has brought forth the Chinese People's Party, complete with a founding declaration and a draft constitution for "New China" (Boxun).

Luo Gan visits Communist Cuba; fellow cadres give Castro "multimillion-dollar loan": Luo Gan, Communist China's Lavrenty Beria (second item), visited Communist Cuba recently for talks on the "excellent political, economic and (Communist) party ties between China and Cuba" (Human Events). As part of said ties, the Castro regime "announced recently it will be opening a consulate in Guangdong, China, in order to support Chinese trade and investment in Cuba" and scored a "multimillion-dollar loan" from Zhongnanhai. The two Communist regimes have been close for quite some time (seventh and twenty-second items).

India growing more annoyed at Nepal buying arms from Communist China: India, Communist China's longtime rival, has become rather upset at Nepal, where dictatorial King Gyanendra's military "purchased arms and ammunition from China, paying hard cash while continuing to ignore older debts to India that have mounted up to over US$26 million" (ISN, Switzerland). Communist China was able to score the sale because of its willingness to pay commissions to "brokers, who are often senior army officials" in Nepal.

Airbus deal with Communist China raises eyebrows: The major plane deal between Airbus and Communist China (ninth item) has caused concern from Airbus' home base in France. Christian Harbulot, the director of the Paris-based School of Economic War, called the deal "risky" (ISN), given Communist China " is a rising power, and it moves according to a power strategy." Harblout also noted that the technology involved in the sale could be transferred to military use.

Communists arrest church leaders on Christmas Day in occupied East Turkestan: Communist Chinese police "raided a house church during its Christmas gathering in a rented commercial facility" (China Aid via Epoch Times) and arrested 12 pastors. Five are still in custody. The arrests occurred in occupied East Turkestan ("Xinjiang"); if not for the fifty-six-year Communist occupation, the church leaders would have been free to worship as they pleased.

Communist China pledges to double AIDS spending, but no mention of Henan victims: Communist China is once again trying to make us believe it is fighting AIDS, this time by announcing plans to "double expenditure on AIDS/HIV prevention to over US$350 million in the next two years" (ISN). This quarter will remain unconvinced until the regime admits to the one million victims in Henan Province, infected by the Communists themselves via an unhygienic blood drive (sixth, fourth, and sixth items).

Taiwan's DPP accuses Kuomintang of selling media stakes to firm with Communist money: Legislators from the governing and deeply anti-Communist Democratic Progressive Party accused the opposition Kuomintang party of selling its holdings in media companies to a Cayman Islands firm "which may have investment capital from China" (China Post, Taiwan) or the Communists' favorite tycoon: Li Ka-shing. KMT leader Ma Ying-jeou denied the accusations, but given the party's recent history towards the Communists, it can't be ruled out.

Enlightened Comment of the Day: Today's winner is Peter Morici, professor at the Robert H. Smith School of Business at the University of Maryland, for his terrific United Press International column (via Washington Times) on how Communist China's "autocratic capitalism" threatens the United States and Europe both economically and geopolitically.

More on Communist China and the United States: Roger McDermott, of the Jamestown Foundation, examines Kazakhstan's attempt to move closer to the U.S. without "incurring great political penalties from a wary Russia and a vigilant China" (Eurasia Daily Monitor via ISN).

On dissidents in Communist China: Guo Ruo and Lu Qingshuang, Epoch Times, find that the cadres' attempt to silence Gao Zhisheng (sixth, tenth, fifth, lead, third, last, twelfth, eighth, third, second, third, and eighth items) has only made him more popular. Meanwhile, Xin Fei, also in the Epoch Times, provides the real reasons for the arrest of Xu Wanping (fourth item).

On Stalinist North Korea: Chung Dong-young, Unification Minister in South Korea's dovish government (or, as China Freedom Blog Alliance Member One Free Korea calls him, North Korea's Minister for Southern Affairs), finally decides to stop playing apologist for the Communists' would-be colony on its counterfeiting of American currency (UPI via Washington Times).

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