Bush has failed

[lightblue]

Asian cultures, stereotypes or not, are also in general far more likely to respect rules, or jsut have mor respect for thoer people in general.

[Guynemer]

Originally posted by DanS
Is he somebody who I should know?

Just a bit surprised, that's all. He's one of the more well-known pundits, a bit of a maverick, not easily classified on the traditional political spectrum. A British expat, if I recall correctly. You've probably seen him at several points or another over the past ~8 years, just don't recognize the name.

[rah]

Originally posted by lightblue
Asian cultures, stereotypes or not, are also in general far more likely to respect rules, or jsut have mor respect for thoer people in general.

Oh please, maybe there just weren't as many good things to loot.

[DanS]

He's one of the more well-known pundits

Most pundits are only famous in their own estimation.

[Q Classic]

Originally posted by rah


Oh please, maybe there just weren't as many good things to loot.

But what about the tourists?

[rah]

There was nothing good for them to loot either

[Q Classic]

What? You know, that just smacks of uncreativity among the Southeast Asians. I'm sure carrying off a few hot Swedish tourists as part of your regular looting schedule would have netted you, if not a profit, at least some eye-candy pleasure.

[rah]

Of course, there actually was some looting for survival items, but since they were asians and not blacks, most US media outlets didn't think it would be believable, so they didn't show the footage.

[Drake Tungsten]

Well-known popinjay and vocal supporter of the Bush administration, Christopher Hitchens, has also criticised the hurricane response.

Hitchens isn't really a Bush-supporter. He has a healthy respect for the dangers posed by Islamist groups and supports the Global Struggle Against Violent Extremism (that's what it's called now, right?) because of it, but that's about the only thing he agrees with Bush on.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Originally posted by DanS


Most pundits are only famous in their own estimation.

No doubt true. But Hitchens has become more well-known than many because of his political conversion to neo-conservativism after 9/11. Before that he was, as others have pointed out, a Trotskyite leftist (who wrote regularly for The Nation); he's also notorious for his polemic/screed against Mother Theresa, The Missionary Position. Ironically, his best book -- and it is good -- is probably Blood, Class, and Nostalgia: Anglo-American Ironies, in which he criticizes American imperial ambitions for being a case of Brit-wanabee-ism. The fact that he's now enthusiastically embraced the neocon imperialist agenda is its own Anglo-American Irony.

[Drake Tungsten]

The fact that he's now enthusiastically embraced the neocon imperialist agenda is its own Anglo-American Irony.

I don't think he sees the neocon agenda as an imperialist one. Most informed people don't.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

Originally posted by Drake Tungsten

The fact that he's now enthusiastically embraced the neocon imperialist agenda is its own Anglo-American Irony.

I don't think he sees the neocon agenda as an imperialist one. Most informed people don't.

That's fair. But at least some neo-cons around Bush are fond of talking about the post-9/11 U.S. as an empire. Hitchens may not agree with them, but he's making common cause with them; hence the irony.

[Sava]

Originally posted by Drake Tungsten

The fact that he's now enthusiastically embraced the neocon imperialist agenda is its own Anglo-American Irony.

I don't think he sees the neocon agenda as an imperialist one. Most informed people don't.

1.1/10

[Jack_www]

I just heard on the radio the Governor of Louisiana saying the Mayor of NO had no authority to issue a mandatory evacuation of the city, and that she was not sure if she would order a mandatory evacuation of the city. She is just idiotic as President Bush.

[alva]

Originally posted by Chemical Ollie
I heard nothing about looters in Thailand after the Tsunami. And the rescue workers did not carry weapons. But on the other hand, only the 1-2 km next to the coast was affected, so most of the society was intact, which is not the case in US.

There are several reports of raping and pillaging.
No difference between white, yellow black or whatnot on that issue.
Let's not be naieve here.

I remember a story of a 12 year old girl who was pulled out of the water by a man only to be raped and left to die when he had enough.
IIRC she even knew - even think she was related - to the bastard.