Being the thoughts and writings of one Gustaf Erikson; father, homeowner, technologist.
Very interesting article at BoingBoing about the man behind the neutron bomb.
Posted at 00:03,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
I agree with Frank. The Dutch and French No’s are a symptom of what’s wrong with the European project: a feeling that it’s an elitist project, a plaything for (ironically) Gallic and Teutonic empire builders in Brussels. The EU seems incapable of explaining to its citizens what it is for.
Update: I read The Economist’s analysis of the French debate — published before the referendum — and heard some more about the Dutch premises on the radio. Predicably, the vote was not really about the EU per se, but rather on the internal political situation in those countries.
The French debate had three parts: worry about the dilution of French influence abroad now that EU has been expanded to 25 members, many of them pro-American; concerns about the economy and the erosion of a “social” Europe; and anger at the political elite, who have too often used “Brussels” as an excuse to push through reforms that they consider necessary, but which were unpopular at home.
Updated on Tuesday, 2005-06-05.
Posted at 12:53,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
I heard on the radio that the Bush administration is considering attacking Iran this summer. Have they learnt nothing of the debacle in Iraq?
Iraq was a brutal dictatorship, Iran at least has the rudiments of democracy and a form of rule of law. The liberalising influences are fighthing an uphill struggle against the hardliners. The clerics would welcome an American attach with open arms — it would legitimise their rule in the eyes of the disillusioned people of Iran. Any chance for a pro-Western government from within Iran would be lost for decades.
Of course Iran’s possible possession of nuclear weapons is a serious issue. But if the US was to attempt to disable that threat through military action, it would create a threat to itself far worse than any atomic bomb.
I can’t believe Bush and his cronies are even thinking about this.
Update: Seymour Hersh’ article in the New Yorker, which was the basis for the radio programme.
Updated on Wednesday, 2005-01-19.
Posted at 11:26,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
The eastern parts of the country are seeking autonomy.
I must admit I’ve totally missed the whole run-up to this.
Posted at 23:03,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
So it looks like four more years of everyone’s least favourite Yale graduate. I know a lot of people who are shocked and disappointed at the result, but, barring any nasty surprises coming out of Ohio, the outcome looks legitimate.
Americans will have to accept that their country is pretty deeply divided on a lot of issues. The Democratic Party hasn’t really risen to the challenge, while the Republicans have rallied around the leader with a “say no evil, hear no evil, see no evil” attitude. Both sides will have to develop their arguments and politics in the years ahead.
Posted at 16:39,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
Diego has more questions for Bush supporters.
The sanction of torture, “disappearing” of people perceived to be a threat, the skirting of the Geneva conventions and the creation of a shadow prison system in facilities worldwide doesn’t really match the rethoric of the Bush administration about “freedom and the rule of law”, but more importantly, it doesn’t match at all, in my opinion, the principles on which the US was founded.
These questions really articulate a lot of things that I’ve been thinking about too. I suggest everyone reads them.
Posted at 20:21,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
Diego has some questions for Bush supporters.
Posted at 23:59,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
The incumbent president has denied the rest of the world access to his official website www.georgewbush.com. Putative Republicans in lands not yet conquered in the war against terrorism thus cannot find more information on their future Leader.
However, his minions forgot to include the HTTPS port in the block. So the curious can visit https://georgewbush.com/ instead, secure in the knowledge that their perusal will be unnoted by Echelon and other agents of the New World Order.
Tell him Hi! from me.
Posted at 23:00,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
I catched the beginning of a segment in Swedish Radio’s P1 this morning where Johan Norberg, a “liberal” debater debater (this is translated as a right-winger in Swedish terms), said that Swedish media was overwhelmingly pro-Kerry.
This is true. Reading Swedish newspapers and following Swedish ether media would have one believe that George W. Bush was some kind of Svengali, holding the US and the world hostage through sheer force of will and some kind of evil emanation.
I don’t particularly like Dubya, but still, he has the support of half of the population that bothers to vote, and that has to count for something. But this fact is largely ignored in Sweden. Only yesterday, a large interview was published in DN with a nurse living in New York state. She was a Kerry supporter. No sh*t. Why are there no interviews with Texan doctors or Florida businesswomen? Because they might be Bush supporters, and these people simply do not exist in Swedish media.
Anyway, the person debating Norberg, Cecilia Uddén, has been removed from the coverage of the election. Because she came out and said the truth, that Swedish radio is not impartial in the coverage of this election.
Whatever one feels about George W. Bush, we deserve better better reporting.
Posted at 00:02,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
I found out today why US elections are held on a Tuesday.
In Sweden, elections are always on a Sunday. I felt that the US was much more observant of the day of rest than Sweden, so that’s why Sunday was ruled out. But the additional historical titbits are interesting.
Posted at 16:50,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
Perhaps being excluded from the final debate helped Junilistan. They’ve captured 14.4% of the EP votes, and a new political party is born.
Posted at 21:58,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
Even though I’ve picked a candidate for the upcoming elections to the European Parliament, it’s increasingly unlikely that I will even cast a vote.
I haven’t heard anything that the EP has decided that has affected me as a citizen of the EU. The only thing I can recollect is a number of stories about MEPs collecting travel expenses and pocketing them. This is the body I’m supposed to elect?
“Ah, but if you’ve read more about the EU, you’d know that…” — well, guess what, I read the editorials of Sweden’s biggest daily newspaper every day, listen to P1 often, and subscribe to The Economist. I’m as clued-up politically as a citizen who’s also working full time and has a 2-year old at home can well be asked to be, and yet I still don’t know more about the EP. How can I make an informed decision then?
“But you have to vote, otherwise the extremists will…” — yeah right, a vote for a body that has no real influence will give extremists a voice. Get real. Political extremists are smarter than that.
“Democracy is a right and a privilege, your vote is precious…” — no it isn’t. I’d rather save my energy making decisions that will affect me and my family. The MEP doesn’t do this, nor should it. It’s a tacked on band-aid that the technocrats behind the Union have slapped on to give their tired, bureaucratic, mega-project some democratic gloss. The EU is not a democratic project. It’s an artificial counterweight to the USA that doesn’t have a deep popular support and probably never will.
Some parts of it are good: the free movement of trade, capital, and labour. Most parts are bad: the CAP, the intrusive bureaucracy, the Gallo-Teutonic haughtiness of its unelected leaders. If, by denying this patchwork of idealism and self-serving nationalism the legitimacy of my vote, I can help undermine its foundations and bring about a serious re-evaluations of the whole project, I’m glad. But my vote won’t count, whether I cast it or not.
Posted at 21:33,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
The EU-critical party Junilistan won’t be given a place in SVTs final debate before the EP elections on Sunday.
The reason: they don’t have a seat in the Parlaiment.
And pundits wonder why people won’t bother to vote in this election.
Posted at 17:03,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
So Ronald Reagan has died. My first political memory is going to a US international school in Kuala Lumpur and seeing the big board with election results between Ronald Reagan and Jimmy Carter.
This thought also occurred to me.
Posted at 23:05,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
Ho hum. MEP elections are coming up. Booooring.
I feel strongly about one thing in the EU: that the CAP must be abolished. No-one I can elect to the parliament will make this happen. Probably only a combination of global warming and a massive die-back of French farmers will bring this about, in a century or two.
I feel less strongly about software patents. They affect lots of people and the future of free software, but compared to growing food they are unimportant. However, they maybe can be banned in the EU by the EP.
So I’m looking for a candidate who’s opposed to software patents.
I’d like to vote for Christofer Fjellner (m), but his party supports software patents, and who knows what kind of hold they have over him.
So I’ll probably vote for Olle Schmidt (fp) instead.
Posted at 19:01,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.
I first encountered the belief that Europe was heading for an inevitable Islamic takeover in a most unlikely place: this post by Philip Greenspun.
This entry shocked me, because from what I’ve read of and about him, Phil is a smart guy. If this is how well educated Americans living in Boston view Europe?
I couldn’t really put my finger on what was wrong with his analysis. This article does just that. Recommended reading.
Posted at 19:27,
in the alt » politics category. Comments [0]
Submit this story to: » del.icio.us
» digg
» reddit. Search for it on
technorati.