In the News, Week of October 29
The week’s reading, straight off the razor wire:
TUESDAY
From the NY Times on diplomatic excellence:
CANADA: US SENDS REPLY, BUT NO APOLOGY, IN CASE OF DEPORTED MAN
The government is “satisfied” with an assurance from Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice that Canada will be consulted in the future about any Canadians who may be sent to a third country against their will, said André Lemay, a spokesman for the foreign minister, Peter MacKay.
Ms. Rice made the pledge in a letter to Canadian officials on Friday in response to an official protest lodged Oct. 6 over the treatment of Maher Arar, the Canadian seized in New York on inaccurate terrorism allegations and delivered to Syria for interrogation. Ms. Rice did not address a request that the United States acknowledge “inappropriate conduct.”
—Well, that’s that, then. We’ll let you know when we want to send one of your citizens away to be tortured. “Inappropriate conduct” is strong language, though. How can we command the moral authority we now enjoy if we go around copping to errors? You see the problem. It’s a diplomacy, political thing. You wouldn’t understand.
MONDAY
From the NY Times on our “free” trade policies:
US JOBS SHAPE CONDOM’S ROLE IN FOREIGN AID
EUFAULA, Alabama — Here in this courtly, antebellum town, Alabama’s condom production has survived an onslaught of Asian competition, thanks to the patronage of straitlaced congressmen from this Bible Belt state.
Behind the scenes, the politicians have ensured that companies in Alabama won federal contracts to make billions of condoms over the years for AIDS prevention and family planning programs overseas, though Asian factories could do the job at less than half the cost.
Over the years, USaid could have afforded even more condoms — among the most effective methods for slowing the spread of AIDS — if it had it bought them from the lowest bidders on the world market, as have the United Nations Population Fund and many other donors.
—You know, I think these countries who are depending on us to give them condoms really need to learn to do things for themselves. I mean, how hard can it be to make a condom? They don’t have jobs anyway, right? After they spend some time trying to avoid getting killed and finding some decent leaves and dirt to eat, they could make condoms. Lot’s of Americans have two jobs, and multi-tasking is the new employment zeitgeist so, you know, get with the times you guys. Then our poeple here in Alabama would have more leisure time, and could build their new careers working at Hardee’s and talking to plants.