So who's the terrorist again?

[idleidolidyll]

Is the current Russian government left wing or right wing?

too simplistic: is it left authoritarian or is it left liberal?
or is it actually right authoritarian.

the left/right divide is a nonsense in isolation

[Flatcap]

too simplistic: is it left authoritarian or is it left liberal?
or is it actually right authoritarian.

the left/right divide is a nonsense in isolation

So what is it then?

[mstriumph]

So what is it then?

controversial is wat it is ..........

[mstriumph]

...........The old communist expression "running lapdogs", seems somehow rather apt!..............

'running lapdogs'
isn't that a contadiction in terms?

[Winston001]

Instead of inciting the Iraqui resistance to rise up, then leave them hanging, so Saddam and his guard could rounded them up and wiped them out!

Agreed that was bad. Unfortunately the UN didn't have the heart for occupying Iraq. What happened is the Iraquis who opposed Saddam, exposed themselves expecting (as the US had led them to believe) to see tanks rolling to Bagdad.....and it never happened. They were persecuted and executed.

[pete376403]

Nice op-ed in this mornings Dompost from Chris Trotter comparing conditions in Eastern Europe in 1914 with the current situation in Georgia.
Regardless of how you feel about Trotters political leanings it still made a fair bit of sense.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/dominionpost/4665160a26342.html

[idleidolidyll]

Well, you have to eat...

and that's a good point.

Clark in fact secured that food but still slapped Bush in the face.

National would have sucked up to the war criminal and sent Kiwis to die for big business

[Winston001]

Interesting that in the worlds greatest democracy the majority are so disaffected by the democratic process that they don't even vote.

Not US bashing, just an observation ...

Actually low voter turnout in an indication of satisfaction. If no issues really bother you and life is fine, politics seems uninteresting.

Incidentally when asked if they are living the "American Dream" (whatever that means to the private individual) an astonishing 47% said YES. How many Kiwis would feel that way??

[SPman]

Agreed that was bad. Unfortunately the UN didn't have the heart for occupying Iraq. What happened is the Iraquis who opposed Saddam, exposed themselves expecting (as the US had led them to believe) to see tanks rolling to Bagdad.....and it never happened. They were persecuted and executed.

I think the Georgians expect(ed) the same........

[idleidolidyll]

Agreed that was bad. Unfortunately the UN didn't have the heart for occupying Iraq. What happened is the Iraquis who opposed Saddam, exposed themselves expecting (as the US had led them to believe) to see tanks rolling to Bagdad.....and it never happened. They were persecuted and executed.

why should the UN occupy Iraq?

There was no more reason to occupy Iraq than to occupy Israel, Sudan or the USA itself; all those too have flouted international law

besides, the yank govt gave saddam the nod to invade kuwait in the first place

go back and read up; the USA, Britain, France and Russia carved up the Ottoman Empire into the faux nations you think should exist in the ME.
Those are not natural borders; they are political and economic partitions arranged by people other than those who lived there

[idleidolidyll]

Actually low voter turnout in an indication of satisfaction.

No, it's an indication of acceptance that democracy is fucked in that country, that your vote is useless anyway

the assholes do what they want regardless and rig the voting system itself

[alanzs]

Interesting that in the worlds greatest democracy the majority are so disaffected by the democratic process that they don't even vote.

Not US bashing, just an observation ...

It is a very accurate and sad observation. So many people in the US are totally disillusioned. When bush was elected, the Canadian immigration website had something like a 100 times more traffic than usual seeking to immigrate. Granted, I was from LA, which is generally open minded and fairly liberal, but people were/are aghast at what bush has done. A great analogy is that you lent your car to someone and they returned it destroyed, in debt and with a zillion tickets.

Whats really scary is that over 50% of "black" males in the US have had some interaction with the criminal "justice" system. Many "black" males cannot vote, as in most areas, if you have been convicted of a felony, you lose your right to vote. Disaffected is putting it mildly. "Blacks" only got the right to vote in the '60's. Not that long ago. Also, residents, legal or illegal (~30 million are illegal or ~10% of the population) cannot vote at all. My wife was a legal resident for over 10 years and couldn't vote. Participating in democracy is limited quite strictly. Just to make things even more interesting, I must file US taxes no matter where I live, forever, unless I renounce my citizenship officially at an embassy. If I make over $80k annually, I must PAY US taxes as well. You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave...

In the last dozen years or so, the Christian right has mobilized the sheep so effectively, with the help of the media, that you get the president, and all the candidates, making a big issue about how they are Christians. This was unheard of. Otherwise, they can't get elected. The separation between church and state, which was once held sacrosanct, has almost disappeared. Bush instituted "faith based" (faith based=christian) programmes, which the government funds, which is totally contrary to the separation of church and state.

Not all is lost though as there is usually good service in restaurants, and big, fat people producing portions as well... After this little rant, I could go for an order of tacos al pastor and a few cervezas...

[idleidolidyll]

So what is it then?

i've posted it before and i'll post it again:
take the test before you read the rest of the website and then compare yourself.

read the explanation etc

it's a far better way to evaluate political position than a simple left/right divide.

http://www.politicalcompass.org/test

the left / right thing just plays into the hands of the propagandists

[alanzs]

Actually low voter turnout in an indication of satisfaction. If no issues really bother you and life is fine, politics seems uninteresting.

Incidentally when asked if they are living the "American Dream" (whatever that means to the private individual) an astonishing 47% said YES. How many Kiwis would feel that way??

The "American Dream" for many in the US is:
Having a lot of money,
Having a big house with all the accompanying mod cons,
All kinds of big toys; boat, Harley/bikes, RV, etc.,
Taking vacations to exotic locations,
Having the kids go to good schools,
Being at peace.

Not so different than the "Kiwi" dream or most other consumer oriented "nations" dream really;

[Winston001]

The truth is being forgotten here: The US have invaded Iraq; are occupying Iraq; and will install a `democratic leader' of their choice in Iraq for strategic and economic reasons only.
There is no moral crusade here, just a façade of lies.

Well lets be accurate: the following countries all invaded and occupy Iraq -

Albania, Armenia, Australia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, El Salvador, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Poland, Romania, South Korea, and the United Kingdom. In total 34 nations have been involved.

Lots of people die in Iraq. Do you know who kills them? Other Iraquis. Removing Saddam let the cork out of the bottle which is ironic and a deep shame. Now there are battles between different Moslem sects, the Kurds, the Marsh Arabs, and even clannish families.

Having released all the tensions which were suppressed by the the Baath Party, the coalition countries must set up an orderly democracy before they leave. I'm sure they never really knew what they were taking on.

However there is strong precedent - the rebuilding of Germany and Japan. This was done with US money. Quite why the Iraquis aren't grasping the opportunity for peace is kind of hard for us to grasp.