International Politics Thread - Disease and Disaster

[kingv]

So the dude who was rescued from the Taliban a few months back was just arrested for a bunch of shit in canada.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2018/01/02/americas/joshua-boyle-criminal-charges-canada/index.html

And I guess also his ex-wife is suspected of being a member of Al Qaeda?! It makes me think maybe this dude was flying out to Afghanistan to join the Taliban and they decided he’d make a good hostage instead.

[Boogie]

And I guess also his ex-wife is suspected of being a member of Al Qaeda?! It makes me think maybe this dude was flying out to Afghanistan to join the Taliban and they decided he’d make a good hostage instead.

Yup!

And of course, the dude’s past fascination with extremism and his incredibly dodgy story of how he ended up in Afghanistan was mostly glossed over by the media when he was rescued.  He even got to meet the Prime Minister!

Yes, he’s a citizen and deserved to have his government secure his release and return, but to have fawned over him as an innocent victim and publicized his rescue was absurd.

[Mollys Fruity Loops]

Guess some truthful news topics are too hot to handle. #CensorshipSucks #HumanTraffickingIsPandemicAmongThePowerful #NSFL 

[kingv]

I’m guessing your username was s a reference to that video where the the two pornstars are spreading each other’s buttholes with a speculum and eating froot loops (with milk) out of their gaping anuses

[Madrun Badrun]

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-42586108

[benjipwns]

interesting to note that is was just a few weeks (months?) ago that ayatollah khomeni and former pres ahmadinejad were openly feuding

try years...well, unless you actually meant Khomeini, who has been dead for nearly 30 years...

they essentially turned on each other shortly after Ahmadinejad was re-elected, the whole affair where he was facing impeachment, had a bunch of his appointments made to step down leaving him half a cabinet (which is grounds for removing a President in Iran) and in the subsequent legislative elections had his favored candidates disqualified...from everything I've ever read, there's never been a good explanation leaked* for why he got his legs cut out from under him as Khamenei didn't even pull the leash this tightly on Khatami, etc. who are in theory opposed to him, while Ahmadinejad was supposed to be on his side and Khamenei and the state went to bat for his rigged 2009 re-election

as a side note, Ahmadinejad wanted to run again for President last year and Khamenei personally told him no, supposedly the first candidate to ever personally be told no by the Supreme Leader, everyone else is just disqualified by the Guardian Council

*I've thought there doesn't necessarily need to be one, considering Khamenei is on the record as against Iran pursuing nuclear weapons over prioritizing nuclear energy, doesn't do stuff like deny the Holocaust or outright call for eliminating Jews, even supports transgender reassignment, etc. while Ahmadinejad was not only way to the extreme "right" (in Iranian politics) of Khamenei on this stuff, he was loudly so and ran all over the West trying to make friends with people like Chavez, was Trumpian in his boasting about weapons, against Israel, etc. ... it's a simple political power dynamic, Khamenei's position is best with a President slightly to his "left" (again, in Iranian politics) who he can shift blame onto for anything bad that happens, while taking credit for anything good being a sign of the Islamic Revolution he's guiding.

[Brehvolution]

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.832387

What could go wrong?

[benjipwns]

FSB front operation complains about true liberal democracies defending themselves against his bosses plans: https://theintercept.com/2018/01/10/first-france-now-brazil-unveils-plans-to-empower-the-government-to-censure-the-internet-in-the-name-of-stopping-fake-news/

“In the next few days, the Federal Police will begin activities in Brasília [the nation’s capital] by a specially formed group to combat false news during the [upcoming 2018 presidential] election process,” the official police tweet stated. It added: “The measures are intended to identify and punish the authors of ‘fake news’ for or against candidates.” Top police officials told media outlets that their working group would include representatives of the judiciary’s election branch and leading prosecutors

Tellingly, these police officials vow that they will proceed to implement the censorship program even if no new law is enacted. They insist that no new laws are necessary by pointing to a pre-internet censorship law enacted in 1983 — during the time Brazil was ruled by a brutal military dictatorship that severely limited free expression and routinely imprisoned dissidents.

A top police official just yesterday warned that, absent a new law, they will invoke the authorities of one of the dictatorship era’s most repressive laws: the so-called Law of National Security, which contain deliberately vague passages making it a felony to “spread rumors that caused panic.” Yet he complained that the old dictatorship-era law is inadequate in part because it is too lenient, providing “only” for “months” in prison for those who disseminate “fake news,” which he called a “very low punishment.”

In his New Year’s speech to journalists at the Élysée palace, the French president vowed that his new law would contain some robust transparency obligations for websites — ones for which valid arguments may be assembled. But the crux of the law is censorship: During elections, “an emergency legal action could allow authorities to remove that content or even block the website.” As in Brazil, the new French power would cover social media platforms and traditional media outlets alike, allowing the government through an as-yet-unknown process to simply remove entire political websites from the internet.

Beyond having one’s political content forcibly suppressed by the state, disseminators of “fake news” could face fines of many millions of dollars.

[VomKriege]

Another one bites the dust

"Leader of Britain's UKIP faces calls to quit over girlfriend's remarks" - http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-politics-ukip/leader-of-britains-ukip-faces-calls-to-quit-over-girlfriends-remarks-idUKKBN1F30LF

[Syph]

unfuckingbelievable

Toronto police say hijab-cutting incident never happened, investigation is closed

[Raist]

Fantastic.


http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-mps-vote-against-including-european-fundamental-rights-charter-in-uk-law-a8162981.html

MPs have voted against including the European Charter of Fundamental Rights in UK law after Brexit.

A Labour amendment, tabled in the name of Jeremy Corbyn, sought to retain the provisions in the Charter but was voted down by 317 votes to 299.

The EU Withdrawal Bill, which is currently in its report stage in the House of Commons, will transfer all existing EU law into UK law when Britain leaves the EU in March 2019. However, it includes several exceptions, including the Charter of Fundamental Rights.

[benjipwns]

I really like the diversity of the Czech Presidential candidates campaign logos: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Czech_presidential_election,_2018#Official_candidates

Although I have issues with naming your own party "The Party of Common Sense" or the "Realists" as that seems like one of those things others have to designate for you. It's like calling your party The Smartest. Actually, I wonder if anyone has done that now.

[benjipwns]

Putin's had a good week polling wise, he's back up to ~70% in the polls after flirting dangerously around 54-58% at the turn of the year. That moves his lead over the next highest candidate from +49 to +65. So this could still be tight over the next two months.

Though I think the will of the people shall ultimately prevail much like in neighboring democracies Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan.

[kingv]

Please keep Nigel Farage away from Asssange.

Krystal,

AMERIKKKA

[Corporal]

Please keep Nigel Farage away from everyone else as well.

Stuffing him into a soundproof hamster ball would facilitate this splendidly. Just saying.

[Kara]

lol

https://www.sbs.com.au/news/north-korean-defector-confesses-to-murder-report

[curly]

Far-right politician converts to Islam, quits AfD party

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/01/politician-converts-islam-quits-afd-party-180124124119851.html

[VomKriege]

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-france-security/french-jails-at-brink-of-explosion-strike-must-end-ombudsman-idUSKBN1FF1JF

A friend watched a TV debate (including a guard union representative) about it and sadly, albeit unsurprisingly, most of the bullet points were purely reactionary, basically they should be given tasers & prisoners are rude and hostile (I mean... no shit ?) with a pinch of nostalgic fantasies thrown in (Corsican and Marseilles mobsters were the good ol'days compared to islamists).

That's not to belittle demands for adequate means and security from guards but none of it seem to adress some of the root problems.

[VomKriege]

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-congo-protests/in-rare-press-appearance-congos-kabila-denies-repression-idUSKBN1FF26D

Wow, Kabila really changed his style 

[VomKriege]

Polish climbers are trying to save a Pole and a Frenchwoman stuck on "killer mountain".

http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-pakistan-climbers/polish-climbers-ascend-pakistans-killer-mountain-to-rescue-french-woman-pole-idUKKBN1FG0QH

[benjipwns]

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-congo-protests/in-rare-press-appearance-congos-kabila-denies-repression-idUSKBN1FF26D

Wow, Kabila really changed his style 

(Image removed from quote.)

I was just reading about this regarding a bunch of the "second generation" of African "democratic" leaders. So many of them are there because of their dad's but they never were there for independence or even many of the civil wars especially in Francophile states because all the kids were sent to private schools in France/Europe/etc. And they all have "legitimate" public administration experience and college degrees in that stuff instead of advanced warlordism. So they're terrible at lot of what has propped up those states for so long, but the states themselves also don't produce enough people for them to place into posts without cronyism attached and as the first generation post-independence starts dying off they don't even have the learned hands. And it's even worse where there's been one-party states for so long because nobody advanced under those for the same merits that they should now that there's legitimate democratic opposition.

Also, the age thing is huge, how most of those countries have gigantic under 20 populations. So Kabila is growing a beard like that to probably look older, especially with the gray stripe, and that paradoxically helps him with the youth unlike in Western states. Especially since a lot of African cultures have long traditions going back pre-colonialism about wisdom of the aged.

The whole not scheduling new elections and then blaming the cost seems to be the quite popular thing around the continent I noticed. I forget which country it was now, but one of them did this for like five years or something, then France and a couple other allies called their bluff and put up the cash for an election. The foreign colonist devils then forced the people's chosen leader to step down when he lost in the rigged against him election!

As an aside I was reading a semi-revisionist take on the post-colonial wave of one-party states that argued that against the notion that these were all puppets of West or East installed and backed and all inherently bad dictators and so on. But instead that at a fundamental level their understanding of "national unity" and what was best for the country meant there was only one proper path, and banning opposition or worse suppressing it, was because they saw it skewed as unraveling national unity and eventually it just gets cemented into the system.

It was only when they started talking about how much France propped up and intervened in all their former colonies that I realized the parallels to the French Revolution and its similar disconnect with the notions of liberté, égalité, fraternité and the idea of any kind of opposition being not a part of that let alone essential to that republican spirit but instead an enemy trying to undermine the republic and restore the old ways. Considering that many of these states have not only their borders but their elite ethnic or tribal classes were decided by the former colonial power you can sorta see why the pattern is so common across the continent.

I think Latin America has a similar thing at work, with the United States looming large in their ideological development but the new states often missing many of the details that helped unite the states and thinking they can skip ahead to a glorious democratic republic. Often employing de facto one-party states as well. Or the system I like in a few South American states where they agreed to just switch parties every election, which like, not an actual solution there guys. The whole point is you have to lose and willingly so. But I'm more than rambling and showing my provincialism.

edit: no i didn't call him kirbarla, you didn't see that, i would never compare an era mod to a respected President of a foreign nation

[Syph]

couple days late but Zeman was re-elected in Czech Republic
 

[Valhelm]

The Saudi-backed Hadi government has been ousted from the Yemeni capital Aden. This is huge.

What has effectively been a two-way war (Houthi Shia rebels versus Saudi proxies) has now split three ways -- Aden and patches of the countryside are controlled by the Southern Transitional Council, who want to recreate an independent South Yemen, which existed as a Marxist-Leninist republic from the dawn of Yemeni independence up until 1989. Since 2009, militias probably affiliated with the STC have been clashing with the Saudi-backed government, killing policemen and occupying a few small towns. This sudden coup in Aden is the first really major victory by the separatists.



What's interesting is that these STC forces are backed by the UAE. Until this week they were cooperating with Saudi's pet Hadi government to repel Houthi incursions. This is going to lead to huge tensions between Saudi Arabia and UAE, maybe not too dissimilar to their friction with Qatar and Turkey last year.

In addition, the STC wants independence for the almost homogeneously Sunni South Yemen. This is not really incompatible with Houthi aims of greater autonomy for the Shia community. If the Houthis and STC can come to any mutual agreement, Saudi Arabia has probably lost their war in Yemen. I don't think the remnants of the Hadi government will be strong enough to defend their territory from both the Houthis and these new STC militants.

Unless Mohammed Bin Salman wants to commit a lot more blood and treasure to this war in Yemen, Saudi Arabia may just cut their losses and let Yemen be divided up between the Yemenis. If Saudi Arabia oversees this partition, they also avoid the possibility of an entire unified Yemen coming under the control of the pro-Iranian Houthis.

[shosta]

Any updates on Jordan, Valhelm?

[benjipwns]

What's up with these new control maps that Wikipedia adopted like that above one. I swear I stared at the Libya one the other day for fifteen minutes before deciding it would be outdated by the time I figured out all the dots. Also, I don't think they always load properly. And I'd like to see certain parts labeled "NOBODY CARES" since I'm pretty sure I could silently claim some parts of Southern Libya without anyone bothering to check for a while.

Doesn't help when like two-thirds of the groups have nearly indistinguishable names that I have to open another window to check if they're the moderate genocidal Islamists or the radical genocidial Marxist-Leninists allied with moderate Islamists or the radical Islamists who are allied with the West as long as they aren't in power.

Just shade some areas with multiple colors and tell me it's disputed! *shakes first at cloud*

[Assimilate]

Two seconds before getting out of my uber to head into a store the mall is assaulted by armed thieves. Fuck this place. Idiot government officials that don't hit these assholes with the death penalty, don't incarcerate every single fucking gangster in this dumb country......

stupid ass liberals but but but but they lack education but but but you have to have compassion... yeah and this is what happens. This place needs to start lining up fools and doing mass executions, and televise it like fucking CHINA. 

[Valhelm]

Tonight's display of Korean unity was legitimately stirring.

let's keep the Koreans in our thoughts and prayers

[Raist]

 

[team filler]

evil pussy 

evil korean pussy

[Corporal]

Don't stick your dick in crazy. The sex may be awesome, but everything else isn't worth it.

[Rufus]

Don't stick your dick in crazy. The sex may be awesome, but everything else isn't worth it.

It's not like I have a choice with me being a nobody and her being the sister of a fat motherfucker with nukes.

Can you imagine the kind of purge proof clearance you'd need?

[Nintex]

 

[HardcoreRetro]

Big business on our news getting angry at what their ads are shown on on Youtube. Some ad for soap playing before a video of Peppa Pig shooting her mom in the face with a shotgun while her decapitated dad's head lies on the table in the background.

Maybe this modern era isn't that bad.

[Valhelm]

unironically I think these Olympics will help prevent a war

[Great Rumbler]

Big business on our news getting angry at what their ads are shown on on Youtube. Some ad for soap playing before a video of Peppa Pig shooting her mom in the face with a shotgun while her decapitated dad's head lies on the table in the background.

Maybe this modern era isn't that bad.

Don't worry, Google is hard at work crafting an algorithm that will definitely solve all their problems this time.

[Momo]

https://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/breaking-zuma-has-until-end-of-tuesday-to-resign-sources-20180213

[Momo]

LIVE: Zuma recall not because he did 'anything wrong', but ANC decision 'final'
2018-02-13 15:00

[benjipwns]

huh, i hadn't seen earlier that his wife had lost the ANC conference "primary"

Sisulu too, who i had heard of just because she kept hiring lawyers who were winding up in jail or something silly like that

[Momo]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-02-15/jacob-zuma-steps-down-with-immediate-effect/9449038

[shosta]

For a second there I thought "Omarosa" had taken over as president of South Africa.

[Corporal]

Let's laugh at the Germans for a bit, shall we.

A long-ass time ago, Krim being occupied by Russia caused NATO to push for fast response units to be established. One of the countries that was supposed to set some of their military aside to create those is Germany.

We're not a big country, but with 80+ million people we're not exactly small either. And while Trump is whining about us not spending enough on military to wipe France off the face of the Earth at the flick of a button, we do have a moderate military budget. Just enough for a peacetime corps. We don't have any big force projection abilities or anything fancy, because we kinda blew it the last two times we did. Still, imagine our surprise when we were notified by our own army that:

We do not have enough tents to house the soldiers. Fucking tents. We have 2500, we need 7500 more, and we probably won't have them until fucking 2020. A military that is supposed to protect eighty million civilians does not have more than 2500 tents to spare.

Oh, and Bonus: the 2500 tents we do have are "probably unsuitable" anyway. That's stupid. Also, two years to procure 7500 tents. The fuck. Are they hand-knitted by grandmas in retirement homes out of imported spider silk or something?

Bonus bonus: We are also "experiencing a lack" of winter uniforms. Whod'a thunk Germans would need freaking winter uniforms. It's not like winter comes around every year or so. Totally unexpected. Better not have a bunch lying around in case we'd need them. Like now.

Bonus bonus Bonus: and this one is a biggie, we also lack protective vests. Which are kind of necessary for people who can expect to be shot at. So we probably should have a few more than needed, because you never know, right? Nope.

A fast response unit without tents, uniforms or protection. Are you shitting me. And it will still take two years at least until they are anywhere near ready. Well.... Since it's become a bit of a thing in the news, we'll probably dismantle a watch post or two and salvage their equipment, plus three quid from parliament for a pack of gums and "you tried" stars until the public interest has waned. Nonetheless, I fully expect 2021 to come around and still see us struggling with basic equipment.

I swear, the fucking Huns could overrun us in a day. If they could time travel to the modern age. Which would probably create a whole different bunch of problems anyway. But still. I imagine Russia hasn't waltzed in and clubbed us like seals only because they enjoy the show and wouldn't want to touch our mess with a ten foot pole anyway.


Anyways. All of that is kind of a problem because we agreed to take a leading role in this post-Krim NATO thing from 2019 onwards. Oh, and we won't be able to supply our agreed upon contingent of tanks, assault vehicles, rifles with grenade launcher attachments, and night vision goggles. Grand show, that.

[Raist]

Let's laugh at the Germans for a bit, shall we.

We always do?! 

[Cerveza mas fina]

Waddya expect you lost your finest 39-45

[shosta]

Syria sending fighters to assist Kurds against Turkish forces

lol

[Nintex]

Anyways. All of that is kind of a problem because we agreed to take a leading role in this post-Krim NATO thing from 2019 onwards. Oh, and we won't be able to supply our agreed upon contingent of tanks, assault vehicles, rifles with grenade launcher attachments, and night vision goggles. Grand show, that.

I do you one better.

Our country has about 4 or 5 working F16's of which none were able to fly coalition Missions in Syria because they lacked the communication equipment needed to work with their NATO allies.
We have a shortage of ammo so soldiers training shout 'bang', 'bang' instead. Our special forces training has been put on hold because of accidents during training. They put up cloths instead of walls on the training grounds to save costs so people got hurt during shooting exercises. Recently some poor kid got blown up overseas because he used a Soviet era mortar piece written off by the US but bought by our dumb government.

When an airliner was shot out of the sky above Ukraine, we wanted to secure the site. But military intelligence indicated that our air mobile brigade would last just 2 hours would they come into conflict with he Russian rebels and/or Kiev militias.

We sold our single tank division of about 20 tanks just before the Crimea crisis. We now lease tanks and a tank crew from Germany.

Our soldiers have to share helmets, there's like 1 helmet for 2 soldiers.

All that stands between Russia and the EU is the army of Poland and the Polish civilian militias, which is well funded, well trained. Guess who the EU is currently bullying with fines and threats about taking away voting power?

If Putin wanted he could be having a tank parade from Moscow to Amsterdam in 1 week. All he needs to do is make sure the Poles don't resist.
At the same time our politicians are warning us about the great Russian threat, after having dismantled the entire military.

[shosta]

Nintex, isn't that more reason to rely on NATO entirely for European defense?

[Cerveza mas fina]

Iirc the polish militias havent been formed yet.

But yeah the dutch army is a bit of a shambles, to think i once wanted to sign up for the now defunct tank brigade  :'(

[Cerveza mas fina]

Poland is btw one of the like 5 Nato members that spends the amount all memberd agreed to spend on their military (2% of gdp)

[Raist]

I mean, the NL aren't exactly the most exposed country Unless Merkel decides to go all blitzkrieg again.

But regardless, that's why a european army would make sense.

[Corporal]

Merkel of all people won't ever Blitzkrieg anyone. Part of her appeal.

Wait, Germans are renting out tanks?!
How delicious. Out of our 244 existing Leopard 2 tanks, only 95 are ready to sortie. Not to mention, only half of officer-and-above positions in the entire tank division can actually be filled because we're simply missing huge amounts of qualified personnel.
And yet here we are, renting out tanks and personnel.
(Probably why we even have those other 50% anyway)


Another fun German fact: out of six submarines, none are operational as of two months ago. GERMAN UBOOTS STRONK!


And yeah, EU army please, can't be any worse than what we have now. No wait actually it can, because I bet those poor fucks will drown in red tape and bureaucracy.

[Raist]

Merkel of all people won't ever Blitzkrieg anyone. Part of her appeal.

Wait, Germans are renting out tanks?!
How delicious. Out of our 244 existing Leopard 2 tanks, only 95 are ready to sortie. Not to mention, only half of officer-and-above positions in the entire tank division can actually be filled because we're simply missing huge amounts of qualified personnel.
And yet here we are, renting out tanks and personnel.
(Probably why we even have those other 50% anyway)


Another fun German fact: out of six submarines, none are operational as of two months ago. GERMAN UBOOTS STRONK!


And yeah, EU army please, can't be any worse than what we have now. No wait actually it can, because I bet those poor fucks will drown in red tape and bureaucracy.

You're already struggling to build train stations and airports.

Nevermind nuclear submarines. Having seen Kiel, I kinda get why too.

[Nintex]

Nintex, isn't that more reason to rely on NATO entirely for European defense?

Which is why NATO is a good idea and the EU is a terrible idea.

The EU keeps up this myth that they've created 'peace' in Europe. But NATO did that, the English and Americans. The EU had barely anything to do with it.

[shosta]

The EU is a long term social psychology experiment in getting the European nations to slowly dissolve and cede all authority to the larger federation. Europe can't go to war with itself for the same reason California never goes to war with Texas.

And that's why it keeps marching East and Russia keeps freaking out. People like Metternich were deeply afraid of what would happen if Napoleon could conquer all of Europe and direct its force anywhere. Well Brussels pretty much did that. And that's also why Russia would love to keep Ukraine anti-European and the Baltic States under their thumb and I'm sure they'd conquer Finland if they could. Because Europe is now the Napoleonic supranation that will eat its lunch.

[Raist]

Nintex, isn't that more reason to rely on NATO entirely for European defense?

Which is why NATO is a good idea and the EU is a terrible idea.

The EU keeps up this myth that they've created 'peace' in Europe. But NATO did that, the English and Americans. The EU had barely anything to do with it.

They're completely different organizations though, and the formation of the EU certainly contributed to it. You're not going to bash your neighbour if you have strong economic and political ties with them.

NATO was mostly founded to keep an eye on them commies. It derived from a foundation of EU countries alliances, btw (both the treaty of Brussels and subsequently the WEUDO, before the USA joined the party). You can't really separate the EU and NATO, because the latter was certainly birthed by the former.

[jorma]

Nintex, isn't that more reason to rely on NATO entirely for European defense?

Which is why NATO is a good idea and the EU is a terrible idea.

The EU keeps up this myth that they've created 'peace' in Europe. But NATO did that, the English and Americans. The EU had barely anything to do with it.

Just no.

Fuck nato, Marry EU, Kill the Warzaw pact

[Cerveza mas fina]

Eu and Nato are both needed.

[Valhelm]

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/02/25/china-sets-stage-for-xi-to-stay-in-office-indefinitely.html

fuck Xi Jinping

This could be very bad news for China

[Nintex]

BREAKING: Russian invasion of Ukraine postponed

https://twitter.com/Eire_QC/status/968138787867021312

 

[Raist]

I believe kids these days would say "rekt".

https://twitter.com/bbradleymp/status/967526680188375040

[Nintex]

https://twitter.com/ReutersAfrica/status/968508348021735424

RIP South Africa

Communists seizing lands from land owners. That always ends well