Text 14278, 55 rader
Skriven 2011-02-21 13:32:13 av Ward Dossche (2:292/854)
  Kommentar till text 14253 av Robert Bashe (2:2448/44)
Ärende: Re: Defector admits to WMD lies that triggered Iraq war
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RB>WD> Ireland apparently also crashed on the housing-industry problems
RB>WD> exactly as the US.
 
RB> Maybe. From what I've read, their problem was the cost of the bailout for
RB> the financial sector to prevent major bank collapses. Otherwise, their
RB> economy appears to be reasonably stable.
 
It's quite likely there's a variety of factors but the Irish housing boom is
well known. Also large corporations pulling ou of Ireland after the country
stopped being the "Poor man of Europe". Microsoft left, ILFC left, ...
 
On the average I think Ireland is a well managed country but they were a victim
of globalisation.
 
RB> The only thing I wonder about is why the Italians don't simply fill up
RB> transport ships at Lampedeusa and cart everyone back to Tunesia. That
RB> would end things pretty fast.
 
There are international treaties how to deal with refugees. Italy follows it to
the letter. When refugess arrive on your soil, the country is expected to take
care of them, provide housing, shelter, food, clothing and deal with it.
 
Any civilised country will have procedures to check the status of refugees and
act upon it.
 
When in the late 70-ies you had the Vietnamese boat-refugees and a ship picked
some of them up, then they were under the custody of that flag state. Belgian
freighter vessels picked-up scores of them and delivered them in Belgium while
other captains often sped-by and didn't worry. Especially African and Asian
flagged.
 
The handful of people at Lampedusa are not a problem. When still working at the
telecom business I tried to get my Italian colleagues to set up a meeting at
Lampedusa which they declined. "There's nothing there".
 
RB>WD> Do you still remember the story of Khaled-al-Bassam, ex-RC54?
 
RB> No. Please tell the story.
 
R54 Saudi-Arabia wasn't doing all too bad. But the Al-Saud royal family had
appointed one of their 3.200 princes as "Prince of communication" and it was
decided that Fidonet was communication therefore a several thousand dollar tax
was levied to operate his Fidonode. When he argued against it at the Ministry
of Telecommunication he wast told to either comply or lose his medical benefits
(all Saudi-Arab citizens have free medical care paid for by oil-dollars) and
because he was disabled after a car accident he had little choice.
 
So he went to the United Arab Emirates to call me voice from there because his
house-phone was tapped and requested to drop R54 from the nodelisted to avoid
further trouble.
 
 \%/@rd

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 * Origin: Many Glacier / WikiLeaks http://213.251.145.96 / (2:292/854)