Month: March 2010

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Poverty Dichotomies: USAID’s Famine Early Warning Systems Network, & “Dead Aid” (poverty reduction vs. wealth creation)

01 Poverty, 03 Environmental Degradation, International Aid

Poverty was considered the #1 threat to humanity's planetary security by the “High-level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change” organized by the SG of the United Nations in 2004.

Dichotomies reside within organizations. And the United Nations seems to be at odds over what is more important, poverty or “‘climate change”. And recently expressed at the “State of the Planet 2010” event in NYC, even linking the two. Who is going to say face-to-face with those in poverty not to cut trees or burn coal to cook or heat because they should lower their ‘carbon footprint' because that will “save the planet”? (Side issue: Solar LED lighting, solar battery chargers, water filters, etc have been developed for the ‘rural poor').

USAID, Wartime, & Dead Aid:

Jeffrey Sachs' had closing remarks at the “State of the Planet 2010” event on March 25, stating that those who claim that aid is not helping Africa are saying “absolute nonsense!” (in an almost angry tone) was interesting despite not going into detail. I'm curious what American organizations who are focused on foreign aid have to say about aid for Americans who are homeless/malnourished, etc. Can't domestic and foreign aid groups network, learn from each other, and developed new ideas? (one example).

Examples of opposition to Jeffrey Sachs' nonsense statement:

If seemingly great opportunities such as the March 25 “State of the Planet 2010” event fall short in generating ‘public intelligence' and ideas to resolve global challenges, then we must look elsewhere. Bono and Jeffrey Sachs are limited while ambitious. This creates a lot of attention, funding, and publicity, but is not wholly effective/is not an answer to the world's problems. It's more of a stimulant to come up with better frameworks that involve more people that desire to network empathy, intelligence, and resources. That, more than traditional ideas on “leadership” herding people towards a promise land will do more good.

Related:

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North Koreans + Cellphones = Subverting Oppression, Citizen Intelligence, Baring Secrets

Counter-Oppression/Counter-Dictatorship Practices, Government, Mobile

(So cool, so ill) Read the rest of the story fr NY Times

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea, one of the world’s most impenetrable nations, is facing a new threat: networks of its own citizens feeding information about life there to South Korea and its Western allies.

The networks are the creation of a handful of North Korean defectors and South Korean human rights activists using cellphones to pierce North Korea’s near-total news blackout. To build the networks, recruiters slip into China to woo the few North Koreans allowed to travel there, provide cellphones to smuggle across the border, then post informers’ phoned and texted reports on Web sites.

The work is risky. Recruiters spend months identifying and coaxing potential informants, all the while evading agents from the North and the Chinese police bent on stopping their work. The North Koreans face even greater danger; exposure could lead to imprisonment — or death.

Related:
Mobile_Citizen_Intelligence_Link_Table (examples of on-the-ground to on-the-web)

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Open Energy Info (OpenEI) Wiki (Some private, some public)

05 Energy, Collective Intelligence, Government

homepage

The goal of the wiki is to organize the world's energy information.   Parts of it are open for contributions from the general public.

Open Energy Info (OpenEI) is a platform to connect the world’s energy data. It is a linked open data platform bringing together energy information to provide improved analyses, unique visualizations, and real-time access to data. OpenEI follows guidelines set by the White House’s Open Government Initiative , which is focused on transparency, collaboration, and participation. OpenEI strives to provide open access to this energy information, which will spur creativity and drive innovation in the energy sector.

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NIGHTWATCH Extract: Europe Blows Turkey

08 Wild Cards

Germany-Turkey: The BBC reported today that German Chancellor Angela Merkel restated her belief that Turkey is not suitable for full European Union membership. She said that Turkey should not view negatively her offer of a “privileged partnership” – rather than full membership.

Turkey began negotiations to become a member of the EU in 2005, but France and Germany have vetoed membership, indefinitely. Merkel and Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan also disagreed about Iran, Cyprus and educating Turkish children in Germany in Turkish.

Germany is Turkey's biggest trading partner, its biggest foreign investor, its biggest source of tourist revenue, and nearly three million Turks live in Germany. Turkish law and legal procedure is derived from German legal practice and jurisprudence.

A point seldom made is that EU terms for Turkish membership included a commitment that the armed forces would abandon its practice of acting as guardian of the state’s secular legacy and promise to not overthrow the government. The General Staff has kept that promise, but the Erdogan government has exploited this EU entry condition to move Turkey towards an Islamist state. That is not a result the EU members intended.

Phi Beta Iota: This is a classic example of ignorant politicians who are not receiving proper 360 degree historically and culturally rooted intelligence (decision-support), making demands that are a cause of an easily anticipated effect.  Turkey has always been a hybrid “sick man of Europe” best honored for its buffer role among Europe, the Arabs, and the Persians. Turkey is a re-emergent force in the world.  The West has lost its mind, professionally speaking.

See also:

Journal: The Rise and Rise Further of Turkey (Along with the Collapse of Israel and the NeoCons)

Review: New Turkish Republic–Turkey As a Pivotal State in the Muslim World

Review: A Peace to End All Peace–The Fall of the Ottoman Empire and the Creation of the Modern Middle East

Review: The Second World–Empires and Influence in the New Global Order

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Review (DVD): It’s Complicated

5 Star, Culture, DVD - Light, Reviews (DVD Only)
Amazon Page
5.0 out of 5 stars Pure Fun with Great Visuals–a Fantasy Film to be Sure
March 29, 2010
Meryl Streep, Steve Martin, Alec Baldwin

Guatemala seems to be the place where Academy Award pre-release DVDs find a home and are replicated in the thousands, then sold for a few dollars if not less–I have never bought one, just borrowed from those who have. I am reminded of the VHS underground marketplace in Panama in the 1980's.

Alec Baldwin really surprised me–he rose to the occasion and turns in one of his best performances as a supporting actor to Meryl Streep, with Steve Allen coming in as third fiddle but the ultimate victor.

I take quite seriously the severe critic that complains this is a white super-suburban fantasy film, and this is absolute true. Having said that, I never-the-less recommend this film very strongly as engaging, with very strong visuals, and a total pleasure across the board.

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NIGHTWATCH: Pakistan Plays US as Fool

Uncategorized

Pakistan-India: Pakistan has deployed more troops on the eastern border with India.  Confirming the report, Pakistan's High Commissioner to Britain, Wajid Shamsul Hasan, said that India had increased pressure on the border by building several new military cantonments close to the sensitive frontier, and Islamabad can not remain “subservient” to the move.

“The government has had to send some troops down there because we don’t want to leave ourselves exposed. This is taking away from our defence capabilities on the Afghan border. We really wish the international community would intervene, but nobody has said anything to the Indians,” a British newspaper quoted Hasan, as saying.

Experts and diplomats, however, have described the troops reinforcement as more of a political and diplomatic move rather than a strategic one.

Note: No press source has confirmed new Indian cantonments. This is a ruse to deflect US pressure for additional operations to suppress domestic terrorists. Without confirming the facts, the anti-Indian Pakistani press denounced the Indian military moves.

Pakistan-US: Xinhua reported on Saturday the United States has agreed to provide another 14 F-16 jet planes to Pakistan until December 2010. U.S. authorities are scheduled to begin delivering the planes as well as Beyond Visual Range (BVR) missiles in June 2010.

Comment: Pakistan has no need of BVR missiles except in a war with India. There is no fundamental change in the mindset that India poses the greatest threat to Pakistan. Old hands know that provision of modern US weapons invariably are misinterpreted as US support for Pakistan in a war against India.

Aside from high minded sound bites the press coverage of last week’s “strategic” discussions in Washington provided no insight about what promises the US obtained in return.

Phi Beta Iota: The above is in today's NIGHTWATCH, which is available free online in archive form, with the daily version only to AFCEA and NIGHTWATCH subscriber.  It merits comments that for over a couple of decades Pakitan successfully deceived to Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and its clandestine service chief and so-called “experienced” case officers with the illusion that there was a “rogue” element of the military that favored extremists.  In fact, Pakistan is the Israel of Central Asia, a serious pain in the ass that cannot be trusted and needs to lose all US support just as Israel needs to lose all US support.  The reality is that neither the US intelligence community nor the US national security policy community have a clue as to “what is” reality, strategy, or sustainable end-state.