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"Bolton's amendments have been received like a wasp's nest at a picnic."

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understandinglife Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Aug-30-05 12:27 PM
Original message
"Bolton's amendments have been received like a wasp's nest at a picnic."
Bush has been impoverishing more and more Americans since he took (as in stole) office in late 2000.

So, why should we expect his sham hit-man at the UN to do anything but attempt to wreck the Millennium Development Goals.

Poverty rate nears 13%; fourth annual increase

Associated Press
August 30, 2005

WASHINGTON — The nation's poverty rate rose to 12.7 percent of the population last year, pb

Overall, there were 37 million people living in poverty, up 1.1 million people from 2003.

The last decline in overall poverty was in 2000, when 31.1 million people lived under the threshold — 11.3 percent of the population.

Link:

http://www.startribune.com/stories/484/5586657.html


From the West Coast we the LA Times informing its readers of Bolton's outrageous behavior.

Bolton's mischief

August 30, 2005

AFTER A YEAR AND A HALF of studies and negotiations, the United Nations recently came up with a draft proposal calling for extensive internal reforms and world action against injustice, poverty and environmental catastrophe. Last week, soon after being appointed U.N. ambassador by President Bush, John Bolton may have sabotaged the entire effort.

Now that's getting things done.


<clip>

The original proposal spelled out internal U.N. reforms, such as creation of a new human rights panel that would exclude rights violators, as well as pledges of increased foreign aid, measures to combat climate change and calls for nuclear disarmament. Bolton's amendments focus on cutting references to international efforts the U.S. has opposed, such as the International Criminal Court, while strengthening sections on spreading democracy, freeing markets and fighting terrorism.

His most odious change was to delete all references to the Millennium Development Goals, which commit industrialized nations to cutting world poverty in half by 2015. Part of the deal was that rich countries would eventually contribute 0.7% of their gross national product to foreign aid. The goals were a world-changing burst of optimism from international leaders in 2000, a recognition that all people have the right to be free from misery, starvation and preventable disease and that those able to pay have some responsibility to alleviate needless suffering.

Link:

http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/la-ed-bolton30aug30,0,3118415,print.story?coll=la-home-oped


And, bookending the country on the East Coast we have the NYTimes editorial board managing to take a break from their disgusting service to propagandist-in-chief Miller to cover Bolton's egregious actions.

That's No Way to Treat Visitors

August 30, 2005

Two weeks before world leaders are due in New York to talk about global poverty and United Nations reform, the United States is trying to renege on commitments to fight poverty. If this wasn't so gut-wrenchingly important to the one billion people in Africa, Latin America and Asia who subsist on barely anything, the United States' proposal, presented last week by America's new United Nations ambassador, John Bolton, would be almost funny.

On Sept. 14, the leaders of more than 170 countries are to show up to sign an agreement, under negotiation for six months, to bolster the United Nations Millennium Declaration, which was drafted with great fanfare in 2000. Chief among the Millennium Declaration's goals was for developed countries, like the United States, Britain and France, to work toward giving 0.7 percent of their national incomes for development aid to poor countries by 2015.

Alas, if the American proposal is to be taken seriously, President Bush has had a change of heart. The draft document that Mr. Bolton shared with other diplomats calls for striking almost all mentions of the Millennium Development Goals, which also call for poor countries to adopt good governance.

American officials at the United Nations also complain that the section on poverty is too long. And the United States wants to erase parts of the text that would ask countries to "achieve the target of 0.7 percent of gross national product for official development assistance by no later than 2015."

<clip>

Link:

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/30/opinion/30tue3.html?pagewanted=print


Well, the one trait Bush and his fellow war criminal neoconsters share is their consistency -- consistent in their avarice, consistent in their total disregard for humanity, consistent in their willingness to murder and torture to make another buck stealing resources. And, they are most remarkably consistent in doing it all in the name of their 'christian god.'


Peace.



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Kerrytravelers Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Aug-30-05 12:33 PM
Response to Original message
1. My question is this:
We are just one country, one vote at the UN so to speak. If the rest of the world stood united against bolton and his attempt to start a coo of the UN, he would fail, right?

SOmeone who is more knowledgable on the politics of the UN please jump in here and tell me where I'm wrong.
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understandinglife Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Aug-30-05 12:56 PM
Response to Reply #1
5. Interestingly, the resistence is coming from the UK ....
The Guardian (http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1557553,00.html) reported Friday that Britain is one of the countries that intends to fight many of the changes requested by Bolton, possibly setting up a clash between the two allies.

A British Foreign Office spokesman said yesterday that the UK and the European Union, of which Britain holds the presidency, "are broadly content with the summit draft. It reflects the ambitious agenda thrown up by Kofi Annan." The spokesman said it was "important that we do not row back from previous high-level summits", such as the G8 meeting at Gleneagles in July and the UN millennium summit in 2000.

<clip>

Link:

http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0829/dailyUpdate.html


We'll see ....


Peace.
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TheFarseer Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Aug-30-05 12:37 PM
Response to Original message
2. I heard Rush say yesterday. . . . .
that they changed the standards for poverty to make the numbers look worse for bush. To me, this seems like the exact opposite of what anyone with the power to do this would do but that's what he said. Any truth to this? as if I don't know.
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gkhouston Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Aug-30-05 12:44 PM
Response to Original message
3. Really? Well, they should feel free to break out the flyswat
or the Raid any old time, as far as I'm concerned...
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mod mom Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Tue Aug-30-05 12:49 PM
Response to Original message
4. Neocons-paving the way for cheap labor and military recruits, one child at
a time. :(

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