McCain calls for leaders to boycott G8 summit in Russia

[cal04]

US Senator John McCain called upon world leaders to boycott the G8 summit in Russia in July, questioning Moscow's commitment to democracy. In a speech to the Munich Conference on Security Policy, McCain said that President
Vladimir Putin had rolled back reforms in Russia and did not share the democratic values of the United States and Europe. "Under Mr Putin, Russia today is neither a democracy nor one of the world's leading economies, and I seriously question whether the G8 leaders should attend the St Petersburg summit," McCain said.

The high-profile Republican senator for Arizona, a former prisoner of war in Vietnam who unsuccessfully ran for the US presidency in 2000, said Russia could have helped the United States and Europe transform the world following the end of the Cold War. "The Kremlin, however, shows no interest in such a relationship. Instead it continues to pursue foreign and domestic policies strongly at odds with our interests and values.

"Even after Iran rejected the EU-3 talks and removed nuclear seals, Moscow indicated that it would proceed with a one-billion-dollar deal to sell short-range missiles to Iran." With Russia's powerful Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov looking on, McCain said Russia had punished "democratic" Ukraine and Georgia by disrupting energy supplies "while providing cut-rate gas to the dictatorship in Minsk". "It (Russia) continues to prosecute a brutal war in Chechnya that has killed as many as 200,000, radicalizing the Muslim population, and it actively supports dictatorships in Central Asia."

McCain said "the broadcast media are Kremlin-controlled, as are parliament, provincial governors and the judiciary. All of these were free and independent when Mr Putin took office." The G8 summit will take place in Saint Petersburg on July 15-17. Turning to Iran, McCain described it as the "the world's chief state sponsor of international terrorism" and said it "defines itself by hostility to the United States and Israel". "Tehran's continued pursuit of nuclear weapons plainly poses an unacceptable risk to the international community," he said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20060204/pl_afp/germanydefenceus_060204203649

[onehandle]

1. Demonizing Russia Again?

The thug has truly lost his mind.

[Deja Q]

2. Reagan singlehandedly tore down Russia to give them a new economy,

democracy too.

Russia was asking for our help too; I vaguely recall purported dismantling agreements the US didn't follow through on because of COST. And now, those nukes are poorly guarded (thanks to '60 Minutes' for that article) and how terrorists can easily get their hands on them.

Strange how the G8 is now being tackled by Bush... but then, Russia's been openly helping Iran with weapons sales for many years...

[Lorien]

13. Reagan didn't "singlehandedly" destroy the USSR

the Soviets and previous presidents helped considerably.

[Overseas]

15. Sorry Pal-- Reagan was not a hero

He looks better compared to the Bushes, but he engaged in lots of ultimately destructive activities.

Russia was collapsing from within due to many factors-- including their bloated military budget. Reagan's team asked the CIA to create an army of Muslims from around the world to fight the Russian invasion of Afghanistan and put even more strain on their military budget. Guess who they called in to gather those troops and build a rolodex of international Muslim "freedom fighters"? OBL-- Osama bin Laden !! Good job, eh? The Soviet Union did collapse under the strain of the increased military expenditures. Then, after the dramatic tearing down of the Berlin wall, a period of massive criminal and crony takeovers of national industries and assets ensued. Not a lovely new peaceful democratic economy. More like gangland power and asset grabbing, with lots of people left out to starve. (And after the Afghanistan campaign, Osama had the perfect rolodex to create Al Qaeda. Thanks to Ronnie.)

The loose nukes stuff was about a program senators nunn and lugar initiated for the US to buy Russia's old nuclear weapons so they wouldn't be sold to our enemies by desperate people during the intense economic turmoil that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union. The clinton administration carried on with the program, but the Bush group reduced its funding. (They seemed to think smashing Iraq would be better for national security than being sure loose nukes were removed from circulation.)

[IndianaGreen]

3. McCain has an alien transmitter implanted in his brain

which causes him to suffer from deranged rantings and dreams of grandeur.

In the unlikely event that McCain becomes President, he will be as much of a warmonger as Bush.

[donheld]

4. McCain is one to talk

He's aided and abetted the US becoming one of the biggest debtor nations and certainly not resisted *'s efforts to destroy democracy here at home.

[ArtH]

5. McCain on G8

     I do not understand what his motives are. The whole thing
seems to have too many hooks in it.

[ShockediSay]

6. Who are the Repugs to talk?

Our election powers that be were very effective in keeping the majority vote from being counted:

>through the US Supreme Court in '00

>through hinky voting machines supplied by voting machine contributors and their lobbyists

>through lobbyists, whose campaign contributions assure that those behind the money get represented (indeed write the law, as was the case in the Medicare prescription drug rip off); the majority of citizens are not represented in this country by your Congress or your President.

Sen McCain, if you want to talk democracy, we're going to have to ban gov contractor and lobbyist campaign contributions, as Connecticut did after the same kind of Republican corruption we see at the national level.

http://ga3.org/campaign/specialsession_cuc

http://newhavenadvocate.com/gbase/News/content?oid=oid:141262


Pay to play is what we have, just like Russia.* Restricting the earmarking is like a band aid on an open artery. Lobbyists would not get anywhere near their earmarks if they weren't greasing the skids with bag money. Again, we have to ban gov contractor and lobbyist bag money/contributions.

And if the hyping hypocrites start preaching about freedom of speech, consider the speech involved in the following:

Verbal offering of a bribe

Verbal acceptance of a bribe

Verbal solicitation for purposes of prostitution

Verbal call-in of a bomb threat

Verbal obstruction of justice, or subornation of perjury



*as we also have secret police government spying/eavesdropping, just like Russia.

[hang a left]

14. *And let us not forget...

Government controlled Media and Judiciary.

[Rex]

7. He is the Son of Bush

which is probably worse than being Bush.

[Voltaire99]

8. "It's coming through a hole in the air..."

"...from those nights in Tiananmen Square.
It's coming from the feel
that this ain't exactly real,
or it's real, but it ain't exactly there.
From the wars against disorder,
from the sirens night and day,
from the fires of the homeless,
from the ashes of the gay:
Democracy is coming to the U.S.A.

It's coming through a crack in the wall;
on a visionary flood of alcohol;
from the staggering account
of the Sermon on the Mount
which I don't pretend to understand at all.
It's coming from the silence
on the dock of the bay,
from the brave, the bold, the battered
heart of Chevrolet:
Democracy is coming to the U.S.A.

It's coming from the sorrow in the street,
the holy places where the races meet;
from the homicidal bitchin'
that goes down in every kitchen
to determine who will serve and who will eat.
From the wells of disappointment
where the women kneel to pray
for the grace of God in the desert here
and the desert far away:
Democracy is coming to the U.S.A.

Sail on, sail on
O mighty Ship of State!
To the Shores of Need
Past the Reefs of Greed
Through the Squalls of Hate
Sail on, sail on, sail on, sail on.

It's coming to America first,
the cradle of the best and of the worst.
It's here they got the range
and the machinery for change
and it's here they got the spiritual thirst.
It's here the family's broken
and it's here the lonely say
that the heart has got to open
in a fundamental way:
Democracy is coming to the U.S.A.

It's coming from the women and the men.
O baby, we'll be making love again.
We'll be going down so deep
the river's going to weep,
and the mountain's going to shout Amen!
It's coming like the tidal flood
beneath the lunar sway,
imperial, mysterious,
in amorous array:
Democracy is coming to the U.S.A.

Sail on, sail on ...

I'm sentimental, if you know what I mean
I love the country but I can't stand the scene.
And I'm neither left or right
I'm just staying home tonight,
getting lost in that hopeless little screen.
But I'm stubborn as those garbage bags
that Time cannot decay,
I'm junk but I'm still holding up
this little wild bouquet:
Democracy is coming to the U.S.A."

--Leonard Cohen

[acmavm]

9. The guy is grandstanding. He's showing off. But he's embarrassing us

all. Nobody gives a damn what he says. I'm sure the heads of state of most foreign countries always say to themselves "now what would Doofus McCain do" before they make a decision that effects their country.

[0007]

10. We better start taking this half-wit serious. We didn't take

junior seriously and now he stepping on us with his clown like shoes.

No way I ever thought in my wildest dreams that junior could become president of this country!!

[quiet.american]

11. Me to McCain: Physician, heal thyself.

[DeepModem Mom]

12. A contrary note -- I deeply regret what is happening in Russia.

I think I've carried my weight on this board in posting articles about the dangerous and antidemocratic acts of the Bush administration, and in participating in discussion, and activist projects. But I believe people, and press, should be free. The fall of communism in Russia, the fall of the Berlin wall, were, to me, thrilling events. To see Russia careening back towards totalitarianism -- and I have visited that beautiful country, and met its people -- is very troubling to me. I also oppose the regimes in China, and in Cuba.

Pointing out the abhorrent acts of those in power in our own country, or in our own history, is not, to me, relevant to opposition to similar elsewhere. Two, or many, wrongs don't make right.

[Overseas]

16. But would you support a boycott like that ? Show-boating like that?

And how on earth can a member of the US Republican Party condemn totalitarianism as they push our country in that direction, trampling on free speech, forcing block voting on their party, pushing members of the Federalist Society into the highest courts of our land, and trying to dismiss domestic spying ?

Granted, two wrongs don't make a right, but how about Pot Call the Kettle Black ?
I'm sure McCain's plain old hypocrisy doesn't sit well with you either.

[DeepModem Mom]

17. Indeed, the hypocrisy does not sit well. Every time I hear GW Bush...

talk about spreading democracy to the rest of the world, talk about free and fair elections, the stink of hypocrisy is overwhelming.

[wordpix2]

20. I agree, Modem Mom

[Captain Hilts]

18. Most Russians aren't all that interested in 'Democracy'.

They've got more concerns: crime, oligarchs ripping off the country, unemployment, etc.

[wordpix2]

19. does anyone notice that McCain is acting like he's replaced *?

This is totally weird. Has * surrendered the pResidency to McCain?

[nofoil]

21. First of all, G8 was called G8

after it was decided to admit Russia to what was then known as the G7. So Russia is 8th of the G8. This year, Putin/Russia assumed the presidency of the G8. This is done on a revolving, yearly basis, giving each leader a chance at the helm. Last year (which ended last month), it was Blair.

Think about it now, how incredibly absurd it would be to boycott the G8 talks in Russia. That would amount to boycotting the very structure of the G8, including its presidency. The reason Russia was admitted into what is now the G8 had less to do with its economy than its incredible geopolitical positioning in this world. At the time, it was decided it was a much better idea to befriend our former enemy than chance further instability in the world. What McCain is talking about is foolish and bull-headed in a time that we need as much help and as many friends as we can get.

[HuffleClaw]

22. is there any nation they haven't insulted lately?

china, russia, venezuela, canada...

this is getting out of hand. such petty childish rants coming from a nation that also talks of 'the OBLIGATIONS of the international community/civilized world'?

[Strawman]

23. If we revive the Cold War

Then we can justify buying even bigger more expensive weapons systems with even greater cost overruns. Instead of spending money on this nickle and dime low intensity conflict "war on terror" bullshit. Where's the profit in that? :sarcasm:

What a transparent whore.

[bumblebee1]

24. Questioning Russia's commitment to democracy?

Senator McCain, you'd be better off to question Bush's commitment to democracy in this country.

[adigal]

25. I question our commitment to democracy

after that shameful display by the top attorney of the United States today, where he said the Constitution was complicated and that interpreting it was "hard." Ugh.