How would World Economic Forum initiatives affect Main St., USA?

Commentary by Kay B. Day

DAVOS,23JAN03 - Hilde Schwab (L) and Klaus Schwab (R), Founder and President, World Economic Forum, during the 'Annual Meeting 2003' of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, January 23, 2003. [Copyright by World Economic Forum swiss-image.ch/photo by Remy Steinegger; used with permission.]The World Economic Forum founded by Klaus Schwab begins its 40th anniversary meeting on Wednesday in Davos, Switzerland. If Schwab and his ideological peers had their way, Main St., USA would feel a big bite in the wallet as well as the lifestyle. The WEF has policy statements from former U.S. president Bill Clinton, Queen Elizabeth and a number of other charity minded world politicos. The goal is to eradicate world poverty but that isn’t the problem. The problem is the method these politicos want to use to end poverty.

In an announcement about the forum, the WEF said, “The leaders support a refreshingly simple plan that will end poverty, protect the environment and allow developing countries to choose their own futures, unchained from onerous debt obligations and unbalanced trade policies.” The announcement also said those same world leaders “note the failures of a system that has been more intent on using poor countries as supply-houses for raw materials rather than bringing them out of poverty.”

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The truly perplexing case of Laura Ling and Euna Lee, ‘journalists’ for Current TV

Secretary of State Madeline Albright met with dictator Kim Jong Il in 2000. Kim told her a display of the Taepodong I missile was the last one she'd see North Korea launch. America is welcoming two young women home from what had to be a trying ordeal. Laura Ling and Euna Lee filled morning TV screens and Internet blogs as former president Bill Clinton enjoyed a moment in the limelight for his efforts in securing their release.

Ling and Lee are described as“journalists” with Current TV, former vice president Al Gore’s interactive Website. As far as I can tell, Current TV works sort of like the statist-leaning Huffington Post, with users generating content, sharing in hobby mode or vying for selection from what Current calls the “collective journalism” team. There’s not much on the website about payment for contributors. On the jobs page, there are listings for technical jobs and interns.

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Honduras stands against new world order; Chavez puts troops on alert

Updated on Monday, June 29, 2009 at 6:54PM by Kay B. Day, Editor

Updated on Tuesday, June 30, 2009 at 9:54PM by Kay B. Day, Editor

Shoreline view on Utila, the third largest of the Bay Islands (Islas de la Bahia). [Photo from CIA website.]Honduras, apparently following its constitution, decided to oust existing president Jose Manuel Zelaya for defying a Supreme Court decision. Zelaya hoped to follow the example of Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez by holding a referendum that if successful, would have allowed Zelaya to seek a second term. The referendum would have enabled a constitutional assembly whereby Zelaya hoped term limits would be altered.

Chavez has already put his troops on alert. Ecuador and other leftist-led countries are in lock step with Chavez. And naturally, Chavez thinks the US had something to do with the peaceful transition of power achieved quickly and, according to various media, legally.

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N. Korea blasts provoke finger-pointing, righteous anger in Japan

Historical photo of Nevada test site in the United States. [Archival photo via Environmental Protection Agency link to Los Alamos government website.]Watching news coverage of N. Korea’s latest nuclear chest thumping—an underground nuclear test followed by a succession of short range missiles—I asked myself how I would feel if I lived in Japan. I didn’t have to think long; I’d be infuriated.

Reactions in Japan’s oldest English language newspaper reflected concern, finger-pointing at US presidents and righteous anger. An analysis by Bill Sakovitch at Ampotan was more realistic than the daily newspaper. Cutting to the chase, Sakovitch asked, “Are you surprised that the new [Obama] administration still hasn’t put two and two together yet?”

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GOP rebrands; CNN article inspires leftwing extremist rage

The GOP, alternatively called 'The Gallant Old Party' or the 'Grand Old Party,' is the party of Abraham Lincoln. According to historian Diane Alden,in the 26 major civil rights votes after 1933, a majority of Democrats opposed civil rights legislation in over 80 percent of the votes. By contrast, the Republican majority favored civil rights in over 96 percent of the votes. [Photo N. Illinois University] After receiving a press release about the National Council for a New America, I happened across an article about the NCNA’s conversations with the American people, with the first to be held in Arlington, Va., on Saturday at the popular restaurant Pie-tanza. The CNN article was benign, but quite a few comments weren’t. Here’s an example posted under the moniker, ‘Sonya’: “Hmmm, rebranding? How do you rebrand a bunch of self-centered, out-of-touch, dumb obstructionists? Personally, I'd be happy if they'd all drop out of sight forever and open the door for a new opposition party. We all know their faces and we're all sick and tired of them. Rove, Limbaugh, Cheney, Bush, Hannity and.FIX NEWS!!! The list goes on and on and THEY ALL MAKE ME SICK!”

If you read The US Report, you know how much I love politics and history. So especially for Sonya, I’d like to fill her in on a few matters wherein the Democratic Party rebranded at various times:

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‘Millennium Bomber’ example of dealing with terrorists Clinton-style

Ahmed Ressam, aka The Millenium Bomber, owes a federal judge a thank-you note for his reduced sentence. [Photo from FBI/US Gov. site]The outcome of Ahmed Ressam’s December trial in Seattle should have been front page news. Ressam, 40, is better known as the ‘Millennium Bomber.’ He was detained by Customs and Border Patrol officials December 14, 1999 at Port Angeles (Wash.) when they noticed he appeared to be nervous. In the trunk of Ressam’s rental car, he had materials for a powerful explosive. He subsequently admitted that he planned to bomb Los Angeles International Airport on the eve of the Millennium 2000 celebrations. His story caused a stir, but of course the stir was controlled because we caught him before damage was done.

Ressam faced a sentence of 65 years to life, and in 2001, he told authorities he would provide information to the US and testify against others. By 2003 he had stopped talking and at his trial 6 years later, he claimed he was “mentally incompetent” and asked the court to retract everything he’d said. The would-be bomber then asked the court to sentence him to life in prison. Prosecutors agreed.

Prosecutors said 2 key prosecutions had been dismissed because of Ressam’s lack of cooperation. First Assistant US Attorney Mark Bartlett said, “This court has shown fairness and compassion and he has repaid that with contempt. Ressam manipulated this court to get what he wanted.” Bartlett pointed out that Ressam was now trying to use his position as a cooperating defendant to help his fellow terrorists.

But US District judge John C. Coughenhour re-imposed the defendant’s original sentence of 22 years. Judge Coughenhour said Ressam’s cooperation “proved to be invaluable,” and stated that he was “even more confident today, that this is the right sentence.”

There’s enough irony in Ressam’s case to fill a stadium.

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Clinton's half-truth about US role in border violence; ignores DOJ report

God must love politicians because if he didn’t, they’d all have noses that reached to their navels. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton carped about the US role—our “insatiable appetite for drugs”—in the drug wars on the border. Other politicians complained about the US role in supplying weapons to drug cartels. No one of course mentioned the ease of traditionally getting across the border into Mexico. Coincidentally on the same day here in Jacksonville, guns turned up in a locker at a high school in one of our city’s poorer areas. A principal saw a bullet on the floor. At first read, neither of those two incidents seem to be related, but they are and the facts reflect Mrs. Clinton’s half-truth.

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