Politics & Stuff

[Fulham Broadway 17,091]

  On 18/09/2015 at 16:46, CHOULO19 said:

Kill them. KILL THEM ALL!!

I'm more of a Thatcher on Reagan type of guy!

Did you see Jed Bush-(Jed haha have they a Bubba Bush as well?) wants to have picture of Thatcher on $10 note or something ?

Respect to your country Chou for taking so many Syrians.

[CHOULO19 24,332]

  On 18/09/2015 at 18:08, Fulham Broadway said:

Did you see Jed Bush-(Jed haha have they a Bubba Bush as well?) wants to have picture of Thatcher on $10 note or something ?

Respect to your country Chou for taking so many Syrians.

Tbh, most of them don't have anything near a decent living here. Unless they already had money to start a business or find work (which is hard seeing as unemployment is over 40% for young Lebanese people let alone Syrians) then they have to either live in slums in the suburbs somewhere or worse in refugee camps..

Though it has gotten a bit better in the past year or so due to A LOT of work by many NGOs here you can still find people living under bridges and in public parks and you can still find children begging around busy intersections.

The fact that public schools can't accommodate both Lebanese and Syrian children despite running morning and afternoon 'shifts' coupled with the unwillingness of a lot of Syrian parents to send their kids to school means that thousands of children are not getting an education.

The lack of funding for UN organizations and NGOs helping Syrian and Iraqi refugees has been nothing short of disastrous. Then you have the worryingly rising racism against Syrians even in main stream politics among right wing Christian sectarian parties in particular which peaked about a year ago but has thankfully started to decline as everyone has started to see that all the fear mongering was pretty baseless.

But overall for most Syrian refugees they stand very slim chances of being integrated into mainstream Lebanese society and being able to lead a decent and rewarding life.

[Fulham Broadway 17,091]

  On 18/09/2015 at 19:42, CHOULO19 said:

Tbh, most of them don't have anything near a decent living here. Unless they already had money to start a business or find work (which is hard seeing as unemployment is over 40% for young Lebanese people let alone Syrians) then they have to either live in slums in the suburbs somewhere or worse in refugee camps..

Though it has gotten a bit better in the past year or so due to A LOT of work by many NGOs here you can still find people living under bridges and in public parks and you can still find children begging around busy intersections.

The fact that public schools can't accommodate both Lebanese and Syrian children despite running morning and afternoon 'shifts' coupled with the unwillingness of a lot of Syrian parents to send their kids to school means that thousands of children are not getting an education.

The lack of funding for UN organizations and NGOs helping Syrian and Iraqi refugees has been nothing short of disastrous. Then you have the worryingly rising racism against Syrians even in main stream politics among right wing Christian sectarian parties in particular which peaked about a year ago but has thankfully started to decline as everyone has started to see that all the fear mongering was pretty baseless.

But overall for most Syrian refugees they stand very slim chances of being integrated into mainstream Lebanese society and being able to lead a decent and rewarding life.

Still, it puts other countries to shame, especially others in the region and has to be commended. I think Jordan has taken a hell of a lot as well.

Bottom line, is they would rather be living in a stable Syria, and are victims of circumstance. During the Kosovan crisis, 4000 + Albanians came to Britain amidst all the usual corporate media scare stories that theyre gangsters/benefit scroungers etc. Anyway, the point is, refugees in the main tend to return when conflict ceases. Once the Balkans had calmed down, less than 150 remained

[lucio 5,418]

  On 16/09/2015 at 16:30, Fulham Broadway said:

Daily Heil has had a pop at him for an unkempt beard.

It's a lot better than Cameron's ham face

[Fulham Broadway 17,091]

  On 18/09/2015 at 20:04, lucio said:

It's a lot better than Cameron's ham face

I liked it when Vic Reeves said his face was like a painted egg.

[lucio 5,418]

His policy about allotments is why I like him , the kind of thing no one else cares about , but could really improve the country.

[CHOULO19 24,332]

  On 18/09/2015 at 20:04, Fulham Broadway said:

Still, it puts other countries to shame, especially others in the region and has to be commended. I think Jordan has taken a hell of a lot as well.

Bottom line, is they would rather be living in a stable Syria, and are victims of circumstance. During the Kosovan crisis, 4000 + Albanians came to Britain amidst all the usual corporate media scare stories that theyre gangsters/benefit scroungers etc. Anyway, the point is, refugees in the main tend to return when conflict ceases. Once the Balkans had calmed down, less than 150 remained

Lebanon has a very fragile and struggling economy as well as a massive 80 billion dollar public dept. The ridiculously rich gulf states have taken in ZERO refugees. They could have housed and fed a couple of million people for the money they've spent buying City (UAE prince) and PSG (Qatari government) alone.

Jordan have taken in about a million refugee but they've kept them in camps near the border. I'm sure those people are grateful to be safe but they are literally not allowed to actually go into Jordan and seek work...etc.

Regardless, the vast majority of people are being forced to leave and would return when it becomes safe. Leaving your country is an incredibly tough decision and trying to start a new life from scratch in a new one is even tougher. And not just financially but culturally and socially. Especially if you don't know the language.

My parents were refugees in Switzerland during the Lebanese civil war in the late 80s and early 90s (where I was actually born). They lived a small heavenly village and made more money than they can dream of making in Lebanon. Yet the moment the war ended they headed back to Lebanon. I sometimes tease them "Who the hell leaves Switzerland?!" but when I graduated and spent 7 or 8 months unemployed I refused to pursue working opportunities abroad because I didn't want to leave.

There is something inherent and instinctive about attachment to the place and culture you were born in. No one wants to leave home.

[Spike 12,049]

There are people that sincerely believe that the Japanese are going on a warpath through south-east Asia again.

[CHOULO19 24,332]

  On 19/09/2015 at 07:12, Spike Spiegel said:

There are people that sincerely believe that the Japanese are going on a warpath through south-east Asia again.

Worse, they're going to start getting involved conflicts all over the world at the beck and call of the US and start joining "international bombing campaigns" for "peace and freedom" which everyone knows to mean "The US wants more oil and business for their corporations".

Might even be used to stir up old tensions to put pressure on China. So could definitely be the start of something bad for south east Asia.

[NishC300 1,865]

  On 18/09/2015 at 16:46, CHOULO19 said:

Kill them. KILL THEM ALL!!

It may sound funny but is the truth of this Palestinian movement.

[CHOULO19 24,332]

  On 19/09/2015 at 09:48, NishC300 said:

It may sound funny but is the truth of this Palestinian movement.

Yup that's the truth of the whole Palestinian movement. Their hatred of Jews goes so deep that for hundreds of years they pretended to coexist with them peacefully (they were still called Palestinian Jews back then) just to lure in millions of Jews from around the world to create a Jewish state in their lands so they would have them all in the same place to make it easier to kill them all.

They are so evil about their hatred of Jews that they forced the Zionists to bomb them and murder them (but mostly women and children) by the thousands just to spread their antisemitism and hatred of Jews around the world.

And there's no way to talk them out of their irrational prejudice. Their hatred knows no ends. Unfortunately, we MUST kill all Palestinians down to the last child to stop their evil. It's the only rational thing to do.

[Spike 12,049]

  On 19/09/2015 at 07:28, CHOULO19 said:

Worse, they're going to start getting involved conflicts all over the world at the beck and call of the US and start joining "international bombing campaigns" for "peace and freedom" which everyone knows to mean "The US wants more oil and business for their corporations".

Might even be used to stir up old tensions to put pressure on China. So could definitely be the start of something bad for south east Asia.

That is worse than the rape of Nanking??! For starters we will have to see how long this legislation is in place, the majority of the population was against this; as it was a purely government decision. The government is out of touch with Japan and has notoriously been so for a long time.

[Spike 12,049]

Are some refugees crazy?!?! Refusing supplies and whatnot because they want to go to a welfare state like Sweden or Germany? I just watched a video of some dickhead throwing huge amounts of bottled water on the traintracks for no reason. If I was in there position I'd be so grateful for any help. Some people (other refugees) looked really mad at the guy, very mad.

[NishC300 1,865]

  On 19/09/2015 at 10:01, CHOULO19 said:

Yup that's the truth of the whole Palestinian movement. Their hatred of Jews goes so deep that for hundreds of years they pretended to coexist with them peacefully (they were still called Palestinian Jews back then) just to lure in millions of Jews from around the world to create a Jewish state in their lands so they would have them all in the same place to make it easier to kill them all.

They are so evil about their hatred of Jews that they forced the Zionists to bomb them and murder them (but mostly women and children) by the thousands just to spread their antisemitism and hatred of Jews around the world.

And there's no way to talk them out of their irrational prejudice. Their hatred knows no ends. Unfortunately, we MUST kill all Palestinians down to the last child to stop their evil. It's the only rational thing to do.

Hahaha I've already had this discussion with you. You fail to convince me that a democratic and free society is 'evil' and some terrorists whose hateful ideology is centered around the murder of innocent and glorifies murder are somehow the 'good guys'.

[CHOULO19 24,332]

  On 19/09/2015 at 18:05, NishC300 said:

Hahaha I've already had this discussion with you. You fail to convince me that a democratic and free society is 'evil' and some terrorists whose hateful ideology is centered around the murder of innocent and glorifies murder are somehow the 'good guys'.

Never even attempted to convince you of that. You're trying too hard to put me in a stereotypical box because you only know to debate the issue through the same rhetoric you have been taught. Any deviation from the usual points and you instantly turn to complete irrationality or diversion tactics.

[CHOULO19 24,332]

  On 19/09/2015 at 11:22, Spike Spiegel said:

That is worse than the rape of Nanking??! For starters we will have to see how long this legislation is in place, the majority of the population was against this; as it was a purely government decision. The government is out of touch with Japan and has notoriously been so for a long time.

Not from a humanitarian point of view of course. At least not directly. Corporations sponsored wars are undoubtedly the biggest catastrophe in the world at the moment. Adding a country like Japan and reigniting those wars in East Asia would of course be another huge blow and will only increase the suffering of millions.

Democracy, in its traditional sense, is mostly irrelevant in neo-liberal countries. That is why the Fukushima reactor was restarted despite overwhelming opposition. Same could be applied to the US, to give you examples closer to you, in issues like the war on drugs, mass incarceration, GMOs labeling, offshore oil drilling, standardized school testing, the bail system, the TPP and TTIP...etc. the list is almost endless.

[Spike 12,049]

  On 19/09/2015 at 20:17, CHOULO19 said:

Not from a humanitarian point of view of course. At least not directly. Corporations sponsored wars are undoubtedly the biggest catastrophe in the world at the moment. Adding a country like Japan and reigniting those wars in East Asia would of course be another huge blow and will only increase the suffering of millions.

Democracy, in its traditional sense, is mostly irrelevant in neo-liberal countries. That is why the Fukushima reactor was restarted despite overwhelming opposition. Same could be applied to the US, to give you examples closer to you, in issues like the war on drugs, mass incarceration, GMOs labeling, offshore oil drilling, standardized school testing, the bail system, the TPP and TTIP...etc. the list is almost endless.

You are right but on a different note: the thing about the Fukushima reactor is that people are fucking ignorant when it comes to nuclear power. I understand your point of reference but you and I both know that the radiation leak from the earthquake and tsunami was about equal to five minutes standing in the midday sun. The catastrophe was handled because that is what the engineers are trained for and the powerplant is built for. Getting nuked in the face by America would definitely have a cultral stigma to anything nuclear related. Not to mention in the west Hollywood nonsense and The Simpsons have done nothing to help nuclear power in the social conscious. Shit, when an entire generation grows up watching a show where every five episodes everyone nearly dies from radiation, you have to expect a stigma to be attached with it.

I really doubt any wars will start in East-Asia. Tensions may rise between China, Japan and Korea but all three have far too much to lose and too little to gain with an prolong armed conflict. It will be tense but as long as Japan has no allies meddling about in East-Asia (I'm looking at you America) they can't do anything. The last I checked Japan can only engage in wars where they have 'allies' already engaged. It means for little but at least Japan can't just roll up to a country like the Philippines and takeover; which it seems a lot of people think will happen.

[CHOULO19 24,332]

  On 19/09/2015 at 20:48, Spike Spiegel said:

You are right but on a different note: the thing about the Fukushima reactor is that people are fucking ignorant when it comes to nuclear power. I understand your point of reference but you and I both know that the radiation leak from the earthquake and tsunami was about equal to five minutes standing in the midday sun. The catastrophe was handled because that is what the engineers are trained for and the powerplant is built for. Getting nuked in the face by America would definitely have a cultral stigma to anything nuclear related. Not to mention in the west Hollywood nonsense and The Simpsons have done nothing to help nuclear power in the social conscious. Shit, when an entire generation grows up watching a show where every five episodes everyone nearly dies from radiation, you have to expect a stigma to be attached with it.

I really doubt any wars will start in East-Asia. Tensions may rise between China, Japan and Korea but all three have far too much to lose and too little to gain with an prolong armed conflict. It will be tense but as long as Japan has no allies meddling about in East-Asia (I'm looking at you America) they can't do anything. The last I checked Japan can only engage in wars where they have 'allies' already engaged. It means for little but at least Japan can't just roll up to a country like the Philippines and takeover; which it seems a lot of people think will happen.

Personally I'm on the fence on Nuclear energy despite probably knowing more about it as an electrical engineer than the average citizen. The advantages are huge and very tempting but the consequences of the risk are too great. I once used to argue for nuclear energy to be considered a clean and 'renewable' (since Uranium is fairly abundant and you need only need small quantities of it) source of power. But I fully understand the concerns. But it also feels very dirty and wrong to be on the side of the "energy lobbies". Anyway, the point was that regardless of how you feel about it, if the majority don't want nuclear reactors then there should not be.

As for East Asia, I'm by no means and expert, but after Iraq, Libya, Syria and Yemen, you have to feel that the US will either move to direct confrontations with the 'big heads' of the axis of resistance, i.e. Russia, Iran and China or some sorts of political agreements on key issues. We've seen signs of both from the Iran deal and hints of a Russian-American agreement over Syria on one side and the Ukrainian issue and US supported Saudi aggression in Yemen. So when Japan, a US 'ally' (as not to say a US lieutenant as a US official once described the UK) comes up with a decision like this in a time like this you have to be wary because direct or even confrontation with any of Iran, Russia and China will no doubt have disastrous effects world-wide.