maqroll Posted October 3, 2013 Author Share Posted October 3, 2013 Yeah, that seems pretty OTT, and what sort of actual power did the Queen have over Commonwealth governments back in the 70's? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarewsEyebrowDesigner Posted October 3, 2013 Share Posted October 3, 2013 Shots fired near Capitol Hill, apparently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maqroll Posted October 3, 2013 Author Share Posted October 3, 2013 Reports saying someone tried to "ram White House barricade"...Military Coup? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drat01 Posted October 3, 2013 Share Posted October 3, 2013 ....."...Military Coup? Must be those chicken terrorists they keep talking about Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chindie Posted October 3, 2013 VT Supporter Share Posted October 3, 2013 Reports saying someone tried to "ram White House barricade"...Military Coup? I'm gonna hazard a guess at no... unless most of the world is giving the US military more respect than it deserves, if they did want to launch a coup I don't think it'd start with someone trying to ram a barricade. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrDuck Posted October 3, 2013 Share Posted October 3, 2013 (edited) regarding the Aus shutdown, can the Prime Minister simply be dismissed? Well he was in '75, so yes. The PM is appointed by the governor-general, who is the representative of the Queen. The queen could instruct her representative to appoint a new PM at any time. She doesn't have these powers as queen of England, but as Australia's queen... legally Oz is a monarchy with a royal family. It's more of a theoretical yes than a practical yes though. Edited October 4, 2013 by MrDuck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leviramsey Posted October 4, 2013 VT Supporter Share Posted October 4, 2013 m.us.wsj.com/articles/BL-WB-40873Meanwhile Obama has trotted out the head of the NSA to argue that the shutdown imperils the surveillance efforts and will embolden foreign powers to recruit more Snowdens... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterms Posted October 4, 2013 Share Posted October 4, 2013 m.us.wsj.com/articles/BL-WB-40873 Meanwhile Obama has trotted out the head of the NSA to argue that the shutdown imperils the surveillance efforts and will embolden foreign powers to recruit more Snowdens... He's speaking of his own staff in one of the most trusted areas of national employment, and saying that a delay in paying them will make it likely that they will defect to foreign powers? That's how little he thinks of them? Must have read the idiot's guide to how to motivate your staff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterms Posted October 4, 2013 Share Posted October 4, 2013 So I see the US government has admitted that the stories about the number of terrorist plots they have foiled, the lives they have saved, were largely made up. Something to think about for those people who equate doubting the government line with barking mad conspiracy theories. On the other hand, perhaps they have now admitted to everything they lied about, so that means everything else they say is true? So we can go back to using "conspiracy theory" as a term of casual abuse, whenever anyone questions what the state tells us? Phew. That's a weight off my mind. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maqroll Posted October 4, 2013 Author Share Posted October 4, 2013 Reports saying someone tried to "ram White House barricade"...Military Coup? I'm gonna hazard a guess at no... unless most of the world is giving the US military more respect than it deserves, if they did want to launch a coup I don't think it'd start with someone trying to ram a barricade. Erm, I wos sarcastix Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterms Posted October 13, 2013 Share Posted October 13, 2013 Obviously the latest charade about pretending the country's about to default will have had an impact in the short term, but still the trend over ten years is clear: there is a growing feeling that a third party is needed in US politics. Gradual, but evident. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coda Posted October 14, 2013 Share Posted October 14, 2013 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterms Posted October 15, 2013 Share Posted October 15, 2013 Chinese commentator sets out some concerns about the role of the US, and suggests that a different balance of international power is needed. By Xinhua writer Liu Chang BEIJING, Oct. 13 (Xinhua) -- As U.S. politicians of both political parties are still shuffling back and forth between the White House and the Capitol Hill without striking a viable deal to bring normality to the body politic they brag about, it is perhaps a good time for the befuddled world to start considering building a de-Americanized world. Emerging from the bloodshed of the Second World War as the world's most powerful nation, the United States has since then been trying to build a global empire by imposing a postwar world order, fueling recovery in Europe, and encouraging regime-change in nations that it deems hardly Washington-friendly. With its seemingly unrivaled economic and military might, the United States has declared that it has vital national interests to protect in nearly every corner of the globe, and been habituated to meddling in the business of other countries and regions far away from its shores. Meanwhile, the U.S. government has gone to all lengths to appear before the world as the one that claims the moral high ground, yet covertly doing things that are as audacious as torturing prisoners of war, slaying civilians in drone attacks, and spying on world leaders. Under what is known as the Pax-Americana, we fail to see a world where the United States is helping to defuse violence and conflicts, reduce poor and displaced population, and bring about real, lasting peace. Moreover, instead of honoring its duties as a responsible leading power, a self-serving Washington has abused its superpower status and introduced even more chaos into the world by shifting financial risks overseas, instigating regional tensions amid territorial disputes, and fighting unwarranted wars under the cover of outright lies. As a result, the world is still crawling its way out of an economic disaster thanks to the voracious Wall Street elites, while bombings and killings have become virtually daily routines in Iraq years after Washington claimed it has liberated its people from tyrannical rule. Most recently, the cyclical stagnation in Washington for a viable bipartisan solution over a federal budget and an approval for raising debt ceiling has again left many nations' tremendous dollar assets in jeopardy and the international community highly agonized. Such alarming days when the destinies of others are in the hands of a hypocritical nation have to be terminated, and a new world order should be put in place, according to which all nations, big or small, poor or rich, can have their key interests respected and protected on an equal footing. To that end, several corner stones should be laid to underpin a de-Americanized world. For starters, all nations need to hew to the basic principles of the international law, including respect for sovereignty, and keeping hands off domestic affairs of others. Furthermore, the authority of the United Nations in handling global hotspot issues has to be recognized. That means no one has the right to wage any form of military action against others without a UN mandate. Apart from that, the world's financial system also has to embrace some substantial reforms. The developing and emerging market economies need to have more say in major international financial institutions including the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, so that they could better reflect the transformations of the global economic and political landscape. What may also be included as a key part of an effective reform is the introduction of a new international reserve currency that is to be created to replace the dominant U.S. dollar, so that the international community could permanently stay away from the spillover of the intensifying domestic political turmoil in the United States. Of course, the purpose of promoting these changes is not to completely toss the United States aside, which is also impossible. Rather, it is to encourage Washington to play a much more constructive role in addressing global affairs. And among all options, it is suggested that the beltway politicians first begin with ending the pernicious impasse. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blandy Posted October 15, 2013 Moderator Share Posted October 15, 2013 Chinese commentator in Gov't media - basically Chinese gov't approved view, then. Doesn't in anw way affect the content of what's said, but it's worth knowing where it's really coming from. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterms Posted October 15, 2013 Share Posted October 15, 2013 Chinese commentator in Gov't media - basically Chinese gov't approved view, then. Doesn't in anw way affect the content of what's said, but it's worth knowing where it's really coming from. Interesting that the point about the current game-playing about the US budget is made in the opening sentence, and then twice more in the body of the piece, and finally in the last sentence. China has a lot invested in the US, and won't welcome the pathetic games which are going on at present. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blandy Posted October 15, 2013 Moderator Share Posted October 15, 2013 Aye, it's the official, approved, Chinese government news agency, so it's bound to reflect that Gov't view. They've huge amounts invested in the U.S. and own huge amounts of U.S. debt. I don't know if the moves to invest more in the UK, for example, are kind of in part due to concern over the tea poty paralysis in the U.S. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarewsEyebrowDesigner Posted October 15, 2013 Share Posted October 15, 2013 They're investing heaps in Norn Iron. Our 'politicians' are never out of their bloody pants. But then again it's the same with the American's. Oh poor us, poor us, look how divided our society is! Give us your money and it'll help. Your granny came from here, you know! What's that? We're keeping the society divided in order to maintain power? Don't be daft! It has to be this way. Ach, there is no need to be calling us names. At least the Chinese have respect. Well, we're not totally sure to be honest. We can't understand a word they say! They may aswell be speaking Chinese. We just smile for photos and run off with their money. Anyway, I won't get into that. Well, I already did. Still. I can't disagree too much with Mr Chang but for the time being I'd rather put up with the Americans than let a country we don't fully understand dominate proceedings on the world stage. Devil you know and all that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowychap Posted October 15, 2013 Share Posted October 15, 2013 They've huge amounts invested in the U.S. and own huge amounts of U.S. debt.The figures from here suggest that the Chinese (since 2005) have less invested in the US than Oz and the debt figure (though large - 20+% - as a proportion of overseas held debt) seems to be around 1.25 of 16 + (they call it trillion in this article).I wonder whether there are points being missed when talking about Chinese investment globally (like is it largely directed at particular types of investment rather than areas/countries, &c.)? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyh29 Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 US Government re-open for business ... assume that phone call to Wonga paid off then ..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Awol Posted October 17, 2013 Share Posted October 17, 2013 US Government re-open for business ... assume that phone call to Wonga paid off then ..... See you in February for operation re-run. Lurching from crisis to crisis doesn't really seem like the best way to operate the world's largest economy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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