Here is Monday’s edition of interesting reads from the around the world.
The Saga of Zimbabwe
Nothing anymore should surprise me about the odious Robert Mugagbe but this is stunning and heart-breaking. Having decided that a second round was what the official tally dictated, ZANU-PF, Zimbabwe’s ruling party is now seeking to hold the second round in a year. The gory details from the Guardian Unlimited. All this does is give Mugagbe to further intimidate the people of Zimbabwe. African leaders had better wake up to the fact that could now see increased strife and violence that has genocidal potential in Zimbabwe.
Israeli PM Olmert’s Woes Grow
Another political scandal is erupting in Jerusalem. Israel’s Prime Minister Ehud Olmert used his bureau to promote the artistic career of his wife Aliza, a Haaretz report reveals. The report also says that when the couple were in New York for a private art exhibit by Olmert, their stay at a luxury hotel was paid for by an American association. Olmert was already embroiled in a tax scandal. Sources involved in the police investigation of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, the details of which cannot be made public due to a gag order, said Sunday it would be clear within a few days whether or not Olmert would be indicted on unspecified charges. More from Haaretz and the New York Times.
From the Asia Development Bank Meeting in Spain
Though last I checked Spain was part of Europe, this year’s annual meeting of the ADB (Asia Development Bank based in Manila) is being held in Madrid. It is a poor decision that sends an out of touch signal on the growing food crisis in Asia. Here are two reports from the meeting: one on soaring food prices and another on $80 Billion USD Facility aiming at averting a financial currency crises similar to one that wreaked havoc in the region in the late 1990s.
Buying America
I am a China hawk. Other than Hong Kong I don’t set foot in the country and never will until the regime in Beijing is ousted. I also don’t buy any Chinese goods and haven’t since the 1980s. And so this story in the Los Angeles Times leaves me disconcerted.