|
report on Wed 1222 |1222show | intro Wed1221
| latest show
Wednesday 1222 Aug 3rd 2005
Peter Ratzer , brother of Gerald, returns to us this Wednesday. A year ago [Wed1068] , [Wed1013] & [Wed1043] Peter was a star guest. Peter, as many of you will remember, was deeply involved in the financing of the Chunnel.A resident of London, he will bring a first-hand report of the UK view on numerous issues, both financial and geopolitical. Also pensions funds!
Thanks to our mutual friend, Peter Ratzer , we are delighted to welcome Margaret ("Maggie") Catley- Carlson, who, among her many activities serves as Chair of the Global Water Partnership and of the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) ,Vice Chair of the International Development Research Centre and a member of the Board of the International Institute for Environment and Development . She is also a past Chair of the Center for Agriculture and Bioscience International (CABI)
Maggie has successfully pursued a distinguished career in economic development and, as you know is especially remembered in Canada for her judicious stewardship of CIDA as its president.
She is the former President of the Population Council and Chair of the Geneva-based Water Supply Sanitation Collaborative Council. Prior to joiningthe Council, she was Deputy Minister of Health and Welfare Canada, President of CIDA and Deputy Executive Director (Operations) of UNICEF.
Also joining us will be our good friend, Bill Cosgrove, past President of the World Water Council , and now President of the Bureau d’audiences publiques sur l'environnement of Québec , along with Robert Letendre, recently returned to the fold at the City of Montreal, after a 3-year absence during which he served as Director General of Development and Peace; and Professor Jan Jorgensen, Acting Dean of McGill's School of Management, who directs the Economic Policy Management programme,which is designed to give practitioners from developing and emerging market economies the analytical tools and management skills needed to become effective policy advisors.
We expect that discussion will include water, economic development, Africa, however, given the wide-ranging interests of the participants, almost anything might be on the table at some point during the evening.
At a time when more than 1 billion people around the world lack access to clean drinking water, the United Nations is spearheading cutting-edge developments in the field of isotope hydrology, a technology that allows scientists to gauge the age, origins, amount and flow of various water sources to better meet and manage growing water needs. The scientific advance is being led by the International Atomic Energy Agency, which says it currently funds 84 isotope hydrology projects in more than 50 countries, including those hit hardest by water shortages such as Bangladesh and countries throughout the Middle East and Africa.
July 2005 Seeing green in Africa By Carolyn O’Hara
While rich-country leaders look to heal Africa with generosity, China and India are helping to pull Africa out of poverty with good, old-fashioned greed.
As leaders of wealthy countries pat themselves on the back for debt relief and development assistance to Africa, China and India are doing their part to help develop Africa’s economies. The two Asian giants are pouring funds into the continent to find energy for their superheated economies and markets for their products.
According to the International Monetary Fund, five of the world’s 10 fastest growing economies are in Africa. The results aren’t isolated either. In 2005, 26 African countries—including many with expanding ties to the Asian giants—will likely exceed 5 percent GDP growth. Chinese and Indian investment, it turns out, may be as important to solving African poverty as Western charity.
And be sure to check back here for breaking news, new topics, relevant and irreverant links
David and Diana Nicholson
Tuesday Aug 2, 2005 ts Global warning: Crickets are singing a swan song
It`s about the crickets.And what it is about the crickets might have to do with the ice age. And what it is about the ice age might have to do with the fact that we should be having one.
Saturday Jul 30, 2005 The Secretary General of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development says China should be admitted as a member of the group. Donald Johnston, a former Canadian cabinet minister, says China's entry to the O-E-C-D is necessary if it's to be effective in its role of shaping the global economy. Mr Johnston also dismissed concerns about human rights and the lack of democracy in China as a reason to block its entry into the organisation of which Canada is a member. He says his organization deals with economic issues. And in this case it cannot exclude a country that could become the biggest economy in the world.
Monday Aug 1, 2005 Wednesday-Night.com/WATER.htm
Couchiching: 74th Annual Summer Conference, August 4–7, 2005
Handcuffs and Hand Grenades: The Use of Force Within and Between Nations
focussed on the use of physical force, dissecting its expression in local, national and international spheres. Engaging, timely, and provocative, the 2005 conference speakers debated ways in which force has been used within our own borders, as well as the international role Canada can and should play in the current single superpower reality. The Opening Keynote Address was delivered by General Lewis Mackenzie, and the closing by Elizabeth Palmer of CBS (formerly of CBC). Dr. Henry Morgenthaler receved the Annual Couchiching Award for Excellence in Public Policy Leadership.
Nairobi, 28 July 2005 un Statement by Klaus Toepfer in Response to US-Led Climate Initiative
25 July, 2005 bbc Aid funds finally flow for Niger see video
"Finally, donations of food and funding to help 2.5 million people facing a food crisis in Niger beginning to arrive.
The UN relief chief says graphic images of starving children have shocked the international community into response.
... more funds have been received for Niger in the last ten days than over the last ten months.
However, the body has still only received a fifth of the total $30.7m (£17.6m) it has appealed for."
23 July, 2005 Independent Just when you thought London had suffered enough:Conrad's last stand: Lord Black returns to London social scene
23 July, 2005 NYT In anticipation of our family's arrival from Singapore on the direct 18-hour flight to New York, we offer David Brooks' delicious column: Pain, Agony, Despair: Flying With Children "It's summertime, which means many people these days are flying with children, an experience that can be enriching and exciting, and is followed by memories that linger even after the shell shock, nightmares and trauma-induced facial tics have faded away."
July 30 2005 WASHINGTON -
The Senate Friday approved 74 to 26 a broad energy bill, a day after the House overwhelmingly cleared the same measure 275 to 156.
The bill to carry out the first major overhaul of US energy policy in more than a decade now goes to President Bush, who is expected to sign it into law.
Key elements included in the energy bill, along with several items that were dropped.
July 29 2005 WASHINGTON -
U.S. House Approves $26 Billion Environmental Bill
By Richard Cowan, Reuters
The House Thursday passed a $26 billion bill that funds programs for the environment and federal parks, but sets significant cuts to clean water programs.
By a vote of 410-10, the House cast its final vote on the appropriations bill to fund the Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Forest Service and other agencies for the year starting Oct. 1.
July 29 2005 WASHINGTON -
More trees can mean less water, says report By Sonja van Renssen
Water management programmes across the developing world are based on the mistaken belief that trees increase the available water in an area, says a report published today
From the Mountain to the Tap summarises four years of research led by the Centre for Land Use and Water Resources Research at the University of Newcastle, United Kingdom, and the Free University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, into water management programmes. See full report at: ..uk/watermanagement/Water_book.pdf
July 18 2005 WASHINGTON -
Climate change after Gleneagles
The decision by G8 leaders to organise formal talks with leading developing countries on limiting global warming is more significant than it might appear. But it does not compensate for the continued shortsightedness of the United States.
July/August The State of Nature By Carl Pope, Bjørn Lomborg
Is the world getting greener? Or are we selling it short for a fistful of greenbacks? When Carl Pope looks out his door, he sees the polar ice caps melting, ecosystems on life support, and clean water disappearing. But Bjørn Lomborg believes humanity’s backyard has never looked better. Who’s got it right?
July 6, 2005 Japan dangles $15b aid at Russia for oil
TOKYO - JAPAN is considering extending up to US$9 billion (S$15 billion) in aid to Russia to help finance a pipeline from Siberian oil fields, if Tokyo gets preference over Beijing in the project, a Japanese newspaper reported yesterday. The bulk of the sum being considered would be in the form of low-interest loans and trade insurance.
(Reported in the Strait Times - no longer available)
Jul 6, 2005 China knocking on Russia's door By Sergei Blagov
MOSCOW- ... Moscow and Beijing have long eyed bilateral projects in energy infrastructure, and want to revive a project to build a $1.5 billion 2,600 kilometer power transmission line from the Irkutsk region in Siberia to China. Moreover, Beijing has indicated interest in potential investments in Russian hydropower projects.
However, Hu has to date failed to make major progress on securing oil supplies from Russia as Moscow is still wavering on an oil pipeline to China.
April 22 , 2005 Go Canada By Andrew Aulisi and Jonathan Pershing
The border between the United States and Canada runs 5,500 miles across North America and is marked by little more than a narrow clearing of land. But the seemingly narrow divide between the United States and Canada masks many profound differences in how these countries view the world. Nothing demonstrates this more clearly than Canada’s recently announced national program to cut greenhouse gas emissions, bringing it into compliance with the Kyoto Protocol on global warming.
July 2005 Dryland conservation and development: striking a balance Reviewer: Ehsan Masood
One-billion people live in dry regions of the world, which cover nearly 40 per cent of the Earth's surface. Many live in rural areas and earn their living as farmers, pastoralists, herders, and woodcutters. What they all have in common is a reliance on natural resources - including biodiversity, which is declining at a rate unprecedented in recorded history.
July Global Water Partnership (GWP) is a working partnership among all those involved in water management and committed to the Dublin-Rio principles.
This comprehensive partnership actively identifies critical knowledge needs at global, regional and national levels, helps design programs for meeting these needs, and serves as a mechanism for alliance building and information exchange on integrated water resources management. The World Bank has been an active member of the GWP since its beginning.
July The International Secretariat for Water was created to implement the principles embodied in the Montreal Charter, which was adopted in New Delhi at the conclusion of the United Nations´ Water and Sanitation Decade in 1990.
WASHINGTON -Tue Aug 2
President Bush installed embattled nominee John Bolton as ambassador to the
United Nations
on Monday, bypassing the Senate after a testy five-month standoff with
Democrats who argued that the tough-talking conservative was unfit for
the job.
"This post is too important to leave vacant any longer,
especially during a war and a vital debate about U.N. reform," Bush
said at a White House ceremony with Bolton and Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice.
Tuesday Aug 2, 2005 ts Defying critics, Bush sends Bolton to U.N.
WASHINGTON—U.S. President George W. Bush installed U.N. critic John Bolton as America`s ambassador to the world organization yesterday in an in-your-face gesture to Congress and the global community.
Tuesday Aug 2, 2005 nyt Bush's U.N. Agenda Is Well Under Way
By STEVEN R. WEISMAN
American officials say much of their reform agenda at the U.N. was accomplished during the months while John Bolton's nomination languished.
OPEC
Wednesday-Night.com says bravo to
We remind you that given his devoted following, Jacques Clément's Reports on the Economy are now published on their own special pages and are linked from each week's summary page.
Last week Wed 1220 & Wed 1220 Summary a fine read
Galbraith's of Wed1205 Album
Read About W-N
NP story on W-N
Contact W-N & Map
UNITED STATES
Current Beige Book
June 15, 2005 Fed reports growth in 11 of 12 regions Beige Book: Retail mixed, jobs improve, price pressure up
Note
Wednesday-Night creates charts and follows stocks, including timely related financial news items, in which Wednesday Nighters are interested and in order to demonstrate a service that could eventually be developed and marketed. Wednesday Nighters are invited to participate and help to test the service.
see WN Flip charts
QUOTES of the EVENING from recent Wednesday Nights
From #1219
-
Investors are shrugging off oil prices and the market wants to go up
-
From an economic point of view, it would be a lot healthier if the money flowed to venture funds instead of to hedge funds
-
Almost everyone who has invested in income trusts in the past few years has made money and that spells trouble
-
I’m conflicted. Up close, things look fine, but when you stand back, I feel that there are many bubbles out there, and something is going to bite us
-
Outsourcing is looked upon as a problem, but has not yet struck Canadians as being the first step to the total elimination of all manufacturing in this country
From #1218
-
Does the motivation of the whistleblower come into consideration? There are situations that should become public knowledge for the good of an institution, its clients and/or the public
-
There is an argument for a re-evaluation of George Bush senior's presidency in the way that he handled the fall of the Soviet Empire and the reunification of Germany
-
Everyone is talking about the price of gas, but when will consumers realize the impact of rising oil prices on everything else?
From #1217
- You don't judge societies by the way they treat people they like, the test is how they treat people they despise (Margaret Somerville on CBC)
- Where there is freedom, there will always be things going wrong
From #1216
- Should independent courts or accountable elected officials be defining the system?
- Almost all decisions of minority versus majority rights derive from legislation
- If you want to cut down 10,000 trees in Northern Ontario, you have to do an impact analysis, but if the government wants to introduce an early retirement programme for doctors, there is no impact analysis on patient care
- (I would love to see) union representatives and spokespersons standing up to say 'my job is not to protect you in your current job, my job is to help you be afforded the greatest opportunities whether in your current capacity or in some other capacity you may have'.
From #1215
- Both health and education require de-bureaucratization
- Medicare is a monopoly and monopoly is inefficient
- Small accommodations help integrate people into the community and create fewer martyrs
- Why is health care one area where we say everyone must receive uniform treatment? ... We know that people with influence are bypassing the system, so it is the height of hypocrisy to say that the system cannot be touched
From #1214
- It is not a crime to peddle influence, particularly if you don’t have it
- Very few people have the integrity to leave when it is time
- If we allow parallel (healthcare) systems, how do we guarantee that the medical practitioners will not all flow to the 'private' – and more remunerative – sector?
From #1213
- You can’t have a political union without monetary union. The question is, can the euro survive - the big mistake is to have expanded to forty-five countries
- (the European Union) have put too much emphasis on inflation control at the expense of economic growth
- What matters to the world is that Europe is not contributing to the world to the extent that it has the potential. This is the climate in which Europe will just be left behind in the world economic race
- In two years, it will be a different (younger) scene, different leaders in France, Germany and who knows, perhaps in England. The people will change their minds. Perhaps we'll have a Europe-Lite for a while?
- At this (the current) level of interest rates, stocks are quite cheap. ... Stocks will outperform bonds
From #1212
- ... (hourly wages and benefits which at) 38 Euros (in Germany, may be compared to the equivalent of ), 28 Euros in the United States and 1½ Euros in China. You can see where your next car is coming from. ... Capital is mobile, labour is not
- Whoever wins (the expected autumn German Election) will be unable to deal with the issues. That is why I am beginning to worry about the Euro
- China will revalue the Yuan to a basket of currencies, weakening the U.S. dollar and strengthening the Asian currencies
From #1211
- Belinda – the Paris Hilton of Canadian politics?
- Bombardier is selling the government a glider
- The Market thinks that the Fed is not going to raise interest rates very much more – they sniff that the end is near – and that is why the Market is going up
- Ron Meisels is the very best predictor of the turnaround point of the stock market
- Some 80% of referenda fail because people prefer to say No than Yes, suggesting that political strategists should start thinking about double negatives in order to achieve Yes
From #1210
- We see a risk on the horizon for Canada and it is the tar sands because it takes our minds off productivity growth
- In the last election Liberal voters in Quebec wanted to punish the Liberals; they still want to punish the Liberals for their flagrant misuse of public monies, but this time, they should have a viable alternative – the one offered by the new inclusive Conservative Party that reflects their interests and their communities
- In the last election, we said what we stood for and nobody believed us
From #1209
- We should try to imagine a world 20 years from now if the rate of consumption continues to increase, where the rest of the world cannot participate at all, where deaths from AIDS in Africa continue at the same rate – what could possibly make that world stable? How can we possibly live in that world?
- The rest of the world is buying up [American] assets at the rate of almost 2 billion dollars a day – this cannot continue without consequences
- Extremism comes from educated people who have learned to use the disaffection of millions of people
- They used to think that only young hearts were acceptable, but they have come to the conclusion that a fifty-year old person in need of a transplant could use the heart of a fifty year old
From #1208
- Everything has combined against Martin, including his own ineptitude
- Harper is notably 'absent' on a number of fundamental issues – that's why people think he has a hidden agenda
From #1207
- By our standards, the system (China) is bankrupt
- China is now Japan’s largest market, bigger than the U.S., so there is economic rationale for quietening down the demonstration. It is a serious situation
- Interest rates will rise because people will not put up with exploding inflation, I would think ... within two years
- You should never look at your house as an investment
- According to the Economist, everyone should be renting for the next couple of years
- The line between inflation and deflation is very closely marked and oil prices can make the difference
- The world appears to be on the edge of a slowdown in growth
From #1206
- Complex problems never get solved by simple solutions ... You make a small change and you can get massive problems. What you need is multiple pilot projects to measure results
- If China reaches the U.S. (in affluence), we die
- The nature of wealth has changed (information versus value added)
- To feed everyone is a geopolitical problem today, not a production problem
- Globalization takes power away from government
From #1205
- If English is the lingua franca of the world, it will flourish. The same is true of French in Québec
- “Every five years we have a free choice, we vote (and elect the party best reflecting the will of the majority).”
- “The way of thinking of a culture is stored in language.”
From #1203
- G.M. is a perfect example of a company that did everything right. This is a good company which has now become a pension fund that makes cars
- Government pension funds are in a big crisis. What happens to people in (periods of) intensive technological change? More than ever, the state needs to become involved. Canada will not be exempt
- Energy is and will always be disturbing to the environment
From #1202
- Securities legislation lets banks to secure their debt; there should be provisions in the law to put workers ahead of secured creditors, because they can least afford to suffer their losses
- You need someone at the World Bank with political clout, but the political agenda may not be in the best interests of mankind
- We have to change the way we think about what we consider an educated person
From #1201
- You cannot make people casualties of your benevolence
- It is a common belief that the U.S. invaded Iraq to grab oil, but actually it was to bring a large army in to cause political change. If it works, then we have to acknowledge that Bush was right
- I cannot accept that inappropriate policies may be vindicated, raising the prospect that they will be implemented at other times
- Is it a better thing to replace pictures of dictators with logos of Haliburton and MacDonalds?
Past Quotes Best or All
Notes by Herbert Bercovitz OWN & Edited by Diana Thébaud Nicholson OWN
2005 W-N Links for #1222
Wednesday Aug 3, 2005 NYT Editorial Ambassador Bolton
If there's a positive side to President Bush's appointment of John Bolton as ambassador to the United Nations yesterday, it's that as long as Mr. Bolton is in New York, he will not be wreaking diplomatic havoc anywhere else. Talks with North Korea, for instance, have been looking more productive since Mr. Bolton left the State Department, and it's hard not to think that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's generally positive performance in office is due, in part, to her canniness in dispatching Mr. Bolton out of Washington.
Website keeps tabs on MPs
Young electrical engineer still searching for a job in his field spent 600 hours compiling statistics on votes missed, bills introduced, words spoken in the House of Commons and voting records
 Stephen S. Poloz VP EDC Economics Weekly Commentary
U.S. Fiscal Fear Fizzling - July 13, 2005
There continues to be a widespread perception that the U.S. fiscal situation is a big mess that poses risks for the world. Perhaps, but the recent numbers indicate that these risks are receding. Past issues | his WN page
Raffles Hotel Long Bar Sold for £600m
site 1, 2
23/07/2005 £600m sale ruffles the famed calm of Raffles
>P>
Raffles is a hotel to remember. With 103 suites - mere rooms are not an option - furnished with wooden floors, antiques, Persian rugs, and the obligatory ceiling fans as well as air-conditioning, it is Singapore's finest landmark.
"Raffles has been an icon for a century and, yes, I think it still is and absolutely deserves it," said Gretchen Liu, the American-born author of a book on the hotel. By Sebastien Berger
Opened in 1899, Raffles Hotel is one of the oldest and most desirable hotels in the world today. This spectacular hotel has won more than 25 awards since its reopening in 1991 after a 2 year (S$160 million) restoration project that returned the hotel to its original colonial splendor of 1915. There are now more than 8,000 pieces of silver & historical china, some dating back as far as Raffles Hotel itself, decorating the hotels interior. Among the impressive facilities on offer are the Jubilee Hall, a nineteenth century playhouse, Raffles Hotel Museum, Raffles Culinary Academy, and The Long Bar, the home of the Singapore Sling. This Raffles Hotel is a piece of history and a must see!
|
 Singapore is not just one island but a main island with over 60 surrounding islets. The main island has a total land area of about 263 square miles (about the size of Rhode Island). see the hotel
click for Wednesday-Night Story by Terry Jones
![[English ver]](images/en.gif) Stephanie Lalut on W-N
Please click here to see new/updated pages since last visit
www.iedm.org/ coming Events
Wed 1221 July 27th, 2005 John Moore & George Bowser return; Guy Stanley introduced Victoria Martins, who comes to Canada from Argentina, via a Fulbright Scholarship to Harvard we talked on Canada/U.S. relations the U.S. Are Canadians anti-American? then Canada permit Banks to merge, nest When is a bubble not a bubble? with low interest rates Regulation of the airwaves C.R.T.C. & freedom of speech. then Muslims & Karl Rove/Judith Miller/ (continued from Wed1218)
Gerald Ratzer OWN John Curtin's film back
Jacques Clément & his report
Please click for Wed1221 invite | Wed1221 photos
 Wed1221
Wed1221 report
|
BBC
;)
;)
;)
;)
Jacques ;)
)
Louise des Trois-Maisons
)
;)
;)
;)
;)
Me Allan Mass OWN ;)
Peter Perkins ;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
;)
)
;)
){kind=link}
;){kind=link}
){kind=link}