Charles Taylor & Blood Diamonds

Charles Taylor Trial Starts - TIME

This is an interesting event that bears noting.

As I heard on NPR yesterday, Taylor's trial may cause African leaders to sit up and watch. According to some, this trial will put African leaders on notice that some behavior is intolerable. Not only is their behavior intolerable, but to be a "leader" one cannot feign ignorance of the actions of subordinates. Also, criminal behavior as endemic as it appears to have been in Liberia reflects on the leadership, and leaders should be held as responsible as those that actually pulled the trigger.

All of that is well and good, and I hope the prosecution pulls this one out.

The intriguing part of this event is the role of blood diamonds. Blood diamonds, also called Conflict Diamonds, are diamonds, extracted from the ground by slave or conscripted labor, and sold to unscrupulous traders in exchange for weapons. The weapons are then used to subjugate the indigenous population, fund other illegal activities, to enhance the wealth of the ruling group, or to fund conflict in other countries. Paramilitary groups have been known to round up men and children and put them to work searching for diamonds, threatening families and women in the event that other family members attempt to leave. Workers caught pocketing diamonds, even small ones, are liable to have hands chopped off, family members killed, or be killed themselves.

Many diamond producers, after 1999, vowed never to purchase diamonds obtained by the means described above. The problem is in the policing of these diamonds, and the unscrupulous people that trade in diamonds. Diamonds are smuggled from countries that have oppressive extraction methods to countries that comply with voluntary warranty systems (Kimberley Process). Then, these "legitimate" diamonds are sold on the diamond auction just as those diamonds obtained from more transparent processes.

74 Countries are members of the Kimberley Process, a system where member states can only trade with other member states. These member states must have met certain conditions and requirements to ensure transparency in the movement of diamonds. The issue in Africa is the corruption endemic in many governments, where money changes hands, encouraging people to look the other way.

Toyota Passes Ford in Sales

As reported in this article, Toyota is now the #2 seller of automobiles in the United States, surpassing Ford.

A brief Google search led me to this site: OICA, and the listings of the world's biggest automakers. Here is a brief summary of the Top 5 (from 2006):

1. General Motors: 8.926 million units
2. Toyota: 8.036 million units
3. Ford: 6.268 million units
4. Volkswagen: 5.684 million units
5. Honda: 3.669 million units

The next largest U.S. automaker is Chrysler, coming in at 2.544 million units.

The U.S. auto industry stirs considerable emotion, due to the introduction of foreign autos in the 1970s, the restructuring of the U.S. auto industry, and the construction of foreign-owned and U.S. staffed production facilities.

In researching the automakers, I can across several Feedback-type postings of people lamenting the fall of the U.S. automaker, how U.S. citizens are traitors to their nation by buying foreign automobiles, etc.

Many U.S. are gainfully employed by these automakers. True, wages are not as high as they once were, but the wages are still good, benefits still available, and the product produced still high-quality. Secondly, even automobiles produced by U.S. automakers are not truly U.S.-made autos. Where was your Chevy Avalanche made? Mexico. Where was your Pontiac GTO made? Australia. How about your PT Cruiser? Also, Mexico. The new Ford Fusion is also made in Mexico.

But what about those cars made in wholly in the U.S.? If you drive a Ford Escape, about 35% of the parts making up that auto came from outside the United States/Canada. A Ford Mustang is about 70% American. In comparison, a Toyota Camry, made in Kentucky, is about 75% American. A Nissan Altima, made in MS or TN, is about 65% American.

We, as Americans, tend to want the best value for our dollar. Corporations tend to want to enhanced profitability for both themselves and keep their stockholders happy, so seek to find that balance between quality of product and cost. This is oversimplification, but the relationship here is extremely dynamic and constantly in a state of flux. Besides value, psychology also plays a large role here, in the perceptions that consumers have regarding brands and perceived quality. Additionally, there may also be cultural forces at work, as well.

While it is possible to make a close-to-100% American auto (Ford Expedition-95%), the American consumer market forces, coupled with global economics, tend to work against that reality.

(The source for most of my information was derived from a USA Today article, dated March 22nd, 2007)

Iraqis Resort To Selling Children

Iraqis Resort To Selling Children

I am waiting for Windows XP SP2 to complete installing, and, as I am wont to doing in these episodes of spare time, I examine international news sources. This article in the English Al Jazeera edition caught my eye.

I encourage all of my geography students to go outside the US by examining international news sources. Some of my geography students have no choice, as it is part of their semester assignment. Most do not like to do this, and they protest. Usually, by mid-term, attitudes have changed, as the exposure awakens their minds to issues away from their homes. We cannot trust our media sources to provide us with unbiased news to keep Americans aware and apprised of conditions across the globe. Occasionally, Newsweek (Fareed Zakaria), the Washington Post, the New York Times, or the Wall Street Journal, will help out. The reality is that for us as US citizens to understand life outside our country we have to pro-active in that education.

Like this article. Huckabee wins! Yeah! Obama wins! Yeah! Meanwhile, families are driven to desperation to abide in a war-torn country. Families selling their children in hopes that their lives will be better, i.e. safer, healthier, etc., than their life might have been in Iraq. Some families are missing children, kidnapped and driven across borders, and sold, for who knows what purpose. If this information makes it to the US media, I would be surprised.

Oh, yeah, well, who can trust Al Jeezera, any way? After all, aren't they UBL mouthpiece?

Despite Al Jeezera's connection as UBL media outlet, they do carry legitimate stories and have the unique ability to penetrate into Islamic concerns. I do not think they would contrive this story. Otherwise, they would have no credibility in any region.

Lest you think these episodes do not happen, please visit your library and check out the April 2002 edition of Scientific American. I will be writing about this later - 21st century slavery.

An Indian Jaguar

Tata chosen as top bidder for Jaguar, Land Rover

I know Ford Motor Company has been trying to make itself more profitable. Ford has been shedding people and trying to focus on maintaining market share against Toyota. In this article, Tata Motors of India has been identified as the new owner of Jaguar and Land Rover.

The traditional British brands were purchased by the American car maker in 1989 and 2000. Culturally, this is not a big change. Now, it looks as if the South Asian subcontinent will be the new international home of two premier auto brands.

Tata is an interesting story in and of itself. Tata is invested in many different economic sectors throughout India, especially metals. Recently, Tata announced that it would begin production of a very inexpensive auto, priced around $2,500US. Many in the Global Climate Change tribe are concerned about this. The new autos are not expected to be very economically friendly. Secondly, the shear numbers of potential new drivers would put even more strain on a fragile environment.

India is working on improving its road network, but this is literally almost a case of putting the cart before the horse.

I look forward to seeing how this new auto relationship evolves.

The Anti-Statue of Liberty

Thomas Friedman, New Times columnist, writing in a recent column, makes a motion to only support those candidates that unite Americans around "a common purpose, not a common enemy." I second that motion.

For the last six years, our country's leadership has developed an extremely myopic view of American policy, whether it is domestic or foreign. As a result, we have become, as TF states in his column, "The United States of Fighting Terrorism." I would argue that we are not winning that war on any front. Our civil liberties have been soundly thrashed by the continued Executive Privilege power and Justice Department complicity. Not only have U.S. citizens been victimized by this, but we continue to rob others of their human rights. And our leaders continue to admonish others for their human rights abuses.

All the while, China surges every day. China is in Africa, working economic deals, pledging dollars, people, equipment, and support to African states – building relationships. China is in South America, doing the same, building relationships. China is in Southeast Asia, guess what, doing the same thing – building relationships. Not relationships based on fear mongering, but relationships based on mutually agreeable economic terms.

The U.S must live by example of the ideals that have made this country the model against which all other countries are judged. We cannot lead duplicitous lives, saying one thing, "we support freedom," while we repress people at home, or abroad.

The best way to fight terrorism is not by fighting terrorism. Fighting terrorism is not best accomplished by Guantanamo Bay, a void in the world's legal system where du jour rules apply, a hallmark that stands in stark contrast to our Statue of Liberty. Guantanano Bay: The Anti-Statue of Liberty, as labeled by TF.

The best way to fight terrorism is by living right in the first place, by building consistency into our lives, into our actions. By showing the world that not only do we care about our own, but we care about you, too.

Global GDP Comparison

What if we renamed some of our states using the name of the country whose GDP most closely matches the state GDP?

That is the idea behind this map. The idea is not unique to me. I saw a similar map on another blog whose link I have lost. But having a mapping background I decided to obtain my own data and construct my own map.

I could not determine an analog for all states, which I found interesting. I am initially attributing the lack of an analog to the derth of "middle-income" countries that could potentially match-up with our "middle-income" states. If someone else dives into this, please let me know about your findings.

Who Fears Berserkistan?

Lesser Berserkistan, of course!

Sorry, Gary T. I didn't get your permission to post. I do think that your treatment of these events hit home, however.

Let's form a sub-committee to investigate the deaths of hundreds, thousands, millions of people, e.g. Sudan/Darfur, Rwanda. Particularly while it is happening. Oh, yeah, while we are at it, I think we need a sub-committee to investigate human-trafficking, as well. We could probably have a 700-1,000 page report out in about 3 years. Then, we could engage Congress to act, and maybe in a couple years, have a resolution to oppose human trafficking. Over the course of the next decade or so, we could put out posters, emails, radio and TV blurbs encouraging people to cut down on their human-trafficking. In 50 years or so, human-trafficking might be as wide-spread as polio is today.