John Kerry's got nothing on Kofi.

And I don’t have to be sitting in my office to take action.

If Kofi Annan died, would anyone notice?

How did someone this f***g stupid become Dear Leader?!

I came back here because we have reached a level that I wanted to have meetings with all the people that I have met with today. So, we have taken action. And I don’t have to be sitting in my office to take action. I think the same goes for you in your profession.

Meetings! Bring me more meetings, there's a catastrophe underway!

bet Jackson Hole WY is much more equipped to run a worldwide relief effort than a ranch in crawford, tx.

shame on bush!

/sarc off

He may have been "taking action" as he was watching some UN videos from The Congo, inbetween skiing of course. He is a busy man.

#1 zulubaby

If Kofi Annan died, would anyone notice?

Or care?

The bacteria in his colon might eventually notice something amiss. Other than that ...

Ah yes...Kofi..that paragon of moral authority

/Clare Short

I hope Norm Coleman keeps piling on the pressure.

#1
If Kofi Annan died, would anyone notice?

Yes, the head of the Iranian nuke project!

And of course wapo will call kofi a brilliant, humana, caring, sensitive, sharing kind of guy. Just ask the black, non-muslim Africians how sweet he is!

Koffi Annan = POS Barking Moonbat

@3

Yeah! What ploome said!

...I feel a little double standard coming...

Can't waste that ski pass, eh Kofi?

Let's not forget that Kofi Annan is "the very model of a secretary-general" and hence, corrupt to the core.

I wonder if 2005 will be the year the US finally abandons this league of looters?

and this guy leaves in 2k6?

not soon enough... although i'm sure whomever replaces kofi won't be any better.

*Start campaigning for Kofi to be Idiotarian of the Year*

14 Dr. Sanity

I wonder if 2005 will be the year the US finally abandons this league of looters?

From your mouth to GWB's ear.

"And I don’t have to be sitting in my office to take action. I think the same goes for you in your profession."

...but that standard doesn't apply to GW Bush,he should have dropped everything,returned to Washington DC and announced the US aid package before the tsunami even happened.

Kofi is a worthless heap of festering yak dung

National Review (print) has a Rob Long piece wherein Kofi is ousted from the UN, joins Disney and pulls his missing funds pranks there and is golden parachuted out. Amusing stuff but I'd prefer to see him in prison orange doing the prep walk --- what a crook.

Just another fumble by a POS guy for a POS organization.

Who, with a brain, is really surprised...

Jaysus on a Pony...anyone else try and wade through the brackish dreck dribbling out of Kofi's piehole?

Q: You will recall that on 26 December 2003, in Bam, Iran, there was another major earthquake, which caused 40,000 deaths and nearly 100,000 homeless people. At the time, donors made pledges, but two days ago Iranian President Khatami said that of that $1 billion only about $17 million has actually been disbursed. How can you ensure that that kind of problem does not happen again?

Kofi: Not all the money that was pledged for the Iran crisis has been disbursed. I hope that this time, as the international community is really aware - everyone is involved - we will fulfil our promises. This is why, right from the outset I have said that what we need to do is to work for the long term, because it is a long road to travel. I hope that this time the international community will accept this thinking.

Whaaa...? That's right everyone...fill the UN coffers (and Son of Kofi's pants) with $$$ but don't ever expect even a majority of it to get spent on what it was collected for.

"And I don’t have to be sitting in my office to take action."

Nor to take no action either, which is your usual state of affairs.

#6 Thom

If Kofi Annan died, would anyone notice?
Or care?

The bacteria in his colon might eventually notice something amiss. Other than that ...

Good Lord! ROFL!

US out of the UN
UN out of the US

Kofi in jail

Wonder if Kofi falls down on the slopes as often as he falls down on the job.

You don’t have to be physically here to be dealing with the leaders and the Governments I have been dealing with.

So that means we could arrest all UN officials, lock them in Guantanamo for having appeased dictators, thugs, and rapists, and the function of the UN will continue?

I think each state should draft a law banning kofi! Anyone else?

#24 Connecticut Yankee

His Excellency¹ Kofi Anan does not fall down while skiing. OTOH, sometimes his sonsabitches body guards trip him up.

¹ Excellent at what has yet to be determined. Please send $10 billion to the UN to help support this on-going research project. Thank you for your support.

#25 pooklebinky

Seeing the success record of the UN,the whole organization could be sucked into a black hole and nothing would change.

I hear Jackson Hole is AWESOME!

@24

You're so spot on!

Now I finally get it. The oil for food scam was just Kofi's way of making sure the UN has enough money for emergencies like this one. It all makes perfect sense. And we should all stop accusing him of stealing. (s/off)

Kofi + UN = Moral Authority
It's just simple math. (s/off, again)

@29 balisong

That should be a black hole for Koffi and the UN.

#27 Thom

I assumed Kofi took skiing (and cussing) lessons from Terayza's husband.

In case you were wondering how long it would take for someone to get the "proof" required to blame the US (and GWB) for the earthquake -- your wait and wondering is over..

Please checkout this posting from Indy Media in Melbourne

http://melbourne.indymedia.org/news/2004/12/85534. php

The comments alone are worth a gander

Wow, reading Kofi in print is embarassing.

Only a highly misanthropic Leftist world who allow such a below average guy like that in such a position of power, and then heap praises on him.

The decline of Western civilization accelerates...

The DUmmies are trying to wrap their pea-brains around Kofi in Jackson Hole vs. W in Crawford.

Kofi did exactly what he was supposed to, utilized modern technology to address the situation immediately rather than taking a rushed trip to New York to prove a point to a bunch of people who apparently would rather have thier leaders conform to an outdated model of behavior than react quickly to SAVE LIVES.

It doesnt matter that Bush could have said the same things. I havent critisized Bush for not going to Washington and even if every liberal in the country did, it wouldnt make me, or them a hypocrite.

On the bright side, there appears to be a good deal of UN bashing. So maybe there's hope.

"who" should = "would" apologies...

www.moonbatexegesis.blogspot.com

#32 golem akbar

Kofi + UN = Moral Authority ...It's just simple math.

Okay, let me try:

Bush + Texas = Stingy Bastard
Kofi + Wyoming = Hard Working Humanitarian

Dang, golem! My calculator just is NOT working RIGHT!

#37 brianstien

Genius. Sheer genius.

But the DUmmie is right. The meeting's scheduled for January 11 so, really, what is the point of rushing back to NY?

In fact, if the UN wants to save lives, they should all just pack it in and head to Jackson Hole and let the US, Australia, etc take care of things.

#37
I was trolling around Kos and the DU for fun today. Funny how so few of them can type a grammatical sentence. Or spell correctly. Pea brains, indeed!

All that $$ wasted staying those three days on his ski trip..could've been added to the pot...how very stingy of Kofi!

"This is why, right from the outset I have said that what we need to do is to work for the long term, because it is a long road to travel."

Well, that's telling...he's saying right there that it'll take them forever to get anything done.

#28 Totally Sirius

Except that fewer children would be raped, valuable land would be freed up, the US would have even more money to put into helping people...

Yea, but everybody knows that Kofi really does care -- so it doesn't matter whether he was skiing in Wyoming or enjoying official UN-sanctioned Congolese pedophilia videos in the privacy of his Turtle Bay suite.

What the world demanded was that George W immediately fly back to DC, stand in the Rose Garden, bite his quivering lip, and tell the Asians that he feels their pain. Everybody knows how genuine it is when a POTUS does that. Oh yea, then he could add that he is sorry for invading Iraq, state that the Israelis are Nazis, and apologize for using the Diebold machines to steal the election.

#21 - only $1 billion out of $17 billion...WFT...must have been used to pay for the trip to Jackson Hole and all of the trips to see how his efforts are helping to ease pain and suffering around the world.

Sounds like the LLL is up to their 'double standards' reporting technique...pile on GWB while giving Koffee Cup a bye for not being all over this issue. Maybe Koffee was formulating policy for earthquake/tsunami relief while going down a triple black diamond run via his Blackberry - NOT! Stop counting all of the cash you and your lackeys skimmed off the top from your various "endeavours" and all of the other "creditable" humanitarian missions that you have sent the UN on, and get the hell out...

#37 brianstien

The DUmmies are trying to wrap their pea-brains around Kofi in Jackson Hole vs. W in Crawford.

Well while they are busy sorting that out, I am trying to get my head around Kofi Annan enjoying the benefits of OUR country even while he tries his damndest to undermine it.
Why doesn't he go ski in Europe already? :oP

If a tsunami hits south-east Asia, and the UN Secretary General is on a skiing trip and does not see the tsunami, did it ever really happen?

Are they sure it was even Kofi Annan in the interview? I have a hunch that Kofi is still hitting the slopes while Latoya Jackson is fielding his interviews in drag.

#44 Lyana

Good points

The LLL are always going on about ...

-- Overpopulation in the thirdworld
-- Finding a renewable source of energy

I'm sure I'm not the first one to think of this -- but there ARE a lot of bodies to be burned, aren't there?

Just a thought

#18 Totally

Kofi is a worthless heap of festering yak dung

Totally well said!

The DUmmies are saying that Kofi's inactions are helping more than Bush's actions.

While the UN is still figuring out where to begin,the US has already delivered tons of supplies and has put professionals on the ground in the effected areas.

What has the UN done besides bitch, whine and pontificate?

Dammit I shouldn't have read DU with first wrapping my head with Duct tape.

Now I have a headache,hope the bourbon helps

On Asia's Coasts,
Progress Destroys
Natural Defenses

By ANDREW BROWNE
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
December 31, 2004; Page A5

Surin Island chain off Thailand's west coast forms a sturdy defense against the sea. So when the tsunami struck on Sunday it punched a few holes in the reef, but the structure mostly held firm.

The reef, says Thai marine environmentalist Thon Thamrongnavasawadi, may have saved many lives. Only a handful of people on the islands are known to have perished -- most scrambled to safety as the first wave exploded against the coral.

Tragically, across much of Asia, coastal communities found themselves with no such shield against nature's fury. The protective reefs, sand dunes and mangroves that look out toward the Indian Ocean in a broad arc from Sri Lanka to Bangladesh and Indonesia have been dynamited and bulldozed by a force as unstoppable as the tsunami itself -- the force that drives some of the world's fastest-growing economies.

Natural Buffer

Where dense mangrove forests once provided a buffer between sea and land, now there are countless shrimp farms and hotels. Sand dunes have been flattened by coastal highways, reefs blown up to make way for ports.

Mangroves -- trees and shrubs that live in tropical tidal zones -- line one-quarter of the world's tropical coastlines. But Asia is hurriedly uprooting them as its economies take off. In less than 20 years between 1975 and 1993, Thailand's mangrove area was almost halved, says Edward Barbier, a professor of economics at Wyoming University and editor of a recent book on Asia's disappearing mangrove ecosystems. India laid waste to as much as 50% of its mangroves between 1963 and 1977. Belatedly, some countries have made efforts at replanting.

Mangroves offer a double layer of protection against the pounding surf: Low red mangroves anchor themselves in mud flats along tidal estuaries, their flexible branches and tangled roots absorbing the sea's power. Behind them stand black mangroves as tall as trees.

Environmentalists point out that coastal communities around the world are vulnerable to natural calamities: Florida took four direct hits this year from hurricanes. But whereas the cleanup in Florida takes just a few months, it could be years before life returns to normal in poor parts of Asia.

To be sure, not even mangroves could have parried the blow from Sunday's tsunamis, and the waves inflicted severe damage on relatively undeveloped sections of coastline, too.

But ecological damage "has left coastlines vulnerable," says Mr. Barbier, and if natural defenses had been left standing, they "would have reduced some of the losses" by reducing how far and fast the waves surged inland.

In stripping the mangroves, Asian countries have created real estate for tourism, one of the region's biggest foreign-exchange earners, but along the most exposed part of the continent where the sea laps the shore. Thatched tourist cottages hang precariously off cliffs on the Malaysian resort island of Langkawi, and seafood restaurants stand on stilts above Thai beaches.

Yet while hundreds of sun-seeking tourists from northern parts of Europe and Asia were washed away by the tsunami, most victims were impoverished fishing families.

Environmentalists and economists describe a process in which relentless urban development, aquaculture and tourism create winners and losers along Asia's coastline. Tourist resorts increase employment opportunities for some locals, but push others aside. Wealthy tourists relax under umbrellas in the most desirable beach spots, while the fishing families they displace rebuild their flimsy homes in more marginal -- and more dangerous -- locations down the coast.

"They lose twice," says Mr. Barbier, who has studied the process in Southeast Asia -- once to the developers, next to the elements
...

pimf with=without

Jumbo Spoiler

But by far the greatest spoiler of Asia's coastline are shrimp farms. Thailand is now the world's biggest shrimp exporter; Indonesia and India are not far behind. The U.S. is the biggest buyer. Cheap tiger prawns have created prosperity around Asia, but at a cost: Shrimp farms demand brackish water and flat land, both found in abundance where mangroves grow.

A typical fish pond looks like a bomb crater, and coastal Asia is pocked with them. Each lasts for no more than eight years before the many chemicals and antibiotics that are poured into them in the process of raising shrimp make them unusable. The shrimp farmers move on, cutting more mangrove forests for new farms. In Indonesia's Aceh province, devastated by the tsunami, mangroves are being chopped down as timber for sale to nearby Malaysia and Singapore.

Along the east coast of India, had the mangroves been left standing, "hotels and settlements would have been a little further away," says Swayam Prabha Das of the World Wildlife Fund in New Delhi. "The damage could have been limited."

Lesson in Ecology

The Indian government is now reviewing the implementation of regulations, frequently flouted, that bar all development 1,650 feet from the sea in areas where mangroves and coral thrive. "I think some common sense will prevail now," Ms. Das says.

Likewise in Thailand, while Mr. Thamrongnavasawadi mourns the human loss along with the destruction of stretches of reef around the Surin Islands, he is heartened by the lesson in ecology that the tsunami delivered. Indeed, officials in the Maldives said extensive reefs smothered the tsunami, and though 69 people are confirmed dead so far, the loss of life there could have been much worse.

Mr. Thamrongnavasawadi's Web site is flooded with offers of help from divers eager to participate in a national project to measure the effects of the tsunami on Thailand's coral reefs. Of the 20 reefs around the Surins, two or three have been irreparably smashed, he says.

"It's a very clear point: Coral reefs save lives," he says.

#55

"Of the 20 reefs around the Surins, two or three have been irreparably smashed, he says."

Oh no,the enviros will be going off their meds over this.

but wait,reefs have been around billions of years,tsunamis have been around for billions of years

...nevermind,the facts never stopped a determined moonbat

Well, if the decision comes down to --

Cheap shrimp -- OR -- millions of SE Asians displaced or dead

Hmmm... anyone have any cocktail sauce?

Try serving SE Asian Cocktail at your next dinner party -- the LLL would go ballistic

#57 rickmoss

I prefer my SE asians with a nice bernaise sauce.

Don't be saucy with me, Bernaise!

Thom (#6)

If Kofi Annan died, would anyone notice?

Or care?

Good point. A classic case of VV&WC (Ver vaist & who cares, for the Yiddish-impaired.)

Interesting topic about the mangroves...
I live in SouthWest Florida where Hurricane Charley roared through with 145 mph winds off the Gulf of Mexico. A storm surge of 10 to 18 feet was predicted. Even with development, a goodly number of mangroves still protect the coast line here and they did provide a buffer from the surge, the waves and the wind. The natural barriers lasted, but the man made barriers were destroyed. Greed is short sighted. Real estate values must include the natural buffer of mangroves in areas where they normally grow. Here we have clear evidence of their worth...but my guess is that changes in real estate laws will not change.
I still is a reminder...we are controlled by the weather and nature, not the other way around.

Thousands dead and Kofi Annass has really stoked up the action by having two meetings! What a man!

#57 rickmoos

Bearnaise sauce

1/4 Medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 tsp. dry tarragon, or good wad of fresh
Good grind of black pepper
1/2 cup Chablis (dry white wine for those who only drink beer)

Simmer in small pan until liquid reduced to a couple tablespoons.

Meanwhile, in another small pan, put:

1/2 pound of butter

Melt gently and bring to gentle simmer.

In the blender put:

6 egg yolks
2-3 tbl. tarragon vinegar

The trick is to have all three parts ready at the same time. When the wine has simmered down about right the butter should just be coming to a simmer, and the blender should be ready. Then:

Turn on the blender and dribble in the butter, sort of slowly at first. When the butter is all added, add the wine reduction. Let it whirl for a few seconds, then put it in a bowl and chill it for a couple hours.

Swedish Paper reports Tsunami warning halted 'out of concern for tourist industry'

Just minutes after the earthquake in the Indian Ocean on Sunday morning, Thailand’s foremost meteorological experts were sitting together in a crisis meeting. But they decided not to warn about the tsunami “out of courtesy to the tourist industry,” writes the Thailand daily newspaper The Nation.

The experts got the news around 8:00 am on Sunday morning local time. An hour later, the first massive wave struck. But the experts started to discuss the economic impacts when they discussed if a tsunami warning should be issued.

The primary argument against such a warning was that there had not been any floods in 300 years. Also, the experts believed the Indonesian island Sumatra would be a “cushion” for the southern coast of Thailand. The experts also had bad information; they thought the tremor was 8.1. A similar earthquake occurred in the same area in 2002 with no flooding at all.

#63 swiss

The trick is to add the hot substances to the egg yolks verrry slowly so as to not cook the yolks(I hate lumpy bernaise)

Who was the reporter who asked His Excellency the question? (I think Lester Kinsolving should attend HRH's briefings.)

C'mon, people! Stop this nonsense! Koffin was weeping and was getting filled with sorrow as he was sweeping down the slopes on his skis, and as he was sipping hot cocoa in his 5 star cabin. I bet he was crying all night!

Other world leaders were probably "slow off the mark" as well. It happened Sunday morning Day after Christmas. How many leaders were NOT/NOT on holiday somewhere else. Criticising Kofi or any other world for perceived slow reaction or inaction is now moot. How fast were other world off the mark in comparison?

How fast were other world _leaders off the mark in comparisom

...he said, as he careened headlong down the slippery slope to oblivion. So much for UN Sec'y. Coffee Annanonymous.

Give Kofi a little bit of a break here... it is true that with today's technology, a head of an organization should be able to function effectively from wherever. We all know that, have been there and done that and continue to do that.

His response is actually supportive of President Bush, who is *always* functioning as President, thank God. Undoubtedly, an effective head of whatever can function wherever, whenever. SG Annan is simply pointing that out regardless of detractors. I don't know, or have an opinion of what he was actually doing at the time in Jackson Hole, nor what his immediate response was (perhaps he was reading to a group of school children). The point is that he was allegedly "on top" of the situation.

However, it is apparently clear that President Bush functioned much more quickly and effectively, even though "on vacation", than SG Annan in this case, much to the embarrassment of SG Annan and the UN.

Does Kafi Annan really ski? I find that hard to immagine.

.jax

#69 Hornet - Israeli leaders were very fast off the mark. The IDF had authorization to send doctors and general aid very soon after the disaster occurred. Of course, Sunday IS a working day in Israel and Christmas is not a holiday, but still, Israelis are well aware of the need to act quickly and decisively to save lives in these situations.

#71 Jaxinman - Switzerland did everything it possibly could to help the Nazis during the Second World War and even today creates every possible obstacle it can - including the shredding of documents - to avoid repayment of stolen Jewish assets.

Whether or not Kofi skis, he should feel quite at home in Switzerland.

I think we just need to get the UN off our soil...PERIOD. I have no use for them.

What Kofi Annan did or didn't do is not the issue. The issue is how George W. Bush sat in a classroom in Florida and continued to snort cocaine and read "My Pet Goat" with kindergartners for seven whole minutes after being informed of the tsunami...

No, wait, that's not it. The issue is how, days after the tsunami, when air transport was shut down across the U.S., Bush allowed five planeloads of Saudi royalty to depart the country, without the FBI even having the chance to question them about their ties to the tsunamis. Some officials report that, upon their departure, the Saudi royals were carrying large quantities of uranium yellowcake from Niger, as well as 70,000 stolen Democratic votes from the Ohio election...

Wait, I think I've messed it up again. I can't seem to keep my Moonbat conspiracy theories straight...

I for one am not of the ilk who "feel" that we need to get the approval and admiration of the world before we do anything. That insecure bunch need to go back to their shrinks and work that one out for themselves. Countries don't need that kind of psychobable.

76 Hey wait till they decide it was actually "red murcury" instead of actual neuclear material. LOL

so basically...he can just pick up his check from wherever...

I like what Norm Liebmann said: Considering his scruffy beard and oily eyes, he looks more like the Wino General of the UN.

Kofi brings up a good point that he does not need to be in NY to do his job. I further say the entire UN General Assembly should teleconference all their meetings while living in their respective grimy little shithole countries and give NYC the real estate back.

#73 Tweety

Swizterland, like most other countries in the world had to find a way to survive 50 years ago. It had a very dangerous balancing act to negotiate during ww2 in order to preserve its independence. It was surrounded by enemy territory and cut off from the outside world. For most of the war the Nazis threatened CH with invasion. From the Nazi perspective, the Swiss were far too sympathetic to the Allies. CH had to make concessions to survive as a neutral because it was dependent on imports for food and fuel, as were other neutral countries.

The truth as to the Nazi gold is hard to establish and I don't pretend that everything was right at all. Nearly all European banks had their own share of Nazi gold, and so did US banks - but the US banks for instance, destroyed all dormant accounts after 10 years - (I think) so there was never any come back on them. The fairly recent flurry of antagonism over Nazi gold and Swiss banks was an attempt by D'Amato? to denigrate the Swiss banks so that punters would go for the New York banks instead.

So, in many people's minds you now have NazigoldSwitzerland as all one word - the truth is far more complex - as ever.

And cuckoo clocks come from the Schwarzwald, S. Germany, but you knew that :-)

THe swiss made a big mistake not being honest with Bronfman
and trying to offer him a lowball offer.

[Link: www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com...]

Bronfman Takes on Swiss Banks

Printer Friendly Version

Edgar M. Bronfman is telling hundreds of luncheon guests at Toronto's Royal York Hotel how he took on the Swiss banking establishment and won. It is less a speech than a corporate war story, narrated as if he had buttonholed his audience at a cocktail party. "We went to see the Swiss bankers in Bern," Bronfman says of a September, 1995, meeting over Jewish accounts never claimed after the Nazi genocide of the Second World War. "We were ushered into a small room with no furniture and left standing. That was enough to irritate me. I don't treat people that way and I don't expect to be treated that way," says the 67-year-old son of Canadian liquor legend Samuel Bronfman. "We waited about eight to 10 minutes and then they stormed into the room." The Swiss Bankers' Association, he says in his jocular grumble, had come up with a figure of 775 dormant bank accounts worth $32 million and offered that amount "to buy me off." No deal. The issue of recovering Jewish assets is not about money, Bronfman tells the Canadian Club audience, his voice now deeply earnest. "It is about justice," he says. "As long as I draw breath, I will see to it that nobody profits from the ashes of the Holocaust."

hornet (#68),

Other world leaders were probably "slow off the mark" as well. It happened Sunday morning Day after Christmas. How many leaders were NOT/NOT on holiday somewhere else.

Here's a rundown:

It being Christmastime, most world leaders were on vacation when the tsunami hit. Kofi Annan was just arriving back in New York late Wednesday. By Thursday morning he still hadn't met with U.N. humanitarian relief point man Jan Egeland —the man in charge of tsunami relief. President Bush was in Crawford, Texas, until yesterday. British Prime Minister Tony Blair was vacationing in Egypt. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder was away, too. That's to be expected. World leaders should be judged by the job they do — not by how fast they can turn to a camera.

None of this matters to the NyTimes though who used the opertunity to slam Bush:

But that didn't much matter to the New York Times, where selective outrage is the rule. In an editorial entitled "Are We Stingy? Yes," the Times singled out President Bush for a gratuitous snarl. "President Bush finally roused himself yesterday from his vacation in Crawford, Tex., to telephone his sympathy to the leaders of India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Indonesia, and to speak publicly about the devastation of Sunday's tsunamis in Asia," the piece read.

Odious tsunami politics

You see, Kofi aswered one of those flyers you see taped to telephone poles around town that say "Work from home--Earn up to $5000 a month!"

I'm sure that's what he's talking about.

The complete and total destruction of the death cult of Islam is going to happen: convert every mosque to Buddhist/Hindu/Christian/Jewish temple or church, shred every Koran, burn every hijab, chador etc, death to the death cult of Islam

Let's cut Kofi some slack: It takes time even for a well-practiced crook to set up a scheme to steal as much money as possible from the disaster relief donations. He also has to maximize the amount of money donated.
So, first a U.N. weenie has to let the media know how "stingy" those rich bastards in the U.S. are. This throws the spotlight on how much money is "given" by whom, rather than who is taking the money away.
Meanwhile, the process has to be arranged to get as much of the money as possible from where it was supposed to go, to where it will end up...
in Euro banks, so it is accessible to Islamofascist terror networks.
My suggestion for a Happy 2005:
Relocate the U.N. to "Palestine."

US out of the UN!
UN out of the US!

Well you know Charles I wondered the same thing myself. I did appreciate that cutie John Hunt from Fox News going after Kofi. on this very subject.

If I was twenty years younger I would track that young man down and...

Perhaps this is why the israelis wanted a few dozen idf with their doctors and supplies:

By DENIS D. GRAY, Associated Press Writer

ABOARD THE USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN - Desperate, homeless villagers on the tsunami-ravaged island of Sumatra mobbed American helicopters carrying aid Saturday as the U.S. military launched its largest operation in the region since the Vietnam War, ferrying food and other emergency relief to survivors across the disaster zone.

From dawn until sunset on New Year's Day, 12 Seahawk helicopters shuttled supplies and advance teams from offshore naval vessels while reconnaissance aircraft brought back stark images of wave-wrecked coastal landscapes and their hungry, traumatized inhabitants.

"They came from all directions, crawling under the craft, knocking on the pilot's door, pushing to get into the cabin," said Petty Officer First Class Brennan Zwack. "But when they saw we had no more food inside, they backed away, saying `Thank you, thank you.'"

"The mob decided how we distributed the food. There were so many hands outstretched I don't think any package touched the ground," added Zwack, of Sioux Falls, S.D.

The helicopters took off from the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, staged in calm waters about three miles off the Indonesian province of Aceh along with four other vessels to launch the sprawling U.S. military operation.

More than a dozen other ships were en route to southern Asian waters, with the USS Bonhomme Richard, an amphibious assault vessel carrying Marines, headed for Sri Lanka, which along with Indonesia was the worst-hit area. The mission involves thousands of sailors and Marines, along with some 1,000 land-based troops.

Governments and global organizations have pledged about $2 billion in tsunami disaster relief, the United Nations (news - web sites) said Saturday. Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi raised Japan's offer to $500 million from $30 million, topping President Bush (news - web sites)'s pledge Friday of $350 million.

OT--Wasn't that crack-pot Malthair (sp) from malaysia? No one seems to mention him now that they need all this assistance.

More of it coming out of the manure pile:
America responsible for Tsunami Victims.

The UN is now taking credit for relief work performed by USA and Australia. Check out Diplomad:

Mr. Egeland: Our main problems now are in northern Sumatra and Aceh.
In Aceh, today 50 trucks of relief supplies are arriving. Tomorrow, we will have eight full airplanes arriving. I discussed today with Washington whether we can draw on some assets on their side, after consultations with the Indonesian Government, to set up what we call an “air-freight handling centre” in Aceh.

Tomorrow, we will have to set up a camp for relief workers – 90 of them – which is fully self-contained, with kitchen, food, lodging, everything, because they have nowhere to stay and we don't want them to be an additional burden on the people there.

I [Diplomad] provided this to some USAID colleagues working in Indonesia and their heads nearly exploded. The first paragraph is quite simply a lie. The UN is taking credit for things that hard-working, street savvy USAID folks have done. It was USAID working with their amazing network of local contacts who scrounged up trucks, drivers, and fuel; organized the convoy and sent it off to deliver critical supplies. A UN “air-freight handling centre” in Aceh? Bull! It's the Aussies and the Yanks who are running the air ops into Aceh. We have people working and sleeping on the tarmac in Aceh, surrounded by bugs, mud, stench and death, who every day bring in the US and Aussie C-130s and the US choppers; unload, load, send them off. We have no fancy aid workers' retreat -- notice the priorities of the UN? People are dying and what's the first thing the UN wants to do? Set up "a camp for relief workers" one that would be "fully self-contained, with kitchen, food, lodging, everything."

[Link: diplomadic.blogspot.com...]

another letter from a loon

[Link: mauinews.com...]

So the U.S. pledges a puny $15 million at first, then $20 million more. You could hear Dubya’s wallet groaning with every click. Gee, $35 million, that’s roughly a dime for every American. Real generous. And we’re spending how much per week on that war in Iraq? For what?

Remember that empty country to the north, Canada? Know how many people they have? A big 30 million and change – one for approximately 10 or 11 Americans. That country not a tenth the size of Dubya’s kingdom came up with $40 million in aid. Yup, more than a buck for every Canadian. Pretty good, huh, seeing that they don’t have any colonies or enemies they can scrape those bucks off?

We should die of shame, again.

Eva van Loon

NEW YORK - Actress Sandra Bullock (news) has donated $1 million to the American Red Cross (news - web sites) to help relief efforts in countries affected by the deadly earthquake and tsunamis in southern Asia and eastern Africa.

Bullock, whose screen credits include "Miss Congeniality," "While You Were Sleeping" and "Speed," contacted the American Red Cross last week, the organization said Monday. She also donated $1 million after the Sept. 11 terror attacks.