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Old 2009-09-19, 20:03   Link #4021
yezhanquan
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Join Date: Oct 2006
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Well, the guy does have a point. But, then again, no invading force has the guts to do a scorch earth campaign with the intensity of the Soviets and the Nazis. That, and the fact that the Greeks and the British didn't exactly have weapons which can flatten mountains.
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Old 2009-09-19, 21:00   Link #4022
SaintessHeart
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Shadow Kira01 View Post
Taliban leader tells 'invaders' to study history

If I am not mistaken, the terrorists were originally sponsored by the US government to wreck havoc against the Soviets but since the disbandment of the Soviet Union, a series of events had occurred and things took quite a turn. The former allies of the United States had end up fighting the United States over issues relating to religion. Since ancient times, both the Islam and the Catholic/Christians were somewhat swore enemies of some sort, not sure about the details.
The Taliban, or Al-Qaeda, were initially one of the anti-Soviet forces that is created by the Pakistani SIS to fight the Afghan War in the 1980s. The Paks got their funding from the CIA through Operation Cyclone in the 1970s, including black market arms and Stinger Missiles. What they have been supplied with was barely enough, but most of the arms are captured from the Soviets, especially when those nuts left Afghanistan without taking their arms with them and leaving millions of AKs, RPGs, and PKMs in the hands of the mujahideen.

The Taliban were partially right about the US not involved in supplying them with arms because most of the weapons are captured from the Soviets. What US is really lacking in now is intelligence, because there is virtually none available at the moment. Mchrystal as the replacement is not going to help much, but he can further quell the unrest before the US pulls out. Their armed forces already lost a number of elite operatives in the field, so I don't think the fighting is going to last long.

But two things are obvious :

1. Afghanistan will turn into another Vietnam.

2. The war is ending soon with the "defeat" of US.

Regarding religion, it went back to the Crusades until the main force was stopped by Saladin in the third, a major victory for the Muslim world. It isn't much of myth or history because their main tussle is not over religion, but rather Jerusalem which they see as the Holy Land. As long as the Israelis remain effective in their HUMINT, we shouldn't see a war over that piece of land within this century.

I am approving of green-light for nuclear bombardment over Afghanistan.
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Old 2009-09-19, 21:17   Link #4023
Vexx
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Take a look at a movie called "Charlie Wilson's War" for a fair context to the US involvement in Afghanistan during the Soviet period.
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Old 2009-09-19, 21:42   Link #4024
LynnieS
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jinto View Post
Yes thats right, I missed a step in this scenario. The federal bank that actually makes money from debt to satisfy the demands of the insurer in the 90% loss scenario (worst case). (Now I do not know how independent FDIC and federal reserve bank really are)
Not exactly, IMHO, but close. The Federal Reserve (the Fed), in the end, is just a central bank, and does not "create" money. The Treasury does. The Fed can act as the lender of last resort so if one bank absolutely cannot borrow money to meet its needs, it can get from the Fed, though. However, it's more likely that the bank will borrow from other banks using the Fed's Federal Funds system, and the Fed controls the Fed Fund Rate.

FDIC, the Treasury and the Fed are independent so, like, 2 of them don't report to the 3rd. They, esp. the current crop, protect their own turfs as well.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jinto View Post
The consumer banks can borrow huge amounts of money from federal banks (may require certain steps of indirection). They only need to keep 10% of this and the rest they can lend to third parties.
But when they lend the money it is insured some way or the other (no matter how risky the lending process is).
If the banks use Fed Funds, then I think you're right to a degree. Fed Funds come from banks that kept reserves at the Fed, so that is the banks' money. Only the banks' depositors' money is insured by the FDIC, though. Any other money need to be protected some other way. If the Fed goes bankrupt, the U.S. would step in, IMHO, but that might not be doable.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jinto View Post
The question is, how much of the existing money is backed by securities/bills/nodes/bonds of the US treasury? My assumption is something like 95% or more. That means consumer banks in average own just a fraction of the money they lend.
Money is money really. The actual cash in people's wallets (USD, GBP, EUR) is just paper - captured by 0's and 1's in central banks' computers. Once the data is there, IMHO, the bills can be printed. Existing money (100%) is backed up by people's faith in the government that created that money; of course, if the faith is 0%, then the cash's good for nothing except starting fires.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jinto View Post
Of'course consumer banks cannot produce money directly, they need to borrow it from the federal bank that will do the money creation job for them (together with the US treasury). Its just one/several more steps in the process (one additional indirection). (still thats not quite it... there is actually more indirection - primary dealers... I know most private banks are not members of the federal reserve system, but they use that money indirectly)
Primary dealers are institutions that are required (don't think they can get exceptions) to buy, sell and etc. in the Fed's operations and join the Treasury's auctions. It's basically why a UST auction does not fail. They are there more to help provide liquidity, but can borrow after paying interest; it's a loan really. Now, they can borrow but can also put out collateral instead.
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Old 2009-09-19, 21:55   Link #4025
Kamui4356
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SaintessHeart View Post
The Taliban, or Al-Qaeda, were initially one of the anti-Soviet forces that is created by the Pakistani SIS to fight the Afghan War in the 1980s. The Paks got their funding from the CIA through Operation Cyclone in the 1970s, including black market arms and Stinger Missiles. What they have been supplied with was barely enough, but most of the arms are captured from the Soviets, especially when those nuts left Afghanistan without taking their arms with them and leaving millions of AKs, RPGs, and PKMs in the hands of the mujahideen.

The Taliban were partially right about the US not involved in supplying them with arms because most of the weapons are captured from the Soviets. What US is really lacking in now is intelligence, because there is virtually none available at the moment. Mchrystal as the replacement is not going to help much, but he can further quell the unrest before the US pulls out. Their armed forces already lost a number of elite operatives in the field, so I don't think the fighting is going to last long.
Actually the taliban didn't exist until the mid 90s, when they formed from disaffected mujahideen who decided they should be the guys in charge and set out to create an Islamist state. They might be a lot of the same people who fought the Soviets, but it's not the same organization.

Quote:
But two things are obvious :

1. Afghanistan will turn into another Vietnam.
It already is. We've been there for 8 years and the Taliban are stronger than ever. It's only the presence of NATO troops there that are preventing them from completely overrunning the country.

Quote:
2. The war is ending soon with the "defeat" of US.
Sadly this is probably true. Of course the US is more than capable of winning, but it's going to require a lot more troops, a lot more money, and a lot more time. I doubt the US is willing to commit any of that. Of course that just means the US will be back in a few years time when Al Qeada rebuilds their bases there and launches another attack.
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Old 2009-09-19, 22:34   Link #4026
Xion Valkyrie
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Kamui4356 View Post

Sadly this is probably true. Of course the US is more than capable of winning, but it's going to require a lot more troops, a lot more money, and a lot more time. I doubt the US is willing to commit any of that. Of course that just means the US will be back in a few years time when Al Qeada rebuilds their bases there and launches another attack.
The really sad thing is, had we stayed in Afghanistan instead of moving most of our forces to Iraq, we would be in a much better position.
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Old 2009-09-20, 05:18   Link #4027
Jinto
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LynnieS View Post
Not exactly, IMHO, but close. The Federal Reserve (the Fed), in the end, is just a central bank, and does not "create" money. The Treasury does. The Fed can act as the lender of last resort so if one bank absolutely cannot borrow money to meet its needs, it can get from the Fed, though. However, it's more likely that the bank will borrow from other banks using the Fed's Federal Funds system, and the Fed controls the Fed Fund Rate.

FDIC, the Treasury and the Fed are independent so, like, 2 of them don't report to the 3rd. They, esp. the current crop, protect their own turfs as well.

If the banks use Fed Funds, then I think you're right to a degree. Fed Funds come from banks that kept reserves at the Fed, so that is the banks' money. Only the banks' depositors' money is insured by the FDIC, though. Any other money need to be protected some other way. If the Fed goes bankrupt, the U.S. would step in, IMHO, but that might not be doable.
Ah okay I see.

Quote:
Originally Posted by LynnieS View Post
The actual cash in people's wallets (USD, GBP, EUR) is just paper - captured by 0's and 1's in central banks' computers. Once the data is there, IMHO, the bills can be printed. Existing money (100%) is backed up by people's faith in the government that created that money; of course, if the faith is 0%, then the cash's good for nothing except starting fires.
Thats what it basically comes down to in the end. Not exactly what I would call a relief.

Quote:
Originally Posted by LynnieS View Post
Primary dealers are institutions that are required (don't think they can get exceptions) to buy, sell and etc. in the Fed's operations and join the Treasury's auctions. It's basically why a UST auction does not fail. They are there more to help provide liquidity, but can borrow after paying interest; it's a loan really. Now, they can borrow but can also put out collateral instead.
Do these primary dealers have a say in what the Fed is doing? I am just curious.
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Old 2009-09-20, 07:14   Link #4028
LynnieS
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Xion Valkyrie View Post
The really sad thing is, had we stayed in Afghanistan instead of moving most of our forces to Iraq, we would be in a much better position.
Honestly? I doubt that would be the case. Afghanistan is not for the meek; there were 3 Anglo-Afghan wars, and the Soviet invasion happened not long ago. These are tough people - even before the Great Game, IMHO.

The current West is not suited for long drawn-out conflicts where its soldiers stay overseas to fight for a goal not in sight. Not to mention the goal went from attacking terrorism in the early 2000's to nurturing the young democracy at the moment. The first goal is simple and given the military strength, easy. The second goal is hard, expensive and painful - but people expect fast results. They get tired and start fussing for their sons and daughters to return. It pretty much guarantees a defeat for the West.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jinto View Post
Thats what it basically comes down to in the end. Not exactly what I would call a relief.
Deficit spending is not really a problem, IMHO; uncontrolled deficit spending, OTOH, is bad. It's not sustainable, and the interest needing to be paid grows hugely as it continues. You are essentially mortgaging your future in return for a "good" present. If the present leads to a strong future, that may be a good deal, but if you can't guarantee that, it's not a good thing.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Jinto View Post
Do these primary dealers have a say in what the Fed is doing? I am just curious.
I do not know of any, but people from the private sector come and go into the public sector pretty regularly. Operations done by the Fed - and the auctions by the Treasury - depend on the system, though, so some feedback would not be out of the question, I imagine. I saw a poll recently where they were asking when would Timothy Geithner resign and join Goldman Sachs...
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Last edited by LynnieS; 2009-09-20 at 07:24.
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Old 2009-09-20, 09:15   Link #4029
SaintessHeart
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Vexx View Post
Take a look at a movie called "Charlie Wilson's War" for a fair context to the US involvement in Afghanistan during the Soviet period.
It came from a book of the same name right? I just read the summary and ditched it back onto the bookshelf. Sounds like another "perspective" to me.

I will see if I can find it. Is it a recent movie or long time ago?
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Old 2009-09-20, 09:40   Link #4030
yezhanquan
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SaintessHeart View Post
It came from a book of the same name right? I just read the summary and ditched it back onto the bookshelf. Sounds like another "perspective" to me.

I will see if I can find it. Is it a recent movie or long time ago?
Perspective is how history is studied. It's how many sides of the story you can get and putting them together.
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Old 2009-09-20, 10:06   Link #4031
Slice of Life
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LynnieS View Post
nurturing the young democracy
Which democracy? Actually, nobody talks about that anymore here. In fact, the party line at the moment seems to be that nobody has ever talked about that, as far as I can see. The offical propaganda has long shifted to rather fuzzy goals like "stabilization", "improvement of living conditons" and the like.
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Old 2009-09-20, 10:13   Link #4032
Ja-Y-Ce
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It is confirmed now that the dead body found belong to Crayon Shin-chan creator, Yoshito Usui.

R.I.P Sensei...

http://mainichi.jp/enta/cinema/news/...40081000c.html

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news...n-yoshito-usui
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Old 2009-09-20, 10:18   Link #4033
Knight Hawk
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God dammit old man, why did you have to go climbing!? R.I.P Yoshito Usui.
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Old 2009-09-20, 10:24   Link #4034
LynnieS
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Slice of Life View Post
Which democracy? Actually, nobody talks about that anymore here. In fact, the party line at the moment seems to be that nobody has ever talked about that, as far as I can see. The offical propaganda has long shifted to rather fuzzy goals like "stabilization", "improvement of living conditons" and the like.
Well, that was the initial claim anyway... Now? No comment.

Obama asks NY Governor Paterson to quit race
Quote:
WASHINGTON — President Obama has sent a request to Gov. David A. Paterson that he withdraw from the New York governor’s race, fearing that Mr. Paterson cannot recover from his dismal political standing, according to two senior administration officials and a New York Democratic operative with direct knowledge of the situation.

The decision to ask Mr. Paterson to step aside was proposed by political advisers to Mr. Obama, but approved by the president himself, one of the administration officials said.
To be honest, I'm a bit confused by this action. Paterson is not being asked to resign from his position, which means no special election to put another stronger candidate into the governor's office before the next election to build his record early. The Lt. Governor would be put in anyway for that case, and not Andrew Cuomo.

In the next election and if Cuomo decides to bid, that would be a primary first. Is the White House worried that it has to endorse Paterson, and if he loses, that would alienate both Rudolph Giuliani and Cuomo? I imagine that the White House, given it's Democratic, would endorse the best candidate on its party ticket, and if that means Cuomo, so be it. They don't have to support Paterson just because he's the sitting governor, yes?

Some Machiavellian-wannabe wits are thinking that this is a way to get Cuomo off from pursuing BoA, but (1) that's... silly and (2) wouldn't really work anyway since both the Justice Department and the FBI are investigating. Unless they do a poor job at it like the SEC...

Quote:
Originally Posted by Ja-Y-Ce View Post
It is confirmed now that the dead body found belong to Crayon Shin-chan creator, Yoshito Usui.

R.I.P Sensei...
A sad day to lose Usui-sensei... Hiking trails aren't near cliff edges usually, but there is also usually nothing stopping people from going near the edge to take in the sights and etc. Higher elevations' views are great, esp. at this time of the year for parts of Japan, but one wrong step, a strong wind gust or etc. and... Will this just be marked as a tragic accident for the family's closure?
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Last edited by LynnieS; 2009-09-20 at 10:43.
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Old 2009-09-20, 10:29   Link #4035
Hell_ping
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Join Date: Sep 2009
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OH SHUCKS! WHY?! Rest In Peace, sensei. Your legacy would not be forgotten...

Wonder what else would be done in remembrance of him...
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Old 2009-09-20, 12:20   Link #4036
Terrestrial Dream
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ja-Y-Ce View Post
It is confirmed now that the dead body found belong to Crayon Shin-chan creator, Yoshito Usui.

R.I.P Sensei...

http://mainichi.jp/enta/cinema/news/...40081000c.html

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news...n-yoshito-usui
Rest in peace sir and thank you for all those great childhood memory that I had with Shin-chan. I will never forget how it made my cousins and I laugh all the time.
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Old 2009-09-20, 15:44   Link #4037
Shadow Kira01
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Xion Valkyrie View Post
The really sad thing is, had we stayed in Afghanistan instead of moving most of our forces to Iraq, we would be in a much better position.
You really think so?

The reason why the United Nations approve the United States and allies in Afghanistan is that their mission is to provide aid to the Afghans such as protect and save them from Talibans, as well as reconstruct the broken country. Their mission is also to aid the civilians in any way they see it as fit. Thus, it is a good thing.

However, if the United States and its allies took control of Iraq, everything will be very different as that their mission will no longer be the same. It would be to secure all the oil while removing all obstacles. What are obstacles again? Well.. Generally, anybody who interferes with the US and its allies from taking oil and resources. At the same time, the US and its allies will also be hunting down Al-Qaeda making it some sort of excuse to the world that they are there out of goodwill and also to remove a threat to global security which is also true to some degree. Nonetheless, numerous American allies are going to become anti-American in the long run. I wonder why..
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Old 2009-09-20, 19:58   Link #4038
yezhanquan
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Terrestrial Dream View Post
Rest in peace sir and thank you for all those great childhood memory that I had with Shin-chan. I will never forget how it made my cousins and I laugh all the time.
All I ask is that Yajima Akiko lead a fan memorial service. The character is probably the first time anyone has heard Yajima-san (even if they didn't know about it).
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Old 2009-09-20, 20:10   Link #4039
solomon
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I certainly didn't know it, although I loved her performance. I read about it on a forum and confirmed it in the Asahi, sad sad day.
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Old 2009-09-20, 23:48   Link #4040
Patriot's Blade
its Ghost Madoka time!!!
 
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Ja-Y-Ce View Post
It is confirmed now that the dead body found belong to Crayon Shin-chan creator, Yoshito Usui.

R.I.P Sensei...

http://mainichi.jp/enta/cinema/news/...40081000c.html

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news...n-yoshito-usui
ok-ok now, why so MANY famous people died in this year!!?

this is way too much, may all named celebrities come out safe in one piece after 2009 ended!!!
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