[LynnieS]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Al-Qaeda. Diverting attention and resources, especially intelligence and counter-insurgency from Pakistan and a few other places in the ME while they relocate. The Pakistani offensive must have really hit a spot that really hurts them.

IMO, they can buy themselves more time to hide if they attack Israel through Palestine. Breaking the Peace accord, then pissing off the Mossad to join the offensive can start another quarrel between the rest of ME and Israel. This buys them enough time to shift their stuff.

So far - and at least on the U.S. news side - no official word on who has or has not claimed responsibility on the attack (and the now 147 deaths). Al-Qaeda... I don't think so - at least not directly. Most likely, it's by people who had been in power (or in a good position on top of everyone else), but have now been dropped to the level of "commoners". By attacking the new government and esp. with the U.S. still committed to leaving, it can weaken the government and make the people wish for a return to the "bad old days" where at least you have a Strong Man in charge.

Kuwaiti politicians feud over $21 billion consumer bailout plan

Oct. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Lawmakers in Kuwait, which is richer per capita than Germany, are demanding a government bailout of all consumer loans, reviving a power struggle that’s already shut down the assembly twice in 18 months.

At least half of the 50 elected lawmakers say they’ll back a plan for the government to buy all 6 billion dinars ($21 billion) of bank loans taken by Kuwaiti citizens to buy homes, cars, holidays and other purchases, write off interest payments and reschedule the rest. The government opposes the bailout. Parliament convenes on Oct. 27 after a four-month break.

In many ways and if the government can actually afford it, a bailout of every citizen is better than just bailing out a subset of people. OTOH, it is expensive, and the money can be used to improve infrastructure, education and etc. The quote “It’s my right as a citizen to enjoy the wealth and resources of my country,” said Essa al-Malki, a 32-year-old teacher of philosophy and psychology, who took out a 15-year 23,000 dinar loan in 2000 and supports the plan. is funny, though.

Originally Posted by Shadow Kira01

And why is Okinawa responsible for hosting an American military base and dishing out the sympathy budget for the sake of a Chinese rogue province? More over, if Taiwan needs the protection so badly, the Okinawan military facility should be relocated over to Taiwan where their people can experience noise pollution and also enjoy dishing out the sympathy budget as this is entirely irrelevant to Okinawa and the Okinawans.

Just out of curiosity, how much do you know of the situations between (1) China and Taiwan and (2) the U.S. and Okinawa/Japan?

The situation between China and Taiwan will likely end within 20 years or so, IMHO - barring any major catastrophes. I don't see much of a chance of Taiwan returning quietly as a province, esp. given that it has been on its own for so long (with local Strong Men benefiting), but more likely as a SAR... It'll take a good negotiator or three to save people's face and to protect the entrenched's interests, but it shouldn't be a huge problem for the U.S. if it can control the situation and let it drag on. After thinking about it, having a U.S. base in Taiwan isn't in the U.S.'s interests, esp. if Taiwan does go back to China. Aside from the tech and knowledge transfers, it's too visible a threat to China's sovereignty.

For the Okinawan voters, it's not likely to be 100% of the eligible voters making the decisions - just the most vocal ones - but if the U.S. does not agree and the central government in Tokyo does not allow the move, these voters will continue to put people into office till they get what they want. Much better to part on a good note and save your "good will" chit for later.

The noise can be handled or controlled, and the number of crimes, while increasing, is not as bad as elsewhere. The problem here might well be the suspects, if they are U.S. servicemen, are under U.S. jurisdiction, and not Japan's. That is not a good situation to maintain a good relationship with a host country.

I do wonder if the Okinawans actually have thought about what will happen if the bases do leave, though. In terms of the local economy in Okinawa, if I'm not mistaken, it's now primarily driven by the military bases whereas in the past (before they were built after WWII), it was in agriculture. A lot of people will lose their jobs, and the economy will crash. Will Tokyo help? Honestly, I doubt the central government will or can do much, but let the people reap what they have sown.

Originally Posted by Shadow Kira01

The problem is not that the American soldiers are doing bad things over there; in fact, that is the action of the minority but instead.. It is the sight of American soldiers that people greatly despised. You can almost compare this to the sight of Muslims on American soil or Americans in the Middle East. Regardless of what they try to do now, most people do hope that they relocate their military base over to Guam where everyone will be happy aside from the American government who needs to back down on that firm stance of imperialism along with dishing out fundings.

In all honesty, it does not matter one bit whether it is the majority or the minority who is committing the crimes. What matters are (1) what the Okinawan people believe and (2) what actions have been taken to maintain the relationship between the bases and the Japanese citizens. I don't think you can lump all Okinawans into 1 group and say that the entire group hates or dislikes the servicemen, but definitely and IMHO, having Japan not given jurisdiction over U.S. suspects immediately is a problem.

And how are you concluding that the soldiers are being despised?

Originally Posted by Shadow Kira01

This is totally irrelevant as that the United States do realize that Japan would not sell their treasury debt just to mess with their economy as that it is shared. If the American economy takes a toll, the Japanese economy will go down it. However, if China pulls it off, they don't seem to care much which is where the problem exists. This prevents the United States from moving their base over to Taiwan like they claim. However.. What does this have anything to do with Guam!?

You mentioned Treasury debt... Who is "they", though?

For Guam, the chances of the U.S. leaving Okinawa at the moment, fairly low, IMHO. It's too far away to actually project a decent amount of force into the region in order to contain countries like China and Russia from exerting too much influence militarily. If it comes down to it, Guam is too easily bypassed once bases in South Korea and Alaska are dealt with. Guam is 2730 km away from Taipei, 2500 km away from Tokyo and 3000 km from South Korea and China. Okinawa, OTOH, is less than 1000 km from China, Taiwan and South Korea.