2011-02-05, 02:52 | Link #11841 | |
Um-Shmum
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: at GNR, bringing you the truth, no matter how bad it hurts
Age: 39
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you don't want your leader falling into the Uncanny valley, or having his head explode when presented with a logic paradox. not that it really matters if we could solve the technical problems, since anyone seeing such a "leader" for one minute would have no problem spotting that its not human.
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2011-02-05, 03:02 | Link #11842 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Suburban DC
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Originally as an american black man I bristled at the general gist of Cameron's speech. It too often drummed up images of BNP/Front National type drivel.
Vexx's comments made me re think it a little.... While I don't like the unilateral sounding title (a bit too similar to BNP type rightist loonies type of rhet.), I do admit that there has to be a certain level assimilation required in order to for a society to rationally function. Otherwise tribal warfare ensues. History has shown that united, people are stronger than if they are fractured. I am a Black American albiet a somewhat "white" Black American as is the parlance, but despite skepticsm and certain cynicism I still broadly believe in the main values that America is and should be. I think the key word he pointed out was "Islamic extremism is not Islam". This is a point that I wish the media, politicans and people of Islamic faith would more strongly push, even if they have misgivings about American foreign policy. After all, I would expect the same scrutiny of the more established Christian religion and majorities. No matter what religion, theocracy and discrimination and wonton violence and human rights suppression should not be tolerated in modern secular democracies. THAT BEING SAID... The devil of course in in the details.........I think multiculturalism is the wrong word and establishes bad pretexts (especially in the UK and America, different cultures exist between those in Ulster, the Black Country and Cardiff, for example) It's all about the nuance and context. Check this observation on contemporary anti-muslim sentiment by Baroness Warsi, a Conservative Party Muslim. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-12235237 Also a smattering of British Muslim opinons and European opinions follow as links on the side. Quote:
Interesting viewpoint, but the reason China is doing so well is due in substantial part due free market reformation, emulating Western Democracies. I support social welfare programs and certain economic restrictions but by and large the free world and China is making wealth thanks to Private enterprise in many instances. Last edited by Daniel E.; 2011-02-06 at 18:38. |
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2011-02-05, 03:13 | Link #11843 | ||
NYAAAAHAAANNNNN~
Join Date: Nov 2007
Age: 35
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The problem with China is that due to the decentralisation, almost every state wants to be a mini-Shanghai of its own, and is mass building skyscrapers and buildings and whatnot with little or no care of HOW they are going to get tenants after their completion. It indebts the state, and overall as a country with a very low-pegged currency, I wonder how each state is going to pay off the debt, and HOW CCP is going to fund their treasuries to upkeep those buildings. It's going to crash the cost of cyclicals and equities on the market.
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2011-02-05, 03:31 | Link #11844 |
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2010
Location: Boston
Age: 34
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Nice things happen in the middle east too, (even if they're only necessary because of all the violence).
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...-protests.html
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2011-02-05, 03:37 | Link #11845 | |
On a sabbatical
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Wellington, NZ
Age: 43
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2011-02-05, 03:38 | Link #11846 | ||
Pretentious moe scholar
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Vancouver, Canada
Age: 37
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LOL... pretty sure the protestors in Egypt and Tunisia have more in common with the people who protested against Ahmadinejad in 2009 than with most Islamists. Last I heard Egyptian Islamist groups were still have trouble deciding quite what to make of what was going on. Quote:
Canada was the first country to implement an official policy of multiculturalism in 1971. It's basically a way of recognizing that the previous policy of official biculturalism (English Canada and French Canada) failed to recognize the contribution of smaller ethnic groups. It has nothing to do with letting ethnic traditions trump basic rights. Canadians wouldn't stand for having a policy of official monoculture - it would stoke rhetoric among separatist movements about how English Canadians are trying to assimilate French Canadians, and nobody is keen on seeing that come back into vogue because at times it has come close to tearing this country in two. In that respect, biculturalism and multiculturalism enhance Canadian unity.
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2011-02-05, 03:45 | Link #11847 | |
Senior Member
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Suburban DC
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Also I just want to say how great it is to have a forum where you can discuss topics on a wide variety of issues with a wide variety of opinions that don't degenerate into flame wars. |
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2011-02-05, 03:48 | Link #11848 |
Gamilas Falls
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Republic of California
Age: 46
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People have suggested the lack of assimulation of legal and illegal aliens into the United States is a problem that should have been solved already. A hundred or more years ago that wouldn't have been considered a problem as much since it is usually shown in at least the popular history text that it was encouraged by the families that moved to the United States to adapt to American life and English as a language for those coming from all over Europe. To a much lesser extent those from Asia, but that was mainly due to heavy restrictions of the numbers of Chinese and Japanese that could enter the country legally. There were some laws like that for Europeans but not a many (and certainly not for Latin American that I can recall).
Things have changed. People come over carrying their culture with them and keeping it. Many still at least learn English to communicate, but their cultural mindset tends to stay in place rather than changing to a more Western lifestyle. And in the case of the illegals...some don't even bother with learning English from what I can tell. Especially in California, Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona. Legals and Illegals, from primarily Mexico, but other places as well, seem to form nice large communities where Spanish is the primary language. That might be all well and good, but there are conflicts...especially in the larger cities. My father racalls Oakland and Richmond, California being white with some blacks in the early to mid-50s. By the 70s some parts were almost all black in both cities. Now several of those black regions are Latino. I don't know why one group would move out or get pushed out for sure...but something happened. Aside from that these areas tend to be the lower end residential areas. Maybe what had been the poorer black community scaled up to middle class and moved to the suburban areas like the white population had done in the 40s and 50s, with the conservative whites moving out of the state believing the state government to be too liberal for their tastes. It gets to be a mess and creates sort of self made segrigated communities. (Well not not quite segrigated, but more geographical specific areas where one group clusters over another group that might cluster instead in an area only a few blocks away. Rather than a mandated, "you must live here" type thing.)
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2011-02-05, 03:57 | Link #11849 | ||
NYAAAAHAAANNNNN~
Join Date: Nov 2007
Age: 35
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Then again, a mixed market is balancing control of free enterprises with state-owned businesses. The former is the cash cow, while the latter is the strategic control of world trade and investment image. Problem is that in China the opposite happens, where free enterprises tend to be more ethical as compared to SOBs due to differing pay-grades as the basic issue. This entire concept throws conventional macroeconomics out of the window. Quote:
Let's relate to Lehman Brothers at a smaller scale. How are you going to get your debtees to pay back when they have no money too? It tried to imitate Singapore but it's fail in the making because they forget to consider that China is WAY TOO BIG. You can't micro much in China, neither can you macro efficiently when all the state level officials are only concerned about their monthly incomes. It needs to do something about its internal politics and ethical issues....even the rural people are scoffing at their Green Dam and river crabs. But then again, too much control isn't good because corruption is like a disease, you bring it in under you, it spreads to you.
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2011-02-05, 04:07 | Link #11850 | ||
On a sabbatical
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Wellington, NZ
Age: 43
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Who's Angie?
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China is a landmass in every sense of the word. It is the CITIES of China which should copy Singapore.
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2011-02-05, 04:20 | Link #11851 | ||
NYAAAAHAAANNNNN~
Join Date: Nov 2007
Age: 35
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Angela Merkel.
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On a global scale, it isn't a good thing. If China bankrupts US we would see a decade of economic unrest or global trade control by China. Quote:
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2011-02-05, 04:21 | Link #11852 | |
Le fou, c'est moi
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Las Vegas, NV, USA
Age: 34
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Story of America, 2008-today. I think Saintess's point is that not every Chinese city could, or should, become Singapore. It would become a bubble waiting to burst if they try, is what he thinks. |
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2011-02-05, 09:36 | Link #11853 | |
On a sabbatical
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Wellington, NZ
Age: 43
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You thought that the US and Japan were the only countries with right-wing loons?
Think again... Clashes at English Defence League march in Luton Far right activists have clashed with anti-fascist demonstrators at a rally by the English Defence League. Quote:
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2011-02-05, 10:31 | Link #11854 |
books-eater youkai
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: Betweem wisdom and insanity
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Protest over killing sparks fear of unrest in Indian Kashmir
http://ca.reuters.com/article/topNew...71411820110205
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2011-02-05, 12:59 | Link #11855 |
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2009
Location: classified
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'We need to be a lot less tolerant towards Islamic extremists': Cameron calls for immigrants to respect British core values
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...#ixzz1D6mcgia2 Mystery of the mummy's Chinese travel ban.... http://www.independent.co.uk/news/wo...n-2205033.html
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2011-02-05, 13:18 | Link #11856 | |
Obey the Darkly Cute ...
Author
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: On the whole, I'd rather be in Kyoto ...
Age: 66
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I love multi-culturalism ... it provides color and diversity in my world. Festivals, food, a broader sense of views, healthier gene pool, etc. I'm Heinz 57 Euro, I married a Japanese-American, one of my sons is dating a Nepalese Bengali... none of us should have to worry about jerkwads blowing us up or beating us to death for those choices.
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Last edited by Vexx; 2011-02-05 at 15:48. |
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2011-02-05, 13:59 | Link #11857 | |
NYAAAAHAAANNNNN~
Join Date: Nov 2007
Age: 35
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How do we understand each other like that and able to naturally sense that the other party wasn't serious? Well, we grew up with each of our kind and simply showed tolerance and had to force ourselves to understand and work with each other despite our racial and religious differences. As the locals get increasingly selfish, and new immigrants become racist towards a 40-year rojak culture due to their increased presence, this is simply going to go down the drain in the few years time. "River crabs" don't just flow down the stream by themselves, they are lured and consolidated over time and understanding of them. If we don't dispel that climate of fear of each other, the ISA isn't going to repeal itself in the next century or so.
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Last edited by SaintessHeart; 2011-02-05 at 14:24. |
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2011-02-05, 17:03 | Link #11858 |
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2009
Location: classified
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This looked interesting, thought I'd share it.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencete...-000-suns.html
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2011-02-05, 17:07 | Link #11859 | ||
Shougi Génération
Graphic Designer
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There's always going to be excitable people, but France has mixed in with immigrants a lot. At least they have a proper word for mixed-blooded people. Half-cast sounds derogatory to me. Quote:
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2011-02-05, 17:19 | Link #11860 |
Gamilas Falls
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: Republic of California
Age: 46
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I seem to recall a slight conflict between national and religious holidays once in the United States. Not the ones you'd normally be thinking about though. In this case the conflict was one sided I suppose and not hostile, just depressing. One year in High School we had a sort of potluck for just before Thanksgiving I believe. However the few Muslims could not take part as Ramadan had just started. I guess that is just a matter of one system using a Solar based calender and the other culture using a Lunar based one.
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current affairs, discussion, international |
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