Category Archives: International

International, U.S.

Chinese dumping wheels on the U.S. Market

The U.S. International Trade Commission and the Department of Commerce are investigating claims by U.S. companies, that China is dumping steel wheels on the U.S. market.

The claim was filed by the U.S. wheel makers, Accuride Corp and Hayes Lemmerz International Inc.

16 Chinese companies are being investigated for selling their wheels in the United States, for far less than what it cost to make them.  Dumping is a way a company can gain a foot hold in a specific market, by selling their products at huge loses, to push out their competitors. Once that is done the dumping company will increase their prices to make up the difference.

International, U.S.

‘Christians’ say they will protest largest Mosque in United States

Terry Jones now has a $1 million bounty for his arrest.  He’s one of the ‘christians’ that burned the Quran in March.  He, and his followers (doesn’t that make it a cult?) are in Dearborn, Michigan, to launch a Good Friday protest in front of the largest mosque in the U.S.

The problem is that Terry Jones has stated, recently, that he and his followers will use guns at the protest.  In a morning interview (April 22) with a Michigan TV station, Jones said they will protest, even though a judge denied their permit to do so.  The judge did suggest other sites for holding the protest, but Jones refused.

International, Opinion

Chocolate Kinder Eggs Illegal in the United States, could cost you $300.00

If you’re coming back from Canada with a handful, or even just one, Kinder Egg, you’re breaking the law.  It’s against U.S. law to bring chocolate Kinder Eggs into the U.S., and can result in a $300.00 fine, per egg.

Several people have already had their collectible eggs, with a toy inside, taken by U.S. Customs officials after a random inspection at the border.  U.S. law banned the eggs precisely because they have a toy inside.  They are considered a health risk to children.  Last year (2010) U.S. Customs seized 25,000 Kinder Eggs at the U.S./Canadian border.

That’s pretty lame.  I used to get these Italian creations whenever I had the chance. My kids loved them when they were young.  Now I find out why it’s so hard to get them in the U.S.

The company that makes them is the Italian based Ferrero. Originally called Kinder Surprise, they’ve been making them since 1972, yet the United States government thinks they are some kinda terrorist threat to our children (maybe there’s WMDs in there?).  Actually, there is a U.S. law that says a food product cannot contain a non-edible object inside it.  Since 1991 seven kids, in the entire world, died choking on the Kinder Egg toy surprise.  There are legal toys/candies in the U.S. that have caused more deaths than that!

Another surprise is that even though they are illegal in the U.S., Canadian companies are selling them to people in the U.S., through the mail.  There used to be a small European food store where I live, in Idaho, and they sold Kinder Eggs all the time.  In fact they were their best selling item.  Where did they get the Kinder Eggs?  From a Canadian food supplier, though the mail.

Kinder Eggs have become so popular in the world that there are special eggs made for several countries, and holidays.  Wouldn’t it suck to go to jail for trafficking illegal chocolate eggs?   Sounds like some kinda Willy Wonka gone-bad movie.

Business/Economics, International, Opinion

Subaru promotes killing of Palestinians

An advertisement by Subaru, in Israel, promotes running over Palestinians with your new Subaru car.  The tag line, in Hebrew, is: “We’ll see who can stand against you”

What makes it worse, is that the scene in the add is real.  The photo was taken last year, when an Israeli settler ran over Palestinian teens who were protesting the settlements.  The driver of the car, David Be’eri, is the director general of Elad, a hard-line property development company.

The advertisement was revealed to the world by Chinese news agency Xinhua.

International, U.S.

Bahraini Shia claim government, and Saudis, have destroyed 28 Mosques

“We will not keep silent on destruction of mosques.”-joint statement by clerics

Bahrain Center for Human Rights said that 28 Mosques, and 50 mourning halls, have been destroyed by government forces, and Saudi forces.  Muslim clerics have accused Bahraini and Saudi forces of sacrilege.

The Shia majority have been protesting since February 14, they want an end to the royal family rule.  Some of the destroyed mosques were located in Karzakan, Salmabad, Bu Quwah, and A’ali.

Protesters plan a big rally for Friday.  Husain Abdulla, human rights activist, says the United States does not want democracy in Bahrain, because the U.S. fears the people will vote the U.S. Navy out.  Bahrain is the head quarters of the USN Fifth Fleet.

International, Opinion, U.S.

Iran says U.S. & Israel behind regional drug trafficking

“The Zionists and CIA agents in the region assist drug dealers at Iran’s joint borders with Afghanistan. These [so-called] advocates of human rights have undertaken the task of investing in the production of industrial drugs from traditional ones and supplying them to Iran’s market.”-Mohammad-Najjar, Interior Minister

The drug trade from Afghanistan has resulted in more than 3,700 Iranian counter-narcotics officers their lives, since the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan.

The United Nations admits that before the U.S. invasion, the Taliban had actually reduced poppy production to some of the lowest levels in Afghanistan’s history.   Now, according to a 2010 UN report, Afghanistan accounts for 90% of the world’s illicit opium and heroin production.  What happened?  The U.S. used to blame the Taliban for the opium production, but the Taliban are no longer in power in Afghanistan, mmmm.

The United Nations also ranks Iran as have the best anti-drug enforcement record in the world.  Russia has also made claims about the U.S. being involved with the drug trade out of Afghanistan.

International, U.S.

Libyan government arming civilians, to fight NATO invasion

China’s Xinhuanet news is reporting that the Libyan government is arming civilians, to counter a possible invasion by NATO.

Most of the population in the western half of Libya supports the government.  It also happens to be the half of Libya with very little oil production.  The rebellion/civil war started in the oil rich eastern half.

The Libyan government accused NATO of intercepting an oil tanker that was operating for the Libyan government.  That act is not authorized under UNSCR 1973.


International

Woman in Ukraine has 20 kids, wants more. Octo mom can’t touch this

41 year old Leonora Nameni has given birth to her 20th child, and she wants more.

Right now she has 10 boys, and 10 girls.  The oldest, a 20 year old, is married.  The family lives and works on a farm, and they made it clear they do not watch TV.  Mmm, TV watching reduces the number of children in a family?

Leonora Nameni has a ways to go if she’s trying to set a record.  The Guinness Book of Records says Leontina Albina, from Chile, still has the record of giving birth to 55 children.

Business/Economics, International, U.S.

Chinese issue warning over U.S. government debt

“The U.S. economic fundamentals are not strong, plus there is expanding fiscal deficit and declining financial revenue. We are closely tracking the performance of U.S. government bonds and considering a further adjustment based on current conditions.”-Guan Jianzhong, Dagong Global Credit Rating Company

It wasn’t just S & P that reduced the credit rating of the Untied States, Dagong Global Credit Rating company also downgraded the U.S.  That’s important, because it’s a Chinese company, and the Chinese hold most of the U.S. sovereign debt.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei, along with several Chinese bank officials, urged the United States to adopt “responsible policies and measures” to protect the interests of investors (mainly Chinese).  The problem is that if those investors think they’re going to lose money then they’re going to start off loading their U.S. bonds in a big way (they’ve already been selling them off, slowly, for the past three months).


International

Bolivians don’t like Reporters

Currently there are protests going on in Bolivia.  The issue is workers rights, but it’s become clear no one cares about the rights of journalists.

Journalists are being attacked by protesters and police.  Everyone accuses the reporters of working for the police, or the protesters.  Even Bolivian judges are treating reporter with contempt.

In one case a reporter waited for months before his case was brought to trial.  He had been charged with causing a riot that destroyed a police station. Then he was let go, but only with the warning that he could not talk about the details of his trial.

In another court case, a reporter was ruled incompetent, and that all trials involving journalists had to be heard by a special judge.  The reporter in this case had been charged with insulting a government official.

Finally there is the case where a radio personality was murdered, and no investigation has been undertaken.   Reporters Without Borders