Venezuela stumbles as poor leadership and cheap oil take their toll

Venezuela may soon become the world's first nation in 2015 to see its government and economy implode. The South American country, led by Hugo Chavez for 15 years from 1998 to 2013 (with all the controversy the man brought on the world stage) is heavily dependent on its oil industry and the revenues it brings. Those revenues also allowed Chavez to champion socialism in his nation, and create economic alliances with other socialist-leaning or communist nations in the Western Hemisphere, though Teatree believes it fair to say, that simple anti-US and anti-capitalist perspectives provided most of the heat for these groupings.

Venezuela - with a population approaching 30 million people, immense oil reserves and therefore potential wealth for the whole nation (if distributed justly as in the case of Norway), high and untrammeled biodiversity across its landscape, and an avowed socialist governance for the past 16 years - should really be something of a powerhouse and inspiration to the world, and yet ... Graphic from davidjlynch.com

Unfortunately, today, Venezuela is teetering as oil revenues have plunged in the past six months, corruption remains rampant, and its leader (handpicked by Chavez and propped up in power by the few benefiting from the power-structure status quo), unable to articulate a pragmatic path forward.

President Maduro, to be fair, is in over his head, and chained to the ideology and memory of Hugo Chavez. As wikipedia notes, "A former bus driver, Maduro rose to become a trade union leader, before being elected to the National Assembly in 2000. He was appointed to a number of positions within the Venezuelan Government under Chávez, ultimately being made Foreign Minister in 2006. He was described during this time as the "most capable administrator and politician of Chávez's inner circle"."

Maduro was Venezuela's Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2006 to 2013 and Vice President of Venezuela from 2012 to 2013. With his main asset being supportive of Hugo Chavez who in turn was able to talk big because oil prices were high and revenue flowing in, it was a very narrow base upon which to lead the nation on Maduro's own (about 95 percent of the money Venezuela earns from exports comes from its oil sales, according to an AP article on January 16).

As President, Maduro spent 2013 and the first half of 2014 making bombastic speeches in the form of "Hugo Chavez-isms," and even created a Ministry of Happiness. Photo from www.telegraph.co.uk

In the past six months, however, since oil prices have plunged, Maduro is confronting an increasingly dire range of options. For most of January, Maduro has gone on a world circling trip visiting nations that might lend him substantial funds to cover the lost oil revenues. He has visited Russia to meet with President Putin. In China, he secured a $20 billion infusion of Chinese investments, and in Qatar, he announced a new financial alliance. Maduro also stopped in Iran, Saudi Arabia and Algeria, but with not a great deal to show for it.

Returning home, Maduro received the equivalent of a ticker-tape parade organized by his supporters, even though while traveling, his government had to implement a new rationing system to curb out-of-control lines at stores. In addition, young protesters began blockading streets and opposition leaders were loudly calling for immediate change.

Another AP article reports, "Venezuela is seeing lines unheard of even in this shortage-plagued nation, with people lining up overnight to buy necessities like soap, milk and diapers. The state has deployed military guards to maintain order as stocks run low after long winter holidays.


A man leaves a private supermarket with disposable diapers, the long line are those waiting for their turn to shop. Photo from (AP Photo/Fernando Llano)

Many items have become impossible to find even on the thriving black market. At least one upscale Caracas hotel is no longer providing laundry service unless guests bring their own detergent. ...

Food Security Czar Carlos Osorio drew jeers last week when he said that the existence of long lines proved that Venezuela has plenty of food. Otherwise, he said, there would be nothing to line up for."


For those unable to afford shopping at private supermarkets, there are government supermarkets where prices are capped. This is a line near the Petare shantytown in Caracas, Venezuela. Apparently this line represents "success" for Venezuela's government, as there must be something in the store to buy ...

Beyond the immediate scarcities and unrest, there are those pesky loans already taken out by Venezuela, and payments are coming due. Default on a variety of financial instruments looms. And where it all ends, in this nation with enormous potential wealth, no one knows.

But let's end on a positive note - leaving behind the long lines that give testimony to scarcity and corruption in urban Venezuela, a couple pictures of the country's southern and western regions.


The website www.climatestotravel.com observes, "in the state of Bolìvar, we find the huge Canaima National Park, which is generally more humid and has greener landscapes; here we find incredible waterfalls like Salto Angel, 3,212 feet (979 meters) high, and Salto Kukenan, 2,211 feet (674 meters) high."


In Western Venezuela, the Andes mountains can be found, providing the contrast to the steamy jungles and plateaus in places such as the Canaima National Park. Photo from http://venezuela-pr.com/

Hong Kong's Umbrella Movement

Teatree tends to think that Asian matters often suffer a disconnect with the West, at least with Americans. Which is a shame as China's recent prosperity along its Coast, impact on world trade, and its overall vast population (1.1 billion) should keep us engaged.

Thus, a moment on Hong Kong's "Umbrella Movement" (it finally has a name).


Where is Hong Kong? Let's start with its general location in context to China, the country. Graphic from www.rehabilitacionblog.com


Hong Kong itself is a metropolis on an island part of what is called the New Territories - a peninsula off Chinese mainland.


Hong Kong is a rich, affluent metropolis with a long history of global trade under a capitalist economic system. Nonetheless, it also grew as part of Great Britain's empire at its zenith. Great Britain at the time "negotiated" a lease from a weak Chinese government in 1898 for 99 years. The return of Hong Kong to a patient China in 1997 was a big event. Photo from www.vacationhomes.net

Hong Kong's recent history

From wikipedia, "As a result of the negotiations and the 1984 agreement between China and Britain, the British colony Hong Kong was returned to the People's Republic of China and became its first Special Administrative Region on 1 July 1997, under the principle of "one country, two systems".

Hong Kong has a different political system from mainland China. Hong Kong's independent judiciary functions under the common law framework. The Hong Kong Basic Law ... stipulates that Hong Kong shall have a high degree of autonomy in all matters except foreign relations and military defence. The declaration [also] stipulates that the region maintain its capitalist economic system and guarantees the rights and freedoms of its people for at least 50 years after the 1997 handover. The guarantees over the territory's autonomy and the individual rights and freedoms are enshrined in the Hong Kong Basic Law ... but is subject to the interpretation of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPCSC).

The leader of Hong Kong, the Chief Executive, is currently elected by a 1200-member Election Committee, though Article 45 of the Basic Law states that "the ultimate aim is the selection of the Chief Executive by universal suffrage upon nomination by a broadly representative nominating committee in accordance with democratic procedures."

And hence the trouble begins ...

In late August, the "Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPCSC)" decided to change some nomination and election procedures. "While notionally allowing for universal suffrage, the decision imposes the standard that "the Chief Executive shall be a person who loves the country and loves Hong Kong," and stipulates "the method for selecting the Chief Executive by universal suffrage must provide corresponding institutional safeguards for this purpose".

In a nutshell, while voting was allowed, it was for party approved nominees only, and the final decision between the top two vote getters would rest with the national government (via whatever Standing Committee it chose to exercise power through).

On to the streets came young protesters - perhaps the most interesting dynamic being their young ages, their social media connectedness, and their desires for "real democracy" based on one person one vote.

The Western media picked up on this wave of protests, and we've seen the pictures of sit ins, stand ins, police removing protesters, re-occupation, negotiations, new police sweeps, etc.


Hong Kong streets taken over by democracy protesters. Photo from www.news.nom.co


Hong Kong police breaking up demonstrations. Photo from www.thejournal.ie

Where will it end?

This is a good question - the outcome is uncertain, though significant change to the Chinese government's position is increasingly unlikely. The protest itself then is likely to dissipate or be strongly suppressed, but the questioning, the awakening, and the resolve contained therein may emerge at another time. There is a new generation of mainly under 30s who took the "one nation, two systems" seriously and don't want to loose the freedoms they have grown up with.

Young, connected, and not interested in a "fake" democracy. Photo from the Telegraph UK

The recent record of protests is mixed - significant change is pretty rare.

* Remember 1989 when Chinese authorities crushed a significant uprising at Tiananmen Square.

* Yet beginning that same year, there was the avalanche of protests across the decaying Soviet Empire that resulted in the collapse of the U.S.S.R.

* In 2009, a "green revolution" in Iran flared and was subdued.

* In 2011, a wave of protests across the Arab world (the Arab spring) sputtered, then died in perhaps of the involved countries except Tunisia. Syria represents the worst case scenario where the protests morphed into a savage ongoing civil war, fed by regional powers in a proxy conflict.

P.S.

The Umbrella Movement refers to the items protesters used to protect themselves from police. Photo from humanevents.com

The Eighth Stan - and the Uighurs who live there

One of the most popular posts in this blog (and the mystery remains as to why) is "The Seven Stans" on June 15, 2010. It described the seven modern day nations that end in "stan." (Ok, a reminder: Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.)

Well, there really is an eighth (and a ninth if one looks at Dagestan, a republic within Russia ... and we may be witnessing the emergence of a tenth called Kurdistan. But those are topics for another day.)

The eighth Stan is currently called Xinjiang, in northwest modern-day China. In an earlier era, this region was known as East Turkestan, but like the much more famous Tibet, this region was swallowed up by the Communists as they created their version of a workers paradise in the late 1940s.

China's largest administrative division, Xinjiang (officially Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region) is nestled in the northwest corner of the People's Republic of China. While it is the largest Chinese administrative division and the 8th largest country subdivision in the world (according to wikipedia), spanning over 1.6 million km2, it is mainly desert, with only about 4 percent fit for human habitation. Graphic from merryabla64.files.wordpress.com

Also historically known as East Turkestan, Xinjiang borders Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. It has abundant oil reserves and is China's largest natural gas-producing region. It has a population of 21 million people, dominated (43 percent) by Uighurs. Han Chinese is the next largest group at 41 percent, but has achieved this only after decades of determined ethnic population migration at the behest of the national government. Graphic from www.davidgyoung.com

News trickles out in the form of reporting on unrest and violence in Xinjiang

The New York Times reported on August 3, "It was a bloody week in China’s far west, with nearly 100 people killed in unrest that the authorities have characterized as terrorism but that Uighur advocacy groups have said is a consequence of a sweeping crackdown aimed at silencing opposition to the government’s hard-line policies in the region.

The outbreak of violence in Xinjiang amid an overwhelming show of security appears to be the worst since 2009, when at least 200 people died during several days of ethnic rioting in the regional capital, Urumqi. ..."

Click on image for full picture
Chinese security forces on the move in Xinjiang. Photo from the NY Times

The unrest seems to pop up in various cities of the province. Last week, a Muslim cleric supported by the national government was assassinated in Kashgar, while violence is documented in the cities of Yarkland and Hotan.

Click on image for full picture
Kashgar, in Xinjiang province. Not what one would think of when considering China. www.globalpost.com

Click on image for full picture
Kashgar, and the various oasis in this province are in arid lands. Photo from www.flickr.com

Xinjiang Province, the capital is Urumqi. It is the historic eighth stan, East Turkestan. South of the cities Kashgar and Korla is the forbidding Taklamakan Desert. Graphic from cokesmithphototravel.com

A Guantanamo connection

Perhaps the reader may remember that a group of U.S. Guantanamo prisoners were Uighurs. 22 individuals were swept up in the U.S. counter terrorism actions after the 2001 towers attack, and it got complicated from there. A New York Times article described it this way, "at least as early as 2003, the [U.S] military had determined they were “not affiliated with Al Qaeda or a Taliban leader” and should be released.

But the United States could not repatriate them because the Chinese government has a history of mistreating Uighurs as it deals with ethnic unrest in its vast Central Asian border region of Xinjiang, where Uighurs are the largest ethnic group. The American military believed some of the Uighur detainees had received weapons training at a camp in Afghanistan run by a separatist Uighur group. Other countries were reluctant to take them, in part because of Chinese diplomatic pressure."

The Silk Road connection

The eighth stan and many other stans contain portions of the old Silk Road - an overland trade route connecting the Middle East and China. That could be a story in the future as well.

Click on image for full picture
This map shows the Silk Road, and the region just south of the Tian Shan mountains is that desert ... Graphic from stratfor.com

So there we are - for more fascinating detail on the Uighur's, the politics regarding the eight Stan, visit a blog ... http://www.davidgyoung.com/abused-and-ignored.html

Putin's Russia searches for partners

On May 29, Russian President Putin stood with two national leaders from Belarus and Kazakhstan, to announce the formation of a rival to the European Union (EU), called the Eurasian Economic Union (EaEU). The three countries would provide an alternative economic trading zone to the EU, with the intent of attracting other countries, one assumes, who are unable to become members of the EU. Both Armenia and Kyrgyzstan have indicated their interest in becoming members

Click on image for full picture
The founding members of the Eurasian Economic Union - from left, President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus, President Nursultan Nazarbayev of Kazakhstan, and President Putin of Russia. Photo from www.uznews.net

Click on image for full picture
Here in Cyrillic script, are the founding EaEU members. The gray vacancy in the southwest of the map is Ukraine, which at one point, no doubt, was assumed to become a founding partner in this alternative to the EU. Graphic from democraticbelarus.eu

Critics consider the EaEU as a Putin effort to revive the soviet empire without the communist ideology. Ukraine, however, is missing. In fact, Ukraine was trying to move towards the EU over the past years, which ultimately led to Putin's clampdown and annexation of the Crimean peninsula, as well as fueling separatist movements throughout the east of the country.

President Putin called the official establishment of the EaEU as the "central event of the year" (apparently surpassing his annexation exercise), but even among the founding three members, there was hesitation. As one article from uznews observed, "It should be noted that the signing of the document did not go as planned by Moscow. Kazakhstan, for instance, spoke out against “Russian revenge-seeking” and decided to not include such “murky” points as “common citizenship”, “foreign affairs”, “passport and visa regimes”, “common borders”, “inter-parliamentary cooperation”, and “export control”.

Belarus also signed the agreement with many corrections having rejected allegations of its economic and political weakness while its leader, Alexander Lukashenka, underscored more than once that his country is entering the union as an equal partner and will not tolerate any infringements on its sovereignty."

Click on image for full picture
The new EaEU is most likely the latest attempt to solidify the influence of Russia with its neighbors. After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990, there was much fanfare over the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) which, who knows, perhaps was trying, at least with the name, to imitate the British Commonwealth. Even then, the three Baltic states had quickly and emphatically moved away from CIS consideration. Graphic from www.canros.com

Other Putin moves:

Defiant of Western sanctions for his land grab on the Crimean Peninsula, Russian President Putin also trumpeted a long term energy deal with China, selling up to $400 billion of oil and gas over 30 years. This time Putin called the deal, a “watershed event.” The agreement includes building new pipelines and terminals heading away from Europe, where most of Russia's oil and gas exports now flow. $400 billion sounds like a lot, but with Putin plowing $50 billion into the Sochi winter Olympics alone, it can be squandered ...

Click on image for full picture
Russian President Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping at oil and gas agreement event The previous day, the two countries announced a broader energy cooperation framework agreement. Photo from cntv.cn

Click on image for full picture
Lots of new pipelines over extensive miles - all concentrated in the east of Russia and headed towards China. Graphic found in www.srbijadanas.net

Secondly, and perhaps not completely unrelated, a prospective EaEU member, Kyrgyzstan has concluded its agreement with the United States in which it provided an airbase at Manas for NATO operations in Afghanistan. While the timetable was agreed on several years ago, its coincidental timing emphasizes Russia's efforts to consolidate its previous allied borders.

The US Manas air force base in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan ... Photo from defence.pk

From a Washington Post article, we read, "Kyrgyzstan, a mainly Muslim nation of 5.5 million, remains poor and volatile after violent revolts that have deposed two presidents since 2005. It lies on a drug-trafficking route out of Afghanistan and is next door to China, which is boosting its economic ties with resource-rich Central Asia. After his election in 2011, Kyrgyz President Almazbek Atambayev assured Moscow the U.S. air base would be shut.

In December 2012 he ratified a deal leasing the base to Russia for 15 years from January 2017, after Moscow agreed to write off some $500 million of Kyrgyz debts. The agreement can be automatically extended for five years after its expiry. Neighboring Tajikistan also receives Russian economic aid and ratified a deal in October to extend by three decades Moscow's military presence on its land, which may face security threats after NATO troops leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014."

Click on image for full picture
With the Western war effort quickly winding down in Afghanistan, the US is relinquishing its Kyrgystan air base and will accomplish any further resupplying by air from Romania ... It looks like a stretch, but then again, the US seems to have every intention of leaving Afghanistan, as well as leaving the country to an even more uncertain future. Graphic from www.stripes.com

China and Vietnam find themselves on opposite sides of an oil rig

Perhaps it is a tempest in a teapot, but then again ...

News from Vietnam is that there have been significant protests in the central coastal province of Ha Tinh against China. In this provice, Vietnamese angered by the Chinese planting of an oil rig in waters claimed by Vietnam, attacked factories and businesses run by Chinese there. At least two deaths were reported and over 100 injuries.

Click on image for full picture
This graphic shows a growing number of protests in Vietnam against the Chinese. While the graphic shows 3 such protests, the latest is that there have been incidents in over 22 provinces of Vietnam's 63. From www.straitstimes.com

Click on image for full picture
While protests were at first orderly, such as this one in front of a Chinese owned factory in the Thai Binh province further north, others became violent causing property damage, injuries and deaths ... photo from www.nytimes.com

Yesterday, the Chinese announced that up to 3000 nationals would be evacuated from Vietnam, and have sent ships to pick them up.

Chinese nationals queuing to leave Vietnam. photo from www.newslocker.com

The oil rig in dispute

Click on image for full picture
The oil rig placed by China renews the conflicting claims of the two countries, as well as many other Southeast Asian nations resisting the broader Chinese assertion. Graphic from www.voanews.com

China was not messing around when placing its oil rig. The rig is a regular platform, and Chinese military warships or some version aggressively went after Vietnamese vessels with water cannon.

Click on image for full picture
A Chinese coast guard vessel protecting mammoth oil platform in the background. Photo from www.cctv-america.com

Click on image for full picture
Chinese vessel using water cannon on Vietnamese ship with a Chinese coast guard ship in the background. Photo from AP

From here on out ...

Teatree doesn't expect the Chinese to back down anytime soon in asserting its resource claim in the South China sea. Nor does he expect a meek acceptance of the violence against its citizens in Vietnam, in spite of the quick effort to evacuate them.

And while the Vietnamese have shown themselves to be a formidable foe - certainly with the French and then the US - this confrontation with the Chinese must certainly be viewed soberly.

China ends one child policy, amid other changes ...

As 2013 ends, China announced some loosening of its one-child policy after 43 years. Under the new policy, couples will be allowed to have two children if one of the parents is an only child. Previously, a couple could generally only have a second child if both parents were only children.

Not sure this is that groundbreaking, but the Chinese government apparently thinks it is worth it.

Click on image for full picture
A most likely outcome of a family in the past 43 years. Lots of little princes being raised ... photo from offbeatchina.com

Slightly less common, raising a single daughter, as males have been preferred. Much less common, and more so in rural areas, are families with two children ... photo from america.aljazeera.com

Background

In 1980, China announced the family planning policy intended to control its population growth, and curb other social and environmental impacts within the most populous nation on earth. The Chinese government maintains the policy has averted 400 million births through 2009, though other demographers bracket the slowdown to about 200 million. According to a 2011 article in a Boston newspaper, "Cai and Wang Feng, director of Brookings-Tsinghua Center for Public Policy, ... argue that between 1979 and 2009, China averted 200 million births, half the government estimate. They arrived at the number by calculating what the population would have been if China had maintained its 1979 fertility rate of 2.75 and comparing it to the 2009 fertility rate of 1.7 and population."

Click on image for full picture
Chinese girls had an elevated risk in their early years, due to a deeply patriarchal view of the sexes. Photo from the UK Daily Telegraph

While the policy was officially called the family planning policy, it quickly became known as the "one-child policy" though there were many exceptions. For example, rural families were allowed to have a second child if the first child was a girl or was disabled, and ethnic minorities were exempt. Families in which neither parent has siblings were also allowed to have two children."

Click on image for full picture
China's population density across the landscape - graphic from zonu.com

The policy was typically criticized for the methods used to make sure the policy was followed. The policy has been implicated in an increase in forced abortions, female infanticide, and under-reporting of female births, not to mention the concept of giving the state control over family reproduction. The government officially reserved and used the right to financially fine families for not complying. From the start, the policy roused the scorn from human rights advocates, and over time it has become increasingly unpopular in China's modernizing population.

What is next in store for China's demographics? Photo from the UK Daily Telegraph

Economically, some experts note the policy has created a notable imbalance in the sex ratio, which floats nearly equal everywhere, but in China is 117 males for every 100 females. The policy has also raised concerns over the larger demographic of older folks, supported by a smaller number of younger workers.

Click on image for full picture
Nice chart showing populations of the nations and regions on our globe. Graphic from commons.wikimedia.org

No more official labor camps

From the UK Daily Telegraph we read, "Also on Saturday, the National People’s Congress adopted a resolution to abolish the re-education labour system, according to the official Xinhua News Agency and the state-run China Central Television.

State media said all those serving time in the labour camps would be set free starting on Saturday, but that the penalties handed out before the abolition would still be considered legitimate, a provision aimed at preventing the victims from suing the state and seeking redress.

Click on image for full picture
One such camp is actually a carbonized thermal parts factory - Photo from the New York Times

Established to punish early critics of the Communist Party, the penal system was retooled to focus on petty criminals. In recent years, however, it had been used by local officials to deal with people challenging their authority on issues including land rights and corruption."

So, China is on the move, dropping some more onerous social policies, but leaving its approach to Tibet (a rebellious province) in place, as well as more assertive announcements regarding the South and East China seas.

China maintains a firm hand in Tibet, photo from claudearpi.blogspot.com

Beijing's air pollution remains startling ...

Click on image for full picture
masks and dimness are the rule of the day for many northern Chinese cities, photo from www.dailytech.com

but as most Americans know first-hand, the Chinese factories that produce the smog are providing nearly everything we use or want.

Click on image for full picture
Containers on one ship heading from China to US. And yes, it is just a coincidence that Cosco Holdings (one of the larger shipping companies) has the same name as the US chain of Cosco stores ... photo from China Daily.

Big steps by big players ...

In the past 48 hours, some rather large developments among the world's big players. Agreements large and small regarding nuclear power and climate change, along with a unilateral decision on ocean boundaries. Whether these developments pan out, represent progress or rather a kicking of the can down the road, or even constitute taking steps backward, remain to be seen.

Iran and the Big Six sign "historic" nuclear deal

An early CNN reports, "A historic deal was struck early Sunday between Iran and six world powers over Tehran's nuclear program that freezes the country's nuclear development program in exchange for lifting some sanction while a more formal agreement is worked out. The agreement -- described as an "initial, six-month" deal -- includes "substantial limitations that will help prevent Iran from creating a nuclear weapon," U.S. President Barack Obama said in a nationally televised address.

The deal, which capped days of marathon talks, addresses Iran's ability to enrich uranium, what to do about its existing enriched uranium stockpiles, the number and potential of its centrifuges and Tehran's "ability to produce weapons-grade plutonium using the Arak reactor," according to a statement released by the White House. Iran also agreed to provide "increased transparency and intrusive monitoring of its nuclear program," it said.

Click on image for full picture
From the UK Daily Telegraph ...
John Kerry meets with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Catherine Ashton and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif at the Iran Nuclear talks in Geneva, Switzerland. Photo: JASON REED/AP

The world's media will cover this story repeatedly over the next few days. Let's hope it is meaningful.

UN climate change conference pulls out a fragile agreement

One day ago, the French AFP reports, ""Just in the nick of time, the negotiators in Warsaw delivered enough to keep the process moving," said climate analyst Jennifer Morgan of the World Resources Institute. But climate economist Nicholas Stern warned that "the actions that have been agreed are simply inadequate when compared with the scale and urgency of the risks that the world faces from rising levels of greenhouse gases, and the dangers of irreversible impacts."

Rich and poor nations have been at loggerheads ever since the talks opened on November 11 over who should do what to curb the march of planet warming. In particular, they clashed over sharing responsibility for curbing climate-altering greenhouse gas emissions, and about funding for vulnerable countries....

Emerging economies like China and India objected to any reference in the Warsaw text to "commitments" that would be equally binding to rich and poor states and failed to consider historical greenhouse gas emissions. Developing nations, their growth largely powered by fossil fuel combustion, blame the West's long emissions history for the peril facing the planet, and insist their wealthier counterparts carry a larger responsibility to fix the problem. The West, though, insists emerging economies must do their fair share, given that China is now the world's biggest emitter of CO2, with India in fourth place after the United States and Europe."

Click on image for full picture
From the UN news centre, "Ban Ki-moon addresses UN climate change conference in Warsaw, urging negotiators to rise to the challenge and pave the way to a binding climate deal by 2015. UN Photo/Evan Schneider"

China defines its new Pacific Ocean defense zone

From Pakistan's International News, we read, "The Chinese Defence Ministry on Saturday issued a map of an East China Sea Air Defence Identification Zone that includes a chain of disputed islands also claimed by Japan, triggering a protest from Tokyo. Beijing also issued a set of rules for the zone, saying all aircraft must notify Chinese authorities and are subject to emergency military measures if they do not identify themselves or obey orders from Beijing. It said it would “identify, monitor, control and react” to any air threats or unidentified flying objects coming from the sea. The rules went into effect on Saturday.

In Tokyo, Junichi Ihara, head of the Foreign Ministry’s Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau, protested by phone to Chinas acting ambassador to Japan, Han Zhiqiang, saying the zone is “totally unacceptable,” according to a ministry statement. Ihara also criticised China for “one-sidedly” setting up the zone and escalating bilateral tensions over the islands. Both Beijing and Tokyo claim the islets, called Diaoyu in Chinese and Senkaku in Japanese. Protests erupted throughout China last year to denounce the Japanese government’s purchase of the islands from private ownership."

Click on image for full picture
From the BBC, a graphic showing the new China defense line ...

Teatree notes that this zone in the East China Sea is not referring to Chinese claims in the South China Sea, where the Philippines and Vietnam and others are resisting Chinese claims. And to top off THAT area, it didn't help tensions when China initially offered less aid to The Philippines regarding the typhoon, than did the Swedish store business, Ikea.

Nepal's Festival of Dasain

Let's get away from the carnage of Syria, special forces raids and immigration sinkings from Africa, and all the rest of the trouble spots that we look at with despair, and head to Nepal, where winter is fast closing in.

Click on image for full picture
Nepal is a small country, though with a population of over 27 million, strategically located between the two most populous nations on earth - India and China. Its capital is Kathmandu. The map from www.youcaring.com shows Nepal on the Indian subcontinent.

Click on image for full picture
From Wikipedia, we learn, "The mountainous north of Nepal has eight of the world's ten tallest mountains, including the highest point on Earth, Mount Everest, called Sagarmatha in Nepali." Map also from wikipedia ...

Every October in this small country nestled up into the Himalayan mountains celebrates a 10-day festival of Dasain. From www.frommers.com, we read, "Dasain is Nepal's most colorful annual festival, featuring 10 days of bathing in holy rivers, masked dancing, kite flying, bamboo swinging displays and a final four days of spectacular celebrations. It's a wonderful festival for people but not a particularly healthy one for their animals.

Generally the first six days are not celebrated publicly, but on the seventh day, Fulpati -- the public festivities -- begin. These include a procession of government officials from Kathmandu's royal palace, accompanied by a marching band, ritualistic receptions and the placing of sacred garlands of flowers at Hanuman Dhoka Gate. The eighth day, Kalratri, is the "black night" as the slaughter of goats, sheep and buffalo begins and continues on to the ninth day, when thousands of animals are sacrificed in Kot, the courtyard outside the Taleju temple. This day also sees a rather unappetizing display of Hindus sprinkling their cars with the blood of the animals to ward off evil spirits from the Goddess Durga and to prevent car accidents.

Looks like spectacular views are all over the country ... from a blog with few words, but plenty of pics http://jitendraadhikari.wordpress.com/

The tenth day, Bijaya Dashami, Hindus and Buddhists go to their elders to receive tika, rice patties immersed in a red liquid, that is then placed as a spot on their foreheads. That afternoon people gather and make their way to the temple of Nardevi for the Festival of the Sword, Khadga Jatra, which represents the victory of good over evil, commemorating the legendary killing of a demon by the goddess Durga. This is also considered the luckiest day of the year for Nepalis to gamble..."

So, that's the tourist version, here's another look at it:

The festival occurs during the 7th Nepalese month of kartika (mid October to mid November, and the year starts in our April) which is a reminder that our western twelve month calendar is a construct ...

Similar to the first U.S. government shutdown in 17 years, hysterically fixated on in the Western media, this festival sees the Nepalese government shutting down for 10-15 days each year so that people can celebrate good over evil, and strengthen community ties. Not a bad concept...

Certain days stand out - 1,7,8,9,10 - here's a few excerpts pulled from Wikipedia:

Day 1: Ghatasthapana
A pot is filled with water, cow dung and barley seed and the emergence of grass from the sprouting seed later on, represents the emerging goddess Durga for the rest of the festival. The festival is first and foremost a celebration of the goddess who emerged and triumphed over the demon Mahishasura, thus saving everyone from terror.

The goddess Durga, from www.mikeldunham.blogs.com

Day 7: Fulpati
The day when the barley seed sprouts and grows into sacred grass, jamara

from picosoftnepal.com

Day 8: Kalrati or Maha Asthami
This is the day when the most demonic side of Goddess Durga’s manifestations, the Kali, is appeased through the sacrifice of hundreds of thousands of buffaloes, goats, pigeons and ducks in temples throughout the nation. Blood, symbolic for its fertility, is offered to the Goddesses. Appropriately enough, the night of this day is called Kal Ratri (Black Night).

from a particularly good blog post on the festival, http://www.everestuncensored.org/tag/dashain-greetings/

Day 9: Maha Navami
Ceremonies and rituals reach the peak on this day. On this day the Vishwakarma, the god of creativeness is also worshiped as it believed that all the things which help is in making a living should be kept happy. Artisans, craftsmen, traders, and mechanics worship and offer animal and fowl blood to their tools, equipment, and vehicles. And, since it is believed that worshiping the vehicles on this day avoids accidents for the year all the vehicles from bikes, cars to trucks are worshiped on this day.

Day 10: Dashami
On this day, a mixture of rice, yogurt and vermilion is prepared by the women, known as "tika". Elders put this tika and jamara which was sewn in the ghatasthapana on the forehead of younger relatives to bless them with abundance in the upcoming years. The red also symbolizes the blood that ties the family together. Elders give "Dakshina", or a small amount of money, to younger relatives at this time along with the blessings.

from www.explorehimalaya.com

Interesting, exotic, and there are items in this festival that could resonate well for all of us.

Like large cities everywhere, here is Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal - the background might be exotic, but the sprawl of civilization balances it out, from http://www.123rf.com/photo