Loomis Chaffee World Bulletin Winter 2011-12

The Loomis Chaffee World Bulletin Bringing the World to the Island

Winter 2011-12

The Foxconn-iPhone Controversy The Future of De Beers

Fraud in Russian Elections Japan: One Year Later

Tales of a Thai Scholar

Perspectives on the “Occupy” Movement

from the Editors-in-Chief

A letter to our readers:

Legato del Mondo

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Best known for his military genius, French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was also a master architect. He managed to transform Paris, once a despicable slum, into a metropolis of grandeur. Like a musician tuning his violin, the emperor rebuilt his city by perfecting every aspect—economic, political, cultural—of his territory. Paris became not only the center of European imperial power, but also the birthplace of beautiful poetry and soaring landmarks. Under Napoleon, statecraft merged with art. The Frenchman converged different aspects of human civilization not only to create order but also to innovate.

Today, an interest in international affairs requires an interactive perspective similar to that of Napoleon, a perspective that is able to transcend borders and biases. The global economy, volatile and interconnected, shifts unexpectedly. From Occupy Wall Street to the revolutionary Arab Spring, monumental events are occurring right and left; in this age of globalization, we can no longer turn a blind eye to the happenings in the international community. Facing a world overwhelmed by such chaos, individuals have to embrace foreign affairs with a multifaceted understanding of other countries and cultures. By embracing different peoples and ideas, we can begin to grasp the catalysts of a global phenomenon, comprehending their significance on the global stage. Observing ourselves in the world and drawing our own conclusions about the current spider web of international affairs allows us to establish order among discord. Acknowledging multiculturalism and international diversity permits us to discover new ideas that can further benefit the world.

The Loomis Chaffee World Bulletin hopes to instill this passion for global awareness in its readers. This principle is best expressed as Legato del Mondo, “the world tied together.” In music, legato represents a transition, a tie, between two notes, allowing different tones to merge and create melodic continuity. The articles in this issue, their topics ranging from the

establishment of Al Jazeera to renewable energy in Africa to political reform in Burma, emphasize the holistic and interactive nature of international affairs. It is through recognizing the many, many characters integral to the global community that we unearth new connections and ideas to make this whole stage our own territory.

Sincerely, Samson Chow and Liana Fernez

Winter Term 2011-12/Volume 3, Number 1 EDITORIAL STAFF:

Arianna Calabrese ’13

Samson Chow ’12

Liana Fernez ’12

Woo Jin “James” Lee ’13

Patrick Kennedy-Nolle ’12 FACULTY ADVISER/LAYOUT & DESIGN:

Rachel M. Engelke

Contents

Winter Term 2011-12/Volume 3, Number 1

2 | To Our Readers: Legato del Mondo -Samson Chow ’12 and Liana Fernez ’12

Europe

Middle East

4 | The European Financial Crisis Explained -Jaewon Kim ’14

21 | Time For U.S. Support in Saudi Arabia -Paul Han ’12

6 | The HMS Victory and the Cost of Preserving History -Michael Basmajian ’13

22 | The Al Jazeera News Network -Samuel Verney ’14

6 | Russian Parliamentary Elections: Fraud Goes Too Far -Ekaterina “Kath” Kryuchkova ’13

23 | Growing Tension in Iran -Fred Mun ’14 and Charles Shotton ’14

Africa

The Americas

8 | Are Diamonds Really Forever?

The Future of DeBeers -Samson Chow ’12

25 | Chávez, López, and the State of Venezuelan Politics in 2012 -Riley Clark-Long ’12

10 | South Africa’s Renewable Energy Industry - Naphisa “Pim” Senanarong ’13

26 | The American Way? -Jamie Neikrie ’13

Asia & Oceania 11 | Mingalaba to Reform!

- Arianna Calabrese ’13 13 | Post-Tsunami Japan: Reconstruction or Abandonment?

-Ji Hee Yoon ’13 15 | Korean National Assembly: A Place for a Brawl?

-Woo Jin “James” Lee ’13 16 | Made in China -Ana “Izzy” Fleming ’13 18 | Tales of the Thai Scholarship -Chate Khemakongkanonth ’12 19 | Assimilation in Australia -Krishna Kulkarni ’13

27 | Election 2012: Triumph of the Least Awful -Liana Fernez ’12 29 | Voices from the Occupation -Arianna Calabrese ’13 32 | Occupy Wall Street or Preoccupied?

-Ezra Kauffman ’13 — 33 | Farewell: Judge, Journalists, Politicians, and Playwright 34 | Image Sources 35 | Also in the News

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EUROPE The European Financial Crisis Explained

by Jaewon Kim’14

Since the Global Credit Crunch of 2008, Europe Although the largest economy of the Balkans and “the has fallen into a financial void that might threaten the fastest growing Eurozone economy” (according to the entire continent. However, despite the drastic impact World Bank, 2007), Greece became the first to dig and this crisis has on the global economy, many are still not fall into a financial hole of despair. Under then-Prime as informed or aware of Minister Georgios Papandreou, the Greek economy prospered through heavy borrowing and cheap credit.

JAEWON KIM, from Seoul, this situation as they South Korea, lives in Flagg should be. In order for When the mortgage crisis of 2008 unleashed in the Dormitory and is a member us to understand the United States, which led to the degradation of Greek of the Debate Society, Model economic measures government bonds, Greece found herself trapped United Nations, the Pelican the European in a sovereign debt crisis. By 2009, Greece owed Service Organization (PSO), that Union has undertaken approximately $367 billion to other European nations. and the JV Squash team.

Possibilities of a “Greek bankruptcy” thus shook This is Jaewon’s first article and its influence on the in the World Bulletin. continent’s politics, we the EU as the destruction of Greece would lead to should first recognize widespread social and economic difficulties across the the historic background of the European Union continent. As a chain reaction, the EU and the ECB and the economic causes that spiraled Europe into rushed to fill in the expanding hole that Greece has financial destruction. plunged herself into.

When World War II ended in 1945, Belgium, France, In 2010, the ECB announced that the members of Luxembourg, Holland, Italy, and West Germany the EU had agreed upon the creation of the European founded the European Financial Stability Union in hopes of Facility (EFSF), a legal stimulating economic entity that provides growth through financial assistance political integration. to Eurozone nations Since the creation of under economic the EU, membership distress.

France has blossomed from and Germany, two six nations to 27. The countries with the continent witnessed strongest economies in the creation of the Europe, immediately European Central lent 110 billion euros Bank (ECB) in 1998, Demonstrators protest against government austerity measures outside to Greece and other which administers the Greek Parliament in Athens in December.

European countries. the euro, the However, despite their common currency among European countries. It is endeavors to establish economic recovery, financial important to note that only 17 members of the EU fiasco continued to spread across the continent. utilize the euro; they are collectively known as the Hence, the EFSF augmented the original amount Eurozone. Although the founding of the euro led to a of economic stimulus by seven times; however, the collaborative revitalization of the European economy, rescue kit will likely be ineffective in the long run, as the currency itself poses a certain risk. As the currency it will end in 2013. On the other hand, private banks interconnects all European economies, the financial across the world, already weakened by the declining collapse of one country would induce the downfall economy, became hesitant in loaning further funds of another. Therefore, the Eurozone crisis can be to Greece, which was sinking deeper into the hole categorized as a victim of the domino effect. of Eurozone crisis. The ECB was thus forced to take 4 Greece was the instigator of this chain reaction. action. Even though the institution was founded on

the basis on avoiding direct interference into the economic matters of European countries, it finally decided to lend money to the Greek government due to the contagion of the financial chaos.

By the end of 2011, all efforts seemed null. While frustrated at the Greeks’ inability to stabilize their own economy, the French and Germans were also

finding themselves besieged by economic difficulties.

The Greeks thus decided to take their problem into their own hands. One of Greek government’s solutions was to privatize the country’s public sectors, selling shares of its state businesses such as the postal service and proposing a savings package to stimulate the domestic economy. All of these efforts caused great social unrest and national riots, as Greeks voiced their anger towards the mismanagement and lack of ability

of their own government. The hole became even larger and more countries found themselves plunging into this abyss of chaos. Burdened with sovereign debts over a trillion dollars, Italy and Spain became incapable of providing help to the distressed members of the EU. France and Germany, once perceived as the vanguards of Eurozone recovery, have started to realize the limits of their financial muscle and growing possibilities of their inability to pay back their own credit.

The Eurozone is now left with only one solution: ask for economic aid from other countries, such as China.

This decision, however, does not appeal to many members of the EU, in that it creates the impression that Europe cannot solve its own economic problems, inducing a serious impact onto the already-weakened global economy.

However, the solution could be an effective response amidst the almost insurmountable crisis.

The euro crisis can also be seen as a challenge to both the EU and the ECB and their ability to preserve its original goals while adopting new situations. As members of the EU face their own economic difficulties, they begin to stand aloof from the basis that this political institution was built upon: collaborative progression. By upholding this ideal, the current crisis can be solvable and Europe will experience growth once more. If the members of the Eurozone decide to stand alone, the European Union will perish.

Therefore, in order to get everyone out of the hole, European nations will have to stop fostering strong distrust and stick together.

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The HMS Victory and the Cost of Preserving History

by Michael Basmajian ’13

Defined as the flagship enormous cost of the repairs suggests that there is a of British naval power motivating force behind maintaining the glory of the since 1895, the HMS Victory warship; an incentive is much stronger than merely has been preserved for a material desire to sustain this crucial asset in the over two hundred years.

British tourism industry. The ship holds a place in the The ship has since then history of England and, therefore, its preservation frequently required costly would draw a sense of patriotism from the public. repairs, consuming almost Furthermore, it must be noted that only a very small £2 million (approximately portion of this ship is original wood. If the warship $3 million) in the yearly is no longer the same vessel that defended the budget of Great country from French and Spanish forces Britain’s Ministry of Defense. However, for centuries, then it serves merely as a as the small holes rot and mold symbolic relic of the glorious Royal proliferates, HMS Victory starts Navy. HMS Victory is a gigantic to beg for more comprehensive symbol of British history, heritage, and expensive repairs. The British and work ethic (on this ship ran the population was willing to meet historic motto: “England expects these needs, even though money every man to do his duty”). To used to preserve the vessel doubled, spend tens of millions of pounds on with almost £16 million projected to what has become a phantom of the be spent in the next five years. original must require a great deal of While the HMS Victory is a Since 1895, the HMS Victory has been a patriotism. symbol of naval prowess in British history. very popular tourist attraction, the MICHAEL BASMAJIAN is a day student from Torrington, Connecticut.

He is a peer counselor, co-president of the LC Conservatives, and vicepresident of the Stock Market Club. This is his first article for the World Bulletin.

Russian Parliamentary Elections: Fraud Goes Too Far

by Ekaterina “Kath” Kryuchkova ’13

On Sunday, December 4, 2011, Russian parliamentary elections commenced. The official results demonstrate a high turnout for United Russia, the governing party, with almost 50% of the votes. The Communist Party of the Russian Federation managed to earn second place, garnering about 20% of the votes. Although the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia and A Just Russia finished third and fourth, respectively, they also managed to earn seats in the State Duma, the Russian Parliament.

Few can doubt that United Russia, the party of former president and current prime minister Vladimir 6 Putin, exploited the electoral system and engaged KATH KRYUCHKOVA, from Moscow, Russia, enjoys volunteering with the community service program and playing guitar. A resident of Ammidon Dormitory, Kath is a member of the Foreign Policy Association and the Model United Nations.

She wrote an article entitled “The Cult of Putin” for the Spring 2011 issue of the World Bulletin.

in political fraud. After the election, many voters reported an outrageous number of falsification cases.

The voters proclaim that United Russia bribed and blackmailed public system representatives for support.

During the election, the government gave members of Nashi, a youth movement heavily sponsored by the Kremlin, the privilege to vote multiple times.

The Central Election Commission was also declared an accomplice, as it curved the number of votes and distorted the results for United Russia. In fact, a television report in the Rostov region showed that the total percentage of the votes added up to 146%.

Despite the uproar, the government openly neglected the complaints of the voters. In short, this election revealed a collection of hideous crimes against the Russian constitution.

Vladimir Putin (left) and Dmitry Medvedev Sadly, Russians have

become accustomed to while Vladimir Putin corruption in the Kremlin; addressed U.S. Secretary no citizen of Russia feels of State Hillary Clinton’s even a hint of surprise. concerns about the injustice However, the exposure of the elections, calling them of political fraud in the nothing more than absurd election reveals that for the accusations. In the face of first time in 20 years, since Clinton’s proclamation that the collapse of communism United Russia was infringing and the end of the Soviet the basic rights of Russian Union, the nation is actually citizens, Putin announced openly and efficiently Members of Nashi, a pro-Kremlin youth group, celebrate the that the U.S. government expressing its anger towards victory of United Russia in December 2011 was actually bribing the the government.

Like masterminds of the protests. the Arab Spring demonstrators earlier in the year, At the December 10 Bolotnaya Square rally, Russian bloggers and protesters used social media attended by tens of thousands of people, slogans such to formulate their plans, posting videos of the voter as “Liberty!” and “Reelections!” echoed across the fraud on YouTube, coordinating demonstrations, and Russian capital. These Moscow activists specifically publishing their frustrations about the state of politics listed political compromises and gave the Kremlin two under Prime Minister Putin and his United Russia weeks to respond. They demanded cancellation of the comrade, president Dmitry election results, dismissal of the Medvedev. After the official chairman of the Central Election declaration of the results of the Commission, investigation of parliamentary elections, large all vote falsifications, discharge cities found their streets flooded of all political prisoners and, of with people carrying signs course, called for new elections. proclaiming, “We were cheated!”

In essence, these protesters and chanting oppositionist sought to end the long-standing slogans. Although these crowds reign of Vladimir Putin in the did not show any instances of Russian government. violence, the police arrested a Thousands of anti-Kremlin Russians participate It is important to understand large number of protesters under in a massive domestic uproar after the December that not all protesters were parliamentary election. various pretexts. The domestic rebelling against Putin personally. uproar eventually expanded to an international scale.

While he does personify the Kremlin’s abuse of Rallies developed in front of Russian embassies all power, he is not the root of the trouble. Devastating over the world. In one instance, Russian citizens in corruption in Russia did not suddenly appear because London held protests by holding a dramatized “funeral of his policies, but rather have existed since even of Russian democracy.” All of these individuals in this before the Soviet era (1917-1991). Corruption grew democratic movement wore white ribbons as a symbol more rampant during the Boris Yeltsin decade (1991of justice and unity with their fellow participants.

2000), and has only continued to evolve under The Kremlin gave an immediate response.

Putin (2000 to the present). The fact that major Pavel Durov, the founder of Russia’s most popular opposition parties did not speak up for the last 20 social media website vkontakte.ru, received a formal years also contributes to Russia’s political paradox. accusation from a government official and was forced Due to the absence of a dissident culture in Russian to close down the protesters’ largest group page. politics, many are reluctant to voice their opinions On December 10, 2011, the Ministry of Education against the oppressive policies of United Russia. The scheduled an obligatory Russian language practice lack of worthy, alternative, political parties outrages exam in order to keep high school students away from the nation more than the perpetual rule of United a large rally planned at Moscow’s Bolotnaya Square.

Russia. The popular political slogan of early 2000’s, Current leaders in the Russian government seem to “Certitude in the Future,” teased the citizens with believe in the impossibility of a genuine public voice. its irony. They do not rebel against Putin. They rebel In spite of criticism at home and abroad, Dmitry against the neglect, the method, the system as a whole.

Medvedev, awkwardly denied the falsification and Putin plays only one part of that.

7 declared the elections “honest, just, and democratic,”

AFRICA Are Diamonds Really Forever? The Future of De Beers

by Samson Chow ’12

On April 25, 2003, Beers in 1927. Under Oppenheimer’s leadership, the Jonathan Oppenheimer, company controlled 90% of the world’s diamond SAMSON CHOW, a native production. An exponential path towards prosperity of Hong Kong, is a scion of De Beers, stated followed. Oppenheimer’s son, Harry, oversaw member of the Foreign to The New York Times that the marketing campaign of Policy Association and he had “some huge things participated in the on [his] plate” that he had De Beers’ famous slogan Model UN this winter to deliver to the diamond “Diamonds Are Forever” during at Yale University. A market.” The heir-apparent the 1950s. Nicky Oppenheimer, resident of Warham to the world’s largest and Ernest’s grandson, announced a Dormitory, Samson is most influential diamond retail joint venture with French also a four-year devotee company, Mr. Oppenheimer fashion titan LVMH SA during of the NEO stage. showed bustling ambition his tenure as chairman, thereby establishing a luxury Previous articles for the jewelry chain with more than 50 outlets across the World Bulletin include for his future enterprises.

Eight years later, it seems world. Under the reign of the Oppenheimer Family, “The Juggernaut of Black De Beers flourished through its momentous profits Gold: An Introduction to that Mr. Oppenheimer will OPEC” (Spring 2011) not be able to achieve his and influence in the diamond market. and “A Briefing on BRIC” dreams.

But even the most perfect diamond has its (Winter 2011).

On November 4, 2011, breaking point. In 2000, rising companies such as diamond market analysts Russia’s Alrosa and Australia’s Rio Tinto began to were shocked at the headlines. Anglo American Plc., dissolve the De Beers’ diamond monopoly. Due to the world’s fifth largest mining corporation by revenue, mounting competition, De Beers’ possession of world announced that it had acquired the Oppenheimer reserves dwindled from 85% to 50%. Facing pressure family’s 40% stake in De Beers. According to Andrew from the company’s investors, Nicky Oppenheimer Hooters from Dow Jones Newswires, Anglo American privatized the company. This transaction, according had bought the Oppenheimers’ interest for a whopping to Peter Major of Cadiz Corporate Solutions Ltd, $5 billion U.S. dollars. Having previously owned 45% foreshadowed De Beers’ decline in power. of De Beers, Anglo American has now established Ironically, Sir Ernest Oppenheimer was also the control in the company with an 85% interest. Hooters founder of Anglo American plc., having created the also proclaimed that this transaction marks the “end corporation in 1917 with American financier J.P. of an era,” terminating the Oppenheimers’ 80-year of Morgan. But the Oppenheimer family’s authority reign in the diamond market. over the mining company dwindled during the 1990s, This recent acquisition is not the only time a when then-chairman Julian Thompson reduced the staggering transition of Oppenheimers’ stake ownership in De Beers in Anglo American has occurred. Cecil to a mere 2%. The Rhodes, the British privatization of De colonialist, founded Beers eventually led De Beers during the to Anglo American’s 1871 diamond rush acquisition of 45% in Kimberly, South interest. When the Africa. Rhodes died 2008 American in 1912, and Sir Ernest credit crisis besieged Oppenheimer, an the global economy, ambitious diamond diamond sales dealer, acquired plummeted and De Beers faced a series of 8 chairmanship of De Ernest, left, and Harry Oppenheimer

great losses. It was then that Nicky Oppenheimer, now the last Oppenheimer chairman of De Beers, decided that an ownership transfer was best way to be protected from the possible demise of his grandfather’s treasure.

The timing of Anglo American’s acquisition seemed right. Although the luxury industry has suffered from the economic crisis, raw diamond prices recently began to rise, allowing jewelry profits to rebound.

Cynthia Carroll, CEO of Anglo American, proclaims that the mining company must “increase its exposure to diamonds,” as she believes that the diamond industry represents one of the most “rapidly evolving” markets in the world. The economic rise of BRIC nations such as India and China has led to an increase in the disposable income of their citizens, and these countries have become hot spots for jewelry retail. Carroll projects that by 2015 diamond demand in China and India will outrank that of the United States, currently the world’s largest consumer of diamonds.

Additionally, Anglo American’s new ownership of De Beers represents entrepreneurial prudence.

Already possessing lucrative trusts in copper, steel, and coal mining, Anglo American will diversify its portfolio by turning to diamonds. Carroll proclaims that she will morph De Beers’ diamond distribution into a more open process. Under the Oppenheimer Family, De Beers only allocated its resources to sightholders, exclusive diamond cutters and polishers. Patrick Evans, Chief Executive of Toronto-based Mountain Province Diamonds Inc., muses that by eliminating the sightholder system, De Beers will create a more transparent auction system that will allow for higher-priced diamonds.

There has been an immediate global reaction to Anglo American’s ownership acquisition. The Republic of Botswana, the world’s top diamond-producing country and now a 15% shareholder in De Beers, has called for a reassessment of the company’s business structure. Due to preemption rights (the attainment of property according to others), Botswana, De Beers’ second major shareholder, must comply with Anglo American’s increase in stock. Botswana has also announced that it will consider participating in Anglo American’s deal with the Oppenheimer family, thereby increasing its shares in De Beers. Analysts predict that Botswana may raise its interest from 15% to 25%. The transaction is expected to close in

the second half of 2012. In light of the burgeoning authority of Anglo American in De Beers, Botswana’s government has voiced its agreement to the mining corporation’s actions. Dr. Ponatshego Kedikilwe, the country’s Minister of Minerals, Energy and Water Resources, proclaimed that this transaction ensures a “secure step for Botswana’s economy.” De Beers and Botswana have also formed a ten-year partnership on diamond supply, demonstrating a mutually beneficial relationship between the two parties.

Botswana’s compliance, however, illuminates a darker facet of Africa’s economy. Relying mostly on oil and natural resources for economic revenue, the continent’s industrial assets are disproportionately balanced, limiting its economic power. Countries like South Africa and Botswana are dominated by oligarchs and corrupt officials, prohibiting real political and financial growth. De Beers and Anglo American also sustain London’s legacy of African colonialism; according to Business Week, De Beers was reported to have been involved in the trading of so-called blood diamonds (diamonds sold by African warlords to finance their guerrillas). Immorally, Anglo American has launched its miners into unsafe working conditions. As the Oppenheimers bid adieu to De Beers, the diamond industry illustrates the frailty of the family-business model in the face of globalization and international corporate transactions.

No longer the controllers of De Beers, the Oppenheimer Family is now seeking other business opportunities. James Teeger, the managing director of the Oppenheimer & Son International Ltd., the Oppenheimer family’s investment arm, states that the family has decided to invest in other businesses in Africa, particularly in the consumer goods industry of Nigeria. The Reuters news agency recently reported that the Oppenheimer family and Singaporean financial powerhouse Temasek Holdings have established private equity joint ventures, investing in Nigerian agricultural, media, and health care industries through a fund called Tana Africa Capital. Despite their loss of the diamond trade, the Oppenheimers now have a chance to explore other facets of the world economy.

Despite their replacement in De Beers, the name Oppenheimer will still remain a considerable force in the diamond market, as it was once synonymous with the forever appeal.

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South Africa’s Renewable Energy Industry Previously known for its strong dependence on fossil fuels and on biomass for energy, South Africa is now headed towards an era of change and development.

Reportedly, South Africa has recently seen the largest percent increase in terms of investment regarding renewable energy. The investment signifies much for South Africa’s poor, who previously had to rely on the burning of biomass energy, a process that contributes to an unclean environment. Only a small percentage of South Africans in rural areas currently have electricity.

Approved in April 2010, the Eskom Investment Support Project is one of the many new financial initiatives taken to support the increase of renewable energy in South Africa. Part of the project constitutes the Upington Renewable Project, aimed toward increasing the use of solar power, and the Sere Renewable Project, primarily focused on wind power as a cleaner, more effective energy source. The Upington project’s initiative proposes the installment of a solar power plant in the Northern Cape province. Aside from potentially reducing 9 million tons of carbon dioxide gas per 20 years, the project also presents itself as a significant economic boost by providing job opportunities for approximately 100,000 citizens. South Africa aspires to meet at least 42% of the national demand for power by utilizing the newly implemented sources of renewable energy.

The Upington Project’s expected launch remains vague in the year 2012 and is predicted to elevate the solar power industry in South Africa, making it a major employer for the continent.

Meanwhile, the Sere Project, aiming to generate wind power for the country, should be fully functioning during the 10 summer of 2013. Although the South PIM SENANARONG, from Bangkok, Thailand, made her World Bulletin writing debut last spring with an article entitled, “Rising Anxiety on the Korean Peninsula.” A resident of Ammidon Dormitory, Pim is the Features Editor of the LOG, vice-president of the junior class, and she participates in the community service program.

by Pim Senanarong ’13

African economy is one that has traditionally relied on carbon energy, the implementation and increase

The Sere Wind Farm Project was funded by a $365-million African Development Bank (AfDB) loan to South African power utility Eskom.

of such projects by organizations like the World Bank and other private sectors promises not only to cut down the carbon emissions of the country but also to produce job opportunities. Hopefully this cleaner and more efficient energy initiative will assist in alleviating some of the continent’s poverty.

Asia & oceania Mingalaba to Reform!

Ali stands, eyes cast down. An uneducated Akah farm boy, he left his family to work in the city for a boss who now beats him. He has never been offered a gift. He thanks each of us, respectfully holding his elbow as he shakes our hands.

“So, Ali, how do you like everything? Is it okay?

Are the shorts okay?”

“Uh,” Ali hesitates, “Everything is good. But I no wear shorts.”

After some encouragement, Ali pulls up his pants and reveals his leg. He once brushed past a tree possessed by an evil spirit; as a result the dark skin and muscles of his calf look burned, almost eaten away --a lake of scar tissue, a thick black shore. He has never shown it to the village medicine man, never taken any medicine, never mentioned it. Only when we prodded did he reveal the incredible pain he experienced. Like the residents in House M.D., we consulted our own detached doctor, an American physician who said crisply, “necrotizing cellulites,” a horrific infection by a flesh-eating bacterium.

A child soldier in the Burmese Tatmadaw

Quite common for the Burmese and for all of Burma’s ethnic minorities, Ali has never had medical care. The thought of it never occurred to him, despite the pain, the oozing, the disfigurement. In Burma, there is no medical care for the common man, and there is no one who would dare complain about it. A word against the government guarantees imprisonment.

It is difficult to imagine that a nation so exquisitely beautiful, so breathtakingly pristine, so rich with

by Arianna Calabrese ’13 natural resources, could ARIANNA CALABRESE, resemble the country in of Vernon, Connecticut, George Orwell’s 1984. is a resident of Mason The Burmese government Dormitory.

She is captain of the JV Field monitors its citizens’ every move, censoring phone Hockey team, plays JV calls, newspapers, media, Lacrosse, is co-president internet. All products are of the Italian Club, and is a member of the Foreign local; foreign brands are Policy Association. illegal. Sputtering trucks Arianna’s debut article from the 1940s wind down for the Spring 2011 dirt roads, stopping every World Bulletin was couple of miles at military entitled “Quashing checkpoints. These check Ignorance: Islam in points embody the complete America.” control and influence of the Tatmadaw, the country’s armed forces. Wealthy businessmen and struggling farmers constantly pay off the Tatmadaw in order to pass through and avoid unreasonable arrest in cash, as there are no credit cards in Burma. The Tatmadaw create a fortress of wealth and privilege around themselves, contributing to the highest levels of corruption in the world. They will even arrest you for taking a photo of them. Most of the country is a “black zone,” a territory that bans foreigners for fear of foreign media and outsiders that may witness the wretched conditions and struggle of the citizens in Burma. Riddled with human rights violations, from human trafficking to child labor to lack of freedom of speech, Burma has perfected deprivation and keeps its citizens on the edge of death.

The Burmese whisper that one person out of every ten is a spy. Thus, all Burmese know how to cast their eyes down. Signs the length of our SNUG warn that “All Tatmadaw shall never betray national causes”; signs the length of a piece of paper threaten that various crimes result in cruel and unusual punishments such as the loss of one’s tongue. Is it any wonder that the Burmese have learned to submit so completely?

Burma’s tyrannical military junta dissolved after 49 years of power in a general election earlier this year, handing the power to a civilian government. However, strong military power pervades the constitution and most elected officials are members of the military.

The president, Thein Sein, is a retired general. Due to some of the world’s worst human rights abuses, Burma has endured strained foreign relations, particularly 11

Aung San Suu Kyi welcomes U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to her home

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reform before opening a formal connection.

And Burma really is taking small steps towards a democratic system. Most notably, President Thein Sein recently signed a peace deal with the Shan Army, offering cease-fire, developmental assistance and a national conference to discuss political grievances.

The Burmese government listened to the key demands of western nations, striking up a peace agreement between the ethnic groups. However, this type of deal is difficult to secure with all of the contrasting ethnic minorities—the groups have different cultures, traditions and goals for their people. The rebel groups take steps toward cease-fires cautiously, understanding the risks in dealing with their government. Burmese officials have tried to appease these ethnic concerns by establishing a National Human Rights Commission.

In fact, Burma has released almost 200 political prisoners, including noted pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her political party National League for Democracy. She will also be running in the nation’s next elections. However, some claim that the human rights violations in rural areas are getting worse and worse, even as the reforms continue.

These reformative steps have been considered “flickers of progress.” While there has been improvement in the protection of human rights and in the attention to the people, there is still much to be done. The Burmese government continues to discriminate against ethnic minorities, allowing citizens to peacefully protest while neglecting to release previously imprisoned citizens for peacefully protesting; much to western dismay, thousands of political prisoners remain in jail.

No one expects a “Burmese Spring” to happen overnight. At this point, the Burmese are moving forward slowly and with guarded optimism. They struggle to take the advice of Aung San Suu Kyi to “forget the past and have faith in Thein Sein.” However, she also announces, “If we move forward together, I am confident there will be no turning back on the road to democracy.”

And so the world waits for the Karen and Shan tribes to be offered peace, for an uprising of the common people, and for the emergence of hope in the hearts of all Burmese.

with the west. The United States placed a ban on Burmese investments and imports in 2003. Human rights abuses have been aggravated by the longest civil war in history. The Burmese have undertaken ethnic cleansing, trying to eradicate the Shan tribe, the Karen tribe and several other ethnic minorities.

The Karen and Shan people had been granted their own land in the Panlong Agreement of 1947. However, the Burmese government has never honored this agreement and these tribes fight daily for their autonomy and for their lives.

In the past year, the Burmese government has realized that the time for change has come. Fearing dependence on China, Burma has had enough with international isolation and seeks to establish concrete foreign relationships. Burma can no longer ignore the world that surrounds it. The Burmese government has sought to earn a degree of international respectability through political reforms leading up to and following recent visits by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Clinton challenged the Burmese government to expand its reforms, promising rewards such as the development of a relationship between the U.S. and Burma.

However, she made clear in her press release that America would wait for action and proof of Burmese rice fields—photo by Arianna Calabrese

Post-Tsunami Japan: Reconstruction or Abandonment?

by Ji Hee Yoon ’13

After experiencing a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and a tsunami with 124 feet waves, Japan was utterly distraught. As if the main character in a Greek tragedy, Japan was struck with a calamitous reversal of fortune. Accompanying these natural disasters was a rapidly plummeting economy, and the country’s political muscle in the global economy beginning to weaken. The events of March 11, 2011 forced the traditionally frugal island nation to increase its health care expenditure by millions. The radioactive leakage from the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant, the most horrifying Japanese nuclear disaster in seven decades and one of the largest power plant catastrophes since Chernobyl in 1986, led to even greater conflicts.

Since that fateful day one year ago, the Japan has attempted to rebuild and to reinvigorate the towns that are now vacant because of the nuclear crisis. The government announced that, due to the current economic situation, the public does not have the economic luxury of abandoning their polluted lands. However, critics argued that the Japanese government’s dismissal of possible healthrelated predicaments mirrored the Soviet Union’s desertion of areas affected by Chernobyl.

The officials responded by placing the two nuclear crises in different contexts.

Japan’s severely contaminated radioactive areas cover more than 8% percent of its entire landmass. In a country that is smaller than California, that amount of land would be an enormous loss. The Japanese government desired to revamp these evacuated towns, using the areas’ rehabilitation to signify that the country’s economy, the third largest in the world, remains strong and influential. On the other

hand, some Japanese JI HEE YOON hails from citizens believe that Seoul, South Korea. She this restoration would is a resident of Palmer symbolize a revival of the Dormitory and is very old Japan, a rebirth of active in the Debate the prosperous country Society and Model United Nations. In addition, Ji before the tsunami. The Hee is a member of the superior technological Foreign Policy Association skills and scientific and the Pelican Service knowledge required of Organization. This marks Ji Japan’s redevelopment Hee’s writing debut for the would demonstrate the World Bulletin. country’s distinguished ability to solve its own problems and thus reestablish its position as a distinguished entity in global politics.

However, not everyone in Japan desires to return to the past. The dangers of being exposed to the

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intoxicated land are mountains would have unpredictable to its to be decontaminated future inhabitants. by complete eradication Current demographic or meticulous trends reflect the purification. In spite influence of the natural of the government’s disasters.

Japanese diligent revamping and real estate listings extensive funding, some reveal a decrease in inhabitants remain the purchase rate of reluctant to risk their houses near the bay future, choosing instead areas and Fukushima, to abandon their homes.

Workers replaced soil as part of a decontamination effort at Soma whereas the sale of agricultural high school in Fukushima.

Soon, Japan will apartments in the hills have to make a decision and on the mountains has about what to do with significantly increased. A specialist reported that the its contaminated lands. In the meantime, continued levels of radiation exposure were still higher than the international support and best wishes are being sent international safety standards, despite thorough local to Japan as it recovers from the recent devastation. cleanup by the government. Much of the Japanese One thing is yet certain of Japan’s future: regardless public doubts the necessity of a pricey reconstruction, of the final solution, both the government and the while others fear that the operation itself is too costly citizens will have to collaborate to rehabilitate the in time and revenue. Not only would the planned territories. To rebuild or to abandon --- that is the restoration cost billions of dollars, but it would also question that shakes this Eastern Asian island. not cease until all the contaminated regions’ dirt is replaced by pure, unaffected soil which, according to experts, would amount to the total topsoil that covers the whole state of Connecticut. For the polluted Moladi Communities, a construction company in Japan, offers this artist’s rendition of a newly rebuilt village after the towns once again to sustain healthy life, buildings earthquake and tsunami. must be rebuilt and natural fixtures such as forests and

14

Korean National Assembly: A Place for a Brawl?

by Woo Jin “James” Lee ’13

As the 18th National Assembly of South Korea, which grants investors the right to initiate dispute elected to a four-year term in April 2008, ambitiously settlement proceedings JAMES LEE, from Seoul, kicked off 2011 with an oath to create a “respectable against foreign South Korea, is on the JV Congress,” Koreans ridiculed the superficiality of the governments. However, tennis team, the Student statement. the Conservatives Council, and is a member Not surprising is the public’s low expectation sharply refused. Because of the Foreign Policy toward the Congress in the Congress failed to Association and Model United Nations. A resident recent years. In 2008, address its problems of Taylor Dormitory, this is delegates from the professionally, the whole James’s first article for the Grand National government branch was World Bulletin.

Party (commonly shut down for a month known as the to let both factions regroup.

Conservatives) Despite the “time out,” the childish antics of who held the South Korean Congress resumed as soon as its the majority session began again. The Conservatives refused to seats built debate with the “pigheaded” Democrats, while the barricades to Democrats were busy hurling diatribes against the prevent the “renegade” Conservatives. A year has passed and the Democrats two sides are still engaged in this immature namefrom entering calling. Notwithstanding the violent resistance in the assembly.

November in which the Democratic Labor Party Through 2009 attacked with a tear gas canister, the FTA was finally and 2010, the passed in a confidential assembly, without Democratic pitiful scene in the representation. Unsurprisingly, the Democratic assembly continued to Party’s chairman Sohn Hak-kyu called the ratification embarrass the a coup d’etat and named the Conservatives “rebels An opposition lawmaker detonated a tear country with against democracy.” gas canister near the chairman’s seat at Seoul’s National Assembly in November. violence and This childish and long drawn-out debate is rants traveling not necessarily an indicator of long-term failure, all across the chamber. And in June 2011, without however. The United States Congress, arguably one surprise, the Congress housed another fierce brawl of the exemplars of legislative action over the past between the two ruling two centuries, had itself parties. been wrought with such Protesting against immature antics during its the proposed Free early years. For instance, Trade Agreement with in 1798 a member of the the United States, House of Representatives, the Democrats built Matthew Lyon, spat on barricades and used fire his fellow congressman, extinguishers to stop the Roger Griswold. Half Conservatives’ passage of a century later, the a bill that would essentially dynamic was no better; eliminate tariffs. The in fact, it had become Democrats called for worse. In 1856, South the renegotiation of the John L. Magee created the lithograph Southern Chivalry – Carolina Congressman Investor-State Dispute Argument versus Club in 1856, depicting Preston Brooks’ attack Preston Brooks raided Settlement clause, on Senator Charles Sumner. the Senate to sabotage 15

Charles Sumner of Massachusetts, starting a brawl that practically turned Congress into a wild boxing ring. This ridiculous government spectacle stemmed from Brooks’s desire to defend his family’s honor against the ridicule and mockery that Sumner had brought upon them in his scathing anti-Southern, abolitionist speeches. After these incidents, many representatives carried canes and guns to protect themselves against unprovoked physical attacks.

While it can be argued that the U.S. Congress does still behave in a juvenile manner at times—the all-time low approval ratings of the recent congresses are an indication of this—and there’s still quite a lot to be desired when it comes to respecting the viewpoints of a congressman across the aisle, physical violence has long been outlawed. In response

Made in China Tightly clustered together, a family of iPhones sits neglected on a table, vibrating rhythmically. All around them, swarming students are buzzing with their own iPhone activity.

To the left resides a ferocious game of Angry Birds; to the right, a heated argument is being resolved over a suspenseful Google search.

Straight ahead, a clan of girls giggles over a text, and far off in the distance students entertain their friends by proving their case is “unbreakable.” Such a common piece of technology no longer receives the awe that used to accompany its presence at Loomis Chaffee. Paying it neither attention nor care, few would know that inscribed flawlessly on its back are the words “Made in China.”

Thousands of miles away, in Chengdu, China, a banner reading “Work Hard on the Job Today, or Work Hard to Find a Job Tomorrow” hangs high for the hundreds of fatigued workers in the Foxconn 16 factory to see. Situated in rows of backless chairs, IZZY FLEMING, a new junior and resident of Mason Dormitory, is originally from Middlebury, Vermont. She is involved in the community service program, competes on the track team, and attended the Model UN conference at Cornell University. This is Izzy’s first article for the World Bulletin.

to actions such as the Brooks-Sumner incident, the Senate created specific rules about members’ conduct and behavior in the Congress. The U.S. Congress is far from the most perfect legislature; but its principles of civility and order are worthy of recognition. To form a peaceful working environment, Korean officials must stop utilizing violence, tossing tear gas into the room, and building barricades in front of the National Assembly.

If both sides continue to refuse the other, compromise will remain impossible and the cycle of argumentative disturbances will continue. Korean political parties must acknowledge declining public opinion, requiring members from parties to take a step back, re-evaluate their democratic ideals and solve their problems with flexibility and calm.

by Ana “Izzy” Fleming ’13 the Chinese workers labor endlessly as near-robots, efficiently producing the millions of Apple products demanded worldwide today. As China’s largest exporter and as the site where an estimated 40% of the world’s consumer electronics are produced, Foxconn Technology employs approximately 1.2 million people throughout its various factory locations throughout China. Americans’ demand for these luxurious, useful, and amusing products continues to expand as expectations grow. With Americans insisting on better

quality and a further expanse of features, who is willing to meet these seemingly impossible demands? With a manufacturing system more sophisticated and efficient than any other on earth, China is the winner. Solely concentrated on increasing product

A production line in Foxconn City in Shenzhen, China. The iPhone is assembled in this vast facility, which has 230,000 employees, many at the plant up to 12 hours a day, six days a week.

quality and on decreasing production costs, factories located overseas are willing to take drastic measures to get your much-anticipated iPad delivered to your front doorstep by Christmas Eve. Willing to replace their supplies with cheaper, often more dangerous alternatives, and prepared to push their workers to their ultimate limit, Chinese manufacturers have allowed the country to violate labor laws that we Americans take for granted.

Following the discovery that an extremely toxic chemical, n-hexane, evaporates three times faster than rubbing alcohol, Chinese factories have recently adopted this new solution to clean the screens of iPhones—resulting in over a hundred injuries involving nerve damage and paralysis—purely for the hope that more iPhones will be cleaned per minute.

Employing under-aged workers, disposing hazardous waste improperly, allowing excessive overtime, failing to provide protective equipment, and paying less than minimum wage, these factories create conditions that are not only intolerable, but are dangerous as well.

Crowded inhumanely into compact dorms, constantly covered in aluminum dust, and forced to stand on their feet for insufferable periods of time, a growing number of workers have threatened to commit suicide. In 2010 a cluster of 18 suicide attempts occurred on the premises of Foxconn factories, resulting in 14 deaths.

Apple reigns as one of the leading corporations worldwide. After being informed of these factory conditions overseas, it has made significant strides to improve these problems. By establishing a supplier code of conduct and claiming that if violations are uncovered, compensation will be demanded, Apple claims to be exerting much sweat over the issues.

But, behind the scenes, others view the situation differently. Former Apple executives confess that finding new suppliers is not only time-consuming,

but costly, and the question arises if Apple is truly willing to discontinue its link to valuable suppliers that sacrifice safety to meet the company’s demands.

Even though hundreds of violations have been found within these factories, few have been acted upon and seriously changed. As the company continues to take advantage of China’s willingness to perform such flexible practices, there is no denying the fact that Apple cares more for Siri than for the treacherous lives of the workers in China. After 56% of people polled in a study declared they could not think of anything negative about Apple, the recent outbreak of information may have a permanent effect on Apple’s reputation, and possibly even its business.

In February 2011, as Steve Jobs sat across from President Barack Obama at a dinner at the White House, he was hit with an aggressive question from the man who runs this country: “What would it take to make iPhones in the United States?” The answer was simple, yet frustrating. No American factory could compete with the speed, work ethic, and efficiency of Chinese factories. A simple example of why developing jobs in this country is so difficult nowadays, the “Made in the U.S.A” sticker seems to be a rare, and a special prize to find. In February 2012, half a dozen petitions were presented to various Apple stores around the world with the signatures of 250,000 people protesting the work conditions of the laborers producing Apple products. Taking gradual steps towards change, Apple will have to approach this problem more aggressively if public awareness continues to rise. As a current Apple executive said, “You can either manufacture in comfortable, workerfriendly factories, or you can reinvent the product every year, and make it better and faster and cheaper.”

Now the question arises: what is more important?

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Tales of the Thai Scholarship “There’s no such thing as a free lunch” best describes the situation of all Thai Scholars, students carefully chosen through both examinations and interviews to earn the prestigious scholarships. Although Thai Scholars are financially supported by either the government or its CHATE KHEMAKONGKANONTH, a Thai Scholar from Bangkok, associates, we also resides in Taylor Dormitory bear the obligation this year. He is a member of the to contribute back Math Team, and has enjoyed to our country. participating in the community Moreover, we have service program all three terms. to bring benefits to This is Chate’s first article in the the Thai citizens World Bulletin. whose tax money subsidizes our education.

The advantages of all Thai Scholars are monthly allowances as well as annual money for clothes, school supplies, and miscellaneous expenses. The other advantage is receiving high-end education throughout the globe. There are two types of scholarships: the King Scholarships and the regular Thai Scholarships.

Students eligible for the King Scholarships are not required to work for the public organizations that support their finances.

However, after graduation in the U.S. through undergraduate or higher education, they will have to return home and work in either government affiliates or private companies.

The recipients of the other type of award, the “regular” Thai Scholarships, are required to take certain jobs that have been qualified in the first place.

Because these people are going to be working in government service, they will earn lower salaries than those of the King Scholars, who most often choose to work in private firms. Within this seemingly disadvantage 18 actually exists a benefit because

by Chate Khemakongkanonth ’12

the government most certainly subsidizes its employees’ expenditures through the Health System covering all the medical costs. On the other hand, those King Scholars working in private companies would face more intense competition and spend their own money on medical expenses.

The other benefit all Scholars could get from studying in the U.S. is the access to liberal arts colleges that once existed in Thailand but collapsed later. In Thailand, a student chooses his major in the first year, giving him a chance to take only a few unrelated courses. This lack of other interests might pose a stumbling block against the development of a well-rounded individual created in the U.S., fostered especially in the liberal arts schools.

Beyond certain requirements written in everyone’s contract is the expectation of contributing to Thailand in the future. In Thailand, the tuition fee is merely $350 for public colleges and about $3,000 for international programs.

Compared to Thailand’s, American education fees in private colleges exceeds $40,000. Imagine paying this amount of money to 50 Thai Scholars each year! This whole business causes a great financial burden to the Thai government.

A friend of mine, Thipok Rakamnuaykit, admitted that, “The price of sending one student to study in the U.S. might not be worth the exorbitant price.

That’s why we Thai Scholars have to do our best and figure out what to do in the future.” At our recent reunion at New York, I found his words triggered my memory of my true obligation.

Some Scholars are not even sure what to do because their interests and the requirements set by the government do not actually match. One of the previous Thai Scholars who came to join us during Christmas

Break told me that she wants to become a physics teacher, while her future career probably will be a physics researcher. There is also a problem about using the opportunity in the U.S. efficiently. Undergraduate education in the U.S. has been well known for its broadness in every branch of knowledge. However, every scholarship, except the King Scholarship, demands that the Scholars focus on one specific aspect, for example, telecommunication economics, like mine, or human resources management, for some others. Focusing in one aspect unintentionally erases

other possible interests that might develop from taking variety of courses because the student will choose to adhere to his destined major.

Seemingly having a free lunch like a privilege over others, we Thai Scholars also have duties to fulfill and problems to deal with. A Scholarship becomes binding for a lifetime but is also a method to repay the country. It becomes a signature of a lifetime achievement worth our intense effort and a symbol of hope for a better future.

Assimilation in Australia Australia began as a penal colony for the British Empire, and now has a population of about 22 million people, 26% of whom are foreign-born. This diverse population comes with a caveat, however; xenophobia lies hidden in the Land of Oz, under the façade of a harmonious and friendly country.

Starting at the beginning of Australia’s story is the key to understanding the theme of racism that has developed to the present day. Before Europeans began to settle Australia in the late 18th century, there was a large and diverse population of Aborigines, who had inhabited the land for around 40,000 years. Much like the Native Americans, the Aborigines were a peaceful culture with a hunter-gatherer based lifestyle. Similar to the Native Americans, they were devastated by infectious diseases brought to Australia from the British convict ships. The Aboriginal population steeply declined, and the survivors were thrust into the vast central deserts of the continent, away from the fertile land that lined the coast. The

Sydney Opera House and Harbor Bridge

by Krishna Kulkarni ’13

Aborigines suffered greatly from the mass influx of immigrants who later came searching for gold and other resources.

Today, Australians are increasing efforts to KRISHNA KULKARNI, from West Hartford, integrate the Aboriginal Connecticut, is a prefect population into schools in in Kravis Hall. Krishna order to give them higher has lived in several including self-sufficiency. But the countries, Australia, India, and concept of integration is the United Kingdom. a relatively new idea, even He is a member of the in cosmopolitan cities like Cross Country team, Sydney. While I was taking Model UN, and he plays a tour of a school in Sydney, the saxophone. This is the guide began to boast Krishna’s first article about how there were a for the World Bulletin. grand total of three students of Aboriginal descent at the school, and that they were being taught “social skills” in a building completely separate from the main building. Another example lies on the footsteps of the legendary Sydney Opera House, where three “traditional” Aboriginal men sit on the ground playing a didgeridoo for tourists. I also learned about a program that takes Aboriginal children from their mothers and sends them to adoptive parents in urban areas, in order to assimilate them into white Australian culture.

Australia also faces the challenge of immigration from Asia, from where many students seek opportunities in the prosperous island nation. A student’s parent once said to my dad that he “hated those damned Asians who take Australian jobs and mooch off our 19

country’s prosperity.” For a long time, Australia had been extremely isolated from the rest of the world, and the ‘White Australia Policy’ illustrates their isolationist attitude.

The White Australia policy was enacted in 1901 to “keep [Australia] white and not allow its peoples to be faced with problems that at present are practically insoluble in many parts of the world” (Prime Minister Stanley Bruce, 1925). No immigrants of color were allowed into the country until after the policy was dismantled in 1973. The 72 years of all-white immigration has left its mark on Australia, which is now unprepared to deal with the enormous amounts of Chinese and Indian students seeking Australia’s economic prosperity. In most of these students’ home countries, they have a choice between poverty and starvation or relocation to an alien culture with the possibility of education and employment.

In 2009, attacks began occurring on Indian students in Australian cities. These students usually lived in poor suburbs because of the exorbitant cost of living in the city. After these attacks spurred widespread protests in Australia and in India, some of the students opened up about themselves and their immigrant experience. They said that they were drawn to Australia by student recruiting agencies, which published posters of the Sydney Opera House and the Harbor Bridge to tantalize Indian students into coming to Australia. The country’s tertiary education is a $15 billion industry, and many of these students are completely exploited when they arrive in Australia.

The Indians claimed that they received an education unequal to that of the Australians, and the homes that they bought through the agency were nothing more than run-down shacks. Many students canceled their admission to Australian schools because they feared the violence that could greet them. When I was living there, I had a number of encounters that were racist to either my appearance or my nationality.

20 My impression from living there is that Americans

are generally characterized in Australia by three things: George Bush, McDonalds, and the American accent.

Kids I went to school with in a suburban area with many ‘traditional’ Australian families inherited from their parents a hostile view of Americans. They never had any specific reason for hating the U.S., but the fact that everyone else in Australia was opposed to everything from America gave them justification to oppose me as well. The epithet of “stupid American” followed me everywhere, especially whenever I responded to their criticisms of my country. When Michael Phelps crushed the famed Australian swimming team at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, people at my school were so upset that they screamed in the hallways, suggesting Phelps was on steroids and shouting strings of curses to him and the U.S. Even the teachers made jokes about their perception of the U.S. as a haven for criminals and mass-murderers (ironic, huh?). Experiencing genuine racism was an upsetting experience, but it made me appreciate my life at home in the U.S. much more, where I can go to school and not stick out like a sore thumb when I ask a question. To be fair, this view of Australia is coming from a very conservative part of Sydney, in a suburb far from the city itself; I think that many of the younger generation of Australians are much less prejudiced, even though racism still lies just underneath the surface.

Australia’s history of isolationist policies made it inexperienced in dealing with other cultures, and now its prosperous economy makes it a magnet for students, as well as a big financial player in the Pacific rim. Many are tantalized by the image of the Land Down Under as country filled with tasty food, exotic animals, and fantastic beauty, and it is; Australia is an incredible place, but it is still plagued by its history, and will likely continue to be for many years to come.

MIDDLE EAST Time for U.S. Support in Saudi Arabia

by Paul Han ’12

For much of the past year, the Middle East has been with force, brutally PAUL HAN, a resident in shaken constantly by the force of the Arab Spring. dispersing the protesters Warham Dormitory, lives People have raged, dictators have been toppled, and with live ammunition. in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. new governments have risen from the ashes of the They even stalked He is a co-president of old. Despite all the triumphs, there have been some hospitals, seeking to the Debate Society, and failures: namely, the lack of American support. Since arrest the wounded. The a member of the Foreign Woodrow Wilson’s vision of “making the world safe United States didn’t even Policy Association. This is Paul’s debut article for the for democracy,” the United States has promoted itself bother to respond to the World Bulletin. as the paragon of this ideology, advocator of global violence. liberty, and bulwark against despotism. But its current Why do we call for actions suggest the opposite. During the events of United States’ involvement? Why should it spend the Arab Spring, the United States gave support to more resources intervening in another Middle Eastern only specific nations, while ignoring the plight of country? The primary reason lies behind the fact that other countries in the Middle East, especially when the United States is one of Saudi Arabia’s strongest intervention held potential economic risks. and most vital allies. No other nation holds the power Saudi Arabia has been host to one of those and the position to influence Saudi Arabia in any “failed” revolutions. Utilizing the other Arab Spring meaningful way. History has shown that conservative protests for inspiration, many Saudi Arabian citizens Saudi Arabia views American influence as western began to dissent in a similar fashion. On January 29, attacks against the Muslim world, but that also serves 2011 hundreds of protesters in Jeddah gathered for as a reason for the U.S. to act. All the recent clamors for the first demonstration in decades, criticizing the activity has risen from the Saudi people themselves, poor quality of the not from the west.

Saudi infrastructure.

The average Saudi Subsequently, on citizen views the U.S. February 10, ten Saudi as a hostile force, citizens of different but what if it was to backgrounds formed become a protecting the first Saudi political force? America should party in over a decade. capitalize on those And finally on March grassroots passions 11, the “Day of Rage,” and further pressure protesters gathered the Saudi government in great numbers for to cease violence. The the biggest planned U.S. could surely impel public rallies of the A protest in al-Qatif, Saudi Arabia in March 2011, in defiance of a ban on the Saudi government Saudi Arab Spring. demonstrations demands the release of prisoners said to be held without to gradually develop trial.

Thousands assembled reforms. If America in Riyadh, Jeddah, and Qatif, in defiance of the ban should promote democracy anywhere, it should start against organized protest, but they were met with a with its own allies. It would be hypocritical for America strong response by the Saudi government and were to support one of the most repressive regimes in the helplessly quelled in less than a week. In fact, before world without also pushing it to change. It is most the protests even started, policemen patrolled the important to note that liberty is not a right solely planned sites and arrested people seeking to take part reserved for western nations; it belongs to all people in the demonstrations. Once they actually did begin, of the world.

21 the response was swift and cruel. Saudi police reacted

The Al Jazeera News Network

gaze of the western eye until September 11, 2001.

America’s attention to the network began as overwhelmingly negative, to the point of near demonization by the Bush administration. This negative attention stemmed, in part, from the fact that Al Jazeera chose to broadcast Osama bin Laden’s Al Qaeda videotapes. Even though the network merely broadcast the videos to accurately portray their reports, many jumped of their societies. to the conclusion that Al Jazeera echoed the ideas Things have slowly begun to change. One Arabic expressed in the tapes. Moreover, other negative television network called Al Jazeera has managed attention stemmed from the network’s decision to rise up against this suppression. Originating in to broadcast gruesome images of the American the small nation of Qatar, Al wars in the Middle East.

Jazeera has set a standard for Subsequently, two Al Jazeera sincere and open television offices—one in Afghanistan journalism in the Middle and one in Iraq—were East. Al Jazeera, also known struck by American missiles. as “The Peninsula,” rose from The American forces the ashes of a failed attempt claimed that both attacks by the British Broadcasting were mistakes, though many Cooperation (BBC) to establish authorities question the a dominant television network truth of these claims. in the Middle East.

In the past few years, In 1995, when Qatar’s Al Jazeera has placed an Crown Prince Hamad bin emphasis on expansion, with His Highness the Emir of the State of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad Khalifa Al Thani overthrew bin Khalifa Al Thani and his wife, Sheikha Mozah bint the launching of multiple his own father, the prince Nasser Al-Missned are greeted by Prince Charles, Prince websites and an Englishhoped to turn his country into of Wales in London in October 2010. speaking television program. a more fair, just, and modern In total, estimates place nation. He therefore decided to Al Jazeera as currently reaching 40 establish a television network that million people. This year, Al Jazeera would essentially discuss public has exercised power more so than affairs in the Middle East. Hearing in years past, once again gaining the of the failed BBC project, Khalifa full attention of the West. Currently, recruited 120 members from the some accuse Al Jazeera of supporting BBC and founded Al Jazeera. The Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in network first went live in 1996, Gaza. Some even say that Al Jazeera drawing instant attention for its purposely downplayed the rebellion daring departure from censorship in Egypt at the behest of the Qatari found on other Middle Eastern news royal family. Nevertheless, Al Jazeera networks. seems to be in control; their honest Although Al Jazeera gradually journalism should, in the end, reap grew in both size and fame, the benefits.

22 network managed to escape the SAM VERNEY is a day student from West Simsbury, Connecticut. He is a two-year veteran of the Club Soccer program, he sings in the Concert Choir and Chamber Singers, and this winter he made his NEO debut as Wilbur Turnblad in Hairspray. This is Sam’s first article for the World Bulletin.

Watching television in the Middle East used to be, for the most part, a censored, uninformative viewing experience.

Unfortunately, the oppressive regimes of these countries seized broadcasting networks, quashing increased awareness of the problems and injustices

by Samuel Verney ’14

Growing Tension in Iran

by Fred Mun ’14 and Charles Shotton ’14

Relations between Iran and the Western strongly denied any suspicions, but Western powers hemisphere soured in early December after an attack immediately placed FRED MUN, from Iowa was staged on the British Embassy in the Iranian stringent sanctions on City, Iowa and Seoul, South capital, Tehran. Subsequently, the Iranian government Iran and on its economic Korea, is on the swimming and water polo teams, refused to return an American spy drone that was institutions. downed in the Islamic Republic. While these events In what seemed to be a and he participates in the Model UN program as well. may signal a low point in Anglo-Iranian connections, response to Britain’s new CHARLIE SHOTTON, from the United States and Iran have, in the past, shared an policies implemented New Canaan, Connecticut, affable relationship. to combat the Iranian plays the saxophone and Before 1979, when the Iranian Revolution erupted, nuclear program, is also on the swimming the United States and Iran enjoyed friendly relations. students, in an attack and Model UN teams. Both In fact, the United States actively supported Iran’s eerily similar to that on Fred and Charlie live in Longman Dormitory. pro-American leader, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi’s (also the American embassy in known as the Shah, or king), decision to remove Iran’s 1979, stormed the British prime minister, Mohammad Mosaddegh, from power embassy in Tehran. The Iranian attack not only caused in 1953. However, Iranians resented the Shah’s methods. damage to the embassy itself, but also wounded the When the Shah dissolved his parliament in 1961, he Anglo-Iranian relationship. was met with sharp criticism, and his unpopular moves British Prime Minister David Cameron described triggered a revolution in 1979, resulting in an Islamic the incursion as “outrageous and indefensible,” Republic under a devout Muslim cleric, the Ayatollah demanding that Iran immediately ensure the safety Khomeini. Unfortunately, after the establishment of of all British Embassy personnel (CNN). A few days this new theocracy, the tension between the U.S. and later, during a speech to the House of Commons, Iran exacerbated. When the United States allowed British foreign secretary William Hague announced the former, ailing, Shah entry into the U.S. in 1979 to that all Iranian diplomats had 48 hours to leave the receive cancer treatment, a group of Iranian activists United Kingdom; he also declared the closure of the attacked the American Iranian embassy. Both Embassy in Tehran and the United Nations took the American Security Council diplomats hostage for and U.S. Secretary of 444 days, refusing to State Hillary Clinton release them until 1981. condemned the attacks The situation further and expressed sympathy aggravated when Iranian towards the United President Ahmadinejad Kingdom.

Several was popularly elected countries, including in 2005. Ahmadinejad, Norway, France, extremely critical of Germany, and the Israel, and of the U.S. Netherlands recalled relationship with Israel, their ambassadors to has refused to negotiate discuss the possibilities Iranian students attack the British embassy in Iran with either country. In a of closing embassies in now-infamous speech delivered on October 26, 2005, the unstable and unsafe country. entitled “The World Without Zionism,” President After the attack, many suspicions arose as rumors Ahmadinejad called for the Israeli regime, the Jewishclaimed that the Iranian government had hired the Zionist state occupying Jerusalem, to collapse. On top students. The government professed its innocence, of this diplomatic failure, in 2011 the Iranian Nuclear declaring, “The actions were a spontaneous reaction Program raised international fears about whether or of revolutionary students and were not ordered not Iran had hopes of developing nuclear weapons. Iran by any state organ,” but the question still remains 23

unanswered. In fact, according to a report that appeared in The Economist, the Iranian police supposedly “stood back and let the protesters make their way into the compound.”

The magazine also noted through several exterior news reports that, “This [attack] was in the centre of the capital city . . . If the Iranian police had wanted to stop this, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad they could have flooded the compound with officers and rescued the British. The police, and whoever was pulling the strings behind the attack, chose not to intervene for a long while.”

Furthermore, in recent news, Iran triumphantly showed off a “captured” and “taken down” U.S. drone.

24

Very reluctantly, President Barack Obama asked for its return after remaining silent for several days. The drone that had invaded Iranian air space had supposedly been on a C.I.A. mission to track down nuclear power plants.

As the relationships between Iran and Western British Prime Minister powers such as the United David Cameron States and Great Britain reach unprecedented lows, many diplomats and politicians are being forced to ask a difficult question: are these actions a prelude to another war in the Middle East?

the americas Chávez, López, and the State of Venezuelan Politics in 2012

by Riley Clark-Long ’12

The self-proclaimed modern incarnation of Simón Bolívar, the revered early-19th century South American freedom fighter, will likely face one of Bolivar’s actual descendants in Venezuela’s upcoming election. This modern day “liberator” is none other than Hugo Chávez, arguably the most controversial figure in modern Latin American politics. He is up against the

Opposition candidate Leopoldo López

popular, personable American-educated Leopoldo López, Bolivar’s distant nephew and the greatgreat-great grandson of the country’s first president, Christóbal Mendoza.

Inaugurated on February 2, 1999, Hugo Chávez has reigned over Venezuela for more than 12 years.

Although the winner of two ostensibly free elections (in 2000 and 2006), Chávez governs a country where government officials offer bribes and threats, try to suppress opposition media, and prevent opposition candidates from entering races. Despite these efforts, accusations against the Venezuelan government continue to gain widespread attention—the most recent claiming that Leopoldo López is being illegally, and unconstitutionally, barred from competing in the 2012 election. López, a 1993 graduate of Kenyon College, earned a Master’s in Public Policy at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government in 1996. The economist, political scientist, and opposition leader served as the mayor of Chacao from 2000 to 2008.

The Chávez-led government, realizing the threat that such a young and charismatic leader posed, banned López from participating in any political elections

until 2014. Its publicized reason for prohibiting his political participation was the “allegations of misuse RILEY CLARK-LONG, a boarder from Storrs, of funds” against Lopez.

Although support Connecticut, is a member of FPA, a resident of has rallied behind his Batchelder Dormitory, opposition countless times and a member of before, no one has gained LC’s first competitive as much national and Ultimate Frisbee team. international attention Riley wrote an article as López has this year. about the elections in Ivory Coast for the He has mounted a multi- Winter 2011 World year campaign to remove Bulletin. himself from the “electoral blacklist” created by the Venezuelan government. López recently said in an interview, “They are afraid of me because I can win.”

Opposition has progressively been blocking more and more key pieces of legislation as Chávez’s Socialist party’s votes slipped in recent elections despite high approval ratings (higher than our very own President Obama’s). Although the Inter-American Court on Human Rights, a judicial entity of the Organization of American States (a pannational political association of North and South American countries), ruled that López had every right under the Venezuelan constitution to run in 2012, in October the Supreme Court of Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez Venezuela upheld the ban, effectively stalling Lopez’s opposition bid for the time being.

And López is not the only threat that Chávez is facing. On a trip to Cuba this past summer, Chávez mysteriously fell ill. Only a few days afterwards, he

25

announced that he had a cancerous tumor removed from his body. Although he announced in September that he was completely cancer-free, outside physicians once close to the vulnerable leader claimed that he had only two more years to live. Doubts have arisen about his ability to effectively rule while suffering from a potentially debilitating cancer. These strong doubts linger, particularly in regards to Chávez’s, the once spry and youthful president, ability to run against the fierce competition.

This election will determine the future of not only Venezuelan rule but also the distribution of power in South America. Chávez was the first of many democratically elected socialist leaders in South America. The wave of leftism (sometimes referred

to as the “pink tide”) has pulled several leaders into its current: Bolivian president Evo Morales, Peruvian president Ollanta Humala, Ecuadorian president Mauricio Funes, and others. Because of Venezuela’s giant oil and natural gas reserves, it is arguably the most powerful and influential left-wing country.

So, we can only wait and see how López and other opposition candidates fair against the leader of the “Bolivarian Revolution” this fall. Whether or not Chávez serves another term will shape the future of South American democracy. The future of his “21st Century Socialism” will have a greater impact than most imagine, and it is clear that the West simply wants a stable, democratic Venezuela.

The American Way? At what point did it become acceptable for the U.S. government to murder people? This question has been raised periodically, most recently with the assassinations of Osama bin Laden and Muammar Gaddafi.

While Gaddafi’s death did not result from any American mission, per se, the resounding relief and approval from the American public raises questions about the morals and integrity of our country: what is “the American way?”

Times have changed; it seems that somewhere between Iraq and Afghanistan, the American moral code shifted.

After World War II, the Nuremberg Trials brought justice, and the Nazis had to pay for their crimes.

26 Former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi Once upon a JAMIE NEIKRIE is a day student from Glastonbury, Connecticut. A member of the Varsity Lacrosse team and a veteran of the Model UN program, Jamie makes his World Bulletin writing debut with this article.

by Jamie Neikrie ’13

time, torture was rare, a measure only sought during desperate situations. But ever since John Yoo, a former official in the Department of Justice, claimed that water boarding does not constitute torture, we have resorted to “torture” time and time again. Fifteen years ago, suspending habeas corpus, which protects American prisoners from “unlawful detention,” was immoral, if not illegal and impossible. Although the post-9/11 terrorist era has created a new, more complex enemy, does that give us the right to abandon the basic rights of a man, the American virtues that have stood for centuries? According to Article 10 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations mandate of natural human rights, it doesn’t. The mandate states that, “Everyone is entitled to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal.” According to policies implemented during the second Bush Administration, the U.S. can arrest and detain people on and off U.S. soil without an attorney, without a trace.

However, not everyone feels that Bush deserves to shoulder all the blame. Some have gone so far as to accuse President Obama of war crimes for denying a trial to bin Laden. The problem stems from the fact that the United States classifies this operation as an act of war, even though it took place in a country with whom we are not at war. The situation becomes even more complex when you question whether bin Laden resisted and, therefore, classify his death as an impromptu act of self-defense. Attorney General Eric Holder took the matter a step further, arguing that, “The operation against bin Laden was justified

as an act of national self-defense. It’s lawful to target an enemy commander in the field.” However, one of bin Laden’s daughters complicated matters even more when she claimed that her father was an “hors de combat,” a term used in diplomacy and international law to refer to soldiers who are incapable of performing their military function. If this allegation were found to be true, the U.S. would be in violation of the Geneva Convention. Clearly, the situation is thorny, and no one is rushing to condemn President Obama; but, in killing bin Laden and supporting the death of Gaddafi, did the President lead us further way from our founding values? In the eyes of most of the American public, he did not.

According to an Associated Press poll conducted just after his death last May, nine out of 10 Americans approved of the killing of Osama bin Laden. Further, President Obama’s approval rating spiked from 53% to 60% in the wake of bin Laden’s death and earned a bump after Gaddafi’s as well. Overall, Americans seemed to support the operations, with 45% of the public agreeing the country is heading in the right direction, as opposed to 35% prior to bin Laden’s death. The operation that eliminated bin Laden, code named “Operation Neptune Spear,” was supported by powerful organizations such as the United Nations, the European Union, and NATO. However, it was also questioned by others, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. On May 3, 2011 Ken Roth, the executive director of Human

Rights Watch tweeted, “It’s not ‘justice’ for [bin Laden] to be killed even if justified; no trial, conviction.”

The bottom line is that bin Laden’s and Gaddafi’s deaths signify much more than simply the deaths of a terrorist and a dictator.

Gaddafi’s death provoked chaos Osama bin Laden in the Middle East and fighting that has resulted in thousands of deaths. In Libya, Gaddafi’s death has created turmoil as the country attempts to stabilize itself. And while it has severely paralyzed Al Qaeda, bin Laden’s death might actually incite other terrorist attacks and organizations.

But most importantly, the deaths of these two men raise questions of American morals and policies.

If we can simply invade other countries and enact military operations, especially ones that end in highly publicized deaths, then where can we expect other countries to draw the line? Morally and politically, a killing without due process should not be tolerated, no matter how evil the criminal. Just and equal representations are the fundamental rights on which this country was founded, and we must always uphold those standards. So remember that, while the world is better off without Osama bin Laden and Muammar Gaddafi, their deaths may have cost us more than we realize.

Election 2012: Triumph of the Least Awful The GOP has its work cut out for them. After a lukewarm four years in office, President Obama should have to fight for reelection, to get down and dirty to convince America that Yes He Did; after four months of Republican primaries, Obama has developed a much less taxing campaign strategy. Says the incumbent Commander-In-Chief: “We may just run clips of the Republican debates verbatim. We won’t even comment on them; we’ll just run those in a loop.” But why does he have it so easy? Democrats are relatively unhappy, Republicans are very unhappy, and Congress is too busy tweeting their Weiners to pass a bill. Presidents are prone to experiencing public disillusionment; 300 million+ people can be a fickle group to please, and times of economic crisis historically garner the least amount of public support for the current president and his party. The truth is,

by Liana Fernez ’12

the Republicans are the ones who should have it easy.

Obama’s first term has LIANA FERNEZ is a “day/ given them plenty of boarder” from Bolton, opportunity to capitalize Connecticut. In addition to on disappointing her work with the Foreign mediocrity to take back Policy Association, Liana is the White House. After a peer counselor and tour guide, a 4-year veteran of a baffling comedy of the NEO Theater, a member errors that has been the of both the Concert Choir Republican primaries, and Chamber Singers, and however, whoever gets this spring will appear in the nod is going to have the Musical Revue. Liana’s to spend more time previous articles for the World Bulletin include apologizing for his and features about Hugo Chávez his fellow candidates’ (Spring 2011) and Middle campaigns than winning East politics (Winter 2011).

27 his own.

(L-R): Newt Gingrich, Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Ron Paul

The Republicans are fundamentally divided, as the chasm between the moderate right and the conservative right widens by each passing debate. Mitt Romney is a moderate, but that’s his party’s problem; Republicans can’t tell whether or not Romney is really a Republican. Rick Santorum, who removed himself from the race to tend to his ailing daughter before he could give the Tea Party a heart attack, has been accused of being a bigot and a racist, while Rick Perry, long-eliminated from the presidential race, aired an advertisement illuminating that, “you don’t need to be in the pew every Sunday to know that there’s something wrong in this country when gays can serve openly in the military but our kids can’t openly celebrate Christmas or pray in school.” Highlighting the excessive wages of New York City’s public schools’ janitorial staffs, Newt Gingrich suggested that poor children replace the custodians to instill in them a work ethic to combat the fact that “really poor children in really poor neighborhoods have no habits of working and have nobody around them who works. So they literally have no habit of showing up on Monday.” Jon Huntsman refused to campaign anywhere but New Hampshire, and the jokes were so easy to make that even the unfunny Saturday Night Live wrote a sketch about it.

That isn’t to say the Republican candidates don’t have redeeming qualities. Romney, when he was 28 the Governor of Massachusetts, passed a statewide

universal health care plan (but that won’t win many Republican votes). He did save the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics in 2002, which is a major selling point for Mitt: it has nothing to do with his stand on the issues. On his official website, Santorum boasts, “Rick is most proud of his role as a husband and father.”

He is the “True Conservative,” dedicated to preserving the family and making sure all babies are born. Vehemently pro-life, Santorum runs a strong Republican platform capable of fighting Obama in 2012. He has addressed the Democratic president’s prochoice flaw, determining, “I find it almost remarkable for a black man to say ‘now we are going to decide who are people and who are not people.” He didn’t mean it the way it came out (we hope). As a captain in the Air Force, Rick Perry demonstrated his devotion to America, and as the Governor of Texas, following current American and international hit George W. Bush, Perry created jobs, passed medical liability reforms, and… what was that third thing he did? Oops.

Gingrich doesn’t believe in strict child labor laws, but he does believe in the value of work, and jobs are something that all of America wants to get its hands on. He also believes in the value of a child’s education, wishing to strengthen the public school system, evaluate teachers’ performances more thoroughly, and enrich the American math and science curriculum to compete with China and India. If only there was some way to prevent children from dropping out of school before age sixteen to find an unrewarding, minimum wage career. Oh right, there is: strict child labor laws.

Romney, the current frontrunner, has got to capitalize on his most redeeming qualities, and quickly. Defeating Obama is going to take a lot more than blaming him for not being the American savior Democrats made him out to be in 2008. Maybe that was all it would have taken before the candidates began their debates, but now their credibility (or lack thereof) outweighs their credentials.

[Editor’s Note: This article was written during the height of the GOP primary season; Mitt Romney has since secured the Republican presidential nomination.]

Voices from the Occupation December 17, 2011. #D17, the three-month anniversary of Occupy Wall Street.

Signs broadcasting “I left my heart at Zuccotti Park,” “Occupy the American Dream,” “You can’t evict an idea whose time has come,” waving through the air.

A couple hundred people crowd the square: hipsters, Rastafarians, homeless, men donning Guy Fawkes masks, businessmen, doctors, reporters.

A vibrant musical of chanting, singing, and dancing.

Protesters pass out all sorts of handouts— newspapers, flyers, pamphlets—to educate others on the movement. Everyone is talking with each other.

Everyone has a voice.

These were my questions. These are their answers: What are your motivations for your involvement in the Occupy movement?

Matt: It’s just the incredible inequality in this country; we are sick and tired of seeing corruption.

And, the overall system that only benefits those on top. We want to make sure that we have a democracy and a capitalist system that benefits everyone, and more and more the middle class and the working class are taking the brunt of the economic crisis [while] those on top aren’t paying their fair share.

Couple: Well, the concerns of the movement are the concerns of us—economic inequality, too much moneyed influence on government, too much influence of involvement with political campaigns, with money and corporations. You will see some people calling for “get rid of rich people” or “eat the rich” or “tax the rich.” But, I mean, if we are all going to live in the society, we should all pay tax fairly…whatever the law is—do it. In my opinion, for example, and for most of the people that I know, if someone gets rich—great!

If someone benefits or profits—great! Let them do it legally, fairly, and let them contribute to the society.

We don’t want 99% and a separate 1%. We want 100% going together. That’s the thing. But right now the 99% of people have to realize “Oh wait, I’m not just this one suffering person. There are a lot of me and if we all work together, we can do something to help everybody. It’s not about knocking somebody off their pedestal; it’s about having no pedestal. Let everybody be together.

Karen: Well look, there are so many things to talk about here, right? Of course, you could start by talking about the kind of lack of accountability, literally, on

by Arianna Calabrese ’13

Wall Street that I feel came from deregulation. But the cause of that deregulation is incredible corporate power, incredible power in the hands of the wealthy.

That’s the cause of the deregulation; that was the cause of the economic crash. So, when you start to dig into that, you start to realize that inequality causes of a lot of problems—in education, in all kinds of different areas. I’ve seen that slide for a long time, and I’ve seen also an incredible cynicism come into this country that becomes, really, more and more rampant each year. I’ve wondered whether Americans were going to do anything about it, and what there was to be done, and I myself felt apathetic for a long time.

So, when I saw people trying to do something about it, again, I came out of a sense of duty. I felt that, if they are going to try and do it, then I better try to make it functional and make it right. It has been such

Protesters affiliated with the Occupy Wall Street movement rally in Foley Square before marching though Lower Manhattan on October 5, 2011.

a growing experience to be here and to see how many people are really brilliant, very well educated, very awake about how the system works, and to see what they are trying to do about it.

Mark: Just seeing friends, ya know, just having conversations with people in your communities and everywhere that you know aren’t happening enough.

Everyone knows someone who has been laid off, is unemployed, has to pay more for their health insurance premiums, is working longer hours for less.

I mean there isn’t anybody [who hasn’t been] affected.

The latest census bureau was the most striking thing to hear, that basically 1 out of 2 Americans are living at poverty levels and low incomes. So, it’s a conversation everyone should be having, but we are actually having in public. We need to have even more of this. This is what it is all about.

Mike: I think it is really important right now for this 29

movement to have physicality. The Occupy movement is about demonstrating that we all have power, we all have agency, that we all can do something to affect change and to create the world that we want to live in.

I think that that is what this is about. It’s one of these things that I found really shocking when this whole movement started, that all the news media was saying was why haven’t they released their list of demands?

As if we had to petition someone else to change the world for us…but really, we have that power, and we can all do something to create the world that we want to live in. That’s what this is about.

Goldie: It’s a big therapy session for me. I come down here to be with like-minded people and to actually have a voice because I don’t have a voice in my government, at all. Down here you can say what you want and people will actually listen to you. It’s a new-branded democracy that’s not representative democracy because representative democracy does not represent us. And I’m amazed that everyone— that anyone can come here, first day, and have a voice in this system. I can’t get my congressman on the phone. It doesn’t seem to really work out any other way. So I’m just happy to be able to talk.

What is your response to the criticisms of the media that Occupy Wall Street (OWS) is a leaderless movement, that Occupiers have no goals, no direction?

Matt: Well it’s a springboard for activism, so you should never expect Occupy Wall Street to have one set list of ideas. Rather, OWS invigorates people to come out and to demonstrate around one broad idea.

Stacy: Why does it have to be this comparison of having a leader, not having a leader? I feel like it’s more about people getting involved—accountability—each person being involved in the process. For me, there is nothing necessarily bad about having a leader or not having a leader...it’s about people getting together and being involved and questioning and getting out there and for me, picking money out of—taking finances out of the political process and that’s more the root of the issue for me rather than about whether who’s in charge. Because we could have good people in charge if they were beholden to these big moneyed institutions.

Besides the fact that this is full of leaders. There are leaders popping up across the country because of this movement.

Karen: Well, we are full of leaders. We talk about 30 that, about being a leader-full organization. I mean,

everyone here feels like it is their responsibility to take leadership; but, we feel like what we don’t have is hierarchy, so no one can order us to do one thing or another. That can lead to what is perceived as a lack of organization. I don’t think that there is a lack of goals, at all. I think that all together we could agree as to what our goals are, but I don’t think that we’ve have the imperative to do that. If somebody asked me: “What if Obama invited you guys to his office with a list of demands he would be willing to meet, ya know, what would they be?” Now, we don’t have those demands in place, but I know for sure that we would be able to have them in place if that were possible.

[Occupy Wall Street is an umbrella organization. The call: act locally. Protesters are reaching their goals step by step.] There is a group called “Occupy The Polls” that is working on trying to get people, to get the 99% educated about voting, get them registered, and then get them to run for offices and as candidates. There are groups working on all these little things; in the smaller groups, people are very clear as to what they are shooting at.

Hunger striker: I think it’s honestly an advantage that we don’t have leaders and that we don’t have specific demands.

It….keeps the conversation going, it keeps politicians under pressure.

Couple: Anybody in the media who says that is doing so for their own agenda. No one is clueless as to what our demands are. The demands are universal. The demands are understood by anybody. If you ask any individual “what do you think Occupy Wall Street is about?” they will give you accurate answers.

The thing is the press tells the story that they want to tell. The day that Zuccotti Park was supposedly going to be cleaned and everyone was supposedly going to be kicked out, a lot of us went down there [to Zuccotti Park] to literally scrub the ground and sweep and all that. I saw all these reporters come around, and I saw them go straight to one guy lying on the ground who looked like a homeless guy. Nobody was taking my picture because I am a middle-aged white woman who is well dressed and because I was sweeping and cleaning. No one took my picture. They focused on one guy lying on the ground to say, “Oh, look at these dirty people.” The media also thrives on polarity. So, the media only has a job if they have a polarized society. Occupy Wall Street is not interested in creating a polarized society at all; we are as inclusive as any group can be. So, by being an inclusive group

and a non-polarizing movement, we are not news. patriotic, even if paying taxes means that you will be Unless they create the news of polarization. paying for someone’s food stamps. So my future would Mark: The idea that OWS is leaderless is ludicrous. be one where that that’s not possible, where there’s a We look to everyone for leadership. Like you could really vibrant left to defend justice. And for myself, I be a leader, if you go home and you listen to this hope to have a job where I can support myself, and I and it resonates with you, you could get your friends hope to have health insurance and not be terrified to together and maybe you’ll be at the next rally. That’s die without it. how we educate. The educators in this society aren’t Goldie: Take this direct democracy system and doing anything to educate us. So they have to do what implant it into the government. you are doing right now and bring it here. You are in Mark: Money out of politics. And humanity— the middle of what’s going on—you are not reading restore humanity into politics. And people caring the New York Post and have them give you some bull**it about one another and not having fights over health about what’s going on. care—should we have health What would your care or should we have ideal future look like for social security? Of course the United States and for we should. And we should yourself as a citizen of have a lot more. We are the U.S.? the wealthiest nation in the Matt: A world where world. We have resources people can work with and technology now; no dignity, where, if you are one should be hungry; working 12 hour days, you at no one should be left out least have health care, and and marginalized. It’s very where you have a fair shot, simple stuff. ya know?, where the ideals Police arrest a protester on New York’s Brooklyn Bridge on Matt: I think wealth in October 1, 2011 during a march by Occupy Wall Street. of the “American Dream” are this country is something actually accessible to people fantastic, but we just need to instead of being saddled with debt the moment you make sure that we have the right rules and regulations. are born.

When we can’t even close corporate loopholes, when Couple: For me, we need to return the democracy we can’t even raise the wealthiest Americans’ taxes to the people and basically take the government by 1%, then there is definitely something wrong with out of the hands of the corporations and of the this country, especially when we are cutting so many lobbyists. We have lost a say, as a person, in our services that would benefit working class Americans. democracy. The choices that we have to elect are Michael: That’s a really tough question. Right already not representing us because they are funded now, what I would like to see is more people having by corporations in order to forward their agendas; so, conversations, more people actually talking about it, basically, we are given a choice of Pepsi or Coke every instead of just kinda of leading their lives, isolated time we vote. I don’t want Pepsi or Coke—I want from everyone else, and they sort of except “oh well pure spring water. It’s that simple. We want to take I am unhappy with this—oh well:” we can all do the corporations out of the government. I think there something. The more we spread that word, the more should be campaign finance reform. My ideal would be we have conversations—that is what we need right that [each candidate] gets the same amount of money, now and in the long term. Overall, Occupy Wall Street the same amount of air time: A recent interview with is mostly about educating each other and that’s just the Congress says that they spend 2/3 of their time through conversation, so everyone is welcomed, no raising money and 1/3 of their time working for the matter who you are, conservative—whatever! constituency. Most of their staff is involved in raising Do you have any advice for a high school money. student who wants to get involved in his/her Karen: It’s a very good question. I would say that government, who wants to see change or at a lot of people in this movement are looking way least take a stand for something he/she believes beyond the system that is in place to a much more in? egalitarian kind of society. I think that is a great Matt: Run for city council, vote for someone on idea, but I personally hope for more compassion your city council, start a local occupy chapter, get in capitalism. I really hope for a society where you online, blog, it’s so many different things but the can’t be demonized for thinking that paying taxes is more we keep speaking out, the less those in charge 31

of our government are going to be able to ignore us.

It’s awesome. Ultimately, we set the goals; we set the standards for what kind of society we want to live in.

Karen: First of all, injustice is everywhere. So, finding something that you are really interested in…. if you are a high school student, maybe it’s education, maybe it’s college tuition and looking into why college is as expensive as it is. I really think that having conversations with people is the best way to do it. I’m from Wyoming and we just had a Skype conference call, like a town hall, with the people in Wyoming who, of course, aren’t able, at all, to have an occupation, because it is really spread out and it is really conservative. In Wyoming, there is a 4% unemployment rate—that’s nothing. The median income is $77,000 a year—they are not hurting. But,

it has the highest wage inequality between men and women, so that’s an issue that everyone could rally behind. My advice is: read a lot and make sure you feel that you are empowered to ask questions because nobody is going to tell you, even someone in Occupy Wall Street is not going to tell you, how it is. Ask questions. When you see injustice, try to find out what is behind that.

Michael: I think that everyone needs to look around themselves, see who is around them and talk to those people, and to start talking about what they can do to change their world. It’s local. It’s about localized change. So, people who are in high school can change the way that their culture is in their school. This is really about a cultural change.

Occupy Wall Street or Preoccupied?

“What do you stand for?”

The question gripped my brain as I thought of the answer. I stood in the Rotunda of the National Archives swarmed by people fighting for a chance to look at the powerful documents that give us rights.

Last Wednesday, I went on my odyssey, a solitary reflection assignment in the Ethics and Leadership course at SEGL. I was assigned three places to go, with questions to reflect on at each stop. My second stop was the Archives, where I looked at the question on the tiny sheet of paper, and slumped on a bench, without any clue how to answer it.

I started to think about issues as I sat in the voluminous dome. My eyes slid over to the Bill of Rights, where eager Americans stood in awe, faces pressed up against the glass. As I watched the tourists, I realized that Americans are allowed to express their rights.

From the recent “Occupy” protests, I’ve seen citizens exercising their first amendment rights by blaming the government. I realized that the government isn’t the largest problem; it’s the American people’s lack of responsibility that goes along with their freedoms.

The problem may be less about occupying Wall Street 32 but more our preoccupation with the latest trend or EZRA KAUFFMAN, from New York, New York is a member of the Arab World Affiliation and Project Green. A resident of Batchelder Dormitory, Ezra is a tour guide, and he enjoys singing with the choir. Ezra attended the School For Ethics and Global Leadership in Washington D.C. in the fall term. This article, his debut feature for the World Bulletin, is based upon that experience.

by Ezra Kauffman ’13

reality television episode. The results of a March 2011 Newsweek poll of 1,000 U.S. citizens are staggering: 29 % couldn’t name the vice president; 73% couldn’t correctly say why we fought the Cold War; 44% were unable to define the Bill of Rights; and 6 % couldn’t circle Independence Day on a calendar. (Just in case you’re wondering, the correct answers are: Joe Biden, to defeat communism, the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, and July 4.)

Americans demonstrate their ignorance by not putting in the effort to know about their government.

With a presidential election just around the corner, we see that just 62% of eligible voters voted in the 2008 presidential election. While Americans lack initiative, citizens in Tunisia killed each other last spring for the chance to vote! When it comes to rights, Americans live in a utopia.

In addition to not knowing much about their own country, many Americans don’t realize what goes on in the other hemisphere. By hemisphere, I’m referring to Asia, not Texas. In the Middle East, for example, some countries don’t grant decision-making rights to its citizens. In Saudi Arabia, women cannot drive cars. Think about that the next time you go to the supermarket. Some Middle Eastern countries have been oppressed for decades. During the Arab Spring the citizens were waiting at the edge of their seats to fight authoritarian regimes. Nearly 40% of Americans can’t get out of their seats to go vote. Unlike us, these motivated citizens in the Arab world took action and were, to varying degrees, successful. The rebels in the Middle East deserve democracy because they care, and will fight for it. Americans fought for democracy (or was it independence?) once, but we have forgotten

about the times when we rights; we cannot continue to didn’t have such privileges. spend time on ourselves. We Americans have a lot of work must focus our attention to to do in terms of appreciating the Middle East where people our natural-born rights. aren’t so fortunate. We have Sitting on the bench in to get over our superpower the Archives, I began to arrogance and realize that wonder how many stupefied we’re probably not welcome people in the room actually in the Middle East. After all, knew about the Arab fight for what country wants a good democracy. Even if Americans American democracy if the The Bill of Rights, featured prominently were aware, the journey is far from in the Rotunda of the National Archives, American citizens don’t even take over. Americans already have their Washington D.C. their government seriously?

Farewell: Judge, Journalists, Politicians, and Playwright

Christopher Hitchens, 62, on December 15. English-American polemicist, author, essayist, analyst, and journalist for such publications as Vanity Fair, The Atlantic, Nation, and Slate, Hitchens was a popular, yet polarizing, public intellectual, known for his controversial and confrontational style, and occasionally for his wit and charm. A regular on the talk show circuit, Hitchens was a frequent commentator on politics, religion, and history.

Kim Jong-il, 70, on December 17. North Korean dictator and “supreme leader” from 1994-2011, Kim was ranked number 31 on Forbes Magazine’s List of the World’s Most Powerful People in 2010. A “cult of personality” surrounded Kim, who will likely be remembered best for his country’s terrible human rights record, poor economic conditions, its frequent nuclear threats, and its ongoing antagonism with South Korea and the United States.

Vaclav Havel, 75, on December 18. Czech humanist, playwright, dissident, and politician, Havel was elected president of still-communist Czechoslovakia in 1989. He presided over the peaceful collapse of communism in his country, in a movement known as the Velvet Revolution, and for another decade (1993-2003), as president of the Czech Republic, Havel oversaw the relatively successful transition to democratic capitalism. Prague is one of the most popular cities in Europe, particularly in the 20 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall, due in no small part to Havel’s leadership.

Henry E. Catto, Jr., 81, on December 18.

American public servant and diplomat, ambassador to Great Britain and El Salvador, Catto served Presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and the first Bush from 1969 to 1993.

Tony Blankley, 63, on January 7. An EnglishAmerican conservative political analyst and operative,

former speechwriter for President Ronald Reagan, Blankley spent seven years as press secretary to Republican Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich. He was a panelist on the popular talk show The McLaughlin Group, among others.

Kevin H. White, 82, on January 27. Four-term Mayor of Boston (1968-1984), White notably served during the racially turbulent years in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He oversaw the desegregation of schools via court-ordered busing in Boston, and is widely credited with the revival of the downtown, waterfront, financial district, and Quincy Market.

Anthony Shadid, 43, on February 16. Baghdad and Beirut-based reporter for The New York Times, Shadid twice won for the Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting (in 2004 and 2010).

Lynn Davis “Buck” Compton, 90, on February 25. A California Court of Appeals judge, the lead prosecutor in Sirhan Sirhan’s trial for the murder of Senator Robert F. Kennedy in 1968, a former member of the Los Angeles Police Department, and a highly decorated World War II veteran (recipient of both the Purple Heart and the Silver Star), Compton was one of the inspirations for the film Band of Brothers; his heroism is dramatized in Episode 2, “Day of Days.”

Mike Wallace, 93, on April 7. Esteemed American news correspondent and journalist, known best as a pioneer of CBS’s 60 Minutes, and once referred to as “the Terrible Torquemada of the TV Inquisition,” Wallace was a respected, yet often feared, interrogator who questioned everyone from Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeini and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to baseball star Roger Clemens. His tenure at 60 Minutes (1968-2008) coincided with the rise in popularity of the television news magazine format; since 1975, 60 Minutes has been among the top 20—for many years even the top 5 or 10—programs on television.

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Image Sources (cover) http://media.scoutwiki.org/images/thumb/c/ce/Earth_globe.svg/256pxEarth_globe.svg.png (page 2) http://rlv.zcache.com/international_flags_globe_earth_ photosculpture-p153783532780996665env3c_400.jpg (page 4)AFP/Getty Images http://i.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2010/BUSINESS/04/28/greece.strike/t1larg. protest.afp.gi.jpg (page 5) Eurozone Debt Illustration by The Observer. Source: guardian. co.uk. http://static.theurbn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/eurozonedebt-map-large-001.jpg (page 6) Photograph by Peter Beaven; licensed for reuse under Creative Commons Licence http://s0.geograph.org.uk/photos/86/54/865432_a2acfca1.jpg (page 6) Pool photo by Mikhail Klimentyev http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/03/07/ world/07RUSSIA/07RUSSIA-articleLarge.jpg (page 7) James Hill for The New York Times http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2011/12/05/world/ europe/05russia3/05russia3-articleLarge.jpg (page 7) James Hill for The New York Times http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2011/12/11/world/11russia2span/11russia2-span-articleLarge.jpg (page 8) http://z6mag.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/de-beers-stock. jpg (page 8) http://dailymaverick.co.za/photo/resize/2011-11-07-oppenheimers346/600/346 (page 9) http://www.bullionstreet.com/uploads/news/2011/10/1318326948. jpg (page 10) Green Market blogspot http://4.bp.blogspot.com/npMA5bBKmLM/TrvqcGgefeI/AAAAAAAADjs/XdaBxB7Nins/s1600/south-africa%2Brenewable%2Benergy%2Bp rojects.GIF (page 10) http://www.shopwestcoast.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/ windfarm.jpg (page 11) http://news.eastvillagers.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/bu21. jpg (page 12) http://www1.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/Aung+San+Suu+Kyi+Secret ary+State+Clinton+Makes+fjFiVZAWDLVl.jpg (page 13) Source: Columbia University, 2009 http://www.marketoracle.co.uk/images/2011/Mar/japan-crisis-18-3.jpg (page 14) Ko Sasaki for The New York Times http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2011/12/07/world/07radiation1_ span/07radiation1_span-articleLarge.jpg (page 14) http://moladi.com/images/Hennie%20Botes/Rural%20Development.jpg (page 15) John L. Magee lithograph http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/31/Southern_Chivalry. jpg (page 15) Yonhap/Reuters http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2011/11/23/world/23koreaimage2/23korea-image2-popup.jpg (page 16) http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2011/11/23/world/23koreaimage3/23korea-image3-articleInline.jpg

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(page 16) http://images.apple.com/hk/en/support/products/images/ iphone-hero-20101130.jpg (page 17) http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/01/22/business/JPAPPLE-1/JP-APPLE-1-popup.jpg (page 18) https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/ graphics/maps/large/th-map.gif (page 19) http://www.unprsouth.com/Sydney,%20Opera%20House,%20 Australia.jpg (page 20) http://www.lonelyplanet.com/maps/pacific/australia/map_of_ australia.jpg (page 21) Reuters http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/pictures/2011/3/9/1299703735715/Saudi-protesters-in-Qatif-007.jpg (page 22) http://www.digitalqatar.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/AlJazeera-Logo.jpg (page 22) Photo by WPA Pool/Getty Images Europe http://www3.pictures.zimbio.com/gi/Prince+Charles+Sheikh+Hamad+bin+ Khalifa+Al+j8gUJ7EG-t9l.jpg (page 22) http://www.emeraldinsight.com/content_images/ fig/4340030108001.png (page 23) http://www.abc.net.au/news/linkableblob/3703470/data/protesters-storm-british-embassy-data.jpg (page 24) http://sites.duke.edu/wcwp/files/2009/12/mahmoud-ahmadinejad.jpg (page 24) http://img.thesun.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01421/ SNN1208CAM-380_1421510a.jpg (page 24) http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/africa/n_africa_mid_east_ pol_2009.jpg (page 25) AP Getty Images http://news.ripley.za.net/wp-content/plugins/rss-poster/ cache/2b2cd_111018024143-leopoldo-lopez-speech-story-top.jpg (page 25) http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_g8U8NVdU6dQ/R_aVpRsLsvI/ AAAAAAAABWc/X6BjIM9VzgM/s400/chavez24.jpg (page 26) http://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/wp-content/ uploads/2011/03/399px-Muammar_al-Gaddafi_at_the_AU_summit.jpg (page 27) http://www.nypost.com/rw/nypost/2009/10/11/news/photos_ stories/cropped/006_osama_bin_laden--300x300.jpg (page 28) http://www.onntv.com/content/images/politics/President_ GOP_x4x_Candidates.jpg (page 29) Mario Tama/Getty Images http://www.marketplace.org/sites/marketplace.org/files/styles/ primary-image-610x340/public/WWW/data/images/repository_ orig/2011/10/10/20111010_occupywallstreet.jpg (page 30) http://ourstorian.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/occupy-we-arethe-99.jpg?w=584 (page 31) Stephanie Keith/AP Photo http://a.abcnews.com/images/US/ap_wall_street_111002_wg.jpg (page 31) http://www.revolutionary-war-and-beyond.com/image-files/ national-archives-rotunda-large.jpg (page 34) http://www.amandabarden.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/ j0438504.jpg

Also in the News Afghanistan—Kabul and Washington signed an agreement granting the Afghan government greater oversight over U.S. Army night raids in Afghanistan. The U.S. views these raids as crucial operations to maintaining political influence in the region, while Afghanistan considers these operations as signs of disrespect.

The controversy escalated when, on March 11, Staff Sgt. Robert Bales allegedly shot and killed 16 Afghan civilians (mostly women and children) during a night raid in Kandahar. After months of difficult negotiations, the two countries have finally reached a compromise that will not only permit Afghanistan a more prominent voice in its fight against the Taliban, but will also define the political role of the U.S. as American troops are set to withdraw by 2014. The deal, on the other hand, seals a long-term political agreement and may be viewed as an improvement in the relationship between the two countries.

Malawi—On April 7, Joyce Hilda Banda, former vice president of the southeastern African country of Malawi, was sworn in as president after the death of her predecessor, Bingu wa Mutharika. Mr. Mutharika, although praised for his successful plans of economic growth in 2004, had garnered dissidence since his reelection in 2009. During his second term as president, Mr. Mutharika not only severed Malawi’s ties with other African countries, but he also transformed the Malawi government into an autocratic institution. After his death, a backroom power struggle flared between Ms. Banda and Peter Mutharika, Mr. Mutharika’s brother.

Ms. Banda eventually prevailed and has been well received by the Malawi public. As the first female head of state in southern Africa, Ms. Banda has been viewed by many as not only a restoration of democracy in the Malawi government, but also a symbol of progressive hope and change.

Buenos Aires—Once on friendly terms, Argentina’s vice president Adelmo Gabbi and head of Buenos Aires Stock Exchange Amado Boudou exacerbated their relationship when Mr. Boudou accused the latter of bribery through a third party. In a televised press conference, Mr. Gabbi proclaimed that he will take legal action against his former ally if the circumstances necessitate him to do so. Meanwhile, Mr. Boudou is the center of an investigation concerning his years as economic minister, when he used his influence to help a bankrupt company, Ciccone Calcografica SA. The vice president’s mounting legal problems threaten not only his own political career, but also that of reelected Argentinean president Christina Kirchner, who won 54% of the vote last October. Mr. Boudou’s difficulties have since raised doubts of Kirchner’s administration by the public. As the country faces an economic slowdown Argentina’s top union boss Hugo Moyano has also increasingly challenged Mr. Boudou’s and Ms. Kirchner’s authority.

New York— Known as the “merchant of death” by the FBI, Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer, was sentenced on April 5 to 25 years in prison following a conviction of conspiracies to sell air missiles and kill Americans. Mr. Bout, a former Soviet military officer, had frustrated U.S. authorities for his alleged international arms trafficking. He is notorious especially for selling weapons to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), an anti-American coalition. In March 2008, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration captured him through an undercover sting operation in Thailand. Mr. Bout proclaimed that he was not guilty and claimed that he was selling cargo planes, not weapons, in Thailand. During his trial, the arms dealer accused Washington of “outrageous, inexcusable government conduct.” Mr. Bout faced extradition to the U.S. in 2010; the Russian government tried to block the legal wrangling at that time.

Tokyo— When North Korea announced a “planned satellite rocket launch,” the Japanese government promptly held a meeting to discuss security measures. During the summit, however, a wave of laughter ensued.

Defense Minister Naoki Tanaka, while trying to formulate a statement, blurted out, “Moshi moshi,” a Japanese expression used to answer the phone. Mr. Tanaka intended to say “Moshi mo”, which means “if ” in his native language. After several attempts to correct himself, the minister was finally able to express the right words. His embarrassment, however, did not cease. In response to Mr. Tanaka’s verbal slip, a fellow government official shrieked, “this is not a telephone call!” The entire floor erupted in mirth. Like former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, Mr. Tanaka has been repeatedly ridiculed for making inappropriate remarks during important political conventions.

SOURCE: The Wall Street Journal

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