Who does Canada think it is?

Get over yourself. I grew up in Erie Co NY. You know I'm just mad because they gotthe better side of the falls and better strippers. Oh and for my spelling, Im awful but you can use the number of mis spelled words to tell exactly how much I really care responding to your post. Kind of like a meter.
You dont need to apologize for your fellow Americans, Its clear you apologize for being an American

You imply that the president of Iran, a known homophobe and executor of homosexuals, is somehow knowledgeable about the number of homosexuals living in Alberta. You also state that there are no homosexuals living in Alberta which, given its population, would be next to impossible unless they all left or were driven out or, given the reference to Ahmadinejad, executed.

Has the president of Iran recently made a statement, oh, maybe in your city, Jason, claiming to know that a rather largish nation has no homosexuals?

No. To my knowledge, Ahmadinejad has never visited my town.

I know he stated Iran has no homosexuals. Did he say Alberta or Canada didn't as well?

I'd still like to know what you meant by your comment about Alberta.

It's an important point -- and reason why Canada hasn't a great deal to fear from any reopening of the NAFTA. We have a lot of leverage.
But did you realize that the U.S., for all its energy woes, is the third largest producer of oil in the world? Not many people seem to know that.

Amazing. I have a good friend in Alberta with P.C. who shared the same statics and shared our cost per barrel to produce is low as well.

What is P.C., phe? Petro Canada?
(Hey, guy ... you're not quoting any more. Makes things confusing.)

First, let's not get into the Northern Ireland thing here, it's something few English people understand and even fewer Americans. It's a centuries old conflict dating back to long before the US was even a twinkle in the founders eyes. It's a subject for another thread, please?

Another thread is totally appropriate. When you read my response to Jason its context is cleary on his statement about "Human Rights". Jason happens to be from the UK- made sense to me. By the way plenty of Americans are fully up to speed Irish history

Now, Myanmar (shall we at least get the name right?); Relations between the UK and Myanmar have been frosty for years and the UK has been told in no uncertain terms on numerous occasions to 'butt out' of Myanmar's internal affairs. What would you have the UK do, invade with food parcels?

Actually we do have the name right. Frosty is putting it mildly. I have been fortunate to have been twice, only to the capitol and dont feel that all that could have done leading up to their independance and in years after was. Bruma is a black eye on the empire


It's hard to help when the recipient is holding the door shut

Then find a way to open the door.



It's an ugly situation and entirely irrelevant to the US retaining the death penalty (or not). Shame on you for using a massive human tragedy in such a cheap manner.

I was sickened by the fact that this event had occurred and such a wide array of global thoughts, ideas including U.S. policy and dietary shortcomings were discussed and not a peep. This in an areana of true "thinkers" Then I looked at the other topics posted and no mention. So I thought I would mention it. U.S. domestic policy has been clearly critized in this forum. Some quickly jumped from Capital Punishment to Iraq. That being said my statement was simple, the world has critized us over the handling of the Kurds, Somalia, and Iraq. We have a real crisis on our hands in S.E. Asia I want to see what nation is going to get the aid into the people, not write a check but actually do the work..

Perhaps now you understand my thought process a little better.
In the future we would all be better served by leaving the personal insults and attacks out of the post.

To be clear on something...Ahmadinejad didn't actually say there are no homosexuals in Iran. In Farsi, what he said translates to "there is no gay culture in Iran". He wasn't saying that there are no gays - after all, Iran occasionally executes gays, so they must exist. He was saying there is no gay lifestyle.

Not that it really matters for this thread of course.

It was widely reported.
CNN, for example, had him quoted this way: "He elicited laughter and boos from the audience at Columbia University when he said, 'In Iran, we don't have homosexuals, like in your country.'"
Maybe they all started off from the same faulty translation?
Do you have info, facedowndeep?

Yes, but that doesn't alter my view that the current issue in N.I. isn't, primarily one of Human rights abuses. You made an assertion which I asked you you back up - you haven't (so far) done so. I don't recall suggesting no Americans were not 'up to speed', and plenty is a somewhat subjective measure. I still don't consider you among them for reasons illustrated by myself and others.

The former empire has plenty of Black eyes, all empires do of course. 'Burma' achieved independence over 60 years ago, that's ample time to undo the defects of colonial legacy, at a purely infrastructure level at least.
The UK did not cause the cyclone. Blaming the Junta's response on colonial legacy is somewhat akin to suggesting that the US Government's failure to respond effectively to Katrina was also a result of former colonial mismanagement? I'm being facetious of course but your argument is weak, very weak IMO.

Did Britain have a duty of care in post colonial years, of course. Did it discharge that duty as fully as it could have - no. Does that make it responsible for an independent nations ineffective response to a natural disaster occurring 60 years after their independence, I don't think so.

For one thing, Burmese 'independence' was initially declared by the Japanese (then in occupation) not Britain. For another, Japanese mistreatment of Burmese during their brief occupation was a magnitude above that of the British. For another, Aung San received training in Japan and (briefly) cooperated with the Japanese as War Minister before siding with the Allies to oust the Japanese. He was De Facto PM from then until his assassination in late 1947, six months before independence (again).

Since 1990, the ruling Junta are the ones who have sought (in vain) to remove Aung San from Myanmar's history and its 'consciousness', they are the ones directly responsible for the state of the country - through systematic human rights abuses, political repression, corruption and incompetence.

Again, as with N.I. I'd suggest a little reading may assist before you form conclusions. Your attempt to lay blame for the Junta's failure to plan for and respond to this event at London's feet is disingenuous at best.

Trite, and meaningless.

You clearly didn't look very hard, there was a thread about this, started by yours truly over a week ago. A simple search on Myanmar would have turned it up. Perhaps further discussion of this would be better carried on there?

Almost 4000 dead in Myanmar Cyclone

The US is regularly bashed in this forum, sometimes justifiably, as often not. As for getting the work done, that can only be achieved if the ruling Junta allows it, and writing a cheque is exactly what Yangon says it wants. Thus far they have consistently refused to allow more 'hands on' assistance. Again I ask, what would you suggest?

A little, though I'm unsure what personal insults and attacks you're referring to. Do you mean the 'shame' remark - you consider that a personal insult - you're joking, right? IMO, it was a tactless suggestion by you. I still think the US sought to make political hay out of a massive human tragedy, for which it should be ashamed.

It doesn't matter, I guess. But when I hear a discussion about Ahmadinejad's statement, I'll sometimes direct them to read Joseph Massad's Re-Orienting Desire, which was the first essay dealing specifically with male + male Muslim relations that I ever read.

Canadians have way bigger cocks than small-dick Americans anyways.

....

No, its not okay. But the vast majority of the comments that ensued were very anti-American, thus my comment.

Hey I got a great idea, You keep him!!! When he murders an innocent merchant in your country you can give him a prize or whatever it is you do