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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 7-Oct-2010
7-Oct-10 News -- Mideast peace talk decision postponed until Friday

Web Log - October, 2010

7-Oct-10 News -- Mideast peace talk decision postponed until Friday

Protectionism growing around the world

Mideast peace talk decision postponed until Friday

There was supposed to be an Arab League meeting earlier this week on Monday, at which time the members would decide whether to end the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.

Then, under pressure from Egypt, the meeting was postponed to Wednesday, and Mahmoud Abbas was supposed to make a "historic announcement," probably to resign as Palestinian president.

Now the meeting has been postponed again, until Friday, according to AFP.

The Israelis have refused to extended the West Bank settlement moratorium that expired over a week ago, and so most analysts expect the Arab League ministers to recommend that the peace talks be canceled. However, an analysis in the Jerusalem Post that the Arab League may decide to be "flexible," and allow the peace talks to continue for a while, even without the moratorium, as long as there is too much additional settlement building.

The Israeli government is sharply divided on the settlement issue, with threats to end Netayahu's ruling coalition no matter which way the moratorium decision goes, according to the NY Times.

The Obama administration has staked a great deal of its own credibility on these peace talks, and is applying enormous pressure to Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to extend the freeze. The administration is offering various security and political guarantees to Israel in exchange for extending the moratorium. The exact terms are not known, but they're thought to include delivery of weapons systems to Israel.

In a related story, Bloomberg reports that Netanyahu is seeking to change the nation's citizenship oath to specify that Israel is a Jewish state. This would be a highly symbolic act, since there are non-Jewish Arabs living in Israel, and because Abbas has already rejected the Israeli demand that the Palestinians recognize Israel as a Jewish state.

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During the 1930s Great Depression, the global economic situation was made worse because one country after another enacted protectionist legislation that prevented foreign imports from competing with domestically manufactured products. In America, it was the Smoot-Hawley tariff act of 1931. The world was supposed to be avoiding protectionism this time, but in fact it's growing again. But instead of tariffs, which are politically unpalatable, countries are in a race to devalue their currencies, through the politically acceptable means of bond purchases (quantitative easing). However, as a sign that the level of xenophobia between Americans and Chinese is growing, the House of Representatives has passed a bill by a vote of 348 to 79 to impose punitive tariffs on the Chinese. If the bill becomes law, it would start a major trade war with China. Spiegel

The results of the European audit of Greece's national debt and finances will be published this month, and the figures are expected to be worse than previously announced. AFP

As the suicide rate for Boomers increases, studies are showing that Boomers had expected to be in better health and better off financially in their old age, and are depressed because that isn't happen. Furthermore, the high suicide rates are stretching down into the 40s age group, which would include the Generation-Xers. CNN

As Iran starts arresting more people because of the effects of the Stuxnet virus on the Bushehr nuclear installation, dozens of Ruusian nuclear engineers, technicians and contractors are heading for home to escape arrest. The Russians built and maintained the nuclear plant, and they are the Iranians' prime suspects. Debka

The international economic sanctions on Iran are not crippling Iran's economy, but they're causing prices to rise and putting additional strains on the government of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Washington Post

With Iran facing increasing pressure because of the Stuxnet virus and the international sanctions, some Israeli analysts are suggesting that Iran might lash out against its neighbors or Israel by unleashing a "dirty bomb" -- a bomb that uses a conventional explosive to spread radioactive material over a wide area. One strategy would be to give the weapon to Hamas or Hizbollah for use against Israel. Because of this threat, Israel's finance minister is calling for a naval blockade of Iran, since the economic sanctions aren't working. Jewish Week

Syria's is increasingly facing a water shortage crisis, as the amount of available water has fallen from a comfortable 1200 cubic meters per person to a crisis level of fewer than 750 cubic meters, in just a few years. The problem is Syria is wasting enormous amounts of water. The National (UAE)

Although the people of Indonesia and Malaysia have common linguistic, religious and ethnic roots, and the two peoples are "as close as teeth and tongue," their relationship over the centuries has often been acrimonious, as described in this historical analysis. Today, points of contention between the two countries have led to mobilization in the streets, mostly in Indonesia. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS)

In an interview, former Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf admitted that Pakistan's military had trained militants to fight India in Kashmir, and that Pakistan had a right to do so because the West was ignoring the question of sovereignty of Kashmir, and India was killing Pakistanis. He gave government incompetence as the reason why he plans to return to Pakistan to run for another term as president. Spiegel

Last year, I told readers to make a mental note of the Fergana Valley, in central Asia, because it was going to become increasingly important in world affairs. The Fergana Valley sits at the intersection of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan, and is becoming a battleground because of terrorist attacks by the al-Qaeda linked Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU). The United States is becoming increasingly involved in the Fergana Valley, because the Fergana Valley is used for logistics in fighting the Afghanistan war. Diplomatic Courier

All the central Asian states of the former Soviet Union are rapidly increasing their military spending, resulting in a regional arms race that's "an extremely dangerous trend." Eurasia Review

A new warning posted on France's Foreign Ministry web site warns French travelers to Britain of a high terrorism risk. Associated Press

The cause of Colony Collapse Disorder, a disease that's killed billions of bees since 2006, may have been discovered. Researchers at University of Montana say that the surprise cause may be a little known virus working in combination with a common fungus. Bloomberg

(Comments: For reader comments, questions and discussion, see the 7-Oct-10 News -- Mideast peace talk decision postponed until Friday thread of the Generational Dynamics forum. Comments may be posted anonymously.) (7-Oct-2010) Permanent Link
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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 7-Oct-2010 7-Oct-10 News -- Mideast peace talk decision postponed until Friday

Mideast peace talk decision postponed until Friday

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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 7-Oct-2010
7-Oct-10 News -- Mideast peace talk decision postponed until Friday