	Generational Dynamics
	Forecasting America's Destiny ... and the World's

\| HOME \| WEB LOG \| COUNTRY WIKI \| COMMENT \| FORUM \| DOWNLOADS \| ABOUT \|

Generational Dynamics Web Log for 3-Jun-2014
3-Jun-14 World View -- Polio continues to flare in Nigeria and Pakistan

Web Log - June, 2014

3-Jun-14 World View -- Polio continues to flare in Nigeria and Pakistan

Hamas leader resigns as Palestine unity government is announced

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

Spain's King abdicates as Catalonia moves to secession referendum
Hamas leader resigns as Palestine unity government is announced
Polio continues to flare in Nigeria and Pakistan

Spain's King abdicates as Catalonia moves to secession referendum

King Carlos poses in front of an elephant that he and his wife killed in Botswana in 2011

King Carlos poses in front of an elephant that he and his wife killed in Botswana in 2011

Spain's King Juan Carlos, is revered among older Spaniards for his deft handling of Spain's transition to democracy after the death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1975, and for putting down an attempted army coup in 1981. But younger Spaniards see him as the man who went on a lavish elephant-hunting trip in 2012 at the height of Spain's financial crisis.

On Monday, King Carlos abdicated the throne:

"We have felt the need for renovation, and to open up a better future. Today a younger generation deserves to step forward.
I want the best for Spain, to which I have dedicated my whole life. I have decided to abdicate my crown to give way to a new generation embodied by my son Felipe, heir to the throne. I keep and will keep Spain forever deep in my heart."

Spanish Crown Prince Felipe and his wife, Princess Letizia. (EPA)

Spanish Crown Prince Felipe and his wife, Princess Letizia. (EPA)

In the mid 2000s decade, Spain had one of the worst real estate bubbles of any country in the world, and unemployment today is above 25%. Catalonia is holding on November 9 a referendum to vote on seceding from Spain. The Spanish government considers the referendum to be illegal, but it's going ahead anyway. It's hoped that the ascension of Prince Felipe and his glamorous wife Princess Letizia to the throne will help dull Catalonia's desire for independence. AP and Guardian (London)

Hamas leader resigns as Palestine unity government is announced

Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas announced on Monday that his organization (PA/Fatah) and its arch-enemy Hamas have joined into a unity government. In a ceremony in Ramallah in the West Bank, Abbas said:

"Today, with the formation of a national consensus government, we announce the end of a Palestinian division that has greatly damaged our national case.
This black page in the history (of the Palestinians) has been turned forever, and we will not allow it to come back."

The Hamas charter demands the total destruction of Israel. Abbas has promised that the new unity government will recognize Israel and renounce violence, but this promise is not widely believed.

However, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh dramatically announced his resignation, so that he would not stand in the way of the reunification agreement.

"We're leaving the government, but not the nation. We're leaving the ministries but not the question of the nation."

It's thought that Haniyeh stepped down because Hamas is close to bankruptcy. Since the Syrian war, Hamas has lost its main financial sponsor, Iran. And Gaza is doubly blockaded, both by Israel and by Egypt. So Haniyeh can continue doing whatever he wants, but just won't be part of the unity government. The real test will occur when Islamic Jihad, which is an independent terror group in Gaza that has been arming for a future war with Israel, decides to launch a new barrage of rockets into Israel. What will the unity government do then? Gulf Today (UAE) and Times of Israel

Polio continues to flare in Nigeria and Pakistan

The terrorist group Boko Haram is responsible for thousands of deaths through terrorist attacks in northeastern Nigeria, and is still holding hundreds of kidnapped schoolgirls, possibly as sexual slaves. But Boko Haram is posing an additional danger to Nigeria and the entire region by making it almost impossible to administer polio vaccines. The vaccination campaign has been forced to use so-called "hit-and-runs," sending workers guarded by security officers into insecure areas to quickly administer vaccines, and quickly escape.

Nigeria, Afghanistan and Pakistan are the three remaining countries where polio is endemic.

Pakistan has been a particular problem because the Taliban have been murdering health care workers in Pakistan involved in polio providing vaccines, ever since the administration bragged in 2011 that a vaccination program in Pakistan was used as a cover to locate and capture Osama bin Laden. Polio is spreading within Pakistan, and travelers from Pakistan have been carrying the virus to other countries, particularly China and the Mideast. The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced a requirement that all Pakistanis traveling abroad will be required to present a polio vaccination certificate at the time departure, and those certificates became mandatory on Sunday, June 1. CBC and Dawn (Pakistan)

(Comments: For reader comments, questions and discussion, see the 3-Jun-14 World View -- Polio continues to flare in Nigeria and Pakistan thread of the Generational Dynamics forum. Comments may be posted anonymously.) (3-Jun-2014) Permanent Link
Receive daily World View columns by e-mail
Donate to Generational Dynamics via PayPal

Web Log Pages

Current Web Log

Generational Dynamics Web Log for 3-Jun-2014 3-Jun-14 World View -- Polio continues to flare in Nigeria and Pakistan

Spain's King abdicates as Catalonia moves to secession referendum

Hamas leader resigns as Palestine unity government is announced

Polio continues to flare in Nigeria and Pakistan

Web Log Pages

Generational Dynamics Web Log for 3-Jun-2014
3-Jun-14 World View -- Polio continues to flare in Nigeria and Pakistan