[Debatewise RRT] Debates, and we still need GYP mods!
- From: "Alex Helling" <alex@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <debatewiserrt@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 8 Dec 2009 19:56:38 -0000
Hi all,
Limited number this week because we are run off our feet with the GYP and I
am sure that those of you who are involved are too. On that note we still
need moderators so feel free to ask for wave invites to do that. Also those
of you who are involved in the GYP we would prefer if you put the GYP as a
higher priority, afterall you can do RRT debates any time, the Copenhagen
conference only comes around once every... hmmm who knows, could be another
one in a couple of years or possibly never again!
Regards,
Alex
The USA should negotiate with the Junta.
Burma or Myanmar as the Junta prefers it is heading towards an election. It
is in the US and world interest for this to go smoothly and be as free and
fair as possible. It seems extremely unlikely that Sung San Suu Kyi will be
allowed to run but her party might. The US should do all it can to encourage
this and if that means establishing some sort of relations they should do
so.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/05/world/asia/05myanmar.html?_r=1
<http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/05/world/asia/05myanmar.html?_r=1&partner=rs
s&emc=rss> &partner=rss&emc=rss
http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1938752,00.html
The Iraq inquiry is showing that the war was manufactured by the
politicians.
Only Blair seems to have wanted to go to war. Civil servants have been
marching into the inquiery and bemoaning how little preparation there was
for war, how information was suppressed and how there was no planning for
the aftermath. They are showing what many suspected already that the Iraq
war was entirely manufactured at the behest of George Bush.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article6948283.ece
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/iraq-war-inquiry
http://www.iraqinquiry.org.uk/
should Christmas cards be politics neutral?
The Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond?s Christmas cards feature the
Saltire, the Scottish flag, and so they appear to be drumming the
nationalist drum. The SNP have therefore been accused of politicising
Christmas. Christmas should be a time when political parties can forget
about politics. But is this ever really going to happen, politicians are
political animals, if they can get a message out through their Christmas
cards then why not take advantage of it?
http://news.scotsman.com/scotland/Christmas-time-politics-and-whine.5891303.
jp
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/3329009.stm
Should BBC worldwide be sold?
The Government is considering selling BBC worldwide, the commercial arm of
the BBC with revenues of £1bln per year. This has set the government on a
collision course with the BBC who do not want their profit making arm to be
sold off. After all the money made in profits can be ploughed back into
making high quality programming and so indirectly means UK licence payers
can pay less. On the other hand the government is desperate for money to pay
off the national debt.
http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/media/articl
e6833277.ece
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2009/dec/08/bbc-worldwide-sell-off
Bankers should pay windfall taxes on their bonuses.
Oil companies pay a windfall tax when oil prices are high so why should
banks not? Indeed banks have in the past paid a windfall tax on their
profits. However this has never before been applied to the bankers
themselves. Public opinion is running high and populist measures such as
taxes on bankers may squeeze some extra votes in next year?s general
election. The bankers argue that such a tax will harm the recovery, all the
talent will run abroad, particularly to Switzerland that is competing
fiercely for disgruntled bankers.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2009/dec/07/pre-budget-report-bank-bonuse
s
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/thereporters/robertpeston/2009/12/will_biffing_ba
nkers_also_biff.html
Our future in space is in private hands.
Richard Branson has unveiled Virgin Galactic?s new spaceship. Sir Richard is
hailing it as ?the start of commercial space travel.? From now on profit
motive may well increasingly be the reason behind space travel and
eventually even space exploration. There are lots of potential reasons why
companies would be interested in space once the technology progresses far
enough, not just telecommunications which we already have and tourism that
will soon be avaliable, but possibly an ideal way to get rid of nuclear
waste ? or at least pass it on, firms could develop mining on other planets
? drilling for resources is already a big driver of technology.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/travelnews/6761213/Richard-Branson-unveils
-Virgin-Galactics-spaceship-Enterprise.html
Britain will fall out of the world?s top 10 economies by 2015.
Despite having been the world?s fourth largest economy in 2005 we have now
fallen to seventh. Our economy is the only one in the G20 still in recession
and is in by far the worst position when it comes to recovery. Meanwhile
Brazil and Russia are catching up fast and even Canada a third smaller than
the UK in population could overtake us. Will Britain fall out of the top 10?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/economics/6750844/Britain-risks-falling-o
ut-of-worlds-top-10-economies.html
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=495125
<http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=495125&in_page
_id=2> &in_page_id=2
Restarting world trade talks would help speed the recovery
Although generally seen as a villan creating poverty in poor countries and
only helping the rich in rich ones world trade does directly follow
prosperity or the other way round. For the economy to be doing well there
has to be more trade, we are already integrated enough that world trade
helps almost everyone?s economies. Countries whose home markets are doing
badly need exports to pull them out of recession while those who are growing
want goods as cheaply as possible to encourage consumers to spend in the
shops. So is kick-starting world trade talks the answer?
http://www.cfr.org/publication/20897/vanishing_wto.html?breadcrumb=%2F
http://www.cfr.org/publication/20893/wsj.html
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