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Pastimes : Kosovo -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Hawkmoon who wrote (9182)	5/20/1999 11:07:00 AM
From: GUSTAVE JAEGER	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 17770

Ron, When NATO'll have finished with the Balkans, it might get ready for another mission northwards... Indeed, I just stumbled on the following programme of Belgium's Flemish jingo party, Vlaams Blok: The Vlaams Blok Facts and Objectives 5. The Program 1. An independent Flanders Belgium was, and still is, an artificial state, dominated by the French-speakers. Large parts of Flanders are still threatened with frenchification and the transfer of funds from Flanders to Wallonia is being continued. Federalism did not provide a solution. The Vlaams Blok advocates a completely independent Flanders, with Brussels as its capital. *2. Europe* The Vlaams Blok supports the concept of a Europe of Peoples. We affirm our solidarity with the other peoples of Europe that aspire to self-government. The Vlaams Blok advocates a European economical, political and military union. We reject the Maastricht-Europe and do not believe in the efficiency of the EC-bureaucracy. Brussels can NOT become the European capital. The settlement of growing numbers of foreigners in Brussels would further harm the Flemish character of Brussels and the surrounding municipalities. *3. The supported return of the non-European foreigners* Though the unemployed in Belgium amount to 400,000, near to a million legal and at least 100,000 illegal aliens still reside here. Every year, at least 10,000 political refugees seek asylum. Our cities witness an ever-growing number of riots involving foreigners (esp. From North Africa and Turkey) The Vlaams Blok rejects the government's policy of integration. It advocates an airtight immigration-stop, a reorganization of the status of political refugees and a supported return of the majority of non-European foreigners. *4. Firm action against crime and drugs* Yearly, registered crime rises with an average of 10%. About one third of all criminal facts can be attributed to foreigners. The drug problem grows at an alarming rate. The Vlaams Blok advocates firm action against crime. Police means must be enlarged. Drugs cannot be legalized. *5. Family and education* The Vlaams Blok is a right wing, conservative party that demands respect for traditional European values. The family is the cornerstone of society. It deserves financial and moral encouragement. Motherhood should not be fiscally penalized. The Vlaams Blok advocates an allowance for the parent who stays at home to raise the children. Abortion is a crime and should be re-entered in the penal code and the procedure for adoption of Flemish children should be made more flexible. Our children have the right to quality education. Experimenting and manipulation in education must stop. *6. Stop political banditry: a strong but a light state* Belgium has a dazzling national debt of 300,000 million US$. The traditional parties' politicians are not servants of the people. They primarily serve their party, their clan, their Trade Union. Political appointments of civil servants, embezzlement of public funds and other malpractice's are rampant. The Vlaams Blok wants to reduce the role of the state in society. Political appointments and plurality of offices should be counteracted. The number of ministers should be reduced. A number of public services must be privatized, the others made more accessible and transparent. *7. Economy: encouragement of free enterprise* Free enterprise must be encouraged, e.g. by tax-cuts. The trade Unions' monopoly position must be abolished. In no way should foreigners receive preferential treatment on the job market. Employment in public services must be reserved for our own people. Employment of foreigners should be subjected to a higher taxation. Employers of illegal aliens must be penalized. Work in the country of origin must be encouraged. *8. Ecology: respect for nature* The polluter must pay. Environmental policies should primarily be pursued on the European level, e.g. the purification of rivers. An end must be put to the proliferation of allotments. Priority should be given to the renovation of city centres. Our farmers must be protected against the farming industry and the EC-bureaucrats. The Vlaams Blok advocates a ban on ritual slaughter, as an aspect of animal protection. *9. Culture: less politics, more culture* The Vlaams Blok is opposed to the political interfering in the cultural sector. It denounces the political manipulation and desinformation in radio and television. The Vlaams Blok denounces the anglicization and americanization of our culture. Much more over there: vlaams-blok.be The ''funniest'' thing in their programme is their promoting Brussels to capital of Flanders: Brussels, which already hosts some of the EU bureaucracy as well as NATO's HQ, is populated mainly by approx. one million of French speaking people --including a sizeable non-European minority. Brussels's Flemings amount to roughly 10% of the total. Get the picture? Brussels may be your next Kosovo... Well, at least in that case, no ground invasion plan is required: NATO's staff is already in the thick of the action --LOL! Regards, Gustave.

To: Hawkmoon who wrote (9182)	5/20/1999 10:47:00 PM
From: Dayuhan	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 17770

If people were to adopt your perspective, they'd be led to believe that the US created the "art of torture" and that all of these "innocents" were coming here to receive their education. That would be a huge exaggeration, of course. But we did sanction its use, provide instruction in some of the more advanced and subtle means, and - through extremely enthusiastic "advisors" - encourage its use. It occurs to me that some might think - Yaacov apparently does - that I object to the employment of corrupt, brutal, and inept dictators as a tool against Communism primarily on moral grounds. This is not the case. While I do consider it immoral, my objection is based on the observation that these dictators proved to be very ineffective tools, and in many cases actually encouraged and provoked Communist insurgencies. Corrupt, brutal, and inept government will always, everywhere, provoke opposition: nobody likes to be robbed and abused. When corrupt and brutal governments employ the coercive mechanisms of the state to suppress dissent, the only avenue for dissent becomes armed, underground, rebellion. This is a situation which aids and encourages the development of militant and extremist opposition. The point is that repression does not and cannot extinguish dissent, it merely forces dissenters to exactly the place you don't want them to be: the far left. It has been repeatedly demonstrated that the most fertile soil for the growth of a communist insurrection is a corrupt, abusive, and inept dictatorship. This allows the Communists to take over the local moral high ground, forms an aggrieved class that is highly susceptible to communist organizing, and allows the Communists to become the sole available avenue for dissent. Eventually, as the dictator's rapaciousness grows, moderates are forced into a position where they begin accommodating the communists as the sole alternative to an intolerable government. Dictatorship is the best present you can give a Communist organizer; this is hindsight now, but it was widely described and written about as it was happening. In the Philippines, where a strong communist movement faded fast after a return to flawed but functional democracy (under a President we criticized for being "soft on communism"), the only remaining communist strongholds are in areas where large landowners have used private armies to continue physical repression. The safest place for a communist is in parliament; the communist pitch only appeals to victims. Fewer victims, fewer communists. Your thoughts on the distinction between authoritarianism and totalitarianism are interesting; I had drawn the line somewhat differently, but had not put as much thought into defining the terms. I would point out that in the authoritarian regimes I have known, respect for private property has been limited to the property of the dictator's inner circle. It is also worth pointing out that many Americans are led astray by the terms "left" and "right". In America, those who place themselves to the right generally support a market economy with minimal government interference and a strong respect for individual rights (to simplify enormously). In the third world, things are different: "rightists" are rabidly opposed to a market economy, believing that the government has the right and the obligation to manipulate the economy for the welfare of the ruling class. Individual rights are irrelevant to the ruling class, which considers itself exempt by privilege of birth from all laws. I have visited a place where the town mayor considered it right and natural that he should be able to screw any woman he wanted at whatever time he wanted, and to appropriate whatever land he thought desirable; this mayor considered himself a good conservative, on the basis of his rabid opposition to communists (they eventually shot him, winning vast admiration from the populace). He was by no means unique. The grounds for confusion are pretty evident. Comments appreciated; you think well, especially when you disagree with me. Going to do some work now, a bit too much of this....