Thanks JK in California; you're a gem for sending these to me. NJC, freezing her butt off while you're in sunny California. Must remember that your area is earthquake-prone -- have to keep that green monkey off my back.
Updates to the posts below:
Update 1: The China Conference Website -- April 18 & 19, 2005, Westin Bayshore Resort, Hosted and Principally Sponsored by the Port of Vancouver, BC
The China Conference is the FIRST and PREMIER North American-based conference dealing specifically with China-North America shipping and logistics and is targeted at those either getting into, or those already engaged, in commerce with China.
Less than a year after first setting up shop in China as a self-professed "environmental consultant", Kyoto Protocol architect Maurice Strong is a mega Chinese car salesman.
Among the 250,000 cars the company in which he’s a partner will export to the United States is the enviro dreaded SUV.
[. . . . ] Strong’s main mission in China was to replace the United States of America with China as a world leader on ecology.
[. . . . ] "China will soon be the No. 2 economy in the world. That will put huge pressure on the environment."
[Search today's posts, one on the CCBC, for Earl Drake who said this.]
And Maurice Strong will make money selling cars? In the West? How Liberal -- talk about the environment while acting to make money. Or am I being unfair? Too harsh? Too ready to see through our emperors' new clothes?
First Chinese cars to hit U.S. shores -- Malcolm Bricklin, the man behind the Yugo, to lead new import wave in 2007. -- Maurice Strong member of Bricklin's team -- a NB connection here
NEW YORK -- A newly formed company led by auto entrepreneur Malcolm Bricklin and the investment banking firm Allen & Co. has signed the first-ever deal to import cars made in China for sale in the United States.
[. . . . ] United States, where Asian automakers have been steadily taking market share from Detroit's Big Three [. . . . ]
The deal marks a stunning return to the industry for the 65-year-old Bricklin,. . . going bankrupt building his own ill-fated Bricklin sports car in the 1970s. [a New Brunswick, Canada, story; he was not the only one to suffer monetarily!]
[. . . . ] Other partners in Visionary Vehicles include Maurice Strong, a former senior adviser to U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan; Norwegian shipping magnate Per Arneberg; and New York construction executive John Cavanaugh.
[. . . . ] He said the goal is to price the vehicles 30 percent below competing models in the U.S. market.
Automaker's global plans
[. . . . ] Bricklin moved on in 1972, founding his own auto manufacturing company with funding from the Canadian government and the province of New Brunswick.
The Bricklin SV-1, a futuristic sports car with gull-wing doors, went into production at a Canadian plant in mid-1974. Within a year, the company was bankrupt, running up $32 million in debts after producing just 2,800 cars.
It cost New Brunswickers a bundle, if I remember correctly. Perhaps he would now consider paying back some of the money to Canada and to NB? Yes, I jest. Government grants, forgivable loans just help those with the right connections -- the better networks. Well, read all of today's posts and you'll know.
[. . . . ] Bricklin's business model -- using low-cost Chinese labor to hold down vehicle prices for entry-level U.S. models -- convinced Allen & Co. to back the effort.
[. . . . Chinese goverment control -- an auto show in North America ]
[. . . . ] Bricklin said that Chery has engaged the Italian design houses Pininfarina and Bertone to design its U.S. models, and has contracted with the Austrian engineering firm AVL to develop new engines. [. . . . ]
Now, what is your next thought? No? Wait for design and automotive tech "breakthroughs" in China next year. Keep scrolling.
Bricklin's team
Key players in Visionary Vehicles' bid to import Chinese-made cars to the United States:
* Malcolm Bricklin, CEO of Visionary Vehicles. [. . . ]
Ex-Premier Richard Hatfield, now deceased, was involved in the Bricklin fiasco in New Brunswick.
* William J. vanden Heuvel, chairman of Visionary Vehicles. He is a former deputy U.S. representative to the United Nations [. . . ]
* Allen & Co., investment banking firm.[. . . ]
* Maurice Strong, chairman of Visionary Vehicles' Technology and Environmental Advisory Board. He is a former senior adviser to U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan and adviser to the president of the World Bank. [among other things -- scroll down.]
* Per Arneberg, transportation coordinator. The Norwegian shipping magnate will oversee transportation of Chery vehicles from China to North America. He previously headed up transport of Toyotas and Yugos to the U.S. market.[. . . .]
No wonder Paul Martin is in such a hurry!
There are related reports:
Chinese carmaker ambitious, controversial
Timeline: Malcolm Bricklin's path to China
Driven abroad: A study of the economic forces behind the loss of U.S. auto industry jobs
Road to China: Big rewards, big risks
Chinese carmaker ambitious, controversial -- GM has accused Chery Automobile Co. of copying Chevy design, plans to sue.
GM has not given up the fight against Chery -- one of a series of disputes over rampant trademark and patent violations in China. In December, GM said it would sue the automaker in a Chinese court in a case expected to draw worldwide attention.
[. . . . ] GM first brought Chery to the world's attention in 2003, when it accused the carmaker of copying the Chevrolet Spark, a hatchback based on GM's Daewoo Matiz. [Check the photos on this site.]
Chery denies the charge, but the QQ bears a striking resemblance to the Spark and also outsells it.
There goes the business. Get your resumes ready for positions as "greeters", hash slingers and call center jockeys. Your next company may get a government handout--forgivable loan--if one of the big boys owns it. If it is headquartered in Quebec, mais oui!
PS: Don't plan on having a large family nor that your wife stay home to look after the children and the household's needs. Come to think of it, retirement will be a bit dicey, too. Die early.
[. . . . ] It now sells four cars -- the Fengyun, Qiyun and Son of East sedans, and the QQ. Next year, it plans to launch a sport utility vehicle, a new sedan and a crossover.
Canada's Prime Minister, the Industry Minister, assorted other government lads, hangers-on and the big corporations which have received Canadian taxpayers' $$$ largesse over the years are pushing China's interests in--designs upon-Canada's resources, research and development, various companies, et cetera? -- And their own interests? What about Canada's? Think about it. Then, read on.
Business: The China Connection, Canada China Business Council--Founding Sponsors, the Networks, Connections & Other Information
There are three compilations today. I believe much of what follows is too important not to notice -- although I have other commitments. Note that our Prime Minister is off to China soon. We have serious security inadequacies, as well. NJC
Floundering Fisheries -- China's rise as a seafood power has caused a seismic shift in Canada's $5-billion fisheries industry and with Asian hourly wages as low as 15C, it's all but impossible to compete.
This article by Jason Kirby in the Financial Post, Jan. 3, 04, [not online late Dec. 3] concerns two Newfoundlanders, one a union rep facing likely unemployment who sees his fish processing plant dying, the other who travelled to Southeast Asia years ago, and became a successful businessman in a thriving seafood export business. There is a China connection; the article is full of details. For more information on the extent and the names of companies involved in fish processing in China, check this site: There are about 5362 companies involved in fish seafood processing industry, of which 732 are the State-owned [sic]
Our Prime Minister Martin and Industry Minister Peterson will be off to China this month, long with Canadian businessmen. It is of interest to look at the government agencies, businesses and others promoting business with China. One group is the Canada China Business Council.
The CCBC sounds so congenial -- bringing two cultures together -- maybe a government body intended to promote cross-cultural networks for business? -- or is it a group of businessmen, former politicians, financiers and their like networked with government who are about to make a lot of money? -- or both?
Note the connections among some of the key players, the fact that a Canadian Crown Corporation limits participation to big players -- more perqs for those who already have perqs. Check the cost of dinner with the big players in Beijing -- and who else may be there. Those who have, get; those who have little . . . . . don't get to join the party.
Who stand to benefit? Hardly the little guys who are losing their jobs to outsourcing or manufacturing in China. Not the businesses that are failing in Canada because some businesses import goods and much else--even of lesser quality--goods that can be sold for less than a Canadian company would have to charge. Imported items are comparatively inexpensive because Chinese workers are paid so little and receive the same in benefits. Canadians businesses have extra expenses and have to charge more.
Time constraints mean that I have not been able to research all but there is probably enough information below on several businesses and their big guns to give you a very good idea of the who, the why and the implications for Canada.
Canada China Business Council (CCBC) -- its mandate
The CCBC Founding Sponsors are a select group of companies, all active in bilateral trade with China, who have made a significant contribution to the Council to help ensure the long-term viability of the CCBC as a unique, private-sector, membership organization offering business services, market information and policy advice.
Companies and Organizations -- the Founding Sponsors -- with more information below this:
CCBC Founding Principals--Desmarais-Power Corp-CITIC-Financial Institutions-Bombardier, Crown Corp, 3 Former Ambassadors to China, Former Politicians, The Usual Well-Connected
Founding Chairman
The Hon. Paul Desmarais P.C., C.C.
Chairman of the Executive Committee
Power Corporation of Canada
Honourary Chairman
Mr. Andre Desmarais, O.C. [son of Paul Desmarais and son-in-law of ex Prime Minister Jean Chretien]
President/Co-CEO
Power Corporation of Canada/Power Financial Corporation
Chairman
Mr. Peter Kruyt [Vice-President, Power Corporation of Canada.]
Chairman
Power Pacific Corporation Limited [of Hong Kong, also a Power Corp company
Mr. Kruyt has been closely involved in activities of Power Corporation of Canada since 1981 working initially with its Chairman and subsequently with a number of subsidiaries. He is also President of Power Technology Investment Corporation and a member of the board of directors of a number of corporations including La Presse, Picchio Pharma Inc and Adaltis Inc. He is Chairman of the Board of Power Pacific Corporation Limited of Hong Kong, Vice-Chairman of the Canada China Business Council and a member of the Board of Governors of Concordia University in Montreal.
Mr. Charles Shiu
Vice Chairman
Power Pacific Corporation Limited [colleague of Mr. Kruyt, VP, Power Corp.]
Ms. Margaret Cornish
Executive Director
Canada China Business Council -- [Check whether she is a former employee of Power Corp or of one of Li Ka-shing's companies; I remember some such connection.]
Former Employees of or Connected to Government--if only through taxpayer funds:
Mr. Piers Cumberlege
Vice President, Global Partnerships
Bombardier Inc. [recipient of much taxpayer largesse over the years]
Mr. Maurice Strong Honourary Director
Mr. Strong has many network tentacles -- the UN--globalization, environment, world governance -- to PM Paul Martin, China, Power Corp, Desmarais family, et cetera.
A 1997 dossier (http://www.nationalcenter.org/DossierStrong.html) on Maurice Strong, prepared by the National Center for Public Policy Research, relates that Maurice Strong is a senior advisor to United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan. "Annan has appointed Strong to lead U.N. reforms, positioning him to be the next U.N. Secretary General. . . . Strong has used his position to centralize power in the U.N. at the expense of national sovereignty."[1] (http://www.nationalcenter.org/DossierStrong.html)
[. . . . ] During the 1950s and 1960s, Strong was involved in the oil industry and utility industry and was quite successful. By the time he was 35 Strong was president of a major holding company, the Power Corporation of Canada. . . .
Strong now occupies a PMO (Prime Minister's Office) position as an evironmental advisor for Kyoto implementation in Paul Martin's PMO (the Current Prime Minister Of Canada). Prime Minister Martin appointed Strong to this position before he had won the party leadership race. Current Prime Minister Martin and Maurice Strong were employed by Paul Desmarais' PowerCor company where the two met.
Mr. David Mulroney
Assistant Deputy Minister,
Asia Pacific Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
Former Ontario Premier:
The Hon. Bob Rae Partner
Goodmans LLP [See below for the reference: It was Bob Rae's brother who was instrumental in seeing the Sidewinder investigative report spiked as . . . . . too -- controversial? -- revealing? -- upsetting to some people? -- I would guess.
CSIS management was given the job of determining that the tone of the report was too extreme and given to "scaremongering" and "conspiracy theory." New analysts were brought in and a new, politically correct spin was given to the analysis.
A revised report, dubbed "Echo," was finished in January 1999. To no one's great surprise, it fell far short of Sidewinder, according to Juneau and some of the RCMP officers who were part of the project. (Reference: Canada Targeted by China Agents -- By James D. Harder)
Operation Sidewinder, an American-Canadian operation set up to root out Chinese agents in Canada was shut down by former New Democratic Party Ontario Premier Bob Rae. Rae’s brother John was the campaign manager for Chretien and is a senior executive at Power Corp.
I find this very intriguing, given Mr. Chretien's connections, his trips to China and Russia, PM Paul Martin's forthcoming trip to China, the push for Canadian "big" business to get involved with China -- and more. Think about it.
Mr. Henri Souquieres
Vice President, International Markets
Export Development Canada
* Industrial Equipment
* Engineering and professional services
* Information Technology
* Manufacturing
* Communications
* Energy/Environmental
* Electronics
Businesss Excluded:
* No start-ups, seed or early stage companies
Note: This is for already established--successful, rich companies -- aided by high-level government influence and taxpayer dollars -- a form of corporate welfare.
Capt. Gordon Houston
President & CEO
Vancouver Port Authority [There have been noises about the Vancouver Port being inadequate. I predict future port construction designed to handle the super large ships coming out now for which no ports are adequate.]
Mr. Gordon Chu
Advisor to the President and CEO
TSI Terminal Systems Inc. -- BC Deltaport
* TSI Terminal Systems Inc. . . . . largest employer in the Port of Vancouver, with an annual payroll of $100 million.
* Through its two main container-handling terminals Deltaport in Delta and Vanterm in Vancouver harbour, TSI handles more than 80% of import and export containers that move through the Port.
* The company’s Cruise Ship Division. . .
* TSI's Information Systems Department is developing a java-based computer software system for container terminal operations that is one of the most advanced in the world.
. . . . Inaugural voyage of the COSCO Vancouver to Vanterm, Dec. 4-6th. She is 300 meters overall length, and handles containers 17 wide on deck, stacking up to 7 high. She loaded 2800teu's for export which is a record for any single vessel departing Vancouver. Vanterm's number three gantry crane was the only crane which could reach across the width of the ship as well as the 7-high on deck. The new crane Vanterm is receiving in early 2005 will be 20-wide and high enough to easily handle this size of ship.
Welcoming ceremonies included high-ranking officials from . . . .
At this point, it might be informative for the reader to do a search for "COSCO" and note the connections and past activities. You could start with this post.
[. . . . ] Jean Chretien and his son-in-law, Andre Demarais (See his connections to CITIC, below.) have been visiting Li Ka Shing who is connected with Hutchinson Whampoa, CITIC and COSCO (article extracts on these, below), and Li Ka Shing has connections to the Communist Chinese government
[. . . . ] In the highrise glass towers of Vancouver - Tricell (Canada) Inc. and Top Glory Enterprises Ltd., both incorporated in the late '80s work for the Communist government of China.
Among their jobs was to help facilitate the covert entry of secret police into Vancouver by hoodwinking the Canadian government. The agents were hunting for high profile fugitive businessman, Lai Changxing, who himself was recruited by the Chinese military to spy on Taiwan.
The visitor visas from the bogus business delegation was endorsed by Chinas Ministry of Trade and Economic Co-operation (MOFTEC) - one of the most powerful ministries in the Chinese government, responsible for such vital areas as negotiating China's entry into the World Trade Organization.
From the windows of both these firms, which constantly invite "Chinese business delegations" to Canada, company officials can see the arrival and departure of ships belonging to the maritime behemoth - COSCO.
The shipping line is intimately linked to the China International Trust and Investment Corp., a key fundraiser for the Chinese government and a technology-acquiring source for Chinas military.
Its vessels have been caught carrying thousands of weapons into California and Chinese missile-technology and biological-warfare components into North Korea, Pakistan, Iraq and Iran, according to U.S. intelligence reports.
Insisting there is no evidence to show COSCO is involved in any illegal activity - the Vancouver Port Authority has a "gateway to North America" deal with the shipping giant.
When Canada's Nortel Telecommunications based in Brampton, Ontario wanted to do business in China, they hired Katrina Leung's company - Merry Glory Ltd.
Little did they know that 49-year-old corporate matchmaker would be in the limelight several years later accused of having have slept her way into the good graces of two FBI agents while stealing secrets for the Chinese government.
Leung, who was paid $1. 2 million in 1995 and 1996 for negotiating the Nortel-China deal, has strong connections to Canada's Chinese business associations.
Around the same time, the modern day Matahari was greasing the way for Nortel, the Canadian spy agency - CSIS - was conducting an investigation in the offices of Ontario Hydro regarding the theft of information in the nuclear technology field by "an individual of Chinese origin".
There is much more in that post -- and in others.
Former Ambassadors of Canada to China -- from Canada's Diplomatic Corps to business--seamlessly
Vice Chairman
Prof. Earl Drake
Former Ambassador of Canada to China, Adjunct Professor Simon Fraser University
Mr. Fred Bild
Former Ambassador of Canada to China, Visiting Professor University of Montreal
President
Mr. Howard Balloch
Former Ambassador of Canada to China, President and CEO The Balloch Group
The firm is headquartered in Beijing, with offices or partner firms in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Toronto, and New York.
Howard Balloch was instrumental in establishing and managing a series of initiatives to improve Canada's profile in China. He currently serves as President of the Canada China Business Council.
Of course, undoubtedly, as our ambassador, he had no idea he would be in business promoting business with China so soon . . . but the networks one develops are so . . . useful.
"This is a very hungry dragon and its demand for copper and nickel and oil have long outpaced domestic supply," says Howard Balloch, a former Canadian ambassador to China and now a Beijing-based corporate investment consultant. "Domestic supply will never again satisfy its hydrocarbon or base metal needs."
[. . . . ] While it searches for its own supply sources, it still needs certain supplies of imports, and a country with more than $400-billion (U.S.) in foreign currency reserves can do something to ensure that flow. Thus, it has begun to make strategic acquisitions, including an investment in an energy project in Chad, which does not even recognize China, Mr. Balloch pointed out in a recent speech. The play for Noranda takes it to another league. There are other factors at work, say people who watch the Chinese phenomenon. China needs to develop technology to boost productivity, and some of that will be accomplished through acquisition. Mr. Balloch says the Chinese shift into international resource markets could take a number of forms. Chinese companies may nail down resources through long-term supply agreements or by engaging in joint ventures, perhaps in third countries. Or as with Minmetals, they may buy all or part of the foreign companies themselves.
I suppose "accomplished through acquisition" is a kinder way of putting it than . . . . "industrial espionage" or outright "theft" of others' ideas and designs. See also,
"Canada's not a country, it's a corporation". And I might add, its citizens aren't shareholders. Jackie Jura
Others including law firms:
Mr. Michael Cochrane
Honourary Director
Mr. Sidney Chan
Vice President, Finance, Greater China
Nortel Networks
Mr. Gerald Deyell, Q.C.
Partner
Blake Cassels & Graydon, LLP
Mr. David Fung
President and Managing Director
ACDEG International Inc.
Mr. Bing Ho
Partner
Baker & McKenzie
Dr. Pitman Potter
Professor of Law & Director of Chinese Legal Studies
Borden Ladner Gervais LLP / University of British Columbia
Mr. Douglas Robertson
Senior Partner
Davies Ward Philips & Vineberg LLP
Mr. Robert Van Adel
President & CEO
Atomic Energy of Canada Limited
I have written on China, nuclear energy, nuclear reactors and their nuclear developments previously. Search for "China", "nuclear" and "reactor" in Section 5 and Section 6, here and here
Banks, Financial Services:
Mr. Neil Tait
Special Advisor to Chairman & CEO on Asia
BMO Bank of Montreal
Ms. Connie Mak
General Manager, Asia
BMO Investments Inc.
Mr. Warren Gilman
Managing Director, Asia Pacific
CIBC [Li Ka-shing owns 10 percent of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Canada and is the bank’s largest individual shareholder.]
[. . . . ] Li’s port operations handle 30 percent of Hong Kong’s trade. He is linked with critical Hong Kong utilities, properties, retail chains and telecom networks.
[. . . . ] In March 2000 The Associated Press reported that if Richard Li’s Pacific Century CyberWorks (PCCW) took over Hong Kong Telecom (HKT), the family’s holdings would take up one-quarter of the stock market’s capitalization of US$631 billion.
It is also widely believed that Li Ka-shing has certain politicians in his back pocket. Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa, formerly the chairman of Orient Overseas International, is an old business partner of Li.
Li currently sits on the board of China International Trust and Investment Corp. [CITIC] as well as the Hong Kong & Shanghai Banking Corp. (HSBC)
He has poured US$1 billion into southern Chinese ports and infrastructure projects, and has invested US$2 billion in a real estate development complex in downtown Beijing. He has also donated US$150 million to build the Shantou University near his hometown in Guangdong, and supervised construction of the Chinese Foreign Ministry building in Hong Kong for free.
Does that make you stop and think at all?
[. . . . ] Li, already a millionaire through shrewd real estate and property management investments, vastly expanded his empire and his fame in 1979 by acquiring Hutchison Whampoa from what is now the HSBC. The latter had rescued Hutchison Whampoa from bankruptcy and sold it to Li’s Cheung Kong on easy terms (Cheung Kong now holds a 49.9 percent stake). [Cheung Kong Construction is involved in the Black Tusk highway construction for the Olympics in BC, 2010.]
The million-dollar question (or should we say billion-dollar question) is 'who benefits the most from the Vancouver/Whistler 2010 Winter Games'? [I would suggest there are more than games at stake. NJC]
The obvious answer is simply 'he who has the most to gain '.On this note, let us step back in time to 1986. Vancouver hosted Expo'86, an international event not unlike the scale of the proposed 2010 Winter Games. One and a half years later, then Premier Bill Vander Zalm concluded the sale of the Expo lands (84- hectare site on False Creek, representing one-sixth of downtown Vancouver) to Li Ka-Shing (and the Hui family) for a reported price of $145 million (said by many to be far too low, especially considering the tens of millions of dollars the province spent to complete the environmental clean-up of the site). Subsequently, his company, Concord Pacific Holdings, redeveloped the site into a multi-billion dollar downtown residential community. [Olympic] Bid Board Member, Stanley Tun-li Kwok describes himself at one of his corporate websites as 'Mastermind of Expo '86' [Keep reading when you find this paragraph -- networks of interest.]
Mr Alban Lo
General Manager, Trade Finance Western Canada and International Finance Centre
Scotiabank
Mr. Marc Sterling
Vice President
Manulife Financial
Mr. Dikran Ohannessian
Vice President, China
Sun Life Financial
. . . includes over 250 Canadian companies and organizations that are active or interested in the China market and a growing number of Chinese companies interested in trade with Canada. Members represent sectors ranging from agri-food, energy and manufacturing to business, legal and financial services, education and health care.
CCBC Executive Director Cornish -- on China Minmetals-Noranda
Who benefits, Ms. Cornish? It is an exclusive and rarefied little group, is it not?
. . . China Minmetals Corp.`s takeover bid for Noranda, controversy continues to boil
[. . . . ] Some Canadian government and trade officials muse about government intervention in the takeover bid. Others, including Prime Minister Paul Martin have no hesitancy, saying in essence that a Noranda takeover by a state-owned Chinese enterprise is part and parcel of the evolving global economy.
[. . . . ] Cornish reiterates that China has become -- and will remain -- one of the world`s largest consumers of all minerals and metals. Accordingly, and unsurprisingly, it`s taking steps now toward global equity ownership in these resources. "Similar international acquisitions will follow in virtually all major mineral and metal commodities," according to Cornish.
"On the Chinese side the objective will be to own a portfolio of mining properties around the world. A Noranda deal would give a major state-owned Chinese company perpetual access to an important Canadian resource.
"Admittedly this would diminish Canada-based decision making about the future use of that resource. . . ."
Cornish notes that the Chinese have a record of picking the countries and corporate partners that they regard as global leaders in order to learn from them. [. . . . ]
"The Noranda takeover bid is the beginning of a long term, natural, strategic relationship. The foundation for any progress in this regard has to begin with establishing a thorough understanding of Chinese interests, needs and trends in resource consumption."
Government intervention is definitely a bad idea, she says.[. . . . ]
Trying to turn back the rising waves of globalization is doomed to failure, Cornish suggests.[. . . . ]
There have been questions in the Minmetals controversy about the significance of Noranda`s ownership position in Falconbridge. Does Minmetals (and therefore the Chinese state) have backdoor designs on Falconbridge Limited?
If Minmetals buys Noranda and then buys in the minority Falconbridge interest, Canada would lose a major listed company and the degree of transparency about its operations would be significantly diminished, Cornish acknowledges. [. . . . ]
CCBC is planning to host a high profile reception and gala dinner in Beijing on January 21st on the occasion of International Trade Minister Jim Peterson's trade mission to China. It will be attended by his official Chinese host, senior government officials, members and guests of the Canadian trade mission and of course CCBC members and their guests. Other Canadian and Chinese government leaders may participate in this event. This event will be a superb opportunity to entertain important Chinese business contacts, partners, customers and government officials and otherwise feature your company's presence in China.
[. . . . ] Corporate tables: C$5,500 These will go to members on priority basis and then non-members. . . . numbers may be limited [. . . . ]
Invitation from Canada's Honourable James Scott Peterson, Minister of International Trade Business Mission to Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong - January 18-25, 2005 - China
On behalf of the Government of Canada, I am pleased to invite you to participate in the Canada Trade Mission I will lead to Shanghai, Beijing and Hong Kong, China, from January 18 to 25, 2005.
In the recent Speech from the Throne, the Government committed to putting particular emphasis on new and emerging markets such as Brazil, China and India. . . . Broadening and deepening bilateral trade and investment with these countries is a priority [. . . . ]
[. . . . ] China is our second-largest trading partner after the U.S. . . . China offers tremendous commercial potential for Canadian businesses in sectors such as financial services, education, natural resources, transportation, agri-food, information and communication technologies, biotechnology, aerospace and tourism. [Who benefits?]
The program. . . seminars and conferences, hospitality events and networking opportunities designed to introduce participants to local government decision-makers and local business leaders, as well as Canadian business people active in the region with experience to share. In addition to conducting sectoral seminars and providing background information on local commercial conditions, officials from International Trade Canada and at the Canadian Embassy in China will work with the delegates to identify potential business partners. [. . . . ]
Balkanization policy -- "France II" -- Jean Chretien's era and a re-alignment of interests
France II Lowell Ponte, FrontPageMagazine.com, Apr. 16, 03
[. . . . ] The nation north of the United States is no longer Canada. It has become France II, Nouvelle France, a cultural and political clone of the nation that behaved as America's enemy in trying to undermine our efforts to de-fang an Iraqi regime busy acquiring weapons of mass destruction.
[. . . . ] Now that France II has replaced Canada, Quebec no longer has any reason to secede from Canada. Quebec and its values now rule all of Canada.
It is no coincidence that France II has been rushing to disarm the citizens of its western colonies and the Maritimes with draconian national gun control. Those cowboy colonies, from Saskatchewan westward, in particular, are the source of France II's wealth and power.
The English-speaking peasants of Canada's west, whose language and values have much more in common with George Bush and the United States than with Jean Chretien and France II, will not be permitted to secede. [Ed's emphasis]
[. . . . ] But what possible reason, ask most Americans, could cause our next door neighbor and closest trading partner Canada to stab us in the back? To side with France and Saddam Hussein against us?. . . .
[. . . . ] One of the French oil companies that had been closest to Saddam Hussein is Paris-based TotalFinaElf. Its biggest shareholder is the same Paul Desmarais, and his son Paul Jr., brother of Chretien's son-in-law Andre, sits on Total's Board of Directors.
TotalFinaElf, incidently, recently and quietly moved to buy up a large share of a major oilsands project in the Canadian province of Alberta, which evidence suggests may be home to one of the world s two biggest relatively-untapped oil reserves. This gives both Montreal and France a Saddam-like interest in making sure Alberta can never secede to become either part of a new independent nation or a new state of the United States.
[. . . . ] Jean Chretien has followed an anti-American, pro-Saddam Hussein policy that may be bad for Canada, but his family stood to make many, many, many millions of dollars if Hussein could by hook or crook be kept in power. To paraphrase its beautiful national anthem, Oh Canada, Jean prefers greed to thee.
[. . . . ] The Desmarais family. . . .Vivendi. And he runs Power Corporation . . . .how the Desmarais family manipulates the national media as well as all major political parties in Canada, check out University of Windsor Professor James Winter s provocative book Democracy's Oxygen: How the Corporations Control the News.
[. . . . ] Canada has become closer to France and China, and moved farther from its traditional friendship with the United States. [. . . . ]
WEST AFRICA, A REGION not usually uppermost in the minds of American foreign policymakers, is nonetheless responsible for two of our most intractable post-9/11 intelligence puzzles.
In these two very similar cases, Arab operatives in West African countries allegedly seek to exploit local smuggling operations to buy precious and tightly controlled natural commodities. The CIA investigates, but the veracity of the stories remains uncertain, and, consequently, the subject of protracted, acrimonious debate within the intelligence community.
Of these stories, one--Iraq's purported attempts to acquire uranium from Niger--is well known. The other--al Qaeda's purchase of conflict diamonds in Sierra Leone and Liberia--is not. Thus it makes a well-deserving subject for a new book, namely Blood From Stones by veteran investigative journalist and former Washington Post West Africa bureau chief Douglas Farah.
Farah first posited the connection between black market gems and radical Islam in the fall of 2001. Blood From Stones carefully lays out the evidence that senior al Qaeda operatives traveled to West Africa in the late 1990s and again in the summer of 2001 to buy diamonds from Sierra Leonean rebels, with the connivance of then-president Charles Taylor of Liberia. [. . . . ]
Osama: The Heroin Pusher -- the nexus of drugs and terrorists -- UN -- Search: mycoherbicides
Afghanistan no longer serves as al-Qaeda's home base. Yet, it remains the source of another great evil -- the biggest heroin supply in the world. Since its liberation, Afghanistan's heroin production has gone from 640 tons to 5,000, an increase of almost 800%. Afghanistan now supplies 87% of the world's heroin market, and at least 90% of the heroin abused in Europe.
Unlike al-Qaeda, whose worst attacks killed more than 3,000 Americans, heroin kills millions of people all over the free world every year, and destroys the lives of many others. Yet, the world seems either unable or unwilling to put an end to this scourge. Why? After all, the poppy fields are visible to everybody and the locations of the heroin labs in Afghanistan and Pakistan are well known, as are the drug lords and the smuggling routes. [. . . . ]
Unholy Border Alliance -- A "must read"-- Search: Mara Salvatrucha, Adnan El-Shukrijumah, Farida Ahmed-South African Muslim, Shia terrorist group Hezbollah, 'tri-border region'.
Erick Stakelbeck is senior writer at the Investigative Project, a Washington, D.C.-based counter-terrorism research institute.
The new intelligence reform bill signed into law by President Bush on December 17 may ultimately end up being remembered more for the provisions it didn't contain rather than those it did.
After much heated debate, House and Senate negotiators ultimately threw out proposed provisions to the bill that would have tightened immigration laws. Although House Speaker Dennis Hastert has promised to bring drivers' license standards, asylum procedures and other border security provisions back to the House floor by early 2005, in the meantime, the very real danger that Islamist terrorists will infiltrate America's porous southern border persists.
Roughly 60,000 illegal immigrants designated as 'other-than-Mexican,' or OTMs, were detained last year along the U.S.-Mexico border, including a sizable number from Arab and Muslim countries. And if recent reports are any indication, they may be getting some troubling new help in their efforts to enter the United States. [. . . . ]
Not ready for prime time -- Whether it's CSIS, the RCMP, Customs & Immigration or Canada's Military, the government has snowed the public about their security for the past decade. More interested in pretense, PR and paperwork than action.
Read the sorry details and the cost of deployment.
OTTAWA (CP) - DART: the name conjures up images of a fast-response, highly mobile team that can fly into a disaster zone, turn on a dime and deal with whatever catastrophe looms.
But Canada's Disaster Assistance Response Team has barely been used in the near-decade it has existed, even though the military touts it as a rapid-response unit capable of providing effective humanitarian aid. Critics say it's anything but dart-like. Formed in 1996 at the height of the Somalia scandal, the team's base is a 45-member headquarters in Kingston, Ont. Its full 200-member contingent of medics, engineering troops and a logistics platoon, is scattered across the country.
[. . . . ] The Canadian Forces says DART is "designed to deploy rapidly anywhere in the world to crises ranging from natural disasters to complex humanitarian emergencies."
But with an annual budget only half a million dollars, DART has less money attached to it than any other Canadian military unit, and is described by one military expert as "a paper tiger." [. . . . ]
How could Canadians have voted to return this government -- or is everyone so used to it -- so cowed by the mainstream media's trumped up fears in the service of maintaining the status quo -- that Canadians no longer notice the disconnect between the promises and the lies--the talk of action and the reality of underfunding, inaction and corruption? Are our citizens so busy amusing themselves to death--computer games--porn--drugs--buying junk from . . . . . to notice that we are unprepared?
Racial profiling, revisited -- Michelle Malkin -- lasers and pilots
The expressions "racial profiling" and "ethnic cleansing" didn't exist in the 1940s, but that's what the wartime treatment of many North Americans amounted to. Internment, coupled with de facto expropriation, deprived Japanese- (and also German- and Italian-) Americans and Canadians of their civil liberties. Such episodes are now commonly spoken of as the very embodiment of wartime hysteria and racism.
But were such measures as unjustified as many assume? The best-selling American journalist Michelle Malkin looks at this question in her new book, In Defense of Internment: The Case for Racial Profiling in World War II and the War on Terror. . . .
[. . . . ] Meanwhile, though, small bands of terrorists may be getting ready to do whatever harm they can by firing inexpensive, portable and commercially available laser beams at unmodified 747s filled with business people and holidaymakers. My guess is few Canadians or Americans would object to ethnic and religious profiling to stop them -- or disagree with Ms. Malkin's observation that "a nation paralyzed in wartime by political correctness is a nation in peril."
Who Forgot China? -- In the middle of fighting the global war on terror, America has forgotten about their "strategic competitor" to the East. The Chinese have noticed. -- Some haven't forgotten
[. . . . ] The Chinese can barely contain their self-satisfaction these days, and Beijing's recently-released white paper, China's National Defense in 2004, is a 36-page-wide smirk. Consider this passage: "The trends toward world multipolarization and economic globalization are deepening amid twists and turns. New changes are occurring in the balance of power among the major international players, with the process of their realignment and the redistribution of their interests accelerated."
Granted, this is hardly a ripping read--but within the refined art of the defense brief, this is equivalent to a middle-finger salute. The argument is essentially that the United States is a slipping superpower, leading to a "multipolar" world in which Beijing's interests will be given great weight. The paper goes on to note that "the developing countries"--meaning most importantly China--"have become important players in promoting a multipolar world and"--I guess the Chinese have little ear for irony--"democratized international relations." [. . . . ]
Beijing Bear Hug -- the way things are shaping up -- a "must read"
Beijing Bear Hug Peter Brooks, a Heritage Foundation senior fellow, Jan. 3, 04.
This is important for those who hold and wield power, but do not want democracy nor democratic activity. Think of
* Iraq-Saddam's Sunnis-Islamists-those who would keep women under male strictures from the 7th century and keep all under their vicious governance;
* Beijing's governing political and business elite -- the monetary rewards coming their way, to say nothing of their designs on Taiwan
* Russia's former head of the KGB and Premier Putin, the stresses and potential for regaining power and money
WITH each passing week the news from Russia be comes increasingly glum. First, there was Moscow's meddling — and blustering — over the recent Ukrainian presidential elections.
Then, there was the sell-off and nationalization of Yukos, one of Russia's largest private oil companies. And now the latest bad news: Russia's growing military cooperation with Asia's rising superpower, China.
According to Russian Defense Minister, Sergei Ivanov, "For the first time in history, we have agreed to hold quite a large military exercise together with China on Chinese territory in the second half of the year." [. . . . ]
WASHINGTON, Dec. 27 (UPI) -- The chaotic and embarrassing departure from the scene of Department of Homeland Security Secretary-designate Bernard Kerik is just the latest, though hopefully last, crisis that the department faced in 2004, and the succession vacuum that resulted -- however brief -- serves to underline the deep and disturbing question marks that hang over the troubled agency.
Set up in March last year by the merger of the 22 agencies that shared responsibility for protecting the country from terrorism and other threats, the Department of Homeland Security is the federal government's newest department -- and, with 180,000 employees, one of its largest.
Proponents argued that the biggest re-organization of the federal government since the formation of the Department of Defense in 1947 was necessary to ensure the integration of U.S. counter-terrorist efforts, and avoid the communications breakdowns and information compartmentalization that helped the Sept. 11 suicide hijackers enter the country and put their deadly scheme into practice.
But at the conclusion of its first full year in existence, many of the department's key objectives -- like a single watch list of known or suspected terrorists, or a complete database of vulnerable critical infrastructure -- remain unfulfilled. Going forward, the department faces a host of enormous challenges, and its spotty track record offers no guarantee that it will be able to rise to meet them.
On the contrary, experts and insiders alike argue that, without major reforms and exceptional leadership, the department is likely to continue stumbling from crisis to crisis, and may eventually be condemned to bureaucratic irrelevance.
[. . . . ] "Every other department has a long established institutional civil service structures that keeps the place running. [. . . . ]
Bud Talkinghorn-A requiem for Ao Patong & Resolutions, Geologist's Alert, US Generosity, UN Sex Scandals-Funding "Peacekeeping"
Bud Talkinghorn: Life and death in the fast lane--A requiem for Ao Patong
When Abe Lincohn died, it took the news six days to reach northern Maine. Today we witness the tsunami disaster in real time. The horror seems to know no bounds. Because of the 'good' media feed out of places like Thailand, we get to replay every image till we are satiated. Then comes another video taken from a side view of the waves hitting the town. Now we contemplate better what the wave's size and power really was. The fleeing people are dwarfed by the cresting wave. Most other images showed the wave hitting the upper ground level of the facing hotels. But that was fifteen feet up from the water's edge. Now you are forced to imagine what it was like on the sloping beach, which was ground zero. Despite my misgivings at endlessly watching disaster TV, I am hooked. Did you notice how TV almost forgot the Thai victims. Who was manning the desks, bars, and restaurants that fateful morning? By constrast, they were millionaires compared to the Thai help. The reason they went there was because of the famous Thai hospitality. Let us remember them too.
Most of that nightmare addiction stems from having stayed in Ao Patong beach in Phuket years ago. My American travel buddy Art and I had a tiny bungalow which we rented for $3 a day. It was lights out at eleven, so we moved to the veranda, or down to the beach to meet new people. The entire village consisted of an unpaved road sweeping around the horseshoe bay. A few houses belonging to the local Thais were scattered behind that road. There were no bars; the restaurants doubled as bars. We could get Singha beer and Mekong rice whisky, period. Besides, at that time the detritus of consumerism--including the phalanx of hookers--had not then arrived. Art and I would eat at our compound's restaurant. It consisted of a concrete slab, and four wooden pillars supporting a palapa roof. It faced the beach, which except for a few tourists and drifters was empty. Breakfast was the most delicious crab concoction I've ever tasted. Toast and a chilled Singha beer were its companions. The locals were gracious and helpful. Our elfin waitress talked us into having the lobster tail supper. At $4 for one lobster tail, it seemed very expensive in Thailand at that time. When we saw it our eyes popped. It was about fifteen inches long and six inches wide--caught that afternoon. With the drawn butter we taught her to make, it became one of my top ten meals. In honour of serving us--practically her only clients--she had woven baby orchid braids through her bluish-black hair. No Hollywood hairstylist could have made it more beautiful. We could envision staying there forever.
The night before we left for Penang, there was a mighty wind that rained coconuts on us. But what the heck; we weren't going to let that stop the final veranda show. In fact, the wildly swaying coconut palms simply added to it. We thought that was the worst nature could bring to this Shangri-la. How wrong we were.
I am not going to believe anything the Liberals say, only what they do.
I am going to:
* Question every UN call to action and see who steps up to the plate. The thug states that cannot bring a dollar to the table will be judged (yet again). The President of Malawi can afford a $100 million palace, while his people are dying of AIDS and general starvation--just multiply that by the other kleptocratic states and you have the UN.
* Remember all the good local people I met in South India, Thailand, and Sumatra.
* Appreciate my life partner a bit more.
* Look at my humble abode and realize that it is a palace compared to most of the world's homes -- and for some there is no home any more.
* Show my appreciation for my local librarians--delightful people--and the library--a treasure--which has provided me with a stream of periodicals, books, and films.
* Judge George Bush's decisions with more acuity. I know what he is trying to do, which is Olympian in vision--unfetter the tribal and religious bonds which shackle the minds of most of the Middle East. Still, that has to be done with finesse and with an understanding of how that mind sees things. However, if history is a witness, it sometimes means taking totally kicka** solutions.
Finally, I was going to mention conquering my nicotine monkey and that "occasional" cashew snack binge. . . . . . . but maybe I will leave that for next year's resolutions.
Bud Talkinghorn--Happy New Tears (sorry a Freudian slip there).
I am counting my blessings--many--which I shall keep to myself in case the reminder evokes another jest of the gods. Let's not court bad juju. NJC
A LEADING geologist repeatedly warned Indonesian officials that an earthquake and tsunami would soon strike their shores, it emerged this weekend.
Kerry Sieh, professor of geology at California Institute of Technology, has been studying the region for nearly a decade.
Last July he became so concerned at the likely massive loss of life that he printed and distributed 5,000 posters and brochures around some of the islands later hit by the earthquake.
He addressed church congregations and schools to tell people what to do in an earthquake. His main advice was for people to live away from shorelines.
Sieh had been due to meet Indonesian officials last month to discuss a wider education programme but the meeting was cancelled at the last minute because the officials said they had no money. [. . . . ]
Krauthammer: U.S. Gives 60 Percent of Global Food Aid
Columnist Charles Krauthammer blasted U.N. officials and other America-bashers Sunday morning for trying to paint the U.S.'s foreign aid contribution as "stingy" in the wake of the Asia tsunami disaster - especially since the facts prove exactly the opposite.
"We are six percent, or less, of the world's population," Krauthammer told his fellow "Fox News Sunday" panelists. "We give almost half [of the global foreign aid]. ... We give 60 percent of all the food aid on the planet." And that's not all: "We maintain a military infrastructure that keeps the peace in the world," he noted. "We are the only people who do that."
"It's simply irresponsible to talk about the United States as anything other than the most generous nation in the world," Krauthammer said. [. . . . ]
To this I would add that I am tired of the rest of the world criticizing the US. My own experience of the generosity of Americans leads me to ask why do Americans continue being so generous to an ungrateful world?
UN sex scandal -- Exploitation, abuse, and other humanitarian efforts.
The U.N. Sex Scandal from the January 3 / January 10, 2005 issue: Joseph Loconte, 01/03/2005, Volume 010, Issue 16.
Joseph Loconte is the William E. Simon Fellow in Religion at the Heritage Foundation and editor of The End of Illusions: Religious Leaders Confront Hitler's Gathering Storm.
LAST MONTH A CLASSIFIED UNITED Nations report prompted Secretary General Kofi Annan to admit that U.N. peacekeepers and staff have sexually abused or exploited war refugees in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The worst of the 150 or so allegations of misconduct--some of them captured on videotape--include pedophilia, rape, and prostitution. While a U.N. investigation into the scandal continues, the organization has just suspended two more peacekeepers in neighboring Burundi over similar charges. The revelations come three years after another U.N. report found "widespread" evidence of sexual abuse of West African refugees.
"The issue with the U.N. is that peacekeeping operations unfortunately seem to be doing the same thing that other militaries do,"
[. . . . ] Kofi Annan has insisted on "zero tolerance" of sexual exploitation by peacekeepers, but U.N. rules apply only to U.N. employees; military personnel fall under the jurisdiction of their own governments. Only a few peacekeepers have been deported, and no U.N. staff have been charged with criminal activity.
That's prompting tough talk from some U.S. officials about American assistance for U.N. peacekeeping missions. The United States will give $490 million next year to support about 62,000 military personnel and civilian police serving in 16 U.N. operations around the world. "Until the U.N. is willing to take decisive action and take responsibility for these acts, we should look seriously at the funding portion of the peace-keeping operations," says a foreign policy aide to Kansas Republican Sam Brownback, who serves on the Senate Appropriations Committee. "I don't know any other way to force Annan to pay attention." [. . . . ]
