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6 - Orono Weekly Times Wednesday, September 30, 2009 FIASCO Politically Speaking by Bill Stockwell AND NOW FROM THE "THE WORLD HAS GONE MAD" DEPARTMENT, WE BRING YOU THE UNITED NATIONS FROM NEW YORK CITY...AND THE G20 DIRECT FROM PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA That was my last week`s television programming, and as one wag said, "It was like watching the Bar Scene from the Star Wars movie, with all the weirdoes from around the Galaxy gathering to partake in Happy Hour." The hype that kicked off the week surrounded China saying that they have seen the light on the Global Warming issue and would be announcing that they intend to plant enough trees to cover a country the size of Norway, cut its dependence on non-renewable energy, and reduce its carbon pollution. Now, that`s a commitment that should make a lot of greenies simply giddy. After all, if we can`t trust China to keep their commitments who can we trust? China`s statement was followed by President Obama of the U.S.A. calling for a new "World Order" to rebalance the world economy. Now, that`s rich, in nine short month as president, Obama has governed over the largest deficit in American history, the government take-over of the banks, the automobile industry, and total control of all student loans, and now he wants to spread the joy worldwide. That`s really Hope and Change. As in any circus, the fun begins when it`s time to send in the clowns. This United Nations Circus lived up to that tradition when the so-called "world leaders" made their way to the dais. President Obama did his standard "Apology Tour" speech, telling the world how bad America has been in the past and how his regime wasn`t going to continue these nasty ways. They loved it. Then came Libyan leader Muhammar Gaddafi who rambled through a ninety-minute presentation that was disjointed at best. He called for the reopening of investigations of the assassinations of Jack Kennedy and Martin Luther King, as well as warning the world of an impending pandemic called the fish flu. He called the Security Council a "terror council" and tore up the U.N. charter, flinging it at United Nations officials. As pointed out in the National Post, as bad as it was, "it was not a record-breaker, in 1960 Cuba`s Fidel Castro blasted U.S. Imperialism for about four hours." I guess that`s not needed today as it is being well covered by Barrack Obama. Then came Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Days before his presentation Canada`s delegation made it clear that they would not be in attendance, choosing to protest his actions with their feet. It wasn`t long before other world diplomats followed Canada`s lead and shortly into his speech the number of empty seats in the hall resembled a Blue Jay game in September. Ahmadinejad, along with North Korea`s Kim Jong-il are the terror twins of the world to-day. They both are tin-pot dictators heading up rogue states, and both are developing nuclear weapons. This is where the comedy ends and things get serious. I`m old enough to remember when the United Nations Continued from page 2 was established in 1945, following World War Two. It was formed to "save succeeding generations from the scourge of war," replacing the League of Nations that failed in keeping the world safe from the rise of the likes of Adolph Hitler in Nazi Germany. The then Prime Minister of England, Neville Chamberlain thought he could make nice with Germany and guarantee "peace in our time." The one thing I learned early in life is when you try to appease the aggressor, he becomes more aggressive. On the final day of the G20 gathering, France, Britain, and the United States announced that Iran had established a second nuclear development site that had apparently been known to the three leaders for some time. Their reaction was to meet with Iran, along with Russia and China, to address this issue. Russia and China were in attendance at the G20 but failed to join the three leaders in condemning Iran`s actions. They did agree to meet and talk. The danger in all of this is while the world talks to Iran, and fails to take action, Israel will sooner or later take the matter into their own hands and God help us all. I don't see any of them offering to cut their own exorbitant wages! The pending lawsuit by Mr. Prout et al could result in tens of thousands of dollars, yet Trim and Robinson have done nothing to abort these costs over the past many months. I may add that our Mayor (Jim Abernethy) has also shown a total lack of experience and leadership in this regard. While he must declare a conflict of interest at Council and GPA meetings, he has the ability as Mayor to direct staff to clear this matter up as soon as possible. He had failed (once again) to do what was needed, and we may now be faced with additional legal costs to look after a simple matter that should have been dealt with much sooner. While you and I will face major increases in our next tax bill, it is because of the total mismanagement of our budget thanks to Abernethy and councillors like Trim and Robinson who should be thanked. I trust they will be remembered a year from now when they're pounding on your door asking for support! Jim Richards, Orono