Sirotablog

David Sirota is a political journalist and nationally syndicated newspaper columnist at Creators Syndicate. David writes about political corruption, globalization and working-class economic issues often ignored by both of America's political parties.

  • June 30, 2007 8:52 AM

    Were These Same People Applauding the Tiananmen Square Massacre?

    It may surprise us here at home to read international polls showing most of the world thinks China's influence on the world is far more positive than America's influence on the world. But when you read a New York Times story like this, it becomes clear that such opinions are not just fabricated out of thin air - they come, at least in part, from our government and our business leaders telling the world that our major ideology is not respect for democracy or the protection of human rights, but simply "Greed is Good."

    Here's the first excerpt:

    "China's legislature passed a sweeping new labor law on Friday that strengthens protections for workers across the booming economy, a response to increasing signs of restiveness among tens of millions of migrant laborers. The law, enacted by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress over the objections of foreign investors, requires employers to provide written contracts to their workers, restricts the use of temporary laborers and helps give more employees long-term job security…Passage of the measure came shortly after officials and the state news media unearthed the widespread use of slave labor in as many as 8,000 brick kilns and small coal mines in Shanxi and Henan Provinces. It was one of the most glaring labor scandals since China began adopting market-style economic policies a quarter century ago. The police have freed nearly 600 workers, many of them teenagers, held against their will in factories owned or operated by well-connected businesspeople and local officials." (emphasis added)

    Did our government and business leaders react with support, applauding China's efforts to stop human rights abuses? Uh, no:

    "Many multinational corporations had lobbied against certain provisions in an earlier draft of the new labor law...International labor experts said several of the most delicate clauses had been watered down...Some foreign businesses warned that they would have little choice but to move their operations out of China if the provisions were enacted...Lawyers representing some big global companies complained that the new law still imposed a heavy burden. 'It will be more difficult to run a company here,' said Andreas W. Lauffs, head of Baker & McKenzie's employment law group, which represents many of America's biggest corporations in China." (emphasis added)

    Again, a lot of America's image problem around the globe has to do with the Iraq War - but it also has to do with behavior like this. When our corporate ambassadors aggressively pressure dictatorial foreign governments to back off plans to enact better human rights laws, the image of America as imperial power is reinforced. Here we have American corporate leaders quite literally threatening to leave China if China even minimally works to stop slavery. It makes you wonder if these same American business leaders were cheering on the Tiananmen Square massacre. But one thing's for sure - we shouldn't wonder whether America's tattered global image is only about Iraq. "Greed is good" may make for great movie quotes, but as a foreign policy motto and an international economic export, it doesn't exactly help make us friends or build us a positive image among the world's masses.

    Posted by David Sirota
    Permalink | Comments (4) | del.icio.us | digg
    Tags: free trade, national insecurity, war on the middle class

Discussion

  • TJ Colatrella [TypeKey Profile Page] :

    Remember that photo of Scowcroft and McFarlan was it toasting the murderers of Tiananmen..?

    That is the actual photo of our Principles being shown to the Red Chinese as a commodity up for sale..!

    We are building and feeding the very beast that will in the end devour us..!

    The Red Chinese knew after Tiananmen that America's so called principles were for sale and that the Americans would beg you to buy them cheap and that corporate profit and unbridled greed was our actual system..

    Our Corporations and even the Clinton Administration under Ron Browns tenure as Commerce secretary bled out Military and dual use technology..

    The aid given Red China by Clinton and Ron Brown to aid the Chinese to develop and test and build our entire stolen Nuclear arsenal is for me one of Americas greatest Treasons.!

    After Clinton it never stopped either..

    Lockheed Martin built them an aegis style radar system in the straits of Taiwan that once connected to a weapons system can identify target and fire upon American ship with in 15 seconds..!

    ITT sold China our night vision technology recently and paid a fine..only..!

    Motorola, Loral, Hughes, Sunn, ITT, Lockheed-Martin..so many others have simply sold what the Chinese needed for thier growing military and technological advancements that will come back to kill our troops and have already made our Navy useless in the Western half of the Pacific already in fact..!

    When Clinton sold them our Intermediate missile designs and nose cone technology buried in a commerce bill he screwed our Navy completely and Schwartz sold them our ability to reduce the size of these nuclear warheads the Red Chinese have and fit them to our own missile designs..

    The Dong Feng 2-4 series are our missile designs from Loral who was one of Clinton's biggest financial supporters..

    It's the Tri-Lateral Commission that is behind this building up of China and that's David Rockefeller so if you look at the Tri-Lateralist Presidents you can trace the creation of this Red Dragon and even Ronald Reagan had to submit to the Tri-Lateralists and put G.H.W. Bush on his ticket and accept much of their agenda..and appoint many of their members..

    As it says in Revelation the Red Dragon will pursue the Queen of Heaven and the Child..

    The Queen of Heaven is the Moon in Hebrew astrology of that time, and the Child is the Earth..

    China does have plans to establish and use the moon as a permanent base and install missile batteries there using it as a permanent firing platform..

    Don't you see everything written in Revelation coming together even the renewed troubles with Russia and our being in Iraq and our being lead by the "Prince of the south.." isn't Bush a prince..his father was King, they didn't have presidents 2,000 years ago..

    Wait you'll see, there will be a huge Flood in Iraq and a huge American defeat, and we are too stupid to heed these warnings..The Euphrates will burst it's banks and Flood from Baghdad to Basra..perhaps after Bush and Cheney attack Iran, and they or Syria open the flood gates in Syria..as predicted and foretold by John The Revelator..!

    Wormwood has already occurred is was Chernobyl..!

    These are The Final Days..!

    Alright have a nice day..!

    Posted on June 30, 2007 10:11 AM
  • waltc [TypeKey Profile Page] :

    The thing is American businessmen have always been rapacious SOB's that needed to be kept on a tight leash for our protection. Just look how much they squeal every time the gov't tries to raise the minimum wage, mandate worker safety, or decent benefits.

    Its just too bad the Democrats don't run on a FDR style economic platform and really take back this country from the corporations. Because if we don't the corporations will so change the U.S. for their own benefits and we'll go the way of Argentina or Brazil.

    Posted on June 30, 2007 12:54 PM
  • butte [TypeKey Profile Page] :

    The first thing that needs to happen, is we have to drive out the Republi-lite sell-outs and elect more populist Democrats, so the party can have the drive and backbone to stand up for the American people instead of K-street.
    Then we need to have campaign and election reform to ensure that politicians are fairly elected, and not bought off during the campaign.
    We need to support populist candidates, and fire the sell-outs no matter what they call themselves.
    What good is it to vote for a Democrat if they turn around and support K-street instead of their constituents like the Republicans do.

    Posted on July 2, 2007 7:16 AM
  • ewode [TypeKey Profile Page] :

    We need , as waltc said above, a party that runs on FDR's Economic Bill of Rights. Until there is such, there is no chance for real democracy. Ours is and always has been pseudo democracy. Now its a de facto corporate dictatorship as well. See "Parity Democracy: how to level the economic playing field", amazon.com and BN.com for an example of an ideal genuine democracy.

    Posted on July 2, 2007 5:30 PM

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