Who ARE these people?

[usmarinemike]

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/05/09/myanmar/index.html

You gotta have a serious attitude problem for the UN to give up on you.

I understand that it is a 3rd world military government so some measure of ham-handedness is expected from them, but usually when things like this happen, they step aside for a moment and let the experts at civil disaster relief handle their business. Especially since it is gratis.

There are Navy assets standing by in Thailand and an entire MEU chilling off the coast, probably in visual range and they haven't really even acknowledged it. The article states that the US commanders have been talking about flying relief in and dropping it without landing. That's pretty clever, but the ape mentality government would probably try to shoot one down anyway.

 

[insanebikerboy]

Before I went to work in Northern Thailand, the force protection guy actually said half-seriously that if we went anywhere, he'd rather us go into China than into Burma. Those junta guys are seriously wacked out in the head, probably from popping too much yaba or something like that.

 

[MasterBates]

As un-PC as it is to say, a lot of these 3rd world shat-holes were much less of shat-holes when they were colonies. When Yangon was Rangoon, the infrastructure worked. Same goes for places like Rhodesia (now run into the ground by Mugabe) and Tanzania.

 

[zab1001]

"today's aid worker is tomorrow's CIA agent..."

 

[Tyler]

Why doesn't the UN put this guy in charge of distributing the aid?

He's dealt with the junta before.



In all seriousness, this is getting ridiculous.

 

[eddie]

As un-PC as it is to say, a lot of these 3rd world shat-holes were much less of shat-holes when they were colonies. When Yangon was Rangoon, the infrastructure worked. Same goes for places like Rhodesia (now run into the ground by Mugabe) and Tanzania.

"We are backwards shitholes because we were colonized, and we were colonized because we were backwards shitholes! It's a vicious cycle!"

 

[SkywardET]

As un-PC as it is to say, a lot of these 3rd world shat-holes were much less of shat-holes when they were colonies. When Yangon was Rangoon, the infrastructure worked. Same goes for places like Rhodesia (now run into the ground by Mugabe) and Tanzania.

Thailand prides itself as having never been colonized by foreigners. In fairness, I would be less inclined to call it a shat-hole if it didn't smell like shat everywhere.


The situation in Burma will probably resolve itself like the situation in Darfur. Sad, but likely.

 

[eddie]

Thailand prides itself as having never been colonized by foreigners. In fairness, I would be less inclined to call it a shat-hole if it didn't smell like shat everywhere.


The situation in Burma will probably resolve itself like the situation in Darfur. Sad, but likely.

Wait... how?

 

[SkywardET]

Wait... how?

Exactly.

 

[Flash]

What do you expect from a country that is so xenophobic that they packed up the government and moved it to the new capital they made in the middle of the jungle because they fear being attacked so much, or maybe it was just astrology. They have had good tutors in the art of paranoia too, North Korea is an 'ally'.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4416960.stm

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/27/AR2005122701248.html

http://www.boston.com/news/world/as...ocation_of_burma_capital_linked_to_astrology/

 

[voodooqueen]

What do you expect from a country that is so xenophobic that they packed up the government and moved it to the new capital they made in the middle of the jungle because they fear being attacked so much, or maybe it was just astrology. They have had good tutors in the art of paranoia too, North Korea is an 'ally'.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4416960.stm

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/27/AR2005122701248.html

http://www.boston.com/news/world/as...ocation_of_burma_capital_linked_to_astrology/

I bet they moved the capital based on feng shui as opposed to strategy or reason. Notice that the olympics are starting on 8/8/08--and this is the lucky 8 time in feng shui.

 

[m3urthy]

I bet they moved the capital based on feng shui as opposed to strategy or reason. Notice that the olympics are starting on 8/8/08--and this is the lucky 8 time in feng shui.

Thats also how much expedia.com charged me to go to the games. Oh well.

 

[voodooqueen]

I wonder if they still have a largely opium based economy there. Maybe they don't want anyone to fly over and take pictures of the poppy fields.

 

[Flash]

I bet they moved the capital based on feng shui as opposed to strategy or reason. Notice that the olympics are starting on 8/8/08--and this is the lucky 8 time in feng shui.

You are mixing up China and Burma, Feng Shui and the association of the number 8 with prosperity (the words sound similar) are both Chinese. That is not to say that the Burmese leaders did not move the capital because the stars told them too or superstition.

I wonder if they still have a major opium growing economy there. Maybe they don't want anyone to fly over and take pictures of the poppy fields.

Doubtful, it more has to do with paranoia and control.

 

[schwarti]

The Burmese gov't (apparently) is very big on astrology. The head astrologer at some point said that driving on the left with American-style cars was auspicious, so they do it - just one example. My brother spent some time there and saw a lot of things like that.