It's at least nice to see that Zimbabwe's racism is getting both press coverage and State Department attention. Here's to hoping that the U.S. won't get roped into bailing Mugabe out of his hole with endless food and monetary aid...
Posted on 08/10/2002 8:22:15 AM PDT by Dog Gone
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The State Department on Saturday denounced Zimbabwe's attempt to evict all of its 1,800 white farmers and thousands of farm workers as ``a reckless and reprehensible act.''
The farmers are defying a government order that would give the farms to blacks.
The State Department made no reference to race in deploring the ordered evictions. A statement urged the African government to reverse itself.
``These actions by the government of Zimbabwe, in combination with its assault on its political opponents, have destroyed Zimbabwe's economy, undermined the nation's democratic institutions and accelerated the onset of severe food shortages facing Zimbabwe and the region,'' the statement said.
At the same time, ``The United States recognizes the need for genuine land reform in Zimbabwe and would support a rational and equitable program to this end,'' the statement said.
The evictions were to have taken effect at midnight Thursday. A few hours before the deadline, a court ruled the evictions illegal if government officials failed to notify banks holding mortgages on affected farms.
Most whites fled Zimbabwe as blacks took control of the formerly white-ruled Rhodesia in 1980 with the encouragement of the United States and other Western nations.
Those who remained have been threatened, and some killed, as President Robert Mugabe attempted to seize the fertile land. Mugabe is the only leader the former British colony has had.
Questions have been raised whether the seizure would help poor blacks. Critics contend the land would be turned over to Mugabe's political supporters.
Touching on this argument, the department said ``credible reports of senior political and security figures assuming ownership of expropriated commercial farms further reveals the cynicism of Mugabe's so-called land reform program.''
Though farmers reported no serious moves against them since the deadline for their eviction passed, senior officials on Saturday appeared infuriated that their orders were being ignored.
Where is Kofi Anan?
It's at least nice to see that Zimbabwe's racism is getting both press coverage and State Department attention. Here's to hoping that the U.S. won't get roped into bailing Mugabe out of his hole with endless food and monetary aid...
Such an action would be morally justified.
As an added bonus, it would provide the US with a perfect opportunity to export all environmentalists to their version of paradise.
If sales suddenly go up, that might be one clue!
First of all, he says, "We ought to declare our willingness to fight for the Liberty of Iraq!"
Laughter ... but I'm not laughing.
And then, he pulls out some charts.
Yes, I see, we must bump this one upstairs.
It's a great idea, and I'll share it.
He wants us to bomb the heck out of Baghdad, not only with bombs, but with railroad rail sections, cut to 5ft pieces, and with bags of concrete.
Really, the idea is ingenious.
He suggests that, to really upset the Iraqis' game, we need to bomb, with bombs, the upstream approaches to Baghdad, so as to cause delays in the flow of the rivers.
Downstream, is where we hit them with bags of concrete upon the steel sections --- we make a few dams, big ones.
Delivered by air!
In other words, we are going to make Baghdad into a lake.
Quote: "So much for the Iraqis' game at trying to draw us into the city; instead, we'll flush them out!"
It can be done; but then again, it's just a plan.
...of glass, would be my preference. It seems harsh, and I wonder, if the decision were actually mine, whether or not I would "push the button", but I think I would...if, in fact, they are actually working on WMD.
I advocated this drastic action on Sept. 12, 2001, and intervening events have not changed my mind.
Stay Safe !
Thank you for calling this to my attention and that of the other FReepers.
Who in Congress will care?
Only Burton, plus a few whose principles motivate them; don't hold your breath for a second.
Lemme ponder this.
We are so ashamed, as a country, for the terrible way that we treated blacks here in America, that we are bending over backward to avoid criticising blacks anywhere, no matter what they do.
It's how we're currently conditioned. America is suffering the same guilt complex that modern Germany continues to deal with regarding its treatment of Jews 60 years ago.
The guilt is deserved. We ENSLAVED blacks, for pete's sake. And we treated them very badly, at least until 40 years ago.
But now it's as if we're afraid to call someone evil unless they're NOT black. Mugabe, and his supporters in Zimbabwe are evil.
The pendulum has not swung back to objective rationality.
In other words, we are going to make Baghdad into a lake.
In other words, we are going to make Baghdad into a lake.
Hmmm .... I really prefer the blue, but any color will do. (It's the thought that counts.)
(The editorial follows, but here’s joanie-f’s encapsulated version):
A local printing company, R. R. Donnelly & Sons, was politically extorted into paying $610,000 for discriminating against minorities in their hiring practices. Why? Simply because Donnelly is a government contractor (the kiss of death for any company that wants to remain competitive), and thereby required to abide by hiring guidelines established by OFCCP (the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs) …. and Donnelly required applicants (1) to have a high school diploma, and (2) to possess the ability to fill out the job application form. By the OFCCP’s definition, such requirements discriminate against minorities.
So....
Donnelly has been advised to:
(1) spend $30,000 a year on area outreach programs (translate that: politically correct, psychobabble-based programs designed to keep pseudo-victims situated in their pseudo-victimhood).
(2) make cash payments to 1,179 minority applicants who were not hired because they did not have a high school diploma and/or they were unable to fill out the job application.
(3) Provide jobs for an additional 68 people who were originally overlooked due to the (terribly unreasonable) guidelines.
Thinking of investing your money in R. R. Donnelly now or in the future? Throw it down a manhole. You’ll get a better rate of return.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Editorial:
Bureaucratic nonsense
Lancaster Intelligencer Journal
August 10, 2002
There are times when the desire to be fair overwhelms common, sense. Take last week’s story about R.R Donnelley & Sons for example.
The commercial printing company agreed to spend $610,000 to settle charges that it had inadvertently discriminated against minority applicants at two Lancaster area plants by requiring applicants to have a high school diploma or the equivalent and to complete the application forms they were given.
According to the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, those requirements are discriminatory. The settlement is said to include payments to 1,179 minority applicants who were not hired as a result of the company’s policy of using the guidelines. The company also agreed to provide jobs for an additional 68 people who were originally overlooked due to the guidelines.
If you think this case turns logic on its head, you’re correct.
R.R. Donnelley is a government contractor and therefore must meet a different kind of litmus test than most firms in its hiring practices. And while there may be jobs in which a high school diploma is unnecessary, the ability to fill out an application form - even with the help provided - would seem to be a basic requirement for employment anywhere. That includes the federal government which requires applicants for federal jobs to possess a high school diploma or the equivalent. Yet, in this case. government auditors have the authority to require a government vendor to lower its hiring standards.
The OFCCP’s implication that the hiring practices discriminated solely against minorities also is incorrect. It is not just minority applicants who lacked the education or ability to read. As Donnelley spokesman Michael Winn noted, some of those who were “accidentally filtered out” were not minorities.
And OFCCP’s proposed remedy - that Donnelley spend $30,000 annually on outreach programs in Lancaster - is less than the $40,000 the company already spends annually on outreach. Winn said Donnelley intends to raise the amount to $50,000.
The Rev. Ronald Taliaferro, president of the Lancaster County Chapter of the NAACP, has said discrimination exists in hiring practices in the Lancaster community. No doubt he is right.
But Donnelley has attempted to increase its minority hiring and has worked to diversify its workforce.
Rather than requiring vendors to lower their employment standards, the federal government should encourage those companies to offer additional programs that would upgrade their workforce. The ability to read, comprehend and follow instructions is basic to any job.
The auditors’ “solutions,” in this case, are not solutions at all. They are a prescription for greater problems in the future
Right on.
You can find the nuclear power we promised, right here (arrow on map, pointing to Mecca).
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