Warning that Wolfowitz will fuel hatred

[struggle4progress]

Joseph Stiglitz, the former chief economist of the World Bank who is considered one of the most influential economic thinkers, has savagely attacked US plans to appoint Paul Wolfowitz as the organisation's next president.

"The World Bank will once again become a hate figure. This could bring street protests and violence across the developing world," the American Nobel laureate said in an interview with Britain's Channel 4.

He described President George Bush's determination to appoint his Deputy Defence Secretary to the important post as "either an act of provocation or an act so insensitive as to look like provocation". Dr Wolfowitz is widely regarded as the creator of the policy that led to the US war on Iraq. <snip>

Dr Wolfowitz has denied he would be doing Washington's bidding if confirmed, and said that as president he would try to bring "different views together". <snip>

http://www.smh.com.au/news/World/Warning-that-Wolfowitz-will-fuel-hatred/2005/03/20/1111253887245.html?oneclick=true

[Al-CIAda]

1. lmao!

>Dr Wolfowitz has denied he would be doing Washington's bidding if confirmed, and said that as president he would try to bring "different views together". <

lmao!

[NYC Liberal]

5. That's like Bush's post-selection press conference

when he said "I look forward to reaching across the aisle and working with those who share my goals."

[punpirate]

7. Yup...

... they're all uniters, not dividers, aren't they?

I'm surprised Joe Isuzu and Jon Lovitz aren't in the Bush Cabinet....

[unhappycamper]

11. they're too.......

too....

HONEST! yea, that's the ticket. :toast:

[Spinzonner]

8. So, Wofowwitz is a psychotic

that turns his various political personalities on and off at will ?

Or does he just not have any moral center that he has to adhere to ?

[mrdmk]

2. This is by design

To get Dr. Paul Wolfowitz out of the U.S. Government into a world body were he cannot be touched by the repercussions of the Iraq war. The Bush Jr. Administration is CYA mode at this time.

[NEOBuckeye]

9. Actually, Wolfowitz may become more directly subject to the ICC

World Body = World Law

If he purposely sets out to fuck up the system, and some kind of scandal emerges that links him with corruption, he could possibly be made to stand trial at The Hague.

Oh, but Wolfie wouldn't do anything rotten, would he?

[mrdmk]

14. I still think the opposite

He is being taken out of the U.S. Government for a good reason, there are some ongoing FBI investigations between Israel, the Office of Special Plans and AIPAC. If Wolfowitz is in another position, it would be harder to get him to testify to his old job. Just an opinion. The problem is that Wolfowitz had screwed up so badly that he needs the protection of "he is doing something else important at this time", defense. Just another opinion.


Edit: for clarity.

[Robbien]

3. Since the World Bank has caused so much misery in the world

Wolfowitz is the perfet man to front it because it pulls off the false "humanitarian" mask of the World Bank.

[Hoping4Change]

10. I wish that were true but given the vast number of uninformed

people this appointment will actually help mollify his image as warmonger because he will have the opportunity to give speeches about poverty and therefore spin himself as a compassionate conservative.

[Robbien]

13. That would work here, but not in the developing nations

Having Wolfowitz as the head of the beast called World Bank might give more nations the thought that they should follow Argentina's lead and not follow the World Bank and IMF's privatizing rules.

[Hoping4Change]

17. Good point.

[jbnow]

20. I am among the uninformed

Not about him, but about the World Bank.

I am appalled this man is assigned to anything having to do with "the world" or banking.

[Hoping4Change]

23. The World Bank lends money to governments for development projects.

"The World Bank, based in Washington, is a multilateral institution that lends money to governments and government agencies for development projects.

For more than twenty years, the Bank has imposed stringent conditions, known as “Structural Adjustment Programs,” on recipient countries, forcing them to adopt reforms such as:

*deregulation of capital markets

*privatization of state companies

*downsizing of public programs for social welfare

*privatization of water supplies

*fees for public schools and hospitals

*privatization of public pensions


While the Bank insists that “fighting poverty” is its first priority, many critics believe instead that it is responsible for rising poverty.

Many also criticize its cosy relationship with Wall Street and the United States Treasury Department. The stormy resignation of World Bank Vice President and Chief Economist Joseph Stiglitz in late 1999, and his subsequent public comments, suggest that the Bank is not as benign as it claims to be.



The above is from an excellent website on global issues:


http://www.globalpolicy.org/socecon/bwi-wto/bankind.htm

[jbnow]

24. Thank you

for your time and information. I will look at the site more, but the "funny" thing is from what you listed, he could be a perfect match.

[Hoping4Change]

26. It is the perfect match if you want neocon theory loosed upon

poor nations. Stiglitz, the World Bank's Vice President and Chief Economist in the 1990's and a Nobel Prize winning economist resigned from the bank and is now one of its harshest critics.

Following is an excerpt from interview with Greg Palast "The Globalizer Who Came In From the Cold"


"Stiglitz told me about his unhappy meeting, early in his World Bank tenure, with Ethopia’s new president in the nation’s first democratic election.

The World Bank and IMF had ordered Ethiopia to divert aid money to its reserve account at the US Treasury, which pays a pitiful 4% return, while the nation borrowed US dollars at 12% to feed its population.

The new president begged Stiglitz to let him use the aid money to rebuild the nation. But no, the loot went straight off to the US Treasury’s vault in Washington.

A pattern emerges. There are lots of losers in this system but one clear winner: the Western banks and US Treasury, making the big bucks off this crazy new international capital churn.


http://www.globalpolicy.org/socecon/bwi-wto/wbank/2001/1011stiglitz.htm

[NYC Liberal]

4. self-delete

[Auntie Bush]

6. Together!!

Together...like Bush brought the Dems and Rethugs closer together?Together...like the Red and Blue states?
Together...like religion and politics?
Yeah...I guess like that.

[sandnsea]

12. "Dr" Wolfowitz???

That's a very subtle credibility boost. :eyes:

I've never seen him referred to as "Dr" in the press before.

[mrdmk]

15. Yep, and still he is a pushy idiot!

<snip>

Wolfowitz has written widely on national security strategy and foreign policy. He was a member of the advisory boards of the journals Foreign Affairs and National Interest. Deputy Secretary Wolfowitz earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Cornell University in 1965 and a doctorate in political science from the University of Chicago in 1972.

<snip>

link

http://www.defenselink.mil/bios/depsecdef_bio.html

[Rex]

19. A BS in math and a PhD in poli-sci?

What they didn't have graduate programs back then? You could just jump into any field? Can I do that now?

[mrdmk]

21. This is not uncommon for a person to change fields

when they go from undergraduate to a graduate program. Happens all the time. The Wifey's undergraduate is English, her doctoral is Art History.

[Hoping4Change]

16. I believe the journalist not Stiglitz used that title.

[bunny planet]

30. He'll always be Assistant Secretary Comb-Licker to me.

[Rex]

18. Doctor? What does he have his phd in? Failure?

:evilgrin:

[many a good man]

22. Globalization and its Discontents

is a great book by Stiglitz that everyone should read.

The IMF has long been considered the evil twin and the WB's reputation is much more benign. With his doctorate in Straussian World Ordering, Wolfowitz will now turn both twins evil and Third World countries will be doomed.

But it will be good for business.

[indepat]

25. Hate begats hate

[ElectricIron Sweeney]

32. Hate begets fear, and fear begets hate.

the process is the key to stop it.

[indepat]

33. Repugs assure this vicious circle continues in perpetual motion into

perpetuity.

[spanone]

27. He makes my blood boil.

[IronLionZion]

28. well as long as his name has the word "wolf" in it

you can count on him to guard the chicken coop. Crazy like a fox that one.

Could Bush be any more idiotic? Why the fuck would he appoint this man who has absolutely no economic or financial experience to head the world bank? I seriously think he just heard "bank" and figured Wolfowitz is Jewish so he must be good with banking. :silly: dumbass

This is basically a big "Go Fuck Yourselves" to the rest of the world.

[Laurab]

29. Yup it's one more "go F---" yourself to the rest of the world

and one more thing that will unite the rest of the world against the self-appointed world leader. He is a uniter, that dubya, and unfortunately I think it's going to catch up to him (us) sooner, rather than later.

I saw a cartoon today about France saying it was finally sending peacekeeping troops - to the U.S., not Iraq. It would be funny if it wasn't so scary. The man is insane.

[Gloria]

31. Please check out this thread.....Binladen Group and a UK policy paper/WB

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x3310237

[Zhade]

34. Stiglitz came clean with Greg Palast about the WB's predatory nature, too.

An interesting individual.