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Berlusconi announces plan to address southern Italy's social problems.
Which gives rise to the question of whether this plan will solve these problems or, rather, present Italy's organized crime with new opportunities to make money.
The Long Night is Coming
5 years ago
Dear DK:
ReplyDeleteI am sorry to interrupt your blog with an off-topic note - I would email you the following if I had your email. (I'm formosanbobsled a t gmail dot com.)
You're the only geopolitical analyst I know who would have any idea of what to do with the following info.
I don't know anything about drugs, so I can't comment on your recent drug smuggling posts... but southern Italy's politics seem to be the closest fit for the following political story.
The link is :
http://michaelturton.blogspot.com/2009/08/china-voice-says-break-up-india.html
The info is:
The typhoon may have cut a swath of destruction across southern Taiwan, but the geopolitics goes on. Up today is this interesting article showing how some thinkers in China regard India:
Almost coinciding with the 13th round of Sino-Indian border talks (New Delhi [ Images ], August 7-8, 2009), an article (in the Chinese language) has appeared in China captioned 'If China takes a little action, the so-called Great Indian Federation can be broken up' (Zhong Guo Zhan Lue Gang, www.iiss.cn, Chinese, August 8, 2009).
Interestingly, it has been reproduced in several other strategic and military Web sites of the country and by all means, targets the domestic audience. The authoritative host site is located in Beijing [ Images ] and is the new edition of one, which so far represented the China International Institute for Strategic Studies (www.chinaiiss.org).
Claiming that Beijing's 'China-Centric' Asian strategy, provides for splitting India, the writer of the article, Zhan Lue (strategy), has found that New Delhi's corresponding 'India-Centric' policy in Asia, is in reality a 'Hindustan centric' one. Stating that on the other hand 'local centres' exist in several of the country's provinces (excepting for the UP and certain northern regions), Zhan Lue has felt that in the face of such local characteristics, the 'so-called' Indian nation cannot be considered as one having existed in history.
According to the article, if India today relies on any thing for unity, it is the Hindu religion. The partition of the country was based on religion. Stating that today nation states are the main current in the world, it has said that India could only be termed now as a 'Hindu religious state'. Adding that Hinduism is a decadent religion as it allows caste exploitation and is unhelpful to the country's modernisation, it described the Indian government as one in a dilemma with regard to eradication of the caste system as it realises that the process to do away with castes may shake the foundation of the consciousness of the Indian nation.
The writer has argued that in view of the above, China in its own interest and the progress of Asia, should join forces with different nationalities like the Assamese, Tamils, and Kashmiris and support the latter in establishing independent nation-States of their own, out of India. In particular, the ULFA (United Liberation Front of Asom) in Assam, a territory neighboring China, can be helped by China so that Assam realises its national independence.
There's more in that vein. The article gives a sort of mirror-image insight into how Beijing views its own ethnic nationalists -- as a source of potential dismemberment of the nation. You'd never catch any Chinese claiming that regional prosperity would advance if China were broken up into many states, but apparently it is ok to make such claims about other multiethnic states. The analysis of India is shallow and not very intelligent, but it does show how many in China think -- and how deeply concerned China is with India.
Interesting comment, FB.
ReplyDeleteAs nation states generally come under increasing stress, India's caste system as well as China's guanxi networks will probably come into even greater significance than they now have.
One of the challenges that American society will face is our lack of such organizations. Really, Skull and Bones of George Bush fame is about our closest equivalent.