| The Kensington Review |
10 June 2005 |
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Latest Commentary:
US Defense Spending Tops that of Next 32 Nations Combined -- The United States of America is at war. Therefore, it should not be a surprise that it is spending a great deal on defense. However, a recent report suggests that America is not spending wisely. President Eisenhower warned the nation about the military-industrial complex, and peace activists latched onto the term to place blame for ill-conceived combat adventures. However, something far worse may be happening; the current political and economic arrangements of the US may be forcing the nation to spend more than it must on weapons it doesn’t need in the current fight. Zimbabwe’s Security Clears out Entire Towns -- The government of Zimbabwe is a gangster regime that fails to reach Stalinist proportions largely because the nation lacks the infrastructure and appalling weather to pull it off. However, its aspirations to the mantle of Stalin were made clear this week as the police began “Operation Murambatsvina,” which means “Operation clear up the trash.” More than 20,000 have been arrested and entire neighborhoods have been bulldozed. A two-day general strike to protest is getting off to a slow start. Peaceful protest doesn’t work when the authorities are prepared to use lethal force. Actors Win Video Game Pay Increase -- The Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists represent some of the highest paid people in the world. Samuel L. Jackson, Peter Fonda, and Dennis Hopper may be members, but they aren’t really working-class stiffs. They are, however, going to get a 36% raise for their work in video games thanks to a deal the two unions accepted earlier this week. Unfortunately, the deal doesn’t give actors the residuals they enjoy from TV and movie rebroadcasts. Warming Temperatures to Force Alaskan Village to Move -- Shishmaref is a small place, 600 people, located in a remote part of Alaska, on a narrow Chukchi Sea barrier island. While everyone feels that his home is the best place to be, an objective observer is not likely to find anything unique about the village. But in a few years, it will become a trendsetter. This may be the first community in America to move due to global warming. © Copyright 2005 by The Kensington Review, J. Myhre, Editor. No part of this publication may be reproduced without written consent. Produced using Fedora Linux. |
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