French nuclear frenzy

France has once again reaffirmed its possition as the worlds greatest supplier of nuclear technology. Okay granted, this does not consitute proliferation of nuclear weapons however the french government is following the American example and exporting civilian nuclear technology to India. President Bonaparte (honest lapsus linguae, I mean Sarkozy) signed a trade deal with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that will create the framework for India to purchase France's latest model of the European Pressurised Reactor. The deal ends a ban on India which up to know prohibited countries from engaging in civilian nuclear trade with them. This is a Godsent for India's growing lust for energy to provide for her massive population and equally important for france who has found a huge market with unparalleled purchasing power. But why stop there, I heard Pakistan and North Korea also have relatively large populations and are eager to buy 'civilian nuclear technologies' -after all they are potential markets in the region, where does all this madness end?

A.B.P.

Gordon Brown's problems due to religion?

Many people within the English parliament are unhappy with the way things are going in England as of late, and this has led to increased pressure for the current British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. Yet there is much debate over his stay in power within the parliament and as head of the Labor party in England. There is a “rebellion” ongoing at the moment within the Labor party calling for a change of leadership; things are turning ugly already as the situation is taking unfavorable twists and turns, with two MPs sacked from their positions and one resigning due to the power struggle. Yet there is a conspiracy theory behind all this. Some speculate that the real reason behind all this is not that Mr. Brown has not done the work demanded of him but that actually it could be his ethnicity thus being Scottish and religion being catholic. There is some speculation that religion actually plays a big role in someone’s carrier within the British parliament as for it has very strong ties with the church of England and to have a Catholic within the framework undermines the churches influence, yet looking back into history there have not been any Catholics in high positions of politics since the governing body of king Charles II, unless you count former prime minister Tony Blair who himself only converted to Catholicism after leaving his position as PM. So could this be a leading factor to Mr. Brown’s political fallout, or is this another conspiracy theory?

A New Beginning

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2008/sep/23/gordonbrown.labour1

In our previous class the Professor drew stark similarities between the gradual decline and ousting of the Margaret Thatcher led government in the late eighties and the currently unstable Gordon Brown led government perhaps alluding to concerns that we might be witnessing the final days of his Premiership. While it is almost impossible to determine if we are indeed, Browns speech yesterday compelled me to change my belief that his days at no 10 were numbered.

Internal party strife, poor election results, along with an economic crisis have in recent weeks shaken the reins of the Brown government. Most notably were attempts by junior party members to challenge his leadership and or force a change of leadership. Brown survived this political storm thanks to the backing of senior members of his party. But yesterday (at least in my opinion) silenced his strongest critics for good and solidly cemented his stance as the only man poised to lead Britain through and out of these difficult times. His speech took on a more personal tone and emphasized the need for “a new settlement for new times, and a fair Britain for a new age.” He stressed that “in these uncertain times, we must be, we will be, the rock of stability and fairness upon which people stand.” While Brown acknowledged certain mistakes had been made, he reiterated the fact that his government has far exceeded the expectations from the opposing party.

It is no surprise that his speech was very positively received. As one journalist put it “this speech was about him (Gordon Brown) inviting you (his party members and the British public) to take another look at him”. The ball is now in the court of British voters to decide if indeed he is the right man to lead them. I think they will respond positively.

The Meltdown

The US economic crisis was on the top of the agenda at the United Nations General Assembly where French President Nicolas Sarkozy spoke on behalf of the EU about the crisis. Sarkozy urged the world leaders (the US in particular) to learn from the mistakes of this crisis and rebuild a transparent, regulated form of capitalism. Sarkozy also went on to criticize speculators and wanted to establish closer ties between Russia and Europe.

With an increasingly global economy it is no surprise that Sarkozy would be concerned with the US financial health. Fears are still lingering that the US financial meltdown will spread to European nations next and this will certainly be a major disaster for Sarkozy when France is effected. Notably in the 2007 French elections, Sarkozy’s main agenda was to build a stronger and more powerful economy in France where it has already seen some tough times in previous years. After Sarkozy’s victory, however, France has dealt with the rogue trader who seems to have single-handedly damaged the French bank Société Générale. Looking back at this incident its no surprise why Sarkozy would want regulated and transparent form of capitalism.

Laura K.

Energy a la Franglaise...

The Franco-British love-hate (well certainly more hate then love) relationship is a facet of their respective mindsets and is almost innate to both the Frenchman and his neighbour across the Channel. To acquire the upperhand for either of these countries irrespective of the field of play is crucial to their very sense of national pride but more importantly arm victor with the deadliest weapon in their arsenal-'bragging rights'.
Now more then ever this is true for France. Energy giants, Électricité de France has recently made a £12.4 billion bid to buy British Energy. If the deal is finalised as planned British homes will be at the whim of the French who potentially have the power to turn off their lights and heat. The frog and onion seller comments will have to stop- nobody wants to see the lights in Downing Street replaced by candles...

A.B.P

Five Germans Missing!

On Monday, the Foreign Ministry in Berlin confirmed that five German tourists had been kidnapped in Egypt. In all eleven people were kidnapped including the five Germans, five Italians and one Romanian. They were kidnapped on a safari tour in the Sahara desert by four armed, masked men. The men apparently stopped the vehicles and directed them towards the Sudan. The abductors are asking for a $15 million ransom. An emergency task force is trying to find a quick solution to the problem as we speak.
Personally, I wonder how the Germans are going to deal with this situation. As far as I can tell, there is no indication as to who the abductors are, but they are probably Sudanese. Regardless, we can only hope that the powerful government figures out the situation and that the "vacationers" will be returned unharmed in the near future.