Blogging from the Bog

   Radovan Karadzic was arrested for war crimes by the Serbian security forces Monday after eluding his pursuers for over 10 years.  He is being incarcerated in Belgrade today to face the War Crimes Court on several charges including genocide.

   Karadzic, as leader of the Bosnian Serbs during the 1991-95 war, is to be prosecuted for a 1995 incident in which 8,000 men and boys were slaughtered in the town of Srebrenica.  More criminal charges are to be brought against him for extermination, persecution, and inhumane acts, among others.

   Stojan Zupljanin, head of the Bosnian police at the time, was arrested last month for similar crimes.  General Mladic, another indicted criminal, is still being sought by authorities.

   EU Observer coverage here.

 Radovan Karadzic

   During this time of high mortgage payments, dwindling property values, and rising heating and energy costs some people are beginning to think seriously about tailoring their housing needs.  Some downsizing alternatives have been with us for years, mobile homes, houseboats and caravans; but, these are neither stationary nor controversial.  There is another option being explored today that both delights some and infuriates others. 

   Jay Shafer is a former art teacher who has been invited to speaking engagements in the United States and Canada to promote his ideas on "tiny houses".  For ten years he has been residing comfortably in a succession of homes that were all less than 100 square feet in size.  This man is not "living large" though he is getting large receptions wherever he speaks to enthusiastic audiences who are concerned with the environment, reducing overhead expenses, and looking for something suitable to their changing needs.

   Not all is rosy however in this Lilliputian land of little houses.  Many local residents are outspoken and concerned that these miniatures, built in their neighbourhoods, will cause housing prices to drop even further. 

   *  Here is a YouTube link for a tour of his house.

   Sensitive top level negotiations, back-door channels, and clandestine meetings are all common phrases used in describing how governments and their representatives conduct themselves while pursuing the aims and ambitions concerned with the national interest.  It is not of course in the national interest for anyone who voted in these governments to have any knowledge of these secret arrangements, let alone question them.  By the time the deal is done, the spin prepared, and the project put into motion it is too late for the citizen to halt the momentum.

   The European Union’s Commission and its’ Parliament conduct themselves no differently; but, by exploring their actions we can uncover their aims.  What started out as a cultural and economic association of diverse countries with unique social histories may be heading down a dangerous path. 

   As a whole the European nations are net importers of, and heavily dependent upon, oil and natural gas from the Middle East and Russia.  In a bid to harness some of these reserves Nicolas Sarkozy, acting as temporary President of Europe, will host a summit on Sunday concerning the future of his pet project The Barcelona Process, also called the Mediterranean Union or simply Club Med.  The intention of this Union is to bring the Middle East and North Africa into the sphere of European influence.  This concept has been on the drawing board for years but Sarkozy hopes to champion this cause and has made it one of his priorities.

   The European Army has several thousand troops stationed in the former French protectorate of Chad, and are there under a UN mandate, to conduct peacekeeping operations for the protection of refugees.  Most of these refugees are from Sudan where they were under constant threat from their own government forces and Sudanese rebels who are funded by these same leaders.  In a proposal that can only be described as ludicrous, if not treasonous, Louis Michel, European Commissioner for Developement and Humanitarian Aid, has promised €400 million to the very government who created the refugee catastrophe in the first place.  Despite the fact that his counterpart in the Sudanese government, Ahman Harun, is a fugitive from justice and is wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity this project is being pushed through.  Isn’t this counterproductive to the UN mission?

   Ambitious programs that would have been given a green light once the Lisbon Treaty was brought into force on its’ projected date of January 1, 2009 are not necessarily doomed just because the referendum was rejected by the Irish.  Plans for European Embassies to be managed by a new diplomatic corps, a new unaccountable Interior Ministry, and an elite military force headed up by France may still see the light of day.  Why all the duplicity, secrecy, and covert activity?

   The countries of the world, both great and small, are arming themselves with new alliances, agreements, and treaties in preparation for the Resource Race.  There is a concerted effort by these countries to align favourably with other nations for protection, prosperity, and provisions for the coming days.  If the European Union goes ahead with it’s military, expansionist, and protectionist policies this resource race will only escalate as the arms race did.  We need to find equitable solutions for the coming time when there will be less natural resources to go around before the nations get to a point of armed conflict.

 Louis Michel

   Former SAS officer, Eton school graduate, and heir to a brewing empire, Simon Mann was sentenced today to 34 years at the infamous Black Beach prison for his involvement in a conspiracy to overthrow the government of Equatorial Guinea.

   During the trial, which lasted just over two weeks, the defendant confessed to his part in the military operation in hopes of securing a reduced sentence.  Mann, who looked slight and frail, appeared in court wearing gray prison garments, his wrist chains and leg irons temporarily removed.  He apologized in open court to the President and government officials of Equatorial Guinea for his role in the attempted coup while implicating the governments of Spain and South Africa in the plot.

   Mann also accused Sir Mark Thatcher, son of former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, and a Lebanese businessman of being the lead conspirators and "bosses" of the failed operation. 

   The Attorney General of Equatorial Guinea, Jose Oboso, announced that legal proceedings will be filed against Mark Thatcher tomorrow and that he will use all means necessary to bring Thatcher back to Equatorial Guinea for trial.

 Simon Mann

   What started out as school project a few years ago has grown into an international effort of creativity, forward thinking, and co-operation among individuals and groups with a view to the future.  Not satisfied with the rhetoric of government, big business, or doomsday theorists these visionaries are proactively making a concerted effort to prepare their communities for the inevitable.  They are not passing judgement, they are not getting entangled in spurious debates or mudslinging, and they are not promising miracles.  They are creating Transition Towns.

   In 2005 Rob Hopkins was teaching a class in the world’s first two-year program of permaculture at a college in Kinsale, County Cork a seaside community on the southern coast of Ireland.  Permaculture, in theory and practice, is the idea of sustainable living and as part of his lecture series Hopkins showed the movie The End of Suburbia to his class.  At a time when the price of oil was still around the $35 per barrel stage the implications of peak oil were not lost on the students and a proposal was drafted designing the Transition Town concept.  The cleaner, greener, community based initiative was adopted by the Kinsale Town Council as proposed by student Louise Rooney and the project was underway.

   The Transition Town concept is becoming more and more relavent, as the price of oil is now $135 a barrel, and deals with how communities will adapt, adjust, and flourish despite being faced with declining natural resources, rising fuel and energy prices or shortages, and climate change.  There are currently 50 towns actively participating in this project and hundreds of others contemplating the idea of getting involved.  Is your town or city considering the prospect?  Check this list of communities around the globe.

   A quote from Rob Hopkins’ website reads, "We are communities, a society, a world in transition, and to do that we need a culture of transition, but also we need the tools for manifesting it."  Indeed we do Rob, indeed we do.

Rob