A good article that puts the Cablegates controversy in some perspective. But I don't think the Americans will place much weight on articles coming out from the great white north.
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Siddiqui: What the WikiLeaks documents fail to tell
December 02, 2010
We didn’t need WikiLeaks to tell us that Moammar Gadhafi likes his “voluptuous blonde” Ukrainian nurse. He doesn’t hide it or his posse of young sexy female bodyguards. A courtier in Tripoli once told me that he found our prurience over his leader’s female company puzzling, given that the West is so soaked in sex.
The leak of 251,287 cables from America’s 274 diplomatic posts spills no military secrets and doesn’t really endanger anyone’s life. It only makes explicit what was implicit in many instances. It offers titillating tidbits about world leaders, and exposes their hypocrisy of saying one thing in private and another in public.
But even the embarrassment factor is not all that high. Governments, politicians and diplomats routinely lie. Those they deal with know. They all understand each other, which explains the uniformity of reaction to the leaks. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said exactly the same thing as Hillary Clinton, David Cameron, Lawrence Cannon, et al: The leaks won’t affect anyone’s relations with anyone.
The more intriguing thing is this: How come all the cables advance the American geopolitical agenda, with nary a negative comment or the slightest doubt?
Read the rest here: http://www.thestar.com/opinion/article/900100--siddiqui-what-the-wikileaks-documents-fail-to-tell
Thursday, December 2, 2010
Ming Yi: Bad taste is never out of style
The lavish dinner party (see below) welcoming Ven Ming Yi return from prison for misappropriating temple funds is reminiscent of AIG swanky conference/retreat just 2 weeks after receiving a massive $85 billion bailout by Uncle Sam.
Seems like bad taste is never out of style.
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Why is Ven Ming Yi still a monk?
The Buddhist community is abuzz with questions surrounding Venerable Ming Yi's status as a monk.
Singapore's top buddhist organization, the Buddhist Federation, received many complaints from the Buddhist community in the past two weeks.
The federation's secretary-general, Venerable Kwang Phing said many voiced their unhappiness after a dinner was held by Foo Hai Chan Monastery in Geylang in honour of Ven Ming Yi's 20 years of service.
He told the Straits Times that many wanted to know, "'How can he do this?', 'Why is he still a monk?', 'Why isn't the federation doing anything?''
The dinner, organised by the monastery, was held at the Pan Pacific Hotel and reportedly cost $200,000.
The local newspaper reported that the dinner touched off an emotional debate among Buddhists even as devotees of the Foo Hai Chan Monastery called the celebration a 'sheng zuo dian li', or 'rise to power' ceremony; they said they wanted to celebrate Ven Ming Yi's return to the temple.
Senior Buddhists in Singapore - Ven Kwang Sheng, the federation's president, and Ven Kwang Phing - were absent from the dinner although they had been invited.
Ven Ming Yi - founder and former chief executive of Ren Ci Hospital was convicted of fraud, falsifying documents, misappropriating funds and giving false information to the Commissioner of Charities last October.
He was jailed in May this year and released in September.
The Buddhist Federation wants Ven Ming Yi to voluntarily step up to the plate and take responsibility for his actions.
If he does so a temporary disciplinary committee of five or more monks will be set up to demote him.
If he chooses to stay at large, other monks may be advised to shun him.
Mr Lim Bock Guan, the head of the Singapore Buddhist Lodge told the local newspaper that a monk being honoured for his service with a $1,000-a-table dinner in a top hotel has never been heard off.
Seems like bad taste is never out of style.
================================================================
Why is Ven Ming Yi still a monk?
The Buddhist community is abuzz with questions surrounding Venerable Ming Yi's status as a monk.
Singapore's top buddhist organization, the Buddhist Federation, received many complaints from the Buddhist community in the past two weeks.
The federation's secretary-general, Venerable Kwang Phing said many voiced their unhappiness after a dinner was held by Foo Hai Chan Monastery in Geylang in honour of Ven Ming Yi's 20 years of service.
He told the Straits Times that many wanted to know, "'How can he do this?', 'Why is he still a monk?', 'Why isn't the federation doing anything?''
The dinner, organised by the monastery, was held at the Pan Pacific Hotel and reportedly cost $200,000.
The local newspaper reported that the dinner touched off an emotional debate among Buddhists even as devotees of the Foo Hai Chan Monastery called the celebration a 'sheng zuo dian li', or 'rise to power' ceremony; they said they wanted to celebrate Ven Ming Yi's return to the temple.
Senior Buddhists in Singapore - Ven Kwang Sheng, the federation's president, and Ven Kwang Phing - were absent from the dinner although they had been invited.
Ven Ming Yi - founder and former chief executive of Ren Ci Hospital was convicted of fraud, falsifying documents, misappropriating funds and giving false information to the Commissioner of Charities last October.
He was jailed in May this year and released in September.
The Buddhist Federation wants Ven Ming Yi to voluntarily step up to the plate and take responsibility for his actions.
If he does so a temporary disciplinary committee of five or more monks will be set up to demote him.
If he chooses to stay at large, other monks may be advised to shun him.
Mr Lim Bock Guan, the head of the Singapore Buddhist Lodge told the local newspaper that a monk being honoured for his service with a $1,000-a-table dinner in a top hotel has never been heard off.
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