BDSers Hate Israel More than They Love Africa

Pro-Palestinian campaigners have launched a campaign to stop Bob Geldof from visiting Israel next month on the basis that going there would damage the singer's "credibility as a defender of the rights of the dispossessed".

The former Boomtown Rats singer is to make his first trip to the country to accept an honorary degree from Ben Gurion University (BGU) in recognition of his anti-poverty work.

But Raymond Deane, the cultural and academic boycott officer for the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Camp (IPSC) has demanded that the star reject it and also pull out of a conference the same week on Israel's humanitarian aid work in Africa.

He also said Mr Geldof should consider whether it was "appropriate" to attend the IsraAid conference because "the criminal actions of the Israeli state have resulted in the Palestinians being more dependent on humanitarian aid than any people on earth".

Mr Deane went on to add that if his appeal was ignored, the singer "may well stand accused of placing the oppressor's flattery above the victim's plea for solidarity."

He wrote: "You will have lent yourself heedlessly to exploitation by a rogue state that has mastered the art of propaganda and whitewash".

So not only are the BDSers trying to convince people to boycott Israeli products, but also to boycott Israeli charitable organizations that help thousands of people worldwide!

IsraAid coordinates Israeli charity responses to disasters and other needs around the world. Part of its mission statement is:

To provide humanitarian assistance to people in need, regardless of religion, race, gender, nationality, age, disabilities.

To provide aid with full respect to culture and custom of the beneficiaries, while building on local capacities and involving program beneficiaries in the process.

The conference that Geldof will attend is about how to most effectively help people in Africa in need.

BDS advocates hate Israel so much that they would rather hurt thousands of people in need worldwide than allow Israel to help them! They would rather see Africans starve than have them accept any aid from those awful Jews Zionists.

BDSers don't give a damn about helping people. Their entire purpose is simply to slander a single state as the worst human rights violator on the planet. A state that, by sheer coincidence, just happens to be the only nation that is meant to support the human rights of Jews to self-determination.

The JC

The Great Black Hope

The US authorities have banned factual information from Americans, as hard reality reporting might cause the poor dears a trauma. They may discuss the size of his ears and the race orientation of his pastor, but nothing of substance.
Barack Obama is the first human being to run for US public office since the 1960's. He is being marketed worldwide as a man of color who is intent on following a moral path for the benefit of his fellow citizens. He is a reason to hope.
Asians have tired of degenerate gunslingers who throw their weight around like bullies in a saloon.

Where Has All the Rice Gone?

The Internet is buzzing over the decision by Sam's Club and a few Costco outlets to limit bulk rice purchases to customers. Rice rationing in the United States! How long before food riots in San Francisco?

How the World Works has been accused by some readers of peddling a relentless supply of doom of late, but when the price of the staple food of half the planet's population triples in less than five months, governments get nervous. It's a big story, and unlike in the case of corn (biofuels) or wheat (bad weather) there is no easy villain to blame. World rice production is up, but demand is up more. Production gains are not keeping up with population growth and increased consumption.

With that in mind, here's a rice-related item that's gotten a little less coverage than possible rice hoarding in the world's richest country. According to a report in Monrovia, Liberia's The News, the chief executive officer of China's China-Africa Development Fund pledged 5 billion dollars of investment in African agriculture over the next 50 years -- including, specifically, rice production. (Thanks to China Digital Times for the link.)

Mr. Chi Jianxin, at a head of a Chinese delegation, is in the country to explore investment opportunities in the agricultural sector.

Chi said his company has the financial capacity and expertise to develop and stabilize the food situation in Liberia "particularly in rice production and other cash crops."

During an acquaintance visit with Liberia's Agriculture Minister Chris Toe, the Chinese delegation summed up its exploratory visit in averring that an increased investment in the agricultural sector would provide more food as well as jobs for thousands of Liberians

The announcement isn't going to move the price of rice this year, or next, but it's a pretty clear indicator of which way the world has to go if global food production is to be boosted to match world demand while keeping prices affordable. The developed world, (and in this case, we'll include China in that category, with its $1.68 trillion dollars worth of currency reserves) must find ways to invest in Africa, where there is labor, and land, and a desperate need for inputs, both financial and physical. How about it -- Africa: breadbasket of the world, instead of basket case?

-- Andrew Leonard, Salon.com