The dampers for the millenium Bridge (london somewhere) were delayed for almost two years 'cos the company building them got a rush order for recoil dampers for some unspecified customer. (for Dubya's guns as he tooled up for war). Strangely enough, when I was asking about this, nobody seemed to want to reply to emails....
Look at (ithink) Swissinfo.net (or something similar )for an unbiased-ish look at the news.
I notice
www.whitehouse.gov searches using 'UN' pick up on lots of wonderful UN/USrelations but completely miss "bugging the UN Secretary-General's office and intercepting his emails"....
At least America intervenes in all countries with civil war, dictators and WMD that haven't been sanctioned by Uncle Sam - like North Korea (haha dubya),Burma,Tibet,Bhutan,Haiti,victims of opression (The Palestine), and doesn't restrict US interference to countries rich in natural resources like Afghanistan, Iraq, South Korea....
www.shrubbish.comwww.whitehouse.orgIn Speech, Bush Calls Iraq, Iran and North Korea 'Axis of Evil"--
N.Y.Times, 1/30/02
ANGERED BY SNUBBING, LIBYA, CHINA, SYRIA FORM AXIS OF JUST AS EVIL.
Cuba, Sudan, Serbia Form Axis of Somewhat Evil; Other Nations Start Own Clubs.
Beijing, bitter after being snubbed for membership in the "Axis of Evil," Libya, China, and Syria today announced they had formed the "Axis of Just as Evil," which they said would be way eviler than that stupid Iran-Iraq-North Korea axis President Bush warned of his State of the Union address.
Axis of Evil members, however, immediately dismissed the new axis as having, for starters, a really dumb name.
"Right. They are Just as Evil... in their dreams!" declared North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. "Everybody knows we're the best evils... best at being evil... we're the best."
Diplomats from Syria denied they were jealous over being excluded, although they conceded they did ask if they could join the Axis of Evil.
"They told us it was full," said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
"An Axis can't have more than three countries," explained Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. "This is not my rule, it's tradition. In World War II you had Germany, Italy, and Japan in the evil Axis. So you can only have three. And a secret handshake. Ours is wicked cool."
THE AXIS PANDEMIC
International reaction to Bush's Axis of Evil declaration was swift, as within minutes, France surrendered.
Elsewhere, peer-conscious nations rushed to gain triumvirate status in what became a game of geopolitical chairs. Cuba, Sudan, and Serbia said they had formed the Axis of Somewhat Evil, forcing Somalia to join with Uganda and Myanmar in the Axis of Occasionally Evil, while Bulgaria, Indonesia and Russia established the Axis of Not So Much Evil Really As Just Generally Disagreeable.
With the criteria suddenly expanded and all the desirable clubs filling up, Sierra Leone, El Salvador, and Rwanda applied to be called the Axis of Countries That Aren't the Worst But Certainly Won't Be Asked to Host the Olympics; Canada, Mexico, and Australia formed the Axis of Nations That Are Actually Quite Nice But Secretly Have Nasty Thoughts About America, while Spain, Scotland, and New Zealand established the Axis of Countries That Be Allowed to Ask Sheep to Wear Lipstick.
"That's not a threat, really, just something we like to do," said Scottish Executive First Minister Jack McConnell.
While wondering if the other nations of the world weren't perhaps making fun of him, a cautious Bush granted approval for most axes, although he rejected the establishment of the Axis of Countries Whose Names End in "Guay," accusing one of its members of filing a false application.
Officials from Paraguay, Uruguay, and Chadguay denied the charges.
Israel, meanwhile, insisted it didn't want to join any Axis, but privately, world leaders said that's only because no one asked them.