Palestinians mark their 1948 displacement ‘‘nakba,’’ or ‘‘catastrophe,’’

 Palestinians mark their 1948 displacement ‘‘nakba,’’ or ‘‘catastrophe,’’ Tens of thousands of Palestinians marked the 65th anniversary of their mass displacement during the war over Israel’s 1948 creation, marching in the streets and in some parts of the West Bank, clashing with Israeli security forces. Every May 15, Palestinians hold rallies to commemorate the ‘‘nakba,’’ or ‘‘catastrophe,’’ the term they use to describe the displacement, when hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled or were driven from their homes during the war. 

  

The dispute over the fate of those Palestinians and their descendants, now numbering several million, remains at the core of the Arab-Israeli conflict. Israel views the Palestinians’ return as demographic suicide and expects the displaced and their descendants to be taken in by a future Palestinian state. But intermittent Israeli-Palestinian attempts to agree on the terms of such a state have so far failed. 

I reiterate, Palestinian's have bent backwards: Lack of a peace solution to the Israeli crisis we created keeps being blamed on the Palestinians and I for one am quite sick of it! remember this? Israel could lease Palestinian lands in exchange for Palestinian statehood: report I am thinking this can be done after all my apprehension. With Palestine rebuffing Iran, Iran would be the one left out in the cold.

Palestinian refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state shows they are not serious about two-state solution. What about Israel's refusal to go back to 1967 borders where they should be? to stop building settlements? or to let Palestine have a homeland free of Jews if they want? What about UN resolution 181 established in 1947? That should be made binding and without a vote by Israel.

remember this? PLO wants map from US with future Israeli border Can you blame them? No bargaining make Israel adhere to UN resolution 181, no alternative! It is more than fair and equitable.

The only thing to do is to force the instigating war mongers Israel to adhere to 181 or leave them to their own demise and Iran would see to it. You know, first reading how Israel and Palestine was allotted their territories in 1948 I do not condone that Israel has not been forced to adhere to that resolution. We, the US Britain and Europe especially are as guilty as Israel for not insisting Israel adhere to UN Resolution 181

"In the eyes of Palestinians, the occupation began in '48 and not in '67," Ya'alon told Army Radio. "Not only Hamas thinks this – Abu Mazen [Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas does too." I think that too! I refuse to believe we took it upon ourselves to displace the Palestinians and give their land to the Jews in 1948 because we felt bad for them.

I hate to say it but I agree with Ahmadinejad that if Europe and the US felt so bad about what happened to Jews during WW2 then they should have given them part of their country. If they did we would not be in this situation. There will never be peace in the middle east unless there is an agreement to go back to UN Resolution 181 that was established in 1947.

We should in fact take care of Jewish American's and American's and our interests in Israel and otherwise tell them in no uncertain terms they are on their own if they continue to instigate war not peace and expecting us to come to their rescue. I love the way this is gaining momentum and I finally believe there is a chance for a two State solution but not peace in the Middle East. * The ball is in Israel's court not the world court where it should be!

Palestinians for their part are doing their share for peace but it is futile: They are willing to let Israel control the wailing wall and just want East Jerusalem as their capital but there is no way in hell Israel is going to give that up as they swear it belongs to them. It does not belong to them. They do not want peace unless they get everything they want and they will not. This will only end in war and we will be dragged in. That is why Bush ignored Afghanistan to get into the Middle East. Right from the get go helping Israel against Iran was the goal.

Again I reiterate there will never be peace in the Middle East, period! Israel wants it her way and Iran/Syria want Israel obliterated, period, seems like peace is in Palestinian hands and depends on how much they are willing to bend because Israel will not. Israel and Iran have long been in preparation for this confrontation. As you know, when asked by a journalist how he felt upon returning to Iran in 1979 after 15 years in exile. Khomeini’s curt, one-word reply was “nothing” Whoa! From day one of his return to Iran Khomeini expressed no love for Iran only a love of the atom bomb. The drive even then was to possess a nuclear weapon though that desire is still denied until Iran can get their hands on one.

On the other side there is Israel who will give nothing and expects Palestinians to give up everything! I realized a long time ago that Israel is the world's chief war monger and we seem to do their bidding and fighting. If they get into a war with Iran we will end up coming to their rescue regardless of what they do or what Hillary says and that is sad! We should in fact take care of Jewish American's and American's and our interests in Israel and otherwise tell them in no uncertain terms they are on their own if they continue to instigate war not peace and expecting us to come to their rescue.

* The ball is in Israel's court and I do not like what they are doing with it as they want to hold the ball till they get their way. Well the heck with them, we have given enough!




James Joiner
Gardner, Ma
http://anaverageamericanpatriot.blogspot.com

Israel does not want a 2 state solution period!

* Fatah accepts Arab League land swap proposal: Opponents of the land swap idea said they were against it because it would “legitimize” settlements in the West Bank by allowing them to remain under Israeli sovereignty in a final deal between Israel and the Palestinians. 

Unlike most Palestinian factions, Fatah said that today, it was not opposed to the land swap idea. Fatah’s leaders stressed after their meeting, however, that they perceive the idea as meaning that there would be “minor and mutual adjustments” to the future border between Israel and a Palestinian state.

* Peace-talk resumption requires Israeli recognition of two-state solution: Abbas: "A clear Israeli declaration that Israel recognizes the principle of the two-state solution, halting settlement building and releasing the (Palestinian) prisoners is sign of the success of the U.S. efforts to resume the talks," said Abbas.

"The upgrade of Palestine to a non-member observer state by the United Nations means that the occupied Palestinian territories are the territories of the Palestinian state," he said, adding "these territories are not disputed lands." As for land-swap with Israel, for us, it means slight mutual exchanges of lands. 

Israel does not want a 2 state solution period!

Israel will never agree to share Jerusalem period and neither will Hamas .Israel will resort to war period, especially knowing the US will come to their rescue and it bothers me. This is really getting old!

I wrote about it numerous times, to hell with Israel they are the problem. Netanyahu does not want peace until he gets everything he wants which includes all of Jerusalem. We have to take care of our own and let them hang themselves. Ahmadinejad was right in one thing when he said years ago that is Europe and the US felt so bad for what happened to the Jews in ww2 they should have given them part of their country. We would have no problem then. We are as guilty as them for not enforcing UN resolution 181. UN Resolution 181 that was established in 1947. Stop supporting Israel!

Make them go back to it and call it a frigging day!

I have been sick of Israel's lying about wanting a compromise, a two state solution. Ehud Barak had a viable solution Benjamin Netanyahu shot down. Netanyahu's lies to provoke and prolong this impasse holds the day. I am sick of this crap, I am sorry!

Israel's leader does not want to share Jerusalem

Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the issue of settlements as a "marginal" part of peace talks and said he was glad the United States had abandoned its demand for a renewed freeze. BS, it is integral and proof Netanyahu does not want peace but all of Jerusalem!

Lack of a peace solution to the Israeli crisis we created keeps being blamed on the Palestinians and I for one am quite sick of it! Israel could lease Palestinian lands in exchange for Palestinian statehood: report I am thinking this can be done after all my apprehension if Israel really wanted a two state solution. With Palestine rebuffing Iran, Iran would be the one left out in the cold however Israel does not want this to succeed. Leave Israel to her own demise, I am sick of the lies!

They say that Palestinian refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state shows they are not serious about two-state solution. What about Israel's refusal to go back to 1967 borders, to stop building settlements, or to let Palestine have a homeland free of Jews if they want? What about UN resolution 181 established in 1947?

PLO wants map from US with future Israeli border Can you blame them? It will never happen though because we are Israel's lap dog.

Vice Prime Minister and Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya'alon said that he saw "no chance of reaching a peace deal with the Palestinians in the near future". There is no way in hell ever because neither side really wants it. They want the other subversive, end of discussion.

"In the eyes of Palestinians, the occupation began in '48 and not in '67," Ya'alon told Army Radio. "Not only Hamas thinks this – Abu Mazen [Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas does too." I think that too! I refuse to believe we took it upon ourselves to displace the Palestinians and give their land to the Jews in 1948 because we felt bad for them.

I reiterate: Palestinians for their part are doing their share for peace but it is futile: They are willing to let Israel control the wailing wall and just want East Jerusalem as their capital but there is no way in hell Israel is going to give that up as they swear it belongs to them. It does not belong to them. They do not want peace unless they get everything they want and they will not. This will only end in war and we will be dragged in. That is why Bush ignored Afghanistan to get into the Middle East. Right from the get go helping Israel against Iran was the goal.

Again I reiterate there will never be peace in the Middle East, period!Israel wants it her way and Iran/Syria want Israel obliterated, period, seems like peace is in Palestinian hands and depends on how much they are willing to bend because Israel will not. Israel and Iran have long been in preparation for this confrontation. As you know, when asked by a journalist how he felt upon returning to Iran in 1979 after 15 years in exile. Khomeini’s curt, one-word reply was “nothing” Whoa! From day one of his return to Iran Khomeini expressed no love for Iran only a love of the atom bomb. The drive even then was to possess a nuclear weapon though that desire is still denied until Iran can get their hands on one.

On the other side there is Israel who will give nothing and expects Palestinians to give up everything! I realized a long time ago that Israel is the world's chief war monger and we seem to do their bidding and fighting. If they get into a war with Iran we will end up coming to their rescue regardless of what they do or what is said or done and that is sad! We should in fact take care of Jewish American's and American's and our interests in Israel and otherwise tell them in no uncertain terms they are on their own if they continue to instigate war not peace and expecting us to come to their rescue. Well the heck with them we have given enough!



James Joiner
Gardner, Ma
http://anaverageamericanpatriot.blogspot.com

Israel is gathering all Islamists to take Israel on in the Golan Heights

Syria says can respond to Israeli actions via Golan: Following alleged Israeli air strikes near Damascus over the weekend, Syrian authorities had considered allowing Palestinian armed groups to launch attacks against Israel across the Golan Heights border, Syrian daily Al Watan reported last Monday. 

 Khalid Abd al-Majid, secretary-general of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC), said in light of recent events, Syria had the “right and duty to respond using all available means”. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said last Thursday his forces would support any Syrian effort to recapture the Israeli Golan Heights. 

Destroying Israel as you know is the goal of Iran, Hezbollah, and all the Islamists not just those now in Golan Heights but those throughout the middle east. Put this all together and you will realize it is all headed towards Israel and coming to a head. we are resupplying Israel but in the end will be dragged into this too.

*The frontier, quiet since Israel and Syria agreed on a US-brokered ceasefire in 1974, has turned volatile in recent weeks, after opposition brigades stepped up attacks against army and intelligence compounds dotting the agricultural plain stretching from the border with Jordan to the Damascus outskirts.

*Syrian rebels said to be gaining ground near Israel: Israel has long been on high – yet quiet – alert on its border with Syria, as the IDF observes the battles taking place. Contingencies the IDF is prepared to deal with include a permanent withdrawal of the UN peacekeeping force stationed in the Syria- Israel buffer zone; the peacekeepers have already ceased their patrols.Other scenarios include coming face-to-face with radical jihadi elements across the frontier. Groups such as Jabhat al-Nusra (“The Salvation Front”), a rebel organization set up by al-Qaida in Iraq, are among the rebels gaining ground.

Iran and the Taliban are historic enemies but remember the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Iran once wanted to help us against their enemy the Taliban: look what we have done! Iran instead is paying their enemy the Taliban to Kill U.S. Troops, they train the Taliban to ambush allied forces and on improvised explosive devices. What the hell is wrong with us? Now they are uniting until we are out of the area then they will turn back on each other? Or try to destroy Israel first.

Report: Iran Paying Taliban to Kill U.S. Troops

None of this is breaking news, in fact some is ancient. At least five Iranian companies in Afghanistan's capital are using their offices covertly to finance Taliban militants in provinces near Kabul, according to an investigation by London's Sunday Times. All sides of this problem are Bush's fault to. He ignored Afghanistan so he could play in the middle east and ha attacked Iraq to free Iran up to instigate against us in Afghanistan, the entire middle east, and around the world.

Iran trains Taliban to ambush allied forces in camps along the border between Afghanistan and Iran, Taliban recruits are being taught how to ambush allied forces using guns and improvised explosive devices.

I don't have to tell you: The Taliban do not want a Democracy period. They want strict Sharia law! They are arguably defeating us in Afghanistan despite claims that we have them on a downward spiral. I find that hard to believe. Afghanistan is their country not ours. They are not going to cut and run. You know how they have all felt since day one, they want us off Muslim land and these are some of the hard core.

Most realize by now that Obama planned on reaching out to Iran To help in Afghanistan! At first glance that sounds ridiculous. I had no idea back in 1998 Iran was prepared to attack Afghanistan or that since they have been supplying weapons to Northern Afghanistan to fight the Taliban! check out the numerous common interests including survival as Iran is ultimately on the Taliban menu too.

At first I forgot but Iran's hostility toward the Taliban predates Sept. 11: the Taliban's interpretation of Islam holds that the Shiite Muslims who dominate Iran are heretics, and an Iranian diplomat is among those being held by militants. Iranians are also concerned about the boom in opium poppy cultivation that has swept Afghanistan in the aftermath of the U.S. invasion."

I will sum up just one story that ties them all together and that is "The Taliban get their first wish"Many Muslims believe that ancient Khorasan - which covers parts of modern-day Afghanistan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Iran, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan - is the promised land from where they will secure the first victory in the end-of-time battle in which the final round, according to their beliefs, will be fought in Bilad-i-Sham (Palestine-Lebanon-Syria).

I continue to say we played into their hands, we are right where they want us, and the entire world better frigging wake up because like it or not 9/11 was albeit a bad joke but just a joke as to what the future holds for us! This is no joke to so called Islamists including the Taliban! All they have to do is wait us out and they will have Afghanistan back.

I had no idea when I first mentioned that Pakistan and Afghanistan was the front line in this war against "Islamists" how right I was! finding this out just blew me away! I found out that many Muslim's believe that what is modern day Afghanistan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Iran, is the promised land from where they will secure victory in the end of days battle which ultimately will be fought in Palestine, Lebanon, and Syria.

Knowing this now makes sense of all the events we have been discussing with Syria, Lebanon, Gaza, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and to my surprise Iran. I had no idea Iran and the Taliban are enemies. This is a relationship we better exploit and instead of using Iran a natural enemy against the enemy once again we have united a common enemy against us first then they will turn on each other.

I have been long convinced Bush guaranteed a loss in Afghanistan and everywhere else when he insisted on attacking Iraq so he could help Israel create a new middle east order. I am afraid this is just taking shape and both sides, the Taliban, Iran, Hezbollah, the Islamists in Golan Heights and throughout the middle east and our so called allies are still just forming the front lines and gathering forces.

Both sides are still just beginning to build and This is still just beginning! Afghanistan has never been defeated but that is not even my biggest concern. We have for generations been angering Muslims and certainly in the last 12 years done everything possible to ensure an endless supply of martyrs wanting to give their life to kill infidels and destroy Israel for Allah!

Obama is being majorly tested! * In closing, Rove and Cheney are concerned about continuing the lie we lived under them and Bush and rewriting their dire History and preserving Bush's legacy of destruction as a great thing. 

Bush the servant of God, purveyor of war torture and destruction, doing it all for God in the name of peace. Sick! I do not see the necessary rosy scenario happening that would lead to a successful outcome for us or Israel. the ultimate target is Israel and I see all countries mentioned joining forces to destroy Israel.

Funny when you realize Bush's original goal was to get into the middle east to fix it as God told him and to help Israel build a safety zone. What a nightmare we have created for the middle east and hopefully not for us and the rest of the world too.



James Joiner
Gardner, Ma
http://anaverageamericanpatriot.blogspot.com 

Do downsides of U.S. energy independence outweigh upsides? I think so

The more I think about the US being energy independent and the world's top oil and natural gas producer the more destabilizing I believe it will be to world balance if there in fact is such a thing.

Let's start at home. I do not like fracking one bit. There is nothing good about it except for the energy companies and their interests and Politicians and their interests. Once again despite the lies as to how good this is for you and the country there is nothing in this for the people.

From what I have seen already we are destroying peoples food and water sources making them dependent on who? and grossly destabilizing the ground. Everywhere fracking goes on earthquakes are showing up regardless of the fact that there was no earthquakes in the past and it is no ones fault of course, it is natural my rear.

To me for the people to think there is any plus at all at our becoming energy independent they would want to see the price at the pump go down. That you know will never happen because it is not in the interest of oil companies. As they do now, whenever something good or bad happens that may or may not even affect the industry they raise prices.

So self sufficiency is not to our benefit it is to the benefit of the energy industry alone in the long run.Politicians of course will take credit and for what is anyone's guess. Just imagine the change to the world's current energy leaders.

In a nutshell, the US will no longer need Africa's or the middle east oil or what little natural gas we get there. So what you say, they will just sell it to India and or China who are more than happy to get it. The middle east, China, and the entire world energy balance is changing as we speak.

 The US will be off the market as a user and will be an ever growing supplier competing with the world's top natural gas producer Russia along with the middle east, Africa, and the rest of the world for oil.

The downsides of U.S. energy independence: What is more appropriately defined as North American oil independence – since the United States will continue to depend on Canadian and Mexican crude for decades to come – is almost unanimously hailed as a positive development that will enhance American security. 

 What gets mentioned less are the downsides of energy independence. Rising U.S. and Canadian oil production could well destabilize petro-states in the Middle East, Russia, Africa and beyond, sparking regime changes unfavourable to U.S. interests and creating an even riskier world.

Just think of the monumental changes that have already begun: Japan to build LNG terminal for US shale gas

*Japan to build LNG terminal for US shale gas imports-media: A local government in western Japan is planning to build a liquefied natural gas terminal to import shale gas from the United States and help reduce reliance on nuclear energy, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Saturday.

Nuclear power supplied nearly 30 percent of Japan's electricity needs before a massive earthquake and tsunami nearly two years ago sparked nuclear meltdowns at the Fukushima plant in the northeast. Japan switching from nuclear power to natural gas?

*US to be top oil producer by 2017, report says, America will be self-sufficient by 2030, study finds: The consequences are ‘‘potentially far reaching’’ for global energy markets and trade, the report said. Birol noted, for example, that Middle Eastern oil once bound for the United States would probably be rerouted to China. US-mined coal, facing declining demand in its home market, is already heading to Europe and China instead.

There are several components of the sudden shift in the world’s energy supply, but the prime mover is a resurgence of US oil and gas production, particularly the unlocking of new reserves of oil and gas found in shale rock. The widespread adoption of techniques such as hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling has made those reserves much more accessible, and, in the case of natural gas, resulted in a vast glut that has sent prices plunging. The report predicted that the United States would overtake Russia as the leading producer of natural gas in 2015.

I do not like Fracking or horizontal drilling but imagine the United States as the worlds leading gas And oil exporter? A headline on an old newspaper reads: Oil Shale Development Imminent,". That edition of the defunct Grand Junction News, was published at the dawn of the 20th century.

More than a hundred years later, instability is roiling world oil markets, and Americans are paying $3.50 a gallon for gas. And oil shale fever is again rising in the geologic region known as the Piceance Basin, part of the Green River Formation that stretches across the rugged plains of northwestern Colorado and parts of Wyoming and Utah.

There is no dispute that a thousand feet below the isolated ranch country here on Colorado's western slope lie almost unimaginable oil riches. It's locked in sedimentary rock -- essentially immature oil that given a few million years under heat and pressure would produce pools of oil easy to extract.

The Energy Department and private industry estimate that a trillion barrels are here in Colorado -- about the same amount as the entire world's known reserves of conventional oil. The entire Green River Formation might hold as much as 2 trillion barrels.

Supposedly secretly Pushed by the Bush administration and legislation from Congress , and spurred by oil prices above $70 a barrel, the energy industry is mobilized to unlock the secret of oil shale. Now Obama has made retrieving shale oil a priority. 

As it has before, shale oil holds out the hope of a USA no longer dependent on foreign oil. Shell Oil is engaged in a multi year test of a new technology for extracting the oil. Previous efforts that were uneconomical and environmentally destructive entailed mining the rock, crushing it and heating it above ground to release the oil.

Shell's new process involves sinking heaters deep underground, cooking the rock at 700 degrees and recovering the oil and natural gas with conventional drilling.

For a decade, Shell has been ramping up its research on private property here. It is also one of a handful of companies vying for research and development leases on larger tracts of federal land nearby. That could lead to full-scale development across 1,200 square miles of western Colorado.

Early results are promising, says Terry O'Connor, a vice president in the oil giant's unconventional resource division. But, he admits, "no one has been able to develop oil shale on a commercially sustainable basis.

That is $3.50 to $4 fuel that is here now. My question is have the oil companies purposely been driving up the prices in order to justify retrieving this huge reserves at our expense? Also at the expense of the environment and alternative fuel sources! What about world balance? I would prefer we stay status quo and keep our own ability to be independent active but as a big stick. What say you?

James Joiner
Gardner Ma
http://anaverageamericanpatriot.blogspot.com

China and India's rivalry extending from the Himalaya's to the Arctic is first about water:

China wants to be so called friends with India only because India perceivably is China's greatest barrier to holding sway over all of Asia, that is if they can get the U.S. out of the picture which they never will.

I often say China's interest in Tibet is all about controlling Asia's main water source the Himalaya's. Control the diminishing water source and you control all the Nation's downhill including India.

*Border dispute exposes fault line in China-India relations: “We thought we were seeing the beginning of something really good that was going to take us forward,” one Indian official says of the planned visit later in May. “The economic relationship is expanding fast, and we were going to focus on that. But now we feel there’s a complete lack of sincerity on the Chinese side.”

 

*China and India's rivalry extends to the Arctic: While the recent troop standoff in a remote Himalayan desert spotlights a long-running border dispute between China and India, the two emerging giants are engaged in a rivalry for global influence that spreads much farther afield. From Africa to the Arctic, the world's two most populous countries are bumping up against each other in their search for resources and new markets. 

Their rivalry is spilling over into global diplomacy and international institutions where Beijing and Delhi have elbow-jabbed over development loans and a seat for India on the U.N. Security Council. Chinese dam-building on the upper reaches of the Brahmaputra River has raised fears in India that Beijing might one day reduce or turn off critical water supplies.

*India agrees to some Chinese demands to end Himalaya standoff:

What is behind China controlling Tibet? Water not Religion or unity!

What's behind China's Tibetan unrest?: Beijing appears determined to contain the volatile situation in an ethnically Tibetan region of southwestern China by sending in thousands of extra security forces.The move comes against a backdrop of anger and despair over Chinese rule, culminating in a growing number of protests and clashes with police, as well as a string of acts of self-immolation by Tibetans.
What is the dispute about? I'll tell you what it is about and it is not Religion. It is all about controlling their and Asia's water source the Himalayas!

China's obsession with Tibet is all about controlling Asia's water source for the future. China will "smash" any plan to undermine Tibet's place within China because the Himalaya's are China and Asia's water supply. Control that and you control Asia or start a war?

China stands firm against Tibet separatism: The man destined to take over the leadership of China said he will "smash" any plan to undermine Tibet's place within China. Xi Jinping made the statement during a major trip to Lhasa, the capital of Tibet, where he and his entourage of nearly 60 senior central government ... China will "smash" any plan to undermine Tibet's place within China because the Himalaya's are China and Asia's water supply. Control that and you control Asia or start a war? We first discussed it 4 years ago

Droughts and water shortages already been driving conflict around the globe: The potential for conflict is more than theoretical. Turkey, Syria and Iraq bristle over the Euphrates and Tigris rivers. Sudan, Ethiopia and Egypt trade threats over the Nile. The United Nations has said water scarcity is behind the bloody wars in Sudan’s Darfur region. In Somalia, drought has spawned warlords and armies. Already, the World Health Organization says, 1 billion people lack access to potable water. In northern China, retreating glaciers and shrinking wetlands that feed the Yangtze River prompted researchers to warn that water supplies for hundreds of millions of people may be at risk.

Water has emerged as a key issue that could determine if Asia is headed toward cooperation or competition. No country would influence that direction more than China, which controls the Tibetan plateau, the source of most major rivers of Asia. Tibet's vast glaciers and high altitude have endowed it with the world's greatest river systems. Its rivers are a lifeline to the world's two most-populous states - China and India - as well as to Bangladesh, Burma, Bhutan, Nepal, Cambodia, Pakistan, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam. These countries make up 47 percent of the global population.

Yet Asia is a water-deficient continent. Although home to more than half of the human population, Asia has less fresh water - 3,920 cubic meters per person - than any continent other than the Antarctica and China is taking it. The looming struggle over water resources in Asia has been underscored by the spread of irrigated farming, water-intensive industries and a growing middle class that wants high water-consuming comforts like washing machines and dishwashers. Household water consumption in Asia is rising rapidly, although several major economies there are acutely water-stressed.

The specter of water wars in Asia is also being highlighted by climate change and environmental degradation in the form of shrinking forests and swamps that foster a cycle of chronic flooding and droughts. The Himalayan snow melt that feeds Asia's great rivers could be accelerated by global warming. Man am I naive! I couldn't understand China's wanting to control Tibet, the Himalaya's, and the Dali Lama, now I know. Asia's water wars It is all about the water period!

This is a crisis that will only worsen every day around the world .

James Joiner
Gardner, Ma
http://anaverageamericanpatriot.blogspot.com