Fausta's Blog

American and Latin American Politics, Society, and Culture

Archives for September 2007

September 30, 2007 By Fausta

Sunday shoes, a dilemma, and a Carnival

I was at Palmer Square yesterday and noticed that the Nine West store is having a sale. As regular readers of this blog probably have noticed by now, to me the combination of “shoes” and “sale” is essentially irresistible.

Nine West is carrying these,


They are marked down from $79.00, to $49.00

The plastic Nine Wests are made in China and do not make the feet or your legs look attractive. Ugly shoes never do. I tried on a pair and the rough rims of the shoe will cause a blister on your tender skin.

This particular style is an atrociously poor knock-off of the classic Ferragamo Vara style:

The Ferragamos retail for $290.00 at Neiman Marcus and at the Ferragamo flagship store on Fifth Avenue in New York.

The leather Vara is handmade in Italy.

I’ve had this style of Ferragamos (in black leather, not patent leather) for nearly twenty years. It is the kind of classic shoe that speaks of class, quality and conservative discernment. I believe I paid $120 or so back then, and they have been worth every penny. If there’s a woman’s shoe that spells “solid respectability”, it is the Ferragamo Vara.

More importantly, there are two other advantages: the Vara is a most flattering shoe, and a shoe that can be worn all day.

But there’s a greater issue: the issue of slave labor.

The Manolo quotes The Plumcake,

It is the mantra of the Manolo Blogs that instead of buying cheap footwear made with deplorable lack of attention to detail by whatever 8-year old Bangladeshi child was cuffed to that particular table, one must save up for the superfantastic shoes, lovingly made by handsome gruff men named Aldo who drive cool Italian scooters and get 90 minute lunch breaks.

Having had – when I was in Italy – too too many unwelcome encounters with handsome gruff men named Aldo who simply could not believe all I wanted to do was read the newspaper, eat my lunch and have my jolt of expresso by myself when I obviously could have been enjoying a blissful (at least for him) 90 minutes with scooting Aldo instead, The Plumcake has nearly talked me out of buying Italian shoes for the rest of my days.

But that’s not the issue. The issue is slave labor and child labor.

We have a dilemma when it comes to child labor: The Bangladeshi economy can not distribute what it doesn’t have (wealth), and in order to create wealth it must become a producing economy. At the same time, it is attempting to become a producing economy on a lowest-price-producer basis, and the cheapest labor of all is child labor.

(Please spare me the emails asking me why am I picking on Bangladesh. I am only using that country for the purpose of expedience. The same situation occurs in whatever third-world military regime and/or dictatorship you want to bring up.)

I have no illusions as to whether those children would have better lives if they were not doing factory work. They would not be in school. They would be enslaved in other ways.

At the same time, directly transferring moneys from the developed countries leads to even more corruption and exploitation. The only way for underdeveloped countries to move forward is through economic development. In developed countries child labor was not erradicated until there was a rise in the standard of living brought on by the Industrial Revolution and families could afford to send their children to school.

So I present the question to my visitors: What to do?

Would the answer lie on an emphasis on primary school education? And, if so, where to start?

———————————————————–

Today Dr. Sanity has An Ahmadinejadpalooza of a Carnival!

Digg!
Technorati: Ferragamo
Share on Facebook

Share

Filed Under: economics, shoes

September 29, 2007 By Fausta

Saturday night Tom and Janis

Share

Filed Under: Uncategorized

September 29, 2007 By Fausta

Saturday night Fire and Rain

For all the friends I thought I’d see one more time again,

Just yesterday morning they let me know you were gone
Susanne the plans they made put an end to you
I walked out this morning and I wrote down this song
I just can’t remember who to send it to

I’ve seen fire and I’ve seen rain
I’ve seen sunny days that I thought would never end
I’ve seen lonely times when I could not find a friend
But I always thought that I’d see you again

Won’t you look down upon me, Jesus
You’ve got to help me make a stand
You’ve just got to see me through another day
My body’s aching and my time is at hand
And I won’t make it any other way

Oh, I’ve seen fire and I’ve seen rain
I’ve seen sunny days that I thought would never end
I’ve seen lonely times when I could not find a friend
But I always thought that I’d see you again

Been walking my mind to an easy time my back turned towards the sun
Lord knows when the cold wind blows it’ll turn your head around
Well, there’s hours of time on the telephone line to talk about things
to come
Sweet dreams and flying machines in pieces on the ground

Oh, I’ve seen fire and I’ve seen rain
I’ve seen sunny days that I thought would never end
I’ve seen lonely times when I could not find a friend
But I always thought that I’d see you, baby, one more time again, now

Thought I’d see you one more time again
There’s just a few things coming my way this time around, now
Thought I’d see you, thought I’d see you fire and rain, now.

Share

Filed Under: Uncategorized

September 29, 2007 By Fausta

This comes as no surprise

BBC’s Newsround fed youngsters Al Qaeda propaganda, claims ex-spy chief

Newsround is aimed at viewers aged between six and 12.

On its website it answered the question concerning 9/11, “Why did they do it” by saying: “The way America has got involved in conflicts in regions like the Middle East has made some people very angry, including a group called al Qaeda – who are widely thought to have been behind the attacks.”

After the public complained, the text was amended.

It now reads: “Al Qaeda is unhappy with America and other countries getting involved in places like the Middle East.

“People linked to al Qaeda have used violence to make this point in the U.S.A, and in other countries.”

Now take a look at that statement:

People linked to al Qaeda have used violence to make this point in the U.S.A, and in other countries

In the Beeb’s fevered mind it’s OK to tell young children that the murder of 3,000 innocent people is justified because “Al Qaeda is unhappy”.

I agree with Dame Pauline,

Dame Pauline, who headed the Government’s Joint Intelligence Committee and is described as the most formidable female diplomat Britain has produced, said the new version was even worse.

“It still says it’s all America’s fault, and now for daring to be involved in the Middle East at all,” she said.

“It wasn’t ‘people linked to’ al Qaeda who killed 3,000 people that day, it was al Qaeda itself.

“Osama bin Laden even boasted of the attacks. Is the BBC really saying that if you’re ‘unhappy’ it’s quite normal behaviour to murder people?

“Is the BBC so naive as to take al Qaeda’s propaganda at face value? Or is there something more sinister at work here?”

Dame Pauline knows what she’s talking about: she is Britain’s former spy chief and a former BBC governor.

Biased BBC has been following the story since June.

Digg!

Share on Facebook

Share

Filed Under: al-Qaeda, BBC, UK

September 29, 2007 By Fausta

Why should terrorists’ privacy be protected…

when our lives are on the line for every moment wasted?

Share

Filed Under: terrorism

September 28, 2007 By Fausta

Sen. McCain’s bloggers’ call

Sen. John McCain had another of his series of bloggers’ conference calls today, and I had the honor of taking part. Captain Ed has the details.

The most important part of the calls, aside from obviously the PR aspect, is that the Senator is one of the few Republican candidates engaging the bloggers. It really shows Sen. McCain’s commitment to keeping the electorate informed while at the same time hearing out our questions.

My article is up at Pajamas Media

Share

Filed Under: bloggers, John McCain

September 28, 2007 By Fausta

Learning To Live With The Iranian Bomb?

Click on the post title and read it.

Background here.

Update, Saturday 29 September
More at Gates of Vienna.

Share

Filed Under: Iran

September 28, 2007 By Fausta

Ahmadinejad goes to Bolivia and Venezuela; Spacey goes to Venezuela and Cuba

Continuing his triumphal grand tour, after leaving the US and being celebrated by fellational journalists and others, ‘Jad went to Bolivia.

Ahmadinejad bolsters Iranian ties with Bolivia and Nicaragua. I have no idea why the IHT headline mentions Nicaragua and not Venezuela, but here’s the text of the article (emphasis added):

On a trip to strengthen ties with leftists in Latin America and roll back U.S. influence, the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has pledged to invest $1 billion in Bolivia and reaffirmed relations with the Venezuelan president with a declaration that “no one can defeat us.”

Promises, promises.

‘Jad and Evo go back a long time:

But the promises don’t come for free:

The investment in Bolivia, to be made over the next five years, would help the country tap its vast natural gas reserves, extract minerals, generate more electricity and finance agricultural and construction projects.

After La Paz, ‘Jad flew up to Caracas, where the love flowed:

Chavez greeted the Iranian leader warmly on a red carpet in front of the presidential palace, where they both stood before microphones and let loose with rhetoric challenging Washington.

The BBC states, “The Iranian and Venezuelan leaders see themselves as brothers, with similar political aims.”

You know things are screwed up in Venezuela that pro-democracy students are asking Ahmadinejad to serve as intermediary with Chavez so Hugo will grant them the right to ask questions regarding Venezuelan-Iranian relations.

———————————————————

In other Latin American celebrity travel news, Actor Kevin Spacey met with Chavez looking for oil money to produce movies, since Hugo Chavez Funds State-Run Film Studio and already gave Danny Glover a few million $$$.

I wonder if Hugo and Kevin were pondering another sequel to The Karate Kid, but maybe it was just a regular dinner-and-a-movie kind of date:

Neither Spacey _ who has won Academy Awards for roles in “The Usual Suspects” and “American Beauty” _ nor Chavez spoke to the press after the nearly three-hour encounter in the presidential palace in Caracas. They shook hands warmly on the red carpet as Spacey left after a dinner with Chavez.

We’ll never know for sure.

The AP story claims that “Details were not released about the rest of Spacey’s itinerary.” Maybe the AP reporter should have spent some time watching Venezuela’s government-controlled TV newscasts, because in this video (via Jeremayakovka) the reporter (in Spanish) says that after Caracas Kevin was heading to Cuba.

Chalk it up to Associated Press Deficit Disorder, because Kevin indeed went to Cuba after leaving Venezuela.

Marc Masferrer links to the article, El actor estadounidense Kevin Spacey se pasea de incógnito en Cuba (American Actor Kevin Spacey Travels Incognito Through Cuba).

Other recent visitors to Cuba listed in the article include Michael Moore, Benicio del Toro, Steven Soderberg, Sean Penn, Joseph and Ralph Fiennes, Gael García Bernal and Fernando Trueba.

I don’t believe any of them asked about Martha Beatriz Roque, Elizardo Sanchez, or much anyone else who is not a celebrity.

Update: GM follows up.

———————————————————

Update 2:
Totten’s turn;

Digg

Share on Facebook

Share

Filed Under: APDD, Associated Press Deficit Disorder, Cuba, Cubazuela, Iran, Kevin Spacey, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Michael Moore

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 10
  • Next Page »
Tweets by @Fausta
retirees_raise-2015_300x250

Pages

  • About
  • Email

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Previous Posts

  • Mrs. Maisel goes full Alinsky on Mrs. Schlafly
  • Venezuela: Did the Minister of Defense back out at the last minute?
  • You need to unfriend me
  • Go ahead and Kiss the Girl, if you dare
  • Ashamed

Recent Comments

  • John on Mrs. Maisel goes full Alinsky on Mrs. Schlafly
  • Today’s hot topics: Democrats’ collusion shift, tax-return rift, Venezuela drift, and more! – PoliticalWitchDoctor.com on Venezuela: Did the Minister of Defense back out at the last minute?
  • Today’s hot topics: Democrats’ collusion shift, tax-return rift, Venezuela drift, and more! - AmericanTruthToday on Venezuela: Did the Minister of Defense back out at the last minute?
  • Did Venezuela’s Minister of Defense Back Out At The Last Minute? on Venezuela: Did the Minister of Defense back out at the last minute?
  • Roseanne Not Back, Khan not Invited, Operaman’s back, Jobs back, Fausta’s back (but not here yet) Thoughts under the fedora – Da Tech Guy Blog on Venezuela: Did the Minister of Defense back out at the last minute?

Archives

  • 2019
    • December 2019
    • May 2019
    • January 2019
  • 2018
    • December 2018
    • October 2018
    • July 2018
    • June 2018
    • April 2018
    • March 2018
    • February 2018
    • January 2018
  • 2017
    • December 2017
    • November 2017
    • October 2017
    • September 2017
    • August 2017
    • July 2017
    • June 2017
    • May 2017
    • April 2017
    • March 2017
    • February 2017
    • January 2017
  • 2016
    • December 2016
    • November 2016
    • October 2016
    • September 2016
    • August 2016
    • July 2016
    • June 2016
    • May 2016
    • April 2016
    • March 2016
    • February 2016
    • January 2016
  • 2015
    • December 2015
    • November 2015
    • October 2015
    • September 2015
    • August 2015
    • July 2015
    • June 2015
    • May 2015
    • April 2015
    • March 2015
    • February 2015
    • January 2015
  • 2014
    • December 2014
    • November 2014
    • October 2014
    • September 2014
    • August 2014
    • July 2014
    • June 2014
    • May 2014
    • April 2014
    • March 2014
    • February 2014
    • January 2014
  • 2013
    • December 2013
    • November 2013
    • October 2013
    • September 2013
    • August 2013
    • July 2013
    • June 2013
    • May 2013
    • April 2013
    • March 2013
    • February 2013
    • January 2013
  • 2012
    • December 2012
    • November 2012
    • October 2012
    • September 2012
    • August 2012
    • July 2012
    • June 2012
    • May 2012
    • April 2012
    • March 2012
    • February 2012
    • January 2012
  • 2011
    • December 2011
    • November 2011
    • October 2011
    • September 2011
    • August 2011
    • July 2011
    • June 2011
    • May 2011
    • April 2011
    • March 2011
    • February 2011
    • January 2011
  • 2010
    • December 2010
    • November 2010
    • October 2010
    • September 2010
    • August 2010
    • July 2010
    • June 2010
    • May 2010
    • April 2010
    • March 2010
    • February 2010
    • January 2010
  • 2009
    • December 2009
    • November 2009
    • October 2009
    • September 2009
    • August 2009
    • July 2009
    • June 2009
    • May 2009
    • April 2009
    • March 2009
    • February 2009
    • January 2009
  • 2008
    • December 2008
    • November 2008
    • October 2008
    • September 2008
    • August 2008
    • July 2008
    • June 2008
    • May 2008
    • April 2008
    • March 2008
    • February 2008
    • January 2008
  • 2007
    • December 2007
    • November 2007
    • October 2007
    • September 2007
    • August 2007
    • July 2007
    • June 2007
    • May 2007
    • April 2007
    • March 2007
    • February 2007
    • January 2007
  • 2006
    • December 2006
    • November 2006
    • October 2006
    • September 2006
    • August 2006
    • July 2006
    • June 2006
    • May 2006
    • April 2006
    • March 2006
    • February 2006
    • January 2006
  • 2005
    • December 2005
    • November 2005
    • October 2005
    • September 2005
    • August 2005
    • July 2005
    • June 2005
    • May 2005
    • April 2005
    • March 2005
    • February 2005
    • January 2005
  • 2004
    • December 2004
    • November 2004
    • October 2004
    • September 2004
    • August 2004
    • July 2004
    • June 2004
    • May 2004
    • April 2004
    • March 2004
Content Copyright Fausta's Blog

Site Developed and Managed by 300m.com