Belgian Prime Minister is a little confussed

Day La Marseillaise became the new anthem of Belgium
David Charter in Brussels

From Times Online

July 23, 2007

On grand ceremonial occasions, nothing has the power to stir the heart and unite the public quite like the national anthem. Unless you are the new Prime Minister of Belgium.

Yves Leterme has not yet been officially sworn in but has already lost the confidence of half his country after reciting the opening lines of the Marseillaise - the French anthem - when asked if he knew the words to his country’s national song.

Belgium’s francophone newspapers today likened the gaffe to Nicolas Sarkozy, the French President, breaking into “God Save the Queen” on Bastille Day.

To add insult to injury, Mr Leterme then failed to give the correct reason behind the choice of July 21 for Belgium’s National Day.

“The proclamation of the constitution,” he said confidently, only to be reminded it was in fact the day that Leopold I became the King of the Belgians in 1831.

In a country already divided between the poorer French-speaking south and Mr Leterme’s prosperous Dutch-speaking heartland in the north, the blunder has re-ignited fears that the new government cares little for Belgian unity.

Known as “Mr Flanders”, Mr Leterme won the general election last month on a pledge to devolve more power to the regions. A poll today showed that a quarter of Belgians believe this could lead to the break-up of their country.

“This was no Belgian joke. There is a fear that this was a subliminal message to the French-speakers,” said Le Soir newspaper. When he is in Brussels “you could say that Mr Flanders is on a visit to a foreign country”.

Mr Leterme could be forgiven for some confusion. The Belgian national anthem, the Brabanconne (song of Brabant) has three versions in the three national languages, French, Flemish and German, which all have different English translations. The Flemish version, for example, opens with a reference to “our holy fathers” while the French extols “our dear mother Belgium”.

But the symbolism of his gaffe has not been lost on French-speaking Wallonia. The anthem was written in 1830 by a French-Belgian revolutionary who was later killed in the independence struggle with the Dutch.

Mr Leterme was challenged after an earlier poll suggested that three out of four Belgians did not know the words to any of the three versions. When the premier-in-waiting began with the words “Allons enfants de la patrie, le jour de gloire est arrivé", he was asked if he was absolutely sure that was his own national anthem. “Oh I don’t know,” he replied.

In the Flemish north, where Mr Leterme was regional prime minister and remains hugely popular, the mistake was dismissed as a storm in a tea-cup.

Het Laatste Nieuws, a daily newspaper, said that “real government negotiations are about to begin and the Marseillaise incident will have no effect at all.” De Tijd, another Flemish daily, added: “Above all this reflects the fear of francophones about a reform of the state - and the financial consequences for them.”

Khmer Rough leader charged with crimes against humanity

First Khmer Rouge leader charged

An ex-Khmer Rouge prison chief has been charged with crimes against humanity by a UN-backed tribunal in Cambodia.

Kang Kek Ieu, also known as Duch, was in charge of the notorious S21 jail in the country's capital, Phnom Penh.

Duch is the first of five suspects whom prosecutors have asked the tribunal to investigate over their role in the brutal Khmer Rouge regime.

More than a million people are thought to have died during the four years of Khmer Rouge rule between 1975-79.

Judges spent several hours interviewing Duch on Tuesday before formally filing charges against him.

"The co-investigating judges of the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia have charged Kang Kek Ieu, alias Duch, for crimes against humanity and have placed him in provisional detention," tribunal judges said in a statement.

Duch was not among the top level of Khmer Rouge leaders but he has become one of its most notorious members, according to the BBC's Guy De Launey in Phnom Penh.

He ran S21, a notorious jail where a total of more than 17,000 men, women and children were thought to have been imprisoned, many of them brutally tortured.

A museum at the site illustrates in graphic detail what happened to the inmates, many of whom were executed at the so-called Killing Fields outside Phnom Penh.

Long process

The UN-backed tribunal has taken years to get off the ground.

But by charging Duch, the judges are sending out a clear message that the special courts are now operational and moving more quickly than many people expected, our correspondent says.

Survivors have welcomed the charges, but they have also expressed doubts about whether other, more senior Khmer Rouge leaders will ever be brought to justice.

Duch had been in military custody for eight years and it was a simple matter to transfer him to the special courts. But other Khmer Rouge figures have been living freely in Cambodia - and may prove more difficult to track down.

Among those thought to be on the tribunal's list of suspects are "Brother Number Two" Nuon Chea, former president Khieu Samphan and Khmer Rouge foreign minister Ieng Sary.

But the two most senior Khmer Rouge leaders will never be brought to trial.

"Brother Number One" Pol Pot, the founder and leader of the regime, died in a camp along the border with Thailand in 1998, and Ta Mok, the regime's military commander and one of Pol Pot's most ruthless henchmen, died last year.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/asia-pacific/6924371.stm

Published: 2007/07/31 14:30:17 GMT

© BBC MMVII

Miniature Earth

This is an amazing video. It's quite thought provoking.

Friends In Mexico

Back in the USA!

How does one explain being back in the USA after having lived in Third World countries for the past year? Explaining the feeling and the sensation would be like trying to describe the feeling you get when you see a beautiful sunset; or when you smell fresh baked bread. We know that the feeling makes us feel good, but we cannot quite put it into words. Really the only thing that I can say it is akin to, would have to be the seeing of an old friend that you haven’t seen in years and years. When you finally do meet up again, it’s like nothing had ever changed. Time had not passed. That is pretty much how I’m feeling right about now.

Yes the Country still has problems. Bush is still the President. The idiot Democrats in Congress are still suffering from Stockholm Syndrome or something, because they’re still not doing a damn thing. The economy still sucks, and I still owe thousands and thousands of dollars on my student loans. But, the United States is still here. The essence of Her still exists, and, oh, what a pleasant essence it is.

I know that many people have said this, and it has become a rather over-used cliché, but you most certainly do NOT know what you’re missing until you don’t have it. I honestly don’t know how I have survived for the past year without Barnes & Noble™, Starbucks®, Safeway®, the NBC Nightly News™ (such that it is), and the New York Times. Yes, all of these things are just “things.” That point certainly has validity, and you will get no argument from me on that point.
However, my point is that there is something comfortable, and, well for lack of a better term, superior to being able to get whatever you want, whenever you want it. It’s not necessary for me to travel 1 ¾ hours by bus to México City, just to get a latte. It’s not necessary to read the newspaper and think that you’re only getting one side of the story because everything is owned by one company, umm, well maybe that’s not too different.

It’s not necessary to pay all your money to ONE company if you want to make a phone call. It’s not necessary to deal with harassing and unprofessional people in the workplace, because there are laws that actually protect the workers, well for now anyway. It’s not necessary to step over mountains of garbage while walking down the sidewalk. It’s not necessary to smell raw sewage flowing down the river.

All of these things are just a part of what makes it so wonderful to be back in the USA. I don’t want anyone to take this the wrong way at all. I had an amazing time traveling around, and seeing all the amazing things that I have seen; I don’t think I’ll have the chance ever again. It’s just that there’s something about being home. There’s a feeling of belonging, of being part of the greater whole, that you don’t feel when you’re living and working in a foreign country. While in Thailand and Mexico, I constantly had the feeling of being judged in the eyes of every single Thai or Mexican I crossed paths with.

Don’t think for an instant that I’m so naïve as to think that Americans are not judgmental! I would have to say that we gringos are some of the MOST judgmental people on this blue marble of ours. What I am saying, is that we tend to not show our judgment of others outright.

While in Thailand and Mexico I was able to travel, and see many amazing sights. I was able to make some amazing friends. People that I know will be part of my life for years to come. Those are all things that I will never forget.

Adios México

Closing Ceremony American School of Pachuca

We had the closing ceremonies for the 2006 - 2007 school year today. It was a interesting event to say the least. The kids have been out of school for a week, and they were all required to return to school for the two hour event this morning; quite strange. Here are some pictures from the "festivities."

Three of Bret's kids (left to right): Oscar, Diego, and Raymundo

Bret with Georgette

Jan with Vivi

Jan with Fanny

The Changing of the Flag Ceremony

Over the course of the school year the 6th graders are the ones who carry in the flag during every Monday's Flag Ceremony. This is the little ceremony they had the flag over to the 5th graders who will be entering the 6th Grade.

5th Grade Girls do a little dance

Dispensing of Academic Achievement Awards

Dirty Dancing

Two Kitties

Here are a couple pictures of our two kitties.

I Hate Mexico

I hate to say this, but I hate Mexico. I truly hate everything about this country. I don't know how this place can possibly function on a day-to-day basis. There is a mentality here of 'manana, manana.' Everything is tomorrow, tomorrow. And odds are that it won't get accomplished tomorrow, or ever for that matter. Furthermore, the corruption that is rampant throughout the country is astonishing! From the loftiest politician, to the lowliest crossing guard, every one in this country is looking to get something for nothing.

When we first made our decision to come here from Thailand, I think that we were under the assumption that the whole of Mexico was going to be like Cabo San Lucas, or Cancun. Needless to say, this is not what we found. We found a place where it is very difficult to get around; electricity is out more than it is on; you have to buy gas for cooking and heating water off trucks in 40gal tanks; and the people are incredibly DISHONEST. This misconception was partially due to our lack of knowledge about the country, and a misrepresentation of the city of Pachuca by the school during our interview.

I do not mean to paint every single Mexican in the country with the same broad brush, but all in all this has not been a good experience. From the extreme drama we had to deal with at the American School, to the laptop being stolen by FedEx, I don't think that there has been one single week that has been drama free.

Mexico truly is the third world, as much as they would like it not to be so. The dichotomy between the "haves" and the "have nots" is staggering. The extremely wealthy in this country have only become extremely wealthy by taking as much advantage as humanly possible on the gullibility and naïveté of the common Mexican. The richest man in Mexico, and the 5th or 6th richest in the world, Carlos Slim, is the owner of Telmex; the Mexican telephone company. This company has a COMPLETE monopoly on the telephone services in the country. If you want a phone in your home… Telmex. Internet…Telmex. Cell phone…Telmex. Make a phone call from a pay phone…yes, Telmex. And Telmex is NOT cheap, quite the opposite actually, it is very expensive. But it is the nature of all monopolies to gouge people as much as they can, because they can.

There is a story that virtually every Mexican knows. A few years ago, T-Mobile (owned by Deutch Telecom) was going to try to set up a mobile network in Mexico. In order to do this they had to get the permission of the Mexican federal government. Well to cut a long story short, T-Mobile never set up a network in Mexico. They were NOT able to complete with the amounts of cash that Telmex was bribing officials with.

This sort of underhanded, criminal action is indicative of the country as a whole. After living here and seeing how the poor of this country are treated, I certainly don't blame them for risking life and limb trying to get into the United States. I think that after we leave here, we will never return. Not for anything. I can say, with 100% certitude, that the only thing we have liked about being here is the wonderful group of friends that we have made at the school. Beyond that? Nada. Zip. Zilch.

Well that's my rant for today. Cheers and see you soon.