Central America
 

Lee Kuan Yew disagrees. "Dictator Lee is the man who said of elections, 'The government will not be blackmailed by the people.'"

That's from the Safire thing I linked earlier.

Wolfie
 

Shoot. Let me think..... wait- maybe- Slave- did Kerry ever claim that he fought in Laos?

So Palestinians from other countries (or whose parents came from other countries) should be forcibly sent to Jordan. (eta: That would a short trip for them, but a big step for democracy in the Middle East, eh?) Do you also think that Jews from other countries should be forcibly sent to Israel?

Wolfie
 

What reports where? I first went to Thailand in 1989 and have been there every couple of years since. The change has been unbelievable. Bangkok now has the worst traffic jams in the World. Something like seventy percent of thai families have TV sets. The middle class has exploded. The prostitutes all over Asia come from the three countries I mentioned. There are some from Burma, but not as many, because it is harder for the people to get out. The refugee problems from Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam into Thailand are huge. The US government has been putting pressure on the Thai government to stop the sex trade (and send the girls back to their home countrys), but the Thai government has been arguing that these girls are better of in brothels than they would be in their home countries.

Central America
 

While surely teh degree of differences in opinion narrow as a society becomes richer, I cannot believe, and based on my experience, do not believe, that all Singaporeans think alike. Surely some of them would vote to allow chewing gum without a prescription.

You mean to tell me they weren't forced to flee Egypt? Syria?

Central America
 

Because India has had a full blown democracy since the end of WWII but had a socialist economy ever since then. It just started opening up in 1992 but still has a long way to go. For the authoritarian governments that instituted free market reforms, they have now all gone democratic and are prospersous. Democracys, that don't have free markets, and therefore, prosperity, also tend to fall back into dictatorships. Look at Venezuela.

You mean to tell me Palestinians weren't forced to flee Israel?

Central America
 

I am sure there are, but I never met any. Every once in a while a politician will start bitching about the governments restrictive policies but they never gain widespread support.

BTW: I cite a whole mess of authoritarian government that instituted free market reforms and then turned into stable democracies and the only one you guys focus on is Singapore. What about Spain, Portugal, Chile, South Korea, Thailand, Indonesia, Taiwan etc.

You mean to tell me that Israel doesn't allow Palestinians to live and work within its borders? You mean to tell me that the surrounding countries afford similar rights to Jews/Israelis ?

We can do this all fucking day, but it will get boring

I'm not the one saying the people living in Lebanon who are of Palestinian descent should be denied equal voting rights there and moved to Jordan. I drew the parallel because anyone who suggested the same thing about Jews in other countries would be labeled an anti-Semite pretty quickly. Regardless of how Israel treats Palestinian Israelis, it can't justify what you are suggesting for the refugees in Lebanon.

Sorry to support the dinasour, but during the 1948 war, I think it was an Irgun gang, exterminated an entire Palestinian village. The word got out and 90% of the palestinians in what is Israel proper fled and have never been allowed to return. The small numbers that stayed do enjoy rights as Israeli citizens. However, their relatives cannot move to Isreal (even the ones that fled) where any jewish isreali's family can move into Israel.

Slave supports the dinosaur, too, sometimes with Mexican food.

He has never given me any mexican food

1) I pointed out that a large number of the anti-US marchers yesterday in Beirut were Palestinian refugees. I neither argued for or against their right to the Lebanese franchise.

2) I have stated on numerous occasions that many of these "Palestinian" arabs should perhaps relocate to Jordan, rather than wallow away in refugee camps, as this was - in overly simplistic terms - the country that was established for them.

3) I don't know exactly what you think I am otherwise "suggesting"