Xenophobia reigns over Dubai port fiasco

[killerbush]

Apparantley, xenophobia reigns supreme over the Dubai ports deal. I also feel that out and out racism had something to do with it also. One good thing about it, George Bush got humiliated once again.

[emulatorloo]

1. I am dubious when George Bush plays the Race Card

As to George Bush and Xenophobia, gee he has always been so culturally sensitive -- Just ask our allies in France and Germany.

[blondeatlast]

16. Excellent summation. Looking forward to the OP's response. nt

[IsItJustMe]

2. Little or nothing to do with it. Fear of 9/11 and UAE did.

UAE are just bad actors. Ties with the Taliban. Oh Yeh, I wouldn't want these folks running a fricken hot dog stand. No human rights, treat women like shit.

You think the Repukes are hard on women, you aint seen shit. These are not enlightened people here.


NO, I don't think so.

[Sensitivity]

20. This is from the NeoCon spin mill. Wish we would not trust them after

what they did to get U.S. to invade Iraq.

[Mythsaje]

3. Do everything you can to provoke

people into mistrusting Arabs enough to justify invading a country, and, amazingly enough, xenophobia results.

Personally I don't think any non-American company should be running our ports.

[babylonsister]

4. Sorry, but dimson encouraged xenophobia with his constant

terror messages. He's reaping what he sowed.

[Just Me]

5. YOU ARE WRONG WRONG WRONG!!!

At least, in terms of labelling us DUers as xenophobes.

Fuck! Dubai's still gonna get their money (along with the major capital contributor, BushCO-created Carlyle Group).

Dubai's still gonna' get around compliance with U.S. laws.

Dubai's still gonna' gain control over our ports.

So, RW xenophobia-bullshit assertions really don't freakin' matter (and I STILL CANNOT BELIEVE MILITARY SUPERIORS ASSERTED SUCH POLITICAL RHETORIC IN PUBLIC).

Dubai's still gonna' be A-O-K. BushCO's still gonna' profit. PNAC will still get to proceed with Dubai's ports open to the war-profiteering regime.

FUCK!!!

[aquart]

6. If it turns this nation against outsourcing, it's a good day.

[July]

7. Um, I have this recipe for pot roast.

Interested?

[IDemo]

8. The xenophobia rants are simply wrong

Xenophobia, from Answers.com: An unreasonable fear, distrust, or hatred of strangers, foreigners, or anything perceived as foreign or different.

The genuine concern of DU'ers, citizens, and Congress about the port deal was not about the "foreign or different" aspects of Dubai (which is a city, by the way, and not the whole country). The concern is that the host nation of DP World, the United Arab Emirates, played a significant factor in the financing and logistics for (some) 9/11 hijackers. Unlike Iraq, for instance...

[mac56]

9. You really think so?

Here's what I think:

It's a bad, bad idea.

If someone wants to label me xenophobic or racist for calling it a bad, bad idea, I reeeeeeally don't give a flying f*ck. Honest, I just don't.

It's still a bad, bad idea.

There was a time when such accusations would have shamed me into changing my mind. That ship has sailed (no pun intended).

[Sarah Ibarruri]

10. Let's see if I understand this correctly....

The UAE is directly connected with 9/11 because money was funneled from there, 2 of the terrorists were from the UAE, the UAE refused to allow the U.S. to examine bank accounts of the terrorists post-9/11, but now we must allow them to run our ports, well, because if not, we'll get called xenophobics.

[Stockholm]

11. You are right but

It is also a blatant example of how Pretzeldent in reality is weak on security, bugging the hell out of americans while handing over port security to a foreign country.

It is just sad that you need xenophobia to use the argument. At least I can´t find a way around it.

[erpowers]

12. Not Race

I contend that race had nothing to do with this at least from the Democrats side. For the Democrats this was about not letting a country that really supported terrorist run US ports. For anyone who wants to bring up the other ports that are run by foreign countries you need to know something that the media did not point out to you, the Republicans brought those deals about. The media continuously failed to mention that years ago an investigation was conducted into how the Chinese were able to take over ports in America and it was found that the Republicans pushed for them to get control. The investigation came about in that in her book "High Crimes and Misdemeanors" Ann Coulter accused President Clinton of allowing the Chinese to take over the ports. I guess a Republican who was left out of the loop and wanted to embarrass Clinton called for the investigation. By the end of the investigation it was proven that Republicans were responsible for the Chinese taking over American ports. So the Democrats were consistent on this issue. Maybe you were trying to point out that the Republicans brought down the deal due to racism. I just want to point out that the Democrat have been consistent on not letting anyone other than American companies run US ports.

[rman]

13. Oh sure, now it's the RW that's the example of racial tolerance

Why do you come here and repeat RW talking points?

[warrior1]

14. Has nothing to do with

Xenophobia.

He's has to do with allowing a state run business who funds terrorist and has a rotten record on human rights to guard our ports.

[blondeatlast]

15. Terra! (mideast) Terra! (mideast) Terra! (mideast).

W made us fear the Mideast and then expects us to embrace a nation with financial ties to al-Qaeda?

Um, excuse me, but, how many CIVILIANS were murdered on 9/11?

I'm looking so forward to your response to the replies you've received. You awake yet?

RW talking points don't generally go over well at DU, but props for the attempt.

Still, no beer from me, guy.

[DrGonzoLives]

17. Almost baseball season...

I think the Cardinals are in for another good year.

[IndianaGreen]

19. McGuire did steroids, his home run record should be expunge!

As Barry Bonds ought to be!

Roger Maris rocks!

Go Yankees!

:hide:

[DrGonzoLives]

21. Your Midwestern license is revoked

Yankee fans aren't welcome around here.

[IndianaGreen]

23. New York family ties!

Its either them, or the psychos in Florida.

[IndianaGreen]

18. Now we get Halliburton or Carlyle Group to manage the ports!

But they are all red blooded white corporatists, which is more palatable to our tastes. We only want to be exploited by white people!

Muslim bashing and gay bashing is still culturally acceptable in Amerika!

[Marie26]

22. They might have the last laugh

once Halliburton takes over the deal.

[killbotfactory]

24. It's pretty simple political calculation

Don't try to sell off our ports to a monarchy who dined and hunted with OBL and the Taliban.

[blondeatlast]

25. OP? You awake? nt

[paineinthearse]

26. Links between Bushco, BCCI, UAE, Barth, Harken, UBME, etc etc

[formercia]

28. what a tangled web......

http://www.waynemadsenreport.com/

March 10. 2006 -- Cui bono from Dubai Ports World's renegotiated U.S. port management deal? A number of observers suspect that the deal worked out for Dubai Ports World to transfer operations of U.S. ports to a U.S. firm involves Bush family business dealings. The drawings of the late artist Mark Lombardi point out some interesting relationships between the Bush family, the Bin Ladens, BCCI entities, and Dubai. Lombardi died from a reported hanging suicide in 2000 but his "Global Networks" drawings illustrating the relationships between Texas financial networks and Middle East businessmen and government figures have garnered the past interest of the FBI and Homeland Security Department.

One of Lombardi's drawings, titled "George W. Bush, Harken Energy and Jackson Stephens, c. 1979-90, 5th Version, © 1999," shows a link between UBME Bank Dubai and Bush Harken Energy investor Sheik Abdullah Taha Bakhsh, Bank of Credit and Commerce International (BCCI), SA (Luxembourg), Harken and BCCI investor Gaith Pharaon, the late Sheik Salim Bin Laden (the older brother of Osama Bin Laden who died in a 1988 plane crash in Texas), Main Bank Houston, James Bath, George W. Bush, and George H. W. Bush.

UBME Bank is now known as Emirates Bank International, the largest bank in Dubai.

Another Lombardi drawing, titled BCCI, ICIC & FAB, c. 1972-91, Second version, shows a connection between Ghaith Pharaon and his brother Wabel Pharaon and BCCI's Cayman Islands entity called ICIC. BCCI was an international slush fund used by Vice President George H. W. Bush to funnel money to various U.S. clients, including the Afghan mujaheddin, Sadaam Hussein, Gen. Manuel Noriega, Nigerian dictator Gen. Ibrahim Babangida, President Vinicio Cerezo in Guatemala, Palestinian terrorist Abu Nidal, Gen. Hussain Mohammed Ershad in Bangladesh, and Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in India. There is also a connection to UBS Bank in Switzerland where the Bush crime family reportedly has stored the billions of dollars in gold and jewels extorted from Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos in return for safe haven in the United States. The U.S. envoy who worked out that deal was Paul Wolfowitz, the then-Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs and now World Bank President.

[T Town Jake]

27. Just as "Watergate" came to symbolize NOT just...

...some botched, "third rate burglary" at the headquarters of the Democratic National Committee but an entire culture of corruption in the Nixon administration, so does this highlight not a single "deal" with another country regarding our ports, but the complete and total failure of the Bush administration to provided comprehensive oversight and security at ALL of our ports.

"Xenophobia" has nothing to do with it on our side of the aisle. I can't speak for the GOPers and Freepers motivations.

[salin]

29. come on...

whether or not "our side" reacted due to xenophobia... there was quite a bit of spinning it that way because of the irony - of the fear card bush trumped so many times... welling up and biting him in the behind. In part, though, for the reason you say... play the fear and then play the cynicism of bushco doing anything to help big monied interests... irony, irony, irony.

[RazzleDazzle]

30. ALERT: Republican talking points!!

with a bone to the home crowd to throw us off ("George Bush got humiliated once again")

There are plenty of substantive reasons that the UAE is being opposed, and they all start with the letter "terrorism." There are some human rights issues too.

Frankly, many of us Democrts are thoroughly against ANY foreign COMPANY, let alone government -- including the UK -- being involved in running our ports, our airports and airlines, and other key infrastructure. So there. Xenophobia and racism my ass.