Progress Ho

Stumbled upon this from Think Progress. "Rep. Allen West Falsely Claims China Controls The Panama Canal, Calls It A ‘Serious Threat’ To U.S." by Scott Keyes.

Keyes: During a Fort Lauderdale town hall last week, Rep. Allen West (R-FL) warned his constituents about "serious threats to our country," including Iran and Hezbollah. However, one of the examples West used repeatedly, was not just overblown; it was demonstrably untrue. Warning the crowd about the economic and national security dangers that China poses to the United States, West declared – twice – that "China is in control of the Panama Canal."

Keyes states that Chinese control of the Canal was debunked back in 2006 by the conservative NewsMax, after Hillary Clinton made the same claim of Chinese control of the Canal. Wow, ThinkProgress referencing NewsMax. Ironclad proof that we can all just get along (or is it get abong).

--- It appears the Chinese only control 2 ports, at each end of the canal. The Panamanians claim "the operation of ports is different, separate and unrelated from the Canal." And the Canal is a national treasure to Panamanians.

Never mind that controlling "both of the ports gives China strategic influence over the vital waterway." Interesting to me is slick Hillary must have made her remarks before her handlers gave her permission. After all, it was hubby Bill who handed the canal over in 1999 after a 1977 treaty between Jimmy Carter and Panama president General Omar Torrijos. What was Hillary thinking, bringing up anything about China when one of Clinton's "major achievements" was granting permanent trade status to China, second only to his NAFTA success, and numerous other Clinton-Gore chinagates during the '90s.

At the time of Hillary's remarks (2006) Hutchison-Whampoa held those ports. More recently Cheung Kong (Holdings) Limited, Beijing, now holds 49.97% of Hutchison-Whampoa. "Cheung Kong (and certain of its subsidiaries) will (through their 49.97% interest in HWL) also be deemed to have the same interest in HPH Trust as Hutchison Port Group Holdings Limited ("HPGH")." The issue managers for the initial public offering and listing of Hutchison Port Holdings Trust are DBS Bank Ltd., Deutsche Bank AG, Singapore Branch, and Goldman Sachs.

Goldman Sachs?

And then what did Goldman Sachs (AIG) do last summer? After receiving billions in bail-outs? Fired 1000 American workers and outsourced the jobs to Hong Kong. Some folks thank you Timmy Geithner, current Treasury Secretary, former president of NY Fed Reserve.

So, the comments of Allen West are not "demonstrably untrue." Port control, along with rail lines and other ongoing projects China has in Panama, could potentially be a threat to the US, economically, if not militarily. Just think outside the press box of anonymous sources and D.C. insiders.

On the other hand, both Panamanian and Chinese officials have assured us China has no control over operating the canal, they only operate a couple of ports for loading and unloading and storage, and operation of the canal rests solely with the government of Panama, which as we know, is trustworthy and stable with guys like the Arias dynasty, and defacto commandantes - Torrijos, Noriego, etc., and the current drug cartel connected el presidente Ricardo Martinelli Berrocal.

Panama, rightfully, should have their canal and give port control to whomever they want. The US can always go back to the original Canal Zone plan and build one through Nicaragua. Unless someone beats us to it.

But above all, let's hope congress and others are thinking ahead on how and where the US will ship its products (particularly grain) and upgrade our aging facilities accordingly. (Our infrastructure port facilities a whole other scary topic.)

---- In most recent "legend" news, Whitney Houston is dead at 48. I never particularly liked her music. My first thoughts were the 1980s parody of "Don't My Songs All Sound the Same" and her shrieking "kiss my ass" on the Bobby Brown squabble and dysfunction this is your brain on drugs reality show.

---- In tree hugger news, "going green" has become code for legal thievery. Ener1 has filed bankruptcy, as did Beacon and Solyndra, just 2 days after Obama referred to Ener1 in his SOTU speech: "In three years, our partnership with the private sector has already positioned America to be the world’s leading manufacturer of high-tech batteries." Ahem, we're positioned, but there's nothing private or high-tech about taxpayer bunnies bend over ankle grab battery partnership.

---- BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — No immediate discipline is planned for any Dickinson State University employees in the wake of an audit determining the school awarded hundreds of degrees to foreign students who didn't earn them, the chancellor of North Dakota's university system said Saturday.

Hmmm, the university VP has resigned, the dean shot himself dead, and the school's chancellor, a former state lawmaker, is retiring soon. The college has 127 agreements with international schools. Diploma mill. Academia's get richer quicker scheme. And you thought foreign students were smarter. At least, as far as we know, the staff isn't molesting children in the showers, on or off campus.