Monday, September 28, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
Canada vs. Denmark
The island is claimed by both Canada and Denmark. The dispute over Hans Island may turn into a test case on territorial claims in the Arctic (particularly regarding the contested Northwest Passage south of the island), a region that could become more important if Arctic shrinkage opens it up to more human activity. [...]
Oil companies build artificial islands in the sea on which to position their drilling rigs. Hans Island was apparently the perfect setting to test such artificial islands' strength to withstand the force of being hit by large floes of multi-year ice.
Simultaneously, the Danish and Canadian governments were in the process of signing a cooperation agreement in relation to the marine environment in Nares Strait. The agreement was signed and put into force on August 26, 1983. (The treaty was extended even further in 1991.)
One of the items also discussed was the possibility of establishing a reciprocal arrangement for processing applications to conduct research on and around Hans Island. This was never signed; however, Canadian John Munro, at that time Minister for Northern Affairs and Development, and Danish Tom Høyem, at that time Minister for Greenland, agreed, in common interest, to avoid acts that might prejudice future negotiations.
However, unknown to the politicians, Dome Petroleum was already doing research on the island. According to Kenn Harper, the Canadian Department of External Affairs conducting these negotiations with the Danes might not even have been aware that Dome Petroleum was already doing research on the island. Kenn Harper claims that in 1984 a senior official of Energy Mines and Resources, Canada, wrote him, saying, "To my knowledge the Department of Energy, Mines & Resources did not confer with the Department of External Affairs over the use of the island by Dome Petroleum." [...]
The dispute suddenly came to popular attention through Canadian press stories during late March 2004. Within days, it spread to other newspapers worldwide. Shortly after, Internet newsgroups, weblogs and forums began to start new threads and entries on the subject. Satirical headlines like "Canada being invaded" and "Denmark massing troops on Canadian territory" were typical.
The issue came to light on March 25, 2004, when Adrian Humphreys of the Canadian National Post newspaper wrote an article entitled "Five-year plan to 'put footprints in the snow' and assert northern sovereignty". Humphreys made a brief mention of the dispute over Hans Island, and that the Danes had sent warships to the island.
While Canada wanted to assert sovereignty of its northern territories for a variety of reasons unrelated to this dispute, Hans Island soon became the focus of the debate, and was presented as the main reason for this new Canadian policy. [...]
Read more here.
Further reading: Hans Island Liberation Front
Cartoon by Cam Cardow
Friday, September 18, 2009
'Clean' Denmark's dirty secret
But the Danes have a dirty secret. For Dong Energy, while greening its image at home, is busy building coal-fired power stations elsewhere in Europe. First in Germany, and now in Scotland.
We in the rich world are used to the idea of our big companies dumping their dirty and anti-social industries on the poor countries. But now European companies are doing the same to us. Rather as if Scotland were a banana republic somewhere in the developing world, it is the recipient of Dong "outsourcing" the dirty end of its energy portfolio.
Dong, which began as a North Sea oil and gas company before buying the country's electricity utilities, trades on its green image in a country that likes to be thought of as green. Its website announces that the company is "part of the solution" to climate change, and it lovingly pictures its efforts to "move energy forward" on a sea of wind turbines.
And now in Scotland, Dong is to take a 75% stake in a new joint venture with local company Peel Energy to build a similar behemoth at Hunterston, west of Glasgow.
It would be the first new fossil-fuel burning power plant in Scotland for 30 years – a real step backwards for the country that has pioneered wind power in Britain.
Details at The Guardian
Monday, September 14, 2009
Danish Government Hoax
Here’s one way to promote tourism in Denmark by the Danish Government through Visit Denmark: create a video (along with an accompanying website [the website is deleted]) in which a woman called Karen claims her baby is a product of a drunken one night stand. She asks the baby’s father to come forward, as she doesn’t remember who he is.
She says: “I’m doing this because I’m trying to find August’s father. I don’t remember where you’re from, I don’t even remember your name. We ended up having sex … the next morning when I woke up, you were gone.”
However, an idea such as this can easily backfire. Many people believed the video was real, and expressed support for the single mother; they’re likely to be upset when they find out it was all a hoax.
“I think I dislike the tourist agency a little bit because I think it is a tasteless, tactless way of attracting attention.From Mashable. The video can be seen also here.
But I do find it funny that EVERY single tabloid in Denmark fell for this story because they didn’t bother to check the facts. And now that they have learned the truth they’re all portraying this in a negative light, because they got fooled and can’t handle it”
So, what we are learning from this: danish women are stupid and irresponsible - don't use condomes, you can get sex very easy in Denmark and for free, everything is a big lie in Denmark, there are plenty of drunkards, children in Denmark have no fathers, there is no morality in Denmark, danish mothers are begging for weekend fathers not husbands, Denmark sells women.
References:
Mindjumpers
One Night in Nyhavn
Wednesday, September 09, 2009
Mosque in Copenhagen
The council voted for a 2000 sqm former machine factory on Vibevej Road to be transformed into the 32m tall place of worship for the city’s Muslims.
The building’s frontal facade will be 13 m tall, while the blue dome stretching another 24m up. The mosque will also have two minarets at a height of 32 m.
The minarets will be largely symbolic as they will not be used to call people to prayer, reports TV2 News.
The building will include a prayer room, amphitheatre, conference centre, library and housing quarters for visiting imams.
The project is being organised by the Ahlul Bait Association and is expected to cost about 50 million kroner, which will be funded through private donations.
‘Copenhagen has a cathedral, a Russian church, a synagogue and of course we should also have a new mosque. I hope it will be a place that’s full of life and inviting to show that Copenhagen is a diverse city,’ said Klaus Bondam, head of the city’s technical and environmental department.
Source: Copenhagen Post
Further References:
- SIAD/SIOE Demonstration Against Copenhagen Mega-Mosque; Overview and Event Report (link)
- Moske snart i København (link in danish)
- NO Grand Mosques in Danish Cities! (link)
- Danish far-right launches anti-mosque campaign (link)
- Barking up the Wrong Tree (link)
- The Hijra (link)
- Review: "Modern Day Trojan Horse: The Islamic Doctrine of Immigration" (link)
Sunday, September 06, 2009
Carlsberg truck with swastika
This truck, which was photographed in Copenhagen and featured in Motor Transport in late 1935, is a 2-ton Morris with six-cylinder engine.
From here
Salute the Danish Flag
In 1978-9 I was living and studying in Denmark. An elderly woman to whom I was close said something to me one day that puzzled me for many years after. I forget what the context of our conversation was, but she commented that I - as a young American in Denmark - should not let any Dane scold me about the way America had treated its black population, because the Danes in her view treated their immigrants at least as badly. I wasn’t sure which immigrants she meant, so I asked her. She answered that she meant those from the Middle East.
But in 1978 - even in Copenhagen, one didn’t see these Muslim immigrants. The Danish population embraced visitors, celebrated the exotic, went out of its way to protect each of its citizens. It was proud of its new brand of socialist liberalism - one in development since the conservatives had lost power in 1929 - a system where no worker had to struggle to survive, where one ultimately could count upon the state as in, perhaps, no other western nation at the time. The rest of Europe saw the Scandinavians as free-thinking, progressive and infinitely generous in their welfare policies. Denmark boasted low crime rates, devotion to the environment, a superior educational system and a history of humanitarianism.
Denmark was also most generous in its immigration policies - it offered the best welcome in Europe to the new immigrant: generous welfare payments from first arrival plus additional perks in transportation, housing and education. It was determined to set a world example for inclusiveness and multiculturalism. How could it have predicted that one day in 2005 a series of political cartoons in a newspaper would spark violence that would leave dozens dead in the streets - all because its commitment to multiculturalism would come back to bite?
By the 1990's the growing urban Muslim population was obvious - and its unwillingness to integrate into Danish society was obvious. Years of immigrants had settled into Muslim-exclusive enclaves. As the Muslim leadership became more vocal about what they considered the decadence of Denmark’s liberal way of life, the Danes - once so welcoming - began to feel slighted. Many Danes had begun to see Islam as incompatible with their long-standing values: belief in personal liberty and free speech, in equality for women, in tolerance for other ethnic groups, and a deep pride in Danish heritage and history.
Read more on EuropeNews
Thursday, September 03, 2009
High pensions in Denmark
The typical American receives just 45 percent of his preretirement wage through Social Security, according to the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development. By contrast, a worker in Denmark, which has one of the most comprehensive and generous retirement arrangements in the world, can retire with a state pension that is 91 percent of his salary.
“The financial crisis hasn’t affected me,” says Jens Erik Soerensen, a 63-year-old in Hellerup, Denmark, who works as a researcher at Chempilots, a Danish company that develops polymers for use in the medical device industry.Mr. Soerensen has calculated that when he retires, the combined disposable income that he has with his wife (Lone, also 63, who retired this year from her job in TV production) will fall by about 20 percent. The couple will also continue to benefit from universal health coverage.
“I think we can survive without changing our lifestyle, at least until 75,” he said. After that, he might have to dip into personal savings.
Of course, such a system comes with tradeoffs. To help pay for generous state pensions, Danish workers have one of the highest tax burdens. The population is also aging, meaning that there will be fewer working people to pay for the pensions and care of a graying society.More at The New York Times
Wednesday, September 02, 2009
Danes and Islam
Examples of popular right-wing Christians’ and some of their comments on Islam – either raising fears of an Islamicized Europe or Islam in general:
1. Pat Robertson: Islam is not a religion, it’s a political movement (video)
2. Hal Lindsey: The Everlasting Hatred: The Roots of Jihad (book)
Further references about immigration in Denmark:
1. Danes’ Growing Hostility To Mixed-Race Couples/ Immigration Laws Force Spouses To Live In Sweden (American Reinassance)
2. Denmark passes tough migrant laws (CNN)
3. Metock Case Ruling: EU Brings Down Danish Immigration Law (Brussels Journal)
4. Danish immigration law under fire after EU court ruling (EU observer)