(After nearly eighth months the HistoryLynx is still working out how to present its "prey" and manage the blog. This is the first update since Update V on May 28th. I’ve not added any new activities here but I hope that the content and links will assist you in adapting or revising activities provided in the original posts. For those who might need them, all the linked items appear as full citations with their URLs in the RESOURCES section. Also, the Lynx would like to hear from you about HistoryLynx activities and resources that you’ve found useful in your classrooms or projects. Please use the blog’s email (historylynx@gmail.com). I look forward to hearing from you.)
This post covers the following topics:
1) Iraq's Syrian Dilemma
2) Syria's Economy under Sanctions
3) Finland and the Crisis in the Euro zone
4) A Community Empowerment Project in Kenya
5) Italy's Political and Economic Woes
UPDATE: In Syria: Six Months and Counting (September 21) I reported that the Iraqi government had joined the chorus calling for President Bashar al-Assad to resign. The spokesman who was the source of this news is now repudiating that it, claiming that he was quoted inaccurately. For a brief but nuanced exploration of what’s going on see Juan Cole’s post on Informed Comment, where he points out that this supports the view that "Iraq, of course, is being pulled in different directions over Syria by its Iranian and American allies." Cole notes that in addition to the original report (now denied) in the New York Times, it had appeared in a Kurdish source (link provided but its in Kurdish).
UPDATE: In the same post on Syria I suggested in passing that perhaps economic conditions will play a large role in the collapse of the Assad regime (if, in fact, that is what happens). In Who Will ‘Eat’ Syria (July 28th) I had pointed out that losing the loyalty of the business elite--if the economy tanked–would endanger the Assad regime. Since then it is apparent that international sanctions, especially the EU’s oil sanctions are biting much harder. This week the Syrian govt imposed rather severe import restrictions. At the same time it is facing difficulties as it tries to secure alternative markets for its oil. This is covered well by Ehsani, writing on Syria Comment, in a piece that includes several links and also republishes two recent articles from the Financial Times. Ehsani, a Syrian-American businessman, has been writing for Syria Comment since 2006 and recently, he and a colleague have taken charge of it (while Joshua Landis is busy writing a book). In the meantime, at the UN Security Council efforts to draft wider-based sanctions "bumped along an old rut" (as Neil MacFarquhar puts it) in which the major obstacles are the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) and the sanctions were dropped from the resolution.
UPDATE: The European debt crisis is now in the news every day and having a major impact on stock markert swings in the US and most other markets. In Finland: The Mouse That Roared (May 4th) I highlighted the potential of Finnish politics and public opinion to nix a pending bailout for Portugal. Finland and the Euro crisis were also included in Update V. In the meantime, the travails of the euro zone crisis have intensified, requiring a much larger bailout fund (that is, by most accounts, still too small). For weeks the focus has been on Greece, and to a somewhat lesser extent on Italy and Spain. In the Finnish Parliament on Wednesday (September 28th) the Finns voted to approve changes to the bailout in a measure ensuring that the Finns would ante-up their share if a bailout client defaults (actually doubling their liability). The Finns, however, are still insisting on some form of collateral. The New York Times article reporting this vote puts it into a larger perspective and mentions other proposal for dealing with the crisis. The Finnish vote leaves seven nations still on the ratification roster. Rumor has it that this time it will be the Slovokian mouse’s turn to roar–since many Slovaks resent being asked to helping out the wealthier Greeks. This would delay the fund’s ability to rescue Greece or any debt-endangered euro zone country. See also Simon Johnson’s Economix post, where he compares the current approach to the problem in Europe with the IMF’s economic stabilization strategy during Mexico’s 1994-95 currency crisis. Johnson is a former chief economist at the IMF.
UPDATE: Just before Mother’s Day New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof issued a plea to his readers, urging them to support organizations working to improve the lives of women and girls around the world. It did much to inspire my post, Mother’s Day–for Mothers Everywhere. In today’s column Kristof he tells us what was accomplished with the $135,000 that MothersDayMovement.org sent on to Shining Hope for Communities, a grassroots organization in Kenya. What Shining Hope is doing for people living in Kibera, one of Nairobi’s direst slums, should inspire us all. Go to their website for more about Kibera and what Shining Hope is trying to do for its people, especially its girls. And the Shining Hope story is a love story, too–don’t miss reading about it.
UPDATE: Italians are getting fed up with the soap opera being staged–daily it seems–by the Italian political elite. In Aretha Franklin and the ‘Italian Street’ (February 14th) I wrote about how protesting Italian women were challenging President Silvio Berlusconi to "respect women" and respond to their complaints. Now the Roman Catholic Church has registered its disgust with a government embroiled in scandals–while the public as a whole is becoming "increasingly intolerant of the ostentation of lifetyles that are shamelessly immoral" (Rev. Antonion Sciortino, as quoted in the New York Times). On September 15th an Italian court charged eight more people were the crime of supplying Berlusconi and his cronies with prostitutes–expecting in return jobs, contracts, or other favors. The next day Parliament approved an austerity package that included both higher taxes and large spending cuts. Angry Italians protested in the streets. Father Sciortino, who has criticized the government’s failure to support programs designed to assist families in need, will need to continue speaking out.
RESOURCES
Syria
Cole, Juan. "Iraq Denies Calling for Syrian President’s Resignation." Informed Comment (September 22, 2011): http://www.juancole.com/2011/09/iraq-enies-calling-for-syrian-presidents-resignation.html
Ehsani. "Syria Faces a New Economic Reality." Syria Comment (September 26, 2011): http://www.joshualandis.com/blog/?p=12233
Krauss, Clifford and Neil MacFarquhar. "Feeling Pinch of Europe’s Oil Embargo, Syria Urgently Seeks New Customers." New York Times (September 27, 2011): http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/28/world/middleeast/europes-oil-embargo-forces-syria-to-urgently-seek-new-customers.html?scp=1&sq=clifford%20krauss%20syria&st=cse
MacFarquhar, Neil. "Disagreements at U.N. Stall Sanctions on Syria." New York Times (September 28, 2011): http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/29/world/middleeast/disagreements-at-un-stall-sanctions-on-syria.html?scp=4&sq=syria&st=cse
Schmidt, Michael S. and Yasir Ghazi. "Iraq Calls for Change of Syrian Regime." New York Times (September 20, 2011): http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/21/world/middleeast/iraq-tells-bashar-al-assad-of-syria-to-step-down.html?ref=todayspaper
Finland and the European Debt Crisis
Ewing, jack and Stephen Castle. "Europe’s Bailout Fund Advances in Finland." New York Times (September 29, 2011): http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/29/business/global/expanded-euro-bailout-fund-clears-hurdle.html?ref=todayspaper
"Parliament Passed nearly EUR 14 Billion in Loan Guarantees." Helsingin Sanomat (September 29, 2011): http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Parliament+passed+nearly+EUR+14+billion+in+loan+guarantees/1135269593661
Johnson, Simon. "What Would It Take to Save Europe?" Economix: New York Times (September 29, 2011): http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/09/29/what-would-it-take-to-save-europe/
Kibera Project
Kristof, Nicholas. "Just Look at What You Did!" New York Times (September 28, 2011): http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/29/opinion/kristof-just-look-at-what-you-did.html?src=ISMR_AP_LO_MST_FB
Shining Hope for Communities: www.shininghopeforcommunities.org
Italy
"Eight Charged for Supplying Berlusconi with Escorts." AFP on Google (September 15, 2011):
http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5guaoR2JM30-cyEnzotCz4-93edpQ?docId=CNG.e1465939d455269e644b03f32cb36848.01
D’Emilio, Frances. "Italy Gives Final Approval to Austerity Plan." BusinessWeek (September 16, 2011): http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D9POPIR00.htm
Povoledo, Elisabetta. "Quiet for Years, Italian Church Blasts Behavior of the Nation’s Poltical Elite." New York Times (September 28, 2011): http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/29/world/europe/italian-church-criticizes-licentious-conduct-of-the-elites.html?ref=todayspaper
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