Khodorkovsky

Buried deep in this LA Times article, among all the hand-wringing about how Putin’s crackdown makes things difficult for US investors, are some solid reasons why Khodorkovsky was arrested for tax evasion, fraud and embezzlement.

… Khodorkovsky is being reined in for trying to form a power bloc in the State Duma, the lower house of parliament, by funding such a range of political parties that he might have challenged Putin’s control over the legislative body in December parliamentary elections. Putin reportedly saw it as buying votes, and a breach of the deal he made with tycoons after his election in 2000 for them to stay out of politics.

<A spokesperson said> Russia’s resource riches belong to the people, and a company’s license to explore “doesn’t give [it] the right to privatize our profits.”

The siloviki see Russia’s huge oil reserves as the key to reasserting the nation’s global dominance, giving it leverage at a time when the U.S. wants to diversify its sources of oil. But to exert leverage, the state must have direct or indirect control over resources.

I find it bizarre this article, and many others, focuses almost entirely on how the arrest makes it hard for US investors. And who might those “investors” be? Hold on for a shocker ….

Many believe that the siloviki were not about to watch Khodorkovsky sell 40% of his company — the country’s biggest oil giant — to U.S. oil company ExxonMobil, as was planned, and see him pocket the cash.

Aha. So ExxonMobil wanted to buy 40% of the company and Putin just froze the stock and blocked it. Now we’re getting somewhere.

There is a monumental power struggle going on inside Russia now. One would wish our media would focus on the particulars of the struggle, rather than on how it hampers US oil companies trying to buy into Russia oil companies — which is a secondary issue at best.

They also should explore why two thirds of Muscovites support Putin’s actions.

CNN says:

Nearly two-thirds of Moscovites still support Putin despite a controversial attack on the oligarchs

“Controversial”? With two-thirds support, it’s not even slightly controversial to them.

No Comments »

Can you help poor Rumsfeld find his mojo?

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said he does not know whether or not he has lost his mojo, as a leading news magazine suggested, because he doesn’t really know what mojo is.

Well, if you have to ask…

No Comments »

The L.A Garment District

The Garment District in L.A. is an amazing place. There are hundreds, probably thousands, of small stores in this roughly 40 block area. African fabric stores. A cluster of Italian men’s shoe stores. Across the street they sell leather jackets. Down the alley, Korean shopowners sell purple iridescent pimp suits, next to them are Ramones and Che t-shirts, further down are purses, baseball caps, hip hop clothes, men’s suits, you name it.
 
On weekends there are thousands of people shopping. For reasons I’ve never understood, the shoppers are every ethnicity found on the planet except Anglos. Latinos couples with babies in strollers. Black hip hop kids. Many Asians. But practically no Anglos. I have no clue why.

The heart of it is Santee Alley, an alley running for several blocks with about a zillion tiny stores lining the sides, and, on a Saturday, about a zillion people swarming through it.

I was looking for a black leather jacket, and after about hour poking around, found a quite nice one, with removable inner liner, for $39.95. Yes, that’s $39.95, not $339.95! Prices like this are the rule, and that’s one reason the sidewalks are jammed with people on the weekends. I plan to go back for cowboy boots, and with some exploring, will no doubt find them for the same price.

Hint: Park several blocks away in a lot for a flat rate of about $4 and walk. Parking spaces are nearly impossible to find and the traffic is chaotic.

The ugly underbelly of this, of course, is the sweatshop labor that fuels it. The average L.A. sweatshop worker makes about $3 an hour. The Sweat Shop Watch faq explains more

The leather jacket was made in China under conditions that may be, uh, less than ideal. But at least a small store got my money, not a big chain. And how does one tell if their clothes are not made by sweat shop labor? Sweat Shop Watch says this can be quite difficult to determine.

Our predatory economic system means clothing manufacturers circle the globe finding the cheapest price for labor, usually through intermediaries so as to lessen their guilt and culpability. If labor in one country starts asking for reasonable pay and working conditions, well, too bad pal, we’ll just move our operations to the next hell hole and screw you.

Patagonia is a clothing manufacturer who absolutely does not use sweat shops. They are a shining model of how to make clothes in a socially and environmentally responsible way. While they do make casual clothes, their primary market is mountain clothes, parkas, fleece, etc., for backpackers and rock climbers. They make them like someone’s life may depend on it because … it might. if you are half-way up a rock face and it’s snowing and 10 below zero, the zipper on your parka can not, must not, fail or jam. And with Patagonia, it won’t. They make superb quality clothes, treat their employees well - and make a profit. Yes, it can be done.

No Comments »

How bad were/are the California fires?

This bad

No Comments »

Fidel Castro states the obvious

Cuban President Fidel Castro praised California Gov.-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger’s muscles but wondered how much brain power the former Mr. Universe has.

“To judge from the photographs, he has a lot of muscle, but they have not tested him to see how much muscle he has in the brain,” the bearded revolutionary quipped

No Comments »

Cool Quote

Via Ex Libris

The problem everyone has is that you never know what will be treasured later. When we look at old magazines, the ads are far more fascinating and informative than the articles. The U.S. Weather Service receives considerable income from selling old weather reports. To whom? To lawyers who want to know if it was raining on the night in question.

Stewart Brand. The Clock of the Long Now.

No Comments »