[ RadSafe ] Re: Sarkozy pushes nuclear energy in Mideast

[Steven Dapra]

Jan. 24

         I would not say Franz has an anti-US bias.  Apparently it is true, 
as Clayton wrote, that "From November, 1990 through the present, Abu Dhabi 
has failed to provide documents and witnesses to U.S. law enforcement 
authorities and to the Congress, despite repeated commitments to do 
so."  If the Abu Dhabi government said it would provide the germane 
materials and reneged, and continues to do so, that is one thing.  As a 
statement of principle, it is also true, quoting Franz, that "No 
independent country in this world is obliged to give any whatever 
information to the USA until it has been established by international law 
to be provided to international bodies."  I would stop, though, after 
"USA."  The obligations under "international law" (be they real or alleged) 
are debatable at best.  (I am questioning the legitimacy of the treaties 
that led to the laws.)  To correct Franz about something, so far I don't 
think anyone has been distributing "US-military propaganda" in this thread 
about BCCI, etc.

         As far as World War II is concerned (Europe 70 years ago), the USA 
should not have got mixed up in this dispute.  National Socialist Germany 
never attacked the United States, nor did it pose any threat to the 
USA.  It is true that NS Germany declared war on the United States, however 
that stemmed from NS Germany's obligations under its treaty with 
Japan.  (That's one good reason for not making treaties of mutual 
defense.)  Hitler is on record as saying on several occasions that Germany 
could never defeat the US in a war.  He understood well the vast industrial 
might and potential of the United States.

         Historians universally agree that the Versailles Treaty set the 
stage for WWII.  This treaty had Woodrow Wilson's fingerprints all over 
it.  ("He who has an ear to hear, let him hear.")

         To answer Syd's question, yes the US was meddling, and yes we 
should have minded our own business.

         Flame away . . . .

Steven Dapra


At 11:28 PM 1/23/08 -0500, Syd H. Levine wrote:
>Your anti-US bias is offensive and irrational.  I assume you have no 
>problem with the willingness of the US to become involved in disputes in 
>Europe some 70 years ago?  Or would you argue the US was meddling in the 
>affairs of a sovereign country and should have minded its own business 
>back then?
>
>----- Original Message ----- From: "Franz Schönhofer" 
><franz.schoenhofer at chello.at>
>To: "'Clayton J Bradt'" <cjb01 at health.state.ny.us>; <radsafe at radlab.nl>; 
>"Marcel Schouwenburg" <m.schouwenburg at tudelft.nl>
>Sent: Wednesday, January 23, 2008 4:17 PM
>Subject: AW: [ RadSafe ] Re: Sarkozy pushes nuclear energy in Mideast
>
>
>I severely protest the distribution of clear US-military propaganda
>distributed at RADSAFE again. This is not even a forwarding of some
>propaganda, because no source is given.
>
>I do not know, what BCCI means. No independent country in this world is
>obliged to give any whatever information to the USA until it has been
>established by international law to be provided to international bodies. The
>further comments that Abu Dhabi has "failed" to "provide the USA with
>information" is therefore absolutely unacceptable.
>
>Would anybody on RADSAFE please stop this US propaganda.
>
>Franz
>
>Franz Schoenhofer, PhD
>MinRat i.R.
>Habicherg. 31/7
>A-1160 Wien/Vienna
>AUSTRIA
>
>
>-----Ursprüngliche Nachricht-----
>Von: radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl [mailto:radsafe-bounces at radlab.nl] Im Auftrag
>von Clayton J Bradt
>Gesendet: Mittwoch, 23. Jänner 2008 18:06
>An: radsafe at radlab.nl
>Betreff: [ RadSafe ] Re: Sarkozy pushes nuclear energy in Mideast
>
>
>
>"U.A.E. Foreign Affairs Minister Sheik Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan
>responded to similar criticism this past week after the emirates
>signed a deal with France to build two third-generation nuclear
>reactors."
>
>The al-Nahyan family-owned country of Abu Dhabi should be compelled to give
>up the records it has on BCCI before being allowed to purchase nuclear
>technology. BCCI was neck-deep in the A. Q. Khan network along with other
>black market nuclear technology and conventional arms dealers, drug
>traffickers and money launderers. After BCCI's collapse, its international
>headquarters, records and remaining officers where removed from London to
>Abu Dhabi to prevent US and other investigators from gaining access.
>
>According to the Executive Summary of the Report to the Senate Committee on
>Foreign Relations by Senator John Kerry and Senator Hank Brown,December
>1992  (http://www.fas.org/irp/congress/1992_rpt/bcci/):
>
>"From November, 1990 through the present, Abu Dhabi has failed to provide
>documents and witnesses to U.S. law enforcement authorities and to the
>Congress, despite repeated commitments to do so. Instead, it has actively
>prevented U.S. investigators from having access to vital information
>necessary to investigate BCCI's global wrongdoing."
>
>Neither Abu Dhabi, nor the al-Nahyan family should be trusted with nuclear
>technology if they aren't willing to come clean on what it knows about
>BCCI's operations.
>
>Clayton J. Bradt
>dutchbradt at hughes.net