The government has approved a new kidnapping policy that actually clears the government to get involved when US citizens are kidnapped overseas. Before, it only got involved if the kidnapped person was out of the country on government business, or was employed by the government.
I think this policy is still too weak. I think that the government ought to make it clear that the US will respond with force to kidnappings of Americans overseas. One of the favorite fund-raising activities of insurgents around the world is kidnapping Americans and holding them for ransom. If the government responded to these kidnappings by sending in the special forces, then kidnapping for dollars would cease to be profitable and worthwhile for these groups. Can we stop terrorism? I doubt it. Can we stop (or at least slow down) the kidnapping and ransoming of American citizens? Probably.
To get an idea of how common kidnapping has become, check out this snippet of a book review from the New York Times:
As she [Ann Hagedorn Auerbach] reports in ‘‘Ransom,’’ worldwide kidnappings have soared from a total of 951 in 73 countries between 1968 and 1982 to 6,500 in Latin America alone in 1995. By 1996 there were four kidnappings a day in Colombia, the Fort Knox of ransom proceeds, with $328.9 million forked over by corporations and families from 1991 through 1994.
I think it’s time to put an end to these kidnappings as rapidly as possible. It’s imperative for travellers overseas to use common sense and be as cautious as possible – it’s easy to be a victim when you’re in unfamiliar surroundings and your camera cost you more money than the locals earn in a year. However, personal responsiblity aside, these kidnappings are happening because ransoming foreigners is a sound business strategy for the kidnappers. That has to change.
Bill Gates refutes the all too famous “640k should be enough for anyone” quote that is often attributed to him in an email to James Fallows.
Somehow Orbitz (or whoever brokers their advertising) has figured out a way to create pop-unders that defeat the advanced JavaScript preferences in Mozilla. I’m not sure whether I should be impressed or pissed off.
People fighting the vile forces of political correctness, book 5, chapter 23. I don’t understand what the big deal is with changing names that people find offensive. It doesn’t really matter if the word “squaw” doesn’t offend us , since it’s not our word in the first place.
A government source is reporting that Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl is dead. That’s just rotten news. Unlike the kidnappings for money that I discussed earlier today, I think that in this case, some freaks felt like killing a reporter and so they did it. I doubt he ever had a chance, but I sure was hoping he’d survive.
The Olympics are rapidly descending into total stupidity. First it was the judging flap in pairs figure skating. Now both Russia and South Korea are pitching fits over judging. South Korea is threatening to sue the referee that disqualified their short track speed skater last night, and Russia is disgruntled about a variety of rulings and is threatening to pull out of the remainder of the games. Lots of interesting and exciting stuff has happened during the games, but the spectacle being created by poor losers is an annoying distraction.
Does anyone else wonder why Elizabeth Wurtzel doesn’t have a weblog? It seems like she’s a perfect candidate for a self-obsessed online journal or something.