Politically Strange & Frivolous

[DOR]

AsiaTimes: “Taiwan’s Tsai stops in LA, then Houston, on visit to allies” http://www.atimes.com/article/taiwan...sit-to-allies/

“Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen has been in Los Angeles on her first stopover in the US after embarking on a nine-day trip to Central and South America in a bid to shore up ties with the island’s remaining democratic allies.

She will also touch down in Houston on August 18 before going back to Taipei. The flights to the two US cities and Paraguay and Belize will be part of a 50-hour, 43,000-kilometer marathon journey, according to Tsai’s office.
“We only need to be firm [in reaching out to the world and conducting diplomatic ties] so that no one can obliterate Taiwan’s existence,” Tsai said at the airport before heading for Los Angeles, when almost at the same time the People’s Liberation Army had just wrapped up an anti-missile drill in the East China Sea while holding another war game in the Yellow Sea.”

VOA: “Warming US-Taiwan Ties on Display as President Tsai Visits LA ” https://www.voanews.com/a/warming-us...a/4528549.html

“This week Taiwan's president is in Los Angeles, marking the first time in 15 years that a Taiwanese leader is speaking publicly in the United States, in another sign of growing ties between Washington and Taipei.

President Tsai Ing-Wen met with U.S. lawmakers and Taiwanese Americans on Monday and Tuesday, drawing an official protest from China, which regards Taiwan as a breakaway province.”

[Ironduke]

https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/04/polit...ive/index.html

Actor Steven Seagal appointed Russian ministry's 'special representative'

Russia appointed actor Steven Seagal as a "special representative" on US-Russian humanitarian ties, the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in statement on its official Facebook page Saturday.

According to the statement, the action star's role will be to promote US-Russia relations "in the humanitarian sphere," adding that the role will include collaboration "in the sphere of culture, public and youth exchanges."

The foreign ministry said the unpaid role will be similar to the United Nations' goodwill ambassador positions.

Seagal, who became a Russian citizen in 2016, is a close friend of Russian President Vladimir Putin. He attended Putin's recent swearing-in ceremony in May.

[kato]

Bwahaha, Boris you are a funny guy...

Gets funnier.

A spokesman for the foreign ministry of the Central African Republic says that the diplomatic passport used by Bobbele is one of a number stolen in 2014, and the Foreign Minister of the CAR says he never signed any documents making him a diplomat.

Becker has announced that he'll be flying to Bangui to clear up the situation.

[kato]

https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articl...ith-brexit-vat

St Mary’s, Maldon, scraps plans for new organ as costs due to soar with Brexit VAT

THE congregation of an 11th-century church in Essex are struggling to cope with a consequence of Brexit: the PCC of St Mary’s, Maldon, have been forced to abandon plans for a new organ because Britain is leaving the European Union.

When the church’s old organ was last played in 1987, the 80-strong congregation commissioned a firm in Bavaria to build a new organ. They spent ten years raising the funds for the €245,000 instrument.

Now, they have had to abandon hopes of buying it, because of fears that VAT may be placed on the sale after Brexit. “The builders can’t complete the organ before March 2019,” the director of music at St Mary’s, Colin Baldy, said.

“We can’t take the risk of being slapped with 20-per-cent VAT. We could claim that back currently, but we won’t be able to after Brexit.” The church feared that Brexit would mean an extra £50,000 on the cost of the new organ. “That’s a lot of money,” Mr Baldy said.

Concerns were raised that the PCC members would become responsible for finding the extra money. “We couldn’t take the risk,” Mr Baldy said. “There’s no doubt in my mind that this has happened to us because of the decision to leave the EU. The blame must lie at the feet of David Cameron, who called the referendum.

“It shouldn’t affect our church, but it already is. I’m extremely disappointed. It’s totally disastrous.”

Now, the church, which is known for its choral tradition, has opted to buy a second-hand organ instead.

The chairman of the British Institute of Organ Studies, Dr Alan Thurlow, said that he was “sorry” for the church. “There’s a continuing love of organs in Britain. There are lots of people who love hearing the organ.” But Brexit might create “healthy competition” between British and European firms of organ builders, he said.

There is still a thriving organ-building industry in the UK, where between ten and 15 organs are built annually.

[Double Edge]

This is a surprising read for me. Never knew there was a political angle here. I like jazz for one reason only. It's pretty damn good

How the US government used jazz to “save India” from the communists | QZ | Jun 11 2018

From the late 1950s, successive administrations sought to use jazz as a vehicle for disseminating American influence in the Third World. As a popular art stemming from the world of African Americans, jazz seemed ideally suited both to revise notions of American racism in the decolonized countries and to showcase the vigour and creativity of American democracy

[tantalus]

Hmmm, i'am confused about where all the trump content should go..

[tbm3fan]

He added: "I am immensely proud of my appointment [by] the Central African Republic...sport is incredibly important in Africa and is fast becoming a universal language."

Bwahaha, Boris you are a funny guy...

[Ironduke]

Full article: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-44489798

Boris Becker claims diplomatic immunity in bankruptcy case

Former tennis champion Boris Becker is claiming diplomatic immunity against an attempt to sue him.

The three-time Wimbledon winner claims his appointment as a diplomat by the Central African Republic affords him protection from any legal claims.

Mr Becker was declared bankrupt in 2017 over money owed to private bank Arbuthnot Latham. He is now being pursued for "further assets".

His defence has been lodged in the High Court.

The Central African Republic made Mr Becker a sport and culture attache to the EU in April 2018.

His legal team said: "This means he cannot be subject to legal process in the courts of any country for so long as he remains a recognised diplomatic agent."

Mr Becker said the proceedings were "unjustified and unjust" and being declared bankrupt "inflicted a whole heap of damage on me".

He said he was asserting diplomatic immunity to "bring this farce to an end" and stop "the gravy train for the suits".

He added: "I am immensely proud of my appointment [by] the Central African Republic...sport is incredibly important in Africa and is fast becoming a universal language."

[Ironduke]

A thread just for political topics that aren't important, but are rather of a strange and frivolous nature, from both around the world and the US.

I'll start with this:

Full article: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-44480957

Macrons' new dinner plates spark French cash row

France's presidential couple are the centre of allegations that the Élysée Palace is shelling out a fortune on a new dinner service while complaining about the scale of the welfare budget.

The 1,200-piece set, chosen by First Lady Brigitte Macron, cost €50,000 (£44,000; $59,000), the state said.

But a leading satirical magazine says the real cost is nearer €500,000.

The claim surfaced as a video emerged of President Emmanuel Macron talking of "shedloads of cash" spent on benefits.

The video, posted on Twitter by the president's communications spokesman, went viral and prompted accusations of contempt for the poor, feeding into perceptions of a privileged president aloof from how the public live.
Why are the Macrons changing the plates?

Some of the Élysée crockery dates back to Jacques Chirac's time as president over a decade ago, and some even from René Coty's time in the 1950s.

Officials say it has to be replaced because it is getting old and is no longer complete.

Enter the Sèvres porcelain factory that has historically supplied the Élysée with its ceramics since 1848. The Bleu Élysée design by Évariste Richer is a sketch of the presidential palace itself.

The Élysée said the bill for producing the 900 plates and 300 side plates came out of the factory's annual budget. So the cost of €50,000 was for paying the artists involved in creating the design.

But Le Canard enchaîné magazine calculated the real cost of hand-painting 1,200 plates was far higher, at least €400 a plate. That would be almost 10 times the official estimated cost.

Others have put the bill at closer to €200 a plate and pointed out that the factory is 60% funded by the culture ministry to the tune of €3.6m a year. The head of the porcelain factory supervising the project said the price of the dinner service had not yet been worked out, but the bill would not be charged to the presidential palace.