No time to respond to your several incredible posts just now, Mike. But I promise to do so before responding to anything else here. You have done your homework, and shown your research abilities, beautifully … yet again!
I just want to quickly tell you about a sad experience I had last night.
The twenty-year-old son of a friend is home from Iraq for a two-week leave, and we went over to visit with him last night. I would need hours to tell you how sad I felt after witnessing the physical and emotional difference in this young man, since his leaving for Iraq. The content of some of the hundreds of photographs he took over there, and the incredible stories he told (both horrifying and uplifting), were almost beyond description. I hope to be able to write at least something about it here sometime soon.
But one relatively superficial, and yet maddening, thing that I want to mention is this:
In virtually every picture of ‘civilized Iraq’ that he showed us, almost all of the (hundreds) of cars in the photos were Nissans. Even the brand new cars purchased for the Iraqi police department.
Nissan is ~50% percent owned by (French) Renault.
I do not know the specifics, and I would imagine that American funds paid for at least a portion (and most likely all) of those new Iraqi police cars. And I suspect they were probably obtained by lowest-bid contract. But there is something inherently wrong with this picture. And it has nothing to do with the darkroom process.
Back soon …
~ joanie
Colin Powell and the rest of the traitors at the State Dept. probably worked that deal.
Combat does take its toll on a man.
I do not know the specifics, and I would imagine that American funds paid for at least a portion (and most likely all) of those new Iraqi police cars.
Lokks like Iraq has its own version of government-subsidized offshoring.
I will look forward to that. If there is anyone who can do justice to this young man's story, you can. Please ping me when you do.