Senate passes free trade agreement with Jordan { ARE THEY NUTS}

BS! Bin Laden isn't about Israel. It's about the US presence in Arabia and in the Gulf. And those are FACTS!

Tired of the rhetoric about low unemployment. Don't have the latest stats, but under Clinton, we lost 27 million liveable wage jobs. Only 110,000 of the "new" jobs paid more than minimum wage. THATS HOW NAFTA RUINED OUR COUNTRY AND CONTINUES TO DO SO TODAY.

Yes-I'd say thats apparent-at least until you have to bow and then your tune will change but it will be TOO LATE. You'll remember this post.

LOL Only the Big Profit PIGS get 2 hour lunches! And as for prices, I pay just as much for absolute crap as I did for sound goods made in the USA! Cheap stuff is a dangling carrot! Unless you shop in the 99cent store, it's NOT cheap!

Jordan is >80% Palestinian. The problems between them and the King were largely based on the fact that the UN placed a Saudi as king of a Palestinian country. At the time of the partition of trans-Jordan into Jordan and Israel, the vast majority of people who identified themselves as Palestinian lived in the west bank or Jordan proper. Only after Israel "made the desert bloom" did the waste lands of present day Israel seem appealing.

Correct. This is an eminently sensible use of trade to further our diplomatic interests, and the timing is excellent. The formula, all should remember, includes "do good to friends" as well as harm to enemies. It is definitely in our interest to support viable moderate alternatives to anti-western ideologies in the Middle East, and this is a just and painless way to do so.

"the UN placed a Saudi as king of a Palestinian country"

Um, no. Not even close. The only part you got right is that most of the present inhabitants of Jordan are of the same ethnicity as those in the territories.

The king of Jordan is not related to the king of Saudi Arabia. "Saudi" refers to the House of Saud, a particular dynasty from a particular tribe. The king of Jordan is not from that house, but is instead a descendent of King Faisal, who led the Arab revolt against the Turks in WW I. With a certain well-known Lawrence as one of the liason officers sent to work with him.

The UN did not exist when either of these lines gained control of their respective countries. The king of Jordan (just created as a seperate country) was seated by the British, as a reward for his services in the war against the Turks. Three other princes from the same royal line, Faisal's, were placed on the thrones of the new states of Iraq, Syria, and Arabia. None remain, except the line that received Jordan for its inheritance.

The House of Saud overthrew the one in Arabia, before WW II. The French deposed the one in Syria, also before WW II - they received Syria and Lebanon as their protectorates after WW I, as Britain's ally, but did not favor monarchy. In both Syria and Iraq there were revolts during WW II in which locals sided with the Germans, but the British put down both. Later, in the post war period (and after a spell of union with Egypt) the Baath party took power in Syria and installed Assad as tyrant. The king in Iraq was deposed after WW II by the Baath party, where Saddam rose through the secret police and eventually made himself the absolute ruler.

The House of Faisal was given most of the territory of the Middle East by the British. Only Jordan remains. The UN had nothing to do with it, and the king of Jordan is not a Saudi.

Almost 2/3rds of Jordan's population are ethnic Palestinians. The king's strong American ties are the only thing that keeps them in check, and him on the throne.

This is good news. Not that meaningful economically for us - hell of an importance to Jordan - but a further step towards free trade which should be our goal. Lets get on with negotiating more such deals - Chile, Singapore, Australia, New Zealand, the rest of APEC, even the EU. If some aren't prepared to come with us lets leave them behind.

BIO SKETCH: JORDAN'S NEW CROWN PRINCE, ABDULLAH BIN HUSSEIN

Today, Jordan's King Hussein formally decreed that his eldest son, Abdullah, would become crown prince in place of the king's brother, Hassan. Following is a brief biographical sketch of Abdullah.

Born: Amman, January 30, 1962
Mother: King Hussein's second wife, Princess Muna al-Hussein (Toni Avril Gardiner)

Personal status: Married to H.R.H. Rania Abdullah (née, Rania Yassin, from the West Bank town of Tulkarm); one son, one daughter.

Education: Primary, Islamic Educational College, Amman; St. Edmund's School, Surrey, England; Secondary, Deerfield Academy, U.S.; College, Oxford University, one-year program in International Politics (1983-84); Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, one-year mid-career program (1987-88).

Military Training: Sandhurst Royal Academy; Fort Knox Armor School (Company Commander's Course); All Arms Tactics Course, British School of Infantry; British Command and Staff College, Camberley.

Military Experience:

1981 -- commissioned as second lieutenant, served as reconnaissance troop leader, Royal Hussars (British Army)

1984 -- first lieutenant, platoon leader, 40th armored brigade

1985 -- captain, tank company commander, 91st brigade

1986 -- captain, tactics instructor, Jordanian Air Force helicopter anti-tank wing

1989 -- major, second-in-command, 17th tank battalion, 2nd Guards brigade

1991 -- lieutenant colonel, armor representative, Office of the Inspector General

1992 -- commander, 2nd armored car regiment, 40th brigade

1993 -- promoted to full colonel

1994 -- promoted to brigadier, appointed commander of Jordanian Special Forces

1996 -- Special Forces reorganized as the Special Operations Command, incorporating the Special Forces Brigade and the Royal Guard. According to Jane's Intelligence Review (December 1, 1998), the Special Force's missions include:

*unconventional-warfare missions and counterinsurgency operations;

* internal-security assignments and counterterrorism missions;

*countersabotage assignments both inside Jordan as well as in defense of Jordanian installations around the world;

*riot control;

*conventional" and "unconventional" military operations beyond the scope and abilities of the conventional Jordanian army

*training other units of the armed forces in special operations, including counterterrorism and hostage-rescue. acting as the armed forces' strategic reserve during full-scale military deployments;

Political Role: Prince Abdullah has deputized for his father, King Hussein, on a number of occasions and joined his father for important missions on many others. Over the years, these have included meetings with American and Soviet leaders. (In December 1987, at the age of 25, Abdullah led the list of those accompanying his father in Moscow talks with Andrei Gromyko.) Abdullah has been a frequent visitor to Washington, especially to the Pentagon, where he has repeatedly made Jordan's case for upgraded military assistance.

In the Arab world, in December 1998, Abdullah hand-delivered a letter from the king to Libyan leader Muammar Qadhafi, congratulating Qadhafi on his recovery from hip surgery. Libyan radio quoted the letter as saying that Jordan would continue to "exert its efforts until the unjust [United Nations] sanctions are lifted." In March 1998, he topped the list of dignitaries accompanying the king to Oman. He has joined his father on numerous other trips, including to visit Hafiz al-Asad in Damascus and (in the pre-Gulf War era) to visit Saddam Husayn in Baghdad.

As far as Israel is concerned, Abdullah has played an active role in aspects of normalization, especially military-to-military relations. For example, when then-Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Amnon Lipkin-Shahak made an official visit to Jordan in July 1997, he observed a Special Forces training exercise commanded by Abdullah. Abdullah participated in a meeting with then-Israeli Defense Minister Yitzhak Mordechai in March 1997 and put on a live-fire display for Mordechai at the military training grounds near Zarqa. In December 1996, Abdullah hosted Jordan's first-ever weapons exhibition, attended by thirty countries, including Israel. In June 1996, in an example of airborne diplomacy, Abdullah participated in an international team of parachutists that jumped jointly over Jordan and Israel, pinning golden paratrooper wings on each jumper. According to press reports, his actions "forged bonds between two former enemies in that special paratrooper way."

In international relations, Abdullah has traveled widely, apparently taking a special interest in Asian affairs. In November 1995, Abdullah led a fourteen-member delegation to Malaysia; in May 1991, he led a delegation to Taiwan. In December 1993, Abdullah led a delegation to North Korea and was even granted an audience with "Great Leader" Kim Il Sung himself.

Link on my [FR] home page.

The father of Ali, Feisal, and Abdullah was Hussein, the Emir of Mecca. Ali inherited his father's rule in Mecca, only to be ousted by the Saud's a short time later (14 mos).

Feisal was given Damascus by the British, but as you noted the French had a problem with that. Feisal was then set up in British-created Iraq. The third brother [Abdullah] was installed in [British-created] Transjordan, and that is the lineage which survives today.

***

Kings of the Hijaz (of the Hashemite dynasty):

HM Hussein ibn Ali, Grand Sharif of Mecca 1908 (see above), upon his proclamation of independance King of the Arabs 29/10/1916-renounced the title 6/11/1916, King of the Hijaz 6/11/1916-abdicated 3/10/1924, Caliph al Islam 11/3/1924, °1853 or 1854, +Amman 4/11/1931 (bur Jerusalem), X 1 Mecca Sharifa Abdiya, d of Abdullah ibn Mohammed, Grand Sharif of Mecca, 2 1894 Abdila, °1879, + Cyprus 1930, daughter of Salih Bey. Father of (by Sharifa Abdiya):

HM Ali ibn Hussein, King of the Hijaz and Grand Sharif of Mecca 3/10/1924-abdicated 19/12/1925, °Mecca 1879, +Baghdad 14/2/1935, X Constantinople 1905 or 1906 Sharifa Nefissa, °Constantinople 1886 or 1887, +Baghdad 14/7/1958, daughter of Abd al Ilah Pasha, Grand Sharif of Mecca

Emirs then Kings of Transjordania, then Kings of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan:

HRH (1916) then HM (1946) Abdullah I ibn Hussein, Emir of Transjordania 1/4/1921-25/5/1946, then King of Transjordania 25/5/1946-17/6/1946, then King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan 17/6/1946-20/7/1951, °Mecca ../11/1881, +Jerusalem 20/7/1951, son of HM Hussein ibn Ali, Grand Sharif of Mecca, King of the Arabs then King of the Hijaz, (see above, Kings of the Hijaz), X 1 Constantinople 1904 or 1905 Sharifa Musbah, °Mecca 1884 or 1885, +Irbid, Jordan 15/3/1961, daughter of Emir (P^ce) Nasser Pasha and great-granddaughter of Grand Sharif Mohammed ibn Abd al Muin ibn Aun, 2 Souzdil, titled HH P^cessSouzdil, +Amman 16/8/1968, 3 ... Father of:

HM Talal ibn Abdullah, King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan 20/7/1951-deposed for health reasons 11/8/1952, °Mecca 26/2/1909, +Istanbul 8/7/1972, X Amman 27/11/1934 Sharifa Zein bint Jamal, titled HM Queen Zein, °Egypt 2/8/1915, +Lausanne 26/4/1994, daughter of Sharif Jamal Ali ibn Nasser and great-great-granddaughter of Grand Sharif Mohammed ibn Abd al Muin ibn Aun. Father of:

HM Hussein ibn Talal, King of the Hashimite Kingdom of Jordan 11/8/1952 (enthroned 2/5/1953) - 7/2/1999, GCVO 1953, hon Air Chief Marshall, Royal Air Force 1966, Royal Victoria Chain 1966, Hon Degree at New York Univ 1996, educ al Alieh School in Amman, Moslem Lycée in Amman, Harrow School, Victoria College in Alexandria and Royal Military Academy in Sandhurst, °Amman 14/11/1935, +Amman 7/2/1999 (bur Royal Cemetery of Amman), X 1 Amman 19/4/1955 (div 1957) Sharifa Dina, titled HM Queen Dina 1955-1957 then HRH P^cess Dina from 1957, °Cairo 1929, (X 2ndly 10/1971 Assad Abd ar Rahman, °1935), daughter of Sharif Abd al Hamid ibn Mohammed and of Fahria Brav, great-granddaughter of Aun ar Rafiq, Grand Sharif of Mecca, 2 Amman 25/5/1961 (div 1972) Antoinette (Toni) Avril Gardiner, renamed Muna al Hussein on her conversion to Islam, titled HRH P^cessMuna 30/1/1962, °Chelmondiston, Ipswich, Suffolk, England 25/4/1941, daughter of Col Walter Percy Gardiner, MC, and of Doris Elizabeth Sutton, 3 Amman 24/12/1972 Alia Baha ed Din Toukan, titled HM Queen Alia al Hussein, °Cairo 25/12/1948, +Amman 9/2/1977, daughter of HE Bahauddin Toukan, fmr Amb of Jordan to London, 4 Amman 15/6/1978 Elisabeth (Lisa) Halaby, renamed Nur on her conversion to Islam, titled HM Queen Nur al Hussein, Dir of Planning and Design at Alia, the Royal Jordanian Airlines 1977, BA Architecture and Urban Planning at Princeton Univ 1974, President of King Hussein Foundation, °Washington DC, 23/8/1951, daughter of Najeeb Elias Halaby, fmr Chm of the Board, Pres and CEO of Pan American Airways and of Doris Carlquist

HM Abdullah II, King of the Hashimite Kingdom of Jordan since 7/2/1999 (see above, Head of the Royal Family)

http://www.almanach.be/search/j/jordan.html

Following a plebiscite with 96% in favour, Faisal (I) ibn Husain, formerly King of Syria, son of Husain ibn Ali, King of the Hijaz and descendant of the Grand Sharifs of Mecca, was proclaimed King of Iraq in 1921. The British protectorate was softened in 1922 and in 1925, leading Iraq to full independance in 1927. King Faisal I’s grandson, King Faisal II, was assassinated at Baghdad in 1958 and Iraq became a republic.

http://www.almanach.be/search/i/iraq.html

I think it's fine. We need to make the gap in treatment between countries who cooperate with us and those who don't as wide as possible.

Jeremiah Jr: Thank you for that information!

I just found this: IUCN Meets in Amman Jordan posted by George Frm Br00klyn Park last year.

" We cannot support the world without destroying America" Doesn't matter to them, I'm sure the politicians and out ruling elite will do quite well, Joe Public is pretty well screwed tho.(as usual) Now come on people, get on board. Let's give those airline owners a few billion, isn't that how it works. After all, the gave millions to the political machines to avoid better safty regulations, don't they deserve a little kickback?

The House of Faisal was given most of the territory of the Middle East by the British. Only Jordan remains. The UN had nothing to do with it, and the king of Jordan is not a Saudi.

Thanks for setting me straight. The fact remains that Palestinians do NOT look at Jordan as the Palestinian homeland and did not even when the West Bank was a part of the country. Why do you suppose that is?

The House of Faisal was given most of the territory of the Middle East by the British. Only Jordan remains. The UN had nothing to do with it, and the king of Jordan is not a Saudi.

Thanks for setting me straight. The fact remains that Palestinians do NOT look at Jordan as the Palestinian homeland and did not even when the West Bank was a part of the country. Why do you suppose that is?

Interesting claim, but I don't think that it is true. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, wages have risen substantially in constant terms since 1991. If the number of "living wage" jobs had actually declined, then average wages would have fallen. Here's the link and I've reproduced some of the chart below using the December numbers for each year. You'll note that the number is just a constant showing what the percentage of the average wage was versus 1989. In other words, if an employee was paid $10.00 per hour in 1989, he'd be earning $10.10 per hour in 19991 (in 1989 dollars):

Civilian workers

1991....101.0

1992... 101.5

1993....102.3

1994....102.6

1995....102.8

1996....102.4

1997....104.0

1998....105.9

1999....106.6

2000....107.4

This chart show all civilian workers. Let me guess, you'll argue that all of the gains were among white collar and professionals and that the average worker didn't experience the same gains. Wrong! The following chart shows "blue collar" gains during the same period.

1991....100.0

1992....100.7

1993....101.6

1994....101.7

1995....101.7

1996....101.0

1997....101.9

1998....103.1

1999....103.7

2000....104.5

Feel free to check for yourself at

ftp://146.142.4.23/pub/suppl/ECI.ECCONST.TXT

NAFTA happened during the 1990s and average wages rose almost 7% over and above inflation during the same period. Blue collar wages rose 4.5% over inflation during the same period. In other words, free trade does not hurt the American worker and benefits us all.

I encourage you to look at the data yourself. Pay special attention to the period before NAFTA and GATT. Wages were stagnant or even delined. That's what protectionism provides and does for the american worker while making all of us pay higher prices for goods.

Most people are too busy with their own lives to be responsible for the welfare of America. It's too bad. We used to have a part time government. Now it's a full time oppressive monster. It is getting to where it's so hard for people to live without being criminals. Soon, after the National ID Card, you'll see limited free speech, no firearm ownership, no free travel, mandatory public transportation, vouchers for food and water. Rationing of resources. Then there will be only two kinds of people in the world. The very rich, and the very poor. Unfortunately, us, the very poor will be ruled by the very rich.

How fortunate for rulers that men don't think. Hitler said that, and he couldn't have been more correct.

I will hope and pray that the God that I believe in will either get rid of those in power who would destroy our freedom, or correct them in their evil ways. It would seem to me that Mr Dick Gephardt hasn't been studying the bible much. I would go so far as to say, he's a devil, along with Tom Daschle, Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, and Koffi Annon. Anyone who would advocate the enslavement of innocent people, is the devil. A national ID Card will do that. So would a repeal of our constitution.