Posted on 01/30/2009 2:27:27 PM PST by LSUfan
Back in the 1930s, my father was working in New Orleans. One of his memories is of seeing cargo ships being loaded with scrap iron with a destination of Japan.
He was both angry and upset when he saw that iron coming back at Americans on Dec. 7, 1941. He was even angrier when it was coming at him a couple of years later on an island in the South Pacific.
Of course, no one in America advocates trading with the Taliban or the insurgents in Iraq, two entities with which we are now engaged in war. How about trading with those nations, such as Iran, who are arming the Taliban and Iraq insurgents? Direct investment with those nations is now against United States law but investment in and trading with foreign companies or American companies with foreign subsidiaries who do business with Iran is not.
Like my father who was seeing that American scrap iron coming back at him in 1944, the American GI of today who is fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan or dodging the infamous IEDs built in Iran and smuggled over to their friends in Iraq is not too happy with seeing weapons used against him that may have been financed by Americans.
How does this happen? Is Mississippi involved? It happens when international companies do business, invest in, provide technological assistance, and provide expertise and equipment to Iran that it cannot provide to its own businesses from its own resources. According to the Center for Security Policy’s Divest Terror Initiative, it appears our own state employee retirement fund owns stock in international companies who enable Iran to continue on its terror sponsoring ways.
According to Michael Barone of Real Clear Politics, “Iran is the leading state sponsor of terrorism.” There are others such as North Korea, Sudan, and Syria, but Iran seems to be the worst offender right now. I do not know of anyone right now who wants to attack Iran militarily because of this but there is much we can do by just cutting their ties to financial and business support.
Pulling out of investments in companies that support Iran is the least we can do. Other states have already acted to do so. Bills have been passed on a bipartisan basis in such diverse states as California and Missouri that require their state pension plans to divest themselves of companies doing business in terror supporting countries. Mississippi’s Public Employees Retirement System was reluctant last year to agree to such a proposal. That is incomprehensible to me.
I have a close friend whose son is now in Afghanistan as a combat infantryman. He has already done one tour in Iraq in the same role. I pray for his safety every day. But his family should not have to worry that our own state retirement fund is indirectly supporting those who mean to do him harm. Legislation has been introduced to prevent PERS from continuing these investments. Call your legislator and tell him to support that legislation.
Republican Dr. Sidney Bondurant represents District 24 in the Mississippi House of Representatives and is a mstribune.com contributor.
I don’t approve of primary or secondary trade with problematic states. Iran should get no Western support whatsoever. That’s my position on China as well.
We have been acting like the stupid nation for far too long. It’s time to wake up and quit helping those who would do us in, if they had the chance.
We trade with China despite their willingness to arm our enemies.
>We have been acting like the stupid nation for far too long.<
Don’t worry, we’ll continue to do so until we croak. It’s all part of that one-world government and desire for globalization that we have promoted since after Reagan. The most audacious country will be the lone survivor and we ain’t it.
Mississippi Personnel Retirement System Ping.
Thanks for the ping - and bkmrk for later...
The chairman of the House Appropriations Committee in Mississippi insists that he will do only what the Mississippi Public Employee Retirement System (PERS) advises him to do. They killed the bill last year and they aim to kill it again this year.
According to the latest available independent, public data, Mississippi PERS has investments in 68 foreign companies with business ties to the Islamic Republic of Iran, 35 companies with business ties to the Syrian Arab Republic and 25 companies with ties to the Islamic Republic of Sudan.
Here is a link to the committee chairman’s web site:
http://www.votesmart.org/bio.php?can_id=3745
Nothing that Mississippi does now days surprises me.
First one would would have to decide who are the terrorists. Those who wish to keep and live on their land as they have for over a thousand years or those who have stolen the land and must “defend it”.
Thank you Mrs. Khomeini.
You must be a total moron. Who exactly took land from Iran and Al Qaeda?
It would have been hlepful if he'd named those companies.
It might have been HELPFUL, too! ;o)
US support for Israel is seen as terrorism by many Arab nations and groups.
And, no need to call names because we have different points of view. Do we all have to see things thru Zionist eyes or else?
The Iranians aren’t Arabs you frickin’ moron.
...the American GI of today who is fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan or dodging the infamous IEDs built in Iran and smuggled over to their friends in Iraq is not too happy with seeing weapons used against him that may have been financed by Americans... According to the Center for Security Policy's Divest Terror Initiative, it appears our own state employee retirement fund owns stock in international companies who enable Iran to continue on its terror sponsoring ways.
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