Already, India has a free trade pact with Thailand. There is further scope for economic diplomacy for India in this region which can result in a larger share of the growing service pie. Viewed in this perspective the Singapore agreement is just a beginning, though a significant one in the right direction.
Such bilateral pacts have assumed greater importance precisely because the WTO has not been able to make any breakthrough in movement of labour. The rich nations are opposed to GATS (General Agreement on Trade in Services) in respect of allowing freer immigration of workers from third world countries. There is some opposition to GATS in India as well on the ground that it may lead to increase in the level of wages. The next Ministerial level conference of the WTO is scheduled to take place in Hong Kong where such agreements are bound to put pressure to ease immigration norms of developed nations.
In the mean while Singapore has the potential to become the second ‘Gulf’ for thousands of Indians who excel as professionals and service providers. The Indian industry on it’s part must prepare to fact further shortages of skilled manpower at least in certain fields. As a result, the wage bill of the India Inc. may see a rise. To stay competitive, Indian firms will have to innovate, reduce other costs and learn better management skills.
I am a dean of a college which conducts Commerce and management programs for under-graduate students. I am a also fre-lance writer on economic issues concerning the Indian economy in particular and the global economy in general.
Zacarias Moussaoui may have lied to a federal agent which, according to jurors, allowed 9/11 to unfold in all of its gruesome details. The official count records 2,986 deaths in the attacks, including the 19 hijackers. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9/11.
If Moussaoui is guilty of such a crime then he surely should be drawn and quartered, shot, hanged, buried alive, guillotined, or burned at the stake.
No sissy lethal injection for him.
The 9/11 victims were burned, crushed, smothered, bludgeoned, and squashed.
Maybe we can resurrect that old Apache custom and leave him to die on a bed of South American flesh-eating Fire Ants. That could be televised for all to see.
But is Moussaoui guilty? He seems to be such a braggart, wants to be seen as a big shot, and changes his story all the time. I think he is one big fat liar.
Intelligence sources reported that top-ranking Al-Qaida captives say that Zacarias Moussaoui had nothing to do with 9/11. Their testimonies have been read to jurors in court in Alexandria, Virginia. See: http://tinyurl.com/nklcw.
Some sources have said that he was considered to be unreliable and even crazy. See http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5307608 and dozens of blogs.
I would assume that Moussaoui would be tortured like all the other Al-Qaida operatives captured. However, he wasn’t. There are blogs saying that he should be tortured to determine if he is really telling the truth.
I don’t think anyone needs to torture Moussaoui to determine if he has been lying. There are plenty of experts around to determine this and his sanity at the same time. If the experts can not tell, then torture him for his own good.
If Moussaoui is killed as punishment, as he may well be, and then it is proven that he was innocent, how would that appear to the American people?
My answer is that nobody would give a damn. He is a detestable person and everybody would just say “Good Riddance!” If he were an American citizen, that could make a difference.
My question is: Do we want to kill an obnoxious man that is innocent just because he lied?
I don’t think so. Not if the lies had no effect on 9/11.
The End
9/11, twin towers, Al-Qaida, Moussaoui, guilt, torture,
John T. Jones, Ph.D. (tjbooks@hotmail.com, a retired VP of R&D for Lenox China, is author of detective & western novels, nonfiction (business, scientific, engineering, humor), poetry, etc. Former editor of Ceramic Industry Magazine. He is Executive Representative of IWS sellers of Tyler Hicks wealth-success books and kits. He also sells TopFlight flagpoles. He calls himself “Taylor Jones, the hack writer.”
More info: http://www.tjbooks.com
Business web site: http://www.aaaflagpoles.com
