Santo Domingo.- Dominican Republic’s foreign service payroll reveals why the country is the world’s top bloodsucker of taxpayers’ money, with 1,163 officials, 660 diplomats and 503 consular ones among them, many of which are veritable quotas of political cronyism and nepotism, and equal Central America’s total, newspaper Hoy reports.
The nation spends more than RD$4.0 billion in the foreign service annually, with wages which sometimes surpass those of the senior officials in the countries where they’re assigned, and competes with the United States in the number of representatives in the United Nations and the Organization of American States.
Diplomatic and consular leader
Proportionally Dominican Republic has the world’s most diplomatic and consular representatives, competing with the large economic, population and territorial powers, waste that makes the country the world champion in waste of taxpayers money among 142 nations evaluated in the World Economic Forum’s competitiveness index.
The Dominican foreign service payroll on November 30 totaled 1,163 diplomatic and consular officials designated in 54 countries and 6 international entities, in addition to the 113 ambassadors assigned to the Foreign Relations Ministry, which has a RD$4.94 billion budget this year, 100 million less than last year.
the Government pays 384 officials just in the United States, which according to a Dominican ambassador cited by news source hoy.com.do surpasses the number of those from the six Central America countries as well as those Brazil, one of the world’s leading economies, which has 21 times Dominican Republic’s population and 177 times its territory.
A considerable number of Dominican officials abroad don’t reside in the places where they are designated, and at least in the United States and Colombia many have yet to receive the diplomatic or consular accreditation because they’ve exceeded the corresponding proportion.
It gets even more complicated in the U.S. case because many don’t qualify for being American citizen or residents, a situation which in the last few years has caused tension between the respective foreign relations ministries.
From: Dominican Republic
Thats OK, just keep spending, after all Leonel said there is no financial crisis in the Domincan Republic.
Also that the Dominican Republic is immune to external financial forces.
You get what you vote for.
If Danillo get in then Leonel's Pork Chop gets in and there will be another 4 years of Leonel.
Written by: BASTA, 23 Jan 2012 8:16 AM
From: Dominican Republic, =Ghetto/Legalize Drugs
My god what losers we are!
Written by: Pedrin, 23 Jan 2012 8:25 AM
From: United States
All on board the gravy train.
From: Dominican Republic
This comes as a major embarrassment for the country and those with eyes hardly open should realize that we are not in a position to be so worldly!
Written by: generoso, 23 Jan 2012 8:42 AM
From: United States, Quisqueya
Disgusting, just disgusting.
Bunch of freeloaders, bums, and smuggling experts.
From: Dominican Republic
This is just disgraceful... With such problems in this country they spend so much on giving favor to kiss asses overseas diplomatic positions... If we get a new government they will all be recalled and replaced by new ass lickers.....
All so LF can try and get a seat on the UN... I wonder if they would let him have his "throne" put in the UN.....
DISGRACEFUL
DISGRACEFUL
AND just plain DISGUSTING..........
Written by: Atabey, 23 Jan 2012 9:43 AM
From: United States, NYC
"the Government pays 384 officials just in the United States,"
Easily cut some 300 of them!
"The Dominican foreign service payroll on November 30 totaled 1,163 diplomatic and consular officials designated in 54 countries and 6 international entities, in addition to the 113 ambassadors assigned to the Foreign Relations Ministry, which has a RD$4.94 billion budget this year, 100 million less than last year. "
54 countries + 6 international entities=60 x 6 people= 360 people. And that's way more than they really need.
1163 - 360= 803 BOTELLAS no longer needed.
113 Ambassadors. What criteria are they judged upon, other then being BF of the administration? How are they judged as efficient or productive representatives for the nation? What contacts have they made in their assigned nation?, additional business openings for the nation?, shared cultural exchanges?, something other than staring out the window of some expensive house/apt paid by the public purse!
Written by: Vivacuba, 23 Jan 2012 9:52 AM
From: Dominican Republic
"It gets even more complicated in the U.S. case because many don’t qualify for being American citizen or residents, a situation which in the last few years has caused tension between the respective foreign relations ministries" ..........................WTF?
Written by: juanb, 23 Jan 2012 9:54 AM
From: Dominican Republic
Where is little dick to tell us how good it is to have such strong representation?
Written by: Cacique, 23 Jan 2012 10:03 AM
From: Dominican Republic
Too many chiefs, few braves, papoose no good future on great island of Kiskeya...How!
From: United States, FREEPORT, Long Island.... (Look, beyond the words)
Can we get a presidential IMPEACHMENT already!!!!!!
Re:
-Bean for oil program was a total flop
-Leonels countless encounter with the narco world
-The mentioned in the article
-unlawful presidential terms
-The taking of grease money under the table for a construction project ( documented)
-Son-n-law using the military to collect from Omega
-telling everyone that the school he was building in haiti will only cost 30million USD
-Violating the constitution numerous times
-Leaving San Jose de las Matas to fend for them selves( there're doing an excellent job without him)
-for his bait-n-switch tactics
From: United States
Inbred entitlement mentality gravy train.
Written by: RoyStone, 23 Jan 2012 10:11 AM
From: Australia
Can anyone tell me what they actually do, since most of the world doesn't even know where the Dominican Republic is.
Written by: RoyStone, 23 Jan 2012 10:15 AM
From: Australia
They're living living the high-life on borrowed money,
while the rest of the country live the low-life on borrowed time.
From: Dominican Republic, vieja Santo Domingo
I have been writing about this for at lesat two years about how ludicrous it is to have this huge foreign office with so many consulates and embassies....I imagine most quite un necessary but maybe LF thought they would assist him for some office in the UN ,
In fact I wrote almost three years ago of a dinner I was at where am ambassador who had pssed retirement age was made ambassador to a former Soviet state and visits there for a week a year
From: Dominican Republic, NEVER FORGOTTEN, NEVER FORSAKEN!
What a waste!
Written by: RoyStone, 23 Jan 2012 12:31 PM
From: Australia
I would like to know how many of these countries have embassies or consulates in the Dominican Republic. I suspect very few. Australia, with the world's 13th largest GDP doesn't. The Dominican
Republic has 2 consulates in Australia - 1 in Sydney and 1 in Adelaide (5th largest city).
Written by: Atabey, 23 Jan 2012 12:43 PM
From: United States, NYC
how many kangaroos have these two consulates obtained for the nation?
From: Dominican Republic, Puerto Plata
That makes for one spoiled group of cronies.
I'm sure most of those bottle holders hadn't tasted wine or foie gras in their previous life, and now can dissert on the respective virtues of Shiraz and Carmenere.
And the real vacanos are drinking XO with Coca Cola.
Written by: okian, 23 Jan 2012 1:53 PM
From: United States
Just sad.
Written by: xfactor, 23 Jan 2012 2:00 PM
From: United States
On top of all that, the Fees for services at the consulate in New York are exaggerated. It is ridiculous.
Written by: RoyStone, 23 Jan 2012 2:17 PM
From: Australia
Atabey,
One of Australia's biggest earners of foreign exchange is education. Many Asians go to Australia then apply their knowledge in their own countries. The results speak for themselves.
When the Dominican consulates told the Dominican government about it, they were told "what the name of the virgin are we gonna do with education? You can't drink it, smoke it, snort it or fu(k it! Can you sell them some Dominican sugar? Oh, they produce more than us? They've got much more than just kangaroos? How are we supposed to know that! Education? I told you to shut-the-fu(k up about education!"
From: United States
Ladrones como siempre , no me sorprende en nada asi es NUESTRA REPUBLICA DESDE LOS TIEMPOS DE LOS ESPANOLES TELL ME SOMETHING I DONT KNOW .
From: Canada
I would not be surprised to learn that the Canadian province of Quebec is the number two in this category ...
Written by: josean, 23 Jan 2012 6:00 PM
From: United States, Dedicating 4 more years to fighting the Dictatorship of the Narco PLD Mafia
Here a little more info on how the PLD and Lie-onel Fernandez are ripping off the Dominican Taxpayers, particularly their children, to whom Lie-onel denies the 4% of GDP for education in violation of the law as mandated by the constitution:
"The bloated foreign service
Writing in Saturday's Hoy newspaper, journalist Juan Bolivar Diaz focused on what has been said many times before. The Dominican foreign service is bloated with political appointees. Diaz says that the situation in the foreign service shows why the Dominican Republic tops the list of 142 countries on the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Index for wasteful spending. He says that 1,163 people have been appointed to 54 countries, including 660 diplomats and 503 consuls, equal to all those appointed by all the Central American countries combined. In addition, the Ministry of Foreign Relations has 113 ambassadors without posts. This year it has a budget of RD$4.937 billion."
Continued:
Written by: josean, 23 Jan 2012 6:02 PM
From: United States, Dedicating 4 more years to fighting the Dictatorship of the Narco PLD Mafia
"He said the country spends RD$4 billion a year on wages and the DR has about the same number of appointees to the United Nations and the Organization of American States as the United States. In per capita terms, the DR leads in foreign service appointees.
Diaz makes the point that in the United States alone there are 384 officials on the payroll, which is more than all those appointed in the six Central American countries and in Brazil. He makes the point that many of the people on the payroll do not even reside in these countries, and have not been accredited by the country. He points out that this is the case in the United States, where many of the appointees are residents or citizens of the country. He says that many of them only visit the mission where they are assigned sporadically, and in many cases the head of mission has asked them not to bother because there is no physical space for them. He mentions it is common for ambassadors to serve as consuls in the same country.
Written by: RoyStone, 23 Jan 2012 6:02 PM
From: Australia
FedericoD,
Has Quebec broken away from Canada yet?
Written by: josean, 23 Jan 2012 6:04 PM
From: United States, Dedicating 4 more years to fighting the Dictatorship of the Narco PLD Mafia
Continued:
Foreign delegations in the Dominican Republic total 442, for a 5:1 ratio.
The Hoy article mentions that Colombia is one country that has refused to accredit more foreign service representatives from the DR. So far, the government has appointed 30 to Colombia, while Colombia has sent five representatives to their mission here.
Caribbean islands have large Dominican delegations. He mentions Jamaica with 14, compared to one Jamaican official in the DR, and Trinidad with nine and one official in the DR, who is an honorary consul. In the cases of Aruba (10), Curacao (9), Antigua-Barbuda (6) and St. Maarten (6) he comments that most of those appointed are vice consuls who charge up to US$200 to legalize documents to migrant Dominicans.
continued:
Written by: josean, 23 Jan 2012 6:05 PM
From: United States, Dedicating 4 more years to fighting the Dictatorship of the Narco PLD Mafia
"In the case of Argentina, 15 have been appointed by the Dominican Republic, compared to three appointed by Argentina in the Dominican Republic (an ambassador, a consular charge d'affaires and a manager). In contrast, the Dominican embassy in Buenos Aires consists of an ambassador, four ministers counselor, four counselors, four first secretaries, a cultural attache and an assistant attache.
In New York City, there are 160 appointees, including 63 to the United Nations and 97 to the Dominican Consulate. He estimates that only half have been accredited."
www.hoy.com.do/tema-de-hoy/2012/1/21/411137/Crece-y-crece-nomina-del-servicio-exterior
From: United States, NJ
DT:
Since when do you have to be a US citizen or resident to work in any DR consulate in the USA ?
All these are political jobs where in DR no qualification is needed.They fall under the uimbrella of
(DIPLOMATS), and as such are given DIPLOMATIC visas and immunity as not to pay fines (p/t)
I know for a fact DR has 6 vice Consuls in NYC and an office full of incompetent personnel that
can hardly speak either language. When ever you are looking for the consul he could never be
reached ,nor could you get a vice-consul ,because he left for the day for NJ .
As to be over budget I agree. with, this money could be apply towards education instead of
supporting this bunch of leaches. That is not even counting the personnel at the UN ,under the
same umbrella of diplomats.
The tension between the two ministers has been due to the abuse of DR diplomatas not paying
their due parking fines,and not behaving to the best interest of the nation..
From: United States, NJ
cont.
As well as thinking they are above the law and are untouchable by the police ,therefore can act in
the most underseable manner as if they were at home and knew some general in power who is
related to him.
Let me tell you the DR is not the only bunch that could be single out .The entire UN personnel is
the same way. I guess our concern is DR with such a small population and territory and given
so much money to do nothing as a result.
DR so call (diplomats) or diplomatic status have not even completed their HS education, if they
did they bought that diploma some where, since they don't act civil.
I was under the impression in order to be a diplomat you had to attend university and take
consular related courses, as well as an embassador since he is going to represent that nation.
Again that is a political move and also could to keep the uderseable out of DR.
From: Dominican Republic, vieja Santo Domingo
good to see we have a subject where everyone is 100% in agreement and not the slightest waiver of disagreement
Written by: Pedrin, 23 Jan 2012 8:13 PM
From: United States
I became a US citizen so I wouldn't have to deal with these slugs.
Written by: josean, 23 Jan 2012 9:06 PM
From: United States, Dedicating 4 more years to fighting the Dictatorship of the Narco PLD Mafia
After the Tet Offensive in 1968 Walter Cronkite broke with President Johnson on the Vietnam War in a historic television editorial.
President Johnson said:
“If I’ve lost Cronkite, I’ve lost Middle America.” – Lyndon Johnson, February 27, 1968”
Now Little Dickey breaks with his God Lie-onel and his party the Corrupt Narco PLD and says; “good to see we have a subject where everyone is 100% in agreement and not the slightest waiver of disagreement"
Maybe on February 27, 2012 Lie-onel Fernandez will say “If I’ve lost Ricardolito, I’ve lost the Dominican people!”
Written by: RoyStone, 23 Jan 2012 9:28 PM
From: Australia
Can you blame Dominican base-ball players in the USA thinking they are above the law?
Written by: RoyStone, 23 Jan 2012 9:29 PM
From: Australia
Josean,
Perhaps its a case of Parkinsons Law squared?
Written by: RoyStone, 23 Jan 2012 9:32 PM
From: Australia
I'm not defending Ricardolito, Josean, but am asking will it all be fixed when Hippo returns to power?
From: Denmark
I am shocked shocked as good old GC would have put it -
Have a presidente and do nothing about it - or maybe do not cast ANY vote in May to make your next b...sh*t president without any ligitimacy. This will certainly be duly noticed around the world.
Written by: Atabey, 24 Jan 2012 10:24 AM
From: United States, NYC
Written by: RoyStone, 23 Jan 2012 9:32 PM
From: Australia
I'm not defending Ricardolito, Josean, but am asking will it all be fixed when Hippo returns to power?"
That's the rude REALITY question Josean runs away from. He has no answer.
From: United States
It is ridiculous that we have so many representatives worldwide. They must all take turns using the seal to stamp documents. This abuse has been documented for several years now. When will someone make it a priority to address this abuse of Dominican resources?
All these botellas are lowering the quality of our repesentatives. This should be an important election topic. A candidate could save at least 3 billion by cutting the waste. I would vote for a candidate just on that promise alone.
Written by: josean, 24 Jan 2012 12:55 PM
From: United States, Dedicating 4 more years to fighting the Dictatorship of the Narco PLD Mafia
"Written by: Atabey, 24 Jan 2012 10:24 AM
From: United States
Written by: RoyStone, 23 Jan 2012 9:32 PM
From: Australia
I'm not defending Ricardolito, Josean, but am asking will it all be fixed when Hippo returns to power?"
That's the rude REALITY question Josean runs away from. He has no answer."
What is amazing is “the rude REALITY question” as to why such learned intellectual like you would be so obsessed with the opinions of a GED Status Level :) peasant like me?
From: Canada
Roy ... provincial residents in Quebec have advantages that the rest of us do not ... Quebec has it's own embassies only flying their provincial flag, they have visa enablement processes that only engage for french speaking residents ... I could go on but in many way they are a federation unto themselves with much greater autonomy than the remaining english speaking provinces ... current estimates have only about 20% of the country speaking french ...
Written by: josean, 24 Jan 2012 1:58 PM
From: United States, Dedicating 4 more years to fighting the Dictatorship of the Narco PLD Mafia
I'm not defending Ricardolito, Josean, but am asking will it all be fixed when Hippo returns to power?
No Roy, I don’t think Mejia can fix it, nor do I subscribe to the lesser of two evils.
I have been very clear on my choice of Guillermo Moreno as well as the reasons why.
There was a time when the PLD zealots divided the country between the “Corrupt and the PLD” and now after 12 years of pillaging and plundering they have become the poster boys and girls for corruption! When you look up the word corruption in the dictionary you find a picture of Lie-onel Fernandez and the Political committee of the PLD.
The so-called choosing between the “lesser of two evils” falls into the popular definition of insanity “doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.”
We need radical fundamental change whether the country is ready for it or not that is another story, but in my humble opinion thats the need, otherwise we will continue to live in this INSANITY!
From: Canada
josean ... the PM of Canada promised to cut excess staff from the government payroll and has now begun to do so in earnest ... suggestions of 60,000 to 68,000 jobs are to be cut and already the first layoff notices have started ...
wouldn't this be a great parallel example for the government of DR to employ? imagine the benefits of laying off huge numbers of non-productive staff and reducing the opportunities for graft and red tape ...
Written by: RoyStone, 24 Jan 2012 3:03 PM
From: Australia
FedericoD, watch closely,
I have seen these cuts in the public-service numbers before. Theoretically they sack all these people then give the work to private contractors - the same people sitting at the same desks, only paid a lot more. However it looks good on paper.
From: Dominican Republic
Roy/Frederico... WTF!
1. We are not speaking about QC. I could not care less! Don't mix apples and oranges.
All:
2. Just imagine if you spent this much here on tourism-based Education and Environmental Protection, including thousands of jobs created in these fields.
A golden opportunity for one of the two morons to take the lead in the up-coming elections.
I do not trust either to bring any change for the better in this country... They are both excrements of the corrupt system.
Llego papa "hipocrito" frita mejia!
Point of interest.... I know one of "Hipocrito's" nephews. a 28 year old idiot that may or may not have a grade 2 education, and could not get laid in a whhore house... "He told me that his uncle promissed him the Ottawa DR Embasy as the Ambasador when he wins the election!!!" WHAT A crock. Thay are all the same... PdeM
RACALL all the Diplomatic Morons! Vote for Presidente Light!
Written by: RoyStone, 24 Jan 2012 5:32 PM
From: Australia
FedericoD,
On a Canadian Airlines flight I noticed all the announcements were made in English and French. I asked the hostess how many French speaking passengers there were on board (as were in Ontario). She said there where none, but that it is Canadian Law that all announcements are to be made in both languages, as are street sighs, food packaging, etc.
I was wondering, is law to include English in Quebec?
From: Canada
Concatchero ... point taken ...
Roy ... English in Quebec is allowed but is a very touchy issue ...
Concatchero ... please let me know if the nephew gets posted to Canada ....
From: Dominican Republic
Fred: Do not worry, I am well connected to DFAIT. Besides, "Papa Frita" does not have the lead in the polls; so I hope he will crumble and die in the election.
Regardless, I would vote for a Chinese candidate to get rid of these two self-entittled corrupt morons.
Papa promisses pessos for the poors. In fact peanuts but better than nothing. He is actively buying votes. The last time he was here in power, the national economy thanked and the (DP) pesos dropped substantially.
Cheers,
C.
From: Dominican Republic
Roy,
The Canadian Constitution protects the culture, laws, and language of the French-Canadian minority. Even before the 1967 constitution, It had been so since the invasion and conquest of the British troops in the Plains of Abraham, over 300 years ago.
Contrary to usual ethnic cleansing the Brits usualy imposed on the populace when they conquered a territory, they were out-numberred 100/1 by the French at that time and agreed to make them British subjects and to protect their laws, language and culture. In return the Fench Canadian remained loyal to the crown. This was the basis for what is now Canada.
There are Francophone communities from East to West, with the majority based in the Eastern Provinces.
On that plane, probably everyone French could understand English, but the two official languages of Canada are French and English! So, anything that is from the Federal Governement has to be in both. Within Provinces it is by choice. I hope this clarifies this for you.
Written by: RoyStone, 25 Jan 2012 10:19 AM
From: Australia
Concatchero, thank you for the clarification, however it still does not answer my question - is it compulsory to include English on Quebec government documents?
Regarding British "ethnic cleansing" of their colonies, they were certainly less thorough that all other European colonists, especially the Spanish. American Indians, Australian Aborigines and New Zealand Maoris survived and many are thriving. What ever happened to the Incas, Aztecs, Caribs and Tainos? Yes, perhaps that was more like genocide than cleansing. Maybe by cleansing you mean introducing the natives to the use of soap? I can assure you that many Aborigines freely exercise their right of refusal in that regard. However I will admit that the Aborigines receiving the most benefits have blue eyes and blonde hair and are 15/16ths Caucasian. Still you can go to jail for saying so, under the new Anti-Racial Vilification Law. I'm serious!
Written by: RoyStone, 25 Jan 2012 10:27 AM
From: Australia
Concatchero, perhaps you should also talk to some Kiwis about recent High Court interpretations of their 1840 Treaty of Waitangi, or Aussies about Native Title Recognition laws.
Had the British not been worried about the French establishing colonies in Terra Australis, maybe there would be no Aborigines or Maoris alive today. However the Spanish, Dutch and Portuguese all knew about Australia long before James Cook, but were not interested.
From: United States
Roy I beg to differ regarding the elimination and survival of native peoples at the hand of the Spanish vs English. Whereas the natives in Australia and New Zealand survived, I would hardly call the small percentage of North American Indians a survival. ("Only good Indian is a dead Indian") was a remark often espoused by British colonists and their American descendants. To number such an insignificant percentage of US population (less than 1%) shows the extent of the ethnic cleansing by the English.
The Spaniards on the other hand wanted the natives to survive in order to have a labor force. Though this policy did cause the eradication of the Tainos and Caribes, the Aztecs, Incas and their descendants today outnumber the white Spaniard descendants in Mexico, Ecuador and especially Bolivia where Indians make up nearly 90% of the population. And as far as the Tainos in the Greater Antilles recent DNA tests of populations in Puerto Rico and Dominican showed 60% with Taino blood.
From: United States
So I wouldn't say the the Spanish committed genocide against the Tainos as much as they f***ed them out of existence. The Caribs however being more resistent and aggressive to Spanish domination were sought out by them for elimination.
From: Dominican Republic
Roy, to answer your question; NO; but the same goes for other provincial governments, who do what they want as far as preferred language versus population. QC has about 85-90% francophones... They picked French as their primary...
All Feds are totally bilingual across all provinces. Someone that immigrates to canada must either speak French or English, but this has not been enforced. Mandarin is becoming prominent, just as much as in Australia I gather!
Thank you both for the education about the ethnic cleansing (soapless in some parts) of native and non-native cultures. The Brits were nicer to us than they had been to others. The French did not lift a finger (as always) so Fluck them. There is "Fench" (meaning from France), and there is Francophone (meaning one whom speaks it), the later is more appropriate for French Canadians as the majority does not like France very much. Most of our ancestors are a mix of Scotish or Irish origins, and just like them; we were left behind!
From: United States, NJ
Concatchero:
For that matter ,so are the Haitians (Franco-parlante). Still not French by Blood but as a
coinsidence of slave trade in the Western hemisphere produced by the French. As you perhaps
know the History of the two countries at that time was the Jewll of the Larger Antilles (The Island
of Hispanola) that brought lots of wars beteewn Spain & France.Finally the Pope had to intersed
I would say one thing .If it was not for the French leaving a small garrison and lots of weapons
and amo behind in Haiti, when they went to fight the Brits in Europe under Napoleon ,what we call
Hibero-America would never had taken place but still Spanish Colonies. Thanks to the emperor of
Haiti that gave away most of arsenal to Simon Bolivar to look the other way, while he did what he
did for 22 years In what is now DR .DR at that time belonged to the same anti Spaniard revellion
as the rest, but Simon thought it was wise he could not fight the Spaniards.
From: United States, NJ
cont,
In Bogota Colombia where they have the Bolivar museum it shows very clearly that thanks to
HAITI for their support . I said to them while it did lots for you guys in So America it had us
QUISQUELLANOS enslaved. The tour director told me" some one had to suffer " for the good
of the vast empire, He said to me wouldn't you have done the same thing had you been in Bolivars
shoes?,I repplied, I guess so for the size of land to be gained from the Spaniards despotic
CROWN,not like the Brits,who had common sence and created theCOMMONWEALTH.Therefore
Britain did not lose out ,instead passed on the empire to the USA after ww2,and still the ANGLO
AMERICAN alliance goes back to ww1 where we came to ENGLAND'S Ssupport both time.
Written by: RoyStone, 26 Jan 2012 6:18 PM
From: Australia
Thanks, guys, its good to read posts from people who actually know some history, rather than spouting forth unfounded nationalistic pride.
Yes, many Australians speak Mandarin having migrated from China. Our former Prime Minister, Chairman kRudd, spoke fluent Mandarin too. Our current Prime Minister, Joooya struggles with English.
Perhaps one reason Aborigines and Maoris fared better than American Indians, was because British settlement of Australian and New Zealand was somewhat later.
Written by: Atabey, 28 Jan 2012 1:37 PM
From: United States, NYC
"The so-called choosing between the “lesser of two evils” falls into the popular definition of insanity “doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.”
We need radical fundamental change whether the country is ready for it or not that is another story, but in my humble opinion thats the need, otherwise we will continue to live in this INSANITY!"-JOSEAN
I know you don't like the Forum section of DT, but here's some food for thought, and no need to go to the big dark blue water.
Enjoy.
Read and learn, Josean.
http://www.nature.com/news/democr....all-it-is-cracked-up-to-be-1.9925From: Dominican Republic
No matter how you look at it, the slave trade is much worse than being left behind to fend for yourself in a cold an unhospitable environement, by the colonizing countries.
Slave trade left a stain in human history, no matter how you look at it.... But some people need to move beyond this, evolve and prosper. Are we not all created equal? For sure, wealth, opportunity, safety and security are not equally granted, but we have the power to change things for better, when actually some politicians would change better things to get the power (and money).
Thank you everyone for their bits of history and the great blog without slams, cursings, or hissings.
This has been quite an intelligent and level headed conversation and I enjoyed this immensely!
Have a great week DT readers!
Written by: RoyStone, 30 Jan 2012 10:21 AM
From: Australia
Concatchero,
I am not sure what you mean by the cold an inhospitable environment. Do you mean the lands from whence the slaves were taken, or the the lands that were colonized?
Slavery has been a reality for most of human history until relatively recent times, and some would argue it still exists are we are slaves to our home-mortgage, convention, fashion, etc.
You ask "Are we not all created equal?" - a very debatable point. We were not "created" - we evolved, and that very process favors inequality. It is called "survival of the fittest". In a natural environment, "fitness" is easily defined. In a civilized society, its not so easy.
From: Dominican Republic
My friend Roy,
Obviously, you were never in Canada in the winter. Lol
So, I was just making the point that although our respective colonizing countries left us to fend ourselves in the snow bank, it would never be as bad as people left behind as a result of slavery.
You do get my point about slavery, and yes we are still slaves of the systems we live in, but the chains are now only virtual chains. Glad I never had to wear the cold metal ones, tied to the bottom of a ship.
As for the "created equals", merely refering to what our religious and polictical leaders are feeding down our guzzards. Apart from personalities and cultures, if we all had the same opportunities and the same environment in life, we would all have the potential to achieve greatness. But, not all could do so because of personal traits and culture. Then your misfortune would be your own doing and you would not have a Govt or a situation to blame. We all have potential as equals; but we will never be!
Written by: RoyStone, 30 Jan 2012 11:38 AM
From: Australia
Concatchero,
You get no argument from me on most points, however both times I was in Canada was in late winter and yes, I nearly froze my nuts off. However I noticed Canadians are very well adapted to avoiding the cold.
An important point about slavery, is the fact that the colonists did not go into the African wilderness and "take" slaves. They bought them in the slave-markets from other Africans.
Another point is, were it not for the slave-trade during the colonial era, perhaps there would not be such a rich racial tapestry in these former colonies. Slavery had virtually gone by the time Australia was settled, so until the abandonment of the government's White Australia Policy, has not had the benefit of Negro genes. (I'm doing my best to rectify that.)
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Also that the Dominican Republic is immune to external financial forces.
You get what you vote for.
If Danillo get in then Leonel's Pork Chop gets in and there will be another 4 years of Leonel.
Bunch of freeloaders, bums, and smuggling experts.
All so LF can try and get a seat on the UN... I wonder if they would let him have his "throne" put in the UN.....
DISGRACEFUL
DISGRACEFUL
AND just plain DISGUSTING..........
Easily cut some 300 of them!
"The Dominican foreign service payroll on November 30 totaled 1,163 diplomatic and consular officials designated in 54 countries and 6 international entities, in addition to the 113 ambassadors assigned to the Foreign Relations Ministry, which has a RD$4.94 billion budget this year, 100 million less than last year. "
54 countries + 6 international entities=60 x 6 people= 360 people. And that's way more than they really need.
1163 - 360= 803 BOTELLAS no longer needed.
113 Ambassadors. What criteria are they judged upon, other then being BF of the administration? How are they judged as efficient or productive representatives for the nation? What contacts have they made in their assigned nation?, additional business openings for the nation?, shared cultural exchanges?, something other than staring out the window of some expensive house/apt paid by the public purse!
Re:
-Bean for oil program was a total flop
-Leonels countless encounter with the narco world
-The mentioned in the article
-unlawful presidential terms
-The taking of grease money under the table for a construction project ( documented)
-Son-n-law using the military to collect from Omega
-telling everyone that the school he was building in haiti will only cost 30million USD
-Violating the constitution numerous times
-Leaving San Jose de las Matas to fend for them selves( there're doing an excellent job without him)
-for his bait-n-switch tactics
Inbred entitlement mentality gravy train.
while the rest of the country live the low-life on borrowed time.
In fact I wrote almost three years ago of a dinner I was at where am ambassador who had pssed retirement age was made ambassador to a former Soviet state and visits there for a week a year
Republic has 2 consulates in Australia - 1 in Sydney and 1 in Adelaide (5th largest city).
I'm sure most of those bottle holders hadn't tasted wine or foie gras in their previous life, and now can dissert on the respective virtues of Shiraz and Carmenere.
And the real vacanos are drinking XO with Coca Cola.
One of Australia's biggest earners of foreign exchange is education. Many Asians go to Australia then apply their knowledge in their own countries. The results speak for themselves.
When the Dominican consulates told the Dominican government about it, they were told "what the name of the virgin are we gonna do with education? You can't drink it, smoke it, snort it or fu(k it! Can you sell them some Dominican sugar? Oh, they produce more than us? They've got much more than just kangaroos? How are we supposed to know that! Education? I told you to shut-the-fu(k up about education!"
Here a little more info on how the PLD and Lie-onel Fernandez are ripping off the Dominican Taxpayers, particularly their children, to whom Lie-onel denies the 4% of GDP for education in violation of the law as mandated by the constitution:
"The bloated foreign service
Writing in Saturday's Hoy newspaper, journalist Juan Bolivar Diaz focused on what has been said many times before. The Dominican foreign service is bloated with political appointees. Diaz says that the situation in the foreign service shows why the Dominican Republic tops the list of 142 countries on the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Index for wasteful spending. He says that 1,163 people have been appointed to 54 countries, including 660 diplomats and 503 consuls, equal to all those appointed by all the Central American countries combined. In addition, the Ministry of Foreign Relations has 113 ambassadors without posts. This year it has a budget of RD$4.937 billion."
Continued:
Diaz makes the point that in the United States alone there are 384 officials on the payroll, which is more than all those appointed in the six Central American countries and in Brazil. He makes the point that many of the people on the payroll do not even reside in these countries, and have not been accredited by the country. He points out that this is the case in the United States, where many of the appointees are residents or citizens of the country. He says that many of them only visit the mission where they are assigned sporadically, and in many cases the head of mission has asked them not to bother because there is no physical space for them. He mentions it is common for ambassadors to serve as consuls in the same country.
Has Quebec broken away from Canada yet?
Foreign delegations in the Dominican Republic total 442, for a 5:1 ratio.
The Hoy article mentions that Colombia is one country that has refused to accredit more foreign service representatives from the DR. So far, the government has appointed 30 to Colombia, while Colombia has sent five representatives to their mission here.
Caribbean islands have large Dominican delegations. He mentions Jamaica with 14, compared to one Jamaican official in the DR, and Trinidad with nine and one official in the DR, who is an honorary consul. In the cases of Aruba (10), Curacao (9), Antigua-Barbuda (6) and St. Maarten (6) he comments that most of those appointed are vice consuls who charge up to US$200 to legalize documents to migrant Dominicans.
continued:
"In the case of Argentina, 15 have been appointed by the Dominican Republic, compared to three appointed by Argentina in the Dominican Republic (an ambassador, a consular charge d'affaires and a manager). In contrast, the Dominican embassy in Buenos Aires consists of an ambassador, four ministers counselor, four counselors, four first secretaries, a cultural attache and an assistant attache.
In New York City, there are 160 appointees, including 63 to the United Nations and 97 to the Dominican Consulate. He estimates that only half have been accredited."
www.hoy.com.do/tema-de-hoy/2012/1/21/411137/Crece-y-crece-nomina-del-servicio-exterior
Since when do you have to be a US citizen or resident to work in any DR consulate in the USA ?
All these are political jobs where in DR no qualification is needed.They fall under the uimbrella of
(DIPLOMATS), and as such are given DIPLOMATIC visas and immunity as not to pay fines (p/t)
I know for a fact DR has 6 vice Consuls in NYC and an office full of incompetent personnel that
can hardly speak either language. When ever you are looking for the consul he could never be
reached ,nor could you get a vice-consul ,because he left for the day for NJ .
As to be over budget I agree. with, this money could be apply towards education instead of
supporting this bunch of leaches. That is not even counting the personnel at the UN ,under the
same umbrella of diplomats.
The tension between the two ministers has been due to the abuse of DR diplomatas not paying
their due parking fines,and not behaving to the best interest of the nation..
As well as thinking they are above the law and are untouchable by the police ,therefore can act in
the most underseable manner as if they were at home and knew some general in power who is
related to him.
Let me tell you the DR is not the only bunch that could be single out .The entire UN personnel is
the same way. I guess our concern is DR with such a small population and territory and given
so much money to do nothing as a result.
DR so call (diplomats) or diplomatic status have not even completed their HS education, if they
did they bought that diploma some where, since they don't act civil.
I was under the impression in order to be a diplomat you had to attend university and take
consular related courses, as well as an embassador since he is going to represent that nation.
Again that is a political move and also could to keep the uderseable out of DR.
After the Tet Offensive in 1968 Walter Cronkite broke with President Johnson on the Vietnam War in a historic television editorial.
President Johnson said:
“If I’ve lost Cronkite, I’ve lost Middle America.” – Lyndon Johnson, February 27, 1968”
Now Little Dickey breaks with his God Lie-onel and his party the Corrupt Narco PLD and says; “good to see we have a subject where everyone is 100% in agreement and not the slightest waiver of disagreement"
Maybe on February 27, 2012 Lie-onel Fernandez will say “If I’ve lost Ricardolito, I’ve lost the Dominican people!”
Perhaps its a case of Parkinsons Law squared?
Have a presidente and do nothing about it - or maybe do not cast ANY vote in May to make your next b...sh*t president without any ligitimacy. This will certainly be duly noticed around the world.
From: Australia
I'm not defending Ricardolito, Josean, but am asking will it all be fixed when Hippo returns to power?"
That's the rude REALITY question Josean runs away from. He has no answer.
All these botellas are lowering the quality of our repesentatives. This should be an important election topic. A candidate could save at least 3 billion by cutting the waste. I would vote for a candidate just on that promise alone.
From: United States
Written by: RoyStone, 23 Jan 2012 9:32 PM
From: Australia
I'm not defending Ricardolito, Josean, but am asking will it all be fixed when Hippo returns to power?"
That's the rude REALITY question Josean runs away from. He has no answer."
What is amazing is “the rude REALITY question” as to why such learned intellectual like you would be so obsessed with the opinions of a GED Status Level :) peasant like me?
No Roy, I don’t think Mejia can fix it, nor do I subscribe to the lesser of two evils.
I have been very clear on my choice of Guillermo Moreno as well as the reasons why.
There was a time when the PLD zealots divided the country between the “Corrupt and the PLD” and now after 12 years of pillaging and plundering they have become the poster boys and girls for corruption! When you look up the word corruption in the dictionary you find a picture of Lie-onel Fernandez and the Political committee of the PLD.
The so-called choosing between the “lesser of two evils” falls into the popular definition of insanity “doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.”
We need radical fundamental change whether the country is ready for it or not that is another story, but in my humble opinion thats the need, otherwise we will continue to live in this INSANITY!
wouldn't this be a great parallel example for the government of DR to employ? imagine the benefits of laying off huge numbers of non-productive staff and reducing the opportunities for graft and red tape ...
I have seen these cuts in the public-service numbers before. Theoretically they sack all these people then give the work to private contractors - the same people sitting at the same desks, only paid a lot more. However it looks good on paper.
1. We are not speaking about QC. I could not care less! Don't mix apples and oranges.
All:
2. Just imagine if you spent this much here on tourism-based Education and Environmental Protection, including thousands of jobs created in these fields.
A golden opportunity for one of the two morons to take the lead in the up-coming elections.
I do not trust either to bring any change for the better in this country... They are both excrements of the corrupt system.
Llego papa "hipocrito" frita mejia!
Point of interest.... I know one of "Hipocrito's" nephews. a 28 year old idiot that may or may not have a grade 2 education, and could not get laid in a whhore house... "He told me that his uncle promissed him the Ottawa DR Embasy as the Ambasador when he wins the election!!!" WHAT A crock. Thay are all the same... PdeM
RACALL all the Diplomatic Morons! Vote for Presidente Light!
On a Canadian Airlines flight I noticed all the announcements were made in English and French. I asked the hostess how many French speaking passengers there were on board (as were in Ontario). She said there where none, but that it is Canadian Law that all announcements are to be made in both languages, as are street sighs, food packaging, etc.
I was wondering, is law to include English in Quebec?
Roy ... English in Quebec is allowed but is a very touchy issue ...
Concatchero ... please let me know if the nephew gets posted to Canada ....
Regardless, I would vote for a Chinese candidate to get rid of these two self-entittled corrupt morons.
Papa promisses pessos for the poors. In fact peanuts but better than nothing. He is actively buying votes. The last time he was here in power, the national economy thanked and the (DP) pesos dropped substantially.
Cheers,
C.
The Canadian Constitution protects the culture, laws, and language of the French-Canadian minority. Even before the 1967 constitution, It had been so since the invasion and conquest of the British troops in the Plains of Abraham, over 300 years ago.
Contrary to usual ethnic cleansing the Brits usualy imposed on the populace when they conquered a territory, they were out-numberred 100/1 by the French at that time and agreed to make them British subjects and to protect their laws, language and culture. In return the Fench Canadian remained loyal to the crown. This was the basis for what is now Canada.
There are Francophone communities from East to West, with the majority based in the Eastern Provinces.
On that plane, probably everyone French could understand English, but the two official languages of Canada are French and English! So, anything that is from the Federal Governement has to be in both. Within Provinces it is by choice. I hope this clarifies this for you.
Regarding British "ethnic cleansing" of their colonies, they were certainly less thorough that all other European colonists, especially the Spanish. American Indians, Australian Aborigines and New Zealand Maoris survived and many are thriving. What ever happened to the Incas, Aztecs, Caribs and Tainos? Yes, perhaps that was more like genocide than cleansing. Maybe by cleansing you mean introducing the natives to the use of soap? I can assure you that many Aborigines freely exercise their right of refusal in that regard. However I will admit that the Aborigines receiving the most benefits have blue eyes and blonde hair and are 15/16ths Caucasian. Still you can go to jail for saying so, under the new Anti-Racial Vilification Law. I'm serious!
Had the British not been worried about the French establishing colonies in Terra Australis, maybe there would be no Aborigines or Maoris alive today. However the Spanish, Dutch and Portuguese all knew about Australia long before James Cook, but were not interested.
The Spaniards on the other hand wanted the natives to survive in order to have a labor force. Though this policy did cause the eradication of the Tainos and Caribes, the Aztecs, Incas and their descendants today outnumber the white Spaniard descendants in Mexico, Ecuador and especially Bolivia where Indians make up nearly 90% of the population. And as far as the Tainos in the Greater Antilles recent DNA tests of populations in Puerto Rico and Dominican showed 60% with Taino blood.
All Feds are totally bilingual across all provinces. Someone that immigrates to canada must either speak French or English, but this has not been enforced. Mandarin is becoming prominent, just as much as in Australia I gather!
Thank you both for the education about the ethnic cleansing (soapless in some parts) of native and non-native cultures. The Brits were nicer to us than they had been to others. The French did not lift a finger (as always) so Fluck them. There is "Fench" (meaning from France), and there is Francophone (meaning one whom speaks it), the later is more appropriate for French Canadians as the majority does not like France very much. Most of our ancestors are a mix of Scotish or Irish origins, and just like them; we were left behind!
For that matter ,so are the Haitians (Franco-parlante). Still not French by Blood but as a
coinsidence of slave trade in the Western hemisphere produced by the French. As you perhaps
know the History of the two countries at that time was the Jewll of the Larger Antilles (The Island
of Hispanola) that brought lots of wars beteewn Spain & France.Finally the Pope had to intersed
I would say one thing .If it was not for the French leaving a small garrison and lots of weapons
and amo behind in Haiti, when they went to fight the Brits in Europe under Napoleon ,what we call
Hibero-America would never had taken place but still Spanish Colonies. Thanks to the emperor of
Haiti that gave away most of arsenal to Simon Bolivar to look the other way, while he did what he
did for 22 years In what is now DR .DR at that time belonged to the same anti Spaniard revellion
as the rest, but Simon thought it was wise he could not fight the Spaniards.
In Bogota Colombia where they have the Bolivar museum it shows very clearly that thanks to
HAITI for their support . I said to them while it did lots for you guys in So America it had us
QUISQUELLANOS enslaved. The tour director told me" some one had to suffer " for the good
of the vast empire, He said to me wouldn't you have done the same thing had you been in Bolivars
shoes?,I repplied, I guess so for the size of land to be gained from the Spaniards despotic
CROWN,not like the Brits,who had common sence and created theCOMMONWEALTH.Therefore
Britain did not lose out ,instead passed on the empire to the USA after ww2,and still the ANGLO
AMERICAN alliance goes back to ww1 where we came to ENGLAND'S Ssupport both time.
Yes, many Australians speak Mandarin having migrated from China. Our former Prime Minister, Chairman kRudd, spoke fluent Mandarin too. Our current Prime Minister, Joooya struggles with English.
Perhaps one reason Aborigines and Maoris fared better than American Indians, was because British settlement of Australian and New Zealand was somewhat later.
We need radical fundamental change whether the country is ready for it or not that is another story, but in my humble opinion thats the need, otherwise we will continue to live in this INSANITY!"-JOSEAN
I know you don't like the Forum section of DT, but here's some food for thought, and no need to go to the big dark blue water.
Enjoy.
Read and learn, Josean.
http://www.nature.com/news/democr....all-it-is-cracked-up-to-be-1.9925
Slave trade left a stain in human history, no matter how you look at it.... But some people need to move beyond this, evolve and prosper. Are we not all created equal? For sure, wealth, opportunity, safety and security are not equally granted, but we have the power to change things for better, when actually some politicians would change better things to get the power (and money).
Thank you everyone for their bits of history and the great blog without slams, cursings, or hissings.
This has been quite an intelligent and level headed conversation and I enjoyed this immensely!
Have a great week DT readers!
I am not sure what you mean by the cold an inhospitable environment. Do you mean the lands from whence the slaves were taken, or the the lands that were colonized?
Slavery has been a reality for most of human history until relatively recent times, and some would argue it still exists are we are slaves to our home-mortgage, convention, fashion, etc.
You ask "Are we not all created equal?" - a very debatable point. We were not "created" - we evolved, and that very process favors inequality. It is called "survival of the fittest". In a natural environment, "fitness" is easily defined. In a civilized society, its not so easy.
Obviously, you were never in Canada in the winter. Lol
So, I was just making the point that although our respective colonizing countries left us to fend ourselves in the snow bank, it would never be as bad as people left behind as a result of slavery.
You do get my point about slavery, and yes we are still slaves of the systems we live in, but the chains are now only virtual chains. Glad I never had to wear the cold metal ones, tied to the bottom of a ship.
As for the "created equals", merely refering to what our religious and polictical leaders are feeding down our guzzards. Apart from personalities and cultures, if we all had the same opportunities and the same environment in life, we would all have the potential to achieve greatness. But, not all could do so because of personal traits and culture. Then your misfortune would be your own doing and you would not have a Govt or a situation to blame. We all have potential as equals; but we will never be!
You get no argument from me on most points, however both times I was in Canada was in late winter and yes, I nearly froze my nuts off. However I noticed Canadians are very well adapted to avoiding the cold.
An important point about slavery, is the fact that the colonists did not go into the African wilderness and "take" slaves. They bought them in the slave-markets from other Africans.
Another point is, were it not for the slave-trade during the colonial era, perhaps there would not be such a rich racial tapestry in these former colonies. Slavery had virtually gone by the time Australia was settled, so until the abandonment of the government's White Australia Policy, has not had the benefit of Negro genes. (I'm doing my best to rectify that.)