Continued from here ...

The Christian Science Monitor has a very interesting story about how the US Congress is now cozying up to Cambodia. Seems Washington has twigged to the fact that isolating the country won't do much for the global terrorism situation. Plus, with China courting Cambodia like a sophomore looking for a date... more

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A couple of reports on the state of affairs in Cambodia have been issued this week. From the European Union, this one on human rights ... it also discusses Guatemala and Nigeria, by the way ... that condemns the murder of trade unionists... more

With all the Internet problems I had last week, the weekly wrap of news from Cambodia didn't happen, so this week there's some catching up to do ...

Starting with a smile, the Operation Smile Medical Mission team is in PP right now and training Cambodian volunteers in biomed, teaching "techniques in setting up, testing and maintaining the state-of-the-art medical equipment that Operation Smile is supplying each of its partner countries. This is a major step toward reaching Operation Smile’s goal of having one person trained in biomedical technology in each of its partner... more

I came across a story this morning from Guyana, that South American country that gained far too much notoriety from the People's Temple mass suicide years back but is little heard from now. The article is typical UNspeak gobbledegook ... teaching officials in developing nations to talk the talk ... that doesn't add up to anything of substance, no matter how many times it's read.

The Ministry of Human Services and Social Security in collaboration with the United Nations International... more

If you've been following allegations of adoption scandal in Samoa involving an American agency ... a Samoan family says the situation was misrepresented to them, and they want their five children back ... here's a reaction from a Samoan attorney.

Calling the allegations, "rubbish", he said:

...... more

Continued from here where we've been underwhelmed by "facts" and UNICEF ....

Okay. I am NOT saying there have never been any corrupt dealings in any Nepali adoptions. Nepal, like most of our kids' birth countries functions on a level that is much less transparent than most would like ... as do all countries, for that matter. But when stories appear under headlines that shout, ... more

Continued from here where we were about to add two to two ...

Could it be that here is where the rubber meets the road?

As an international conference on adoption of children began in Kathmandu on Sunday, the U.N. children's wing UNICEF deplored what it called an ''unfortunate growth'' of an industry centering on adoption.

Profit,... more

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Now, some of the questions that pop into my mind when reading the stories about Nepali adoption that are cropping up just about the time a conference on international adoption is to begin ... How does someone "pose as British parents wishing to adopt a Nepali child"? Did they show up at the "Child NGO Federation" complete with dossier, including a homestudy, police clearance and all other other documents... more

Is there anything suspect in the timing of a story coming out of Nepal that casts international adoption in a negative light coinciding with the first International Conference of Inter-Country Adoption in Kathmandu? Pardon my cynicism, but I can't help but notice the potential for not-so-hidden agendas in them thar Himalayas.

Was it coincidence that had reporter Thomas Bell writing a story for the Nepali Times that that starts out like this:

In... more

Continued from here, where we've been talking about getting a life ...

Formulating any opinion about how far apart Angelina Jolie's children should be spaced, or anything else, is about as much your right as it would be for the guy that pumps your gas to decide he has something to say about whether or not your kids should be baptized based on what sort of car you drive.

This celebrity-life-sucking-vampire-stuff has got to stop! It's not good for you. It's... more