This morning’s key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com.

• ‘Friends of Syria’ conference to bypass U.N. Security Council
• 70% of Greeks express anger and revulsion at Germans
• David Cameron calls Somalia conference a ‘turning point’
• S. Koreans rally against China for returning defectors to N. Korea
• For Boomers, ‘Work til you drop’ is literally true

 

‘Friends of Syria’ conference to bypass U.N. Security Council

With the horrific slaughter by the regime of Syria’s president Bashar al-Assad continuing without end and even worsening, and with attempts to condemn the violence in the United Nations Security Council thwarted by Russian and Chinese vetoes, Western and Arab “Friends of Syria” will be meeting in Tunis, Tunisia, on Friday to address the problem. The group is expected to demand Damascus to permit foreign humanitarian aid, but it’s not known if the group will go further by proposing military intervention. VOA

 

70% of Greeks express anger and revulsion at Germans

In a poll conducted just before the recent bailout of Greece, Greeks were asked to identify their main feelings on Germany. 41% respondents named anger, indignation or fury, 30% ranged from disappointment and fear to revulsion, while positive sentiments were just 8.6%. Greeks have never been this hostile to Germans in the postwar period, even after the brutal Nazi occupation of Greece during the war. Some 32% of poll respondents listed the first words they associated with Germany as “Hitler, Nazism or the Third Reich.” More than 90% agreed that Greece should claim “by any means” war reparations from Germany, and 81% agreed that Germany is attempting to dominate Europe through its financial power. AP

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David Cameron calls Somalia conference a ‘turning point’

Who Runs Somalia? (BBC)

Well, if the “Friends of Syria” conference is Friday, then the Somalia conference was Thursday, in London, with delegates from over 40 countries. Somalia is a failed state that has been largely overrun by the Islamist terror group al-Shabaab. Somali is also the principal source of the piracy problem in the Indian Ocean. There have been many international conferences on Somalia, so one would not expect this new conference to be a “turning point,” but that’s what British prime minister David Cameron said:

“Unless we can help the people of Somalia to build a stable future, the problems will keep reoccurring.

For two decades politicians in the west have too often dismissed the problems in Somalia as simply too difficult and too remote to deal with. Engagement has been sporadic and half-hearted.

That fatalism has failed Somalia. And it has failed the international community too. Today we have an unprecedented opportunity to change that. There is a real momentum right now.”

There has been military intervention in Somalia by the African Union, Ethiopia and Kenya in the last few years, without much changing, and since Cameron didn’t propose anything new, it’s hard to see how this “turning point” will make any difference. BBC and Guardian

 

S. Koreans rally against China for returning defectors to N. Korea

China’s decision to return 31 captured defectors to North Korea has unleashed a chorus of protest Thursday in South Korea and the U.S. Many North Koreans travel through China and hide underground for months or years until missionaries can spirit them to another Asian country, from which they can travel to South Korea. The stakes for defectors were raised significantly in recent months after new North Korean leader Kim Jong-un — successor to his father, Kim Jong-il, who died in December — announced that all defectors faced having three generations of their families imprisoned, tortured or killed. This happens as the United States and North Korea hold their first talks since Kim Jong-il’s death. LA Times

 

For Boomers, ‘Work til you drop’ is literally true

Many Boomers had worked hard throughout their lives, hoping to retire at age 65 with money saved in their 401(k)’s, augmented by pensions, social security and Medicare. But now, Boomers are unable to retire because their 401(k) nest eggs have been diminished by market crashes, many companies are eliminating defined benefit pensions, and Medicare is close to bankruptcy. As a result, Boomers have become the generation that never stops working, even though age discrimination has become the norm. According to one expert, “My advice [to Boomers] is above all don’t retire. If you like your job at all, hold onto it. Because getting back in in this era is essentially impossible.” AP