Talk:Paul Bremer/Archive 3

message: In re to the anonymous contribution from User:68.127.241.195, these photos have Wikipedia copyright tags.  Nothing to indicate these photos placed here are "for-profit".  Ariele 02:27, 9 January 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Copyright Images 

message: Is everyone sure he speaks all those languages. I find it hard to believe... Plus I remember he was taking arabic class during his time in Iraq (read it in Time)
:Mr. Bremer does indeed speak or comprehend all those languages.  This is why:  
:*  Arabic - yes, he took lessons while in Iraq (30 minutes every day).  We do not know if he continued with his daily lessons.
:*  Spanish - yes, he even published a book titled Notebook of a Student.  Plus, we believe the years he spent in France in a town close to the Spanish border had something to do with his knowledge in the Spanish language
:*  Persian - We believe that would be Farsi a language spoken in places like Iran.  We believe he speaks or comprehend the language
:*  German - Yes, we believe he either speaks or comprehend, and the name Bremer has German roots (i.e. Anglo-Saxon)
:*  English - A definite yes, since we've all heard him speak
:*  French - That's a definite yes too.
:*  Norwegian - We believe he either speaks and/or comprehends Norwegian because of his post in Norway.
:*  Dutch - We believe he either speaks and/or comprehends for the same reason, his post in the Netherlands
:*  We believe his familiarity with foreign languages does not end here.  Someone once said Mr. Bremer can retain information like a floppy disc.
:Ariele 14:53, 11 January 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Foreign Languages 

message: I've not read his book.  However, I listened through 6.5 hours of an abridged for audio (whatever that means) version of his book.  Mr. Bremer's personal accounts in the abridged for audio version of My Year in Iraq did not come across to me as someone who felt he was/is set up as the fall guy.  
Without divulging too much detail, the readers (or listeners) should be prepared for graphic images (in words of course) of the atrocities commmitted by "you know who" during the old Bathist regime.  
That's all I'm going to reveal here.  I will say that the abridged for audio is rather vague.  <<<<<,,,Ariele 15:00, 12 January 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Mr. Bremer's Book:  ''My Year in Iraq:  The Struggle to Build a Future of Hope'' 

message: "The most important tools used by the Bush administration to maintain varying degrees of economic and political control in Iraq were the 100 Orders enacted by Bremer before his departure.
A sampling of the most important Orders. Order #39 allows for the following: (1) privatization of Iraqs 200 state-owned enterprises; (2) 100% foreign ownership of Iraqi businesses; (3) national treatment of foreign firms; (4) unrestricted, tax-free remittance of all profits and other funds; and (5) 40-year ownership licenses. Order #40 turns the banking sector from a state-run to a market-driven system overnight by allowing foreign banks to enter the Iraqi market and to purchase up to 50% of Iraqi banks. Order #49 drops the tax rate on corporations from a high of 40% to a flat rate of 15%. The income tax rate is also capped at 15%. Order #12 enacted on June 7, 2003 and renewed on February 24, 2004, suspended all tariffs, customs duties, import taxes, licensing fees and similar surcharges for goods entering or leaving Iraq, and all other trade restrictions that may apply to such goods. Order #17 grants foreign contractors, including private security firms, full immunity from Iraq s laws. Order # 81 prohibits Iraqi farmers from using the methods of agriculture that they have used for centuries. The common worldwide practice of saving heirloom seeds from one year to the next is now illegal in Iraq. The Bremer Orders fundamentally altered Iraq’s existing laws. For this reason, the Bremer Orders are also illegal. Transformation of an occupied country’s laws violates the Hague regulations of 1907 (the companion to the 1949 Geneva conventions, both ratified by the United States), and the U.S. Army’s Law of Land Warfare."
::"...there are reasons why some people turn to terrorism. There are political reasons, there are economic reasons. Some people are simply criminals...." quoted by L. Paul Bremer, III (pbs interview Global Threat June 6, 2000).
Concerning the orders Paul Bremer issued while being head of CPA, the texts of all of them can be found on the homepage of CPA (www.cpa-iraq.org). Don't link these texts though, as the main page says the CPA homepage will go off the web on June 30, 2006 due to the fact that CPA does not exist anymore. So, should you consider to link the orders to wikipedia, download them and store them somewhere else. 195.138.51.10 14:36, 15 March 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: That might be a sign of the incompetence of the people Bremer hired.  Last year it said the site would go dead on June 30 2005.  I wonder if it once said the site would go dead on June 30 2004 -- the day limited sovereignty was given to Allawi and the other political appointees.  --  Geo Swan 15:50, 15 March 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Something about some "important Orders" 

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thread_title: Image copyright problem with Image:Bureaucrat_man.jpg

message: The following content was removed 2006.1.31 as it is not befitting the format of the main article:
"[This section to totally unreferenced which is in flagrant violation of the rules of this wikipedia. This is especially unfortunate since the clause "with the notable exception of the meters" makes an objectively unsupportable claim that the oil was being "stolen" by the Coalition. Nor, when the writer says "the progress of the reconstruction" of the utilities was "disappointingly slow", does the author state compared to what. Nor the the author elaborate on how contracts being awarded to U.S. firms (whether connected or well connected) would result in slow construction. This section needs serious repair or flat out removal to a website with a stated axe to grind.
Actually, the truth is that this entire "Critics" section of this article viciously one-sided and doesn't flinch from repeating the most absurd baseless rumor (such as Bremer fleeing an Iraqi lover). This section should be closed or totally rewritten by someone who knows the meaning of the word "objective."]"
This is an issue which should be addressed in the discussion page and not in the main article itself.  With the risk of sounding overly didactic, I would like to remark that if the author of the aforementioned addition is to properly take issue with an article or section therein, he/she should follow the proper procedure of either editing in wiki format, or marking it for other users to edit.
 
JuniorMuruin 16:43, 31 January 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: After another sweep over the Archived discussions, there's absolutely no way I (and other as well) can accept any of this seriously.  How can we?  We should consider taking a vote to bann User:Geo Swan from editing here!,,,,,Ariele 04:01, 1 February 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: I haven't looked at this article in a while.  When I come back to it now, I see that large chunks of it do indeed go beyond the proper reporting of criticisms of Brenner and actually adopt such criticisms -- stating opinions as fact.  On the other hand, there are other passages that violate NPOV in Bremer's favor, such as the statement that he "had to make decisive and tough decisions" (as opposed to people in other jobs who had to make indecisive decisions?). The whole article needs heavy work to cite sources and properly attribute opinions. JamesMLane t c 17:56, 23 February 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Removal of content from "Progress of Reconstruction of Iraq's Infrastructure" subsection ("Critics of Bremer's Appt.") 

message: This brings up another point, there is a section in Bremer's article that requires cleanup.  If there is an axe to grind, it would seem that there's lack of cooperation.  You should read Paul Bremer's book to get a better idea of what was spinning around everyone's head over there in Iraq and Washington.  
:I removed the clean up tag on 2/5/2006 after the editorial revision of this article.,,,,Ariele 13:52, 6 February 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Clean Up Tag 

message: Today I removed the assertion Bremer was authorized to modify Iraqi society.
On August 19 2005 I wrote:
:The article currently reads: "Bremer was empowered to issue decrees to modify Iraq's society and infrastructure." Who empowered him to modify Iraq's society? He was not empowered to modify Iraq's society by UN resolution 1483. Was he empowered to do so by some other UN resolution? If some document really tried to empower Bremer to modify Iraqi society this article should link to it.
On September 6 2006 I wrote:
:Because someone has asserted, without attribution, that Bremer had powers and responsibilities that I have concerns about. The article has said that Bremer was authorized to alter Iraqi society. Altering a society sounds like it could be a war crime. So, the exact wording is important. It is also possible that the statement in the article was too enthusiastically paraphrased, and suggests Bremer had powers and responnsibilities he did not actually have. If that is the case the assertion should be removed.  
No substantiation has ever been offered -- hence the removal.
I also challenged the unsubstantiated assertions that Bremer was popular, and well-liked.  Another user offered an anonymous blog as substantiation.  That anonymous blog offered an anonymous third person account that claimed a single anonymous Iraqi asked for Bremer's email address, so he could thank him for his management.  This is not an adequate source for the claim that Bremer was popular, well-liked or well-respected.  --  Geo Swan 18:06, 23 February 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Unsubstantiated assertions 

message: I questioned the assertion that "Reportedly, his method of creating the Iraq Interim Governing Council was compared to that of 'shepherding'".
"Reportedly"? -- who reported it?  "Compared"? who compared it?
I am shortening the paragraph that includes this sentence because it is just isn't clearly written.  
The importance of the authority to select cabinet portfolios is relative to the power ministers have, once selected.  The next sentence said that Bremer retained veto power.  So, it sounds to me that this should not be described as an "important power".
The assertion that the members held more responsibilities after their appointment is meaningless.  So I removed it  --  Geo Swan 18:44, 23 February 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Rewording "shepherding" 

message: I removed this paragraph, because it is deceptive.  It implies that Bremer created the position of inspector general.  Actually the United States Congress created the position of Inspector General of the Coalition Provisional Authority on November 6 2003.  The questionable paragraph implies that Bremer created the position, and that the IG's responsibility was to track down fiscal mismanagement of Iraq's oil revenue during the UN's oil-for-food program.  In fact the IG's responbility was to monitor the fiscal management of Bremer's administration.  
:"Bremer announced the establishment of the offices of the inspector general on March 30, 2004 .  "Now, almost a year after liberation we are just beginning to understand the outline of the theft and corruption associated with the Oil for Food program. Both the United Nations and the Iraqi Governing Council have begun investigations into a program initiated to help the Iraqi people instead allegedly diverted Iraq's money to other, possibly illicit, uses....Never again should the Iraqi people's wealth be squandered on palaces and Ferraris. Never again should such corruption be allowed to take root....", said Bremer.  At least not until June 28 2004 as reports indicate as much as $2 billion dollars may have been stolen from various Iraqi ministries. "
Above is the questionable paragraph I excised.  --  Geo Swan 02:41, 28 February 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: The section "Failure to perform month-end cash reconciliations" also needs a cleanup, as it currently seems somewhat contradictory. Robma 10:31, 30 December 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Bremer's comments on the Inspector General 

message: I removed as much vandalism (more or less) as I could, though it's possible it will be reverted. There's probably a lot more, including unsubstantiated claims, and this article needs mroe thorough fact-checking.
Some claims I removed: Bremer approved of torture, Bremer didn't have the right to run the country, Bremer received the Presidential Medal of Freedom for "murdering Iraqi civilians," etc. Check the revision history to see more.
I don't like the guy, but that's no reason for such blatant libel and crap-throwing.
: The section "Failure to perform month-end cash reconciliations" also needs a cleanup, as it currently seems somewhat contradictory. Robma 10:31, 30 December 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Cleanup Needed 

message: I changed the numerous references in the article into the new footnote style, which I blieve is much preferable. In particular, there were a number of external links within the article, which is not good style. Egil 11:27, 30 December 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Style 

message: Pardon my ignorance but I was just wondering why most of the above comments have a line through them? What's going on here? Colin4C 10:48, 24 June 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Fixed and explained on the help desk. - Zeibura (Talk) 11:23, 24 June 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Crossings Out 

message: There are now several "Citation Needed" tags.  The credit should be given to one of your own Wikipedians User:Geo Swan, the original contributor to most of the criticisms found in this article.  I believe it is only fair for those involved in the development of this article to ask User:Geo Swan to complete what she started. - Anonymous, September 1, 2007  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.188.22.40 (talk) 01:22, 2 September 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:   Citing Source of Information 

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replies: text: It was the template available at the time when image was uploaded in 2005 2006.  You may have to make your inquiry through the foundation editors, administrators, or Jimmy Wales himself for further details.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.188.22.40 (talk) 02:49, 8 September 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Fair use rationale for Image:Bremerbook.gif

message: Since User:Getaway reverted my previous edit without any explanation, I would like to suggest moving the religious segment to Frances Winfield as it would seem, she appears to be the religious figure:
::"Bremer, a Roman Catholic, was given the nickname "Jerry" after a renowned Bible translator and religious historian known today as St. Jerome, whom Bremer pointed out during a guest appearance on Comedy Central, is his patron saint.  He and his wife, Francie, converted to Catholicism in 1994. "He is a man of great personal faith", quoted Francie Bremer. "There is no doubt in my mind that I cannot succeed in this mission without the help of God", said Bremer. "The job is simply too big and complex for any one person, or any group of people to carry out successfully."..."We need God's help and seek it constantly."
Readers should really not look upon Bremer as some sort of religious authority on Christianity.  I'm willing to guess that Bremer will find it difficult to complete a full sentence using the words "Jesus Christ my Savior and Lord".  What do you think?  Has anyone heard him say that?65.188.22.40 03:33, 17 September 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Suggestion to Re-direct Section about Religion 

message: User:Gloriamarie recent edit removed "Unlike the retired U.S. Army general Jay Garner, Bremer is not a military man and therefore, brought political and diplomatic skills, which some had accused Garner and other military leaders of lacking." 
I think we should undo the edit and revert it back.  Bremer is not a military man.  Bremer is a top level diplomat, an appointed Ambassador by U.S. Presidents. 65.188.22.40 00:45, 21 September 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Garner .vs. Bremer 

message: These sound like conjecture and/or some sort of political spin. Please find citations for these facts and integrate them in an appropriate place in the article. --NickPenguin(contribs) 01:50, 14 November 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Integrated trivia section, removed 4 items

message: I'm removing this section. It's just too far out, and I have a suspicion that it was added as a sort of joke. The reference is perhaps more useable in the article about post-war Iraq conditions in general. http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/columnists/jlanders/stories/DN-landers_02bus.State.Edition1.2cfcdbe.html
If there's disagreement about this, may I suggest that we first talk about it here? Thanks. --RenniePet (talk) 15:46, 29 November 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Failure to Control Population Growth in Irbil and Sulaimaniyah

message: It is my understanding that a "Politician" is someone who has been voted into office.  Bremer's posts with the State Department were appointments.  The same goes for the post he accepted in Iraq - by appointment.  I've never come across anything quoted by Bremer suggesting that he himself is a politician.  I have seen written where Bremer called himself a "diplomat".  
If you disagree, please do comment further.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.188.22.40 (talk) 05:19, 10 December 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Profession