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Thursday, August 2, 2007
News Russia Puts Flag In North Pole Ocean Floor
Posted by on Thu, Aug 2 at 9:54 AM
There’s some contradictory news this morning for anybody who thinks global politics is anything other than grown boys playing “capture the flag” with our planet. Sometimes, it’s hard to believe you’re reading something on CNN. As I type, two Russian submarines are dropping a capsule containing the Russian flag on the floor of the arctic ocean, under the ice at the North Pole in an attempt to lay claim to the oil and gas reserves there.
Its chief goal appears to be advancing Russia’s political and economic influence by strengthening its legal claims to the gas and oil deposits thought to lie beneath the Arctic sea floor.…because there’s nothing more important to do in the world today than lay claim to some of the world’s last remaining oil and gas reserves. Spending the money on researching alternative sources of energy, or devoting your nation’s efforts to, I don’t know, challenging the US’s idiotic foreign policy—that’s a waste of time. But frantic land-grabbing? That really bodes well. Besides, wasn’t laying claim to something with your nation’s flag outdated even during colonial times? Eddie Izzard does a fine job of elucidating the ridiculousness of all this:
Thanks to dieselboi at Metroblogs for the linkage. Incidentally, sticking a flag in somebody else’s planet is just fine with me. As long as this country gets there first.
MOON FLAG: Because the US won the space race. Stick that in your North Pole and smoke it…
Comments
They probably think they can use the "rights" to negotiate or sell, not access on their own.
The UN charter specifically states that national flags must be affixed to a sharp metal pole and inserted into soil. They're SOL regardless.
Note that even though Armstrong stuck a US flag in the moon (or something that looked a lot like the moon), he still identified the act as a "giant leap for mankind," completely sidelining nationalism (he also said, "And the earth now belongs to women"). I think the mission patch even had an eagle with an olive branch in its beak. It was, however, also crapping out megatons of 500-lb bombs into a Cambodia-shaped feed pen.
at least the russians have actually been to the north pole....
The Americans went to the moon. It's a fact. I'm tired with all this "they faked it" bullshit.
Perhaps -- but many of them remain.
no one has ever been on the moon. it was all a hollywood fake show. if they were able to go to the moon back then why havent they been to mars and venus by now??? thats because no one has ever been there.
So, Matt, does that mean I can finally have my Eddie Izzard DVD back?
You know, Jake, I think I've bloody lost it. Email me your address and I'll send it to Arkansas. Or Kansas. Wherever the hell you are now.
Excellent use of Eddie Izzard skit. Perfect.
I just finished watching that DVD. "Do you have a flag" has become a tagline for my friend and I. I think Russia is just assuming with global warming that the North Pole will eventually become part of the ocean and thinking ahead.
NO, Russia is just being ironic.
Finally Russia is poking back on the fake US moonlanding - LOL !!!!
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This is kind of odd. Russia doesn't even have the money to access their own natural resources in Siberia! (which are pretty extensive) How are they supposed to get to stuff deep under the ocean?