Do you think that might put the whole economy in jeopardy and maybe force millions of people out of jobs?

I don’t think freezing the assets of the rulers abroad will throw the economy into a tailspin. Not every nation and bank would comply, which would force them to drain particular sources down. I also don’t think the economy of Burma is in such great shape anyway, and doubt that the expenditures of the ruling class wind up helping the general population.

This is just one external force that can be applied without direct internal intervention.

I was flabbergasted to read that the Chinese ambassador said China prefers to leave be the internal affairs of other countries. I’m sure every Tibetan was glad to hear that. You can bet that the first time the Burmese government turns off the oil and gas, China will be acting very hegemonistically. Burma is just another source of resources for the powerful nations and corporations around the world; I don’t believe that in the long run their people matter to these governments. As long as these powerful entities exist for the reasons they do, things will not change. Thus, the only way to counteract their power is to somehow make them irrelevant.

I daresay that a strong propaganda effort needs to be made toward the lower-ranking elements of the Burmese military. They need to be reminded of their origins, and why their loyalty to the people needs to be their priority.

So when we call for action, who is our target?

It depends on your objective. If you’re willing to take on every single dictator, one at a time, petition after petition, with no end in sight, do what you’re already doing. If on the other hand you’re willing to attack the root cause, the fact that dictatorships like China consistently block progress, the fact that powerful democracies like the US continue to support dictators via military aid to serve commercial interests, then you need to attack the United Nations. You need to insist that only democracies (people) are represented, not dictatorships. And you need to insist that members of this new United Nations work to make dictatorship an obsolete concept and not pretend that dictators actually represent people. We need a United Nations founded on the principle of DEMOCRACY.

The leaders of Burma should have their faces on wanted posters. The free nations should broadcast wireless internet throughout the country. I’m not proposing we go to war, but rather that free nations do everything they can to bring about peaceful change. These incredibly easy actions are not too much to ask of people who believe in freedom.

gary

International bloggers are preparing an action to support the peaceful revolution in Burma. We want to set a sign for freedom and show our sympathy for these people who are fighting their cruel regime without weapons. These Bloggers are planning to refrain from posting to their blogs on October 4 and just put up one Banner then, underlined with the words „Free Burma!“.

http://www.free-burma.org

Dear friends,

The brutal attacks on Burma’s peaceful monks and protesters are worsening — but in response, a massive global outcry is gathering pace. The roar of global public opinion is being heard in hundreds of protests outside Chinese and Burmese embassies, people round the world wearing the monks’ color red, and on the internet– where over two hundred thousand people signed our petition in just 72 hours!

We’re pulling out all the stops to make sure our call is heard – launching a major global and Asian ad campaign on Tuesday targeting Burma’s powerful ally China, delivering the petition to senior officials, and using radio to broadcast our petition and encouragement directly to the people of Burma in their homes. In every case, we need to deliver a petition that has a massive number of signers behind it to be effective – can we make it 1 MILLION signatures this week? If each of us sign the petition at the link below and forward this email to at least 20 friends, we’ll reach our target:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/stand_with_burma/r.php

People power can tip the balance.Already, there are signs of splits in the Burmese Army, as some soldiers refuse to attack their own people. The brutal top General, Than Shwe, has reportedly moved his family out of the country – he must fear his rule may crumble.

The Burmese people are showing incredible courage in the face of horror. The fate of many brave and good people is in our hands. We must help them – and we have hours, not days, to do it. Please sign the petition (if you haven’t already) and forward this email to at least 20 friends right now.