4 ms·

I am a bit confused by the article - because this is not mentioned at all - I am no history buff so happy to be corrected here: But haven't there been wars to

I am a bit confused by the article - because this is not mentioned at all - I am no history buff so happy to be corrected here: But haven't there been wars to avoid that Nicaragua gets an own canal (afair even supported by the USA and later by the CIA. Eg their Civil War or before that the US occupation [1]) Back then mainly to avoid having such important routes in the hands of pro-communist states, later to keep their financial interest in Panama in check. Wasn't the last state the the USA got the exclusive right to build such canal - basically just to allow nobody to do it. How come that this isn't mentioned at all in the article? (As said before all cited from vague history memory. Happy to get a correction/update on that.) [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_occupation_of_Nicaragua https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_occupation_of_Ni...

pmorici 12y ago
They hint at US opposition in the article but they don't come out with all the history behind it... "Some opponents of the canal worry that the financing will actually come from the Chinese government itself, which Richard Feinberg, a fellow at the Brookings Institution, describes as "the Chinese planting their flag right in the heart of the Western Hemisphere."" NPR is a news outlet funded in part by the US government it isn't particularly surprising that they aren't going to delve into history that makes the US look bad.
- andreasklinger 12y ago
  Good to know. I always assumed that the NPR is one of the reputable media in the states.
- jmadsen 12y ago
  I don't believe that's accurate: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NPR#Funding http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NPR#Funding Perhaps you were thinking of Voice of America, or the way it used to be funded 30-40 years ago?
  - pmorici 12y ago
    Yes, VOA is even worse. But I think the point stands that NPR has a history of close links to the US government.
    - jmadsen 12y ago
      Sure - and the Dutch have a "history" of slave-trading. The question is the current reality, and is it affecting their content.
- dewarrn1 12y ago
  No. NPR derives about 5% of their funding from US, federal, state, and local governments. Source: http://www.npr.org/about-npr/178660742/public-radio-finances http://www.npr.org/about-npr/178660742/public-radio-finances NPR certainly has its own biases in reporting, but it is not solely funded by the US government and it is not a US government mouthpiece.
- mtalantikite 12y ago
  Barely any of NPR's funding is from the US government: "While NPR does not receive any direct federal funding, it does receive a small number of competitive grants from CPB and federal agencies like the Department of Education and the Department of Commerce. This funding amounts to approximately 2% of NPR’s overall revenues." http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/NPR http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/NPR
awor 12y ago
An amazing book covering the efforts to connect the two oceans is "The Path Between the Seas" by David McCullough.[0] [0]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Path_Between_the_Seas http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Path_Between_the_Seas

pmorici 12y ago

They hint at US opposition in the article but they don't come out with all the history behind it... "Some opponents of the canal worry that the financing will actually come from the Chinese government itself, which Richard Feinberg, a fellow at the Brookings Institution, describes as "the Chinese planting their flag right in the heart of the Western Hemisphere."" NPR is a news outlet funded in part by the US government it isn't particularly surprising that they aren't going to delve into history that makes the US look bad.

andreasklinger 12y ago
Good to know. I always assumed that the NPR is one of the reputable media in the states.
jmadsen 12y ago
I don't believe that's accurate: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NPR#Funding http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NPR#Funding Perhaps you were thinking of Voice of America, or the way it used to be funded 30-40 years ago?
- pmorici 12y ago
  Yes, VOA is even worse. But I think the point stands that NPR has a history of close links to the US government.
  - jmadsen 12y ago
    Sure - and the Dutch have a "history" of slave-trading. The question is the current reality, and is it affecting their content.
dewarrn1 12y ago
No. NPR derives about 5% of their funding from US, federal, state, and local governments. Source: http://www.npr.org/about-npr/178660742/public-radio-finances http://www.npr.org/about-npr/178660742/public-radio-finances NPR certainly has its own biases in reporting, but it is not solely funded by the US government and it is not a US government mouthpiece.
mtalantikite 12y ago
Barely any of NPR's funding is from the US government: "While NPR does not receive any direct federal funding, it does receive a small number of competitive grants from CPB and federal agencies like the Department of Education and the Department of Commerce. This funding amounts to approximately 2% of NPR’s overall revenues." http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/NPR http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/NPR

awor 12y ago

An amazing book covering the efforts to connect the two oceans is "The Path Between the Seas" by David McCullough.[0] [0]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Path_Between_the_Seas http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Path_Between_the_Seas