Geopolitical Journey, Part 1: The Traveler | STRATFOR

Geopolitical Journey, Part 1: The Traveler | STRATFOR

Please read this very interesting series from George Friedman, one of my most favorite political journalists, analysts, and more.

A Romanian military vessel in the Black Sea.

"Location, location and how the West was won" (BBC) - Does the keyword SNUB apply to politics, too, or just to zoology? Golden Snub-nosed Monkey (Rhinopithecus roxellana) -> maximum card from China (PRC)

SNUB is a word that can mean many things, depending on the context.

It may apply to history, politics, and zoology, too. And then some (more).

Let's start with zoology.

"Snub-nosed monkeys are a group of Old World monkeys and make up the entirety of the genus Rhinopithecus. The genus occurs rarely and needs much more research. Some taxonomists group snub-nosed monkeys together with the Pygathrix genus.

Snub-nosed monkeys live in Asia, with a range covering southern China (especially Tibet, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Guizhou) as well as the northern parts of  Vietnam and Myanmar.

These monkeys get their name from the short, stump of a nose on their round face, with nostrils arranged forward. They have relatively multicolored and long fur, particularly at the shoulders and backs. They grow to a length of 51 to 83 cm with a tail of 55 to 97 cm."

Physical The-rapist is not needed for this species; mating occurs only in flashback:
"The impulse for mating starts with the female. She takes up eye contact with the male and runs away a short bit, then flashes her genitals. If the male shows interest (which does not always occur), he joins the female and they mate. The 200-day gestation period ends with a single birth in late spring or early summer. Young animals become fully mature in about 6 to 7 years. Zoologists know little about their lifespan."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snub-nosed_monkey

" Even within a band there can be smaller groups referred to as OMU, one-male units that are each led by an adult male. The male may stay solitary, often remaining away from the rest of the group members as they rest. Adult females tend to socialize more with one another than with other males or juveniles. Group members remain close to one another, interactions between different OMUs often result in confrontations.^[4]"

^{In Romanian language:}

^{Om = human being; man.}

^{Omul = the human being; the man.}

^{Omu' = [slang for] the human being; the man.}

^{The 11th highest mountain peak in Romania is Omu Peak.}

^{http://www.muntii-bucegi.ro/photo-gallery.html
http://ro.wikipedia.org/wiki/V%C3%A2rful_Omu,_Mun%C8%9Bii_Bucegi}

But what happens when a mighty predator attacks a monkey band of several OMUs?
We're here to serve and protect.
Did you call for back-up?
"Protecting the young is a group effort. Mothers often have helpers assisting them with the care of their young.^[8] When faced with danger from a predator such as the Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) [not too gentile with the prey], the young are placed at the center of the group while the stronger adult males go to the scene of the alarm. The rest of the day, the members of the group remain closer to one another with the young protected at the center.^[9]:


See here an image of a juvenile Goshawk - an adult is only meaner and stronger, of course:

http://www.post.ee/3321?id=3321&prod_id=630

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_Snub-nosed_Monkey

Now, on to geopolitical and historical context: who was snubbing whom, throughout history?

The Imperial China, The Western Europe, The Mogul Empire, The Ottoman Empire, The Soviet Union [Empire], The-country-where-the-EMPIRE-State-Building-is-located, present-day China, etc. - everybody was snubbing everybody else, more or less, on and off. Alliances and enmities fluctuate, even coming full-circle, occasionally.

Please read this very interesting BBC article, along with the readers' comments.

"On his current visit to Beijing, UK Prime Minister David Cameron has said China will soon reclaim its position as the world's biggest economy - a role it has held for 18 of the past 20 centuries. But how did the US, Britain and the rest of Europe interrupt this reign of supremacy? It comes down to location."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-11721671

Think about it, baby ["baby" - that's not condescending; it's a term of endearment]. :)

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Happy PFF (Postcard Friendship Friday)!

Please visit: http://thebestheartsarecrunchy.blogspot.com/

How to create a maximum card in the process of mailing a postcard?

I postmarked this maximum card on 16 Sep 2010, and I mailed it in an envelope.

I postmarked this maximum card on 20 Sep 2010 and I mailed it as a postcard (no envelope):

A 98c stamp is the one with Grand Teton National Park. But I prefer here to use other stamps for the same total of 98 cents, from both sides of the postcard.

See how I created a maximum card in the process of mailing a postcard from USA to Romania?
Well, I used the concordant stamp on the picture side, and I put all the other stamps on the address side.

The picture side was glossy, so I carefully rubbed with hard dishpad, just enough to rough up the surface needed.
I also rubbed a little the glossy zazzle stamp.

The picture postcard is my custom-created postcard, printed by winkflash.com from the photo I uploaded to them.
The postmark is applied with my own MPP canceller (Mailer's Postmark Permit) #67.
The stamp is also my design.
http://www.zazzle.com/leon_iancovici_esq_romania_postage-172868310591662719?rf=238693463283865848
Anybody can do that. Only US residents can get MPP, though.
:)

After I created that design (from the stamp in the maximum card, with "3 philatelists"), new information surfaced about 2 more Gold Medallists at recent FIP Exhibitions, so the current total is 5 maximaphilists.
That will increase, in time, of course.
What will remain forever unchanged is that my friend Leon Iancovici was chronologically the 2nd in the world in this elite group.

Officially, a Zazzle stamp (= personalized stamp = personalised stamp = customized postage = P-stamp) does "not require to be postmarked", because the code is supposed to be decoded by the scanner of the Post.
But my interpretation is that it's still OK to have it postmarked on (nice, polite) demand, should the postal associate cooperate.
[Translation: THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH POSTMARKING/HANDCANCELLING A PERSONALIZED STAMP!!! - USPS should adopt THIS rule! :)]
Sometimes, I get to postmark myself with the USPS canceller, at the post counter, "under the supervision" of a nice, cooperating, open-minded postal associate.
Or, I can postmark it myself - it's easy for me to convince myself to carefully postmark it with my MPP canceller.

Notice that I wrote "ADDITIONAL POSTAGE ->" - never assume that the postal associate will flip the postcard.

Here's another example, where I didn't initially write "ADDITIONAL POSTAGE", and some unflipping postal associate has returned the postcard to me for insufficient postage!!!

It never crossed his/her mind that the missing 41 cents stamp is ALREADY on the postcard, just on the picture side, for philatelic/maximaphilic purposes.

Moreover, I already handcancelled that 41c stamp with the USPS canceller - but the postcard and the stamp were glossy, and the ink was low on the canceller. STAZ-ON would be a superior brand of ink for glossy surfaces.

So the red ink stamp above my panda stamp is barely visible. Which proves again that I could be better off postmarking with my own MPP device. I can pre-ink at will.

I have crossed out the USPS note for insufficient postage, as instructed at the second Post visit, and I resubmitted the postcard with arrows pointing to the other side.