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2,200 | <s>[INST] But both have been challenged-put [/INST] at risk, in British eyes-this year by Argentine legislators. </s> |
2,201 | <s>[INST] First came a bill-passed by both houses of Congress, [/INST] though not yet in lawrequiring companies finding oil anywhere round the islands to pay Argentine royalties. </s> |
2,202 | <s>[INST] Recently the Senate passed a similar bill, [/INST] to fine boats fishing-wherever-in the islands' waters without an Argentine licence. </s> |
2,203 | <s>[INST] The islanders, self-governing in internal affairs, still refuse entry [/INST] to visitors using Argentine passports (except relatives visiting war graves, and, recently, a television journalist). </s> |
2,204 | <s>[INST] As for negotiations on sovereignty (or shared sovereignty, sale and leaseback, or [/INST] other imaginable halfway houses), their answer is a flat no: for all Mr Di Tella's "charm offensive", their distrust is deep. </s> |
2,205 | <s>[INST] Britain equally refuses to negotiate, [/INST] against the urging of the UN's decolonisation committee. </s> |
2,206 | <s>[INST] The Malvinas are not [/INST] the Argentine public's first concern these days. </s> |
2,207 | <s>[INST] Mr Menem has sworn to raise it [/INST] whenever he can in his visit, not least with Mr Blair. </s> |
2,208 | <s>[INST] But that exchange has been tightly choreographed: Mr [/INST] Blair will listen politely, note the Argentine position and move on to other business. </s> |
2,209 | <s>[INST] "At the level of political discussion [/INST] and negotiation there is absolutely no activity," laments Mr Di Tella. </s> |
2,210 | <s>[INST] Its garrison of some 2,000 men may cost $125m [/INST] a year, but otherwise the islands pay for themselves, thanks largely to the sale of fishing licences. </s> |
2,211 | <s>[INST] They may be surrounded by oil too, though that dream has been [/INST] dashed by the results of the first exploratory drilling, this year: one company calls a well it sank "our driest ever". </s> |
2,212 | <s>[INST] If change is to come, Mr [/INST] Di Tella knows, it must start with the 2,200 islanders. </s> |
2,213 | <s>[INST] His charm offensive-last Christmas, presents of [/INST] books and videos on Argentina's natural beauty-has been frostily received. </s> |
2,214 | <s>[INST] "It is not an attempt to make them change [/INST] their minds, but to create an environment where it might be possible to negotiate one day". </s> |
2,215 | <s>[INST] That day, if ever [/INST] it comes, is unlikely to be his. </s> |
2,216 | <s>[INST] With elections due next year, [/INST] Argentina's opposition Alliance is far ahead in the polls. </s> |
2,217 | <s>[INST] Its senior figures refused to join Mr [/INST] Menem on his trip, saying it was a bit of his propaganda. </s> |
2,218 | <s>[INST] So-among other thingsit is: his dream of winning a third [/INST] term in has been blasted, but he still hopes for a place in history as a statesman. </s> |
2,219 | <s>[INST] But the Alliance's attitude springs [/INST] also from a tougher line on the Falklands. </s> |
2,220 | <s>[INST] Of course, that might well be watered down by an Alliance government [/INST] (and the constitution, in its latest form, though it enshrines Argentina's claim, also implicitly disavows the use of force to achieve it). </s> |
2,221 | <s>[INST] But, however smoothly Mr Menem's visit may go, [/INST] Britain cannot suppose that the Falklands irritant to good relations can then be pigeonholed. </s> |
2,222 | <s>[INST] ___ Document 313 of 400 Letters [/INST] Author: Anonymous Publication info: The Economist 349.8089 (Oct 10, 1998): 6. </s> |
2,223 | <s>[INST] Full text: Taking the year out SIR-Your otherwise thorough survey on the millennium [/INST] bug (September 19th) propagates the myth that the computer age brought in the practice of leaving the "19" off the year of calendar dates. </s> |
2,224 | <s>[INST] In fact, this practice was universal [/INST] in the punched-card industry in the 1950s and for decades earlier. </s> |
2,225 | <s>[INST] It would have been absurd not to have dropped those [/INST] digits when designing unit records to be fitted into the 80 or 90 columns of a card. </s> |
2,226 | <s>[INST] Programs coded for the first electronic computers brought [/INST] into commercial use merely copied the less automatic procedures used with older, simpler punched-card machinery. </s> |
2,227 | <s>[INST] Those early computers processed cards formated to [/INST] old designs and still produced and partly processed on the older machinery. </s> |
2,228 | <s>[INST] The millennium bug is only a minor example of a general, historical tolerance [/INST] of second-rate computation, and gets major attention only because most of its effect is going to be felt on a single day by many people. </s> |
2,229 | <s>[INST] Dilston, Australia NEVILLE HOLMES SIR-You say, regarding [/INST] the millennium bug, that "all sorts of functions that depend on dates will... </s> |
2,230 | <s>[INST] In truth, only a small [/INST] fraction of computer functions depends on dates. </s> |
2,231 | <s>[INST] These functions are quite identifiable and the [/INST] ways in which they will go wrong are extremely easy to forecast. </s> |
2,232 | <s>[INST] Certain methods of calculating age and [/INST] duration, and before-and-after decisions involving the year, will be affected. </s> |
2,233 | <s>[INST] The wrong results they will [/INST] report, if comparing 99 to zero, are completely predictable. </s> |
2,234 | <s>[INST] There is no believable scenario whereby one ofthese [/INST] incorrect results could crash even a single program, let alone an entire system. </s> |
2,235 | <s>[INST] The truth is that many or most [/INST] of the computer functions involving yearly date checks have already"failed"with no discernible consequences. </s> |
2,236 | <s>[INST] For instance, almost every program that calculates credit-card expiration dates [/INST] has already passed through one day (or one hour) when it rejected cards expiring in the 21st century. </s> |
2,237 | <s>[INST] It was quickly and [/INST] easily fixed, and the rejected cards reprocessed. </s> |
2,238 | <s>[INST] A momentary embarrassment, perhaps, [/INST] but hardly the end of the world. </s> |
2,239 | <s>[INST] Berkeley, California JEFF CARLOCK SIR-My own awakening to the potential millennium bug problem [/INST] occurred in the late 1970s when I was a junior programmer put on to a project to convert applications from one mainframe to another. </s> |
2,240 | <s>[INST] As the programs were mostly written in the early [/INST] 1960s, I realised the long lifecycle of these systems could cause problems around the year 2000. </s> |
2,241 | <s>[INST] The problem was discussed and resolved-not only internally in [/INST] the software house where I was employed but also in several industry forums in Britain and America. </s> |
2,242 | <s>[INST] Since then, four-digit years in all [/INST] new or reworked applications has been a strict rule. </s> |
2,243 | <s>[INST] When I read that some organisation in Japan "proposed" [/INST] this solution as late as 1992, I did not know whether to laugh or cry. </s> |
2,244 | <s>[INST] Zaventem, Belgium IAN MCLOUGHLIN SIR-I notice that [/INST] The Economist is working to preclude the problem of the millennium bug. </s> |
2,245 | <s>[INST] In June 19981 renewed my subscription and was [/INST] thrilled to receive your acknowledgment informing me that my new expiration date is May 2999. </s> |
2,246 | <s>[INST] Wayne, Pennsylvania CHARLES WENZEL Flood warning SIR-You certainly deserve our thanks for highlighting the terrible nature of the floods which this year have laid waste to [/INST] huge parts of Bangladesh ("Drowning", September 12thy But there was no reluctance on the part of the authorities where calling for outside help was concerned, as you suggest Initially, it remained the endeavour of the government to deal with the emerging flood problem through its own measures and machinery. </s> |
2,247 | <s>[INST] However, as the waters rose and the intensity of the disaster [/INST] became all too obvious, the government lost hardly a moment to acquaint the outside world with the news of the crisis. </s> |
2,248 | <s>[INST] Finally, to suggest that foreign pressure was brought [/INST] to bear on the government in the matter of distribution of aid is unkind. </s> |
2,249 | <s>[INST] SYED BADRUL AHSAN Bangladesh High Commission Lott Spinning the Web SIR-You say that [/INST] "CERN was widely criticised for inventing the World Wide Web and then failing to cash in on it," ("Vacuum science: a stronger suck", September 12th). </s> |
2,250 | <s>[INST] We are often asked why [/INST] CERN did not take out patents for the Web. </s> |
2,251 | <s>[INST] What we did was to produce a [/INST] standard; we wanted to leave the production of software to industry. </s> |
2,252 | <s>[INST] The real question is: why did European industry fail to [/INST] pick up the Web when we were pushing them and giving away prototype software for exactly that purpose? </s> |
2,253 | <s>[INST] ROBERT CAILLIAU CERN Geneva Neutral observation SIR-I am forced to respond to claims made by J.M.Amir, the Malaysian [/INST] high commissioner in London (Letters, September l9th), who states that the presence of Amnesty International at the trial of an opposition parliamentarian, Lim Guan Eng, demonstrates that the Malaysian justice system is fair and open. </s> |
2,254 | <s>[INST] The presence of a neutral observer, a minimum requirement of international [/INST] human-rights standards, indicates only that the trial is open and in no way ensures that a fair trial is administered. </s> |
2,255 | <s>[INST] The truth of the matter is that Amnesty International [/INST] believes that the government of Malaysia continues to apply restrictive legislation in an arbitrary and selective manner. </s> |
2,256 | <s>[INST] This belief is reinforced by the recent [/INST] arrest of former deputy prime minister Anwar Ibrahim and his political associates. </s> |
2,257 | <s>[INST] Amnesty International believes that the imprisonment of Mr Lim, who is deputy secretarygeneral of the Democratic [/INST] Action Party, is politically motivated and that the aim of the prosecution was to remove a prominent government critic from public life (the sentence automatically disqualifies him from Parliament). </s> |
2,258 | <s>[INST] We believe Mr Lim, Mr Anwar and his detained associates are [/INST] prisoners of conscience, imprisoned solely for the peaceful expression of their opinions, and call for their immediate and unconditional release. </s> |
2,259 | <s>[INST] DAVID BULL Director London Amnesty International UK Moral authority SIR-Lexington [/INST] (September 12th) writes of Senator Joe Lieberman that "his political persona exudes integrity and strict moral values". </s> |
2,260 | <s>[INST] Before Mr Lieberman is anointed the moral [/INST] custodian of the Senate, a broader, secular definition of morality is needed. </s> |
2,261 | <s>[INST] Year after year, Mr Lieberman has pressed for product liability [/INST] legislation that restricts the recovery rights of wrongfully injured people in courts of law against the perpetrators. </s> |
2,262 | <s>[INST] He has also voted for legislation that makes it [/INST] much more difficult for defrauded investors to hold corporate chisellers accountable in state and federal courts. </s> |
2,263 | <s>[INST] While taking away rights held for decades [/INST] by Americans when suing corporations, Mr Lieberman protects the corporations' right to sue. </s> |
2,264 | <s>[INST] Companies are exempted from the restrictions imposed on injured human beings and [/INST] are left with unfettered rights to obtain full compensation for their commercial losses from defective products, including punitive damages without statutory limits. </s> |
2,265 | <s>[INST] Also, in the past, Mr Lieberman has proposed more [/INST] Draconian tort-law restrictions than were contained in the bill which the Senate defeated in July. </s> |
2,266 | <s>[INST] Will commentators ever get round to evaluating this kind of legislative immorality [/INST] against defenceless children and adults who become victims of reckless or criminal behaviour by car, drug, chemical, securities and insurance companies? </s> |
2,267 | <s>[INST] And by the way, much of Mr [/INST] Lieberman's campaign contributions comes from the very special interests that he champions. </s> |
2,268 | <s>[INST] Washington, DC RALPH NADER Don't cry for Argentina SIR-The view [/INST] from Argentina of the links with Brazil is quite different from the one that you portray (September 12th). </s> |
2,269 | <s>[INST] First, there is confidence that Brazil will not radically change monetary [/INST] or exchange-rate policy, given its hard-won fight against inflation and the political capital the government has invested in stability. </s> |
2,270 | <s>[INST] Second, the growing insider view is that even if it did, this would not unduly affect Argentina as: [/INST] Though almost 30% of Argentine exports go to Brazil, total exports are less than 8% of GDP, and some so% of exports to Brazil are commodities that would find other markets at going international prices. </s> |
2,271 | <s>[INST] Even an unthinkable disaster in Brazil [/INST] would cost Argentina no more than, say, 1% Of GDP. </s> |
2,272 | <s>[INST] Argentina grewby7.2% in the first quarter of 1998, [/INST] Brazil by 1.1%; second-quarter figures for Argentina showed continued strong growth of 6.9%. </s> |
2,273 | <s>[INST] This makes perfect sense, given the [/INST] marked difference in real interest rates in the two countries. </s> |
2,274 | <s>[INST] The Argentine peso appreciated by [/INST] 53% between 1990 and 1992 against the Brazilian currency. </s> |
2,275 | <s>[INST] Then, with the reduction of inflation in Argentina and [/INST] the start of the real plan it was Brazil's turn to appreciate, by 35% until November 1994. </s> |
2,276 | <s>[INST] Yet, notwithstanding these sharp movements in the real exchange-rate, trade between [/INST] the two has been growing steadily in both directions, and Argentine exports to Brazil have grown strongly over the whole period. </s> |
2,277 | <s>[INST] Although growing, integration between the two countries remains [/INST] low and very large swings in real exchange rates have not had undue effects. </s> |
2,278 | <s>[INST] So, the "Brazil dependency" myth is [/INST] contagion at its worst It has no basis in the fundamentals. </s> |
2,279 | <s>[INST] But if everyone thinks it is true, it would surely imply [/INST] a reduction in finance available, an increase in the risk premium and lower growth-as this is the way Argentina would adjust. </s> |
2,280 | <s>[INST] Your normally excellent newspaper has a [/INST] reputation for focusing on the real facts and debunking such myths. </s> |
2,281 | <s>[INST] What a shame The Economist simply reinforced contagion [/INST] in this case, where it is so clear that the emperor has no clothes. </s> |
2,282 | <s>[INST] ANDREW POWELL Chief Economist Central Bank of Argentina Buenos Aires The war in the [/INST] Horn SRI-:Contrary to what you say in your article about Ethiopia and Eritrea (September 19th), it was Ethiopia that launched the first aerial attack against Eritrea. </s> |
2,283 | <s>[INST] Also, the borders of Eritrea-the ones that it inherited [/INST] from Italian colonial rule-have already been estaS lished by international treaties concluded between Italy and Ethiopia. </s> |
2,284 | <s>[INST] Only Ethiopia is committing violations of human rights, [/INST] both against Eritreans and against Ethiopians of Eritrean origin, amounting to ethnic cleansing. </s> |
2,285 | <s>[INST] No third party has yet [/INST] accused Eritrea of violations of human rights. </s> |
2,286 | <s>[INST] Finally, the reports of Eritrean assistance [/INST] to Ethiopian rebel movements are based on Ethiopian allegations. </s> |
2,287 | <s>[INST] TSEHAYE WELDMICHEAL Eritrean Consulate General London Cause or correlation SIR-Andrew Oswald is wrong to [/INST] draw attention to the nature of the housing market as a factor in youth unemployment in industrialised countries solely on the basis of correlation (Letters, September 5th). </s> |
2,288 | <s>[INST] Correlation does not imply causality; plant growth rates [/INST] may be strongly correlated with ice-cream sales but both are caused by good weather. </s> |
2,289 | <s>[INST] Correlation analysis should be used [/INST] to support a model chosen on economic grounds. </s> |
2,290 | <s>[INST] In this case the most rational model implies a direction of causality opposite to that suggested: younger people are more likely to [/INST] rent, but only if they can afford to do so(for example, when employed) Without proposing a reason to explain why youth unemployment should depend on the nature of the housing market Mr Oswald has done nothing more than point out a mathematical quirk. </s> |
2,291 | <s>[INST] JUSTIN SANTA BARBARA Cambridge Clerical error SIR-Your article [/INST] "Iran's war on fundamentalism" (September 12th) could well have been titled "Fundamentalism's war on Iran". </s> |
2,292 | <s>[INST] Conservative clergy feel their grip on Iranian [/INST] society is loosening and may resort to war to restore their absolute power. </s> |
2,293 | <s>[INST] They are no longer martyrs, suffering because of [/INST] the government: they are the government and their words have started to ring hollow. </s> |
2,294 | <s>[INST] In the past, the clergy kept their word [/INST] when they promised to fight against the monarchy (often risking their own lives). </s> |
2,295 | <s>[INST] Today they have failed [/INST] to make things better for ordinary Iranians. </s> |
2,296 | <s>[INST] To make things worse, they [/INST] have a new generation of students on their hands. </s> |
2,297 | <s>[INST] These do not remember the martyrdom of the clergy but have seen the [/INST] vigilantes' sticks, food stamps, and their elder brothers going to war with Iraq with the blessing of the clergynever to return from it. </s> |
2,298 | <s>[INST] That is why things are happening in Iran which could never have happened in the first years [/INST] after the revolution: the election of a president who, shortly before the election, lost his post as a minister due to the clergy's pressure and huge demonstrations in support of this president. </s> |
2,299 | <s>[INST] In the light of the above, the events described [/INST] in your article look like an act of despair on the part of the fundamentalists. </s> |
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