World Wide Wolfowitz Whining

There is quite an overseas stir at President Bush's nomination of Paul Wolfowitz to head the World Bank. The UK papers seem especially despondent over the nomination. This to me makes it all worthwhile. While I don't have any problem with the British people, the whole "How Could 50 million people be so dumb" cover never sat well with me. For that reason, I enjoy seeing them all "a tizzy" over things they have absolutely zero control.

This Is London: Outrage Over Bush World Bank Nominee
They even quote a handful of extreme leftists to make their case!

Columbia University economist Jeffrey Sachs said there were many people in
the US and around the world with expertise in development economics, but
Wolfowitz was not one of them.
John Cavanagh, director of the Institute for Policy Studies, a liberal
think-tank, said: 'If the Bush administration wanted to poke a finger into the
eye of every nation on Earth, it couldn't have made a better choice.'

I agree nutter, I agree.

Financial Times (this paper I actually do enjoy, takes me back to International Macro Econ)

Surprise, and in some quarters dismay, was a common response in the World
Bank's other large shareholder countries to Paul Wolfowitz's nomination.

The lack of consultation before the announcement meant that European
governments - who collectively hold about 30 per cent of the votes on the bank's
executive board to the US's 17 per cent - were slow to react. "There are going
to be a lot of very unhappy people, but they may be as upset about the process
as about the person," said one European official. "They were supposed to consult
us and there was no consultation."

The beat goes on in FT. Wolfowitz nomination a shock for Europe

Some non-governmental groups fear Mr Wolfowitz will have a different focus,
seeking to enlist the bank in the larger project of building US security by
spreading democracy. "There will be concern about the possibility of introducing
the war on terror into the projects and policies of the World Bank," said Manish
Bapna, executive-director of the Bank Information Center.

Don't forget about Reuters, never one to miss an opportunity to try and kick America.

The U.S. nomination of Paul Wolfowitz as World Bank chief drew a cool
response from European officials on the bank's board but they had little chance
of blocking it, board sources said on Wednesday.
Sources close to the World
Bank board said Wolfowitz's name was informally circulated several weeks ago
among the 23-member board, which represents the bank's 184 member countries, and
the reaction was made clear to U.S. Treasury Secretary John Snow.
"Mr. Snow
knows that the reaction from the board was unfavorable," one source said. "Mr.
Wolfowitz's nomination today tells us the U.S. couldn't care less what the rest
of the world thinks."

I especially like the part about the US not caring what Europe thinks. High comedy here folks!

Don't sleep on the US press either, they are none too happy. WaPo leads the way!

Nomination Shocks, Worries Europe

President Bush's nomination of Deputy Defense Secretary Paul D. Wolfowitz as
the next president of the World Bank was met with much surprise, little
enthusiasm and some outright opposition in Europe, where he is best known as a
leading proponent of a conflict deeply unpopular here, the Iraq war.
"We
were led to believe that the neoconservatives were losing ground," said Michael
Cox, a professor of international relations at the London School of Economics.
"But clearly the revolution is alive and well."

Here is a fun sounding board at the BBC where users are free to comment on the nomination of Wolfowitz by President Bush.

This and the appointment of Bolton to the UN are transparent attempts to
destroy all worldwide institutions and make the US the only internationally
relevant power. The neo-cons have not hidden their contempt for these
institutions and it seems that if these appointments are not challenged then the
institutions will be destroyed. Is there not something which can be done to stop
this? Come on Europe, show some mettle and veto this appointment.Kym, Leicester,
UK

Outrageous, dangerous, and against the world tide of progress for humanity. I
am ashamed and chagrined. Europe, flip the deck - challenge this appointment,
don't accept it. Flex your muscles and reject this nomination.Bruce Macdonald,
San Diego, California, USA

Really though, they're all good. Also keep checking out those DU threads, non stop hillarity!

They know not the meaning of shame...They inhabit some kingdom Beyond Shame,
and exhibit breathtaking audacity.