Myanmar - The geopolitical stakes of 'Saffron Revolution'

Myanmar's (Burma )misguided policies have released runaway inflation (>35%), and massive price increases in food and gasoline in a country where 50% of the population spends 70% of their income on food. This situation alone suffices to unleash a storm of protest, but as always when the United States looks at the world, there is more.
The tragedy of Myanmar, which is the size of Texas, is that its population is being used as a human stage prop in a drama scripted in Washington by the National Endowment for Democracy (NED and other organizations. "CNN made the blunder during a September broadcast of mentioning the active presence of the NED behind the protests in Myanmar."

Why? To begin with .. The Strait of Malacca, linking the Indian and Pacific Oceans, is the shortest sea route between the Persian Gulf and China. It is the key choke point in Asia. More than 80% of all China's oil imports are shipped by tankers passing through the Malacca Strait." China has poured billions into Myanmar for military assistance, transportation infrastructure and electronic surveillance. There are vast gas fields, now operated by oil companies from Malaysia, Japan and Thailand. A planned pipeline will allow routing of oil and gas from Africa and the Middle East to China, thereby bypassing the Malacca Strait. Once again the rallying call for democracy is about strategic placement of military power and the energy wars.

	Chaos Could Come if Myanmar Junta Falls	Associated Press	Wed Oct 24	0
	Bush Imposes New Sanctions on Myanmar	Associated Press	Fri Oct 19	0
	India Silent on Myanmar Crackdown	Associated Press	Tue Oct 23	0