The presidential election is just a handful of days away, and I hear terms such as Muslim and Socialist used to denigrate candidates.
I think of America's tradition of welcoming everyone to its shores, a tradition which is respected all over the world. The best of America lies with those who made and who preserve that tradition, who respect the diversity of their brethren. There is no place in this tradition for those who try to turn us against groups of upright people, because of the sins of a few.
Socialism is a term which serves as an umbrella for different political philosophies, but the essential spirit is that of a concern for the welfare of our brothers and sisters. In my opinion, the terms socialism and capitalism are not mutually exclusive, and aspirations for a melding of both should not be deplored.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Charleston
Maura and I arrived in Charleston Airport about 6:30 0n Monday evening. The sky had been clear and blue all the way from Atlanta, but dusk was falling. The air was cool.
We woke to a beautiful morning and, after breakfast, we strolled over to our little lake and stood watching a flock of egrets standing on a headland below the swimming pool, as if waiting for some imminent manifestation.
Suddenly, we realised that all the ducks on the lake were desperately paddling towards us, some taking to flight as they realised that they were being left behind. We remembered then; that they firmly believe everyone who walks by their lake is required to feed them, by way of a toll.
In the evening, after Desi closed Crushed Fine Wine, Betsy and he drove down, and we bar-b-cued hamburgers. We sat afterwards on our little deck, talking, until they left, about 10:30.
We woke to a beautiful morning and, after breakfast, we strolled over to our little lake and stood watching a flock of egrets standing on a headland below the swimming pool, as if waiting for some imminent manifestation.
Suddenly, we realised that all the ducks on the lake were desperately paddling towards us, some taking to flight as they realised that they were being left behind. We remembered then; that they firmly believe everyone who walks by their lake is required to feed them, by way of a toll.
In the evening, after Desi closed Crushed Fine Wine, Betsy and he drove down, and we bar-b-cued hamburgers. We sat afterwards on our little deck, talking, until they left, about 10:30.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Bubbles and Budgets
The Irish Government introduced their budget for 2009 on Tuesday, and the country went crazy. First of all the Government appeared to have been sleep-walking the first half of of the year, because all of the ministers, at least in public, appeared to be unaware that the bottom had fallen out of their 2008 budget, which is where the Bubbles come in. The Irish economy has been riding a real-estate construction and escalating value boom,which many chose to consider would go on for ever. It didn't.
There were two keys to the development of the problem. One was the recent great success of the Irish economy, the so-called Celtic Tiger, and some kind of delusion that we were teflon coated. The other was a changing banking philosophy. Banking traditionally has been based on the philosophy that you borrow long-term to finance long-term lending, and short-term to finance short-term lending. In recent years, someone, somewhere, got the idea that you would make a lot more money if, when short-term rates are low, you borrow on the short-term market, and lend, at much higher rates, on mortgages for example. You could make even more money if you give people mortgages for 100% of the price of a house, throw in additional funds to buy furniture, and don'y worry too much about their ability to repay. You could make evem more money if you package a group of mortgages, and sell them to investors: then you could issue even more mortgages. The problem begins, of course, when some people realise that these 'investments' they have bought have less value than they thought. Then banks become worried about the other banks to whom they are lending funds on a short-term basis, and they refuse to lend to them, so they cannot repay the short-term debt they already have outstanding. The result is the chaos we see in the banking industry.
Society here has been in an uproar since Tuesday. Everybody seems to have conveniently forgotten that we all participated in this delusion that we had, in some way, found the golden key to good fortune. We felt it was only right that our government should spread this wealth around. It is different now that the hair-shirt has been brought out. There is talk of new 'stealth' taxes, and a lot of emphasis on the demands being made on the poor. Well, in this deeply-caring society I don't believe that those who are genuinely poor need worry, and, as for the rest of us, as my mother used say, 'you have to pay the piper'.
There were two keys to the development of the problem. One was the recent great success of the Irish economy, the so-called Celtic Tiger, and some kind of delusion that we were teflon coated. The other was a changing banking philosophy. Banking traditionally has been based on the philosophy that you borrow long-term to finance long-term lending, and short-term to finance short-term lending. In recent years, someone, somewhere, got the idea that you would make a lot more money if, when short-term rates are low, you borrow on the short-term market, and lend, at much higher rates, on mortgages for example. You could make even more money if you give people mortgages for 100% of the price of a house, throw in additional funds to buy furniture, and don'y worry too much about their ability to repay. You could make evem more money if you package a group of mortgages, and sell them to investors: then you could issue even more mortgages. The problem begins, of course, when some people realise that these 'investments' they have bought have less value than they thought. Then banks become worried about the other banks to whom they are lending funds on a short-term basis, and they refuse to lend to them, so they cannot repay the short-term debt they already have outstanding. The result is the chaos we see in the banking industry.
Society here has been in an uproar since Tuesday. Everybody seems to have conveniently forgotten that we all participated in this delusion that we had, in some way, found the golden key to good fortune. We felt it was only right that our government should spread this wealth around. It is different now that the hair-shirt has been brought out. There is talk of new 'stealth' taxes, and a lot of emphasis on the demands being made on the poor. Well, in this deeply-caring society I don't believe that those who are genuinely poor need worry, and, as for the rest of us, as my mother used say, 'you have to pay the piper'.
Monday, October 13, 2008
So Far, So Fast
America made its first great leap into the international arena when it launched an expeditionary force in 1917 to come to the aid of Britain, France, and Italy, in their first world war with the combined German and Austrian empires.
After the war the League of Nations was formed, but Germany descended into hyper-inflation, and America entered into the Great Depression. America withdrew from the rest of the world into Isolationism, as it was known. When Germany entered Poland, thus starting the second world war, American opinion was opposed to intervention, and Britain had to struggle alone for two years, although America was generous in supplying her material needs. America only came into the war when it was attacked by Japan,whereupon Germany declared war.
After the war America adopted a new, enlightened policy of economic aid for Western Europe, called the Marshall Plan, and cooperated in the creation and development of NATO, as a shield against aggressive Communist expansion. It was not, however, an imperial effort, and when Britain and Israel invaded Egypt in 1956, to gain control of the Suez Canal, President Eisenhower forced them to withdraw.
Since then there has been a clouding of the principles which have governed American foreign policy, at least to me there has. Vietnam was, supposedly, a war against Communism, based on the 'Domino Theory', that if you did not fight Coommunism, wherever it raised its head, then it would overwhelm you. The problem, in my mind,is that Vietnam was a French colony. Were the insurgents really Communists, or were they freedom fighters? In any event,it seems to me that this blurring of the motivations for international interventions has increased, to the extent that America has recently displayed much of the attitude and activity which we have traditionally described as Imperialism.
After the war the League of Nations was formed, but Germany descended into hyper-inflation, and America entered into the Great Depression. America withdrew from the rest of the world into Isolationism, as it was known. When Germany entered Poland, thus starting the second world war, American opinion was opposed to intervention, and Britain had to struggle alone for two years, although America was generous in supplying her material needs. America only came into the war when it was attacked by Japan,whereupon Germany declared war.
After the war America adopted a new, enlightened policy of economic aid for Western Europe, called the Marshall Plan, and cooperated in the creation and development of NATO, as a shield against aggressive Communist expansion. It was not, however, an imperial effort, and when Britain and Israel invaded Egypt in 1956, to gain control of the Suez Canal, President Eisenhower forced them to withdraw.
Since then there has been a clouding of the principles which have governed American foreign policy, at least to me there has. Vietnam was, supposedly, a war against Communism, based on the 'Domino Theory', that if you did not fight Coommunism, wherever it raised its head, then it would overwhelm you. The problem, in my mind,is that Vietnam was a French colony. Were the insurgents really Communists, or were they freedom fighters? In any event,it seems to me that this blurring of the motivations for international interventions has increased, to the extent that America has recently displayed much of the attitude and activity which we have traditionally described as Imperialism.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
A Special Week
Eugene arrived from Australia the previous Friday, and early Sunday morning we drove up to the lookout on Howth Head. It had rained all day Saturday, into the evening, but the sky was blue, and the sun shone brightly over Dublin Bay. Dalkey, Bray Head and the Wicklow Mountains, were all clearly visible, while all of Dublin City lay just below us, to the right. I thought of Enniskerry and an early morning many years ago, when George led me across the fields behind his home, and showed me the sun just beginning to rise out of the Irish Sea.
We walked down the cliff-side until we came to what might at one time have been just a path which sheep had trodden down, and walked in the direction of the little port of Howth. The sea was several hundred feet below us, and occasionally we would pass others, including mountain bikers, enjoying this lovely public facility. After a while Ireland's Eye came into view, and soon we passed the spot where Maura and I picnicked a few weeks ago. Then, after walking out to the end of the mole we returned.
On Wednesday, again in the morning, Eugene took me out to Malahide Castle, once an English aristocrat's residence, but now a public park. I had never realised there was so much to see. It is meticulously maintained, and I plan on returning, often I hope. We then drove north, past Malahide, to Donabate, where we often spent Sundays with family, relaxing by the sea, and bar-b-cuing. The only change at the beach was that you could no longer drive on to it, to avoid erosion I would think.
Afterwards he took me up to Portrane, where the family also used gather, but which must have been before we returned to Ireland. The sea-front at Portrane is very striking. Lambay Island is quite close, providing an extra dimension to the view, which is south to Malahide. The cliffs are quite modest, compared to Howth, and there are some little beaches, which are accessible by clambering down the cliff-side. Eugene spoke of the caves which riddle the cliffs, and which they had explored, when they were boys. He also showed me the little, grassy plateau where they had their picnics.
We walked down the cliff-side until we came to what might at one time have been just a path which sheep had trodden down, and walked in the direction of the little port of Howth. The sea was several hundred feet below us, and occasionally we would pass others, including mountain bikers, enjoying this lovely public facility. After a while Ireland's Eye came into view, and soon we passed the spot where Maura and I picnicked a few weeks ago. Then, after walking out to the end of the mole we returned.
On Wednesday, again in the morning, Eugene took me out to Malahide Castle, once an English aristocrat's residence, but now a public park. I had never realised there was so much to see. It is meticulously maintained, and I plan on returning, often I hope. We then drove north, past Malahide, to Donabate, where we often spent Sundays with family, relaxing by the sea, and bar-b-cuing. The only change at the beach was that you could no longer drive on to it, to avoid erosion I would think.
Afterwards he took me up to Portrane, where the family also used gather, but which must have been before we returned to Ireland. The sea-front at Portrane is very striking. Lambay Island is quite close, providing an extra dimension to the view, which is south to Malahide. The cliffs are quite modest, compared to Howth, and there are some little beaches, which are accessible by clambering down the cliff-side. Eugene spoke of the caves which riddle the cliffs, and which they had explored, when they were boys. He also showed me the little, grassy plateau where they had their picnics.
Monday, October 6, 2008
Perception
Last week I noticed a news item on the BBC website. It referred to comments made by John Gray, a retired professor of political philosophy at the London School of Economics. He suggested that American geo-political eminence in the world, which it has enjoyed since the second world war, was now ended, because "The American free- market creed has self-destructed while countries that retained overall control of markets has been vindicated".
The former American ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton, was asked for his comments. part of which follows:
"If Professor Gray believes this, can he assure us that he is selling his U.S. assets short? If so, where is he placing his money instead? And if he has no U.S.assets, why should we be paying any attention to him."
It is the last sentence which caught my attention. Unfortunately, I think there are a great number of people outside of the United States who would think that Ambassador Bolton's comment implies a lack of interest in the opinions, and concerns, of other than Americans. I do not believe this attitude is typical of ordinary Americans, but the rhetoric of powerful, public people, such as the ambassador, is the voice the world has heard over the past few years.
The former American ambassador to the United Nations, John Bolton, was asked for his comments. part of which follows:
"If Professor Gray believes this, can he assure us that he is selling his U.S. assets short? If so, where is he placing his money instead? And if he has no U.S.assets, why should we be paying any attention to him."
It is the last sentence which caught my attention. Unfortunately, I think there are a great number of people outside of the United States who would think that Ambassador Bolton's comment implies a lack of interest in the opinions, and concerns, of other than Americans. I do not believe this attitude is typical of ordinary Americans, but the rhetoric of powerful, public people, such as the ambassador, is the voice the world has heard over the past few years.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Last on Nato
There was a lot of coverage of the recent attempts by the Georgian government to recover control of secessionist areas bordering on Russia, and the aggressive response of Russian armed forces. I particularly remember the image of a Russian tank crumpling up a private car as it pushed it out of its way. There were comments about the loss of civilian life, and the wounds of others who survived, but I did not see anything precise. It seems to me that there is never enough attention paid to the civilian losses.
When NATO bombed Belgrade, during the struggle over Kosovo, there was jubilant reporting of how not one airman was lost; but how many civilians died? We hear about terrorist atrocities and the resulting loss of life, legitimate concerns; but when unmanned drones, or other targeted strikes, kill civilians, we are too often assured there was no loss of innocent life.
Life is life, and none is trivial. We have a responsibility to safeguard all life, and have no right to suggest our opponent's life is any less precious than our own.
When NATO bombed Belgrade, during the struggle over Kosovo, there was jubilant reporting of how not one airman was lost; but how many civilians died? We hear about terrorist atrocities and the resulting loss of life, legitimate concerns; but when unmanned drones, or other targeted strikes, kill civilians, we are too often assured there was no loss of innocent life.
Life is life, and none is trivial. We have a responsibility to safeguard all life, and have no right to suggest our opponent's life is any less precious than our own.
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