It’s always fascinating to me to read the viewpoints and observations of folks outside the USA on the sorry state of our nation and the apparent incompetence of our President. Such is the case in an article entitled “Lament for a nation” by David Warren in The Ottawa Citizen. Mr. Warren compares Obama to Gorbachev in presiding over the decline of the USA and the breakup of the Soviet Union. I think that comparison is a bit strained, but I think it is hard to argue with this:
There is a corollary of this largely unspoken assumption: that no matter what you do to one part of a machine, the rest of the machine will continue to function normally.
A variant of this is the frequently expressed denial of the law of unintended consequences: the belief that, if the effect you intend is good, the actual effect must be similarly happy.
Very small children, the mad, and certain extinct primitive tribes, have shared in this belief system, but only the fully college-educated liberal has the vocabulary to make it sound plausible.
With an incredible rapidity, America’s status as the world’s pre-eminent superpower is now passing away. This is a function both of the nearly systematic abandonment of U.S. interests and allies overseas, with metastasizing debt and bureaucracy on the home front.
And while I think the U.S. has the structural fortitude to survive the Obama presidency, it will be a much-diminished country that emerges from the “new physics” of hope and change.
Speaking of Canadians, lately this Neil Young song has been ringing in my ears:
Its awful hard to find a job
On one side the government, the other the mob
Hey, hey ain’t that right
The workin’ man’s in for a hell of a fight.
Oh, this country sure looks good to me
But these fences are comin’ apart at every nail.
Way up on the old dew line
Some of the boys were feelin’ fine
A big light flashed across the sky
But somethin’ else went slippin’ by
Meanwhile at the Pentagon
The brass was a wonderin’ what went wrong.
Oh, this country sure looks good to me
But these fences are comin’ apart at every nail.
Hey hey, ain’t that right
The workin’ man’s in for a hell of a fight.
Oh, this country sure looks good to me
But these fences are comin’ apart at every nail.
Wow, John.
Another excellent find. I’m not familiar with the author of the piece, but I am very impressed with his insights and his articulation. Writing so briefly and clearly is a gift I do not possess but one I greatly admire.
Mr. Warren has found a valid correlation and whether the science holds or not, it is surely worth sitting up and taking a lingering look at it. Ironically, I expressed similar views in conversations with friends, just this evening.
Neil Young’s lyrics are literally meaningful and your inclusion of them, in contrast, is meaningful to me. But I’m sure they would mean alot more if sung out the way he would perform them and though I do not recall having heard them performed I’m sure they are still ringing in your ears.
John, you have a gift for finding really good pieces to express your views and this of course helps advance your view with the added benefit of taking you off the hook, to some degree, of being just another guy with an opinion. We all have our independent opinions but if we can not express them with the wit, insight and clarity of a Charles Krauthammer or a Fred Barnes, they don’t have much impact do they? Your technique, consciously chosen or however you settled upon it, works well and I enjoy the clarify it brings.
Your blog is a daily anticipation and I sincerely believe that in a perfect world it would help the deluded and misled to find their way. I only wish it would really be so.
Thanks for the encouragement Dennis. I think we all have a duty to spread the word. It’s a scary time for America and I truly do fear the damage being done to our country may be irreparable if we don’t motivate people to stand and say “no”.
As bad as the domestic crap is, what Obama is doing in foreign policy is potentially more destructive.
Speaking of Krauthammer, did y’all see this:
http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=ZWI5ZTE1NzA4NmYzOTg0ODAxNzNiM2JlMTM3NGU2MjY=
Great find, John.
Here’s something for ya.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Krauthammer
Pretty interesting background, too.
(For some reason I can’t get hyperlinks to transfer on your blog).
Here is an good link to a funny skit on SNL this weekend. It sums up what I have been saying for months. Obama has not done much of anything since he took office. I know a lot of people (a few on this blog) like playing the fear, communist and race card but the bottom line is Obama talks a big game and does nothing. Our country is EXACTLY the same as it was this time last year.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/04/snl-obama_n_308979.html