Global Perspectives

How will Egyptians Celebrate 25 January?

2012-01-20T03:12:00.000-07:00

As 25 January approaches, Egyptians are conflicted about how to celebrate the first anniversary of the revolution that forced Hosni Mubarak to resign from his office as president for life. The Al-Ahram Weekly of January 12 - 18, 2012, summarized the views of the leaders of the various factions.

Safwat Abdel-Ghani, a leading member of the Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiya, said, "On 25 January we will celebrate our victory at the ballot box and the peaceful hand over of power from the military to the newly elected parliament."

Ahmed Abu Baraka, a leading member of the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), the Muslim Brotherhood’s political wing, told Al-Ahram "Of course there is a lot to celebrate on 25 January. The people are full of joy because they are now masters of their own destiny. They have elected their own representatives for the first time in our history."

Representatives of 54 liberal, leftist, and radical parties and coalitions released a statement announcing that they plan to hold demonstrations across Egypt to press for "the fulfillment of the key demands of the 25 January Revolution, on top of which is handing over power to a civilian government and president."

According to Tarek El-Kholi, spokesman of the 6 April Movement and Democratic Front, "The key demands of the revolution have not been met yet. What we will see in less than two weeks will be the launch of a new phase of the ongoing revolution." The new phase will not be violent.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) has announced that it will be holding its own celebrations to mark the day at Cairo Stadium and in several other cities. Well known singers will participate and there will be fireworks and martial music

As we see it, the Egyptians have more freedom to choose the way they will celebrate than they have had before. Perhaps it is this freedom to choose they are really celebrating!

We wish them a peaceful day of remembrance that is also a day to consider how far they have come and most importantly the steps that are necessary in their transition to democracy.

Cairo and All of Egypt is a Safe Place to Visit!

2012-01-16T03:44:00.003-07:00

Since their January 2011 Revolution, the western press has published and republished images and stories about the demonstrations in Tahrir Square that have created the image that Egypt is a dangerous place and one to be avoided.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

We want to tell people that downtown Cairo is safe. Yes, it is bustling, noisy, full of traffic and pedestrians trying to get where they want to go - a typical megacity. But we found it to be quite safe.

We walked widely in the streets of the downtown, including around Tahrir Square, and never felt in danger. The sidewalks were busy, but we never felt threatened by the people or the merchants in the shops we passed. Many people said "Welcome to Cairo!" as we walked by. A few people offered us assistance and sometimes tours but in most cases, a simple "No, Thank you!" to a more insistant person was more than adequate.

We were welcomed in many local restaurants and enjoyed good food and gracious hospitality.

One proviso: Cairo is very much a male oriented society, so western women walking alone may experience greater hassling than we, a couple, did. Wearing a scarf probably helps. Most everywhere, we saw headscarf clad Egyptian women walking alone or in pairs, or sitting in cafes.

If you are considering an Egyptian Holiday, this is an ideal time to come! You will be welcomed.

Keystone XL Pipeline Project - Just Say No, Secretary Clinton!

2011-09-14T09:07:00.000-06:00

Dear Secretary Clinton,

As a concerned citizen of the United States and a global citizen, I am writing to offer my comments on the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) that was released on August 26, 2011. As I understand the present situation, the Department of State must carry out an evaluation of the application for a permit for the Keystone XL pipeline project. This evaluation of the application extends beyond environmental impact, taking into account economic, energy security, foreign policy, and other relevant issues.

After reviewing the FEIS, I am convinced that to permit this project would be to encourage and provide a powerful incentive to the old fossil fuel energy economy. Meanwhile, we the people are making investments, both public and private, in the new green energy economy based on renewable energy and energy efficiency. Granting approval of this application would work at cross purposes to the stated goals of the Obama Administration.

As President Obama said, "The nation that leads the world in 21st century clean energy will be the nation that leads in the 21st century global economy. America can and must be that nation."

To permit the Keystone XL Pipeline project would be a major retrenchment in America’s world leadership toward a clean energy future.

The threats to our national interest that climate change poses are great. The coastal cities of the US will face rising sea levels. Our farmlands will face increasing disruption of normal seasonal rainfall, increasing temperatures and more violent weather events that could lower crop yields and threaten our food security. Southwestern states, including New Mexico, face drought, forest fires and water shortages as the annual snow pack shrinks and summer storms fail to arrive.

Meanwhile, the costs of maintaining the old fossil fuel energy economy are increasing at an elevated rate. The specific costs of the Keystone XL project include environmental destruction of fragile lands with unique ecosystems to produce this most dirty and destructive form of oil. The pipeline would provide strong incentives for Canadian Big Oil companies to expand their destruction to increase production. Extraction and refining of this tar sands oil results in more greenhouse gas emissions than conventional oil. In addition the increased production of tar sand oil will require the cutting down of some 740,000 acres of boreal forest, a natural carbon reservoir. As global citizens, we cannot just ignore this destruction because it occurs in Canada, not the USA.

Furthermore, the disturbance of fragile lands with unique ecosystems along the 1700 mile path of the pipeline during construction as well as the necessity to cross rivers and other recharge areas of the great Ogallala aquifer in the nation’s heartland will create disruption that will be slow to heal. When the dirty oil with its volatile diluents begins to flow, there is the ever present risk of spills and releases, as stated by the EPA in the letter to the State Department of June 6, 2011. These oil spills will cause additional environmental destruction and the risk of aquifer contamination. In my estimation, the environmental risks are just not worth the benefits!

Investment of $7 billion in the old fossil fuel energy economy could be invested in new green energy. This would be much more effective in creating the future we seek, create green jobs when we need them most. A visit to the Department of Energy’s Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy website demonstrates all of the investments that we the people are making to create incentives for the green economy. Why would we the people permit a dirty and destructive oil pipeline project to be built and operated when we are making so much progress toward a clean energy future?

This morning, I read again the position papers on energy and environmental protection that set forth the promises of presidential candidate Barack Obama to us, the voters. In 2008 I made a decision to vote for the president and worked hard to encourage others to do the same. Now, I am asking President Obama to stick by his campaign promises. Permitting the Keystone XL Pipeline project to proceed will go against these promises and cause me to reconsider my support. Yes, this is that important to me!

Sincerely,

Susan Gorman

Please Read this Book!

2011-08-11T04:22:00.001-06:00

A Review of World on the Edge: How to Prevent Environmental and Economic Collapse
by Lester Brown

Our summer in Berlin has been truly filled with the joys of urban living - except for the changeable weather! People tell us this has been the coolest, wettest summer they can recall. We still have had some lovely sunny days but more frequent cool and rainy times indicate that the weather is just not normal! Folks here are convinced this is not an aberration - it is climate change at work.

It was with these thoughts in mind, that I read Lester Brown’s latest book, World on the Edge, to understand what’s really happening with the planet. World on the Edge, the most recent release of the Plan B series of books, is assiduously well documented, and a reasoned account of the environmental trends that are undermining the world economy.

For those unfamiliar with Lester Brown, he is the founder of the Earth Policy Institute and before that he founded Worldwatch, the organization that has published State of the World each year. Brown and the Earth Policy Team developed Plan B, outlining a plan, a budget, and a timetable for rescuing our twenty-first century civilization.

The environmental trends he discusses are falling water tables, eroding soils and expanding deserts, rising temperatures, melting ice, shrinking harvests and food insecurity. These trends lead to a new politics of food scarcity, environmental refugees, mounting stresses and failing states. As Brown states in the Foreword, "Restructuring the economy in time to avoid decline will take a massive mobilization at wartime speed." This book provides a more urgent call to action and presents the latest version of Plan B supported by new data and research.

On the hopeful side, he reports that all over the world, investments are being made by private firms, national governments and international organizations to restore the global economy’s natural support systems through energy efficiency, renewable energy generation, reforestation, and irrigation efficiency. Investments are being made, too, in education, health care and family planning.

But it is not enough! This Plan B envisions an additional annual expenditure of $75 Billion to meet the social goals such as universal primary education and school lunch programs, adult literacy programs, reproductive health and family planning and universal basic health care worldwide. To meet the environmental restoration goals including stabilizing water tables, protecting biodiversity, planting trees, and restoring topsoil, range lands and fisheries, an additional annual investment of $110 Billion will be needed. The total investment of $185 Billion is the ‘new defense budget’ to address the most serious threats to national and global security. This investment is just 28% of the US military budget or 12% of the world military budget!

What is needed, then, is a fundamental restructuring in two cornerstone areas: taxation and security. Plan B envisions a total restructuring of taxation from income to carbon. Income taxes would be reduced while carbon emissions would be taxed to include the costs of climate change and pollution. As to security, a total rethink would take place. As Brown states, "The threats to our future now are not armed aggression but rather climate change, population growth, water shortages, poverty, rising food prices, and failing states."

Lester Brown has made a powerful, well documented case to foretell the grim and chaotic future our civilization faces. He has also advanced a way forward for all of us to save civilization. But this massive mobilization at wartime speed requires each of us to participate by taking action in some way. He has provided the plan and the information sources, the data and the rationale. Now it is our turn.

I urge you to read the book, to think about how you will participate in the transformation, and to act!

My offer:

If you have a book reader or laptop, you may download a pdf copy for free from Earth Policy Institute, http://www.earth-policy.org.

If you promise to read this book, let me know and I will send you a print copy.

After you have read the book, please share your reactions and your own personal Plan B with us at http://globalPW.blogspot.com

A Letter from Cairo

2011-08-09T06:04:00.000-06:00

Our good friend, Lora Lucero, is visiting Cairo this summer, hoping to obtain permission to go to Gaza. She sent this letter to us on August 6, 2011....

I really hope you visit Egypt --- but plan a cooler time of the year.

The Egyptians I talk with are naturally better-educated and speak English. They are urban, as opposed to rural, and they are generally younger than me --- 20-40s. They see Turkey as a good model. None have mentioned Germany as a model. But an Egyptian woman (middle class) living in Germany now said that she doesn't think Egyptians know how to build a democracy. "They must first learn to live democracy in their homes, before they can build a democracy in the country." She doesn't think Mubarak should have left.

Things are very fluid here. I think they could go in any direction based on what I read in the English-language newspaper, hear on the English-language TV and learn from English-speaking people.

The demonstrators in Tahrir Square are symbolic of the tensions in Cairo. The majority of them left Tahrir Square voluntarily out of respect for the month of Ramadan, with intentions of returning at the end of the month. A few die-hards remained and the army came in and forcibly removed them. Some of the shop owners near Tahrir Square are upset with the demonstrators because they feel they have disrupted business and tourism.

Last night there were 100-150 peaceful demonstrators standing behind a fixed barrier near Tahrir Square, not obstructing traffic or being unruly. About 500 army men dressed in full uniform, with helmets, batons and shields marched towards the demonstrators in a line as a show of force, and stopped in front of them. Without any warning or provocation, the army charged and began beating the demonstrators. The army warned a cameraman against taking pictures of this scene and confiscated another person's camera. It didn't appear that anyone was seriously hurt - no blood. But this raises some serious questions: Will the military be able to transition to a new form of government? Will there be freedom of the press in the new Egypt? Are demonstrators going to be seen as a constructive force for progress or a flashpoint for division and violence?

In Cairo, I met a 76-year-old woman from Spain who married an Egyptian many years ago. She speaks Spanish, Arabic, Italian, English and probably other languages as well. She now lives alone in her apartment directly over Tahrir Square and had a front-row seat to the mayhem and violence in January-February this year. She was so nervous about the events taking place in Cairo that she headed to Spain for a few weeks to avoid the craziness. Since her return, she has panic attacks and was so nervous with Mubarak's trial being televised that she asked me not to take a photo of the TV. : ( She wants stability to return to Egypt.

I don't think anyone can predict the future for Egypt. I certainly can't.

Lora

Seniors Giving Back for a Better Future

2011-03-08T14:16:00.000-07:00

This week, the news from America was dominated by the Washington Budget Wars as President Obama and the congress struggle to find common ground about what spending to cut and what to save. The Economist pointedly explained that most of the cuts proposed by Republicans and Democrats alike have little or no impact on Social Security, Medicare or most of Defense, the bulk of federal expenditures.

"Why is the federal government so reluctant to propose financial reforms to Social Security?", we wondered. "And why are Americans so reluctant to pay for the government we want and need?", we mused. And finally, we asked, "What could we do to make a difference that might change the course and keep America from going down?"

Then, an idea occurred to us! What if we give back a portion of our Social Security checks each month? This money could either be used to keep the Social Security Trust growing for the future retirees. Even better, perhaps it could be a contribution toward keeping all those valuable programs alive, such as scholarships for lower income students, an investment in our future.

Surely, we'd be sending a message that we're really concerned about the financial situation and want to take action to fix it!

We are financing our wonderful life as Nomad Expatriates mostly on our two monthly checks from Social Security and a small check from Blair's pension. Occasionally, we dip into our retirement savings to maintain cash flow while the rest stays in managed funds. This retirement savings was accumulated over our working lives and, while not vast, is much more than we'll ever need, based on current projections.

How many other folks are in the same financial situation? Perhaps many more seniors could afford and would be willing to give back a portion of their Social Security checks each month, too. Perhaps there are enough of us so that some of those programs that are investments in the future could escape the cuts.

We urge all seniors to analyze their financial situation and consider giving back to invest in the future. This would truly be a change we could believe in!

A few quotes from credible sources for perspective:

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, http://www.cbpp.org/
CBPP Statement: February 14, 2011
For Immediate Release

Statement: Robert Greenstein, Executive Director, on the President's Budget Proposal

"Measures to restore long-term Social Security solvency also can contribute to deficit reduction in future decades, albeit on a far more modest scale. But here, too, policymakers will not be able to secure sizable savings in the decade ahead. Policymakers across the political spectrum widely agree that changes in Social Security benefits generally should not affect people who are now 55 or over, and that any reforms should phase in changes in Social Security benefits and taxes gradually over a considerable period of time."

Congressional Budget Office, http://www.cbo.gov/
Budget and Economic Outlook: Fiscal Years 2011 to 2021
January 2011

"The resulting federal budget deficit of nearly $1.5 trillion projected for this year will equal 9.8 percent of GDP, a share that is nearly 1 percentage point higher than the shortfall recorded last year and almost equal to the deficit posted in 2009, which at 10.0 percent of GDP was the highest in nearly 65 years."

We're going for the "Oldest Backpacker" award!

2011-03-04T19:37:00.000-07:00

Even though we transport our stuff via wheely bags rather than large backpacks, we believe we qualify because we've spent more nights in hostels than many actual backpack bearers. Furthermore, the vast majority of backpackers are under 30 and we are, well, significantly older than that! Never mind, 'backpacker' is a state of mind.

As professional Nomads, we have stayed in a wide range of accommodations, our favorites being short term studio apartments for longer stays and hostels for briefer ones. There are two principle aspects of hostel stays that are especially advantageous: low cost and kitchens. Other aspects include social connections with other travelers and Nomads, lounges where we can work, free or low cost Wifi for Internet, and laundry facilities.

We have stayed in hostels in many countries but since we arrived in Australia and then moved on to New Zealand, we have lived exclusively in hostels, known as Backpackers Hostels, every night except for the four weeks we lived in a 'share house' in Melbourne. http://www.pioneerwest.net/nomad/melbour1.html

Let us explain this situation in a bit more detail.....

Australia has a shortage of laborers for farm work, hotel housekeepers, and other low end jobs. According to www.fairwork.gov.au, the National Minimum Wage is $15/hour or $569.90/week before tax. The work week is 38 hours.

In the USA, the national minimum wage is $7.25/hour. Some states have minimum wage laws to set the minimum wage above the national rate.

Australia offers work visas to people who want to come for a year or two to take these lower end jobs and large numbers of young people take advantage of this opportunity. The logical place for these folks to live is in Backpackers Hostels. Often the hostels employ them to work for accommodation.

So, then there is us. As candidates for the Oldest Backpacker award, we have suppressed our desire for privacy (sharing the kitchen and often the bathroom with folks who may not share our concept of neatness and sometimes living in a mixed dorm), expanded our tolerance, if not our enjoyment, for hip hop music, MTV, and daytime TV by tuning these out, engaged in some of the most stimulating discussions about a wide range of topics, and broadened our understanding of the life choices that are now open to young people everywhere. We have come to respect these adventurous, courageous, open minded, visionary, hopeful folks who, after all, are our hope for the future of this endangered planet!

We're not sure how to apply for our award but we are certainly enjoying the competition!

Rare Earth - Earthquakes around the Planet: The Next Event

2011-03-01T16:31:00.001-07:00

Back on September 4, 2010 a powerful earthquake shook the city of Christchurch, New Zealand. Our friend, Pat Boland wrote about the experience in two posts soon after (search "earthquake" to see these).

On February 12th, 2011 we arrived in Christchurch. We had a lovely ten days to enjoy this beautiful city with its rich collection of heritage buildings. As we explored the neighborhoods, studying the urban form, we noticed that many buildings were still standing but enclosed by fences, awaiting demolition or refurbishment as the work of earthquake recovery continued.

Then, on February 22, 12:51 PM local time, the City Centre of Christchurch was struck by another violent earthquake!

We were in our hostel, Old Country House, at that moment. There was a deep rumble and the building starting shaking quite violently from side to side. We just dropped to the floor and clung to the walls to keep from falling. As the shaking subsided we hurried outside to find all our housemates huddled together, many quite disturbed, waiting for what might happen next. Fortunately no one was hurt. A number of aftershocks followed, one quite violent, but our hostel held up with virtually no damage.

We survived the next couple of days fairly well, considering. We had to boil the water we could find and cook our food on the BBQ since there was no electric power and no running water, but we were uninjured and had a safe place to be with a stable roof over our heads. Many in the city were not so fortunate.

The power was restored after a day and a half so we could cook more easily but no water came from the taps until late on the 24th and it needed to be boiled for safe drinking. On the second day, we volunteered to be part of the cleanup crew for Andy's house. He's the owner of the Old Country House, our hostel-haven, but his house in Sumner received a bad shaking and everything in the kitchen was smashed on the floor. As a reward for our help, he hooked up a generator and connected the Wifi so we could send a message to a few folks to say "We're safe!".

We walked around our neighborhood to see what had happened nearby. We'll post some pictures on Flickr when we have a moment.

We also made friends with many of our housemates - nothing like sharing a disaster to bring folks together! When the power came back, Andy hooked up the Wifi so we could make a few calls to cancel reservations for places we were no longer able to travel to and to start making a Plan B.

On February 25th (the 3rd day after the quake), we boarded a bus and traveled south to Dunedin, 400 km south, where all was normal.It was a great relief to be away from all the destruction. We feel apologetic and sad about leaving Christchurch while so many are left there, but because we felt that we couldn't help, it would be better to leave and be two less visitors that would need food and possible assistance.

No doubt you have all heard the news and seen the pictures of destruction and death, rescues and debris, roadblocks and mud floods, rock slides and road cracks. To add a bit of perspective, Christchurch is a very, very badly wounded city but much of it, especially the western and northern parts are fairly normal, almost unscathed. Our friends, Bob and Pat and their family are safe and unharmed, having suffered a loss of windows in their lovely cliff side home.

The brave folks of Christchurch must now battle on, facing the continuing recovery and rebuilding process with the addition of recovery from the grief of losing loved ones and friends. Our hearts are with them. Having lived through the earthquake experience and survived unharmed, we understand more deeply the physical and emotional stresses and pain that such an experience imposes on people.

111th Congress Most Productive in Half a Century

2010-10-18T03:38:00.002-06:00

"Gridlock? It may feel that way. But that's not the story of the 111th Congress..."

According to Jim Abrams of the Associated Press, in his article of October 17, 2010,
"... the session of Congress now drawing to a close was the most productive in nearly half a century."

"Congress passed an $814 billion economic stimulus package soon after President Barack Obama took office, tapping a staggering sum of money to avoid a full-blown depression (emphasis added). "

"The two other landmark acts of this session were the health care overhaul, a giant step toward universal coverage that had eluded presidents back to Franklin Roosevelt if not Teddy Roosevelt, and the Wall Street accountability act.

Obama has also signed into law at least a dozen other pieces of legislation of significance. They include:

_Making college loans more affordable.

_The Cash for Clunkers program that helped rejuvenate the auto industry.

_New consumer protections for credit card users.

_Making it easier for women to challenge pay discrimination.

_Increasing federal regulation of tobacco products.

_Cracking down on waste in Pentagon weapons acquisition.

_Making attacks based on sexual orientation a federal hate crime.

_Giving businesses tax incentives to hire unemployed workers.

_Tax credits for first-time homeowners. "

As we approach the upcoming election, take a moment to reflect on all that has been accomplished.

Congratulations to the People of Germany!

2010-10-03T02:40:00.000-06:00

It was twenty years ago, October 3, 1990, that the details of Germany's unification were finalized. Now, after twenty years of hard work, Germany's story is a true success story!

Berlin, the Capitol of Germany, where we have lived for the past month, will be the main place to celebrate this anniversary. It promises to be a BIG party, but also with serious speeches and discussions, a bit of looking back and a lot of looking forward. We are a bit sad to miss the party but it is rather a personal celebration for the people of Berlin.

This anniversary is also the opportunity to remember November 9, 1989, when Berliners joyfully participated in the breaching of the Wall, the Mauer, that had separated the people in East Berlin from those in West Berlin since 1961. The removal of the wall was just the beginning of the Friedliche Revolution, the 'Peaceful Revolution' in East Germany. The SED government of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) was unwilling to abandon its absolute claim to power and it took demonstrations and negotiations to convince them that the times had changed. On March 18, 1990, the first free ballot in the GDR was held and people voted overwhelmingly in favor of the "Alliance for Germany" the party that promised rapid reunification.

Then the work began to negotiate the unification agreement between East and West Germany and, amazingly, to us, a separate agreement between East and West Germany and the WWII Allies: Britain, USA, France and Russia!

Indeed, our congratulations go out to all Germans, as they take stock of how far they have come since October 3, 1990. After all, twenty years is not long in the history of this country but, perhaps these last twenty years have been Germany's best. Willy Brandt, former Chancellor of Germany and former Mayor of Berlin said, "Now what belongs together is growing together again!"

During these twenty years the Germans have radically transformed their country. So, we wish them a great and joyous celebration.

Rare Earth - Earthquakes around the Planet #2

2010-10-03T02:32:00.002-06:00

More from Pat Boland in Christchurch, NZ....

Hi Susan and Blair
Great to hear from you and delighted that you are continuing to enjoy your trip and the variety of experiences that you have been lucky enough to partake of.

We are, as a city and individually, working through the issues of the earthquake's aftermath with its continuing aftershocks of varying dimensions. There was quite a grunty one of over four this morning at 6.30 am which set properties a shaking once again. Fortunately Tess and I were up on the hills taking our morning constitutional so missed its impact for which we were grateful. One the other hand even the stronger ones are becoming so familiar that one is tending to take a que sera sera attitude now.

After the first shocks everyone was coming to grips with their problems, checking on friends and family, and what the overall situation was in reality. This took a short time to sink in and then it was all hands to the grindstone to help wherever possible. The citizens of Christchurch came together willingly to help in any way they could and many long hours were spent in manning such areas as civil defense, fire service, police and ambulance services, etc. by trained personnel and volunteers, while others including school children and tertiary students were out in the devastated areas assisting families to clear their properties and houses from the liquefaction, i.e. basically sludge, that rose to the surface and did so much damage breaking water and sewerage systems, causing huge fissures up to over a metre in depth in roads and properties, cracking house foundations and flooding homes and sections. Relief centres for those forced from their homes were quickly set up and volunteers brought food, gave comfort where possible, and generally helped in any way they could.

There has also been destruction to central city business areas and heritage buildings with facades falling and stock destroyed. In many cases shop keepers have taken in fellow retailers who have lost their shops either in the short or long term and combined shopping outlets are being set up. A lovely sight to see a little hairdressing salon operating in conjunction with a florist shop. What a nice aroma you would be able to enjoy while having your hair cut.

Now the third phase with reality setting in, and where do we go from here. It appears that over one hundred thousand homes have been affected though many with only superficial cracks to internal and external walls etc., movement on foundations, loss of chattels or most of all falling chimneys causing damage to the houses on the way down.

Claims are being made and assessors working overtime to provide reports so repair work can proceed. But it is understood that in certain of the worst hit areas all the houses will be pulled down, if possible the land will be stabilized and houses rebuilt a process that could take years and put huge pressure on services for a long time to come.

BUT there was no loss of life and it was only a small percentage of the city that was destroyed. IT COULD HAVE BEEN MUCH WORSE.

This is I am afraid a little pessimistic. It is not all doom and gloom for everyone, and those of us who have been so lucky as to escape basically unscathed, certainly acknowledge their good fortune and do what we can to help those less blessed.

Pat Boland
Christchurch, New Zealand
September 23, 2010

Rare Earth - Earthquakes around the Planet

2010-09-20T07:24:00.001-06:00

Earthquakes have been in the news quite a lot this year! Haiti, Chile, and most recently, Christchurch, New Zealand.

But what is the 'Earthquake Experience' really like? Our friend, Pat Boland, lives in Christchurch. She and husband Bob felt the first shakes on September 4 and are living through the continuing shakes that are occurring. Here is Pat's report....

Hi Susan and Blair, or should I say Good evening?
As it is evening two days after the earthquake which has rocked the sox off us in ChCh even if we are lucky enough for it to be figuratively and not actually.

Bob and I and our immediate family have been lucky enough to be in the first category though many hundreds of our fair city have not been so fortunate and we are still experiencing aftershocks. There was one as I am typing 2 1/2 days after the initial shock at 4.35 AM last Saturday.

How fortunate that it happened then. If it had been during the day loss of life would have to have been a factor.

We ourselves experienced a shock of about 30 seconds but it was not too traumatic as nothing collapsed and furniture did not move, etc. but others have very scary tales to tell. There were many subsequent shocks in the next hour and they have continued since. The devastation has taken place in pockets throughout the city with seemingly no obvious reason for it to happen in that particular place. Things like water table, foundations on sand/peat, quality of workmanship, and age of buildings must be factors.

You talk to people and they say "no we are OK" and you begin to think it cannot be too bad but for those whose houses are destroyed or are going to have to be bull dosed (and there are hundreds of them) life will not be the same. And the memory of those few moments for them will be a challenge.

For me it seemed surreal to be sitting in the sun porch on a clear windless sunny day with a stunning view of the Southern Alps and the Estuary with a full tide (which remained most of the day) with everything as normal and knowing that a few km away peoples lives and aspirations had changed perhaps for ever.

Enough of this we are all battling on. The City is closed for a couple of days so Bob can not go to work. As I work in the suburbs it is work as usual.

Pat Boland
Christchurch, NZ
September 6, 2010

Remembering September 11, 2001 from Berlin

2010-09-12T02:33:00.003-06:00

September 11, 2001 - Every American remembers this day, now nine years ago, in his own way. We are far away, in Berlin, so we decided to spend this day remembering another event that changed history, August 13, 1961, the day that construction of the Berlin Wall began. At the great Brandenburg Gate, we joined many others to gather around this Berlin icon to admire its tall columns topped by the Quadriga, the statue of Victory in a chariot drawn by four horses. We followed the course of the Wall north past the Reichstag building and the other great buildings of the Government Quarter to Bernauer Strasse and the Berlin Wall Memorial. The Wall separated West and East Berliners from each other indiscriminately as family members and friends were separated by this incredibly effective barrier.

As we spent the day, walking along this stretch of the Wall where so many incidents occurred, watching the films, viewing the photos, reading the documentation, and seeing the remnants of the great slabs that made up the Wall, we were reminded that we had lived through the whole history of the Wall in Berlin. For us, it was the essence of Communist tyranny, the testimonial that such terrorism and tyranny can exist only if the people are forcibly confined and many tried to escape.

Surely the experience of the Berlin Wall and the ways that people reacted must provide some messages for us today as we consider the terrible events of September 11, 2001. After all, the Wall came down and now Berlin is a city of peace and hope, continuing to renew itself, to provide a good life for a rich diversity of people. Perhaps New York City will also become a city of peace and hope when enough time has gone by. But nine years may not be enough time, we fear. Still, we are hopeful that time will heal the wounds and that in the interim, people will try harder to learn tolerance as the struggle to eradicate terrorism and tyranny continues.

Build the Muslim Center near NYC's City Hall!

2010-08-18T11:45:00.001-06:00

In the Netherlands, the negotiations among the three political parties that won the most votes in the recent elections for the Netherlands Parliament have been in the news ever since before we arrived here six weeks ago. One of the three parties is the PVV, the party of Geert Wilders, an avowed anti-Islam advocate. As we have read the limited news available in English, we are amazed that in the Netherlands, a country known for tolerance and openness, such large numbers of voters supported this frankly, perhaps aggressively, anti-Islam party.

Then, we became aware that a great, divisive and contentious debate is raging in the USA that has strong elements of Anti-Islam emotions because of a proposal to build a Muslim Center in Lower Manhattan, a few blocks from City Hall....and Ground Zero. Actually, the nearness to Ground Zero is the real source of the contention. No one is concerned about the proximity to City Hall.
So far, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, President Obama, Fareed Zakaria, and Lexington of The Economist have made strong statements supporting the right to build the Muslim Center. According to Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, the spokesperson for the project,

"The whole point of the proposed Muslim center blocks from the World Trade Center is to heal wounds, not open them. The project has been mischaracterized, so I want to explain clearly what it would be. Our planned 13-story community center is intended for Park Place between Church St. and West Broadway.

It is not a mosque, although it will include a space for Muslim prayer services. It will have a swimming pool, basketball court, meeting rooms, a 500-seat auditorium, banquet facilities and many other things a community needs to be healthy. The center will offer theatrical programming, art exhibitions and cooking classes. These are amenities missing now from this part of the city.

And, yes, the center will have a public memorial to the victims of 9/11 as well as a meditation room where all will be welcome for quiet reflection. The center will support soul and body. The center will be open to all regardless of religion. Like a YMCA, the 92nd St. Y or the Jewish Community Center."

The developer of this project has, to the best of our knowledge, fulfilled the requirements of the NYC planning and zoning regulations and received the necessary approvals. The local community board in Lower Manhattan voted overwhelmingly to support the proposal. Therefore, as Urban Ecologists, we believe that there is no basis for denying the developer the right to build on this private property.

As Americans, we learned in Civics Class that the First Amendment guarantees religious freedom. As secularists, tolerance is one of the values we hold most dear and defend most consistently.

So, we say, "Build the Muslim Center at Park Place 51! We look forward to visiting when it is open and ready to welcome everyone!"

A Golden Opportunity - Let the Bush Tax Cuts Expire

2010-08-10T08:35:00.002-06:00

We, as a country, are being offered a golden opportunity. We can reduce our massive budget deficit by an estimated $300 billion per year, and we can do this by doing virtually nothing. All we need to do is let the Bush tax cuts expire.

The simple fact is that all the Bush tax cuts were unaffordable. According to the Congressional Budget Office, they contributed more to the mounting deficit in the last 8 years than either post- 9/11 security spending (including the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq) or the prescription-drug bill.

Some say that this is not a good time to raise taxes as it might stifle the growth we need to pull out of the recession. I consider this argument weak as recent history has shown that the impact on economic growth caused by marginal shifts in tax rates is pretty unclear. Clinton raised taxes in 1992 and ushered in a period of extraordinarily robust growth. Bush cut taxes massively in 2001 and got meager growth in return.

We have in front of us a simple, easy way to bring America's fiscal house more in order, reduce our dependence on foreign borrowing, restore U.S. credibility and power, and give us a stable revenue base from which to make key investments for future growth. Let's grab it.

Thoughts about Muslim Beliefs

2010-07-20T04:19:00.003-06:00

Having just spent a month in Turkey, where 99 percent of the population consider themselves to be Muslim, I am thinking about my own understanding of Islam beliefs, as well as my evolving world view since September 11, 2001.
We picked Turkey as a destination in order to experience life in a country where most of the people are Muslim, yet one where the government is, by law, secular. We wanted to observe how people incorporated their Muslim beliefs into their daily lives.

Throughout our travels in Turkey, we were struck by the large number of mosques, from small and modest to large and grand. It was impossible to miss their presence as the loudspeakers sent out the daily calls to prayer, the first at about 4:30 AM and the last after 10 PM. In many cases, we observed people headed toward a nearby mosque in response to the call to prayer, but, out of respect, we didn't go into the mosques at prayer times. We also noted a number of women responding to the call, and learned that there is a separate area in each mosque for women to pray.

We observed women dressed in a wide range of clothing, from shorts and tank tops to long black gowns and headcovers. The most frequently worn "covers" were scarves that covered the woman's hair and neck, often in lovely bright colored prints. Long coats with buttons in front always buttoned up were another frequent choice, especially among older women. We saw few full niqab, the complete black dress that showed only the eyes.

As we traveled, I was reading Asma Gull Hasan's book, Red, White, and Muslim. She offers her thoughtful interpretations of Muslim beliefs and a wealth of anecdotes from her own experience as a Muslim of Pakistani descent, growing up in Pueblo, Colorado; graduating from Wellesley College and New York University School of Law; traveling to lecture and participate on talk shows; and just living as a Muslim in America.

Asma Hasan writes that "A debate rages in the entire Islamic community whether the cover is required of Muslim women or not." She explains that the Prophet Muhammed was personally responsible for a great advancement in women's rights in his time (7th Century AD). She believes that the contemporary image of Islam as being against women comes from a minority of Muslims who have either lost touch with the Prophet's example or are from patriarchal cultures. These minority views are contrary to the spirit of Islam, she feels.

We asked Yakub, a friend we met in Bergama, about the practice of Islam in Turkey. He reminded us that Turkey is a secular democracy where all religious views are permitted. He considers himself to be Muslim but he does not read the Qur'an or go to the mosque to pray. He drinks alcohol and smokes tobacco. We are not certain how typical he is but based on our own observations, we guess he is not alone! Still, we are certain that the values taught by Islam influence the way that Yakub and most Turkish people live their lives, which accounts for the friendliness, politeness, willingness to help, and welcoming nature of the people we met. Our days exploring this large and diverse country were agreeable and fun!

Yakub asked us, "Which Arab country are you planning to visit?", and suggested that if we wished to continue our study of Islam, we should expand our horizons beyond only Turkey. He's right, of course and we are thinking about where to go next.

The Roots of Inequality in the USA

2009-12-23T14:13:00.000-07:00

This morning, we heard on the news that there are more Americans receiving food stamps than ever before because they cannot afford to feed their families.

Earlier this month, we learned that the really big banks that received loans from the government to bail them out of total collapse a year ago are all ready to pay back those loans. During 2009, they all have recovered extremely well and are now anxious to pay off those loans and get out from underneath the government oversight. Why? One big reason is so they can again give executive bonuses and raises. People, along with many members of our Congress, are pretty outraged about this especially since the banks recovered mostly by stock trading and still are not making credit more available, as they were asked to do as recipients of the government loans. It remains to be seen what happens next.

This situation is one example of the fact that there is a huge and growing disparity in income between people in the USA. What are the roots of this great disparity?

According to Paul Krugman in his book, Conscience of a Liberal, since about 1973, the last year of the great post war boom in the US, there has been a 'Great Divergence' in income distribution. Krugman points out that the median household income, adjusted for inflation, has made a total gain of 16% from 1973 to 2005 - pretty small! Meanwhile, the really rich have been getting even richer. Folks in the top 0.1% have made huge gains in the range of 500 to 700%!!

Who are these folks? They are CEOs and others in the highest ranks of the major companies plus sports and entertainment celebrities. Even in the '70s CEOs made much more than the average worker - about 30 times more. But today the differential is 300 times!

The differential between average worker and executive compensation has always been controversial but at a very low level. After all, the decisions on executive pay have always been made by Boards of Directors. Individual stockholders (like us) don't have the power to change these decisions. The American people, believing in capitalism, have never really supported government intervention in these decisions either - until recently.

Personally, we have always been very skeptical that those CEOs were doing such important and critical work for their companies to justify the super salaries. At the same time, we, like other average Americans are not empowered to change this situation.

So, what to do?

In our view, a better strategy than asking the government to moderate executive compensation, or expecting the companies' boards of directors to do so, is to raise the tax rate for the very wealthy. An easy first step would be to let the temporary tax cuts for the very wealthy that were passed by George W. Bush and the Republican Congress expire. In addition, the health care insurance reform legislation that is being considered includes a tax on rich people to help pay for insurance for the poor and uninsured people. Maybe these steps will help to reduce the income disparities - we hope so

Democracy in Action

2009-11-19T12:17:00.002-07:00

"Democracy is good. I say this because other systems are worse."
Jawaharlal Nehru

The observation of Mr. Nehru about the goodness of democracy finds broad agreement among the world's citizens and, in fact, most of the countries on the planet elect their leaders.

While it is true that elected leaders might be tempted and even succumb to a range of temptations offered by their positions of power, the people will decide in the next election if any infractions committed were serious enough to outweigh the ability of the leader in question to govern well. In contrast, history has shown that even the most benevolent, but unelected, leader must struggle to govern well and unelected leaders often succumb to temptations.

It is important to realize that just holding an election does not guarantee democracy. After all, some countries hold an election and the elected leader becomes ruler for life! The leader, after being elected, may censor the press to squelch dissenting voices, manipulate the courts so that the rule of law is compromised, enfeeble the legislature so that policies are constrained, and take advantage of position to gain illicit wealth.

So, knowing all this, we were privileged to observe the 2009 parliamentary elections in India, arguably the greatest exercise of democracy on the planet. Links to our observations follow:

Be a Proud Taxpayer - Good Government Needs Financial Support

2009-11-18T20:20:00.000-07:00

Ask anyone if they feel their taxes are too high and you will likely hear a resounding "YES".

Every year, we cringe at the thought of gathering together all the records, receipts, 1099s, W-2s and completing all the forms, making the final calculation of the income tax we must pay for this year. And then there is sales tax (also known as value added tax or gross receipts tax) on each purchase we make all through the year. If we own property or a car, we must also pay tax each year on their value.

But are we Americans paying too much tax? If we add up all the taxes that Americans pay and calculate the total tax as a share of national income we would discover the taxes we pay are lower than most other rich countries.

Yet, for as long as we can remember, Americans have rejected "government solutions" to such problems as health care, poverty, education, and environmental protection by refusing to pay the needed taxes.

At the same time we expect government to ensure that we have good roads, police protection to keep us safe, nice parks, safe food, snazzy airports, and a secure financial system; functions that are being met largely with mixed results and huge budget deficits.

This raises an obvious question - Will we agree to pay for the government we need?