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A Cynical Glance At World Events. D-Day Celebrations And Crisis In Britain Included

June 8, 2009

Adam Lovejoy writes: Politicians never seem to be comfortable at events that demand sincerity and passion. Like that ceremony in France over the weekend dedicated to the 65th anniversary of D-Day. Four world leaders had gathered there – U.S. President Barack Obama, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, the Canadian Prime Minster whose name escapes me and Prince Charles – to pay their respect to the living and fallen heroes of the Normandy landing. All four leaders read their speeches from the prepared texts. All four sounded insincere and dispassionate. Thank goodness Queen Elisabeth II did not come. She would have felt distinctly uncomfortable there. What exactly is wrong with these politicians? Why is it that they cannot say a few words without consulting with their notes? President Obama did his ‘I watch the tennis match’ routine again, moving his head from one teleprompter to another and saying things without any conviction at all. And Gordon Brown was no good either. He probably should not have been there at all, considering his role in starting the illegal war in Iraq. You might not remember this but he actually came out publicly in its support days before it started and as Chancellor approved the funding. French President Sarkozy did attempt to inject some feeling into his speech but the problem with him was that he just did look right for the occasion. I am sorry, but I simply cannot treat this man seriously. He should have asked his wife Carla Bruni to say a few words. At least she looks nicer. Anyway, the Canadian bloke probably said something too but I did not really bother to listen to him. Obama, by the way, could have really stolen the show by announcing that he would give all the proceeds from his awful two books to the veterans. His book suck big time and are bought simply because of who he is, so it would have been a gracious gesture on his part to give the money away to the people who risked their lives so that he could have a decent existence. All four leaders could have announced plans to increase the veteran’s pensions tenfold and present them all with new living accommodation, as there are so few of them left. But, of course, they are more inclined to fund bankers and industry fat cats, hoping to get rewarded once they step down. Or maybe even before they do that. And one last thing: why didn’t they invite German Chancellor Angela Merkel and humiliate her at the ceremony? It would have been good entertainment for the veterans and all people who had gathered there. (On a quick note: fancy Michelle Obama and Carla Bruni wearing similar white suits with black belts. Carla, of course, won by a mile. That Michelle should really lose some weight and learn to walk more gracefully. No offence, I hope, if she is reading this.)Having mentioned Prime Minister Brown already I really have to talk about the crisis that he has found himself in. Boy, does this man take the biscuit when it comes to weaselling his way out of trouble. His government has collapsed, his ministers are jumping ship, one by one, and even the hacks treat him like a con-artist at press conferences and yet he clings to his job as if nothing is happening. At his last press conference on Friday he was practically called a liar by about half of the journalists present but he pretended not to understand what they were saying to him and insisting that his country needs him. It is disheartening to see Britain run by a bunch of unelected opportunists, who show total inability in tackling the economic crisis and behaving decently. It is now clear after the local elections last week that the Labour party has absolutely no support in the country and yet, it is still there. Brown looks more like a terrified rabbit caught in the lights of a passing car. He is lying like mad and is obviously prepared to do anything to get himself out of the mess. It is obscene that Europe’s oldest democracy resembles some banana republic in the grips of a never-ending political crisis. Brown should go or, if he does not, he should be kicked out. It is as simple as that.

And how about that Silvio Berlusconi, the fun loving Italian Prime Minister? It is his ‘I did not have sex with that woman’ moment. That guy obviously has a weakness for young attractive women. It was clear that something was not right with him when he got that hair grown into his scalp. That should have been a warning to Italians. Short middle aged men do such things only when young attractive women are involved. So that was a giveaway. And now it turns out that Silvio had a weakness for large numbers of young women getting together at his villa on the coast and going around topless and calling their hosts Papi. Berlusconi denies any wrongdoing and just like any proper right-wing politician who finds himself in trouble is hardening his rhetoric on immigration, hoping that it would be greeted by a lot of people with joy. This is going to be interesting for quite some time to come.

Timothy Geithner, the US Treasury Secretary, has paid a discreet visit to China and reassured his hosts that China should not be worries about its huge investments in America, mostly in Uncle Sam’s IOUs. On his first official visit to China youngish looking Mr Geithner actually promised the Chinese that once the US economy gets better his government would sort out the budget deficit in no time. ‘Chinese financial assets are very safe’, he said, keeping a straight face, the sly fox. And his hosts were nodding and smiling, like the Chinese do, and of course did not believe a single word their guest was saying. They knew that no one in Washington has any idea when the economic crisis was going to end. And they also knew that no one can guarantee the safety of their investments in the US. But they had to pretend that they were buying all those assurance for the simple reason that they had no other choice. Should they betray any worries their own people would become angry with them. Honestly, how stupid can you be to put all your eggs in one basket? It is school boy stuff.

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