A Cold Winter

Global warming is how nature seems to have responded to humankind’s excesses, but what we are doing to and feeling about each other suggests that the temperature is actually getting a lot colder. China is warning the United States against building a new military base in Australia: an expected 2,500 marines with appropriate air support to be based in Darwin. Islamists have a new mandate after elections in Egypt. Pakistan is cutting off supply routes to Afghanistan after a NATO air strike gone wrong kills 24 of their soldiers.

Tensions in Korea are escalating again: “North Korea warned on [November 24^th] that any military clash on a disputed maritime border could escalate into an attack on the presidential office in Seoul, threatening to engulf the South Korean leadership ‘in a sea of fire.’ … The threat came one day after South Korea conducted military drills near Yeonpyeong, a front-line island west of Seoul. The display of firepower was timed to mark the first anniversary of the North Korean artillery attack on Yeonpyeong, which killed two marines and two civilians.” New York Times, November 24^th.

Europe’s still blaming the United States for the global financial collapse through its promulgation of a culture of debt, Greeks are on the verge of pushing their nation into total collapse, and the Russians have picked this particular moment to castigate the United States… once again… for failing to engage Russia in its year-old plan to negotiate a reduction in missile strength (and stop the deployment of missiles in Europe that could be used against Russia), making a serious threat along the way: “Russia threatened [November 23^rd] to withdraw from the New START nuclear arms control deal with the United States and deploy missiles aimed toward U.S. defense installations in Europe in a harsh sign of the tension between the two countries.

“In a prime-time televised speech, President Dmitry Medvedev, visibly upset over missile defense consultations with Washington, said that an early warning radar system immediately would be put on red alert close to the Russian border with Poland and that missiles and other weapons would be positioned in the country’s west and south to target U.S. sites in Europe...

“‘These measures will be adequate, effective and low cost,’ Medvedev said in his speech. ‘If the above measures prove insufficient, the Russian Federation will deploy modern offensive weapons in the west and south of the country ensuring our ability to take out any part of the U.S. missile defense system in Europe.’

“Medvedev rebuked the United States and other NATO partners for not supporting Russia’s plan to work together on ‘a joint sector-based missile defense system’ he offered at a NATO-Russia Council summit in Lisbon a year ago… Medvedev said that the Kremlin will continue its dialogue with Washington on the issue. ‘There is still time to reach an understanding,’ he added.” Los Angeles Times, November 23^rd. Oh good, missiles targeting the U.S. facilities in Europe... as if that hasn’t already been programmed by the Russian military. NATO? What’s that, again... and how long will that organization still have any meaning?

Russian sentiments are anything but subtle: “Tatyana Limanova [pictured above], a newscaster for Russia's REN TV, a privately held network, has taken the Internet by storm, as a clip of her raising her middle finger while reading President Barack Obama's name has become tremendously popular. The incident occurred during a live broadcast earlier in the month, after Russian President Dmitry Medvedev assumed chairmanship of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation, a topic the newscast was addressing.” Huffington Post, November 23^rd.

But then, if you want to generate popular approval in virtually every corner of the world, attacking the United States makes sense, since our global “popularity” has probably sunk to its lowest point in recorded history, along with our credibility as we seem unable to figure out how to act as a nation to solve our economic problems (thank you, Congress) and do not seem to achieve our military goals in the massive wars that have consumed us over the last decade plus.

Oh, and did I mention, there’s election in Russia on December 4^th. “‘All this anti-American rhetoric is meant for the internal consumption and even if Medvedev really means those measures they are completely unrealistic and in the end may harm Russian interests even more than those of the United States,’ Alexander Golts, a defense analyst with Yezhednevny Zhurnal, a popular liberal online publication, said in an interview.” LA Times. The more we try to push and shove our influence to protect “our interests” overseas, the less we seem to achieve. I’m not advocating that we cow-tow to Russian and Chinese pressure, just that we think before we engage in massive efforts to press our will against others... since this philosophy seems to have failed miserably over the last three and a half decades.

I’m Peter Dekom, and I really worry that Americans are unable to restrain themselves from grievous action when someone, far, far away, does or says something we disagree with.