Hi CB, come on, I was trying to be polite.
In the taxi ride I just shared with my wife, I commented on the possible outline of my recommended solution to what the existing order collectively faces, namely, “an extreme political faction has been incubating within an ancient religious grouping that has genuine grievances; the faction has manipulated and worked to successively take over countries that have been weakened by global neglect and abandonment (Palestine, Iraq, Bosnia, Indonesia, Iran, Afghanistan, Central Asian republics, and the list goes on), and this outfit is not afraid of dying and killing, all if necessary. The effort is strong, getting stronger with each act of terror, and each act of hate, by all sides.”
To fight this grouping, the following must be true:
(a) Requires true thinking and statesmanship, not the same old garbage (“SOG”) that got us to where we are to begin with
(b) needs lots of money
(c) many countries
(d) to counter the immediate threads
(e) address the genuine grievances
(f) support organized front-line states so that they do not fall, and in fact get stronger, as states, not as battlefields with piles of debris surrounded by angry people
(g) On sustained basis, not the SOG that says, golly, victory, now lets leave, just as we left before Iraq got taken care of even militarily, much less socially, or we left Pakistan after Russian were taught a lesson, but before the root of discontent was taken care of
Any politician or media recommended program not having at least 6 of above 7 elements, if adopted as The Program, we will enter a period of no-confidence, because victory is not just around the corner, and Christmas has been postponed already.
Layering all of the recent new recognition of a long simmering but neglected threat on top of the developing sychronized economic weakness is not bullish, unless the policies can engender confidence. J6P confidence can be temporarily boosted by CNBC and CNN, along with songs and music. The global investors are more discerning, especially about a global crisis, of which WTC, however horrible and of scale, was only and just the latest manifestation.
I am actually bullish because I see the event as a possible trigger for clear thinking, leading to true solutions. Not the SOG that is spewed out by National Review, WSJ, NYT, and worst of all, CNBC and CNN.
Now, if I do not see what I am waiting to see from the policy makers, and soon, as outlined above, this thread will be one of the first to know, because regardless of correct or wrong, I speak my mind, though pretty softly.
I feel a sense of urgency, because we (yeah, that was a deliberate we, meaning you and I) are talking about the level of illumination not just of 2001, but for possibly the rest of our working lives, and we are talking about economic futures, in all its possibilities.
The magnitude and proportions of what this thread will be focusing on has been changed for good by the WTC tragedy, and new assumptions, scenarios, and contingencies ...
Message 16330798
Message 16336760
Message 16341488
Message 16346418
Message 16348592
Message 16353790
Message 16353878
... must now be layered on top of what we were already talking about ...
Message 16318045
before all the week's development.
The level of challenge just went way up.
Chugs, Jay |
