Honesty, transparency and integrity are virtues not aspired by any politician or government. In this tumultuous past week, we have looked on as the world's most flourishing, high-tech economy is propelled into a state of subsistence. As nature brings on it's wrath on Japan, the astronomical damage to lives and property take on a new dimension with the ticking of nuclear reactors. As one goes off and others threaten to follow suit, the true state of the plants, their effects and consequences are being downplayed by the Japanese government and elude the worlds scientists. These formidable devices have been built to feed the wheels of our economies, now they are our Frankenstein's. We turn in desperation back to nature to quell our self-made demons. Salt water from the sea to cool them down, the Hail Mary pass. God let it work! This is now our predicament, to wait and watch because we can neither control nor predict where this is headed. Cover our bases is all that is left to do to curtail further loss inflicted to human existence. The environment, the ocean and all its inhabitants, assumed as collateral damage.
And what happened to Libya this week? Could they have had worse timing for a revolution? How conveniently it seemed to be working out for the West, who can now (justifiably) be distracted by the the colossal Japanese disaster. The Libyan air force is moving with swift ruthlessness as they brutally pound away at the opposition. The US and Europeans dabble and deliberate over the idea of a no-fly-Zone. To support or not to support? Almost bored by the task. In the meanwhile the key oil port of Ras Lanuf has fallen, the people continue to rapidly loose ground. As the US deems it 'unwise' to intervene on a political level, their stance seems significantly ironical considering that with Iraq and Afghanistan, the US were so self assured in their siege and conviction about the people needing liberation and improvement. That worked very well top down. How come this time around, the people are calling out for liberation and support and help, a revolution from the bottom upwards, and the US and Nato won't yield despite support from the Arab countries? Why is it the UK and France are the only ones showing some gumption? We can pretend it has nothing to do with cozying up to a functioning dictator that ensures profitable trade, as opposed to a new democracy with which the same would have to be renegotiated. We can also only hope that France's support of Libya has nothing to do with deflecting attention from its 80% dependency on nuclear energy - the highest in the world.
