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The Wright Perspective℠
Social Commentary from the C-Suite to Main Street℠
A Blog by Gary Wright II
If history is a mirror - what would we see???
Thursday, August 27th, 2009
UPDATE 5/5/2011 - On Sunday, May 1st, 2011 President Barack Obama announced that Osama Bin Laden was killed by US Special Forces at a compound in Pakistan. From several reliable sources I had heard that Bin Laden had been dead for many years. If what the White House says is true - we were wrong. I apologize for the error.
They say history is a mirror. I think it's time for our country to take a good look in the mirror.
Soldiers at home will always fight much harder than foreign conscripts. It means much more for a soldier to defend his home than for a soldier to be "on a mission" in a foreign land.
This was true in the American Revolution where the settlers beat the British who had far superior resources. Another good example is when Afghanistan beat back the Russians. We may be still fighting there, but we will never win. Unfortunately, our soldiers and sailors over there keep chasing after a moving goal.
Just prior to her assassination, Bhutto mentioned that Osama Bin Laden was dead. Her murder pretty much confirmed her statement, but I researched it for myself. I found a news report from Fox that stated Osama died of natural causes and gave the date of his death which lined up with the Bhutto statement. Since that date, there have been no more videos or other messages brought forward - which also supports the fact of his death. Why are we so afraid to admit this??? [I hope I am not assassinated for speaking the truth!]
If Saddam Hussein and Osama Bin Laden are both dead - what exactly is our mission over there? We love to say, "We are liberators - not conquerors" but if that is true, then isn't our mission completed?
In a previous blog entry, I discussed the recent actions of the Japan government when their leader dismantled the Parliament (before they could dismantle him) and announced a brand new election at the end of this month.
Today I read a BBC report which examined the failures of the Japanese government. As I read the report, I couldn't help to notice our own failures. If I delete "Japan" and the name of the party - it really hits home:
Working closely with bureaucrats and the business sector, the ... government delivered high growth, ample jobs and a steep rise in living standards.
But cracks emerged when the bubble burst in the early 1990s.
There was a general feeling that the ... was losing touch and that it wasn't delivering for everybody.
Jobs were no longer for life, a gap emerged between rich and poor and demographic change posed a challenge. Women were having fewer babies and the population was ageing - with serious implications for social security.
Reform was needed but the close bureaucratic and business links that had benefited the ... also served to constrain it. Efforts foundered in the face of entrenched vested interests.
Part of the problem was that the .... was slow to get things done, because it was trying to keep a variety of interest groups happy.
"Consensus style meant that strong leadership was not allowed, especially with respect to policy - because you might upset someone," says Dr Steven Reed.
"The ... could deliver big building projects, but not fix the economy. Demands that were not met at all finally built up to the point where people were no longer interested in dams and roads."
Urban voters also felt marginalised as funds flowed to projects benefiting the ... rural support base.
"There was a general feeling that the ... was losing touch and that it wasn't delivering for everybody - that it was working for small cliques and business groups, rather than what was good for ... as a whole," says Dr Chris Hood
... focused on issues such as patriotism and constitutional reform.
But voters did not care. Instead, they were outraged by the loss of pension payment records and increasingly worried about whether the welfare system could cope with the population shift.
Then ... took office - and the economic crisis hit. Giants such as .... posted their first annual losses in decades. Businesses empowered by ...-era labour reforms cut contract staff loose. Graduates failed to find jobs and unemployment soared.
A groundswell of public unhappiness coincided with the emergence of the ... as a credible alternative - and one with a manifesto promising welfare spending.
"It has reached a point where people want to try something new," Dr Hood said. "They want change and they're fed up with the ....
"There's not a huge amount to choose between the two parties. But some of the things the ... are talking about are touching a nerve with the electorate."
The complete article is at:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/8220610.stm