Ruminations

Qana carnage

Image source: Reuters

Chatting with a work mate the other day about the latest human disaster story to unfold in the Middle East, my friend--a devout Christian--lamented that it was quite likely the world would be in a state of perpetual conflict until there was but a single religion. As a fully paid-up secular humanist one might imagine that I'd subscribe to this view. I don't make a secret of the fact that I have an extremely low regard for the Catholic Church which has managed to screw up more people I know than I care to mention, and my concern about the rise of religious fundamentalism around the world (whether in the US midwest or the suburbs of Tehran) I have blogged about on a number of occasions. Yet, reflecting on my friend's comment, I can't help but think (in my economically-deterministic way) that really religion is just a side-show. Muslim, Jew, Christian, Hindu ... what does it matter? It could be Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool and Man U, or some other cosmetic way of grouping people. I mean no disrespect to mainstream religions because everyone has the right to worship in the way they choose. My point is that, ultimately, it's about human well-being and social justice (or the lack thereof).

The problem is that peaceful co-existence (which includes religious tolerance) is not an attractive option for those who seek material gain at the expense of others. The Israelis copped a hiding from the international community today after the bombing of Qana which left 54 refugees dead (including 37 children). No parent can watch the horrific images beamed around the world and not be deeply affected by them. The sympathy vote for Israel (to the extent there was one) is rapidly ebbing away. Culpability, however, is not the exclusive preserve of the Israeli military. Which country sells them arms? Which country alone has the power within the international community to call Israel off? Which country has actively sought conflict in the Middle East for its own pecuniary benefit?

Image source: AP

Confessions of an Economic Hitman

Image source: http://100777.com

I've been reading a book by John Perkins entitled Confessions of an Economic Hitman. For students of international political economy, the themes developed in this book are not completely revelatory, but Perkins' personal anecdotes certainly differentiate his book from the more 'academic' books on this subject. In essence, Perkins blows the whistle on US economic imperialism and the lengths the US state machinery is prepared to go to in order to serve the interests of corporate America. For the unitiated it provides some useful insights into postwar US foreign policy. For Republican supporters and US citizens who don't travel outside of their country it will be absolute hogwash. For examples of each group take a look at the customer reviews on Amazon ... people seem to give one star or five! For me is was three and a half stars. It started well, but then I realised Perkins was starting to irritate me with his hypocrisy and self-aggrandising. Page 218 was final straw when he describes how he sells his alternative energy business to an oil company ... "part of me felt like a traitor" he says. This in and of itself doesn't sound so bad, but at this point he has sold his soul for the umpteenth time and it has become a little tedious.

Global dimming

Image source: www.engin.umich.edu

I watched a scarey documentary on BBC the other day on the phenomenon of global dimming. I had heard about this but not fully understood it. This Horizon programme certainly cleared things up but left me feeling pretty depressed. In short, it appears that the climate change problem may be much more severe than previously thought. Ironically, the tiny airborne particles of soot, ash, sulphur compounds and other pollutants in the atmosphere are serving to moderate the global warming effect. The problem is that as countries take action to reduce their emissions of pollutants (e.g. through filters) this reduces the moderation effect while not reducing greenhouse gases. The only solution is stop using fossil fuels and move to a hydrogen-based economy as soon as possible. As the Horizon programme reveals, the consequences of not doing so are potentially catastrophic.