International Implications of Shutdown
Did you notice how odd it was that during the shutdown and the subsequent debt ceiling game of chicken that there was precious little discussion of the international implications? I did. It worries me.
Thinking that the United States is invulnerable like Superman might make you confident but it can also make you dead.
What other nations think and do matters? How much was put at risk overseas by actions here? Did we put our allies at risk and give our enemies an advantage?
A few brains in Washington would be good, some working ones anyway.
James Pilant
BERLIN: Europeans agog at Americans’ inability to compromise, aghast at likely long-term impact | Politics | McClatchy DC
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2013/10/18/205712/europeans-agog-at-americans-inability.html
No one was amused, however. The United States, after all, is not a bit player on the international stage like Greece. It is the unquestioned global leader. And while after a decade of controversial war it’s not so unusual for Europeans to express hostility toward the United States, many were shocked to see how hostile Americans seem to be to one another – and disinterested in how their internal fight might affect the rest of the world.“This is pure domestic politics,” said Xenia Dormandy, an expert on the United States and its place in the world at the London think tank Chatham House. “Nobody cares about any of the international implications. There’s a lack of desire to even think about the repercussions.”The discord will have long-term consequences, even if the United States is able to see its way through this crisis to yet another battle over spending and the debt ceiling that will come early next year, some predict.
From around the web.
From the web site, Phoebe Rees, JN 325.
On Tuesday, the US government shut down. If you’re a fellow Brit like
me, you might be thinking, “how can this happen – can Democrats and
Republicans not even be charged with the simplest task of keeping the
government open?” undoubtably leading to “the system has collapsed, the
apocalypse is now!” Alas no, this isn’t some sort of Anarchist utopia,
it happens reasonable frequently and can be explained a lot more simply
than you think. Here are the most common misconceptions about the US
government shutdown answered.
1. The government has shut down. Does this mean that the system has collapsed?
No. Constitutionally, congress must pass laws to spend money. If they
can’t agree on a spending bill, they don’t have the authority to spend
money. Most of the ‘system’ is still in place, but non-essential
services such as gun licensing, zoos and national parks will close for
the duration of the shutdown. So basically, no guns and no zoos for the
foreseeable future. …
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