In June a statistic floated across my desk that startled me. In 2020, the number of miles Americans drove fell 13% because of the pandemic, but the number of traffic deaths rose 7%.
I couldn’t figure it out. Why would Americans be driving so much more recklessly during the pandemic? But then in the first half of 2021, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, motor vehicle deaths were up 18.4% even over 2020. Contributing factors, according to the agency, included driving under the influence, speeding and failure to wear a seat belt.
Why are so many Americans driving irresponsibly?
While gloomy numbers like these were rattling around in my brain, a Substack article from Matthew Yglesias hit my inbox this week. It was titled “All Kinds of Bad Behavior Is on the Rise.” Not only is reckless driving on the rise, Yglesias pointed out, but the number of altercations on airplanes has exploded, the murder rate is surging in cities, drug overdoses are increasing, Americans are drinking more, nurses say patients are getting more abusive, and so on and so on.
Read more at:
David Brooks: America is falling apart at the seams | Commentary | myheraldreview.com
Showing posts with label Power Base. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Power Base. Show all posts
3/27/20
USA: Coronavirus Pandemic Exposes the Drastic Absence of U.S. Global Leadership – Homeland Security Today
The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has exposed fundamental
weaknesses in many Western countries, including the United States and
its European allies, as they struggle to stem the tide of new cases and
respond to existing ones. Even though a significant portion of
the blame lies with China for covering up the early signs of what grew
into a pandemic, Beijing is now seeking to portray itself as a savior,
providing masks and testing kits to countries throughout the world.
China’s media has highlighted the country’s outreach to Europe, Africa,
and Asia, juxtaposing China’s benevolence with the United States.
Meanwhile, the United States is suffering from
a lack of testing kits, open hospital beds, and even basic necessities
like personal protective equipment for doctors, nurses, and medical
workers as COVID-19 cases surge. In previous times of crisis—the
HIV/AIDS epidemic and the Ebola crisis of 2014—the United States helped
lead an international response.
With COVID-19, Washington’s dearth of leadership is glaring, and will have long-lasting implications well beyond the current crisis.
By delivering much needed supplies and sending Chinese scientists and medical experts to offer advice, China is using diplomacy and soft power to recreate the narrative surrounding COVID-19. And from early indications, it seems to be working. Countries that would normally look to the United States in a time of crisis have observed Washington’s own failure to deal with the coronavirus.
Europe has also been shunned in favor of help from China. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic declared that, when it came to assistance in battling the coronavirus, ‘the only country that can help us is China,’ while obliquely referring to European solidarity as a ‘fairy tale’ that never existed. Russian disinformation efforts have exacerbated existing tensions and complicated government responses.
The reality is, the United States has been declining as a global power for some time now. The coronavirus has merely exposed this hard truth. By abdicating leadership on the most pressing challenges of our time, from combating climate change to championing human rights, the United States has allowed an authoritarian country like China to dominate the narrative of the coronavirus response, as Beijing gains access and influence through the provision of generous aid packages and foreign assistance. European countries were neither consulted nor informed before the Trump administration imposed a travel ban on their citizens. China is effectively exploiting this rift in transatlantic relations.
Germans were furious when a story was published allegations reporting that U.S. President Donald Trump was aggressively pursuing the purchase of a German biopharmaceutical company, CureVac, in order to obtain ‘exclusive access’ to a potential coronavirus vaccine. To President Trump’s supporters, this is simply ‘America First’ operationalized. To the rest of the world, it shows an America out of touch with reality, no longer a symbol of hope that it has been for hundreds of millions of people throughout the world for decades on end.
Read more at: Coronavirus Pandemic Exposes the Drastic Absence of U.S. Global Leadership – Homeland Security Today
With COVID-19, Washington’s dearth of leadership is glaring, and will have long-lasting implications well beyond the current crisis.
By delivering much needed supplies and sending Chinese scientists and medical experts to offer advice, China is using diplomacy and soft power to recreate the narrative surrounding COVID-19. And from early indications, it seems to be working. Countries that would normally look to the United States in a time of crisis have observed Washington’s own failure to deal with the coronavirus.
Europe has also been shunned in favor of help from China. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic declared that, when it came to assistance in battling the coronavirus, ‘the only country that can help us is China,’ while obliquely referring to European solidarity as a ‘fairy tale’ that never existed. Russian disinformation efforts have exacerbated existing tensions and complicated government responses.
The reality is, the United States has been declining as a global power for some time now. The coronavirus has merely exposed this hard truth. By abdicating leadership on the most pressing challenges of our time, from combating climate change to championing human rights, the United States has allowed an authoritarian country like China to dominate the narrative of the coronavirus response, as Beijing gains access and influence through the provision of generous aid packages and foreign assistance. European countries were neither consulted nor informed before the Trump administration imposed a travel ban on their citizens. China is effectively exploiting this rift in transatlantic relations.
Germans were furious when a story was published allegations reporting that U.S. President Donald Trump was aggressively pursuing the purchase of a German biopharmaceutical company, CureVac, in order to obtain ‘exclusive access’ to a potential coronavirus vaccine. To President Trump’s supporters, this is simply ‘America First’ operationalized. To the rest of the world, it shows an America out of touch with reality, no longer a symbol of hope that it has been for hundreds of millions of people throughout the world for decades on end.
Read more at: Coronavirus Pandemic Exposes the Drastic Absence of U.S. Global Leadership – Homeland Security Today
3/3/17
France - Presidential Elections: Macron outlines plans for multi-speed Europe – by Aline Robert
The En Marche presidential candidate, currently riding high in the polls, unveiled his plans at length on Thursday. In a highly-centrist, pro-European programme, François Hollande’s former advisor did something rare in French politics: expressed his faith in the European Union.
Macron’s programme is right in line with the European Commission’s White Paper. Hardly surprising, given his contacts and high popularity in the EU executive.
Holding forth to an impressive crowd of some 400 journalists, including Chinese television and almost all of the foreign correspondents in Paris, Macron began by stressing the need to boost France’s credibility by restoring its public finances. This he hopes to achieve in the first six months of his mandate, before initiating a real investment plan and greater solidarity in the eurozone.
“The French-German axis is the core of the reactor, both in the eurozone and the EU. It is a pre-requisite for any progress,” he said. “I propose to restore the credibility of France in the eyes of Germany, to convince Berlin in the next six months to adopt an active investment policy and move towards greater solidarity in Europe. We need it because the future of Europe is at stake.”
“Since 2008 we have failed to build Europe. Since 2008 we have had a lost generation that has seen only a vacuum of plans. Our duty is to rebuild the European dream,” Macron added, stressing the need for a mulita-speed Europe.
Read More: Macron outlines plans for multi-speed Europe – EURACTIV.com
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