links for 2008-09-02

• Study on Swiss children shows fair-mindedness comes with age - swissinfo
• The Fed is right to focus on providing liquidity - FT
• Tipping points in financial exchange competition - Vox EU
• Fed's Hoenig Says Institutions Must Be Allowed to 'Fail' - Bloomberg
• Credit Cards: Not Dead Yet - Felix Salmon
• Fed's Kroszner Says U.S. Economy Not 'Decoupled' - Real Time Economics

Comments

[anne]

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/02/opinion/02herbert.html?ref=opinion&pagewanted=print

September 2, 2008

Head for the High Road
By BOB HERBERT

The Democrats need to be careful about the intensity of their criticism of Sarah Palin.

She may look like an easy target, an appalling lightweight who will send serious voters scurrying to the more substantive Obama-Biden ticket. And the temptation to get on her case probably became greater with Ms. Palin’s disclosure Monday that her 17-year-old daughter is pregnant.

But the Democrats should not push this stuff too far....

[Oh.]

[hari]

Leslie H Gelb : *Realists unite* (IHT/opinion/2 Sept 2008)

I wish I could reproduce what I wrote to NYT editorial page on this *stupid* and *foolish* piece on frameowrk of US policy.

There is a lot of repetition of the nonsensical schools of thinking in American *fiefdom* - ie. Council on Foreign Relations.

[anne]

"There is a lot of repetition of the nonsensical schools of thinking in American 'fiefdom' ":

http://www.iht.com/bin/printfriendly.php?id=15795992

September 1, 2008

Realists Unite
By Leslie H. Gelb

Now is the moment to forge a new, broader, politically potent coalition of realists to shape U.S. foreign policy, if the high priests of the realist camp would only grasp it.

The two main alternatives to traditional realism for half a century have now discredited themselves.

The Clinton administration - fixated on domestic politics and overawed by the curative powers of globalization - squandered American power. The Bush administration - blind to the limitations of military force and carried away by the idea of democratizing heathens - plunged America into its deepest international hole ever.

The first step toward a new coalition is for the keepers of the realist flame - such as James Baker, Henry Kissinger, Brent Scowcroft and Lawrence Eagleburger - to stop searching for partners in the wrong places. Time and again, they turn to their fellow Republicans, especially the conservatives on the right, only to rediscover that the right-wingers are latent isolationists with dogmatic slants on good and evil in the world. There is no way that realists can share a harness with those who reject the necessity for engagement and diplomacy with adversaries.

Traditional realists also foolishly keep trying to bond with neoconservatives, only to relearn that neocons treat them almost as poorly as they treat liberals. No one can build working arrangements with those whose foreign policy boils down to staying every course, exerting will power and waiting for the world to bend to Washington's wishes.

Second, traditional realists have to open their eyes to their natural allies - the Truman-Acheson Democrats. These are Democrats who think we do face real threats, and that these threats must be countered with American power, allies and partners, diplomacy, and sometimes military force.

These are also the basic principles of traditional realists. Where they differ, the Democrats bring strength to the table: They believe in pursuing American values abroad, but over time and consistent with power realities. The traditional realists need credibility on just this front because most Americans believe they slight American values.

Contrary to what some traditional realists believe, there is a vibrant stable of Truman-Acheson Democrats. I'm thinking here of the Democrats' newly announced VP nominee Joseph Biden, as well as Richard Holbrooke, Michèle Flournoy, Sam Nunn, William Perry, Joseph Nye, John Hamre and a slew of pragmatic foreign policy Democrats in their 30s and 40s.

The point is that there are two groups of foreign policy realists - the traditional Republican variety and the Truman-Acheson Democrats. They largely share a basic philosophy of foreign affairs, far more than each does with its own political party brethren....

[Price]

"Third, the erosion of consumers’ purchasing power from shrinking access to credit..."

What about the erosion of consumers' purchasing power from an increase in prices?

[anne]

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/02/us/politics/02mother.html?ref=politics&pagewanted=print

September 2, 2008

A New Twist in the Debate Over Mothers
By JODI KANTOR and RACHEL L. SWARNS

When Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska was introduced as a vice-presidential pick, she was presented as a magnet for female voters, the epitome of everymom appeal.

But since then, as mothers across the country supervise the season’s final water fights and pack book bags, some have voiced the kind of doubts that few male pundits have dared raise on television. With five children, including an infant with Down syndrome and, as the country learned Monday, a pregnant 17-year-old, Ms. Palin has set off a fierce argument among women about whether there are enough hours in the day for her to take on the vice presidency, and whether she is right to try.

It’s the Mommy Wars: Special Campaign Edition. But this time the battle lines are drawn inside out, with social conservatives, usually staunch advocates for stay-at-home motherhood, mostly defending her, while some others, including plenty of working mothers, worry that she is taking on too much.

“How is this really going to work?” said Karen Shopoff Rooff, an independent voter, personal trainer and mother of two in Austin, Tex. “I don’t care whether she’s the mother or the father; it’s a lot to handle,” she said, adding that Ms. Palin’s lack of national experience would only make her road more difficult.

“When I first heard about Palin, I was impressed,” said Pamela Moore, a mother of two from Birmingham, Ala. But upon reading that Ms. Palin’s special-needs child was three days old when she went back to work, Ms. Moore began questioning the governor’s judgment. Partly as a result, she plans to vote for Senator Barack Obama....

"It’s the Mommy Wars: Special Campaign Edition."
"It’s the Mommy Wars: Special Campaign Edition."
"It’s the Mommy Wars: Special Campaign Edition."

[anne]

http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2008/09/nato-led-troops-accidentally-killed.html

September 2, 2008

"NATO-led troops accidentally killed three Afghan children in artillery fire in eastern Afghanistan Monday, the force said, the latest in a string of civilian casualties caused by foreign soldiers." *

* http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5gImuAzh8VQXog7-0waAhS9W54eKw

-- As'ad AbuKhalil

[anne]

http://angryarab.blogspot.com/2008/09/georgia-has-admitted-dropping-cluster.html

September 2, 2008

"Georgia has admitted dropping cluster bombs during its attempt to regain control of its breakaway province of South Ossetia, a human rights group said today." *

* http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/sep/01/georgia.russia

-- As'ad AbuKhalil

[Please, please, please notice.]

[anne]

I watched an international report on Ossetia yesterday that showed air views of the destruction wrought by the Georgian bombarding. Still, however, the focus is on the Russian "menace" as a New York Times analyst tells us, never mentioning Russian response to and protection of civilians and peace-keeping soldiers being attacked by Georgia on the very Russian border.

[Bruce Wilder]

"At age three children are inherently selfish, but by age eight most have developed a sense of fairness, a study involving Zurich researchers has found."

And, at age, 72?

[anne]

"And, at age, 72?"

What is important is always, but always, to belittle.

[anne]

The summary of the Swiss study, which I will read in full, does not bother to mention that (Swiss) Jean Piaget spent decades establishing the age sequence development of patterns of cognition and emotion. Lawrence Kohlberg spent decades studying expressly the development of the sense of fairness, based on work by Piaget and Erik Erikson. Not to mention this even in a summary is shocking.

The work is surely derivative.

[anne]

http://www.swissinfo.ch/eng/front/Fair_mindedness_comes_with_age.html?siteSect=105&sid=9627944&rss=true&ty=st

August 29, 2008

Fair-mindedness comes with age: School-age children are already showing a sense of fairness

At age three children are inherently selfish, but by age eight most have developed a sense of fairness, a study involving Zurich researchers has found.

The results, published in the renowned scientific journal Nature, could help explain why humans are able to cooperate – a trait that has helped in building society.

Swiss and German scientists, led by Ernst Fehr, head of the Institute for Empirical Research in Economics at Zurich University, asked 229 Swiss children of various ages to play sharing games using sweets.

The children were shown a photo of another and given options for distributing small portions of jellybeans, such as "one for me, none for you" and "one sweet each".

Although the child doing the choosing would receive a sweet regardless of their choice, most three to four year olds still chose to deprive their fellows of a jelly bean, reported Fehr.

But a different picture emerged for the seven to eight year olds. Most of these children preferred to share out the goodies fairly, as adults would.

In a surprising result, children without siblings proved to be more generous than those with siblings.

This type of behaviour sets humans apart from other animals - including man's close cousins, chimpanzees, which remain selfish throughout their lives, say researchers.
Love thy neighbour

However, the children in the study were not completely fair, as the seven and eight year olds often favoured those they knew – such as those attending the same nursery or school, according to the article published on Thursday.

This, the authors suggest, may reflect humans' inherent parochial attitude – a preference for one's own social group. This is thought to be crucial in the evolution of cooperative societies.

Human communities, unlike other species, are based on division of labour and cooperation in large groups of genetically unrelated people.

"The simultaneous development of altruistic behaviour and preference of your own group provides interesting new impulses to the conjecture that both of these processes are driven by the same evolutionary process," said Fehr in a Zurich University statement.

Nature or nurture?

Concern for others and sharing with those closest to you has a long evolutionary history, and was already marked during the prehistoric hunter-gatherer time, according to scientists.

However, there is a big debate about whether our tendency to maintain these qualities today is genetic or arises from upbringing and culture.

For example, young children learn that equal treatment and fairness are good forms of behaviour.

The results of the study suggest that nature and nurture have both shaped behavioural responses, even if the study was not designed to calculate the share of each influence, say scientists.

[Completely derivative, completely traditional, study.]

[anne]

http://delong.typepad.com/sdj/2008/09/elderly-politic.html

September 2, 2008

21. Elderly Politicians Are Unruly

22. A Third Salient Fact About Sarah Palin

23. Real Poker Players Look at Their Hole Cards

-- Brad DeLong

Actually 24 posts on Sarah Palin, so far.

[anne]

What is fascinating is thinking about how many children Bobby Kennedy had, no time problems there though. There are the family sadnesses that political figures will blithely use as though badges of honor, however sadnesses showing the toughness and sensitivity of men are evidently altogether different than those for women or possibly just for certain women.

Me, I am looking for my scarlet "A."

[anne]

http://ebooks.adelaide.edu.au/h/hawthorne/nathaniel/h39s/chap23.html

1850

The Scarlet Letter
By Nathaniel Hawthorne

THE REVELATION OF THE SCARLET LETTER

Thus, there had come to the Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale—as to most men, in their various spheres, though seldom recognised until they see it far behind them—an epoch of life more brilliant and full of triumph than any previous one, or than any which could hereafter be. He stood, at this moment, on the very proudest eminence of superiority, to which the gifts or intellect, rich lore, prevailing eloquence, and a reputation of whitest sanctity, could exalt a clergyman in New England's earliest days, when the professional character was of itself a lofty pedestal. Such was the position which the minister occupied, as he bowed his head forward on the cushions of the pulpit at the close of his Election Sermon. Meanwhile Hester Prynne was standing beside the scaffold of the pillory, with the scarlet letter still burning on her breast!

[I do well in red.]

[Barkley Rosser]

anne,

I do not know what your cirumstances in life are, but I happen to have three daughters of child-bearing age. Sarah Palin is against abortion under any and all circumstances, incluidng rape, incest, and the health of the mother. As far as I am concerned, that is it. I am opposed to her for vice president and especially for president. The next president may well be appointing replacements for the two most liberal Supreme Court Justices, John Paul Stevens and Ruth Bader Ginsburg (notice the gender!!!). I do not want Sarah Palin or anybody else of any gender with views like hers anywhere near that decision.

And that is for the sake of my daughters. For what reason do you persist in defending this lying extremist? (And, you know full well that I agree with you that criticizing her for her family is off limits, as Barack Obama has stated, although you have failed to recognize that.)

[anne]

"I do not know what your circumstances in life are, but I happen to have three daughters of child-bearing age."

I never asked, never thought to ask, but I am well pleased for you.

I am only pointing out that from the beginning there were ceaselessly attacks on Sarah Palin as a woman. I have never defended any policy comment by Palin, nor characterized any policy statement by Palin. I have surely never characterized Palin as a person.

[anne]

"For what reason do you persist in defending this lying extremist?"

Notice how the question is shaped and asked. For what reason am I such a creep, for what reason do I detest bunny rabbits, for what reason do I eat seaweed? Because I like seaweed.

[bob]

There's a nice daddy-just-slapped-mommy-at-the-dinner-table kind of vibe in here. Why don't you two just kiss and make up so we can get the constructive commenting flowing again on this blog.

[anne]

"There's a nice daddy-just-slapped-mommy-at-the-dinner-table kind of vibe in here."

Interesting metaphor; but the argument is not the least discouraging to me and rather important and Barkley Rosser has done me at least a favor in arguing.

[Barkley Rosser]

anne,

There have only been "ceaseless attacks on Palin as a woman" in your mind, except for the attacks on her family and child bearing and rearing, and a few scattered remarks in the media. While there has been this attack about her pregnant daughter, which Obama has condemned people for doing, almost all the rest has been about a lot of pretty serious stuff, her views, her membership in a wacko party, her use of state bureaucrats to engage in a personal vendetta, her lying about her support for the bridge to nowhere, her lack of knowledge about foreign affairs, her lack of knowledge even of what vice presidents do, etc., none of this having anything to do with her gender.

Regarding the Georgian cluster bombs, supposedly these were used at the Roki Tunnel where Russian troops were entering South Ossetia. Not nice, but not aimed at civilians.

OTOH, although they are denying it, Human Rights Watch has also been very firm, and continues to be, that the Russians dropped cluster bombs on Georgia proper, killing at least 11 civilians. Nobody looks too pretty on this one, and the Gerogians never entered Russia proper, while the Russians are still sitting in substantial chunks of Georgia proper (and, just to remind of the equivalent, while the US and NATO did bomb Beograd during the Kosovo war, the troops of neither ever entered Serbis proper, much less occupied chunks of it).

[hari]

Anne - Latest news in making from Fox News - Murdoch is finally happy with WSJ but his aim now is to takeover NYT!
Will it come to pass...don't know given Sulzberger's control of its options.

[anne]

"There have only been 'ceaseless attacks on Palin as a woman' in your mind, except for the attacks on her family and child bearing and rearing, and a few scattered remarks in the media."

Fine, you are right as always and I am a fool. I understand you rightness here, as I understood your rightness about Hillary Clinton. All is lovely, women are treated like the cat's pajamas, and I wish I had listened more carefully about advice on what toys to play with from Lawrence Summers. I could do better if only I knew now what those magic toys were.

[anne]

The Wall Street Journal publisher's intent appears to be directly competing with the New York Times, business news is actually being less emphasized and written with less depth or background. News features in general are being written with less depth. The Journal is in general conservative as ever as opposed to a curious middle-ness from the Times, but there seems to be more of a liberal presence now and then. I would not be surprised at a name-liberal hire.

[hari]

#Putin is still not sure how to follow-up Bush/Cheney/Misha attempt to *corner* him in SO....Revenge is apparently in the making and what form it may take includes attacking US/Nato forward posts (on sea!), before GWB is off scene.

========

#Meanwhile EU Parliament has raised the serious q's of why EU Summit didn't attack (also) Georgian offensive in SO - for causing Russian military intervention. It's a coalition of Liberals/Green Parties who are trying to balance the picture (like Anne) as to actually how the Caucasus conflict errupted.

PS. I understand Baltic States/Poland refused to adopt any statement against Georgia's part in the conflict.

[hari]

Our host (MT) must know that Murdoch has approached BO to finally appear on Fox News....BO apparently brings a lot of cashe with his charisma, as I now understand, Murdoch may also be prepared to let Fox News go or sell it. Bo and Michelle have been bitterly attacked on Fox, so BO is not relenting, it's reported.

[anne]

Hari:

"Meanwhile the EU Parliament has raised the serious q's of why the EU Summit didn't attack (also) Georgian offensive in SO - for causing Russian military intervention. It's a coalition of Liberals/Green Parties who are trying to balance the picture as to actually how the Caucasus conflict erupted."

What puzzles me is why there is not hint of political criticism of the government within Georgia? Where is Shevardnadze? Possibly the climate is too defensive to be critical as yet, and still.

The sense I have is that Putin will accede to the wishes of France and Germany, but find a way to further challenge England and America beyond Georgia proper. There is no reason to Challenge France or Germany which have compromised as Putin asked.

Reading Poland and the Ukraine needs to be done with respect to the local political insecurity, if nationalism seems and continues to seem a workable ploy than nationalism will be fomented beyond a direct concern about Russia. Could such a game explain Georgia? I do not know, and Georgia played so fiercely.

[hari]

UK/Poland/Baltic States/Sweden...were all under political pressure from WH/State Dept to push for serious economic sanctions against Russian invasion of Georgia. They didn't succeed, at the end, because EU found its soft power more effective than military muscle. Since consensus is a religion with EU Summits - this was an Extraordinary (3) - in life of EU.

Last one was on 9/11.

[anne]

A more openly assertive Russia, along with a traditionally quietly assertive China, does not worry me after the last years. We have got to examine this leadership sense about us, that goes not to leadership by example but by bludgeon. Britain has done us no favors in following, as (shudder) Noam Chomsky explained recently.

Examining what happened in Georgia is critical, but where will enough examination pressure come from. We will not push, there will be no British push, and we find no local push. How did Saakashvili simply order a bombardment and invasion of Ossetia? How much power does Sasha have?

Also, I did not realize there were air bombings of Ossetia by Georgia. How mad can Sasha have been in ordering air bombings along the Russian border? Imagine what Russia could have done had the threat been mistaken. We need to think carefully of Georgian bombers approaching the Russian border.

[anne]

I simply did not know about Georgian bombers approaching the Russian border, while ground bombardment was lighting lighting the night and lasting through the night. Russia could easily have launched massive air or missile attacks on Georgia proper. Was there a general who could tell this to Sasha? Was there an American officer who could even suggest restraint?

When George Bush learned of the attack, which could have been no later than moments in if not before, was there a recommendation to Bush to limit Sasha? Did our military staff have the slightest worry about a massive Russian response?

Remember, Italy also will remain sympathetic to Russia.

[hari]

Anne there is a lot of developments inside Tbilisi regime and opposition is - for now - staying underground to safeguard Georgian sovereignty.

It's EU Parliament, I suspect, which will now take on Misha and demand his presence for a full plenary session debate on the Caucasus.

Sarkosy/Kuschner are not his bed-fellow either.

Same applies to Merkel/Steinmeir.

Luxumberg/FM made it public today that criticism of Georgian provocation was taken out of final document in return for no sanctions against Russia - under current difficult times in the Caucasus.

[anne]

We are feeding military-economic assistance to Poland and the Baltic states, Britain is tied to us even in what is a politically self-defeating way for labor, but Sweden? What the heck makes Sweden aggressive?

[Barkley Rosser]

anne,

The bombing was on the Georgian/Ossetian side of the border as Russian troops were pouring into Georgia/South Ossetia, which nearly all the world still recognizes as being part of Georgia, although it clearly never will be in any practical sense again.

Putin has lost it. Nobody likes Saakashvilli. But Putin's ridiculous overreaction to Misha's stupid invasion of South Ossetia, which was opposed quietly by all his allies/supporters, has turned the tables. Misha was very unpopular in Georgia and nearly removed from office last year. Georgia is a democratic country, which means that if Putin wants Misha (not "Sasha," that is the diminuitive for either Aleksandr or Aleksandra), out, then he needs to curry the favor of the Georgian population. Unfortunately (for I would like to see Misha out, as would many others, including the Israelis reportedly), Putin's stupid invasion of Georgia proper has pushed the Georgian population into supporting him enthusiastically.

Fareed Zakaria had it right in WaPo yesterday. Poland had been resisting the US entreaties to build an anti-missile system for two years. The minute Putin engages in his stupid invasion, Poland immediately signed on to the US plan. Even countries that have been friendlier to Russia, such as Germany, have been hard against her on this one, if not as hard as the US or some others.

What has Putin and Russia lost from this? Support of virtually all of Europe, with not even China backing them on this. What have they gained? South Ossetia and I guess Abkhazia, although they already had that except for a small gorge. Wow.

And, their enemy leader in Georgia will now be in for a long time and almost certainly get rearmed by the US.

[hari]

BBC correspondent (Mardel) writes in his personal blog that he was bombarded by London news room to report on EU *failure to act* against Russian aggression and so on. He refused, he said, because EU was politically able and willing to come up with an effective final statement to initiate direct bilateral dialogue with Moscow and Tbilisi (separately) with a view to implementing the six-point cease fire agreement with Sarkosy.

Brown has been isolated - and failed miserably - in trying to end all cooperation with Russia in future.

[anne]

Putin lost nothing, nothing at all, however crudely the language describes such losing. What Putin did would have been done by any American President, especially so because there was not and would not have been the least support for Russia against Georgia had Putin chosen to do nothing but complain to Sarkozy and present a case in the Security Council.

Russia has strengthened, and I would suggest learning to read Chinese diplomacy which can be exceedingly quiet and which will be quietly friendly to Russian interests for reasons from energy to off-setting us.

Putin responded remarkably ably, which is why we are impossibly annoyed.

[I need to find out precisely when Georgian bombers entered Ossetian air space. That may not have occurred until after Georgia had bombarded Ossetia from the ground and occupied the territory with Russia finally responding. I was unaware of Georgian planes in the air over Ossetia.]

[hari]

BR - your hubris is again failing you when it comes to Russia. Russia has not lost its support in Europe - Misha has for sure!

[anne]

At the least Georgia has admitted using cluster bombs along the Russian border, which was astonishingly provoking. *

* http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5je4oTliESokD-zge0diVbbczCPIgD92TT2VG0

[hari]

You've to read Medvedev's five point statement before the EU Summit convened in Brussels. He demanded recognition, besides other things, of a *Russian sphere of influence*.

So for all the b.s. and whatnot - Russia is back with a vengence and unipolar world is long lost for GOP's 3rd term based on an *Alliance of Democracies* (incl. Israel).

The strategic developments are invariably playing into the hands of BO and his so-called pragmatism when dealing with Russia....

[hari]

Before midnight - my forecast - McCain will finally dump is VP because of the negative vibes being generated and whatnot.
It has nothing to do with gender, I suspect, but because it'll be finally be revealed that no proper due deligence was conducted by the maverick....(His payback to RNC for not accepting Liberman!)

He's going to pay a big price for his arrogance!

[anne]

Hari:

"BBC correspondent (Mardel) writes in his personal blog that he was bombarded by London news room to report on EU *failure to act* against Russian aggression and so on. He refused, he said, because EU was politically able and willing to come up with an effective final statement to initiate direct bilateral dialogue with Moscow and Tbilisi (separately) with a view to implementing the six-point cease fire agreement with Sarkosy.

"Brown has been isolated - and failed miserably - in trying to end all cooperation with Russia in future."

Right.

[Julio]

Anne:

"What puzzles me is why there is not hint of political criticism of the government within Georgia? Where is Shevardnadze?"

Ex-president: Georgia made mistake
The Associated Press
Published: August 13, 2008

Georgia made a "grave mistake" in advancing into the breakaway province of South Ossetia without adequate preparation, former President Eduard Shevardnadze was quoted as saying Wednesday. (...more)

[anne]

"Georgia made a 'grave mistake' in advancing into the breakaway province of South Ossetia without adequate preparation, former President Eduard Shevardnadze was quoted as saying Wednesday."

Right, but only, only this, and no more.

[anne]

"Georgia made a 'grave mistake' in advancing into the breakaway province of South Ossetia without adequate preparation...."

Notice how muted, "without adequate preparation."

says...

"however sadnesses showing the toughness and sensitivity of men are evidently altogether different than those for women or possibly just for certain women.

Me, I am looking for my scarlet 'A'."

huh?

"What is important is always, but always, to belittle."

More tantrum

"[Please, please, please notice.]"

Cries for attention

"Barkley Rosser has done me at least a favor in arguing."

The child apparently has been pacified, for now

"Fine, you are right as always and I am a fool. I understand you rightness here, as I understood your rightness about Hillary Clinton. All is lovely, women are treated like the cat's pajamas, and I wish I had listened more carefully about advice on what toys to play with from Lawrence Summers. I could do better if only I knew now what those magic toys were."

Oh no, who woke the baby?

http://ssw.unc.edu/fcrp/fp/fp_vol1no1/articles_vol1no1/ignoring_effective_way.htm

"The basic principle behind ignoring is: 'To stop a child from acting in a particular way, arrange conditions so that the child will receive no attention following the undesired act.'"

[anne]

Please notice carefully:

"however sadnesses showing the toughness and sensitivity of men are evidently altogether different than those for women or possibly just for certain women.

Me, I am looking for my scarlet 'A'."

huh?

"What is important is always, but always, to belittle."

More tantrum

"[Please, please, please notice.]"

Cries for attention

"Barkley Rosser has done me at least a favor in arguing."

The child apparently has been pacified, for now

"Fine, you are right as always and I am a fool. I understand you rightness here, as I understood your rightness about Hillary Clinton. All is lovely, women are treated like the cat's pajamas, and I wish I had listened more carefully about advice on what toys to play with from Lawrence Summers. I could do better if only I knew now what those magic toys were."

Oh no, who woke the baby?

http://ssw.unc.edu/fcrp/fp/fp_vol1no1/articles_vol1no1/ignoring_effective_way.htm

"The basic principle behind ignoring is: 'To stop a child from acting in a particular way, arrange conditions so that the child will receive no attention following the undesired act.'"

[anne]

Please notice carefully:

More tantrum

Cries for attention

The child apparently has been pacified, for now

Oh no, who woke the baby?

http://ssw.unc.edu/fcrp/fp/fp_vol1no1/articles_vol1no1/ignoring_effective_way.htm

"The basic principle behind ignoring is: 'To stop a child from acting in a particular way, arrange conditions so that the child will receive no attention following the undesired act.'"

[anne]

Please notice the bullying carefully.

[anne]

Hari:

"BO and Michelle have been bitterly attacked on Fox, so BO is not relenting, it's reported."

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/02/obama-to-appear-on-fox-on-thursday-night/index.html?hp

Obama to Appear on Fox on Thursday Night

[anne]

http://delong.typepad.com/sdj/2008/09/elderly-politic.html

September 2, 2008

-- Brad DeLong

Actually 34 posts on Sarah Palin, so far.

[Barkley Rosser]

hari,

You were wrong about Palin getting dumped and you are wrong about Russia's position in Europe, even if countries there are not keen on a full blown new Cold War. But, do you think Poland's move indicates some rush to be pals with Russia? Did Europe accept Medvedev's demand for recognition of its sphere of influence, or agree on just what is included in that? Is the move by deeply divided Urkraine to reapply to join NATO some sign of everybody just loving and acquiescing to anything Russia wants?

China was being friendly with Russia before this. They have not come out in support of this. They will probably not move sharply away from Russia, but they are more distant now, not closer.

anne,

Interesting contrast. Georgia has admitted to Human Rights Watch to using cluster bombs. Russia has not. Now, are you going to claim that this refusal to admit by Russia means that they actually did not use them when Human Rights Watch continues to insist that they did? And your claim that Russia just did what the US would do, really? The US did not send troops into Serbia proper during the Kosovo events, the matter that Russia puts forward as the comparable event, a claim that politically and diplomatically was sustainable until they want tromping into Georgia proper, where they continue to be in violation of the new ceasefire agreement. They are supposed to get the hell out. They are not doing so, at least not yet.

This is Putin's mistake. He thinks that beating up on and bullying neighbors will impress them and make everybody respect Russia and obey Russia. This is exactly the same mistake that George W. Bush made when he invaded Iraq. We konw how that turned out, with America's standing in the toilet. The same thing is happening to Russia.

Again, Fareed Zakaria called it: Just as Iraq is for the US today what Vietnam was once before, so Georgia/South Ossetia is for Russia today what Afghanistan was in a previous period as well. Not a victory in the longer run.

[anne]

"And your claim that Russia just did what the US would do, really?"

How mad can Saakashvili have been in ordering a bombardment and invasion along the Russian border? Killing Russians border, along the Russian border, is like mad as a mad hatter. Russian border?

Russian border, get it? I get it.

[hari]

BR - You're better advised to stick to your core competence in business studies...not blah, blah, blah about things you don't really understand.

That's not a personal but professional comment based on your own blog and its contents....

[anne]

Correcting:

How mad can Saakashvili have been in ordering a bombardment and invasion along the Russian border? Killing Russians, along the Russian border, is being mad as a mad hatter. Killing Russians? Russian border?

Russian border, get it? I get it.

[hari]

Like Putin said on CNN - and later on ZDF/Germany - someone must have given the go-ahead for Misha to take the risk of making his country a lynchpin of protracted boarder and ethnic conflict with Russian bear (once again!).

What for example were US/Israeli soldiers/trainers in SO doing, and under whose order?

Re: Sweden and its role?

Well it seems CarlBildt/FM is a lone soldier - after his UN role in Kosovo and its final (de jure) recognition under US/EU diktat (irrespective of international law under UN Charter dealing with *territorial integrity* + sovereignty).

CB is trying to seek the job of EU/Solana when Lisbon Treaty comes into force (Irish voters finally willing!).

[Barkley Rosser]

hari,

Actually I know one hell of a lot about Russia. I am the coauthor of a comparative economic systems textbook that has been used at Harvard, Stanford, and Oxford, and I could say a lot more, but will not clutter up this blog with all my personal history. Debate facts and stay away from ignorant ad hominem attacks. Hey, you are the one who just got caught with his pants down making a totally wrong prediction (about Palin being dumped).

And, just to add to the fire, why should Misha have had to have gotten anybody's approval? The evidence is strong that neither of his strongest backers and armers, the US and the Israelis, supported this action. Indeed, the Israelis are pissed. Both were arming him because he was a good boy providing troops in Iraq. Neither gave a rat's behind about South Ossetia until they were forced to by his successfully provoking a massive overreaction by Putin. Again, you are too impressed by Putin. The man has screwed up big time.

[Patricia Shannon]

anne says...

"And, at age, 72?"

What is important is always, but always, to belittle.

Is that why you belittle the rest of us so much, Anne?

[Patricia Shannon]

anne says...

Please notice the bullying carefully.

So you admit you are a bully?

p.s. This doesn't mean I don't appreciate that you also have good qualities.