Why Havel Matters

As the WSJ writes, “A man for all seasons on behalf of liberty,” Havel inspired the world.  The Czech leader also mused that it was harder to put in place his philosophy as his country’s political leader than it was to develop his ideas.  (Interesting that most critics find his art sub-par.)   David Remnick assembles this most worthy reading list that conveys the important issues, thinkers, and ideas of the era.

[A] top-ten list, the first entry being Havel’s greatest hits, and the rest books and writers whom Havel admired—contemporaries or near contemporaries who lived in the same region and under similar regimes.

via News Desk: Reading List: Havel and Beyond : The New Yorker.

And thanks to CFR for assembling Havel’s own “lasting words,”  among which should be the memory of how Havel encouraged Americans to mitigate their isolationist tendencies in the face of the Cold War’s end.  The “Declaration of America’s Interdependence” is, for me, one of Havel’s most important contributions as it updates the post-WWII consensus embodied in our increasingly outdated international organizations.

He grasped, as Max Fisher eloquently observed in the Atlantic, lessons that we need today, including  personal and global responsibility in the face of multiple threats, the importance of a climate freedom and guarantees of peace, and the need to change human nature–a ‘global revolution of human consciousness’ as Fisher quotes Havel’s 1990 statement before the U.S. Congress.

Havel’s track record as a political leader was mixed, which should continue to give us pause as we think about what is happening as Iraq moves out to live on its own, Afghanistan prepares for its own  possible future alone, China continues its peaceful rise and geopolitical power and economic might shifts toward Asia.  Even so, his ideas are his most important contribution:

I favor ‘anti political politics, politics not as the technology of power and manipulation, of cybernetic rule over humans or as the art of the utilitarian, but politics as one of the ways of seeking and achieving meaningful lives, of protecting them and serving them. via Richard Eskow, Huffington Post.

Christopher Hitchens has died.

RIP Christopher Hitchens, the Paine and Orwell of our time according to William Grimes in the NYT.  His best writing pushed further than a reader would expect–with good instincts, a historical lens, and an excess of argument.  Case in point, this Slate piece on the Armenian genocide pushed all the right buttons:

The occurrence of the Armenian genocide in 1915 “is not an allegation, a personal opinion, or a point of view, but rather a widely documented fact supported by an overwhelming body of historical evidence.” On the campaign trail last year, he amplified this position, saying that “America deserves a leader who speaks truthfully about the Armenian genocide and responds forcefully to all genocides. I intend to be that president.”

via Telling the truth about the Armenian genocide. – Slate Magazine.

England v. Europe and End of the Dream

The stakes are rising, and Krugman calls it a “depression” with an authoritarian slide occurring “in the heart of Europe.”  Meanwhile, the EU and UK square off in something far more serious than soccer, leaving Cameron “alone on the island.”

Nobody agrees about what the consequences are now going to be. Some think this is a real turning point: The rest of Europe will forge ahead with a closer fiscal relationship and will simply begin making treaties without Britain—treaties that the British and their banks will simply have to follow if they want to do business with their nearest neighbors. Others note, accurately, that the new treaty arrangements (which still may not prevent economic crisis, by the way) will be under negotiation for a good while longer, and the British may find a way to slide themselves back into the loop if they want to.

But even if everyone keeps muddling along, as they so often do, this sudden moment of isolation won’t be quickly forgotten.

via England vs. Europe: Why David Cameron rejected a treaty to save the euro. – Slate Magazine.

Gingrich and Huntsman Long Form Debate.

The long shot and the current front runner square off in Lincoln Douglas-style debate in New Hampshire.  Here’s to more discussions like this:

The former Ambassador to China played well-informed pundit on the future of Chinese politics, arguing that the next generation of Chinese leaders who will be taking power are “a hubristic nationalistic generation” who had no experience of earlier decades of political turmoil. “They’ve been terribly informed by 30 years of massive economic growth,” he said.

And here’s a great Huntsman thought for all teachers of AP Comparative Politics courses crafting essay questions. The Chinese, he said, are “the greatest long-term strategic thinkers in the world.” Americans “are the best short-term tactical thinkers in the world.” Discuss.

via Gingrich and Huntsman ‘debate’ in New Hampshire – PostPartisan – The Washington Post.

In Africa, the Art of Listening – NYTimes.com

Listening is a key skill for diplomacy–and essential for writers and global citizens, as well.

In Africa listening is a guiding principle. It’s a principle that’s been lost in the constant chatter of the Western world, where no one seems to have the time or even the desire to listen to anyone else. From my own experience, I’ve noticed how much faster I have to answer a question during a TV interview than I did 10, maybe even 5, years ago. It’s as if we have completely lost the ability to listen. We talk and talk, and we end up frightened by silence, the refuge of those who are at a loss for an answer.

via In Africa, the Art of Listening – NYTimes.com.

On Speech Puts the US Government on Defense in Durban

This is how a single speech–by a youthful member of a non-governmental organization–can frame an issue and challenge the power of an entire government.  Forget the concern that small states may not have as much relative power; in a multilateral forum, even a simple representative can shape the narrative and thus influence the outcome.

A Middlebury College junior confronts the chief American envoy at the global climate change conference in Durban, South Africa, demanding an “urgent path” to a legally binding treaty. She draws a standing ovation but is then ejected from the room.

via Energy and Environment – Green Blog – NYTimes.com.

Europe’s Real Puzzles Can’t Be Answered in a Crisis: Clive Crook – Bloomberg

Much talk over the EU summit this week.  The future of Europe hangs in the balance:

Yet this would leave vitally important questions about Europe’s future unanswered or even unaddressed. The depth of the crisis and the ineptitude of the EU’s collective leadership — if one can call it “leadership” — have conflated three distinct issues. Keep each separately in mind when asking, “Is this deal of any use?”

The first is how to stabilize Europe’s economy. The second is how to avoid a similar breakdown next time. Even more important is a third question, one that Europe’s leaders invariably ignore: how to secure the right of Europe’s citizens to hold their governments to account.

The nuttiest aspect of the current talks has been Germany’s insistence that the second question comes first. Conceivably, I grant you, this could make sense. You might say, for instance, that to lessen any future moral hazard, Italy’s debts should never be underwritten by the EU as a whole. That idea would be wrong, but it would at least be intelligible. And it would answer questions one and two together: no bailouts, now or in the future.

via Europe’s Real Puzzles Can’t Be Answered in a Crisis: Clive Crook – Bloomberg.

For Turkey, Lure of European Union is Fast Fading – NYTimes.com

Turkey tips eastward.  Is the european moment lost, or just faded?

Meanwhile, Turkish officials say relations with the European Union have reached a state of hopeless disrepair, made worse by the prospect of Cyprus taking over the rotating presidency of the union next year.Turkey has been locked in an intractable political fight with Cyprus since 1974, when it invaded the island to prevent a proposed union with Greece and set up a rival government in the ethnic Turkish part of Cyprus that only it recognizes. In London last month, President Abdullah Gul disparaged Cyprus as “half a country” that would lead a “miserable union,” Milliyet, a Turkish newspaper, reported. Then, when France took the unusual step last week of proposing that Turkey be invited to take part in a meeting of the union’s foreign ministers to discuss Syria, Cyprus vetoed the idea.

via For Turkey, Lure of European Union is Fast Fading – NYTimes.com.

2011’s traditions you never knew needed protecting | FP Passport

This doesn’t help the UN’s case for defending its relevance:

Last year, FP listed 10 of the odder entries from UNESCOs Intangible Heritage List, examples of cultural practices the body has decided merit preserving, as opposed to actual physical sites. That list included such treasures Turkeys Kirkpinar Oil Wrestling Festival and Luxembourgs Hopping Procession of Echternach.

via 2011’s traditions you never knew needed protecting | FP Passport.