Kieran Lawrence looks at autonomous weapons and the effect they could have on modern warfare
Continuing a series on world leaders, Miles Deverson takes a look at Angela Merkel
Ben Bland examines the fallout from the Iowa caucuses and looks forward to the New Hampshire primaries.
In the first of a series on world leaders, Miles Deverson takes a look at Nicholas Sarkozy
When someone mentions a tea party do you think more of Jane Austen than of Austrian economics? If someone starts to talk about a vigorous protest movement shaking the foundations of a government - do you start to imagine a bunch of students standing around with assorted lefties waving a few placards? If so then you have obviously yet to hear of the Tea Party - America’s newest and at this moment - most influential political movement. On November 4th 2008 Obama stood victorious in his home town of Chicago and gave one of his trademark awe-inspiring speeches. Like me, millions watched around the world as Obama reaffirmed American unity and revived the belief in the American dream for many.
That same night, boos could be heard in response to Obama’s name during John McCain’s gracious concession speech. The audience’s boos could perhaps be seen as the death groans of the evangelical Neo- Conservatism of George W. Bush which had perished under the strains of the chaos in Iraq and the financial collapse. For months afterwards the Republican Party tore itself up in civil war between moderates and more traditional conservatives.
Out of this fire the American Right was reborn in the form of the Tea Party movement. As the economy failed to recover and Obama’s popularity fell, they started to organise protests of the chanting, banner waving sort usual associated with the left. Following bank bail-outs and Obama’s $700 billion stimulus package the Right has undergone a paradigm shift from focussing on “Christian Values” to battling Obama’s supposed Socialism. While two years ago American Conservatives were inclined to legislate morality - they now occupy themselves with libertarian notions such as slashing “Big Government”- something akin to George Osborne on steroids.
Appropriately maybe for the intensely anti-establishment Tea Party, the real leader of the movement is not a politician but Glenn Beck, a television and radio star. Beck is a fascinating character, a recovering alcoholic who combines his personal story of redemption with zany humour and libertarian rhetoric. At first I must admit I was quite impressed with Beck, the footage of him crying on air due to his “fear for [his] country” suggested sincerity, his antics such as pretending to douse a member of the crew in gasoline were fascinatingly insane and the schemes he promoted, such as the 9/12 Project, seemed to be imbuing the public with constructive personal and political energy.
However the more I saw of him the more I turned against him. His statements on politics range from the audaciously stupid- “Obama has a deep seated hatred for white culture”- to the pathetically hysterical: “Once, Mr. President, once — deny Marxism, communism, revolutionaries! Tell us you are against all of this!” His crying seems less convincing every time he does it while his claims of compassion ring hollow after hearing his often gleeful callousness.
Ultimately, his greatest attraction, his showmanship, repulsed me the most. After a while he starts to come across like a quasi con motivational speaker. In fact the person he is most reminiscent is, strangely enough, Jeremy Kyle. They share the same intense speaking style -the only difference is that instead of berating some poor ‘pikey’ for impregnating his mother-in-law, he heckles unions, “the political elites” and the left for their part taking America “toward socialism, totalitarianism, beyond your wildest dreams”.
But how have liberals and the left responded to this unexpected opposition? The Obama Administration’s reaction has been typically timid and has often resembled appeasement. Nowadays though, Obama’s policies cannot be equated with the reaction of the left of centre as a whole especially after his commitment to compromise disillusioned many of his base while increased unemployment and his decreased popularity leaked away his political capital. Strangely after the Tea Party plagiarised the left’s fondness for rallies and grassroots action things seem to have come full circle with the Left now taking inspiration from the Tea Party. One needs to look no further than the name of “Coffee Party USA” and to the “One Nation Rally” held, like the rally held by Beck, in Washington D.C. to see liberals trying to reclaim their traditional fighting ground.
However, perhaps most notable has been the response of American comedians Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. Stewart is known for hugely popular political show “The Daily Show” and Colbert for his satirical ultra-conservative persona. In this vein they have pulled a satirical masterstroke. In seeming imitation of Beck’s “Rally to Restore Honour” - the comic duo held their “Rally to Restore Sanity”. The two comedians staged mock battle throughout the rally, Stewart preaching reasonableness while Colbert demanded that fear is retained in national politics. In one memorable moment Stewart and Colbert fought through the appearance of live musicians- Stewart supporting Yusuf Islam’s “Peace Train” and Colbert retorting with Ozzy Osborne’s “Crazy Train” before both settled on a rendition of “Love Train” by The O’Jay’s.
It would be misleading however, to portray this as the anti-Beck rally or one simply to help the Democrats who are on the verge of annihilation in the upcoming Mid-Term elections which decide control of Congress and the Senate. While the largely liberal make-up of the audience and support of organisations such as the left-leaning website The Huffington Post make any claim to total impartiality ring rather hollow, Stewart went to great lengths to criticise both left and right for outrageous hyperbole. He condemned both those who cannot tell terrorists and Muslims apart as well as the lazy caricature of the tea partiers simply being racists. Eventually he turned on the media who have provided him with comedy fodder for years citing their sensationalism as damaging to America. His conclusions that “we live now in hard times, not end times” and we can have “animus, and not be enemies” adequately sums up the meaning of the rally.
Ultimately, it is an attitude that is sorely needed as America enters another election battle.
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