posted by Charles H. Russo on Sep 22
For the Sunday Scribblings prompt “My name is…”
My name is aspersion and I am tossed about all too frequently these days. If you dare to disagree with the current American government, it may be suggested you are unpatriotic. But true patriotism as envisioned by our forefathers involved questioning the government - not following blindly whatever direction we are led and doing whatever we are told, like sheep. The Constitution calls for a government by, of and for the people - not just a privileged few who care more about politics and making money than the country and its citizens.
In his new book, The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World, Alan Greenspan, former chairman of the Federal Reserve slams the Bush administration’s economic record. He writes that Bush ignored his advice to veto “out-of-control” bills that sent the U.S. deeper into deficit. “Little value was placed on rigorous economic policy debate or the weighing of long-term consequences,” he said of the Bush administration.
The Republicans deserved to lose control of Congress in last year’s elections, Greenspan said. He said Republicans in Congress “swapped principle for power” and “ended up with neither.”
Negative advertising and pointless exercises
Some advertising copywriter used poor judgment when writing the MoveOn.org ad that appeared last week in the New York Times and cast aspersion on the character of General Petraeus. No one believes that the general is to blame for the Bush administration’s bad decisions in conducting war in Iraq. But the US Senate was ridiculous to waste time debating resolutions censoring MoveOn for the language used in the ad.
What about all the Republican-sponsored negative print ads, casting aspersions on distinguished war veterans, just because they disagree with Bush’s policies? These advertisements are just as wrong-headed as when representatives in the run-up to war with Iraq decided to “punish” the French (for not rushing headlong into folly) by naming the House cafeteria menu “freedom fries,” rather than French fries.
On 11 March 2003, Representatives Robert W. Ney (R-Ohio) and Walter B. Jones, Jr. (R-North Carolina) declared all menu references to French fries and French toast on restaurants and snack bars run by the House of Representatives would be removed. House cafeterias were ordered to rename French fries as “freedom fries.” This action was made without a congressional vote, solely under Congressman Ney’s authority as Chairman of the Committee on House Administration, which oversees the House’s restaurant operations.
It seems our elected representatives can find time for name-calling and posturing and passing meaningless resolutions, yet little time for the things that actually matter, such as getting us out of a war and bringing our soldiers home. This week they even rejected a bill providing that our soldiers have adequate home leave between tours of duty!
The case of a missing child
My name is aspersion and I can casually ruin lives. Witness the case of the missing four-year-old Madeleine McCann, apparently kidnapped while on holiday in Portugal. After months of a convoluted Portuguese police investigation - in which the crime scene was not initially secured - suddenly the police decide to cast doubt on the child’s parents. Based on some inconclusive DNA evidence, the police have named Gerry and Kate McCann as suspects. Now both are doctors and well-respected in their home community in England. Is it not enough that they have to agonise over ways to find their missing daughter? Now they have to waste time, energy and resources defending themselves. All reports indicate the Portuguese police boggled the investigation - a police chief was even removed from the investigation - and are trying to save face by naming a suspect, any suspect.
On Wednesday it was announced that the McCanns would not, for the time being, face further questioning, after the Portuguese attorney general ruled that local police had not gathered enough evidence. Clarence Mitchell, a former BBC reporter who assisted the couple on behalf of the Foreign Office in May and June, announced he had given up his job to work as the McCanns’ spokesman, believing them “innocent victims of a heinous crime.”
Customer panic creates run on solvent bank
My name is aspersion and I can spread gossip, lies and slander in a matter of moments via the power of the worldwide web and satellite television. I can undermine reputations and create situations resulting in lawsuits. I can break up relationships and cause people to lose their jobs. I can cause people to panic and make a run on a solvent bank, causing it to verge on collapse. Northern Rock, a Newcastle-based firm, was the highest-profile UK victim of the global credit crunch, triggered by the sub-prime mortgage crisis in the U.S.
Bank of England Governor Mervyn King told Members of Parliament this week that it was “logical” for savers with more than ?33,000 to rush to take it out, after the Bank of England was forced to give emergency financial support to Northern Rock. The crisis resulted in a rush of customers at Northern Rock branches across the country queuing to withdraw savings, fearful that the business could collapse.
The Bank of England has called for more protection for customers’ savings. The current system, guaranteeing 100% of the first ?2,000 and 90% of the next ?31,000, contributed to this month’s run on Northern Rock, says the Bank.
An embattled Financial Services Authority has promised a “root and branch” review into its handling of the Northern Rock crisis, as it emerged that over the past week the Bank of England provided a ?3bn emergency line of credit to help the bank. It is the first run on a British high street bank in 150 years. On Friday, the FSA admitted “surprise” by the public’s unwillingness to believe assurances given by its chairman Sir Callum McCarthy and by the Chancellor of the Exchequer that Northern Rock was solvent.
The moral of these events? Think and think again before casting aspersions. Often aspersions are dead wrong and wreak havoc with people’s lives and businesses’ reputations.
Photo of the French flag flying at Les Coteaux train station in St. Cloud. Photo of the Red Devil on the left of Stonegate, marking the start of Coffee Yard, in which York, England’s first newspaper - with the aid of a Printer’s Devil - was printed in 1719.
parisparfait.typepad.com
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