Events, Deah Boy!

Back in the fifties when Harold MacMillan was prime minister of Great Britain, someone asked him what would determine the success of his tenure. "Events, deah boy,"  he replied, in his richest Oxford accent, which in this country is known as Long Island Lockjaw.

And of course he was right. At this moment we have in America several major events pending, the return of some troops from Afghanistan, the Republican and Democratic conventions, the continuation of the Bush tax cuts, raising the debt ceiling, and so on. Will there be an Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear bomb making facilities, or some move against Syria? The timing is really bad for such matters, but that's the way the cookies crumble.

Our national discourse these days is only a step away from brawling. Congressmen call the president a liar and raise money as a result of their rudeness, or they state with impunity that dozens of Democrats are actually Communists. Others say the President is not even an American citizen and should be impeached!Still others call for the resignation of the Attorney General and claim that liberty will die in America if the president is re-elected. Against this background, a ship sunk or an attempted assassination of any person with name recognition might have powerful and unimaginable consequences.Literally anything is possible today and that's why I don't think anyone knows what might throw the election one way or another. We have created a toxic environment almost anyone can use for mischief and mischief at the wrong time can sway voters. Sliming your opponent pays, lying and misrepresenting facts is as normal as apple pie and it those tactics fail, go after spouses, children, anyone with ties to your enemy.

If things get any worse, let's just sit down for a moment and have a spot of tea.