Recently, I had the opportunity to travel through the UK and the US for almost a month. Needless to say Great Britain and America cannot be compared in economic or political prowess because the latter literally dominates the world.
Yet a factor common to both is the loss of direction. There is no vision. Both President Obama and Prime Minister Cameron exude confidence when they talk to the press or the people. Nevertheless, one can see that their words are predicated by many ifs and buts and most conclusions are generally wishful thinking.
Both countries are supposed to be coming out of recession. Yet America primarily depends on China and Great Britain has targeted India. President Obama is coming to India in November to assess if New Delhi could fit in somewhere in Washington’s efforts to avoid another recession. Prime Minister Cameron was recently in India and reports say that he has been able to persuade Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to use British technology and services more than India has done so far. More businessmen and industrialists accompanied Prime Minister Cameron to India than to America.
Whether President Obama and Prime Minister Cameron are doing their best to stall another round of recession is difficult to say because their critics feel that their countries have been so reckless in the past — having no supervision on any financial institution — that D-Day can be postponed but not avoided.
However, I saw America doing a bit better than it was a few months ago. More customers are visiting shops, which are relatively full of goods (made in China). But unemployment is more than nine per cent and the dole itself is a heavy burden on the exchequer. Prices of houses have generally come down by 50 to 60 per cent.
The UK has been able to save the pound from going down further. This may have happened because of a successful tourist season. Customers in shops have not yet come back in the numbers they did a couple of years ago. Many industrial units have stopped because of lack of demand. Yet the impression is that the efforts that Prime Minister Cameron is making through visits abroad, particularly to India, will pay dividends sooner or later. People have expectations of India’s growth which is eight per cent.
London is looking to the European Union, hoping that countries like Spain and Portugal will be saved like Greece, which narrowly avoided bankruptcy earlier this year. But if this calculation does not come through, Britain thinks that it may be next to face the danger. Germany is not liked because it has put a different foot forward and does not want to involve itself outside, despite the distress calls from other European partners.
India is being respected and wooed like never before. Prime Minister Cameron even went to the extent of condemning Pakistan on Indian soil. President Asif Zardari visited London soon after Cameron’s remarks but the latter did not offer any apology. What London hopes for now is that in return New Delhi opens up its markets to British exports. England has already responded with more lenient visa procedures for Indians. However, America has not relaxed its visa policy to benefit India or South Asia. In fact, Washington’s security at airports is humiliating.
Obama’s recognition of India is apparent from the number of people of Indian origin he has appointed in the White House. They total more than any other ethnic community. Sadly, America is not willing to give up on the use of carbon. The world expected Washington to agree to cap green house gases but it is clear that this may not happen. Legislators are abandoning the effort to approve an energy/climate bill that would have paved the way for renewable energy.
It’s a pity that the West, which has already consumed a substantial part of the world’s natural resources, has still not woken up to the devastation it has caused. The developing world will have to exert collective pressure on America; the UK and European countries must stop plundering whatever is left. India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka have been badly hit by climate change. The devastating floods in Pakistan are a recent example.
What I missed both in America and the UK was the liberal thought that once attracted intellectuals and others to look towards Washington and London. It is true that 9/11 and subsequent terrorist attacks in the UK have scared people. Still, I hoped that there would be some individuals or organisations raising their voice against shrinking political space and personal freedoms.
Muslims are the main suspects in both countries and what they undergo is a slur on democratic liberty. I thought the permission by the New York City Council to build an Islamic cultural centre near the 9/11 site was worth commending. But the manner in which even President Obama has gone back on his words of religious equality indicates the lengthening shadows of parochialism in America.
Liberal voices, both in the public and the media, can retrieve the situation to some extent. But the fact is that even those people who feel that democracy is being deformed and mutilated do not speak out. Protests have become fewer, feeble and all too respectful of the establishment. Famous universities, which once raised the banner of defiance, are busy with meaningless curricula and looking out for ways to collect more and more money.
I am not expecting Prof Laski or John Kenneth Galbraith to rise from their graves. But I expect those who remember their sane, liberal and moderate voices to take a stand against the narrowness and parochialism which is consuming whatever is left of free thinking. Who else will fight the encroaching darkness?
