Exiting is Harder than it Seemed

Source: TechCrunch

Two months after the referendum ended in a vote to leave the European Union the British government still hasn't been able to set out a framework or process for achieving an exit. For a government that seems to be trying not to show its hand before negotiations it seems to be making its confusion and muddled thinking all too clear to all. Theresa May's government has so far offered the nation much needed illumination on the issue by telling us, "BrExit means BrExit" and "BrExit means leaving Europe".

During the referendum campaign a lot was made of the need to reduce migration, reallocate ER financial contributions to public services, and take back control of the legislative process. We were also regularly informed of how irrelevant the single market was in real terms. Now the vote to leave has been taken all the vocal Leave campaigners seemed to have gotten suddenly hazy about exactly what needs to be done. And no one seems in much of a hurry to kick the single market into touch. 

It is true that BrExit will now afford the UK the opportunity to negotiate its own trade deals with other trading blocs. However negotiations won't necessarily be on its own terms as it will lack leverage; and will most likely approach them with more than a faint hint of desperation. This will make any negotiations slow and attritional. Not exactly the earth shattering empowerment independence through BrExit was supposed to bring. 

There will be advantages for domestic manufacturers supplying goods within the UK as the costs of importation are likely to go up making their produce more competitive. It is also possible there might be import restrictions which will benefit them. They will face higher revenue costs for importing capital and materials. But those businesses that export into the EU will very likely see the imposition duties and restrictions which will adversely affect their businesses. 

Farmers are anxiously awaiting news on what will happen to agricultural subsidies. It is clear that there won't be a like for like replacement of lost EU funding. However, decisions on transitional arrangements need to start being made now. Imminent EU funding is likely to be discontinued, or at best suspended while a decision is pending on Article 51. 

However ill prepared the government is for exiting the EU there is enough knowledge about what needs to be done for it to start identifying key requirements for trading negotiations and shaping policy. The sooner the government starts to engage various sectors and identity its priorities and risks the stronger the likelihood of positive, even if meagre outcomes.

Source: www.ledóchowski.eu

The Olympic Nightmare

The Olympics motto of "citius, altius, fortius" used to send chills down my spine as a child. I always got so excited at the idea of the best of the best competing heroically just for the glory of it.

However that ideal was shattered by the revelations of Ben Johnson's use of steroids. Tales of covering up of positive drugs tests by Americans during the LA Olympics further tainted the so called Olympic ideal. The scoring system in boxing had to be changed after biased scoring by Korean judges at the Seoul Olympics. By the time professional basket players were allowed to compete in Olympic competition all hope was lost. Since then there has been evidence of corruption in the International Olympic Committee under the stewardship of Juan Antonio Samaranch, and a seemingly endless stream of failed drug tests amongst top competitors. To all intents and purposes the Olympics has become just another arena for making money by any means available.  

The IOC faced calls to ban Russia from participating in the Rio Olympics. Not surprisingly it let itself down by deciding to pass the decision on to individual Olympic associations. Russia has a long history of state sponsored doping. All the way back to the times it was actively doping athletes in conjunction with the then East Germany. That alone suggests that it will take more than a few months to clear up Russia's predilection for doping its athletes. A total ban shouldn't be seen as punishment but as a chance for Russia to finally clean itself up and allow its athletes to finally do themselves justice.

However, Russia isn't the only country to have institutionally condoned the use of performance enhancing drugs.

The use of human growth hormone and blood doping were pioneered in the United States. China has a history of organised doping. Kenya and Jamaica have had questions asked about their drug testing setups. 

The IOC has had more than enough reasons to be proactive on the issue of doping in sports. It could certainly do more to fund the research into, and administration of drug testing. It may be time to take responsibility for drugs testing away from hosting nations and compel it to be subcontracted out to an independent body or organisation. The IOC has an obligation to show that it has a zero tolerance policy with regards the use of performance enhancing drugs. It is time to consider adopting a lifetime ban for any athletes found guilty of doping. Until the IOC starts leading the way in the eradication of doping in sports the Olympic Games will embody none of the spirit of the true Olympians of ancient legend. 

Living In Fear

One of the benefits of the evolution of society was that human beings no longer had to live a brutish and short existence. They could form relationships, acquire property and provide for themselves without having to endure an unending cycle of attacks and killings. In other words, they were free to live without fear. It appears that modern day America is recreating the conditions that prevailed in prehistoric societies in Black communities. People are preyed upon by bullies and criminals, and oppressed and brutalised by the so called agents of law and order. We now have a situation where the police's failure to protect and serve the Black people in America has now placed the lives of all people in America in peril. 

The perpetrators of the shootings in Dallas are wrong and have done more harm than they can imagine. Killing police officers under the cover of a 'Black Lives Matter' march was inexcusable. However, the police in America have created an environment where any Black person must reasonably fear for their lives if stopped by the police. The escalation of police shootings of unarmed Black men combined with increased instances of Black people dying in custody hasn't yet led to any systemic change in law enforcement in America. If the establishment continues to disregard unjust killings and abuse of authority by the police then they are setting the scene for Black people to stand their ground and start fighting back. 

I deplore the shooting of police officers in Dallas but my sympathies lie with the families of Alton Sterling, Philando Castille and the five hundred other Black people who have died at the hands of the police this year. 

Black on the 4th of July

Source: NewsOne

A section of African Americans are acutely aware of the close connection between America's independence and the history of slavery. They are thus very indignant about any attempts to celebrate the 4th of July by Black people. And they have every reason to be embittered. Not only were Black people enslaved and brutalised but three centuries later they are still being oppressed and marginalised.

Source: chocolatehighhhh.tumblr.com

America's history is a tale of conflicts and hypocrisies. America claims to be the land of the free yet at various times it has enslaved or oppressed Native Americans, Africans, Latin Americans, Polynesians and various minorities. Americans are fiercely nationalistic but suffer from a strangely enduring desire to be British. The American love of sport is legendary yet it suffers from the worst incidence of obesity in the developed world. Americans swear by the second amendment but America is plagued by the highest levels of gun crime and violent deaths anywhere in the world. America is the foremost developed country in the world but it has shown year on year increases in poverty, deprivation, ill health and social marginalisation. 

It is important that African Americans not forget their history. That history is integral to the history of America. While past wounds may not be healed there are future battles to be fought. It is reasonably acceptable not to celebrate the 4th of July but Black Americans have earned their place in modern America and they have a role to play in its continuing evolution and transformation. It is important that African Americans don't become infested with the hypocrisy that inhabits American history and pervades the American psyche. It was ironic that Bill Clinton; a man responsible for drugs and penal policies that have ravaged Black American communities gave the eulogy at Muhammad Ali's funeral. 

There is still a huge amount of work to be done on building up Black enlightenment and self esteem. African America can't keep pointing the finger in one direction and yet turn its back on the poverty, crime, deprivation, under education, ill health, and lack of aspiration that has infested its neighbourhoods. It needs to learn about history while educating itself about the demands of advancing its interests locally and globally in harsh and oppressive modern times. Complacency and settling will only serve to dishonour the sacrifices of the Black people who fought for survival in an independent America.

How Safe Out?

I am not particularly well traveled across Europe. All my travel in Europe has been down to necessity rather than interest. I therefore cannot claim to be a Europhile. I am also not a big fan of the European Commission's bloated bureaucracy and widespread inefficiencies. However, I do believe that the EU plays an important role in providing a forum for collective action on issues that national governments are too partisan or weak to address. These issues include human rights, environmental protection, quotas, banking regulation, health and safety, and quality standards. 

Successive UK governments have been poor at opting in to dealing with issues of common interest. There is a danger that if given a free hand partisan and monied interests will take priority over the common good. Working together across Europe appears to be the best chance available to protect the interests of the common people, and advance developments working towards fairness and equality. 

Fantastically Foolish

David Cameron decided to break the ice with the Queen by lightheartedly making an ironic dig at global corruption, particularly in Nigeria and Afghanistan. A strange decision for a man who recently stood up in parliament to stridently defend his father's calculated tax avoidance, despite having previously publicly criticised comedian Jimmy Carr's tax avoidance arrangements. 

It is true that there is corruption in Afghanistan, much of which is down to the regime installed by the USA and Great Britain. Nigeria also has a chronic problem with corruption which is actively fed by the money laundering expertise of British banks. The corruption in these countries has been responsible for underdevelopment and systemic inefficiency. 

However, Great Britain historically and under David Cameron has not been a corruption free state. There has been the cash for questions, cash for peerages, MPs expenses, British Aerospace bribery, Libor rate rigging, mortgage payment protection, HSBC money laundering, Weat Yorkshire police, BHS pensions scandals; to name but a few. So it would appear that there is an equally fantastic amount of corruption going on in Britain itself. 

Addressing corruption in the developing world is necessary but mocking and deriding the countries does call into question how sincere Great Britain's efforts really are. It will be difficult to win the trust of people who are held in such low regard. David Cameron may point the finger at others for being corrupt but the fingers pointing right back at him suggest he has a lot of work to do to clean up corruption back at home. 

5 Reasons to Vote

A cousin of mine expressed his frustration with the state of Nigerian politics by questioning the reason for voting. He feels politicians are not there for the people and do not offer any real public service. I can see where he's coming from given the rampant corruption in public office and the absolute greed and superficiality of legislators. He seemed to think that politicians in other countries are a lot more conscientious and work harder in the public interest. 

There are a world of reasons why any eligible person should vote. I am going to explore five of them in this post

1. Choosing a government (be it the right one or the wrong one) is a duty that every citizen must undertake. Government in its true essence represents the will and power of the people. Even though this has been subverted in modern times striving to achieve it is a never ending quest. 

2. You can strive for equality and justice but it cannot be realised unless championed by a governments and lawmakers. If you don't select the the best available you can't expect those that are there to bring about a better world. 

3. Even if there are no ideal or suitable candidates in ones view, voting against the worst candidate is both a statement and act of opposition.

4. Fixing society must be done on many levels - a thought, a view, an act, a protest, or a vote. If you need to be in it to win it then casting a vote is the way you get in. 

5. Improving society is dependent on people understanding what it means to be moral and just. Good civic behaviour needs to be modelled. Not voting suggests a cynicism and lack of belief that doesn't promote the idea that it is possible to improve the world. Voting is one of the key behaviours that suggest a willingness to change things for the better and the conviction that a better world is within reach. Casting ones vote us the very essence of setting a good example. 

Voting may not always give us the government we desire but it is a declaration about the kind of government we don't want. And it is an effort towards realising what we believe good government should be.