Arthur I. Cyr's blog

Barack Obama has been elected President of the United States by a clear majority of the popular vote by 52 to 46 percent and a sweep of the Electoral College. A freshman United States Senator, he is also by the way the first African-American to be nominated by a major party as well as elected to the White House.

The October 2 Vice Presidential debate at Washington University in St. Louis between Sen. Joe Biden, D.-Delaware, and Gov. Sarah Palin, R.-Alaska provided neither a draw nor a knockout, but rather revealed strengths of each candidate.

The extended Wall Street turmoil resulting from the housing and subprime lending crisis contains major challenges, reinforced by the current media propensity for scare headlines and alarmist editorials.

Journalist and author Bob Woodward’s new book ‘The War Within’ provides informative insights concerning the United States military occupation of Iraq, not least because of his remarkable access to very senior officials of the Bush administration. Earlier books include ‘State of Denial’, ‘Plan of Attack’ and ‘Bush at War’.

Republican presidential and vice-presidential nominees Sen. John McCain of Arizona and Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska have largely succeeded in generating enthusiasm among Republican faithful at the St. Paul, Minn. Convention. To win this fall, they must promote a vision that will be persuasive with the electorate as a whole.

Sen. John McCain’s choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his vice-presidential running mate guaranteed headlines and likely greater public interest in the Republican national convention, which opened Monday September 1 in Minneapolis-St. Paul Minnesota.

Published Financial Times July 18, 2008

July 13, 2008

Letters
Financial Times
One Southwark Bridge
London SE1 9HL
England – United Kingdom

Sir,

The big news just before the August 25 kick-off of the Democratic convention in Denver Colorado has been the selection of Sen. Joe Biden of Delaware as the vice-presidential running mate of presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois.

Georgia now is very much on our mind, including the Bush White House along with the wider United Nations community. The blunt, brutal and so far very effective Russian military invasion of that country, in response to Georgian intervention the breakaway province of South Ossetia, has created a major international crisis.

The China Olympics and the classic film “Chinatown” may seem to have nothing in common beyond the name of a major nation, but there is an association with direct implications for the international community. Current Congressional movement on the Great Lakes Compact is a catalyst which joins the two topics.