As Europe Moves Forward, America Drifts Downward

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Maybe the United States really is the world's most dysfunctional democracy.

For the last 18 months, Americans dismayed by the follies in Washington have been able to console themselves with this thought: At least it's worse in Europe. But now, it seems to be better in Europe, and it's getting hard to find any other country that makes America look good.

[See 11 things wrong with Congress.]

The recent deal to forgive some of Greece's debt and move toward an ultimate resolution of Europe's wider financial problems came after numerous incremental moves that everybody knew fell far short of what was needed. It defies the expectations of many professional investors, who girded for the worst. The euro zone, after all, is comprised of 17 nations, each with its own convoluted politics and egomaniacal leaders. There's no centralized fiscal authority, and the European Central Bank has had feet of clay compared to the aggressive moves of our own Federal Reserve. There were farcical moments when demands from tiny nations like Finland and Slovakia seemed likely to scotch a deal. In Italy, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has been dealing with his nation's debt crisis one day and his own personal sex scandals the next. Wringing tough decisions out of this quarrelsome crowd seemed a task beyond the most gifted statesman.

Yet European leaders have managed to subordinate their parochial concerns to a deeper common interest. The Greek deal is far from perfect and it could still unravel. It doesn't do anything, for example, to stoke growth in big, stagnant economies like those in Italy or Spain, a perennial problem that still hamstrings the overall European economy. And there remains a huge disparity between the rich nations of northern Europe and poorer ones to the south, which will continue to cause political friction over who should bear the cost of painful reforms.

But the deal pushes Europe over a critical threshold because it will finally require banks holding Greek debt—mostly in France and Germany—to accept significant losses on their troubled investments. The 50 percent "haircut" borne by Greek bondholders will reduce Greece's overall debt to a more manageable level and give some breathing room to a besieged government that's been forcing harsh austerity measures on its citizens. Europe will also beef up a bailout fund—similar to the U.S. TARP program in 2008—that will help to recapitalize troubled banks and prevent a widespread bank run. While imperfect, the deal shows new political resolve that should boost confidence in Europe's ability to solve problems.

[See why America's credit rating could fall again.]

Americans can only look on this with envy. Washington's debt problems aren't as severe as those in Europe—yet—but members of Congress, so far, seem more inclined to dither and parry than to put their nation on sounder financial footing. President Obama, for his part, has treated debt reduction as an afterthought, with his own plan for addressing the problem coming way too late to count as leadership.

The debt deal reached over the summer fell far short of the $4 trillion in debt reduction budget watchers--and the markets--felt was necessary. The last-second brinksmanship also showed a willingness among some prominent politicians to risk damage to the nation's economy in pursuit of their own political goals. Washington's reckless behavior alarmed investors, caused the first-ever cut in the nation's credit rating, depressed the stock markets, and pushed consumer confidence down to levels last seen during the worst moments of the 2009 recession.

As a consolation prize, the summer debt deal also created a 12-person congressional "supercommittee" that's now trying to come up with another $1.5 trillion in debt reduction by the end of November. Not surprisingly, its proceedings so far have been rancorous. Bloomberg reports that the supercommittee "remains at an impasse," with the odds of failure rising.

[See how the debt fiasco damaged the economy.]

That may be premature, since deals on highly contentious issues tend to coalesce toward the very end of negotiations, when maneuvering room runs out. Yet there's good reason to expect failure. All six Republicans on the panel have signed tax activist Grover Norquist's pledge to oppose any increase in business or personal income taxes. And the six Democrats on the panel are unlikely to agree to big spending cuts if tax hikes are off the table. So negotiations began with seemingly intractable positions that will prevent compromise, and the amount of debt reduction needed is far too large for marginal maneuvers or accounting gimmicks to do the trick.

Business leaders are more disgusted with Washington than ever, with many of them now viewing political ineptitude as the biggest risk to the economy. Merrill Lynch recently told its clients that the supercommittee will probably fail, which will trigger a fresh shock to the economy, including further downgrades of the U.S. credit rating. Meanwhile, just 13 percent of Americans approve of the job Congress is doing, an all-time low.

[See how Greece has outperformed Washington.]

If the supercommittee fulfills the nation's low expectations and produces a hollow outcome, automatic spending cuts will kick in, a pathetic scenario that would promptly reduce GDP growth and kill any hope of political solutions from Washington. Within six months, the United States would probably have a lower credit rating that France, Germany, the U.K., Canada, Singapore, and a dozen other top-rated nations. At some point, investors may decide to park their cash in newly resurgent euros instead of dollars, which would drive up U.S. interest rates and Uncle Sam's borrowing costs. Those kinds of developments would make a new recession more likely and prolong a period of stagnation that's already forcing down American living standards.

Maybe then, American politicians will ask their European counterparts for advice on how to get something done. And for once, listen.

Twitter: @rickjnewman

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BlackBerry outages continued to North America

NEW YORK sporadic failures of messaging and e-Mail Service distributed in the United States and Canada on Wednesday, as problems in stretched third day for Europe, Asia, Latin America and Africa.

Research in motion Ltd., the Canadian company that, the phones makes users in America "Delays in intermittent services today morning to experience", said, and said that it works to resolve the issue.

Bell Canada spokesman Mark Langton said some BlackBerry users who were affected on all Canadian carriers.

Overseas, began angrily leave the problems Monday, many BlackBerry owners. On Tuesday RIM said an important link in the infrastructure had not succeeded, and a backup not work one of the two. It said that it is now working through a backlog to get traffic.

[Rick Newman: why the era of free stuff ends]

The failure of the service, the longest in many years suffer added RIM. The company is fighting with slowing sales and a tablet, which was a dud. Its shares are a five year deep approach.

In the United Arab Emirates, the two largest telephone companies said she would compensate for their BlackBerry users for the breakdown, by one them at least three days of free service. Matthew Willsher, chief marketing officer of Etisalat, the country of the largest Telecom, said that to act in response to the "exceptional and unforeseen circumstances."

In contrast to other handset makers RIM handles email and messaging traffic to and from their mobile phones. That allows, providing services to the other phones have, can optimize data service and provide excellent security. But when it occurs a problem, a large part of the 70 million BlackBerry can be affected worldwide at once subscribers. BlackBerry outages are usually several times a year occur, but they last usually less than a day.

[See editorial month.]

One of the major attractions of the BlackBerry is the BlackBerry Messenger or BBM, that functions like text messaging, but not additional fees incurred. This service has been affected by the outage, and everything worse for RIM, Apple Inc is software Wednesday the share for their iPhones that works like BBM. Competition from Apple is one of the most important causes of RIM diminishing assets.

RIM shares dropped 42 cents, or 1.7 percent to $23.99 morning trade in New York as major indexes rose.

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Why America Should Pay Attention to Egypt's Elections

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Anyone frustrated with the current state of American politics should look to recent electoral troubles in Egypt for some comparison. The Egyptian people—represented by potentially more than a hundred political parties—hope to participate in the country's first legitimate, democratic elections in decades, an endeavor proving to be increasingly contentious in the aftermath of the nation's historic revolution.

While Egypt's presidential elections won't take place until at least next year, the country's parliamentary elections are scheduled to start on November 28. Both in process and outcome, those elections will be vital for Egypt's future. Not only will they decide who's in charge of drafting a new constitution following the fall of a longtime ruler, former President Hosni Mubarek; the elections will also weigh heavily on the future of U.S. relations with Egypt, which has been an important strategic ally in the Middle East region.

[See political cartoons on the Middle East uprisings.]

"Egypt is a country that matters significantly. It has a disproportionate impact on the future of the broader Middle East, so we certainly have an interest in having Egypt as an ally of the United States and continuing to have that relationship," says Ohio Republican Rep. Steve Chabot, chairman of the House Subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia. "The outcome of the election is important, and we should look at it very closely."

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta visited Egypt on Tuesday, the latest outreach from top U.S. administration officials to Egypt's current military rulers, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces or SCAF, which will oversee the elections before presumably handing control back to civilians. While careful to stay out of the politics, the Obama administration has been vocal with Egypt's military leaders in promoting free, transparent, and fair elections, which experts say is the first step in preserving American interests in the region. Though beyond messaging, American policymakers are also looking ahead to determine how they can retain influence in Egypt if—and likely when—certain groups like the Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist organization, gain power.

The $1.3 billion in foreign military aid is perhaps the strongest card that the United States can play in guiding a sound electoral process. Several members of Congress have proposed withholding aid should the upcoming elections not meet certain standards of transparency. The Senate's State Department appropriations bill for 2012, which passed through committee last month, for example, includes a contingency that "funds further the national interests of both countries," and that the Egyptian government holds "free and fair elections" and implements "policies to protect due process and freedoms of expression and association.""The Egyptian people have made themselves clear, and Egypt's military leaders have agreed, about the need for Democratic elections and other basic freedoms," said Vermont Democratic Sen. Patrick Leahy, who chairs the subcommittee responsible for the bill, in a statement. "Going forward, the days of blank checks are over, and it is in the mutual interest of the Egyptian people and the United States to reinforce these rights as conditions for our aid."

The Obama administration, however, has vowed to try to convince Congress to protect Egypt's aid. Last week, after meeting with Egypt's foreign minister, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton emphasized the administration's commitment. "We are against conditionality," she said. "We believe that the long-standing relationship between the United States and Egypt is of paramount importance to both of us. We support the democratic transition, and we don't want to do anything that in any way draws into question our relationship or our support."

[See photos of the Obamas abroad.]

Americans and other nations have put pressure on Egypt's military to allow international monitoring of the elections. According to the latest agreement between political parties and the military, as reported by the Wall Street Journal, foreign entities will be allowed to "view and follow" the elections, but the more involved election "monitoring" will still be prohibited to protect Egypt's sovereignty.

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Will Gingrich's 'Contract with America' for 2012 Beat Cain's Plan, Romney's?

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Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich is the latest Man With the Plan in the 2012 GOP contest. Today, he submitted his "21st Century Contract with America" to join former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney's 59-point jobs plan and former Godfather's Pizza magnate Herman Cain's 999 economic plan as the latest attempt to differentiate a candidate as the one with the idea to best take the nation into the future.

The electorate is "so concerned about the long-term direction of this economy, they want someone who they think can fix it," says Republican pollster David Winston, who worked for Gingrich when he was speaker. He says the candidates are asking themselves, "What's that compelling idea that says to the electorate: You should be president?" he explains. "I think that's what [Gingrich] would like to be able to present; I think that's what all the Republican candidates would ultimately like to present."

[Political cartoons on the 2012 GOP candidates.]

The plan is 26 pages detailing how Gingrich would repeal and replace the healthcare overhaul law he calls Obamacare, cut taxes and reform the Federal Reserve, tap into America's natural energy resources, reform entitlements, loosen regulations, give more power to the states, and more.

Gingrich's original 1994 Contract with America helped earn the Republicans a majority in Congress, but will the new plan from the candidate with a "smartest man in the room" reputation make the difference?

Winston says, "We'll see."

Republican strategist Luis Alvarado of Los Angeles-based Latino Political Consulting doesn't think it will. "I am quite certain that it is a very well-thought-out, good plan," he says, "but I don't think it's going to be enough to bring him back to contention."

[Is Newt Gingrich 2012 Campaign Back on Upswing?]

Alvarado says Gingrich tends to come across as too academic. "We already have one president who is academic, that is Barack Obama," he says. "The last thing we want is another academic in the White House, and that's the way the party sees him. He's too intellectual, too academic."

The plan is already getting support from Tea Party Nation founder Judson Phillips, who came out in support of Gingrich earlier this week. Phillips likes the plan's framework, but his favorite part is a line at the end that suggests Gingrich plans to ask state and local leaders for advice in hashing out the details. "That's kind of a novel idea from one of our leaders or somebody who wants to be a leader actually listening to us," he says. "As opposed to most of the time just sitting around, letting us talk, and then going off and doing whatever else they want to do."

Gingrich campaign spokesman R.C. Hammond is confident in the plan, and believes his candidate is "offering big leadership with big solutions that are on a scale that no other campaign or candidate dares to match," he says. Hammond describes the plan not as an end in itself, but as "the beginning of a year-long conversation about what the next president [meaning Gingrich] will do to lead the country," he says, adding that Gingrich would "probably be the first president in history known as 'President Newt' instead of 'President Last Name.'"

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America marks the 10th anniversary of the 9/11.

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America marks ten years since 9/11.

NEW YORK - Americans gather Sunday to pray at cathedrals in their cities and to wear roses before positions of fire in their smaller cities, remembering the worst terrorist attacks on American soil.

Around the world, many others will do something similar as so changed for them that day, too.

Ten years arrived from 3 000 were killed at the hands of a global terror network terrorists crashed planes diverted in the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and a fourth plane crashed in a field in rural Western Pennsylvania.

Sunday, church bells will toll. Americans will see new memorials at the bottom of Manhattan, rural Pennsylvania and elsewhere, symbols of a determination to retain and to rebuild.

But much of the weight of the ceremonies of this year lies in what is largely implied. The role of the anniversary is in prompting Americans to examine how affected attacks them and the rest of the world and the prosecution are trying to include 9/11 place in the history of the nation.

""Many of the passwords in the background,"said Ken Foote, author of" shadowed ground: landscapes of Violence and tragedy, America "examines the role the veneration of the sites of the death and disaster in modern life.".These anniversaries are particularly critical in what story to tell, that this all ways to find. It requires people to understand what happened to us. »

Saturday in the West of rural Pennsylvania, more than 4000 people have begun to tell the story again.

At the inauguration of the National Memorial to Flight 93 near the town of Shanksville, former Presidents George w. Bush and Bill Clinton and Vice President Joe Biden joined the families of the 40 passengers and crewmembers aboard the Jet that counter against the hijackers.

"The time where American democracy was attacked that our citizens challenging their captors by organizing a vote", Bush said. Their choice the cost of their lives.

Passengers and crew gave "across the country countless gift: they saved the Capitol of attack," an amount countless lives and denied al-Qaida the symbolic victory of the "smashing the Centre of the US Government", said Clinton.

They were "ordinary people given no time to decide and they did the right thing", he said.

"And 2 500 years, I hope and pray to God that people will still remember this.".

The Memorial Park in Pennsylvania is age of completion. But the consecration and a service to mark the 10th anniversary of the attacks are the essential milestones, said Sally Ware, one of the volunteers "ambassadors" who works as a guide on the site since the disaster.

Ware, whose home was rocked when the aircraft crashed two miles away, recalled how hundreds of people flocked to the site in the days later to leave their own memories and memorials. She started volunteering after finding an along the road - a red rose placed at the top of the uniform of the edge.

"It really annoyed me.". "I thought that someone has to deal with this," said Ware, whose daughter is flight attendant.

Now, a decade later, she said that the Memorial can do little to relieve the pain of the families of those who died in the accident.

But the weekend ceremonies reminds me of a story with a much broader scope. Ceremonies to honor those who "fought the first battle against terrorism, and they have won," Ware said. "It is one thing, I don't want to miss." It became a part of my life. »

Sunday, the focus turns to ceremonies in the Pentagon just outside Washington, D.C. and in lower Manhattan for the inauguration of the Memorial on 11 September. President Barack Obama planned to attend events on sites and was to speak to a service on Sunday evening at the Kennedy Center.

The New York ceremony begins at 08: 30, with a moment of silence 16 minutes later - which coincides with the exact time when the first tower of the trade center was hit by a hijacked plane.

And then, one by one, the reading of the names of the 2 977 killed September 11 in New York, the Pentagon and rural Pennsylvania.

And therefore arrived one Sunday dedicated to remembrance, with hundreds of ceremonies across the country and around the world: for a memorial mass at the Cathedral of St. Patrick in New York in a ceremony featuring nine-stories-tall replica of the twin towers on an esplanade in Paris.

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Remembering 9/11: flags painted on the roofs across America

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