Saturday, November 21, 2015

A New Plot Point.


Jeff—Saturday

I think I’m becoming even more Greek in my thinking. Why?  Because conspiracy theories are the life’s blood of the blame game in Greece, and I’m just about convinced there’s a vast one out there armed against me.  Armed in the sense of land-mining my path toward completing my new book and exploding my plot points into realities faster than I can write them.


All of which is driving me toward searching out “far-fetched” scenarios, ones that may not come to pass for at least a year—after the new book comes out.

But, then again, who knows what shape our world will be in by then?  Rhetoric will be white hot in the US because of our Presidential election, and Congressional inaction even more so for the same reason.  Most significant, though, will be how the world has come around to dealing with its rapidly metastasizing terrorist cancers.


The horrors in Paris of a week ago Friday seem to have galvanized thought into action. But we’ve seen that before, and seen, too, how governments can quickly waste such a unifying opportunity through myopic self-interest and capitulating to internal political pressures.

That is precisely how our enemies have come to rely upon us to behave, while they stay focused their long view game for achieving their global goals.  For example, I hear a lot of commentators saying these days that ISIS is a gang, recruiting members the same as do US street gangs by making the marginalized in their neighborhoods feel they are part of something that will embrace and protect them. But for ISIS that neighborhood is the worldwide social media network.


It makes sense, but the question is what is the world going to do about it? Simply determining the root cause of a problem does not mean it will be resolved.  Not by a long shot.  Someone has to step up and do something about it.

And while on the subject of “doing something about it,” since the whole world has apparently long known that ISIS finances much of its operations via its “tanker pipeline” trucking across Syria into Iraq and Turkey, why did it take until now (the Russians) to make those tankers and ISIS’s other oil assets a primary target of air strikes?


There are a lot of questions out there to be answered.  And, hopefully, lessons learned.

Sensibly, none of the questions appear to be blaming Greece for whatever part transit across its borders may have played in terrorists reaching Paris.  No sane thinking person could have missed that possibility when Europe left a bankrupt country to fend virtually for itself managing a historically unprecedented flood of migrants to its shores.


My guess is Greece is about to get a lot more assistance on that score.  In the week before 11/13, a lot of tough talk came out of Europe accompanying demands upon Greece to adopt Europe’s strict terms as a condition for securing promised bailout funds for itself and recapitalizing its banks. This week European resistance evaporated, and Greece and its banks will get their money.  Sadly, it looks like it took the horrors of Paris and Beirut to remind Europe of just how important it is to have a stabile Greece in its very shaky Mediterranean basin neighborhood.

But that’s another plot point.


—Jeff

12 comments:

  1. Unfortunately, the U.S. is not the only place where people have short memories. This issue ties in with the issue that AmA was discussing on Monday, regarding caring about strangers vs. caring only for those close to you. In this case, too many people have trouble keeping their attention on anything other than their day-to-day lives for very long. Sad, but too often true.

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    1. Speaking of short memories, someone said the US should decide how it would respond if a similar attack to what happened in Paris were to occur in Washington DC or NYC-- and take that action NOW, not wait until something happens.

      That sounds logical, except both places have been attacked before, and our response was to go after the wrong target. Which brings me back to wondering what's going to happen next... and when.

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  2. J, I think we in the USA are particularly vulnerable to stupid thinking because we are in the midst of a presidential political race. Too many people are vying for a job that is above their I-MQ (Intelligence-Morality Quotient), in the fight for airtime, their tactic is to create dramatic and simplistic sound bites. Their "ideas" muddy the waters to completely opaque.

    So I suggest, as a plot device, that you set your story against the background of a Greek election where party leaders are saying a lot of drivel that may attract voters but has nothing to what is sane or possible.

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    1. That plot line is a classic Greek tragedy. It's what gave the current Prime Minister's party three general election wins (one a referendum) so far this year!

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    2. The problem with Annamaria's suggestion is that EVERY election is like that. There has to be a totally unpredictable twist. People actually see through the rhetoric? Nah, it has to be believable too...

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  3. Well as you know, we have a credible voice now in Mr Corbyn ( who put in his expenses for being Labour leader - a new ink cartridge for his printer, I kid you not . The next day Cameron ordered his ten million pound jet) His 'violence is not the answer', 'life is a life' and 'do not take revenge in anger' approach is getting him vilified by the right wing media. I know his voice means nothing on the big stage, but it is very refreshing to hear. His detractors find him difficult to argue against, because he is so sensible. So Jeff, is that a likely character for your new book? But as I said to Annamaria, you can't have him!

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    1. I'll trade you Bernie Sanders even-steven. And you can keep the ink cartridge. We want to keep Ben Carson though, because every time someone says, "It doesn't take a brain surgeon," he reminds us of the many permutations of that idiom...hmm may I borrow a "t"?

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  4. Wow. "Even Steven" that's one for the golden oldies. Makes me smile through the tears of too much drama. Wondering if you know who first said 'you cannot buy a Greek, but you can rent one' ? Maybe ambassador Bob Keeley who knew his Greek and Greeks to the bones. And loved them, as much as we do.

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    1. I honestly don't know who said it, but he probably did so anonymously. :)

      Sadly, Robert Keeley passed away this year, he truly was a friend of Greece.

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    2. I honestly don't know who said it, but he probably did so anonymously. :)

      Sadly, Robert Keeley passed away this year, he truly was a friend of Greece.

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  5. Did I hear Bernie Sanders? A 74-year-old New York Jewish Socialist? He must be a relative.

    Am glad the money came through for Greece, which is acting humanely and compassionately to the immigrants, unlike wealthier countries which are acting with bigotry and hostility. Good for Greece!

    And on titles, as Kittling Books raises, why not, "Slaying in Santorini." A little alliteration, not morbid really.

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    1. I think he has distant relative who used to be in the chicken business. But today is all about Turkeys, so Happy Thanksgiving, Kathy D!

      As for the title, Slaving on Santorini would be a better description of my current state. :)

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