Ruminations, March 1, 2009

Mission Accomplished

President Obama proclaimed on February 28, 2009, mission accomplished in Iraq. Well, maybe in not so many words but he did say this in a speech to Marines at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina:

"We sent our troops to Iraq to do away with Saddam Hussein's regime — and you got the job done. We kept our troops in Iraq to help establish a sovereign government — and you got the job done. And we will leave the Iraqi people with a hard-earned opportunity to live a better life — that is your achievement; that is the prospect that you have made possible."

Although he didn’t use the exact words, it sure sounds an awful lot like “mission accomplished” to me. And, if we accomplished our mission in Iraq, maybe February 28 should be a holiday.

Let’s celebrate!

Next to God …

Some years ago, a Franciscan priest from St. Bonaventure University told me a story that went something like this:

A priest held a press conference in which he announced that he was leaving the Catholic Church. “The church has dragged its heels on ecumenism,” he said, “does not address the issues in the modern world and cannot be governed by a self-perpetuating hierarchy. And oh, by the way, Sister Margaret, my fiancée, is also leaving the Church for the same reasons.”

I was reminded of this story this week when I read about Chander Mohan, the former deputy chief minister of the Indian state of Haryana. Last December, Mohan announced that he was leaving the Hindu religion and converting to Islam. And oh, by the way, his fiancée, Anuradha Bali, was also leaving the Hindu faith and converting to Islam for the same reasons. What are the reasons? We can speculate; Under Indian law, bigamy is illegal and divorce difficult – unless you are a Muslim, in which case Sharia law applies and Sharia permits up to four wives. Since Mohan already had one wife, he couldn’t marry Bali unless he converted to Islam.

When we think of faith in the abstract, we think of its adherents as obedient to the tenets of that faith and, if necessary, setting aside worldly temptations. In the more tangible world, God often comes in second.

Messing with Joe

In his Mardi Gras speech last week, President Obama addressed those skeptical of his Stimulus Plan. “Here in Washington,” he said, “we’ve all seen how quickly good intentions can turn into broken promises and wasteful spending. And with a plan of this scale comes enormous responsibility to get it right. That is why I have asked Vice President Biden to lead a tough, unprecedented oversight effort – because nobody messes with Joe.”

Nobody messes with Joe? With all due respect, even Biden’s admirers will admit that there is a sizable contingent that considers Biden to be a buffoon. Is there a fear of messing with a buffoon? I don’t think so.

If the President were serious about bi-partisanship and serious about oversight of his plan, he would have picked former vice president Dick Cheney to oversee it. Supporters of Cheney consider him a sober and industrious person. His critics consider him to be Darth Vader – and nobody messes with Darth Vader.

The Obama stock market crash

Republican critics of President Obama point out that since Obama’s election victory, the stock market has plunged 2,300 points. Since Obama’s inauguration, it has sunk 1,200 points. Is this a fair criticism? (To be fair, the comparable period from Bush’s election in 2000 to Obama’s in 2008, the market also fell but by “only” 800 points over eight years.)

Presidents often take credit for rising stock markets and try to deflect criticism during downturns. Often, outside influences affect the market although presidential policies also have an impact. So is Obama to blame? In part maybe but there is another, and perhaps more significant actor — Congress.

According to a 2006 study by Michael Ferguson of the University of Cincinnati and Hugh Witte of the University of Missouri, over 90 percent of the Dow Jones Industrial Average gains have occurred when Congress was not is session. And we’re not talking about just the current congress; the Ferguson and Witte study goes back to 1897.

If you had one dollar to invest in 1897 and you followed the counter-intuitive of buying only when congress was in session and selling when they were not in session, in 2000, you would have $2. Not so hot. But if you followed the Ferguson-Witte formula, and bought when congress was not in session and sold when they convened, you would have $216.

The current congress has the added disadvantage of being a Democratic congress. Over the last 25 years, the market has risen by an average of 20% when the Republicans had command and 6.9% when Democrats were in charge. This makes sense because, in theory at least, the Republicans favor smaller government and lower taxes.

So, those who blame Obama and the Democratic congress have an argument. Then again, if the stock market has no effect on you, it doesn’t really matter.

Quote without comment

Sayyid Imam al-Sharif (aka Dr. Fadl) , one of the al Qaeda founders, writing in his new book, Rationalizing Jihad in Egypt and the World: "Every drop of blood that was shed or is being shed in Afghanistan and Iraq is the responsibility of bin Laden and Zawahiri and their followers."

Robert J. Kulak

West Hartford, Connecticut