American Views Abroad

It's time out for total hip replacement surgery. The so-called merry month of May will be devoted to learning how to walk again and to take some time off from observing the political circus and all the ill winds it brews up in wars, torture and running the nation aground. It will be time to read books again. Novels, for example, The Sorrows of an American by Siri Huvstvedt, and an interesting book sent over by a good friend in Pennsylvania, Three Cups of Tea --- One Man's Mission to Promote Peace---One School at a Time by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin, as well as Das Wochenende by Bernhard Schlink, among others.

Back in the late 70s working on an MA in England, it was perplexing hearing other Americans mock Jimmy Carter for taking time-out to think about things before making decisions. Real Americans know on the spot how to make decisions. Think about that 3am telephone call. Perhaps it would not be a bad idea for all of Washington to take some time off and get a grasp at what is really happening in the world outside.

Till sometime in June......