What Caught My Eye Today

Saudi Arabia - One of the last absolute monarchies on earth, Saudi Arabia has been rattled by the toppling of old friends like Tunisia’s Ben Ali (now in exile in the Kingdom) and Egypt’s Mubarak (who may not be far behind in moving into a Saudi retirement home). The Saudis have no love for Libya’s Gaddafi, who tried to assassinate King Abdullah only a few years ago, but they are worried by the contagion of unrest that is rolling across North Africa and into the Arabian Peninsula. Gee, I wonder why? Not to go off on a tangent here, but just how short-sighted can Gaddafi be? He couldn't possibly have seen any upside to assassinating the Saudi king. Heck, dude should count himself lucky that he failed in his attempt. The U.S. would not have looked kindly on anyone who messed with its oil supply...I mean one of its closest and most trusted allies in the region. To date, there have only been stirrings of protest in the Sunni heartland against the Kingdom itself. But the royals are taking nothing for granted. Just a week ago, the King promised $36 billion in new jobs, pension bonuses and other hand-outs to buy off potential opposition. It never ceases to amaze me at how money (or winning) can remove, or at least suppress, any feeling of discontent. And with oil going for well in excess of $100 a barrel, it certainly appears that the House of Saud can continue with this strategy for the foreseeable future.

Gender Gap - According to the United Nations, there are far more men than women on the planet. Taking into consideration the fact that women have a longer life expectancy than men, one can only assume that men are going with quantity over quality. The gender gap is especially pronounced in Asia, where there are 100 million more guys than girls. The gap is partly explicable in terms of economics. In many Asian societies, girls are less well looked after than boys because they are economically undervalued. The kind of domestic work they typically do is seen as less important than paid work done by men. Quantity and dated stereotypes. Seeing as we're talking about men here, I guess this logic doesn't seem surprising. Stupid, but not surprising. In China, there are about 123 male children for every 100 females up to the age of 4, a far higher imbalance than 50 years ago, when the figure was 106. The question left open by economists is what the consequences will be of such a large surplus of young men. History offers a disquieting answer. Show of hands please. Who is surprised by this revelation? European imperial expansion after 1500 was the result of a male “youth bulge.” Japan’s imperial expansion after 1914 was the result of a similar youth bulge. During the Cold War, it was youth-bulge countries—Algeria, El Salvador, and Lebanon—that saw the worst civil wars and revolutions. Some historians and political scientists link the recent rise of Islamist extremism in countries like Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan to an Islamic youth bulge and warn that China and India could be the next countries to overdose on testosterone. You know what they say...boys will be boys. God help us all.

U.S. Politics (Part I) - Freshman Democratic senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va) accused President Barack Obama of failing to provide leadership on a worsening national deficit as top Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill spent more time pointing fingers than seeking common ground on a must-do measure to fund the government for the next six months. Always nice to see a little party loyalty... The freshman senator faces re-election next year in a state where voters are generally hostile to Obama. ...especially in an election year. I'm guessing Manchin doesn't have much use for the president's coat tails? Speaking of the budget... The House GOP measure makes sweeping cuts to domestic programs whose budgets are set each year by Congress. The Democratic alternative would cut spending by $11 billion from last year's levels and limit increases for the Pentagon's core military operations to just 1%. The Senate Democratic plan falls well shy of the cuts sought by Republicans but demonstrates considerable movement from where the party was last year when it sought to pass an omnibus spending bill with a price tag $30 billion higher than the current measure. There irony, is that for all the posturing by both political parties, until there is the political will to take on entitlement spending (Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security) as well as defense spending, which together comprise almost two-thirds of the U.S. budget, all this talk about reducing the federal deficit really amounts to a lot of hot air.

U.S. Politics (Part II) - The 2012 Presidential Race? You have got to be kidding me. White House hopefuls are furiously hiring staff, testing messages for the powerful conservative base of the GOP and mapping out a rough political calendar, all part of a hard-charging effort that precedes the official kickoff. Newt Gingrich is the Republican taking some of the most public first steps for a presidential bid, but he's hardly the only one in motion. Mitt Romney, Tim Pawlenty, Rick Santorum and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour are quietly preparing for possible candidacies. Jon Huntsman, Obama's ambassador to China, has a shadow campaign in place. Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels and Mike Huckabee are being conspicuously vague about their intentions. Lemme see here. Looks like a reunion tour for the 2008 GOP candidates, but it feels like I'm missing someone... Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin recently added a chief of staff to her political committee but her advisers cautioned not to take that as a sign the 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee would run for the White House in 2012. There, I think that is everyone...for now. Hard to believe the presidential election isn't until November...2012. Freaking 21 months from now!!! Don't we have anything else we can spend our time on, people?

Charlie Sheen - Nope. I'm not that desperate for talking points.