Rick´s News

Are we finally nearing the end of this sickening example of modern day imperialism?  Putin` s so called special military operation has lasted longer than the Soviet Union` s war against Nazi Germany between 1941 and 1945 and things aren´ t going too well to say the least.

From a cocky, ” don´ t forget to pack your parade uniforms for the victory parade in Kiev,” some four years ago to an unsustainable war footing barely coping with everything Ukraine is dishing out. The dramatically long list of Russian dead and wounded on the front, the burning oil refineries disrupting much needed income to finance the war, the neutered Black Sea fleet but most important of all the sudden awareness in a world looking on that Russia can longer win this war.

Question a Ukrainian why they are fighting and the answer would not surprisingly be, ”because they invaded us,”  at the same time fully aware of the fact that the existential threat to Ukraine is leaving them with very little choice. Former Prime minister of Finland, Sanna Marin, summed it up nicely. ”If Russia stops there is no war, if Ukraine stops there is no Ukraine.”

Russian answers to that same question would bring forth a Kremlin inspired kaleidoscope of reasons consisting of excuses, propaganda, nationalistic hogwash, rewritten history, authoritarian angst etc. etc. all with a relevant intensity depending on who you were asking and when during the last four years the question was asked. A great patriotic war this is not or at least not Russia’ s despite Putin’ s attempts to portray it as such.

Shutting down the internet to keep Russians from seeing what the world sees wont help. The country that was once described as, ”a gas station dressed up as a nation,” has literally and metaphorically run out of fuel. 

In just over three months Swedish polls open for both national and local elections.  In contrast to the United States where the mid terms seem to have been on everbody`s lips since at least you know who` s first 100 days in office, the election date here is generating as much excitement as a hairdresser` s appointment. Makes me think of something someone said to me on a visit to Israel many years ago: ”Sweden` s problem is that it has no problems.” A fascinating mix of condescension and envy yet in essence not entirely untrue if viewed in comparison with many other countries. 

Since then much has happened in this staunchly monarchistic, strictly neutral, homogeneous so called ”folkhem” (home for the people) once much inclined to shame the rest of the world with its somewhat irritating holier than thou diplomacy. The world has now caught up with Sweden or maybe it` s the other way around.

In November 2021, shortly before Russia` s invasion of Ukraine, Sweden` s then minister for defence stated that the country would never become a member of Nato on his watch. He was right of course as his party, the Social Democrats, lost the election exatly one year later but not before applying for membership of Nato, a process then completed by the newly elected conservative coalition government. 

No longer neutral and no longer homogeneous; the general consensus being that the former has solved a miltary no mates problem whereas the latter has led to  an upheaval of the ”folkhem” where large scale immigration from non european countries, although solving a number of workforce problems, has been overshadowed by some ugly side effects. 

From being a country where forgetting to lock your front door would have been more irritating than stressful to a country where gangland violence is making an indelible mark on Swedish society. Absolute fodder for your common or garden racists suddenly finding something to excuse themselves with. The deplorables, in Hilary Clinton` s words, find themselves on a political gravy train with everbody nodding in agreement that something has to be done. 

Indeed much has been done and successfully so but not without hitches. Fast track legislation on requirements for citizenship, permanent residence permits and other immigrant related issues, in some cases retroactive, has led to a flurry of deportation cases.  Not as one might expect, solely of criminals or people unwilling to integrate but of considerable numbers of immigrants who are clearly fully integrated including language fluency and jobs. Some having grown up in Sweden and knowing no other home. 

Even the Sweden Democrats, who might be considered the political wing of the deplorables found themselves forced into agreeing to a legislative review as public opinion made it clear that this was just a step too far.

In this day of everybody hates America I think a moment` s reflection might be in order.

From the world war two days of ”overpaid, oversexed and over here” to the present day POTUS, the period spanning some 85 years has seen many shifts in the way Europeans see America. From the common prejudices such as forever swilling coca cola, bragging in a loud voice, driving an ostentatious car, believing everything coming out of Hollywood, wearing a Stetson, lacking culture and class, not being able to place most European capitals on a map etc. etc. etc. to an acceptance that the United State´ s Marshal Plan of 1948 was crucial in the rebuilding of western Europe thus laying the foundations for much of Europe` s current prosperity.

Nato chief Mark Rutte` s much criticised reference to Trump as ”Daddy” was not so much an acknowlegement of Trump as it was of a role defining western European nations ’ post war relations with the United States.

Most of us (Europeans) were aware that geopolitical proximity to America ensured our safety at a low cost with military dependence seen as a price worth paying. The UK made well use of the special relationship ”ointment” easing the post-war pain of not only losing an empire but having one of its former colonies calling the shots. 

Well into Trump’ s second term of ”Make America Great Again” the US is ironically enough no longer calling the shots as one Nato ally after another is making it crystal clear that they are not playing along. Trump has given a voice to that other America with rhetoric and politics reminiscent of the above mentioned prejudices. ”Red neck” USA would be more risible than scary were it not for America` s tech billionaires taking sides. 

It is said money cannot buy class but infamy is always for sale.

Although I suspect that Hollywood has much to answer for when it comes to the way many Americans see themselves it would seem that most of us are lesser swayed by any swashbuckling bravado the American film industry has to offer whether fact or fiction other than in the context of entertainment. Heroes coming out on the winning side against all odds and ending up in a tearful/joyful finale, the underlying sentiment being it was all worth it would go a long way in capturing the gist of many films. Squirm inspiring happy ending scenes are two a penny leaving an odd taste even after a really good film. Necessary of course for `feel good effects and box office figures.

In real life a wannabe Dirty Harry has now taken on the Mullahs in Iran for the sake of all God fearing Christians and MAGA are wetting themselves in excitement that their hero, otherwise in no way reminiscent of Clint Eastwood`s role character excepting the epiteth, is showing the world what Americans are made of or perhaps more painfully so, what they at present are not made of.

Surprise, surprise! Up shit creek in a barbed-wire canoe without a paddle is a fair description of the situation in the Strait of Hormuz. Someone needs to rewrite the script. 

Hey there Congress it’s on you, go ahead and make my day.

One of many definitions concerning an otherwise rather amusing idiom reads as such: ”The idiom knuckle-dragger is a derogatory term often used to describe someone perceived as unintelligent, uncivilized, or primitive. It invokes the image of a person who is so unsophisticated that they walk hunched over, dragging their knuckles on the ground, akin to some primates.” 

The above is then followed by a warning as to why one should be careful in its use. In short comparing people to monkeys is never a good look with often undesired consequences. Undoubtedly so when using the term as a noun but when used as an adjective describing behaviour rather than a person it becomes less offensive and far more to the point. 

Knuckle-dragger behaviour and political populism are two sides of the same coin and appear to be the Achilles’ heel of affluent western democracy. One side seeing the world in black or white with simple solutions to everything and the other side fully aware of, yet ignoring life` s complexities and claiming to have all the solutions.  In symbiosis they become a political power to be reckoned with where the void surrounding flag worship, a common denominator, is filled with xenophobia and general hatred of the ”different.”

Going down this road never ends well as recent history tells us. Anything from economic misery for a generation to geopolitical chaos or in a worst case scenario a highway to authoritarianism. 

On the bright side it is all very educational.

”It is said that everything is just a little bit more of everything in America and I understand the sentiment,” was an earlier comment of mine. View my remark as facetious or factual, the United States has had more clout on the planet than any other country since the heyday of the British Empire. 

The British Empire was just one example of european imperialism and, for better or worse, the values of the time. Exporting civilization and culture steeped in thousands of years of history can however never condone the exploitation and misery Britain and other european countries brought to the far corners of the globe, yet is a fact nevertheless.  Somewhere along the line imperialism went out of fashion whether due to a change of mind or a change of opportunity, with the latter affecting the former being the most likely scenario.

Catherine the Great wannabe: Putin has proved himself to be less than fashion conscious by instigating an invasion of Ukraine in a futile attempt to resurrect the contours of the Russian/Soviet empire. Russia is paying a heavy price for one man’s  megalomanic degeneracy and only time will tell how far Russia’s  journey towards insignificance goes.

The Orange Superlative: One year into the Trump administration and we are presented with the makings of a new emperor. Elevating America’s big to bigly and better to best, ”probably the biggest and best you have ever seen,” as he claims responsibilty for just about everything excepting the disaster both in real time and impending that he has brought to the once United States. Cold and calculating are the least usable adjectives when describing Trump’s erratic politics of repetitive u-turns. If he were my uncle I would have had him commited long ago unless of course he was making me rich.

Winnie the Pooh: Don’t let looks fool you, it’s Xi the cold and calculating dragon under the outfit. Cold and calculating being at present stabilizing qualities to be appreciated in the nutty world of Maga and Mir, protecting the planet not from evil but from any eventually devastating irrationalities (read nuclear) the other two clowns might come up with.

And so to Little Bear: the EU that strikes fear into them all. A fear that autocrats have shared for centuries, a fear of the people, a people with a voice who will not suffer the strong feathering their nests at the expense of the weak, who will not suffer the subjugation of other countries, who insist on the rule of law and equity before it. Once just a bundle of war torn countries now an organisation based on diversity, strong enough to have been recognized as a threat by the enemies of democracy.  The step from common economic to include common military strength has been recognised as unavoidable as has the necessity of adjusting the boundaries of national interest vis a vis the interests of the union. The path to federalism has yet to be staked out although considering that the world order we have lived with since 1945 has ended up in the trash can, it would seem only to be a matter of time. 

Wishing all of you who stand by Ukraine and her fight for freedom and democracy, a prosperous and successful New Year.

”You die twice when your name is mentioned for the last time, ” is a saying that I recently stumbled across.  This profound reflection on mortality and legacy has me becoming aware of a certain privilege invested in me. 

Having lived for the better part of a hundred years there are of course a large number of people in my acquaintance who are no longer with us, including some who have been dead for many years. My memory of most of these has gradually disappeared into the mist of time, leaving but an outstanding few.  Outstanding as in remarkable, no matter the reason.  Needless to say I am not inclined to speak badly of the dead and leave the assignment of prolonging the immortality of a person responsible for a negative impact on my life to someone with better things to say. 

Nor do I see the need to highlight those with a legacy beyond anything that I could meaningfully contribute to. My father Jürgen would be an example of this, his celebrity status as a German film director/actor  forever enshrined on the internet not to mention his place in the annals of the family`  s history dating back to the 12th Century.

In an earlier text I made mention of my primary school teacher at Abel Smith Primary School in Hertford, Mrs. Ramage and I think I should add Mr. Mileham, a teacher at Crawley College of Further Education both of whom sowed the seeds of lifelong inspiration. Mr. Mileham at one point even suggested I apply to Oxford. To this day I am flattered but a little unsure if that was not just a little over the top.

Undoubtedly two of the most influential people in my early years were my maternal grandparents, Alfred Sagebiel and his wife Elisabeth, née Hausmann.  Opa, being his title since 1947 was a retired inspector of taxes who had served as a quartemaster in the Imperial German Army of the first world war and Oma was a housewife.  Between them they offered me the heritage I would otherwise have been deprived of, in the form of a loving home during my summer holidays.  Exclusively German in language and tradition with a distinct penultimate generational bias.  I am their only grandchild and with no other contemporary relatives still alive,  the only person left to ensure they do not die twice, at least for now.

Question: ”When is an ass not an ass?”  Answer: ”When its an arse.”

In the English speaking world arse and ass are both used to describe a mammal’ s posterior or at times figuratively speaking, the rear end of an object. Either one is also widely used as a derogatory term for someone considered stupid, despicable or simply evil.  Prefixed with the word stupid or some other suitable adjective both for emphasis and clarity and the meaning hones in to underline just that. 

There is of course a difference between calling a person ”a stupid ass” or ”a stupid arse”  and as such easily identified by the way they are pronounced differently, in British English that is. The former is a kinder, more forgiving expression for someone acting like a donkey which is in fact what an ass is. The latter is cruder and a lot less polite with its reference to the buttocks.

I suspect there is little distinction between arse and ass in spoken American English even when it comes to the usage of  their somewhat more offensive cousins, asshole or its British equivalent arsehole;  thus tarring evil and stupid with the same brush.

Undoubtedly the world has a large number of ass-arseholes but British English has the grace to separate the stupid asses from the evil arses.

Enough of American politics for now.

When I first moved to Sweden and for roughly a year or so I found myself more or less cut off from ”the latest news.”  My Swedish, although improving daily and despite everyone wanting to speak English with me, was a long way from being TV or radio news adequate. In order to avoid total media isolation I therefore arranged for a weekly collection of The Daily Telegraph to be sent to me. This arrangement would nowadays be considered more akin to catching up on history rather than news. No smart phones, no Ipads, no computers, no internet, no Facebook, no emails, no SMS messages, no WhatsApp, no Instagram etc, etc. The one telephone I used at home was connected to the wall by a not very long cable. For my grandchildren`  s   generation the above must come across as an unthinkable nightmare. All in all I might agree that much has changed for the better since the days of my youth although I wouldn` t subscribe to the nightmare sentiment.

Progress always involves change which is not necessarily the case the other way around, although even progress has its thorns.

The world has shrunk, we are closer to one another than ever before. Newspaper headlines have been upstaged by the internet and social media where on occasion the timelapse between event and report is so minute that we as bystanders become part of the event wherever that event may have occured or however horrific. Today`  s young people do not share the snail mail innocence of my youth. They are subjected to the brutal realities of life on their smartphones as the traditional filters of yesteryear in the form of parents, school teachers and main stream media are left on the sidelines.