Spare a thought for the Irish

The Celtic Tiger is no more, brought down stunningly by the 2008 global crisis. All those years of strong economic growth and sky-high housing and building prices and new construction was halted and ended, resulting in a crisis that many of Ireland's people still seem to be having difficulties understanding and getting over. Michael Lewis, Vanity Fair writer and author of The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine and The Blind Side, wrote a lengthy piece that examines the Irish crisis. It's a sad story, with Lewis showing a sympathetic side whilst also describing in definite detail how the Irish helped cause their nation's economy to implode. Unlike the US and the rampant greed and duplicity behind its notorious subprime mortgage scheme that led to the global crisis, the Irish spending was less cynical and driven by more genuine optimism. Case in point, the Irish bank executives who benefited greatly from the rise in housing purchases invested in their own firms' bonds and stocks. This isn't the same as the heads of major banks and financial institutions in the US who walked away from the crisis chastened but with tons of cash. If there are any bankers in the world who deserves a little sympathy, it should be the Irish ones. But the biggest lesson in the article is how people who saw the housing boom for what it really was and who actually spoke out were ridiculed and derided. In the end, they were right but rightly so, there's no schaudenfraude.

Arab protests in Libya

The upheavals in the Arab world have spread to Libya, with little signs of slowing down. Libya's Muammar Gaddhafi has lived up to his previously fading mad dictator reputation by having his forces gun down almost 100 protesters, the most violent state reaction in all the countries that have seen people protests against their leaders. It seems fitting that Libya should have mass protests because for far too long, Gaddhafi has stayed in power, even if he's mellowed a bit recently, and made his country a pariah. He is also one of the few, or only, African dictators in power. Bahrain, a tiny, oil-rich country in the Gulf coast, has also experienced street protests against an unpopular government, with a handful of protesters having been killed so far.

See who else is in trouble in the Arab region here. The full article takes a good look at the problems and challenges with the possible overthrow of Egypt's Hosni Mubarak for the US. One of the main points is that revolutions aren't often predictable and that sometimes what comes after is worse, no matter how bad the existing regime/dictator was, with the Iranian Revolution in 1979 being a key example.

What's up with China's relationship and role in Africa? Well, it's growing and going beyond just business, as this post and its assorted links have a more nuanced take on this issue. Going beyond the usual cries of China as a new colonizer, the linked articles, specifically a detailed report by an NGO, emphasize African nations must take more responsibility on their own part to be more accountable and assertive.

Sometime soon, Egypt's longtime leader Hosni Mubarak is probably going to step down. Things have escalated after over a week of anti-Mubarak protests in Egypt despite Mubarak trying to appease the protesters, though only in offering small, gradual steps as opposed to just stepping down right away. After revamping his Cabinet last week, Mubarak has offered to leave power in September but this is still too long for many of his citizens. However, Mubarak's supporters have stepped into the fray now, engaging in clashes with anti-Mubarak protesters that have resulted in deaths. This ongoing situation has ramifications extending beyond the country, from the possibility of continuing the recent spread of people revolutions in the Arab world, to how engaged the US should be especially given Mubarak is a staunch ally and even to how much influence people in China could take from it, prompting the authorities there to block coverage on Egypt.