Zakaria on "The Post-American World"

By John Ballard

Fareed Zakaria literally wrote the book and coined the term post-American. 
And he's the person best able to explain what he meant.
Today, using the second person singular, he spoke directly to Mitt Romney.
Check this out. 

Comments

[hidflect]

Didn't waste much time speaking to Newt Gingrich I noticed...

[John Ballard]

Newt is the Republican Harlequin. The rules of politics, diplomacy and etiquette govern what may and may not be said aloud, especially around royalty. But somebody has to speak them aloud in order for them to be forbidden. That's why every deck of playing cards includes a Joker.

Fools have played important parts in history and have been enshrined in literature and music. One of Shakespeare's most important characters is the Fool in King Lear (wonderfully reproduced by Akira Kurosawa in one of his films). I recall a Russian history professor explaining the role of Rasputin as an example of "God's Fools" who were the only ones who could speak aloud about topics that anyone else might be executed for mentioning. In fact, the Strauss tone poem Till Eulenspiegel celebrates such a character. The Wikipedia article has some great illustrations.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Till_Eulenspiegel

I've followed Gingrich for years since he was once my Congressman. He's smart and colorful. And as a harlequin he will be sorely missed. Or maybe not. These guys have a way of popping up in unexpected places at unexpected times.