The world is slowing down again

The world is slowing down again, after the sprint from Thanksgiving.  This time I’m sure it’s not just me:  no cars on the way downtown today, even though there were traffic jams on the Beltway.  I hope it helps the economy.

Here is my quick assessment of where things stand as we head into Christmas/New Year:

• Sudan:  independence referendum is on track for January 9-15.  People (read “people in the know, more or less, whom I’ve talked to”) seem confident the North will accept the results.  Still no agreement on Abyei, which could be lost to the South, or on the many post-referendum issues (oil, citizenship, debt, border demarcation, etc.), which will be negotiated in the six-month transition period.
• Iraq:  Maliki met the 30-day deadline by presenting his ministers to parliament Tuesday, with some temporary placeholders in important national security slots.  No one but me seems happy with the motley crew, but now let’s see if they can govern effectively.
• Afghanistan:  President Karzai objects to the September parliamentary election results, which returned fewer of his favorites than he would like, but has agreed that parliament will meet January 20.  We’ll see.  The Obama Administration strategy review was little more than a sham–we’re in this war until 2014, when VP Biden says we’re out come hell or high water.
• Palestine/Israel: no more hang up on the settlement freeze, which Washington abandoned.  Both parties are pursuing their “Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement”:  Israel is building, Palestine has received a spate of recognitions.
• Koreas:  After indulging in an artillery barrage against a South Korean island, North Korea has turned down the volume, but there is no real progress on the issues.
• Iran:  Ahmedinejad fired his foreign minister and brought in the MIT-educated atomic energy chief, who knows his stuff.  Sanctions are biting and the regime is abolishing subsidies to cope.  Americans and Europeans hope rising gasoline prices will generate popular pressure on the regime.  Little sign of that so far.  Next P5+1 meeting in late January.
• Lebanon: bracing for the Special Tribunal verdict (still!), with Tehran backing Hizbollah in denouncing the whole process.
• Egypt: voted in unfree and unfair elections that won’t even do much good for President Mubarak.
• Balkans:  Kosovo elections marred by ballot stuffing, causing reruns in some municipalities January 9.  A Swiss opponent of Kosovo independence accused Prime Minister Thaci of heinous crimes.  Montenegrin PM Djukanovic resigned, Croatia arrested its own former PM, Bosnia is having trouble forming a government.  Mladic of course still at large.
• Burma:  Aung San Suu Kyi still moving cautiously.  I guess when you’ve been under house arrest that long a bit of caution is in order.

The earth was spinning pretty fast for President Obama until today.  He got a big new stimulus package (in the guise of tax cuts), repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (if you don’t know what that is, don’t ask and I won’t tell), ratification of New START (that’s when you have too many nuclear weapons and need an agreement with Russia to allow you to get rid of some while giving in to upgrading others), food safety regulation, and health benefits as well as compensation for the 9/11 rescue and cleanup crews.  Former New York City Mayor Giuliani, probably frightened they would hand the $4.2 billion bill to him, was notably off in Paris promoting an Iranian group that has made its way onto the U.S. government list of terrorist organizations.

The president lost two battles:  a few of the rich get to keep a lot of money even though the government needs it more than they do, and kids brought illegally to the U.S. through no fault of their own don’t get to stay just because they want to go to college or serve in the armed forces.  I guess you can tell whose side I’m on.