L'Ecosse

Je viens de passer deux semaines en Ecosse.
Le travail était trés agréable , grâce à l'équipe et à l'organisation du Ministère des Affaires Étrangères Britannique. Nous avons eu de nombreuses réceptions, dans des endroits superbes. Les excursions, que ce soit au Loch Ness, à York, ou chateau de Tantallon, nous ont montré un pays superbe, qui a su garder sa tradition, tout en s'adaptant à la mondialisation.

Le sujet de ma conférence, l'Antarctique, a été fascinant, que ce soit la découverte de ce continent mal connu, ou les études qu'on y mène sur le changement climatique.

Tout le monde (sauf les États-Unis), se passionne pour la coupe du monde de football. Mais le monde continue à tourner. Pendant que les Nord-Coréens fourbissent leurs missiles intercontinentaux, les Iraniens accélèrent leur programme nucléaire, et que l'Irak sombre dans le chaos, les français s'insultent en pleine Assemblée Nationale.
Le Tout-État français a atteint ses limites, et un des fleurons de notre industrie, EADS-Airbus est victime des rigidités du centralisme.
Le recours constant à la poche du contribuable ne suffit plus. Les grands actionnaires d'Airbus quittent l'avion en plein trou d'air.
Espèrons que l'A-380 ne rejoindra pas le France, le Concorde, le Minitel et d'autres joyaux de la couronne, mal guidés par des fonctionnaires trop rigides pour survivre à la mondialisation.

C'est tout l'enjeu de l'Europe. Soit elle saura affronter ses concurrents sur le marché, soit elle sera un joli paysage de châteaux et de pâturages.

Clouds over Europe

I am still in Old Blighty for my sins.
We had a very interesting presentation from SCAR at the Antarctic treaty convention meeting in Edinburgh. According to ice core samples, dating back 1 million years, we can see a definite spike in the global warming trend. Whereas core samples show a regular see-saw effect of warm and cold periods, roughly every 100,000 years, the latest spike is several orders of magnitude bigger. And we are in the midst of it. There is no doubt that Man has contributed to this mega-warm up since the 19th century.
During the week end I took a train trip to York, and a car trip to loch Ness. No, Nessie was not there. But I saw some wonderful landscapes in the mists of Scotland. I had not been to the Highlands since 1970.

Everywhere you go in these isles, the conversation is about the World football Cup. France is doing wretchedly, and the US seems to have redeemed themselves in extremis. As I walked the ancient Viking cobblestones of York, you could hear loud cheers coming from pubs and open windows all over town , everytime England scored.
In the parks, the King's Own celebrated the Queen's official birthday with a Royal Salute of 41 guns. At York station, the Harry Potter special steam train was waiting for its eager complement of young wizards.
Elsewhere in the news, it seems that Airbus chewed more than it could swallow with its giant A 380. And the design of its A 350, that was supposed to seal its supremacy over its dreaded Boeing 787 competition , has to be totally redone. Sic transit gloria mundi......

Meanwhile, back in the US, my new fellow Americans have a hard time digesting a new Pew Research poll, showing that they are universally loathed and reviled. Americans love to be admired. And , in a way this still young republic has a lot to offer the world. But when its citizens, out of fear, lack of information, or sheer laziness, elect an inept government and start violating its own principles, they should not be surprised if the world calls them hypocrites.
98% of all Europeans have heard of Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo. Only 76% of Americans have.I am not surprised.
What is worrisome is that most Europeans regard the US as potentially more dangerous for them than China, a military dictatorship.
Given the parlous state of their so-called Union, Europeans should not feel too much shadenfreude either. Europe is still suffering from the near-mortal blow inficted by the French and Dutch referenda. At their last summit this week end, heads of state were busy unravelling the work done in the previous 50 years. They erected new moats around the fortress, threatened prospective members with huge delays, and otherwise gave a sorry account of themselves.
Their dream of being a "model" for the world has taken a step back. The trouble is they do not seem to know it. Yet.

Edinburgh

I am now in Edinburgh, Scotland.
I had a great trip with United Airlines. Changing planes at Heathrow (LHR), is a nightmare. It took the entire 2hrs and 40 minutes layover. There are several bus rides in a maze of buildings, docks and airplane parkings. there are many lines, sorry, queues, for passport, security, and more buses. The entire Commonwealth is landing in London.
Then it is off to Edinburgh on BMI, where a mere sandwich costs 10 pounds.
Scotland was hot and sunny. The Gran Sheraton is at the foot of Edinburgh castle. The lawns were covered with sunbathers, while grave gentlemen in kilts attended outdoor concerts.

Today, back to work. I will work at the Antarctic Treaty Conference Meeting, inaugurated by the Princess Royal, who, by the way, has invited me Thursday for a bash at the castle. BYOK (bring your own kilt).
The main topics in Britain:
The death of a british soldier in Afghanistan. They blame the US.
The Home Secretary encourages victims of petty crime to stop wingeing (whining), and fight back.
And football. The papers are full of stories about which footballer girlfriend upstaged which in the WM in Germany.

Godspeed

Among the many attractions of living in Northern Virginia, is the great city of Alexandria. One of the many historical cities on the esat coast, Alexandria was established by British colonists in the 17th century and its architecture still shows the elegance of the past today. A few miles down the road from my house, past the jail where a certain Moussaoui is embarking on a long journey, you can see the Potomac river. Yesterday, given the exquisite weather, we decided to visit the Godspeed, on a temporary visit to Alexandria, on her way to Jamestown.
Back in 1607, a group of 104 English men and women set sail from England . After a four month journey, they formed a settlement on the banks of the James River : Jamestown.

Their three ships, among them the Godspeed, were very small by our standards, yet they persevered and started an adventure that is today's United States of America. Next year we will celebrate the 400th anniversary of that foundation. Jamestown is ready for the big celebration. It has even ordered new replicas of the 3 small vessels. Hence the port visit of the Godspeed on her way down the coast from her native shipyard.

And yet, by world standards, 400 years is a very short time. The church where I was baptized in Briey, France, was built in 983, on the ruins of an even older church. Its altar, a masterpiece by Ligier-Richier was already 300 years old when the Godspeed docked in Virginia.

I believe that history is a very accurate guide in world politics. The Hadditha horror, the Iraq quagmire in general, and the hubris of powerful ideologues have all happened before. The present political debacle suffered by the descendants of the 104 Virginia colonists, in the sands of Hammurabi, was entirely predictable to the historian.

Rolling Thunder

This week-end, we celebrate Memorial Day. It is like May 8 and November 11 rolled into one. Here, in the US, we do not have as many days off in May as in Europe (Ascension Day, Pentecost Day, Europe Day, May Day), which, in a good year, if strategically placed, give you practically a month off.
Here, we celebrate the fallen heroes of all wars, starting with The war between the States, or as it is called in Virginia, "the wah!"
There are many celebrations. It is the first day of official summer. All swimming pools reopen. The President, a fine warrior himself, makes a speech at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
All roads are clogged with traffic, as many, in spite of outrareous gas prices, hit the asphalt to go to the Atlantic Beaches, or the cool Blue Ridge Mountains.
The temperature has hit 90F (32C), as on cue.

But the biggest event, bigger than the obligatory backyard barbecue, is Rolling Thunder.
Back in the 80s', there were parades honoring the veterans of WWI, WWII, and Korea. In 1987, uninvited, a couple of hundred Vietnam war veterans joined the back of the parade mostly mounted on Harley Davidsons. I witnessed the event, and the acclamations that accompanied the bearded, pot-bellied riders , told me they were on to something.
Today, Vietnam vets, and their friends, converge from all over the US to the Vietnam Wall in DC. For days before the event, you hear the sweet rumble of shovelheads, and every motel in the area is surrounded by US iron.
Then, on Memorial Day Sunday, at noon, the parade of over 500,000 motorbikes starts from the Pentagon parking lot, over Memorial bridge, past the Vietnam monument and around the mall. The ride-past lasts the entire afternoon. Later, greybeard veterans dismount and descend along the black marble wall in search of their lost brother"s names. There is not a dry eye in the crowd.
Is it because we share the same generation, or because it is a day to reflect upon the inanity of war? I always feel a big knot in my throat.

Voyage éclair en Corée.

Je rentre de Corée, où je suis allé travailler la semaine dernière au congrès de la FIPA, l'association des producteurs agricoles. Heureusement ma profession me laisse des loisirs, et j'explore chaque fois des facettes nouvelles des pays où je me rends souvent.
Séoul est de plus en plus tentaculaire. Il faut plus de 3 heures d'autocar entre l'aeroport ultra moderne d'Ìnchon et le centre-ville. La circulation est intense et on ne voit pratiquement que des modèles Coréens, Kia, Daewoo, ou Hyundai, dont la plupart ne sont pas exportés.
Ce qui frappe le visiteur en Corée, c'est la jeunesse de la population. Les rues sont trés animées, et, les trés nombreux magasins attirent des foules impressionantes. La marotte, actuellement, est d'envoyer des messages SMS et c'est comique de voir toute une population marcher les yeux rivés sur de minuscules portables. Dans le Metro, ils regardent des feuilletons tv, payent leurs factures ou lisent la presse sur les mêmes appareils.

La Corée allie 6000 ans d'histoire à une vitalité économique fermement tournée vers la mondialisation dont elle est un des grands gagnants. A son heure de gloire, au Moyen Age, la Corée avait inventé l'mprimerie 200 ans avant Gutenberg. Devastée par la guerre de Corée , son niveau de vie était inférieur à celui du Ghana en 1954! Aujord'hui, 10ème puissance industrielle du globe, le pays est sur une dynamique qui va lui faire dépasser l'Europe sous peu, surtout vu la jeunesse du pays et l'absence de chômage.
La ville est doublée d'une ville souterraine de centres commerciaux. Ce labyrinthe avait été construit pour servir d'abri en cas d'attaques de la Corée du Nord, toute proche, l'état de guerre étant toujours en vigueur. Jusqu'en 1988, au moment des jeux Olympiques , la sirène retentissait à midi tous les jeudis et toute la population, circulation comprise, descendait aux abris.
Il est vrai que la ligne de démarcation n'est située qu'à 30km. La visite de la DMZ à Panmunjon est d'ailleurs trés intéressante et reste aussi tendue qu'ìl y a 50 ans. J'ai refait cette visite l'année dernière et , bien que les troupes US s'y fassent plus rares, cela rappelle en tous points le mur qui séparait les deux Allemagnes.
C'est bien là la raison pour laquelle les USA ne peuvent rien entreprendre contre Pyongyang. En cas de conflit, il faudrait quelques minutes aux Nord-Coréens pour incinérer Séoul!

Seoul, Korea.

I am now in Seoul, Korea, for the IFAP congress.
It is a meeting of farmers associations from around the world. Their main topic at this meeting is to discuss their situation after the WTO Doha round is completed. This meeting dovetailed nicely with the French Congressmen visit I accompanied last month in Washington on the same subject. It appears that the US will not move from their offer to reduce tariffs by 60% if the EU does not enlarge its market access. The EU is unwilling to move, ie. to reform the CAP any further since it just went through a very painful reform, valid until 2013. Doha is doomed. This means that further liberalization of exchanges is frozen, a huge brake is applied to world trade and the rest of the world is going to pay.
It was also my umpteenth trip to the "Land of the Morning Calm". By magic, nobody here talks about Jacques Chirac's latest Clearstream scandal, nor about GWB's dismal show in the polls. Koreans are busy working from dawn to dusk. Their capital of 14 million, is a beehive. traffic jams, of mostly new vehicles, are monstrous. A subway ride from A to B, might take hours, such are the distances.
There are a few demonstrations, mostly anti-US. The American presence is very discreet. Gone are the hordes of GIs walking the sidewalk of Itaewon with a young korean girl at their side. US military presence is down to a mere 35,000, mostly redeployed in the south of the country.

Korea is a land of contrast. Leaders in research, automobile, shipyards, and education, they are now turning their sight towards nanotecnology, medicine, and space.

The most intriguing sight on the streets of Seoul? 90% of the population walks like zombies, their eyes on their cellphones, constantly reading and sending SMS messages!