The Strange Rebirth of American Leadership

DXX Rebirth source port of Descent First Strike from 1995...

DXX Rebirth source port of Descent 2 Counterstrike from 1996...

And Rick Astley's kind of rebirth these past two years ...

My aorta is fixed, I haven't got to worry about it, which is a rebirth for me.

This rebirth of grass. And then I went out for years trying to photograph the pristine landscape.

Some suggest that the SNP s accession to power in Scotland does herald the rebirth of a nation, many others regard that claim as rhetoric which ignores the tremendous advances made in the quality of life, opportunity and living standards. If the claim were true it is a rebirth that is coming about in an extraordinary way.

Secondly, in the past two decades, thanks to globalization, thanks to the market economy, thanks to the rise of a middle class, we in Turkey see what I define as a rebirth of Islamic modernism.

And I believe that the Islamic modernism which began in the 19th century, but which had a setback in the 20th century because of the political troubles of the Muslim world, is having a rebirth.

Then there is the question of the long term consequences of Al Qaeda s rebirth in the form of Sunni jihadism in Syria, Yemen, and North and East Africa. The Gulf monarchies are trying to ride this tiger militarily against Iran.

But once President Harry Truman s administration decided to rehabilitate Germany, there was no turning back. Its rebirth was underway, facilitated by the Marshall Plan, the US sponsored 1953 debt write down, and by the infusion of migrant labor from Italy, Yugoslavia, and Greece.

If the claim were true it is a rebirth that is coming about in an extraordinary way. Except for some odd and hapless individuals, there have been no underground armies, separatist terrorists, campaigns of civil disobedience aimed at unseating governments, or even any mass demonstrations.

The first moment when decisive French leadership began to unify Europe came when Robert Schuman and Konrad Adenauer created the European Coal and Steel Community. By rooting the then West Germany in the political, economic, and social fabric of the West, that step heralded the start of Germany s rebirth and economic miracle.

It is certainly time for a rebirth of public purpose and government leadership in the US to fight climate change, help the poor, promote sustainable technologies, and modernize America s infrastructure. If America realizes these bold steps through purposeful public policies, as Obama outlined, the innovative science, new technology, and powerful demonstration effects that result will benefit countries around the world.

The continent s economy, after all, has been experiencing its strongest growth in three decades, with annual GDP up by 6 in the past three years. The rebirth of Africa s private sector a critical missing ingredient in past development efforts has played a significant role in driving this performance, and it can fill the investment gap while generating returns in the process.