An essay by historian Paul Johnson in Forbes Magazine highlights the pitiful quality of Western leaders .
At the very top we have a sad bunch of flawed mediocrities.
The world is groaning beneath a mountain of debt, but that's not the real problem. History shows repeatedly that debt can quickly be paid off once confidence is restored and men and women set to work with a will. But for that to happen we must have trust in those who lead us.
Trust is missing. We do not trust--and with good reason--either our elected leaders or the corporate elite who constitute the top echelons of society. Seldom in modern history has the lack of trust, now verging on contempt, been so deep, universal and comprehensive.At the very top we have a sad bunch of flawed mediocrities
--President Barack Obama. To quote Benjamin Disraeli, "A sophisticated rhetorician, inebriated with the exuberance of his own verbosity." If only he would talk less, and think more.
-Chancellor Angela Merkel. A well-meaning hausfrau with the steely will of a dishcloth.
--President Nicolas Sarkozy. An operator who is clever at everything except what matters most.
--Prime Minister Gordon Brown. A machine politician whose own machinery is visibly breaking down.
--Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. A splendid advertisement for Viagra, a man whose antics would have afforded us much amusement in a time of normal prosperity.
Of course as an Aussie I would have to add Kevin (Blah blah) Rudd to the list although he could give mediocrity a bad name!
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