General Lord Dannatt at Armed Forces Day in Southend, 2009. Picture: OssieTT
Afghan strategy
Nearly five years into our major operation in southern Afghanistan, and with bin Laden now dead, British forces are in the best position yet. We now have the right levels of manpower, good equipment and a sound strategy. Afghanistan will never be democratic in the western sense, but it now has the chance to stand on its own feet. We are on the verge of winning “hearts and minds.”
The winning strategy will be an Afghan one—and progressively, it is becoming an Afghan-led operation. We have helped; now they are stepping up to the mark. We must see this through—not just for the security of Afghans but for us all. Although it is tempting to start reducing our military effort for domestic political reasons, the wider prize of a more secure and safer world is worth the continued investment of troops and cash, until the progress achieved is irreversible.
General Richard Dannatt Former Chief of the General Staff
Peak car
James Crabtree (May) asks if we have reached “peak car.” In a sense, I hope so. Most drivers are not really interested in cars; they see them as a convenient solution to a need. As other solutions appear, driving will become more of a hobby. Take motorcycles: ownership has declined dramatically, but the owners are a fraternity of motorcycle lovers riding over-specified machinery as a form of escapism. I’ve owned a motorcycle for 10 years which has covered only 4,000 miles. I’ve always used it in accordance with a maxim bequeathed to me by the late LJK Setright: “never ride your motorcycle because you have to, only ever ride it because you want to.” That, I believe, is the future of driving. We will do less of it, but we will enjoy it a lot more.
James May Presenter of BBC’s Top Gear
Lessons from Libya
Anthony Loyd (May) makes a compelling case for pessimism about Libya’s revolution. As I argued in Prospect (December), Cameron has persistently oversold his reforms to our national security machinery, which really amount to “a tinkering and rebadging exercise.” In the first few weeks of the Libyan crisis, the lack of strategy, coherence, and “grip” was obvious. At that stage, what mattered was that Cameron seemed to be winning the international argument. Now, what matters is who is winning on the ground. Time to look again not only at our defence and foreign policy, but also our national security machinery.
Matt Cavanagh Former Downing Street defence adviser
Sarko’s war
Tim King (May) is right that Sarkozy is hoping Libya will push more mundane domestic issues from French voters’ minds. But even after the arrest of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Sarkozy’s chances of success look thin. Polls suggest his prime minister and foreign minister are both more popular 2012 presidential candidates. The fifth republic executive system was built by de Gaulle to provide a long-term framework for national policy—yet Sarkozy acts as though he has a short-term election to win every month, with little or no long-term game plan. Whatever the rights and wrongs of trying to unseat Gaddafi, the venture is unlikely to be the electoral tonic that the Falklands was for Thatcher.
Jonathan Fenby Author, “The General: Charles de Gaulle and the France he Saved”
Assad should be frozen out
The Syrian response to peaceful dissent is among the worst we have seen during the Arab Spring. The international community should judge the regime collectively. We cannot force President Assad from power, but we can say that he has, in our view, lost his legitimacy and now represents an obstacle to reforms that will take Syria forward.
Ann Clwyd MP Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Human Rights
On lying
Julian Baggini (May) might reflect that the idea of lying takes on different meaning in different cultures. In Mexico, where I live, deceit permeates the whole society. No one believes a word politicians say; the police are to be avoided; teachers claim non-existent academic levels without a blink; lying, deceit and gossip are central to telenovelas. Even the language doesn’t help. Instead of saying: “I missed the plane” you say: “the plane left me behind.” Isn’t that brilliant?
Rosalind Pearson Via the Prospect website
Euro failings
The problems of Greece, Portugal and the other troubled countries in the eurozone are not going to go away. These economies remain uncompetitive thanks to the high value of the euro and their inability to print and borrow their way out of it. The eurozone lacks proper transfer payments and an agreed way to print extra money, and is at a loss to know what to do about the very different lending rates that now apply to the good and bad performers within the zone. The EU’s answer will be the transfer of more economic governance powers from member states to the centre. But in the meantime, there will be rows over how much of the adjustment is made by bondholders losing money and by the richer states guaranteeing, lending and paying more. Doubtless there will compromises as they seek to muddle through; the future does not bode well.
John Redwood MP (Con) House of Commons
A lot of hot air
Rather than relying on generalisations such as “there is still a lot of conventional oil,” Dieter Helm (April) should have presented data: how much oil and gas there is, what kind of technical progress has been made, and how long these fuels will remain cheap enough for general use. He also failed to mention the full cost of extracting gas and oil from shale and sands, not only financially, but in terms of the energy required. According to some estimates, up to two-thirds of the energy in gas and oil is lost in retrieval and processing. Gas is a premium fuel which is far too good to be used for electricity production. It should be reserved for industrial and domestic applications, or where there are no suitable alternatives.
John Gamlin Chartered engineer, Suffolk
Portal into the future?
Sam Leith (May) is right that Portal reinvigorated the videogame industry, artfully demonstrating how the unique relationship between player and game can create a narrative experience not emulated in any other medium. Undoubtedly, this has made developers notice that story and characterisation are worth investing in. It may not have thrown open the door to the cobweb-filled cupboard that most jobbing games writers are kept in, but it certainly opened it a crack and allowed some light in.
Rhianna Pratchett Writer and narrative designer
Flash fish
Edward Docx’s lush account of the recent surge in tropical fishkeeping (April) ignores the toll on fish and their ecosystems. Tropical fish must be caught as they cannot be bred in captivity. Many species have been overfished, an activity that remains largely unregulated. Cyanide is often used to make them easier to net, and coral reefs are frequently damaged in the process.
Sara Pascoe Bournemouth
The virtues of slow politics
Andy Burnham’s letter (April) about the ideology underlying Tory public sector reforms needs an important gloss. In 2007, Cameron promised to end the “hysterical” permanent revolution in public service and avoid indulging in “big bang reforms.” He praised “the virtues of slow politics,” saying the pace would “be less legislative, more about devolution and more about social responsibility. We are going to have a very clear plan for how we take it forward in those early months and years.” So why did he forget those excellent promises?
Ron Glatter Professor of educational administration and management, Open University
A question of morals
Simon Blackburn (April) fails to address basic questions about morality. If reality is just matter and energy that has conjured itself into being from nothing, why do we form concepts of good and evil? Where does free will come from? If it is an illusion, we are absolved from all moral responsibility other than for the sake of expediency—and the consequences do not bear thinking about.
John Sears Hitchin, Hertfordshire
Breathalyse binge drunks
Jamie Bartlett (May) is right that the best cure for the tiny minority of binge drinkers is firmer punishment. But for a punishment to be respected, and thus effective, it must be fair, proportional and consistent. This is very difficult with the current “drunk and disorderly” charge. To avoid arbitrary or capricious sentencing, why not follow the motoring example and breathalyse binge drunks?
Andrew James Abingdon
If I Ruled...?
Reality does nothing to affect the wilfully blind. After the failed communist experiment there are still Marxists. After the failed Enlightenment experiment there are still those who exalt reason. Richard Dawkins (no rules) and Niall Ferguson (no authorities) appear to be among them.
Jim Severance Loganville, US
Have your say
Email letters@prospect-magazine.co.uk
Afghan strategy
Nearly five years into our major operation in southern Afghanistan, and with bin Laden now dead, British forces are in the best position yet. We now have the right levels of manpower, good equipment and a sound strategy. Afghanistan will never be democratic in the western sense, but it now has the chance to stand on its own feet. We are on the verge of winning “hearts and minds.”
The winning strategy will be an Afghan one—and progressively, it is becoming an Afghan-led operation. We have helped; now they are stepping up to the mark. We must see this through—not just for the security of Afghans but for us all. Although it is tempting to start reducing our military effort for domestic political reasons, the wider prize of a more secure and safer world is worth the continued investment of troops and cash, until the progress achieved is irreversible.
General Richard Dannatt Former Chief of the General Staff
Peak car
James Crabtree (May) asks if we have reached “peak car.” In a sense, I hope so. Most drivers are not really interested in cars; they see them as a convenient solution to a need. As other solutions appear, driving will become more of a hobby. Take motorcycles: ownership has declined dramatically, but the owners are a fraternity of motorcycle lovers riding over-specified machinery as a form of escapism. I’ve owned a motorcycle for 10 years which has covered only 4,000 miles. I’ve always used it in accordance with a maxim bequeathed to me by the late LJK Setright: “never ride your motorcycle because you have to, only ever ride it because you want to.” That, I believe, is the future of driving. We will do less of it, but we will enjoy it a lot more.
James May Presenter of BBC’s Top Gear
Lessons from Libya
Anthony Loyd (May) makes a compelling case for pessimism about Libya’s revolution. As I argued in Prospect (December), Cameron has persistently oversold his reforms to our national security machinery, which really amount to “a tinkering and rebadging exercise.” In the first few weeks of the Libyan crisis, the lack of strategy, coherence, and “grip” was obvious. At that stage, what mattered was that Cameron seemed to be winning the international argument. Now, what matters is who is winning on the ground. Time to look again not only at our defence and foreign policy, but also our national security machinery.
Matt Cavanagh Former Downing Street defence adviser
Sarko’s war
Tim King (May) is right that Sarkozy is hoping Libya will push more mundane domestic issues from French voters’ minds. But even after the arrest of Dominique Strauss-Kahn, Sarkozy’s chances of success look thin. Polls suggest his prime minister and foreign minister are both more popular 2012 presidential candidates. The fifth republic executive system was built by de Gaulle to provide a long-term framework for national policy—yet Sarkozy acts as though he has a short-term election to win every month, with little or no long-term game plan. Whatever the rights and wrongs of trying to unseat Gaddafi, the venture is unlikely to be the electoral tonic that the Falklands was for Thatcher.
Jonathan Fenby Author, “The General: Charles de Gaulle and the France he Saved”
Assad should be frozen out
The Syrian response to peaceful dissent is among the worst we have seen during the Arab Spring. The international community should judge the regime collectively. We cannot force President Assad from power, but we can say that he has, in our view, lost his legitimacy and now represents an obstacle to reforms that will take Syria forward.
Ann Clwyd MP Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Human Rights
On lying
Julian Baggini (May) might reflect that the idea of lying takes on different meaning in different cultures. In Mexico, where I live, deceit permeates the whole society. No one believes a word politicians say; the police are to be avoided; teachers claim non-existent academic levels without a blink; lying, deceit and gossip are central to telenovelas. Even the language doesn’t help. Instead of saying: “I missed the plane” you say: “the plane left me behind.” Isn’t that brilliant?
Rosalind Pearson Via the Prospect website
Euro failings
The problems of Greece, Portugal and the other troubled countries in the eurozone are not going to go away. These economies remain uncompetitive thanks to the high value of the euro and their inability to print and borrow their way out of it. The eurozone lacks proper transfer payments and an agreed way to print extra money, and is at a loss to know what to do about the very different lending rates that now apply to the good and bad performers within the zone. The EU’s answer will be the transfer of more economic governance powers from member states to the centre. But in the meantime, there will be rows over how much of the adjustment is made by bondholders losing money and by the richer states guaranteeing, lending and paying more. Doubtless there will compromises as they seek to muddle through; the future does not bode well.
John Redwood MP (Con) House of Commons
A lot of hot air
Rather than relying on generalisations such as “there is still a lot of conventional oil,” Dieter Helm (April) should have presented data: how much oil and gas there is, what kind of technical progress has been made, and how long these fuels will remain cheap enough for general use. He also failed to mention the full cost of extracting gas and oil from shale and sands, not only financially, but in terms of the energy required. According to some estimates, up to two-thirds of the energy in gas and oil is lost in retrieval and processing. Gas is a premium fuel which is far too good to be used for electricity production. It should be reserved for industrial and domestic applications, or where there are no suitable alternatives.
John Gamlin Chartered engineer, Suffolk
Portal into the future?
Sam Leith (May) is right that Portal reinvigorated the videogame industry, artfully demonstrating how the unique relationship between player and game can create a narrative experience not emulated in any other medium. Undoubtedly, this has made developers notice that story and characterisation are worth investing in. It may not have thrown open the door to the cobweb-filled cupboard that most jobbing games writers are kept in, but it certainly opened it a crack and allowed some light in.
Rhianna Pratchett Writer and narrative designer
Flash fish
Edward Docx’s lush account of the recent surge in tropical fishkeeping (April) ignores the toll on fish and their ecosystems. Tropical fish must be caught as they cannot be bred in captivity. Many species have been overfished, an activity that remains largely unregulated. Cyanide is often used to make them easier to net, and coral reefs are frequently damaged in the process.
Sara Pascoe Bournemouth
The virtues of slow politics
Andy Burnham’s letter (April) about the ideology underlying Tory public sector reforms needs an important gloss. In 2007, Cameron promised to end the “hysterical” permanent revolution in public service and avoid indulging in “big bang reforms.” He praised “the virtues of slow politics,” saying the pace would “be less legislative, more about devolution and more about social responsibility. We are going to have a very clear plan for how we take it forward in those early months and years.” So why did he forget those excellent promises?
Ron Glatter Professor of educational administration and management, Open University
A question of morals
Simon Blackburn (April) fails to address basic questions about morality. If reality is just matter and energy that has conjured itself into being from nothing, why do we form concepts of good and evil? Where does free will come from? If it is an illusion, we are absolved from all moral responsibility other than for the sake of expediency—and the consequences do not bear thinking about.
John Sears Hitchin, Hertfordshire
Breathalyse binge drunks
Jamie Bartlett (May) is right that the best cure for the tiny minority of binge drinkers is firmer punishment. But for a punishment to be respected, and thus effective, it must be fair, proportional and consistent. This is very difficult with the current “drunk and disorderly” charge. To avoid arbitrary or capricious sentencing, why not follow the motoring example and breathalyse binge drunks?
Andrew James Abingdon
If I Ruled...?
Reality does nothing to affect the wilfully blind. After the failed communist experiment there are still Marxists. After the failed Enlightenment experiment there are still those who exalt reason. Richard Dawkins (no rules) and Niall Ferguson (no authorities) appear to be among them.
Jim Severance Loganville, US
Have your say
Email letters@prospect-magazine.co.uk
