Charlie Rose

Charles  08/12/2008 02:19 PM Report

The words "Failed States" are spoken as if there are "Success States." It seems all are relative.

We can present the United States as a shining success, which it rightfully is. But most will agree, that while the US is a shining example of democracy, freedom, industry, technology, education, and super power status, we are still imperfect. For those for whom we are still imperfect (for example, the impoverished, uninsured, the disempowered, and those who are "against us"), can we say that we have succeeded?

Lockhart gives the American South as one example of a "Success States" but it is the same South that replaced slavery with forms of indentured servitude through World War II, and Jim Crow through the 1960s, and in some quarters and in some ways still lives racism.

And she says that the most important factor is leadership. What can we say of our current leadership? It's a big failure.

So to talk about "Failed States" and "Success States" is... myopic: The existence of one nomenclature alleges the existence of the other.

I think we can still focus on studying best practices around the world and creating channels whereby differing peoples can learn from each other.

Development aid/international cooperation can focus on creating the conditions which empower the broadest number of people to learn, import best practices, and to improve themselves economically.

It shouldn't focus on a handful of elites, unless we want to make a lot of money for the consultants and the leaders. Well, I didn't read any of Lockhart's books. It's just that this interview didn't seem to be going anywhere meaningful.

John   08/07/2008 08:57 AM Report

@Sockpocket- states are merely instruments of those who rule, and those who rule seek to use the power of the state for their own purposes. That's why its hard to find any states that are free of corruption. Good luck finding virtuous leaders, better to find countries were leaders are constrained

As for the interview-

She's makes a few good points. The problem in Afghanistan is largely economic. The narco-traffic industry needs to be replaced with a more sustainable agricultural system.

That said, her conceptualization of failed states seems a bit off and confusing. What she calls failed states were really states with the resources to do well. Singapore was one of the most developed colonies at indepedence and sat on one of the busiest sea lanes in the world. The US South was one of the most economically powerful regions of the world at the turn of the 20th century and had nearly defeated the developed North 40 years earlier. That's some strange case selection and comparison. What she needs to look at is are countries in which state and economic institutions no longer exist and need to be rebuilt from the ground up or those countries in which the new government was weak vis-a-vis other social groups that challenged the government for power.

The idea of a "one-size fits all" is not viable and emphasis on leadership frequently leads to predatory dictators.

What you need to escape a failed state-

(1) A government in which the leadership recognized that they are highly constrained from utilizing military force to impose their mandates and instead must build coalitions to build consent from society.

(2) Given (1) the government adopts a developmental strategy which seeks to help its citizens obtain basic needs and prosper. The more time people spend growing prosperous, the less they spend fighting each other. Its not coincidence that unemployment and civil war often go hand-in-hand.

(3) An inclusive political order in which all major political actors participate and which none has the desire or capacity to overthrow it. Should the political order face an insurgent group - it must have the capacity to defeat groups that would overthrow the status quo.

(4) There must be an understanding of the role of violence. The threat of coercive violence might be necessary to impose rule of law, but the use of violence for political ends is fundamentally a form of despotism. That is true regardless of whether the state is imposing its will on a minority, or a minority seeks to overthrow the state.

- and yes, I agree. She's quite attractive.

Jamie Walton  08/07/2008 01:43 AM Report

This interview was excellent: we need to see more people like Clare Lockhart on the television, regularly.

At this time all nation-states are under threat in a fracturing 'globalized' world.

Any and all nation-states will inevitably continue to 'fail' while they remain under the grip of the inherently corrupt debt-money system. The USA is the prime example of this at the moment.

By the time the current US President is scheduled to leave the White House, the US public debt looks set to have doubled since the time of his inauguration. These staggering figures are accelerating astronomically higher with every taxpayer-pledged banking and financial bailout.

What will happen when the annual interest-only charges on the US public debt are more than the annual US national income - people and companies cannot be taxed more than they earn? What is the plan then? For how much longer will we keep on sleepwalking toward the edge of an abyss?

This is and will increasingly be the real BIG ISSUE of the latter part of 2008 and all of 2009. The solutions to avoiding the unnecessary stress and suffering of the present financial crisis, and the unfolding economic and social disaster, are simple and effective, tried and true.

The American Monetary Institute is the peak research body studying monetary history, theory, and reform. A draft American Monetary Act has been developed to rescue the USA from the root cause of human disaster, and to restore the nation to peace and prosperity.

I urge the Charlie Rose Show to take the lead on this issue and conduct an interview with Stephen Zarlenga, Director of the American Monetary Institute, on this most crucially important of all current affairs.

sock puppet  08/06/2008 12:41 AM Report

One of the fixes for failed states she mentioned was lack of corruption. Doesn't that ipso facto rule us out. With Blackwater as a prime example we will corrupt the best or make worse the worst. Like Iraq, Vietnam Afghanistan or anywhere will be improved by our departure. We are not in a lot of failed states by her definition, so what sort of hubristic selection process is used for our picks. ---------------- How about here at home? Too novel?