The days have been sunny with no humidity here in central Oregon. I went kayaking again early Saturday morning, the only sound was my paddle touching the water. High above my head a glider crossed the blue morning sky.
For whatever reason I found myself thinking of Barbara Tuchman's classic history The Guns of August, covering the first month of World War I and the months just prior to its outbreak in 1914.
I watched the last set of the women's final at Wimbledon between the Williams sisters. I wanted both of them to win, but I suspect they did.
It's all quite remarkable what so many of us now take for granted; the tennis match was live from London, albeit around 3:30 in the afternoon. In Oregon it was maybe 8 o'clock in the morning.
Around noontime I went to the village in Sunriver. It was crowded as expected on a July 4th weekend, with tourists everywhere. On average most of the people appeared thinner than the typical American in 2008 I thought. But people that come to this part of the country generally are interested in the outdoors.
Nelson D. Schwartz, writer for The New York Times, wrote an interesting article on Sunday about America's non-existent energy policy over the past twenty or thirty years. I once again thought about Barbara Tuchman's book.
In July of 1914 the capitals of Europe were prosperous and its citizens, on the whole, optimistic about the future.
The monarchs and the aristocracy dabbled in statecraft, arranged "astute" marriages, and expected their subjects to be reasonably grateful for their lot in life. Most Europeans believed the center of the world would remain in places like London, Paris, Vienna, and Berlin. Yet, for a few, there were reason to be uneasy.
What struck me about Schwartz' article was how often politicians and business leaders used the words "how could this have happened," or similar sorts of phrases. "It was totally preventable," the chief executive of AutoNation is quoted in the article.
The nineteenth century probably ended in August 1914 and the bloody 20th century began. How could this have happened? so many said later. For an article well worth reading, go to "American Energy Policy, Asleep at the Spigot.
SSIA. I liked the quote about ANWR resulting in oil $1.43 cheaper per barrel in 2027. That's a one per cent reduction from today's price. I keep wondering when I will read that everyday that the oil remains in the ground in ANWR, the more valuable it becomes.