Letter to the editor: Trump truths

@wwaycorrigan

My latest letter to the editor, published in the Sunday Independent, 26 July 2026. See photo below or read it at https://www.independent.ie/comment/letters/letters-youd-have-to-pity-the-cows-if-mayo-win-today/a/159172990.html.

It was the editor's decision to publish that the letter, nay email, came from Bogotá rather than Lisacul, Co. Roscommon — from where it did actually originate. I gave her the option, in fairness!

As for the theme, if only we could have have more honest politicians. If only.

President Donald Trump: He doesn't always do what he says, but he's often truer to his word than many other politicians. 

An end to Rip-off Republic of Ireland? One can dream

@wwaycorrigan

Could some good come for Ireland from US president Donald Trump's Liberation Day tariffs?

That's the hope expressed in my latest letter in the Irish Examiner, available at https://www.irishexaminer.com/opinion/yourview/arid-41605645.html.

Letter to the editor: Three-star Ireland charging five-star prices.

Appreciating Colombia's approach to health and safety

@wwaycorrigan

[For an audio/vlog version of this story, click here.]

Living relatively independently in Colombia, a nation that hasn't completely tried to control almost all aspects of its citizens' lives, means that I've been shielded from much of the health and safety silliness that has infected many high-income countries over the last few decades.

Sure this motorbike is only half full!

Yes, Colombia does have some perplexing rules and regulations. What's more, some of its citizens are anal about rather harmless practices yet blasé when it comes to acts that are highly damaging all round.

Nonetheless, even for things that are officially outlawed here, law enforcement is generally lax. Depending on the situation, this can work to one's advantage or drive one insane. On balance, however, I feel I'm mentally up in the deal living in Colombia. The matters that affect me most hover around my Goldilocks zone.

Shamberger

I did, though, get a taste of how others are forced to operate and strictly follow questionable procedures when I worked on a short recording project at a multinational global technology company 'driving energy innovation for a balanced planet', as it describes itself.

(I don't think I'm breaking any contract agreement by naming the company, so here goes: It's Schlumberger, or SLB as it's called these days. It has a big base in the town of Cota close to Bogotá. I was tempted to run with Shamberger in the title of this piece but considering I haven't got paid yet, that might have been a bit too risqué.)

Before one even goes through SLB's turnstiles, it's clear these guys don't do health and safety by half measures. (This is in contrast to many Colombian companies that are often all show in this regard but then offer little in terms of substance. Again, it's the approach of 'As long as we have it on paper, the practice doesn't matter.')

On seeing some odd-looking contraptions before the turnstiles, I was initially dumbfounded, thinking that we were returning to the covid-19 pandemic-era tests. But tests for covid-19 they were not. They were breathalysers for alcohol and, I assume, other narcotics.

Now, the production company with which I was working didn't tell me in advance that there'd be such a test. Nonetheless, the four 750 ml Costeña beers that I'd drunk the evening before had clearly gone through my system. I got the green light to proceed. (Had such machines existed at places in which I worked full-time previously, I might have struggled to get the green light one out of every five times or so.)

'After successfully and miraculously navigating the stairs, we were then sent to a safety briefing to learn of all the other nearby threats to our existence and how we could competently avoid them.'

Then, just after the turnstiles, before we undertook the herculean task of ascending a standard stairs, we were told how to do so correctly. 'Stay to the right, in single file, and ensure you use the handrail at all times. On ascending, hold on to the top of the handrail, on descending, hold on to the bottom of the handrail.'

Goodness! All those times I've gone up and down stairs, hands swinging by my side. How reckless. In my defence, your Honour, I've heard fitness experts say that using the stairs freestyle can help to build and maintain one's core strength. So SLB could be accused of accelerating the development of health problems in its employees.

Be that as it may, considering some of us in the production crew were novices at this handrail procedure, it was little short of a miracle that we successfully navigated the stairs.

Drive me crazy

After that formidable feat, we were sent to a safety briefing to learn of all the other nearby threats to our existence and how we could competently avoid them.

I shan't go into all the exciting details of that, only to mention that some insects, such as wasps, are potentially dangerous. Come on SLB, you've got to see things from the wasps' perspective. They're the victims here.

We were also given guidance on how to drive carefully and safely. OK, SLB is a US-headquartered company but this is Colombia. One has a better chance of locating the legendary city of El Dorado than finding a local who drives carefully and safely here.

Amusingly enough, an SLB head, a Colombian, rebuked the production company bosses for arriving in a jeep that carried a passenger in the boot. It was pointed out that the boot had a retractable seat and, so the counterargument went, that it was therefore legal to travel with someone seated on it. The SLB guy, not to be seen to back down, said it was unsafe, particularly as the boot was full of equipment.

Now, if this exchange had happened in say, Germany, I wouldn't have questioned its bona fides. But Colombians getting worked up about unsafe driving practices? I'm not having it.

This is a country, after all, where it's common to see four or five people ride on one motorbike, without a helmet in sight. If safety is considered at all, it's in thinking about where's best to place your youngest passenger. Tucked in between you and the handlebars? Or somewhere between your wife at the back of the bike seat and the other two kids in the middle? Trial and error, I guess.

Sterilising health and safety

I'm not, however, criticising this, even though I wouldn't do it. It's the traditional Colombian do-so-at-your-own risk approach. For the most part, I think that's a fair way to live one's life. (Do note that for this to truly work, one must take responsibility for one's actions. And accepting culpability when things go wrong is the harder part.)

The other extreme is what we mentioned at the start, the pullulation of health and safety procedures that we've seen across the Anglosphere and continental Europe.

There is a more agreeable middle way. In my experiences, Colombia is closer to that than most high-income nations. It allows for a little more individual daring as opposed to effectively moulding the masses into a state of inertia: 'Careful now, that's not allowed.' That latter imposition goes against human nature, even if it's done with the best of intentions in mind.

It was this daring, the adventurous spirit of its settlers — particularly those who roamed west — that played an important role in making the United States of America great. It's not overstating it to say that the shackles of over-the-top health and safety rules have played a part in that country's stagnation in certain areas. Basically, too much government interference, just like in Europe.

President Donald Trump has wasted no time in tackling the often pernicious DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) culture that has taken hold in the US (similar expressions of this are in force elsewhere). Where he has led, others have quickly followed in what is being referred to as an overall vibe shift, not just in the US but outside its borders, too.

In many ways, DEI can be seen as an offspring of the more ludicrous elements of health and safety.

So while the child is now being chided, we also need to take the parent to task. Sterilise health and safety before it sterilises us.
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Our tops and flops of 2024

@wwaycorrigan

[For an audio/vlog version of this story, click here.]

It's that time of year again when content creators and publishers can be a little lazy and rehash, under the guise of a review, some of the work from the previous twelve months.

Things can only get better. Actually, they could get much worse all the same!

The Wrong Way Corrigan approach to this is to pick out the hits, or tops if you will— I use those words lightly — and flops — most are just that when one desires viral-esque material — of the content I've published across various platforms.

Good for nothing

Let's start with uploads that, to put it kindly, haven't quite taken off. (In truth, they haven't even started taxiing to the runway.) I'm using the present perfect tense for the simple fact that these pieces still, of course, exist online and thus could, in theory, fly to great heights in time to come. Ever the optimist, here.

Here on Google Blogger, 2024's poorest performing post at the time of writing is Google/Gulag Blogger's faceless, unaccountable, cowardly censors. What are they afraid of?, published in September. It's somewhat surprising that Google Blogger hasn't been keen to vigorously promote a blog with such a heading. You know, to show how fair and balanced the platform is.

I must put on record here that Google Blogger has since lifted the ban on the content it unceremoniously blocked, the subject of that story. Why it was taken down in the first instance still baffles me. Google Blogger and me, a relationship of mystery.

On El Tiempo, the slow burner (it's bound to come good after this) is Round by round we go. Oh no! If only some of my Colombian friends would read a translated version so that they'd know that I prefer to be excluded from cumbersome and expensive rounds of beers. Buy me lunch instead.

'Next to nobody seems interested in my dental musings as Boosting dental health has proven about as popular as a dentist drilling away at your unanaesthetised mouth.'

Cop on Colombia, for biodiversity's sake is the least listened to/viewed on The Corrigan Cast via Spotify and associated platforms. Come on folks, you're missing out on humanity-saving advice.
(*LINK https://spotifycreators-web.app.link/e/e3gm0JGVvPb )

On my YouTube channel, we've got a two-way tie in the Top of the Vlog Flops category. An act of good clearly wasn't seen as such for YouTube viewers while next to nobody seems interested in my dental musings as Boosting dental health has proven about as popular as a dentist drilling away at your unanaesthetised mouth.

For YouTube Shorts, the video titled Ariarí River near Granada in Colombia's Meta department hasn't caught the imagination for some reason. The mind boggles, considering its sexy title.

So, they are our flops, with the caveat that they could become tops in time to come. Really, they could!

The letter writer's raining champion

Now for the hits.

Back to Google Blogger, the October-published Kamala control: Letter to the editor leads the way. Yes, that's right, details of a letter to the Irish Independent has been my most viewed post on Blogger in 2024. Why doesn't the Irish Independent just hire me to be a columnist? Come on, it could be the start of something great!

Now, as already noted, the Spotify version of Cop on Colombia, for biodiversity's sake has largely been ignored. However, the text of this story on El Tiempo found a niche. It's the one with the most engagement of all my 2024 articles on that page. So I won't give up all hope of a cleaner, greener Colombia in the near future.

In top spot on Spotify is Life imitating art of Los 39, minus the bloodshed. A bitchy, telling-tales-from-school yarn does have its fans.

The highest ranking of my YouTube vlogs is Shunning la Selección Colombia. Cheers to those of you who checked it out. Rather than support overpaid, petulant footballers, support an underpaid, underworked curmudgeon — me! Just don't forget to donate generously to the Corrigan cause.

And just in case you think all my pieces on Colombia are somewhat negative — what would give you that impression? — From Guaviare with love: Sending this to rain-deprived Bogotá! is 2024's most-viewed amongst my YouTube Shorts. I could be on to a winner posting about eye-catching weather events. Let's have more magical meteorological moments occur around me, please.

So that's Wrong Way Corrigan and The Corrigan Cast (catchy band name, that) wrapped for 2024. We're now all set to ride the 2025 Trump Tide!
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Listen to The Corrigan Cast podcast here.

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The mainstream media's bullshit problem

@wwaycorrigan

[For an audio/vlog version of this story, click here.]

When presenting his popular mid-morning talk show on one of Ireland's independent radio stations, Today FM, Ray D'Arcy would let it be known when an issue truly annoyed him.

'Have you got a problem with my faecal matter?'

'I'm sick of hearing this shit again.' 'This is all fucked up.'

Phrases to that effect. They'd invariably come with a pained silence, a deep sigh. You get the idea.

D'Arcy left that gig in December 2014, moving to an afternoon slot on Radio One at Ireland's state broadcaster, RTÉ. From what I gather, these days he rarely if ever utters expletives on what some describe as a more highbrow channel.

For curse's sake

When D'Arcy used to do it, it made me uncomfortable, even though I enjoyed the show for a time and was on it once. This discomfort wasn't due to the important issue he was discussing, it was because I felt awkward hearing him talk in such a way.

It almost always felt contrived, as in 'I'll use a few "fucks" here so that listeners will get a stronger sense of how I feel.' Maybe he was genuinely that angry and the words just came out. Yet, for such an experienced, skilled broadcaster that's unlikely. He could display his emotions without reverting to swear words. (An Irish politician memorably used the F-word in parliament — and it's obvious that he knew he was going to use 'unparliamentary language', as you can witness here.)

You see, in general, hearing hosts or guests swear on Irish radio is a rarity. Most station bosses would reprimand a presenter for doing so. I'm pretty sure I never did in my presenting days. Nor have I cursed on my podcasts, as far as I can recall anyway. (Yes, I have done so here and in other audio blogs, but they're part of the story! I don't utter expletives on the radio 'just because'.)

'Remember, out of bullshit can grow the greatest of crops.'

In my everyday life, I do fire off unsavoury verbal volleys from time to time but these are on the odd occasions when I'm angry. Sure I've few reasons to be angry in Colombia.

My mild aversion to hearing somebody swear in what I'll call a more formal setting is down to my upbringing, I figure. Do note, I'm not saying this is a superior outlook to those who are more relaxed about using what some call 'agricultural language'. I believe the devil is in the deed, and to some extent the delivery, rather than the words themselves.

With that last point in mind, I wouldn't freak out if a guest on a show I was presenting cursed. And I'd expect listeners to be equally blasé.

Offending Auntie Beeb

So it was with some amusement that I listened to the BBC World Service's Nuala McGovern get a little flustered when an American political analyst said some US voters were 'pissed'. ('Pissed' as in annoyed, he meant, not drunk. Although, some are no doubt regularly the latter.)

I wager the remark went unnoticed by most listeners. Unnoticed until McGovern jumped in to apologise for his use of the word. For those tuning in with a playback facility, some probably rewound the segment to hear the analyst's offensive word.

The episode is a microcosm of a bigger, more pernicious problem with much of the legacy media. Claiming to be the voice of the masses, they then try to portray themselves as totally prim and proper. Holier-than-thou defenders of how they consider an upstanding society should think and operate.

The thing is, many who work in such media are far removed from those who they believe they represent. And their idea of an upstanding society is at best unrealistic and unworkable, at worst a mix of the most alarming aspects of communism and fascism.

Wake up and smell the bullshit

Donald J. Trump's return as president of the USA should force these media monoliths into a bit of introspection. Although, one isn't too optimistic that this will happen considering little seemed to have been learned from the first coming of Trump.

In fact, in the way they currently operate, they are incapable of change. As Albert Einstein put it, 'We can't solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them.'

And the legacy media don't appear to realise that how they conduct themselves is the problem.

One quick fix? Stop trying to be the moral guardians of the masses — as much as they feel this is their calling.

Remember, out of bullshit can grow the greatest of crops.

So rather than the legacy media's often embarrassing efforts of trying to distance themselves from the offensive bullshit, they should embrace it. Take a good look at it rather than turn away in disgust.

That way, they'll be better placed to see what's fertilising the furore of the masses they abhor.
__________________________________________________________
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Ready to do my bit for Ireland — as ambassador to the US

@wwaycorrigan

I couldn't let Donald J. Trump's return as US president pass without making a comment about it.

Below is a screenshot of the online version of my letter on that theme, published in the Sunday Independent of 10 November 2024. It can be found buried in this webpage, https://www.independent.ie/opinion/letters/letters-john-boyne-takes-a-novel-approach-in-face-of-literary-pretension/a777243096.html.

Able ambassador

With Ireland currently in its own general election campaign — the country goes to the polls on 29 November — I don't expect to receive a call about my credentials to be the next Irish ambassador in Washington DC until a new taoiseach (prime minister) is in place. But I do expect a call nonetheless. 

Now, I would be willing to accept a more minor role as consul. It doesn't have to be the top gig immediately. I'm somewhat flexible.

Washington DC: The right way for Wrong Way.

US democracy drags on. But decorum is dead

@wwaycorrigan

[For an audio/vlog version of this story, click here.]

Hubris. Melodrama. Scheming and screaming. Refusal to accept one's errors. Refusal to accept defeat.

Kamala Harris or Donald Trump: Which one is the greater threat to democracy? (Photos from X and Instagram.)

No, I'm not referring to South American football teams — although, all the above do apply to them. I'm referring to US presidential elections; those of recent vintage at least.

Fat chance

Watching the Democrats and Republicans battle it out is akin to two schoolyard bullies facing off. 'Yo momma's so fat' sort of stuff. OK, you're right, that might be a bit unfair to the inventiveness of some of those fat-momma quips.

It can make for compelling viewing for sure. Yet, it doesn't inspire confidence that the world's most powerful country has competent leadership.

The June debate between the now-retired candidate, President Joe Biden, and the Republican presidential nominee, Donald Trump, was unedifying. Hey, a real axis of evil — China, Russia, Iran and North Korea — may be threatening the West but how well would their leaders do facing into a par five in inclement conditions? It's pointless having a good shot on the battlefield if you can't shoot your way around a golf course, you know?

At least Biden can focus more on his golf game — or simply just try to focus — now that he's no longer in the race to prolong his stay in the White House. Trump, though, will — or should, anyway — be spending less time on the tee and more time on the campaign trail.

'Whatever Harris decides to discuss, her big problem is that she's not an orator.'

His fiery rhetoric is, um, par for the course. He had promised a toned-down, more unifying style in the immediate aftermath of the assassination attempt on him. Trump saying this is one thing. Delivering it, quite another. A slightly milder speech than normal at the Republican National Convention aside, his tone remains more bellicose than benign.

Calm-ala Harris?

In such an atmosphere, adopting a less hostile approach when trying to win over those crucial swing voters makes more sense, one would think. It remains to be seen if Trump's new opponent, the presumptive Democratic Party candidate, Vice President Kamala Harris, goes for such a strategy i.e. focusing on policies and plans rather than ad hominem attacks. The early signs are that she'll play the man more so than the ball.

One area where she might offer something different to both Biden and Trump is in the god talk, as in having less of it. At times I wonder what's the point in having these elections if it's all in the hands of the Almighty. Many of the USA's political heavyweights reference their Christian god more than the average Islamic fundamentalist mentions Allah.

This isn't necessarily a problem, particularly if it is accompanied by concrete proposals. However, the god talk rings hollow in the toxic political climate of today's USA.

Nonetheless, Harris is going to be on safer ground talking about gun control rather than god control. Jesus is still a big vote-winner in American politics.

Whatever she does decide to discuss, her big problem is that she's not a talented orator. Well, she's not an orator full stop. (Or period, as our US friends say.)

A dying democracy

Thus, the Harris handlers will most likely advise her to stick to the well-tried but not altogether trusted line that 'Trump is a threat to our democracy'. Keep it simple, stupid.

A fresher, smarter approach would pay greater dividends, but that's probably beyond Harris's ken. Or maybe she'll show us in the coming weeks some political acumen that has heretofore remained hidden. It has been a crazy election cycle after all.

Yet, the constant over these last few years has been the vitriolic nature of US politics. This isn't going to change anytime soon.

Some argue about just how democratic the USA is, but it's certainly no dictatorship. Its version of democracy is still alive. What is dead, or dying in any case, is decorum in political discourse.

And with the death of decorum, decline or dictatorship is not far behind. Or both.
__________________________________________________________
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In awe of the strongman

@wwaycorrigan

[Listen to an audio version of this blog entry here.]

We've seen plenty of ire directed at those who haven't completely condemned Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine or shown unconditional support for the under-siege locals.

Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping: Leaders with real conviction? (Photo from Wikipedia.)

Super Zelenskyy

Even some expert analysts on the region, that is to say, people who actually have a fair idea of what they're talking about, whilst speaking out against Putin's actions, have come in for criticism in some quarters for merely suggesting the reasons behind the attack.

The simplified narrative for most of the media, politicians and those who like to be told how to think right now is: Russia and everything Russian evil; Ukraine and everything Ukrainian, good.

As discussed previously here, one should tread carefully when there's such widespread agreement.

Of course, many of us have a tendency to plump for the underdog, hence the support for innocent Ukraine against bully-bear Russia. Indeed, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is being portrayed as some sort of superhero saint. For sure, from what we've seen he has been impressive, but we can assume he has a few flaws.

'We have two "excellent" examples of such types right now. One is currently running amok in Canada, the other in New Zealand.'

Nonetheless, he is the perfect strongman counterweight to Putin over which the West can idolise. For as much as some of us may think Western democracies have moved on from salivating over strongmen figures, there still seems to be an innate desire for a patriarchy of sorts.

Gentle tyrants

In fact, this could be why some actually view, or at least did view, Putin as a likeable rogue.

What's more, on the global level, the Russian president has been the underdog against Nato and the West in general, a West in which many of the agenda-setters appear to be nothing more than self-righteous, often hypocritical virtue signallers.

With a dearth of impressive leaders to look up to at home and tired of being constantly patronised, a no-nonsense Putin — we can also include Xi Jinping here — appeals. There's a feeling, à la Donald Trump, that these men rule with conviction rather than pussyfoot around, trying to please everybody but achieving very little.

In functioning democracies, such types do have their place. They can take on the technocrats. It could be said that the European Union is in dire need of one.

The problems arise when there are no checks on the strongmen, when there's no one to challenge them. This generally happens when they've been around for too long. They do usually self-destruct but not before causing a lot of collateral damage on their way out.

Yet, the strongman is usually easier to comprehend than, let's call them "gentler" leaders. The latter is often more pernicious. They claim to be forces of good. Indeed, they are so convinced that they are morally right that they don't see the harm they do.

We have two "excellent" examples of such types right now. One is currently running amok in Canada, the other in New Zealand. 

It could be said that Justin Trudeau and Jacinda Ardern are like terrible twins of one Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair, aka former UK prime minister Tony Blair. One can only hope that, like Putin's, their respective regimes are coming to an end.

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Warning! Being true to yourself causes harm

@wwaycorrigan

[Listen to an audio version of this blog entry here.]

'If you ever meet a woman ... Just be yourself, Dougal. Be yourself, make them feel at ease and, the golden rule, always let them have their way. It's easiest in the long run.'

That was the advice proffered by Father Ted in an episode of the eponymous Irish-made, British-produced 1990s sitcom to his dimwit understudy Father Dougal.

Father Ted (c) & Father Dougal with the radical feminist Niamh Connolly (image from YouTube).

Self-harm

Acting on that advice later when left on his own in their parochial house, Dougal hands over the residence free of charge to a radical feminist singer — a character unquestionably based on Sinead O'Connor.

When Ted returns he is, unsurprisingly, aghast at what's happened. How could it have transpired?

Dougal tells him that he was just following his advice to 'be yourself'. Ted clarifies: 'Be yourself is just something people say. Never be yourself with women. Never, never, never!'

As for the golden rule mentioned previously, Ted downgrades that to the silver rule. The golden rule is, he says, 'if anyone is ever talking to you again, think about what you're saying and then don't say it. And then just run away somewhere.'

Comedy gold and, if I do say so myself, it has aged like a fine wine.

Of course, the idea of finding and being yourself, your true self, is one that has been parroted by the finest of philosophers and self-help gurus through the ages.

'In today's cancel-culture world dominated by those who perniciously call themselves liberals, many influential individuals appear more prepared to toe the line than to raise what should be considered as reasonable objections.'

Like many philosophical mantras, it sounds quite wonderful in theory yet its practical application can be rather troublesome — vide Father Dougal.

Public puppets

In the powerful, interconnected spheres of media and politics, where it could be said that being true to oneself would be beneficial not just personally but for society at large, we generally get anything but that.

It's more a case of, 'What can I do and say that matches the dominant narrative, that will keep me onside with those who shout the loudest?' This is what tends to drive public discourse and action, not any real conviction.

In my topsy-turvy, on-off 15-year media career, I've lost count of the times when I've spoken to interviewees or fellow colleagues off the record about certain topics only for them to say at the end, 'but we can't say that on-air.' There's a certain image that has to be maintained. In other words, 'I can't really be true to myself because I fear some people won't like it.'

The argument can be made that shooting from the hip — or from the fingertips, à la a certain Donald Trump — isn't very becoming of those in positions of power, that it often causes more harm than good. That's not the point. 

One can still display decorum yet speak one's mind. (I'm not, to refer to another comedy classic, calling for a be-like-the-boy approach from The Simpsons episode Bart's Inner Child, which resulted in a descent into chaos. I'm on about mature discussion.)

Yet, in today's cancel-culture world dominated by those who perniciously call themselves liberals, many influential individuals appear more prepared to toe the line than to raise what should be considered as reasonable objections.

Wisdom paradox

From gender issues and white privilege to climate change and coronavirus-containment measures, there is much we still don't know. Thus, those who aggressively proclaim, like religious zealots, that their path is the right one should not be given a free pass.

Going against our true selves out of fear or for career prospects or suchlike will only lead to frustration and even misery. 

Yes, there's every chance one may be wrong or burning bridges in pursuing a certain course but if one fundamentally believes in it, then it's best to stick with it.

This isn't to say that a person's opinions can't change when and if the circumstances dictate or irrefutable data suggest otherwise. 

Again, the idea of being true to yourself isn't about being right or wrong in the exact moment, it's more about congruence with the fundamentals of your character. In other words, don't try to be somebody else.

Many, however, for the mistaken belief that it will lead to a less stressful, easier life, often follow Father Ted's revised golden rule. They don't say anything. They let others do their thinking for them.

Indeed, the Catholic Church built its vast power on such indoctrination. That institution's force has been on the wane for decades. 

Yet, there are many, arguably more insidious types, stepping into the breach. Beware of those radicals, Dougal.
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A world in disunion

Those idealistic at heart may have thought that in a world connected as never before, the arrival of a common enemy of humankind would unite us as never before.

You know, like in the Independence Day movie when the aliens attack, we rally together, led, of course, by the USA, to smash those pesky extraterrestrials.

The new normal: Maintaining our distance, on a micro and macro level.

The real-life "enemy" we currently face, covid-19, isn't actually a living thing by most definitions but it attacks indiscriminately, albeit it's far more lethal on certain members of society than others.

Nonetheless, the collateral damage it is causing us, pretty much all of which is self-inflicted in a bid to check the virus' spread, is resulting in widespread harm across the globe. So if ever we should work together as a species, it would appear now is the time.

Self-isolating Uncle Sam

What is actually happening, though, is more of a retreat into our tribe.

OK, some of this is down to what are seen as necessary "wartime" measures. The free movement of people will only spread the virus and as the majority of our decision-makers are unwilling to contemplate herd immunity — there are experts who believe it to be the quickest way to defeat our fiend — it was inevitable that old borders would be re-erected, both between countries and inside national territories.

The question is, will we smoothly return to the kind of free movement we had before? If we do, it's sure to take some time. 

'The immediate fallout from this pandemic will be a facemask-wearing population in a more divided world.'

Other current manifestations of this inward retreat were obvious before coronavirus reared its crowned head.

The United States of America, for example, the country that Hollywood has been telling us for decades will lead us to salvation in the event of an existential threat, has been anything but united of late. Its internal divisions appear to have only deepened during this crisis.

What's more, and unsurprisingly considering what President Donald J. Trump has been telling us ever since he announced his attention to run for the White House, it's very much America first. Global leadership isn't a priority.

It is, to state the obvious, the USA's prerogative to pursue this course of action. I, for one, have no qualms in this regard. The problem is, its leaders don't always stick to it.

Chitaly

Then there's the European "Union". The Italians, not for the first time, have decried the lack of solidarity from EU member states. It would seem they have fair grounds for complaint. Of course, in recent years they've been getting quite cosy with the Chinese (we're terming this courting Chitaly), much to the chagrin of Europe's powerhouses France and Germany.

Speaking of the Chinese, from the outside (trying) to look in, it's a case of following the accepted script. Are they deliberately pursuing a divide-and-conquer strategy? Or are we overestimating them?

Regardless, considering this coronavirus emerged from within its territory together with the general mistrust of the information emanating from there, the suspicion with which China and many of its citizens are viewed by some in the West is only going to deepen.

Thus, the immediate fallout from this pandemic looks set to be a facemask-wearing population in a more divided world coupled with greater state control and curtailment of previous "freedoms" we once enjoyed.

Government-controlled utilitarianism one could call it. We'll be told what the greatest good for the greatest number is. Exciting times lie in store.
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Coronavirus' collateral damage

A sure-fire way to ensure you get the blood up of a large section of readers is to start off a blog post quoting Donald J. Trump.

So here goes. The US president tweeted the other day about coronavirus and the measures being taken to control it that 'We cannot let the cure be worse than the problem itself.' 

Coronavirus: Things will never be the same again?

Of course, true to form, Trump's discourse since this 'Chinese virus' emerged has read like a dark comedy. He's gone from 'we have it under control' to 'it will be gone by April' to 'the US is in great shape to tackle it' to 'this is a pandemic and I felt it was a pandemic long before it was called one.' 

What ails you?

Nonetheless, he does have a point about the cure potentially becoming worse than the viral infection itself. 

In this regard, we're talking about the cure being self-isolation and strictly imposed countrywide lockdowns, the approach being taken by many states battling covid-19 right now. Basically, it's a degree or two less severe than the Chinese model of tackling "their" virus. 

The idea in the short-term is not to eradicate it completely (although if that did happen, great), it's to, as most are well aware by now, flatten the curve in terms of the rate of infection. In that way, the health systems of the many countries trying to deal with this crisis will be in a better position to cope. 

The nightmare scenario is hundreds of thousands of cases in a short period of time. Hospitals just wouldn't be able to cope with those in a critical condition. 

Of course, as experts readily admit, in countries that were slow to enforce self-isolation and social distancing, the majority of the population is likely to get infected. On the plus side, the majority of that number should make a full recovery. 

So, at this remove, we could end up with the same number of coronavirus-related deaths regardless of the measures taken. Even with the best medical care in optimum conditions, the sick and vulnerable who contract the virus might die. 

'The global death rate in the coming years could be lower due to coronavirus.'

To use an analogy from a history professor from my university days when talking about the demise of Britain's Liberal Party, World War One was the bus that gave it the knockout blow but the postmortem revealed it was in terminal decline in any case, on "borrowed time" so to put it. 

There is the possibility, once we get on top of this, that the global death rate in the coming years could be lower than would be normally expected, as coronavirus ended some people's lives a few years earlier than they would have departed the scene.

Death by association 

Thus, coming back to the "cure" currently being implemented, leaving aside the severe financial heartache and associated problems it will cause for millions of people across the globe, especially in developing countries such as here in Colombia, could it turn out that it ends up being responsible for a good number of deaths in its own right? Or, better put, coronavirus' collateral damage. 

With the panic and chaos being caused by these lockdowns, there's a fair chance that people who get struck down with other life-threatening conditions are either neglected or choose not to seek medical attention due to all the fear that abounds. Of course, this is going to be next to impossible to calculate. 

For the moment, we have to trust that the measures currently in place are the best option. We have no other choice. 

Nonetheless, from a Colombian perspective, if this 19-day lockdown we've entered proves successful in terms of keeping cases down, the hard-pressed masses will look for a prompt easing of restrictions. 

On the other hand, if it doesn't work, if cases skyrocket between now and 13 April, there's a fair chance those same people will ask what's the point? Why all this extra hardship for nothing? 

They might just decide that they have to carry on regardless. 

The next few weeks will tell a tale.   

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Trump: Better the devil you know for the US?

As much as some may wish it wasn't so, the person — nay man as it has been and looks set to be for at least another four years — calling the shots in the White House exerts global significance.

Trump: As the opposition dithers, he looks set to win four more years. (Photo from Facebook.)

So while there will be those outside the USA, and even a small number inside, who will plead indifference to this year's presidential election, the winner is sure to have some sort of influence on their and all of our lives, whether we like it or not

'Trump hasn't started World War III. Not yet anyway.'

Now, at the risk of being a bit premature here considering events of the past week and the fact there's the best part of a year still to run on the incumbent's term, we can say, thankfully and as predicted before he was elected, that Donald J. Trump hasn't started World War III nor turned his country into a Fascist dictatorship.

Making America heard again

What he has done is brought back that US bravado, or cockiness if you will, making it seen and heard again both at home and abroad. 

This isn't to say it's been all gung-ho, trigger-happy stuff in a classical American Wild West style. No. He's used the carrot-and-stick approach in dealing with his nation's most threatening challenger to world supremacy, China. Ditto with North Korea, more or less.

The stick has been used more so with Iran of late as we've seen to deadly effect, although it can be argued with some justification (how much the assassination of Qasem Soleimani will impact things domestically in the US in November is difficult to say at this remove). What he has failed to do is come good on his promise to reduce US troop numbers in the Middle East.

That latter negative notwithstanding, with an economy in fairly rude health by all accounts, coupled with low employment, a good number of his fellow citizens feel he has done enough to warrant those coveted four more years. 'Far worse presidents were re-elected' is what his supporters will tell you. 'Just look at the previous commander-in-chief, Barack Obama.'

For liberal Europeans, that's a hard one to stomach. Obama was their darling, the old-world style president that had been long overdue for the New World.

'The Democrats have left the country.'

The US under Obama for Europe was like seeing your old friend going out with someone who seemed a really decent, salt-of-the-earth type chap after having a few roguish partners. He wasn't the stereotypical loud, in-your-face guy we'd seen before. 

Alas, she reverted to type and then some when Trump won her over. 'We'll just never understand that young and reckless, yet alluring, US, will we?'

'Do something, Democrats'

A big reason why Trump looks set for re-election, putting to one side a highly unlikely impeachment, is to do with the opposition.

As Ronald Reagan reputedly once put it, 'the Democrats have gone so far left they've left the country.' And just like it has been in Colombia, being associated with anything close to the far left in the United States of America is pretty much toxic at election time.

OK, numbers-wise, thanks to the population concentrations on the east and west coasts, whoever finally appears on the Democratic ticket might actually, just as in 2016, win the popular vote. (One must also take into account the anti-Trump echo chambers reverberating around these more liberal sides to America. Their words tend to find more favour with non-Americans than those living in the 50 states.)

Lies of the land

This isn't, however, how the system works to get the keys to the White House. The electoral college vote should once again get Trump over the line.

I must say that if I ever got the chance to meet the current president, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't be able to stomach him for any length. I certainly wouldn't be at ease in his company in any case. He is, after all, a serial liar. The man who gave us #FakeNews regularly says things that are clearly untrue.

The thing is, those who are doing their damnedest to get him out of office are also blurring the lines between fact and fiction. Truth being the first casualty of war and all that.

In one sense, November's presidential election is similar to what the UK electorate faced in December 2019: What's the least-bad option? The devil you know or the one you don't? 

With an opposition that raises more questions beforehand than answers, Trump is looking like the "safest" bet for US voters, as abhorrent as that is for many on the outside looking in.
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Rednecks rise again

Back in my early secondary school days, as a country lad heading off to mix it with the townies, it was common for the latter to mock us. We were farmer boys, or rednecks, as they say in some parts. 

It was generally a bit of innocent slagging but no doubt it had its origins in the long-held belief that workers of the land were a bit "behind", simple if you will, compared to those from urban settings.

Cattle on Bogotá's northern limits: Bringing a bit of the country to the city.

Of course, the townies of Ballaghaderreen, along with everybody else from "down the country", were derogatorily seen as bog folk, "culchies" being the precise word, by those from the capital Dublin.

Zoom out even more and the whole of Ireland was traditionally viewed as being backward by our "superior" neighbours in Britain. 'Strange specimens those Irish, aren't they?'

City fat cats

Modern, advanced, rich societies emanate from urban strongholds with their schools of excellence and suchlike. Rural areas only get the crumbs, enough to keep them ticking over, from the power brokers seated around that grandiose table. So it goes anyway.

Nonetheless, keeping those seated at the urban table well-fed and content with affordable food is nigh-on impossible without the simple country folk doing their bit to provide it.

'We’re just a few consecutive disasters away from very troubling times.'

The irony here is that while the great advancements in communications and technology have made the world a smaller place, many urban dwellers have become quite removed, mentally at least, from the rural areas that they rely on to stay alive.

OK, they have other, more complicated, complex concerns to worry about. The country serves simply as escapism from the concrete jungle. Engagement with it is at a superficial level only.

What's more, aren't the technological improvements in agriculture and the like, urban brainchildren as most have been, resulting in greater yields and reduced workloads for those who farm the land?

There's merit to that.

Yet, to continue providing for the growing urban masses, more engagement with, and investment in, the countryside are required, not less.

Misplaced priorities

Whether one believes in man-made climate change or not (Donald Trump, considering his age, doesn't have to concern himself with it), we can't deny the fact that we have been experiencing extreme weather events that threaten our precious food supply. We could be just a few consecutive disasters away from quite troubling times.

How many of us would be able to survive in a kind of post-apocalyptic planet, something akin to what we often see portrayed in Hollywood movies?

It would seem fair to say that a majority of First Worlders have become too reliant on our modern comforts, on a lifestyle where we can get pretty much anything we want when we want it.

'We won't be too concerned about our mental health when our very existence is under threat.'

As a species, we could also be accused of vastly overvaluing non-essentials at the expense of the essentials. Think Hollywood again, that whole world of showbiz and fame.

Heck, I left the land I was reared on (as the majority of rural-born people do these days) to go on to pursue a career (can I call it that?!) in media. Fair enough, journalism plays — or at least used to play — an important role as the fourth estate, it can be a force of positive change.

However, the counter-argument here is that this vocation has lost its way and relevance in recent times (whisper it, #FakeNews. Thanks Donald). And don't get me started again on the evil incarnate that is marketing!

On a similar note, a Colombian psychologist friend told me how he wanted to get "back to the land", fearing that without preventative action now he would be useless when faced with a future scenario where one had to fend for oneself for the bare necessities.

As he put it, when it's a simple matter of life or death, very few people will be looking to take the time to think deeply about it all, teasing out the pros and cons. His profession would be practically surplus to requirements.

Basically, and as much as I'm not a fan of Christianity (or any religion really), the old mantra of 'ashes to ashes, dust to dust and dust you shall return' rings true.

The land, the planet will have the last laugh.

Those old backward rednecks who understand it a little better than most mightn't seem so repulsive then.
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Flying the flag for political incorrectness

Many people still don't seem to get it. Or they wish it wasn't so in any case.

Basically, a significant reason US President Donald Trump proved to be — and still proves — popular across Middle America, away from the east- and west-coast echo chambers that is, is that he speaks a straightforward language.

Trump: Middle America's president. (Photo from Twitter.)

He tells/tweets it as he sees it — for better or for worse. Unlike mainstream, establishment politicians, not everything, nay nothing in terms of tweets anyway, is precisely planned, framed in must-not-offend diplomatic speak.

In the politically correct West, where the leftist discourse has taken a strong hold in the universities, shaping in such a way many of our current and future key opinion leaders, somebody deviating from the accepted script is bound to find favour with those not in the club.

This is not to say that all Trump supporters are dumb hillbilly racists, the standard charge levelled at them.

Indeed, many Trumpists I know find his controversial, excessive tweeting irritating. Neither do they agree with all his utterances — in fairness it can be hard to keep up with them in any case.

Yet, it's the feeling that despite his many flaws, he is about as honest as they come. He doesn't hide behind political advisers. What you see is what you get.

In this day of carefully groomed, mannequin-esque politicians, this resonates. (That the US economy is performing well under Trump's watch is another important plus point.) 

It's a question of, 'Who do you really trust: Somebody who comes across as "holier than thou" or a guy seemingly showing us his warts and all?'

"Now name calling does hurt us."

Trump's presidency and other similar eschewing of the standard political system elsewhere have been the inevitable backlash against the over-the-top political correctness we've had to stomach for the last couple of decades.

Where did our childhood act of defiance towards hurtful words go? You know, the old schoolyard rhyme, 'Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me.'

We realised back then that acts of real violence could be lethal, but name-calling? Whatever. We could rise above it.

Now, however, many of our law-framers and influencers have become too cool for school. 'You can have your free speech but you can't say this and you sure as hell (OMG, did I just say "hell"?) can't use that word.'

We're in the process of creating an impotent, sterile bunch of human beings. Like the announcer at the bumping cars — do they still exist or have they become too unsafe, imparting evil habits in our young? — at a funfair used to say 'one way round only', now it's 'one discourse only', even if it goes against biology, to name but one area of contention. (How many genders do we have now? It's difficult to stay, um, abreast of the accepted pronouns these days.)

The British intellectual, amongst many other things, Stephen Fry has a refreshing approach to all this craziness. At a debate on political correctness earlier this year he said that if somebody wants to call him a 'fagot' — he is gay — then so be it. It's not the end of the world. There are far greater things we should be crusading against.

It's not the case where we want things to become overly verbally abusive — radicals or fundamentalists on all sides are adept at that already — but we don't want people having to consult a lawyer every time they want to speak lest they offend some unsuspecting bystander.

Fry's common sense view is nothing more than we'd expect from a man of his standing. Yet, worryingly, he doesn't seem to be in the majority in the intellectual world.

In Colombia, one of the refreshing things about life here is how it's normal to call somebody by their outward appearance. So you have people being affectionately called 'fatty', 'blacky', 'thinny' and so on.

Imagine how that would go down these days in most "First World" countries. The courts would be on the go 24-7.

With all that in mind, we're now just over two years away from the next US presidential election. The big question is, if he survives all the scandals and potential impeachment, can Trump get re-elected?

A lot, of course, will depend on who he's up against. 

The danger for the Democrats is that in their desperate bid to win back the White House they'll opt for an everything-for-everybody candidate. A product of our one-size-fits-all globalised world. 'Tell us what we want to hear, regardless of the reality.' Ah yeah, that makes it all better.

The Democrats would be doing us all a favour, everywhere, if they look more towards the centre-ground.

Alas, the radical left will do their bit to make sure that doesn't happen. Trump will happily toot to that.

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Colombia, vote V.E. Blanco for real change

Oh, what exciting times we have in Colombia. Election fever is in the air. In early March we've the curtain-raiser, the congress 'deciders'. Then in May, the big one gets underway, the first round of the presidential contest. For the record, a second round won't be needed if one candidate takes more than 50 per cent of the vote, but that's unlikely.

As ever, wily Wrong Way has been keeping a close eye on proceedings. (Not to blow our own Trump-et here, but we did foresee Trump's victory, as well as signalling the strength of the 'no' vote in both the Colombian peace agreement plebiscite and Brexit.)

Voto En Blanco: Your only man!

A bit has changed since we looked at the early candidates in the running. Nonetheless, despite all the other movers and shakers, 'Poker Petro' and 'Pilsen Fajardo' are the ones to beat going by those never-again-to-be-trusted opinion polls.

Well, they lead the way if you discard a certain V.E. Blanco, Voto En Blanco. He — and rest assured it is a 'he', Colombia's not ready for a lady president just yet (sorry Marta Lucía) — is polling quite strongly, even topping some.

While many may be quick to dismiss him, thinking he's a bit of an enigma or worse still a fraud, there are solid reasons to get behind him (more so than the others we could say).
Here's why:

A president for all

Blanco ticks all the boxes you want him to. For those few Colombians in the loony left brigade, he is unashamedly 'Castrochavista'. There's no need for public denials as to the existence of this brand of socialism. Let's be honest, Venezuela is giving the left a bad name. Blanco's Colombia will make socialism sexy again. (It was sexy once, wasn't it?)

Conversely, Blanco can be as right-wing as they come, something that will please many Colombians. He can proudly wax lyrical about the great work the right-wing paramilitaries, paracos, have done and are doing, by any means possible, to ensure those aforementioned bearded lefties are kept down.

What's more, he won't have anyone snooping around asking awkward questions. 'Firm hand, big heart', or something along those lines.

A man you can trust

OK, trust and politics don't make easy bedfellows whatsoever, but Blanco breaks the mould here. We can rest assured that when we put our 'X' after his name (we're going to try and sneak a vote or two in), he won't break his 'campaign' pledges.

How so? Well, it's simple really. He doesn't make any promises. There's no, let's say 'miércoles', or horse manure if you will, with Blanco. The rest of the candidates would do well to follow suit. 

Cheaper than changua 

The Colombian president's salary currently stands at US$250,000. That's a whopping $711,560,441 Colombian pesos. A bog-standard worker here would do well to get more than $10,000,000 a year, seventy times less than the top dog. In comparison, the salary for the president of neighbouring Ecuador is a more modest US$75,000, while in Venezuela, officially anyway, it's at just under US$25,000.

Putting Blanco in Casa de Nariño, the presidential palace, would cost nothing. Blanco can live off Bogotá's, um, fresh air. In fact, we could open up the palace to Colombia's myriad of homeless. Even let them have a little go at running the country. They couldn't do much worse than what's gone before, could they? 

It's decided so. Voto En Blanco for president!
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