Project syndicate
Friday, January 20, 2012
KOLKATA - The year 2011 will be remembered as the time when many ever-optimistic Americans began to give up hope. President John F. Kennedy once said that a rising tide lifts all boats. But now, in the receding tide, Americans are beginning to see not only that those with taller masts had been lifted far higher, but also that many of the smaller boats had been dashed to pieces in their wake.
In that brief moment when the rising tide was indeed rising, millions of people believed that they might have a fair chance of realizing the "American Dream." Now those dreams, too, are receding. By 2011, the savings of those who had lost their jobs in 2008 or 2009 had been spent. Unemployment checks had run out.
Over the past weekend in Greater Gaborone, four people tragically lost their lives in separate accidents, a stark reminder of how vulnerable we are on the roads, especially during this busy time of year.The accidents, which claimed the lives of three pedestrians and one driver, paint a grim picture of the dangers faced by everyone on the road, not just motorists but also pedestrians. In one case, a young man was fatally struck by a truck whilst...