A Few Weeks Leave

So I've just returned from a few weeks on the other side of the planet, completely removed from all access to news and media coverage. It was quite refreshing. But on my return, I was struck by the interesting perspective that a few weeks leave gives--I think it helps to identify those events that have some potential for long term significance. I picked up the June 4-5 copy of the International Herald Tribune:

It seems we now know who Deep Throat is. Yawn.

Oil is back to $55/barrel. So much for theories of a short term spike (and today the IEA released a report on how demand is exceeding supply from non-surface sources...)

Far more interesting--in my opinion--is that both France and the Netherlands voted a resounding "no" to their referendums on the EU constitution. The Herald Tribune writer even went so far as to suggest that this was the most interesting time in European politics since May of '68. I have a difficult time evaluating the truth of that statement, but just the fact that it was made is pretty striking.

Other than that, travel is always enlightening. I stumbled across a Slow Food festival on accident, and found a place quite reminiscent of Aldous Huxley's Pala from "Island" (my photo below). In fact, this is the second picture of Panarea that has found its way into my Blog, the first from an essay on "Vernacular Zen". I'll be writing more about these last few items shortly...



Does Pala actually exist? Panarea (at least in May) is pretty close...