Ira Pande revisits two of her old columns and finds them startlingly relevant today, as European nations grapple with unprecedented heatwaves and failing economies, often blaming illegal immigrants for their woes. She draws parallels between the West's abandonment of Afghanistan and its current predicament in the Middle East, where Iran now holds leverage. The UK, with six prime ministers in a decade, sees its economy, NHS, and youth in disarray, while the countryside is filled with immigrants from Eastern Europe and Asia. Pande argues that post-war prosperity was built on colonial loot, now exhausted, and that Brexit has estranged Britain from Europe.
Hypocrisy on Human Rights
Pande criticizes the lectures on human rights from France, Belgium, Portugal, Spain, and England, pointing out their own internal divisions of class and feudalism. She notes that British partition of the subcontinent into Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist areas sowed seeds of hatred that persist today.
Climate Change and the Heatwave
The heatwave sweeping temperate zones is a consequence of decades of profligate resource use by developed nations, who ignored climate warnings and instead imposed unfair restrictions on developing countries. Now, Switzerland is frantically buying air conditioners, and New Delhi sometimes has lower temperatures than London, Barcelona, or Basel. European homes, designed to retain heat, lack cross-ventilation, leading to power shortages, school closures, melting tar on roads, and warping railway tracks.
FIFA World Cup: A Lesson from the Global South
Pande observes that in the ongoing FIFA World Cup, most brilliant players are from Africa or the Caribbean, including tiny Cape Verde humbling mighty opponents. England barely defeated Congo, and Scotland exited quietly. These players often lack proper gear and high-protein diets, yet outperform pampered European teams. She wonders if this lesson will be learned.
