Tides on the Maine coast - plus a thought or two

The coast of northern New England and the Canadian Maritimes (New Brunswick and Nova Scotia) have some of the world's more dramatic tides. (See the Bay of Fundy.) Binah visited the coast of Maine a few days ago and saw the low tide at just about its lowest.

Here's how much the tide retreated over less than half a day:



POSTSCRIPT: An Australian contrarian take on American foreign policy in the Bush years.

The crucial point, I think, is that the resurgence of pro-American leaders has happened only in the last couple years, in part because the US has shown some real staying power - that earns respect, if not love. (And there are parts of the world where it is far better to be respected than loved.) Another reason is that, in spite of his "no mistakes here" public attitude, Bush and company have made some very visible mid-course corrections, under the pressure of events - teaching everyone that the US, while powerful, is not some Terminator-style imperial monster. Finally, the article emphasizes Asia, but the trend is evident elsewhere too, in Europe and Latin America, for example.

(Thanks to Instapundit for this very interesting link.)