Detecting language using up to the first 30 seconds. Use `--language` to specify the language Detected language: English [00:00.000 --> 00:05.840] Earlier we spoke to Lambert Mende, Information Minister for the Democratic Republic of Congo. [00:05.840 --> 00:10.800] I asked him why he believes that it's opposition leader Etienne Chissikedi's supporters who are [00:10.800 --> 00:18.960] behind the attack. We know that these guys are organized in the gang in Paris. This is not the [00:18.960 --> 00:25.760] first aggression they are perpetrating there. They have already attacked the two officers of our [00:25.760 --> 00:34.080] police who were in Paris for treatment. They have attacked a lot of officials, ministers, [00:34.080 --> 00:41.440] and even musicians, artists going in Paris. They have attacked twice the embassy of Congo in Paris, [00:41.440 --> 00:48.960] and sometimes they have been arrested and taken in in the office of the police for being identified [00:48.960 --> 00:57.280] and interrogated but immediately released. So this move for our partners in Paris should have been [00:57.280 --> 01:03.680] sounding as an encouragement for them, though we are not interested in landing in controversy [01:03.680 --> 01:10.000] with our friends in Paris. We hope that something can be done to stop this gang. [01:10.000 --> 01:17.520] They are well notified. Those are followers of Mr. Chissikedi in alliance with some people who [01:17.520 --> 01:21.920] were working with the late Mobutu like Mr. Mbanda. We know them very well. [01:22.960 --> 01:27.440] Well, we should just add that there haven't been any arrests of opposition supporter Etienne [01:27.440 --> 01:30.480] Chissikedi's supporters in relation to that attack. [01:32.480 --> 01:37.200] In other news, it's a happy birthday to the euro this Sunday as it celebrates 10 years since its [01:37.200 --> 01:42.640] creation. But for some, there's little to toast as Europe continues to try and fight the eurozone [01:42.640 --> 01:48.080] debt crisis. And the rest of the world waits with bated breath to see how it'll impact on their [01:48.080 --> 01:57.200] economies. 2002 and enthusiasm over Europe's newly founded single currency was running high. [01:58.160 --> 02:03.680] 10 years later, and the situation couldn't be more different. The debt crisis has rocked the [02:03.680 --> 02:08.880] continent, leaving European leaders struggling to prevent the eurozone's fragmentation. [02:08.880 --> 02:14.880] Some have blamed the design flow in the euros implementation. Obviously, we only had the [02:14.880 --> 02:19.600] monetary side. We didn't have the budgetary or fiscal aspects, and we didn't have the politics [02:19.600 --> 02:23.760] to go with it. People who put their money together should also put political decisions [02:23.760 --> 02:28.160] about that money together, too. I think that's what's behind the thinking when people say the [02:28.160 --> 02:34.880] euro was half baked. Eurozone states have run up massive debts. It's meant to rise in [02:34.880 --> 02:41.280] euroscepticism, and some believe the worst could still be yet to come. I don't think Europe has [02:41.280 --> 02:51.040] hit bottom yet because no bank has gone bankrupt and not even Greece has declared bankruptcy. [02:51.040 --> 02:55.840] However, investors have found the political response to the debt crisis muddled at best. [02:56.480 --> 03:03.520] 16 summits in two years have done little to help. They said we agree where there was no agreement. [03:03.520 --> 03:08.080] They said there was a solution where there was none. Little by little, they've lost credibility. [03:10.320 --> 03:16.960] If 2011's been a bad year for the euro, it seems 2012 may just decide if the single currency will [03:16.960 --> 03:22.560] survive or not, with yet another summit at the end of next month amid even more bankruptcy fears [03:22.560 --> 03:30.240] for Italy and Spain. Iran says it's test-fired a new medium-range missile on Sunday. It comes [03:30.240 --> 03:35.200] during the final part of a 10-day naval drill in the Gulf, close to the Strait of Hormuz, [03:35.200 --> 03:40.720] a key oil route. Tehran threatened to close the passageway after the U.S. placed sanctions on it [03:40.720 --> 03:48.640] because of its nuclear program. Iran's currency, the real, slipped to a record low on Sunday, [03:48.640 --> 03:54.000] a day after the U.S. imposed extra sanctions targeting its central bank and financial sector. [03:54.000 --> 04:00.480] To Syria now, an Arab League monitor appeared to be in conflicts over whether it saw government [04:00.480 --> 04:05.280] snipers in Dera. In a video released by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, [04:05.280 --> 04:10.160] one of the observers there said he'd seen them with his own eyes, and yet the head of the mission [04:10.160 --> 04:14.880] later said the remark was just hypothetical and that the observer didn't see anything. [04:14.880 --> 04:20.160] In this amateur footage, snipers appear to be in position to fire from a rooftop in the city [04:20.160 --> 04:26.000] of Dera. They're thought to be loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Gunshots can be heard [04:26.000 --> 04:32.560] in the distance and close by. The footage cannot be verified, but it purports to have been filmed [04:32.560 --> 04:38.320] on Saturday during a visit to the city by Arab League observers. In another amateur video, [04:38.320 --> 04:43.440] one of the observers claims to have seen snipers in Dera. The video was taken on Saturday, [04:43.440 --> 04:51.600] claiming to have seen snipers himself. From the Almeria side, snipers, we saw them with our own [04:51.600 --> 04:57.280] eyes. We call on the authorities to remove them immediately and we will contact the Arab League [04:57.280 --> 05:02.160] immediately. If they do not comply within 24 hours, there will be other procedures. [05:04.960 --> 05:10.240] But the head of the mission, Mustafa al-Dabi, told the BBC that the observer had pledged to take [05:10.240 --> 05:15.840] action if snipers were spotted, not that any snipers had been identified. The seeming [05:15.840 --> 05:21.600] contradiction reinforces fears of Syrian opposition figures about al-Dabi's suitability [05:21.600 --> 05:27.440] in leading a mission to investigate human rights abuses in Syria. He held security positions under [05:27.440 --> 05:33.200] Sudan's President Omar al-Vashir, who is wanted on international charges of committing genocide [05:33.200 --> 05:39.280] in Darfur. Protesters have criticized al-Dabi's response to the violence, which has continued [05:39.280 --> 05:45.840] despite the observer's presence. This amateur footage appears to show security forces in homes, [05:45.840 --> 05:51.600] kicking an unarmed protester, then hitting him with the butt of a gun before rounding him up, [05:51.600 --> 05:57.680] along with other young men. In Idlib, crowds gathered at a funeral. They chant their defiance [05:57.680 --> 06:03.120] of President Bashar al-Assad, saying they will bow only to God and that the president is the [06:03.120 --> 06:09.600] enemy of God. In two days time, Americans will start voting for who they want as their Republican [06:09.600 --> 06:14.720] or presidential candidates. The race kicks off in the Midwestern state of Iowa, where frontrunner [06:14.720 --> 06:22.000] Mitt Romney is trying to woo voters with his plans on immigration. Immigration has become one of the [06:22.000 --> 06:27.360] main issues in the Iowa caucus. The state's Hispanic population has almost doubled over [06:27.360 --> 06:33.120] the last decade, making up five percent of its residents. A growth concentrated in some counties [06:33.120 --> 06:38.720] and towns, where Mexicans and Central American immigrants work in meatpacking plants, factories [06:38.720 --> 06:44.000] and farms. If my country was in good shape, I wouldn't have come, but things are really tough [06:44.000 --> 06:50.080] there. But some people in this conservative state see the immigration surge as a threat [06:50.080 --> 06:56.320] at a time when jobs are scarce. The Tea Party movement opposed the DREAM Act, which would allow [06:56.320 --> 07:01.440] children brought to the U.S. illegally by their parents to earn citizenship by graduating from [07:01.440 --> 07:07.360] college or serving in the military. And then the people who are illegal can go back home, [07:08.400 --> 07:12.960] then they can decide if they want to come here legally, get in line and come through and [07:12.960 --> 07:17.600] do the hard things that it takes to become an American citizen. Frontrunner Mitt Romney said [07:17.600 --> 07:22.640] he would veto the DREAM Act and take measures to stop new waves of illegal immigration at the [07:22.640 --> 07:30.640] border, a call echoed by his rivals. We will shut down and secure the border with Mexico. We will [07:30.640 --> 07:35.920] put the boots on the ground, the aviation assets in place. That border will be safe and it will be [07:35.920 --> 07:42.160] secure. In recent decades, the U.S. has experienced one of its largest waves of immigration with an [07:42.160 --> 07:49.680] estimated 11 million undocumented aliens living in the country. And a motorcyclist has died on [07:49.680 --> 07:54.880] the first day of the Dakar rally. Competitors from 50 countries around the world are taking part in [07:54.880 --> 08:01.120] the two-week 9,000-kilometer race that will run through Argentina, Chile and Peru. But it's just [08:01.120 --> 08:07.440] been announced that Argentinian bike rider Jorge Martinez Boero has been killed. It was the first [08:07.440 --> 08:20.320] time he was taking part in the event. That's all we have time for. We're back in 20 minutes. [08:27.040 --> 08:33.280] Hello and welcome to a special New Year's edition of The World This Week. The World This Year, [08:33.280 --> 08:38.160] you might want to call it. I'm François Bigard and we're joined by a distinguished panel today, [08:38.160 --> 08:44.880] Christopher Dickey of Newsweek and the Daily Beast. Aude Barron, Editor-in-Chief of Le Plus [08:44.880 --> 08:50.480] Nouvelle Ops, which is a participative section on the internet of Le Nouvelle Observateur, [08:50.480 --> 08:56.160] so citizens and experts can write about the news. One of the leading French news weekly magazines, [08:57.120 --> 09:03.040] Citizen Journalist website? Yeah, it's a website. It's a website as well. And Patrick Smith of [09:03.040 --> 09:08.640] the Africa Report, published monthly. Yep, with a brand new edition in the shops telling you all [09:08.640 --> 09:13.760] you need to know about what's going to go on in 2012. And Stephen Ehrlinger, Paris Bureau Chief [09:13.760 --> 09:20.640] for the New York Times. There's an edition every day. Updated several times a day. Exactly, endlessly. [09:23.840 --> 09:30.960] Last week we saw how the Arab Spring blossoms pretty much spontaneously. Now comes the hard part. [09:30.960 --> 09:38.640] Nations like Egypt and Tunisia find themselves having to pick leaders for leaderless revolutions. [09:38.640 --> 09:43.680] Now everywhere there's been elections. The big winners, Stephen Ehrlinger, have been? [09:45.280 --> 09:51.360] Well, the big winners have been the Islamists. And that's not a bad thing, frankly. But it's [09:51.360 --> 09:55.920] not necessarily a good thing because there are lots of different kinds of Islamists and they [09:55.920 --> 10:00.240] believe lots of different kinds of things. The Muslim Brotherhood, it seems to me, I mean, [10:00.240 --> 10:07.360] others may disagree, was the inevitable beneficiary because it was always seen as the opposition. [10:07.360 --> 10:12.960] It was repressed by these old regimes but it was very well organized. Had a lot of money, some of [10:12.960 --> 10:18.800] it from the outside. It did a lot of charity work. It was in the villages with the people. [10:19.440 --> 10:25.440] So they're recognizable. That would make sense. The big question for Egypt, for example, is what [10:25.440 --> 10:30.720] kind of deal has the army struck with the Muslim Brotherhood? Will the Muslim Brotherhood split? [10:30.720 --> 10:37.280] Blah, blah, blah, blah. I mean, this will have to see. But by itself, you know, the general [10:37.280 --> 10:42.720] support for the Islamists makes perfect sense and should not be a great concern, I don't think. [10:42.720 --> 10:43.360] Patrick Smith? [10:44.080 --> 10:50.240] Well, it's certainly the case that the Islamists have taken over the spirit of the revolution, [10:50.240 --> 10:56.560] which appeared to be a very secular and non-theocratic spirit when it started. [10:57.600 --> 11:02.560] I think it's going to be very, very difficult to predict how it's going to pan out. I think it will, [11:04.320 --> 11:09.600] the feeling that events in Egypt may parallel those in Turkey where you have this [11:09.600 --> 11:15.920] contest between the military and the Islamists and somehow they find there's an accommodation. [11:15.920 --> 11:20.640] I think that could be possible. I think what's particularly striking in Egypt, [11:20.640 --> 11:25.600] and certainly the first round that we've seen so far, is that the brothers who have been [11:26.160 --> 11:33.840] active in Egypt for 80 years, they got 35, 36 percent, and the Salafists, the extremely [11:33.840 --> 11:40.960] conservative Islamist group, got over 20 percent. Egypt's going to be the only country in which [11:40.960 --> 11:47.360] groups like the Salafists have a seat in parliament. They have opted for parliamentary politics, [11:47.360 --> 11:53.280] so it's an entirely new political tactic for them to compete for votes like that. [11:55.280 --> 12:03.360] In Egypt, we saw Salafists' posters where women were represented by flowers, or in at least one [12:03.360 --> 12:09.600] case by the candidate's husband. How is this going to play out though in a nation that's used to [12:09.600 --> 12:14.720] 14 million Western tourists a year, Christopher? Well, it's not going to be good for tourism. I [12:14.720 --> 12:18.240] think we can say with some confidence tourism is going to suffer, is suffering, and is going to [12:18.240 --> 12:24.560] suffer in Egypt. But I think as we look forward, it's important to realize that we are at a whole [12:24.560 --> 12:29.280] new stage in Arab history because of the demographics of the Arab world, because of the [12:29.280 --> 12:34.640] connectivity of the Arab world now. I mean, when I first started going there 25 years ago, you could [12:34.640 --> 12:39.680] barely get a landline to make a telephone call. Now everybody has cell phones, everybody has satellite [12:39.680 --> 12:46.160] television, a lot of people are on the internet, and the majority of the population is under 25 [12:46.160 --> 12:53.360] years old. In Yemen, the majority is under 18. So this is a whole different dynamic going ahead, [12:53.360 --> 12:58.240] and I think the one thing that is predictable is that it's going to be completely unpredictable. [12:58.240 --> 13:05.200] I was in Tahrir Square in 2010. As Mubarak was coming down and having lived in Egypt for six [13:05.200 --> 13:10.640] years over the years, I was surprised three or four times a day something would happen that I [13:10.640 --> 13:15.280] simply could not have imagined happening before. And I think that's going to continue. [13:16.480 --> 13:19.280] The economy, I mean, it's also going to be a huge issue. I mean, how, [13:20.400 --> 13:26.480] which I think is going to be a moderating force on whichever coalition dominates Egyptian politics. [13:26.480 --> 13:31.280] They simply have to change the way business is done. And some of the prescriptions, particularly [13:31.280 --> 13:36.960] the Salafist prescriptions, just wouldn't make sense in a modern world. And I think that's where [13:36.960 --> 13:43.760] you're going to see a huge pressure for compromise on the brothers to make deals with perhaps some [13:43.760 --> 13:48.240] secularist forces or less religious forces simply to get the economy moving, because this is going [13:48.240 --> 13:53.600] to be the first time they're really going to be put to the test electorally. You might also see [13:53.600 --> 13:59.040] someone like Omar Moussa, who's basically a secularist becoming president of Egypt. [13:59.040 --> 14:00.160] Former head of the Arab League. [14:00.160 --> 14:05.120] Yeah. I mean, I'm not sure that's a good thing particularly, but it again would be a moderating [14:05.120 --> 14:10.000] force, particularly for the outside world to feel that there was somebody there that they had some [14:10.000 --> 14:18.080] idea who they were and what they thought. We're talking about the youth here and you have, [14:18.080 --> 14:23.920] it seems, are they contradictory on the one hand, conservative religious values and on the other [14:23.920 --> 14:30.160] hand, this sort of generation Y ethos of going on social networking sites, even to find soulmates. [14:30.720 --> 14:37.120] Well, when you look on the social networks and on the internet, you mainly see the youth. So you [14:37.120 --> 14:42.560] only hear, well, you hear mainly the same voice and they want to know freedom and liberty and they [14:42.560 --> 14:48.880] want the right for democracy. And one of the big stakes for next year is will the movement will [14:48.880 --> 14:53.200] continue on the internet, especially when you see a country like Syria, where the information [14:53.840 --> 15:00.480] is difficult to access. And some hackers really help the people to communicate and to communicate [15:00.480 --> 15:05.200] with each other and with the Western world. And we just have to hope that those hackers, [15:05.200 --> 15:09.520] well, first they won't have any problem, and then they will continue because they've been [15:09.520 --> 15:14.400] doing this for months and months. And maybe after a while they will get tired and they will stop. [15:14.400 --> 15:19.040] And I met one of them last week and he was saying that, you know, at the beginning there were [15:19.040 --> 15:25.120] thousands because they were very excited. And now there are only a few dozens and maybe after, [15:25.120 --> 15:29.920] you know, month after month, the movement will decline. Do you sense revolution fatigue, [15:29.920 --> 15:35.440] prosperity? Yeah, outside in the outside world, yes. People are like, oh, no, not another story [15:35.440 --> 15:40.000] about Arab revolutions or when Syria ever going to end. Of course, people are very cynical and [15:40.000 --> 15:44.240] they get tired very fast. I don't think there's revolution fatigue in these countries. I think [15:44.240 --> 15:49.120] there's a lot of disappointment that things haven't been delivered more quickly. But I think [15:49.120 --> 15:53.280] just reflecting on what Patrick said, we really are going to see some interesting things happen [15:53.280 --> 15:58.800] as the Islamists, for instance, are given the responsibility of governing. I don't think they [15:58.800 --> 16:03.280] can do it. I think we actually are going to see it would be a good guess that we will see the [16:03.280 --> 16:07.600] beginning of the end of the Islamic trend over the next couple of years because they're not [16:07.600 --> 16:12.320] going to be able to deliver. And we're going to have this chaotic situation and the outside world [16:12.320 --> 16:17.600] will get tired of it. But I think the fact that people, especially young people, are living in a [16:17.600 --> 16:25.200] dynamic environment now where things can change is just amazing. I mean, for decades, for two, [16:25.200 --> 16:31.120] three generations in the Arab world, nothing really changed. I want to get back to one point [16:31.120 --> 16:36.080] that Patrick was mentioning earlier, which is Turkey. Now, there's competing foreign influences [16:36.080 --> 16:40.320] tugging at one another in places like Egypt. There's the Gulf States where there's lots of [16:40.320 --> 16:44.880] conservative Muslims from Egypt who've gone to find work. There's the U.S., which plows a lot of [16:44.880 --> 16:51.040] aid into the country, mostly military. And then there's the growing star of places like Turkey, [16:51.040 --> 16:57.520] whose prime minister got a rock star welcome when he visited Egypt a few months back. That's all [16:57.520 --> 17:02.480] the more remarkable, Patrick, that Turkey was once home to the old colonizers, the Ottoman Empire. [17:02.480 --> 17:09.920] Yeah. It's history repeating itself with a very different take. Erdogan's had a brilliant year. [17:09.920 --> 17:17.440] So has Qatar. I think the internal beneficiaries of the Arab Spring have clearly been the Islamists [17:17.440 --> 17:21.040] and the external beneficiaries, if you like, have been Turkey and Qatar. They both [17:21.920 --> 17:26.960] moved very quickly to back the winners. Turkey's case was really interesting because Erdogan [17:26.960 --> 17:32.240] had won the Mohamed Gaddafi Human Rights Prize a year ago, and then suddenly he discovered that [17:32.240 --> 17:37.040] Mohamed Gaddafi was a really bad guy and needed overthrowing. So what happens vis-a-vis his [17:37.040 --> 17:44.480] neighbor, Syria? He's going to be one of the decidues. There's no question about that. Turkey's [17:44.480 --> 17:51.280] influence in the region, I think, has been enhanced. It's very much in keeping with the move [17:51.280 --> 17:56.800] within the Arab League. I mean, for the first time in its history, the Arab League has sanctioned a [17:56.800 --> 18:03.920] member at that level, not only supported the bombing against Gaddafi initially, but then moved [18:03.920 --> 18:09.440] against Syria, which regards itself as a cornerstone of the Arab League. And Erdogan is right up with [18:09.440 --> 18:15.440] them. And I think it's really going to enhance Turkey's status as a model also, not just as a [18:15.440 --> 18:20.720] sort of political actor, but as a model. We can have an Islamic state that produces economic [18:20.720 --> 18:25.520] growth. And I think that that's the real challenge to all the governments in the region. Is that going [18:25.520 --> 18:30.880] to be possible elsewhere? One final point on this before we move on. Stephen Erlinger, we'll talk [18:30.880 --> 18:36.960] about the West's waning influence in these places. We're seeing the final pullout of U.S. troops from [18:36.960 --> 18:44.240] Iraq. We're seeing further along the start of the drawdown in Afghanistan. Are we being too hard on [18:44.240 --> 18:48.240] the United States when they do that? After all, they're rolling with the punches, as it were. [18:48.240 --> 18:54.000] Well, yeah. And also, frankly, they have a lot of interest in the Pacific, which everyone forgets. [18:54.000 --> 19:02.960] And China is a big issue. And they need to look a little harder at what China is up to. And they [19:02.960 --> 19:09.360] have friends and allies. But I think the Americans aren't going to go away. Don't mistake it. [19:10.080 --> 19:17.200] I think what's fascinating, though, is you have different models in the Arab world that have died. [19:17.200 --> 19:23.600] One was Arab nationalism, Nasserism. Then you had this military model, which they tried to turn [19:24.560 --> 19:30.960] into a sort of dynasty. And now you're going to have some kind of vaguely Islamist model. [19:30.960 --> 19:35.600] I'm not sure that's going to work any better. There's a lot of chaos and confusion. The stakes [19:35.600 --> 19:41.360] are extremely high, not just for the United States, but for the King of Jordan, the King of Morocco, [19:41.360 --> 19:48.160] the Saudis. I mean, things are in play. And that means the United States is going to play a role. [19:48.160 --> 19:54.080] Turkey alone is not the answer. Well, it's amazing to watch the confusion of the United States, [19:54.080 --> 19:58.400] as a matter of fact, as it looks at this. I mean, we forget, as I pointed out in an essay that's in [19:58.400 --> 20:07.440] issues to 2012, that dictators are very convenient. There was just one go-to guy in any country. [20:07.440 --> 20:12.000] Either he was a royal or he was a general. You went to him. Things got decided. They got done or [20:12.000 --> 20:16.640] they didn't get done. But you only had to talk to one guy. Who do you talk to now in Egypt? [20:16.640 --> 20:21.920] The Americans still act as if you can just talk to the military, but you can't. They literally do [20:21.920 --> 20:27.920] not know who to talk to now. And that is a scary position if you are the secretary of state or the [20:27.920 --> 20:31.360] president of the United States, and you're looking at one of your most important allies in one of [20:31.360 --> 20:37.520] the most volatile regions in the world. But that's the way it is. It is what it is at this point. [20:37.520 --> 20:42.480] Who do you talk to in those countries? Who do you talk to back in the United States? An election year [20:43.280 --> 20:49.680] is beginning in a nation more than ever polarized between right and left. And where we've seen [20:49.680 --> 20:56.400] suspicions of those in the high halls of power take on new forms. If the start of the year began [20:56.400 --> 21:03.680] with everybody here in France trying to understand what the Tea Party is, now comes Occupy Wall [21:03.680 --> 21:08.880] Street and its affiliated franchises in several cities. Christopher Dickey, for our viewers who [21:08.880 --> 21:13.280] are not in the United States, is this just college kids? What's going on? No, no, it's a much bigger [21:13.280 --> 21:19.040] cross-section of the population. It is in its way, Occupy Wall Street is the left wing equivalent [21:19.040 --> 21:25.200] of the Tea Party on the right. It's an expression of fear and anger and a desire to see something [21:25.200 --> 21:31.120] change, although in both cases it isn't really clear what people want to change. Well, what's [21:31.120 --> 21:35.760] clear is they know what they don't want. They know what they don't like and don't want, absolutely. [21:35.760 --> 21:40.160] So that's first a good point. And what's very interesting about this movement is how it spread [21:40.160 --> 21:45.200] all around the world, because you had on the one side the indignates in Spain and on the other side [21:45.200 --> 21:50.480] you had Occupy Wall Street. And all the movements, you know, they just merged together and you had [21:50.480 --> 21:56.880] all those demonstrations all around the world. And after you need, when a movement has success or not, [21:56.880 --> 22:03.520] and when you observe in the U.S., Occupy Wall Street is still very active, whereas when you look [22:03.520 --> 22:08.320] at in Europe, you know, the movement, well, there are some movements, there are a few demonstrations, [22:08.320 --> 22:15.040] but they don't have the media behind them. And that's one of their weakness. And in the U.S., [22:15.040 --> 22:20.000] the media came because of the movement, to express the reason of the movement. And then they came [22:20.000 --> 22:25.200] back because you had some movie stars, some actors, some singers who came. So the media came for the [22:25.200 --> 22:32.560] people aspect of the movement were in Europe using the stars. Patrick Smith, I've heard it said that [22:32.560 --> 22:38.640] in the case in the U.K. with the Occupy St. Paul's, I believe it was, people became quickly [22:38.640 --> 22:45.280] disenchanted when they started to organize stuff a little too much. I think one of the points is, [22:45.280 --> 22:51.120] as everyone says, we know what we don't want. That's the sort of clarion call. But they also [22:51.120 --> 22:56.720] set up a tent with a library in it. And a friend of mine said any movement that sets up a tent with [22:56.720 --> 23:01.360] a library in it to find out what we do want, you know, he's going to get his backing. I can see the [23:01.360 --> 23:07.440] point. I think it's more diffuse now. And they had this confrontation with the religious authorities [23:07.440 --> 23:14.560] in London. And in fact, you know, one of the clerics had to resign as a result of this. [23:14.560 --> 23:20.800] So I think popular support is still quite high because it does ring all the right bells. They [23:20.800 --> 23:27.440] can skepticism about politicians, their hypocrisy, their corruption, skepticism about the bankers who [23:27.440 --> 23:33.440] have caused this crisis. We've talked about youth unemployment. It's all put in the bag. The problem [23:33.440 --> 23:40.320] is it's all too simplistic. And there isn't now a counter movement to say what we do want. But [23:40.320 --> 23:46.160] it's just the mantra is change. And that worked pretty well for Obama, I think, in 2008. [23:46.160 --> 23:51.520] Right. So there's this diffuse anger. Does it help or hurts Barack Obama as he bids for reelection? [23:53.280 --> 23:57.920] I don't think it actually hurts him terribly. I'm not sure how much it helps him. I mean, I think [23:58.560 --> 24:05.440] what you have is a generalized response to fear, to economic fear. I mean, fear that, [24:05.440 --> 24:12.240] you know, the credit crisis is going to get worse. We see it. Unemployment is getting worse. [24:12.240 --> 24:19.440] It's beginning to pick up a bit in the United States, unlike in Europe. American stimulus is [24:19.440 --> 24:25.600] finally kicking in. I mean, American presidents try to time these things properly. We'll see if [24:25.600 --> 24:31.840] Obama times it right. But the economy will define whether he's reelected as much as the Republican [24:31.840 --> 24:36.240] candidate will. I mean, it now looks on the Republican side that you're not going to get [24:36.960 --> 24:43.760] a Tea Party candidate. You'll probably get Romney or get Gingrich. I think probably at this point [24:43.760 --> 24:50.880] Romney is more of a danger to Obama than Gingrich. But it's early. It's hard to know. But I think [24:50.880 --> 24:58.960] Obama is very vulnerable because the magic is gone. People are upset. They think he's smart. [24:58.960 --> 25:05.360] But they don't think he's been very effective. Mr. Dickey, is there a fear that people won't [25:05.360 --> 25:09.680] turn out to vote for Barack Obama? I'm sure that they're not going to turn out the way they did [25:09.680 --> 25:15.360] last time around. I mean, when Steve says the magic is gone, he puts his finger exactly on the [25:15.360 --> 25:20.960] problem that Obama has, not just that the economy is difficult, but he was able to mobilize people [25:20.960 --> 25:25.680] who normally don't go out and vote. And they would get on Facebook. They would use all the [25:25.680 --> 25:33.600] social media. And what's really interesting is that his campaign was designed so that you would [25:33.600 --> 25:38.800] get on these social media and then you would be directed to take concrete actions. These are the [25:38.800 --> 25:43.680] addresses of doors you should knock on in your neighborhood. This is the amount of money you [25:43.680 --> 25:48.480] should raise. It was an incredible machine getting him elected. I don't think it's going to work [25:48.480 --> 25:53.360] nearly as well this time around. How he reinvents a huge amount of money, don't forget. And how he [25:53.360 --> 25:58.480] reinvents himself and what his opponent does, we'll pick up on that point when we return for this [25:58.480 --> 26:24.080] New Year's edition of The World This Week. [27:58.480 --> 28:26.080] The World This Week. [28:26.080 --> 28:33.200] Capital cities around the world have been celebrating the start of 2012 in style from London to New York [28:33.200 --> 28:41.120] to right here in Paris. We've got all the party pictures for you. It's a happy 10th birthday to [28:41.120 --> 28:46.720] the euro, but with the debt crisis rocking the euro zone to its core, plus the threat of recession, [28:46.720 --> 28:54.800] many say there's little to celebrate. And the head of the Senate in the Democratic Republic of Congo [28:54.800 --> 28:59.440] has been attacked here in Paris. He's been hospitalized after being set upon at a train [28:59.440 --> 29:06.800] station. So those are the latest headlines. Welcome to France, I'm Louise Hanna. [29:07.520 --> 29:11.600] Millions of people around the world have been welcoming in the New Year with fireworks, [29:11.600 --> 29:18.880] parties and even a few celebrities. In New York, pop diva Lady Gaga and Michael Bloomberg hit the [29:18.880 --> 29:25.760] switch, sending the city's famous crystal ball on its countdown drop. London paid homage to the 2012 [29:25.760 --> 29:31.040] Olympics that it'll host, kicking off its fireworks display with a recording of the moment it learned [29:31.040 --> 29:36.880] it would host the games. While here in Paris, revelers popped champagne corks at midnight along [29:36.880 --> 29:42.160] the famed Champs Elysees. All got themselves to a rooftop where they could see the Eiffel Tower [29:42.160 --> 29:50.480] shimmer in pink, gold and white. In other world news, the government of Democratic Republic of [29:50.480 --> 29:55.120] Congo has accused opposition supporters of attacking the president of the Senate in [29:55.120 --> 30:13.040] Paris on Saturday night. Leon Congo-Wadondo was set upon at the...