This US Presidential race may be for possession of a poisoned chalice. Whoever wins will potentially face a challenge unlike any since the 1930s. Back then, FDR won and served for over twelve years but the worst of the crisis had unfolded before he became President. That is not the case this time.

The new President risks having the economic situation totally unravel on his watch. The seeds may have been sown earlier but he is where the buck will stop when all the redundancies and foreclosures come in.

It is possible we’re looking at a one term Presidency – especially if McCain wins. In 2012, if he doesn’t succumb to ill-health before then, he’ll look and possibly be worn out. As for Obama, will the voters be forgiving if the bad times roll in in a big way? (It is certain that Republicans will be vociferous in their denunciations if things are anything less than rosy.)

So is this a good election to lose?

In retrospect, Labour’s loss in Britain in 1992 ensured their landslide wins in 1997 and 2001. The problems that beset Major’s Government put voters off the Tories for at least a decade. Arguably they still haven’t recovered.

If Labour had won in 1992, joined the ERM, and suffered the same fortunes with it as the Tories did, then we in Britain might have had John Redwood or an unreconstructed Michael Portillo as PM in 1997 and a harder-nosed Thatcherism instead of the Blair version. Gordon Brown might now be ganging up with Vince Cable in opposition to a David Cameron chancellorship.

A similarly troubled Obama Presidency might see the Republicans entrenched for the foreseeable future from 2012 on. On the other hand I can’t see McCain (still less Palin if the worst happens) charting a way out of the financial mess we all seem to be in. In which case the Democrats would be sitting fair for 2012 and beyond.

Surprisingly for a provincial town Kirkcaldy has at least two large Art Deco buildings – and publicly owned at that.

This is Kirkcaldy’s signature Art Deco building, built in 1938 to a design by local architects Williamson and Hubbard. The flagpole on the right is flying a saltire, the other the royal standard. Quite why this is I don’t know; the day I took the pictures wasn’t a high day nor a holiday. The roof has been renewed at some point in its history, relatively recently by the look of it. There is a hint here that the original roof may have been flat.

There is interplay between horizontals and verticals but it’s the detailing on the rounded entrance and the flagpoles that makes it more than a rectangular box.

The building seems to be safe for at least five years but suffered an internal fire 20 or so months ago which happily didn’t affect the facade.

The window glass above the entrance is still curved. Hurray!

I like the way the line of the flagpoles is continued down through the doorways. Pity about the (mobile phone?) aerials just on the edge of the roof here.

The blue makes a good contrast to the white but is possibly too harsh. I assume the colour scheme has been adopted to reflect the one that the Fife Flyers Ice Hockey team uses.

The tops of the driveway entrance pillars have eroded away a bit. They do seem to have been restored since this photo was taken, though.

The Rock, 1/11/08

Five!

Five is impressive. I can’t recall off-hand the last time we scored five at home.

But we conceded again, twice; once after they were down to ten men.

Still, the forwards got onto the score sheet.

A play-off place ought not to be beyond us if we keep our form.

I’m beginning to hope the Cup doesn’t distract us. Two seasons ago under Gerry McCabe we were well enough placed at Christmas but let it slip, partly due to getting humped by Celtic and partly to postponements.

And winter has come already…