On London
ByMy site can’t cope with all the comments! I’ve opened a new post here for everyone who wants to add their voice.
I have been preoccupied over the past few days with a tangle of questions and thoughts connected by the London bombing. Not thoughts of the why they did it, how they did it, or who did it variety. I have been wondering why and how this has affected me. Selfish, I know. But also, it is the only way I can feel myself a part of this whole, sorry situation.
My thoughts and ideas about the War on Terror, US Foreign Policy, and European Foreign Policy (if it can be called or characterized as such) has been in a state of flux for the past six months or longer. It is no coincidence that the last four books to enter my apartment were Peter Bergen’s Holy War Inc, Christopher Hitchens’ Love, Poverty, and War, Scott Anderson’s The Man Who Tried to Save the World, and Bob Dylan’s Chronicles (Chronicles, the exception, I hope proves the rule).
Warning: there follows a list of gratuitous admissions.
1. I have been on two anti-war/anti-Bush marches in New York (2003/2004)
2. I believed that the September 11 attacks on America were the ghosts of US foreign policy coming back to haunt it.
3. On September 11, 2001, and on July 8 7, 2005, (and on all the bombings in between) I acted as though it had nothing to do with me.
The first admission is no source of shame. I still believe that the way the US invaded Iraq was wrong; the Bush administration falsely linked Saddam and September 11, the UN was brushed aside and terribly weakened, the electorate in the US and the UK was misled on the road to war, and plans for running the country post Saddam were not thought through.
Hussein was a dictator. I support his removal just as I would the removal of Robert Mugabe. But if you have to lie to your electorate in order to go to war, then perhaps you are not going to war for the right reasons in the first place.
On the second admission I confess that I feel woefully uneducated. There is a school of thought which points to “US imperialism†and draws a winding line from the mountains of Afghanistan during the 1980s to the man behind the attacks on September 11. They view the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, US backed despots in the Middle East and the presence of US troops and oil interests there, as the obvious explanation for these people’s hatred of Western society. Among the second school of thought, writers like Christopher Hitchens point to the rise of Islamofascism over the past 40 years and argue that Islamic terrorists would attack Western Democracies no matter what:
But the bombers of Manhattan represent fascism with an Islamic face, and there’s no point in any euphemism about it. What they abominate about “the West,” to put it in a phrase, is not what Western liberals don’t like and can’t defend about their own system, but what they do like about it and must defend: its emancipated women, its scientific inquiry, its separation of religion from the state.
The contrast between these two world views has been my main preoccupation during the past few days. I spent so long believing in the first school of thought, and the shift that I have made towards the second camp has been so gradual, that I think it has been perceptible to everybody except myself. While not wholeheartedly agreeing with School Number 2, I can no longer agree with School Number 1. I am in the unfortunate position of not knowing anything anymoreâ€â€of being somewhere in between.
If living in New York has had one major effect during the past year and a half, it is to open my eyes to a different world view. To put it another way. When I immersed myself in Russia for five years between 1995 and 2000, it opened my left eye. Living in America is opening my right eye. And my vision is still pretty much a blur.
The BBC that I used to love for its impartiality, I have “discovered,” is far from impartial. I don’t love it any less for this. And I think that the license fee is the surest way keep the world’s greatest (and I mean this) news/current affairs institution at its best. But I do wish that they would admit that news output is only as impartial as the people who produce it. And I am yet to meet an impartial human being—especially an impartial journalist.
Likewise, the great British Press, the envy of the world, contains a mass of half-truths, deliberate omissions, undeclared interests, and regurgitated press releases. It chases its tail to produce almost a dozen national newspapers that carry the same story, albeit of varying lengths, each and every day. And regional journalism, at least as I knew it, has been reduced to filling space.
The result is not a lie on the scale of Pravda. But it is still a false world view masquerading as the truth.
So, after 12 months of living in New York is it any surprise that Israel starts to look a little less evil? And that Europe starts to look a little more parochial? That the US starts to look a little more like it is trying to solve some of the world’s problems, and that it is doing so despite the sometimes unfair criticism of its allies? If in England it always looked like the US was the playground bully. Then from the US it looks a lot more like an embattled headteacher in a problem school.
So what does any of this have to do with me?
Like many Englanders abroad I received the phone calls and emails last Friday. I reproduce one below:
Paul, heard from your London friends? Hope they are all safe.
So after having been abroad for both the 9/11 attacks as a UK resident, and
today’s London attacks as a New Yorker, do you still feel somewhat distanced
from the reality? I remember you said that you felt indifferent, maybe even
unfazed in 2001.
Indifferent and unfazed are exactly the qualities I expressed throughout Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. I don’t have to express them any more because we are past the point when people will ask. But what bothered me was the fact that while I expressed both qualities to a frustrating degree in front of my wife, I was in fact neither indifferent nor unfazed within.
The reason for this is at the heart of the gradual metamorphosis I have just attempted to explain. On September 11, I thought I knew the reasons why the attacks had taken place. And it was not my fault. Moreover, it was somebody else’s fault – the US’s – and they were reaping what they had sown. But in the past 12 months I have slowly come to understand that the wordview I held was tainted by a media that sees the problems in the world (dictatorship in Iraq, authoritarianism/terrorism in the Middle East, the Israeli/Palestinian conflict, global warming) as being the fault of the United States. All of this from a country and a continent that seems to have done little itself to try to redress the balance in a world which it has corrupted/manipulated to a gargantuan degree during the past 100 years.
“We know that,†comes the cry. “But the US has the power to do so much good and yet it chooses to do the opposite.â€Â
Really? Should the US have stayed out of Kosovo? Should it have stayed out of Afghanistan and Iraq? Should it leave North Korea and Iran to their own devices? Is it the US alone that has not done enough to stop the killing in Darfur? Or is Britain, Europe, Africa, just as much to blame? Why are we not rushing headlong into Zimbabwe to get rid of Robert Mugabe? Is it worse to do something? Or is it worse to do nothing?
At this moment, I am proud to be a citizen of a country that has done more than most to help the US get rid of the Taliban and Saddam Hussein. And I think that it would do other Europeans some good to think again about what their countries have achieved, if anything, to try to stem the tide of dictatorships and terrorism around the world. They should wonder whether they are really asking themselves the hard questions. Or whether they are shrugging their shoulders and blaming America because that is what they have been brought up to do.
Would the world be a safer place if the people who bombed Bali, New York, Madrid, and London, were in power in Africa and the Middle East? If not, how do we stop them? If we lived in Israel would we believe that a return to our 1967 borders would mean the chance of a life lived in peace? If not, how can we ensure that for them?
This weekend I took my first trip to Washington DC, where I had to suffer the Smithsonian National Museum of American History’s terrible exhibition The Price of Freedom: Americans at War. If it had been simplified any further it would have just had the words “The Good Guys Won and the Bad Guys Lost. We were the good guys.†under each exhibit. I was further sickened by the prevalence of “Freedom is not free†T-shirts being sported by passers-by on the Mall, and by one woman’s remark at a service station on the freeway who said “It seems like all the coaches in the free world have stopped here at once.”
The sooner Americans detach themselves from the delusion that they are the sole arbiters of freedom and democracy in the world the better. Countless countries could give America a lesson in those two subjects, especially on human rights.
But by the same token, Europe and the rest of the world must accept that far from being playground bullies, Americans are actually do-gooders with very heavy hands. A few decades ago, they would have backed any despotic ruler if it meant they could have their way. Well, they learned their lesson. Nowadays they hope that planting democracy in the Middle East will reap its rewards for generations to come. It’s time they were lent a more willing hand.
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103 Comments
July 11th, 2005 at 5:15 pm
I am much more pissed off with the Americans about the environment than I am about “Terror”.
As far as I am concerned countries like Iran and North Korea have no rights. How can a country have rights when the individuals inside it have none? If it is in the self interest of a civilized democracy to invade a country like this in order to secure their own future they should go right ahead.
July 14th, 2005 at 6:42 am
Pavlik,
I am always very interested to read your words and I dashed to your blog when I got back from dear Denmark earlier this week. It is EXTREMELY interesting to hear you talk of your transition or metamorphosis and how everyone saw it coming but you. If I may be so cocky, I saw it coming. Anyway, as you well know, there might be any number of reasons for why views change. Being abroad is no doubt one of them, and I feel it’s a change I’ve gone through myself. Having other points of views/worldviews can only be good for one, even if you don’t agree with them all. Age is no doubt another factor. And being in the States no doubt makes you think more about your own identity. As much as many of us like to think it is irrelevant (and would like it to be so), thoughts on the subject can become heightened when away from home. Being a foreigner certainly has its plusses and minuses. And, if I dare be so cocky, I wouldn’t mind hazarding a guess that being in New York has not only made you think more about England/Englishness/Britishness, whatever, but also about your Jewishness. All in all, a cocktail for radical(ish) worldview changes.
Keep up the good work, EINY. And warmest regards from old Europe…
July 14th, 2005 at 1:03 pm
Thanks Desik. It must have been at least four years but you seem to still know me well
I wonder what Snezhana would have to say about all this?
July 14th, 2005 at 7:07 pm
You write that “The sooner Americans detach themselves from the delusion that they are the sole arbiters of freedom and democracy in the world the better” – please remember that it is the American government – and not all Americans that believe that they are the “sole arbiters of freedom” – I for one am embarrassed to that my government follows that policy. I don’t want my being American to be associated with a corrupt and lying government. Not all Americans are deluded.
July 14th, 2005 at 7:10 pm
Point taken. I should have said “the American Government.” Although I think that I could equally have said “successive American Governments”–at least that’s the way it has felt in the past looking towards the US from the outside.
July 15th, 2005 at 12:27 pm
Israel’s actions in ethnic cleansing and racist settler colonialism are still reprehensible. These actions are driven by bigotry and are not justified whether or not they are the cause of all the anti-Western feeling in the Islamic world. They certainly are the cause of a lot of it.
The strategic point must be to split those who hate us because of Israel’s racist settler colonialism and ethnic cleansing on the land captured in 1967 from those who hate us because of Britney Spears. Then we will see how many of the latter there are.
July 15th, 2005 at 12:30 pm
As a supporter of president Bush and the Iraq war currently residing “behind enemy lines” in San Francisco, CA, I wish I could encounter more sentiments like this one. That is not to say that everyone needs to agree with what the United States is doing; rather to lament the fact that most people simply don’t give the issue the same degree of persevering thought that you obviously have. That you are seeing things a little more from “my point of view” is encouraging, because it gives me hope that more people on the other side of the debate will come around, but this secondary to just knowing that there still are people out there who will consistently examine and re-examine the issues in what is obviously going to be a very long and complicated conflict in our history.
A very nice read. Thank you. I’ll be back.
July 15th, 2005 at 12:33 pm
Thanks for a great piece. One question: Which countries could give a lesson on democracy and freedom to the US? I guess it depends on how you measure those things, but this American suspects that self-governing an extremely diverse population of 250 million free souls is not something in which other countries have much experience.
July 15th, 2005 at 12:36 pm
Nice post.
i’m an american who lived in london for about 5 years. i was in london when 9/11 happened. i went there as a fairly liberal person. i had a natural affinity to reading the guardian thinking it was the best uk paper. after 9/11 the “you had it coming” camp and constant anti-americanism that you describe really got to me. it was hard to find support and solace in a place that kept blaming the victim. i associated the rampant anti-american is london and the rest of europe with a type of racism (for lack of a better word.) when we weren’t being derided for our government’s support of israel and other foreign policies, we were being blasted for how we pronounced certain words or for calling the “world series” the “world series” when we (and canada) are the only ones in it and other such idiocies.
i’m back in new york and i still consider myself “liberal” but i have no problem calling a terrorist a terrorist unlike the bbc.
July 15th, 2005 at 12:41 pm
Otto,
You remind me of a rather intellectual – yet confused – Brit I had sitting next to me on a recent plane ride. He lamented the fact that only if the Israel issue could be solved, our Islamic terrorism prolems would wash away. Well, I then asked him how he thought the beheadings of Buddhists (at the hands of Muslims) in Thailand had anything to do with Israel…he had no answer.
I could list similar such examples (too many to count on both hands) but my point is a simple one – Islamic terrorism does not derive as a reaction of US and Israeli foreign policy. Something much more dire and gruesome is at work here.
I am afraid that many folks won’t realize this until after many more innocent Westerners are murdered in their own homes and streets.
July 15th, 2005 at 12:50 pm
otto:
Your bizarre and inappropriate rant is antithetical to the theme of this thoughtful and honest essay and suggests that you are nothing but a vulgar antisemtite.
July 15th, 2005 at 12:52 pm
A George Orwell essay that I believe is relevant to this discussion:
http://www.orwell.ru/library/articles/pacifism/english/e_patw
July 15th, 2005 at 12:56 pm
I get so tired of saying this, but the settlers are an extremely small part of Israelis society and they are not like by the rest of Israelis. Israelis do not want to occupy anybody. They just want their security gauranteed. The population of the West Bank and Gaza has more than doubled since 1967.
The Palestinians have had numerous chances to have their own state, but they have passed on every single chance so far.
Somehow, everything that goes wrong can be blamed on Israel. This seems to me to be just a new way of scapegoating Jews. It all seems so familiar.
It is disapointing that large portions of the British left are now indistinguishable from the far right. Are they channeling Pat Buchanan? Sometimes I think they are.
July 15th, 2005 at 12:57 pm
It’s funny: during my years abroad in England the most common phrase used in conversations with me was, “We don’t hate Americans, just your government.”
I found it ironic, then, when I would: see a protest declaiming Americans; hear “bloody, stupid American” muttered behind a turned back; avoid the shirtless man walking down the street, screaming to no one in particular, “Fucking yanks, go the fuck home!”; or be told I was “not like the other Americans”, as I “knew how to behave properly.”
Perhaps it’s all that, or maybe a sense of Lincoln’s words about a government for, of and by the people, but I never bought the argument. I might not agree with it, but that does not change the fact that the American government is a representative extension of the collective will of Americans, myself included. That, I guess, gives me something in common with those terrorists who have targeted American civilians.
Lovely entry that puts words to some things I also have been struggling with, particularly the role of the UK media, and my sense that “It’s all about Iraq” is just too easy an excuse.
July 15th, 2005 at 12:58 pm
Your musings are eloquent and important.
It reminds of a point that a learned Supreme Court Justice once said about the US Bill of Rights…..if I can paraphrase: “It is not a suicide pact”.
Our ability to accept and learn from and value other cultures does NOT mean that all cultures and intellectual traditions are valuable. Nor are they necessarily superior to Western traditions. Homophobia is wrong, and not just when it is the American evangelical right esposing it. It is ALSO wrong when it comes from Muslim fundamentalists. Israel has made many mistakes but it is a functioning democracy, which is more than you can say about ANY Arab country. While we must defend the rights of Muslims to pray and observe their faith, we do not have to respect their preaching of hate, intolerance, and destruction.
July 15th, 2005 at 1:04 pm
Do they publish articles like this in England I wonder?
Just today from YNET:
TEL AVIV – Top terrorist Zakaria Zubeidi made a “guest appearance†in a video prepared by the staff of Reuters news agency in Israel and the Palestinian Authority as a “going away†gift for a colleague, Ynetnews has learned.
Zubeidi, who heads Fatah’s al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade in Jenin, has been named by security officials as a key figure in organizing terror attacks on Israeli civilians. Zubeidi’s al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades have claimed responsibility for more than 300 terror acts in the last five years.
A Reuters spokeswoman confirmed the video’s existence, but said the London-based news organization is “not associated with any group or faction in any conflict.â€Â
The screening, which occurred in a Jerusalem restaurant last March, involved the showing of a video during a private party. “The video’s theme was what Israel would be like in 10 years,†said an Israeli government official who attended the party and viewed the video.
“All of a sudden, at the end, there is Zakaria Zubeidi, playing the head of Reuters. Zubeidi was sitting in Reuters’ Jenin office, saying he was Reuters’ chief,†the official said.
The party included guests from the BBC, ITN, the Independent newspaper, and French journalists. “They all thought the video was hilarious,†the official said. He added that only a few individuals did not seem amused during the screening. “They were laughing; they thought it was very funny, he said.â€Â
July 15th, 2005 at 1:08 pm
Isadore:
I would like to draw your attention to your own rant. Of course any suggestion that Israel has done anything wrong or in any way caused problems in the middle east, results in you instead of discoursing in a civil way or pointing to facts leads to you yelling at the top of your voice ANTI-SEMITE.
Of course this just silly, it is difficult to call Palestinians and other Arabs anti-Semitic, since they are themselves Semites.
THIS COMMENTER WENT ON TO POST UNDER TWO OTHER NAMES, INCLUDING IMPERSONATING AND UPSETTING ISADORE — I HAVE DELETED ALL SUBSEQUENT COMMENTS BY THIS IDIOT WHO HAS WASTED MY TIME AND YOUR TIME. EINY.
July 15th, 2005 at 1:09 pm
I mean it would be funny if Osama bin Laden was editor of the Guardian in 20 years, right?
(Sorry, I’ll stop being a crass, impolite American now…but I post’s like otto’s…that comfortably put the world’s problems on the backs of the Joooos…don’t deserve to be met with British indifference.
July 15th, 2005 at 1:09 pm
Very nice. Enjoyable read. One note on your thoughts re: Americans thinking they are the arbitors of freedom, though… this is like hating that Yankees fans consider themselves the arbitors of baseball.
Sure, other teams may play the game, but doesn’t it seem like the Yanks are always around when it counts?
On that note, Go Dodgers. Thanks again.
July 15th, 2005 at 1:10 pm
Sure, Histchens is right that Islamic Facsist hate liberalism, feminism, and lots of other good things. The question to ask is not why haters hate, but why their philosphy is so atractive to so many in the islamic world. The crazies will be always with us but saying they’re crazy because they’re crazy begs the question of why their craziness is attracting suffiecient support to be dangerous. That question brings us back to US (and European) policies. While I generally agree that much of the harm the US does is as a well intentioned oaf, what in particular makes you think that the US has learned not to back any despotic ruler if it means they could have their way? What friendly despot have we challenged?
July 15th, 2005 at 1:13 pm
“I would like to draw your attention to your own rant. Of course any suggestion that Israel has done anything wrong or in any way caused problems in the middle east, results in you instead of discoursing in a civil way or pointing to facts leads to you yelling at the top of your voice ANTI-SEMITE.”
To someone says Israel is a racist state to blame for *all the world’s problems* is reductive, irrational and smacks of conspiracy theory. Such prejudice, if directed at Israel, is a kind of socially acceptable antisemtism that is prevalent today. This does not mean, Israel is not above reasonable criticism.
July 15th, 2005 at 1:16 pm
It seems to me that fundamentally, this kind of knee-jerk anti-Americanism is a way for Europeans to maintain clear consciences, by assuring themselves they’re morally superior without asking themselves (or their governments) what they are doing to address global realities and solve problems. Coupled with the fact that not too many European nations can muster the hard power to do much, so in the end it’s easier to lash out at those who can.
The anti-Israel sentiment (and latent anti-semitism) takes my breath away.
Anyway, thanks for the interesting read!
July 15th, 2005 at 1:19 pm
“Of course this just silly, it is difficult to call Palestinians and other Arabs anti-Semitic, since they are themselves Semites.”
I always wonder why supporters of antisemites (as the term is understood in the conventional sense; languages are, afterall, evolving and conventional systems) enjoy making this argument so much. What do think this brings to the argument?
July 15th, 2005 at 1:20 pm
“Of course this just silly, it is difficult to call Palestinians and other Arabs anti-Semitic, since they are themselves Semites.”
I always wonder why supporters of antisemites (as the term is understood in the conventional sense; languages are, afterall, evolving and conventional systems) enjoy making this argument so much. What do you think this brings to the argument?
July 15th, 2005 at 1:21 pm
Beautiful post. I had a similar epiphany as an American studying abroad in Europe. I went to Europe critical of America, but came back critical of Europe.
Guenter Grass and Germany, for Christ’s sake, had more pride standing up to bully America than standing up to Saddam Hussein. It doesn’t get much more stupid than that.
July 15th, 2005 at 1:22 pm
And did I even call an Arab or Palistinian an antisemite? I wasn’t aware of that?
July 15th, 2005 at 1:23 pm
it is important for the israel issues to be resolved but not because i think it will be make these radical islamic terrorists any less dangerous. Rather, it will expose these radical terrorists for as the phonies they truly are. terrorism and the bombings will not go away if the pal/isreal conflict goes away. the terrorists will simply conjure up another “justification” for committing random violence against innocent civilians.
July 15th, 2005 at 1:30 pm
Although we are probably not in agreement on any political views, I welcome and commend your ability to think beyond that which you have always believed to be true.
July 15th, 2005 at 1:31 pm
>While not wholeheartedly agreeing with >School Number 2, I can no longer agree with >School Number 1. I am in the unfortunate >position of not knowing anything anymoreâ€â€of >being somewhere in between.
You know, spiritually this is actually the best place to be regarding this. At least that’s how I feel. I’ve been in NYC 13 years, lived in Chinatown in downtown on 9/11. Scurried uptown with my 8 month old baby and wife to clearer air. Traumatized I was for at least 6 months.
School 1 is non tenable anymore. I can relate to that. School 2 is too, I don’t know rah-rah and mindless sometimes to swallow wholeheartedly.
We are living in a world (especially in NYC) where each day we take a little risk in living our lives. There are people that are willing to blow themselves up to go to their twisted idea of heaven – they hate us more than they love life as Friedman says.
Being in between has its benefits too, not being sure allows us to focus on the day and the people we are with. Accepting the existential terror of not knowing who is to blame or how to control the situation personally. Yes I believe the WOT is perhaps the greatest challenge we will face and over a long time, and in many forms.
Yes, with the exception of some good friends in Eastern Europe and Britain, much of Europe’s School 1 seems lame and in denial.
But in order to win, we will need to lead them to a cooperative way of deal with these threats. We can’t simply leave the cancer of hate grow anywhere in the World body if we want civilization to survive. Not just western civilization either, but anywhere that life is valued over hate. Where order is for the benefit for continued love. From generation to generation.
I hear you brother. There is an option to stay in between School 1 and 2 and continue to dialogue between them. Its less comfortable. But I believe it is the road that remarkable people like Abe Lincoln traveled many years ago. Its can be the road if greatness.
July 15th, 2005 at 1:32 pm
There is a big difference between “our policies helped this happen” or even “our policies made it happen” (which is a gross exaggeration) and “we had it coming”.
Causality is not morality, but it can’t be ignored.
As for seeing the U.S. as the source of all evil in the world, that’s just a way of turning off thought and everyone else’s ducking responsibility; it’s as evil a meme as any that tell us that “evil is outside” and we don’t have to worry about being evil ourselves.
But, under the influence of that meme, our national self-righteousness makes it easier for us to deploy that heavy hand…and our politics make it easy for the more unscrupulous of our leaders to pimp our dead for their own purposes.
July 15th, 2005 at 1:33 pm
I’m very sorry that a transformation was necessary. I would encourage you to spend some time in the Midwest (Cincinnati, Kansas City, Indianapolis) and further broaden your perspective of Americans. You will find that there are very few Americans who want to intercede in the business of other nations. But if no one else is going to do anything about the genocidal maniacs, tyrranists and madmen, we feel compelled. Where was the rest of the world in dealing with Serbia? Where is the rest of the world in dealing with North Korea? Who will protect the shipping lanes in the Persian Gulf? Europeans should feel free to lend a hand – feel free to even LEAD if you so desire. It appears as all the Europeans desire is to spend our money for us (Kyoto Protocol, African debt relief, etc.). If we could afford to spend less on defense, perhaps we could engage in such endevours.
Iran will be a key test to see if Europe can actually DO something besides carp at Americans. We anxiously await the result.
July 15th, 2005 at 1:36 pm
You appear not to have shaken off a number of lies and half-truths running through the European press, and your discovereries are rather elementary; but as someone who has known quite a few Englishmen, I am delighted to encounter one apparently able to reject his smug assurance long enough to let new thoughts trickle in. Congrats– TTFN
July 15th, 2005 at 1:45 pm
1) An interesting post…although your initial dismissal of the Iraq war on the standard “no link to 9/11/01″ needs examination. It’s a flimsy canard to claim that no Iraqi involvement in 9/11 somehow invalidates the regime’s 8 previous years of Al Q. involvement. Related question:
You let a man who has committed (and you has know is planning to commit) murder live under your roof. You provide him aid and comfort. Are you not an accessory when he does the deed?
Also, your last two paragraphs are difficult to reconcile. Are you suggesting that international cooperation can allow the US to not be a “sole arbiter” and also allow the EU to “lend a hand?” In Iraq?
Via what partnerships? The UN?
And Re: your pain at the Smithsonian: Please read about the history of this country and its isolationist tradition before concluding that we like to get involved overseas.
Don’t worry, your friends on the left will still have dinner with you.
July 15th, 2005 at 1:54 pm
““The sooner Americans detach themselves from the delusion that they are the sole arbiters of freedom and democracy in the world the betterâ€Â
Well, as a New Yorker ( who lived in London from 99-04 ) I can only say that I don’t think this way
What I do think is that over my lifetime it has been America alone that has pushed for freedom and democracy in the world
Which other nation has done more?
July 15th, 2005 at 1:54 pm
This was a wonderful glimpse into a mature and questioning mind. How I wish all of us could step back from our prejudices and our own self-importance to see the true results or consequences of a government’s actions.
I am a southern (red state) American whose son served a tour of duty in Iraq. My son has been forever humbled at the simple kindnesses paid to him by the Iraqi people he helped to free. He wants to go back when the area is in better shape and continue to help the Iraqi people.
The fact that one old woman came up to him on the street and cried her tears into his palms and thanked him with the little food she had tells me that for all our “oafish-ness” and “backyard bullying,” we’ve done the right thing. The seeds will grow. Perhaps my new grandchild will see peace in his lifetime.
This is the first time I’ve read this blog and I will now count it as a favorite.
July 15th, 2005 at 1:59 pm
The sooner Americans detach themselves from the delusion that they are the sole arbiters of freedom and democracy in the world the better. Countless countries could give America a lesson in those two subjects, especially on human rights.
If they are “countless,” why name name, say, five countries that can teach the United States a lesson in freedom and democracy?
Caveat: No EU member state qualifies. They handed their freedom and democracy over to a bunch of apparatchicks in Brussels who dictate what laws they must obey, whether the citizenry of any member country likes it or not.
Now then, please proceed.
July 15th, 2005 at 2:00 pm
“I am commenting against the kind of hate-filled name-calling you engaged in rather than in support of or a comment on someone else.”
“In my opinion antisemitic smears are a cheap substitute for debate, a one-word answer to extensive research, an argumentum-ad-hominem. As soon as I hear the phrases “antisemiteâ€Â, “naziâ€Â, “facist†etc. whether by the left or the right I tune out.”
When someone irrationally blames Israel for the world’s problems they are behaving antisemitically, whether they are aware of it or not. “Irrational anti-Zionism” is “antisemitism”. It is not “hate-filled” to draw attention to this. To suggest that intolerance for antisemtism is immoral or crass on some level is unfortunately part of the European problem. (In England I’ve always had the feeling that calling attention to antisemitism, is like using the wrong fork at dinner.) To suggest that my labeling of “Otto’s” sentiments as antisemtic is but merely an ad-hominem is disengenous and misses the point. Fundementally, it is Otto’s claim, “The racist Israeli state is to blame for the world’s problem’s…i.e. 9/11, the London and Madrid bombings”….that is antisemitic. Is the person making an antisemitic claim necessarily an antisemite himself? That is an ontological question that I’m not very interested in answering?
July 15th, 2005 at 2:03 pm
But Otto is just repeating what he has learned from the BBC and New York Times over his entire lifetime
July 15th, 2005 at 2:04 pm
Pogue, you forgot NPR.
July 15th, 2005 at 2:04 pm
On the term “anti-semite.” It was invented in the 1879 by a German anti-semite named Wilhelm Marr. He created the term meaning an opposition to what was called “Semitism” – a neologism for Jewish culture and society. It was not intended to refer to Arabs, or certainly Palestinian Arabs in particular. Marr was trying to give a scientific cast to Jew-hatred by his invention of this term. When people deny that the term refers to hatred of Jews today, it is in order to cloud the issue and avoid the meaning the term has had since its inception.
July 15th, 2005 at 2:05 pm
I had a similar experience of finding my worldview shift without my realizing it, first when living as a lefty American in the former East Block in the early 90′s and then living in the Middle East and North Africa in 94-95 and 2000-2002. I know very well the feeling of being between school no. 1 and school no. 2. It is nice to find somebody speaking for us in-betweeners and I think the world would be a better place if, instead of sitting helplessly in the in-between, we had a sane, political voice of our own. The Czech satirical author Jaroslav Hasek, in days of political radicalism of the early 20′s founded a mock political party called “The Moderate Progress Party.” It’s slogan was “To arms! To arms! Moderate progress is our aim!” I suppose it is natural that the zelots on the extremes of political discourse are the impassioned ones who drive the conversation forward. If only we in-betweeners could make our case for moderation with the same passion!
July 15th, 2005 at 2:07 pm
Rebecca – its simply a tactic for changing the topic and, as you correctly note, to cloud the issue of what the anti-semite is saying
Its the usual “some of my best friends are _______, but those people _________”
Whenever I hear this theme start I know what I am dealing with
July 15th, 2005 at 2:19 pm
“The first admission is no source of shame. I still believe that the way the US invaded Iraq was wrong; the Bush administration falsely linked Saddam and September 11, the UN was brushed aside and terribly weakened, the electorate in the US and the UK was misled on the road to war, and plans for running the country post Saddam were not thought through.”
I stopped reading the seemingly promising post after the above sentence. If you still believe this, well, you failed to pay attention.
No one in the admin directly linked S.H. and 9-11. Gimme a link or some proof that someone in the Admin said we need to take down SH because he was directly behind 911.
Now if you don’t think SH supported terrorism, then please tell me a little bit about Salman Pak or Abu Nidal or Abdul Rahman Yasin? Do you know this place, these people? What about the 25K SH gave to the families are Palestinian suicide bombers.
Every leading Democrat throughout the 90s and into the Y2K’s said SH had WMD. Even France and the UN thought SH had WMD.
Stop saying that those of us who supported and still support the war were misled. You were the one misled! You were misled by radical anti-capitalist groups like ANSWER into supporting a peace movement that was a thinly disguised cover for advancing worldwide Socialism. You marched for Peace alongside the very same people who support totalitarianism and murder all in the name of political expediency. You were the one misled. Yeah, believe it or not Americans actually believe in defending their country and doing what is right, regardless of whether or not the rest of the world agrees.
The UN was brushed aside? Is that why Bush tried to get 2, two, TWO!! UN resolutions, the first of which was passed unanimously. The second was snubbed by France et al. after they realized Bush was serious about enforcing the the first UN Resolution (1441).
The US hasn’t made the UN look bad. The UN does a fine job of it all its own. Do you honestly trust the UN to solve anything? The UN– you place trust in an institution that names Libya to head its human rights commission and Iraq as head of its DISARMAMENT COMMITTEE? Wow!
July 15th, 2005 at 2:31 pm
“As I said I tune out and will not bother to respond anymore.”
Well you didn’t tune out as promised the first time. The world will see if the British custom of tuning out uncomfortable truths works in the long run. Although it made sense during the blitz, I’m not sure it does this time around.
(Did it ever occur to you that Godwin’s law says as much about the prevalence of antisemtic rhetoric on message boards as it does about knee-jerk accusations of antisemtism? Why are liberals so comfortable making outrageous claims about Jews and Israel? Do you really think I was being unfair to Otto and his defenders? And why do you care in the first place?)
July 15th, 2005 at 2:33 pm
Excellent piece. I was referred to it by AndrewSullivan.com.
As far as Americans acting as if they are the “sole arbiters of freedom and democracy,” that certainly is a fair indictment. It could be, however, that Americans feel like the only democracy out there willing to actually stick its neck out and DO something about tyrannies and dangerous failed states. We wonder why Europe, and other wealthy, industrialized, democratic regions and nations, don’t seem to be willing or able to do much about despotism but to talk about it. I would love to see France or Mexico or Sweden go all unilateral and DO something about the world’s next hot spot. But will they? Why not?
July 15th, 2005 at 2:34 pm
I glad to hear you are thinking about these subjects, but I agree with Some Guy. I am also interested in which countries you think have better human rights records?
July 15th, 2005 at 2:39 pm
i think a lot of europeans are sick of americans acting like they are the only ones who are free. i don’t know if that’s what einy is referring to or not. i certainly have a lot of european friends who tell me they get sick of american tourists telling europeans how free they are.
frankly, i lived in europe and i felt just as free as in the states but in different ways.
re: anti-semitism. an anti-semitic semite is really just a self hater, no?
July 15th, 2005 at 2:42 pm
Good piece…How’s that saying go? a conservative is just a liberal mugged by reality. Baby steps Pavlik, baby steps. Hey Aaron, take solace in the fact that you are not alone behind “enemy lines”–at least there’s two of us. Actually I know a couple others–mebbe we have enough for a basketball team!
July 15th, 2005 at 2:43 pm
Somebody “hijacked” my name. #50 was not written by me. (Is it ‘hate-filled’ for me to call the person who did this a little fascist i wonder?) Not very nice at all.
July 15th, 2005 at 2:45 pm
[...] ! Many people ask the question “why bother blogging?” and today I found out. A post I wrote a few days ago, on my changing world view since I arrived in the US and in light of the London bombing, [...]
July 15th, 2005 at 2:46 pm
Often people who claim to have privileged access to “Reality” are fascistic in their thinking and tactics.
July 15th, 2005 at 2:47 pm
52, 56, 59 fake. Why do I feel alittle bullied.
July 15th, 2005 at 2:49 pm
57 fake too. Hmm that person appears to be a bit of a nut.
July 15th, 2005 at 2:50 pm
Good bye…it was stupid and mean-spirited of you to do this. Thankfully, this is just a blog.
(And people wonder why Jews are sensitive to antisemtism…)
July 15th, 2005 at 2:51 pm
Thank you for the refreshingly honest look at your own struggle with these very complicated issues. I have to take issue with your comments regarding our belief that we are the sole arbiter of freedom and democracy. This is the wedge that divides us from the rest of the world right now. The problem is, who else is taking the lead? We are cursed when we intervene and we are cursed when we don’t. I’d love to see England or France or Germany say, “We are going into Darfur to stop this genocide. Who’s coming with us?” It just doesn’t happen. The world looks to us first, ready to criticize any decision we make. We are not perfect and by extension, neither is our government. We have tremendous power and sometimes we don’t weild it well, but in the grand scheme we are trying to do right by everyone. That’s what is important and that’s what should matter most. I am truly sorry that all you apparently took from your visit to Washington D.C. was a sour opinion about one exhibit. I recommend on your next visit (if you didn’t make it there this time) going to Arlington National Cemetary. It is an amazing place that truly represents the cost of freedom no t-shirt or musuem can compare with. Thanks again.
July 15th, 2005 at 3:09 pm
Isadore obviously was being spoofed – the reason that registration is a must in these kind of things
It was clear some wanna-be neonazi decided to enjoy himself between applications of zit cream
don’t be discouraged Izzy – its easy to tell which were your contributions
July 15th, 2005 at 3:16 pm
I am about to delete a number of comments written by a lunatic with too much time on their hands. “Sorry” to the real Izzy. And “sorry” to anyone reading. You didn’t miss much!
July 15th, 2005 at 3:27 pm
I’m so sorry that the comments have gotten sidetracked by a few mischief makers–and I just want to add my appreciation to the general hum of approbation. Even though I am a Texan living in the Northwest US, I too am firmly lodged in between the two schools you describe. Thanks for articulating my ambivalence so precisely.
July 15th, 2005 at 3:31 pm
Isadore was clear and thoughtful. She made reasoned and reasonable points. You characterizing your disagreement with her into her being “strident” says more about you than her points. RealityCheck – how noble of you to allow that her being spoofed was over the line. The fact that you have to put out a qualifier to your condemnation shows that on some level you sympathize with unfairly shouting her points down. However, I suppose you should get credit for dragging yourself into condemning her being spoofed.
July 15th, 2005 at 3:34 pm
I believe US foreign policy did, in fact, lead directly to 9-11. There are many ways in which this country could have followed the lead of, say, Sweden, and avoided antagonizing the world’s Muslims.
I also believe that US foreign policy led directly to Pearl Harbor and our involvement in probalby the msot damaging conflict in human history. There are many ways in which we could have followed the lead of, say, Sweden, and avoided antagonizing the Axis Powers.
And I also think that, except for questions of tactical judgment or failed exeuction, radically different US foreign policies would have led to much worse consequences for this country and much (not all) of the world. (Including Sweden.)
July 15th, 2005 at 3:36 pm
Isadore is a mans name “Aaron”
Heres an idea – why don’t you use a funnier name as long as you are planning to spend today wrecking this blog
( can someone check the ISP? )
How about “Jewey Joo”?
Too obvious?
July 15th, 2005 at 3:38 pm
Ooops – sorry Aaron – I thought you were the same idiot back again
( my comments were directed at them )
So much for reading comprehension
Time for a pint!
July 15th, 2005 at 3:43 pm
“The UN was brushed aside? Is that why Bush tried to get 2, two, TWO!! UN resolutions, the first of which was passed unanimously. The second was snubbed by France et al. after they realized Bush was serious about enforcing the the first UN Resolution (1441).”
In short, Bush wanted to invade Iraq despite the fact that the UN inspectors were still working in it, despite the fact that they claimed that they could in a matter of weeks reach a definitive judgement on Iraq’s WMDs. Turned out that they were right. But Bush wanted to invade Iraq and he was never serious about consulting the UN.
I believe strongly in the war against terrorism and want to see Osama captured or killed. But Iraq still remains a war sold on the basis of lies and exaggerations and that is inexcusable in a democracy.
July 15th, 2005 at 3:46 pm
PDBerger: Even as the victim of this identity theft, I find your lack of tolerance for injustice a bit strident. It smacks of censorship. And your reference to the anonymous offender as a “lunatic” is a bit hate-filled in my opinion.
(But seriously, thanks for the vindication.)
Returning to the origibal theme of your post: may I personally recommend the book, “Terror and Liberalism” by Paul Berman to you and all those who are struggling with similar ideas about the relationship between liberal ideals and the threat that Islamic terrorism poses to them.
July 15th, 2005 at 3:58 pm
So “RealityCheck” was the phony name-jacker? I had a feeling but of course I couldn’t be sure:
Isadore Says:
July 15th, 2005 at 2:46 pm
Often people who claim to have privileged access to “Reality†are fascistic in their thinking and tactics
Thanks again, and congrats on a great essay!
July 15th, 2005 at 4:05 pm
Very interesting post. Keep up the good work.
July 15th, 2005 at 4:20 pm
Isadore, it is not a lack of tolerance. It is a lack of time. I have so much work right now that I cannot afford to have someone messing around in here winding people up like you.
If I had had the time I would have just taken all the vowels out of the pranksters post to show people who the troublemaker was. As it is, I thought they were distracting from the real debate and comments going on in here.
Basically, it was putting other people off.
As for Berman, he has been on my Amazon wishlist for a while…
July 15th, 2005 at 4:37 pm
Bravo on your nuanced comments. I feel the same sense of ambivalence, detesting many of the Bush administration’s actions that have actually interfered with the war on terrorism but at the same time seeing the seriousness of the fight against terrorism and also detesting some of the left’s criticism of it.
July 15th, 2005 at 4:39 pm
Wildbill said
“In short, Bush wanted to invade Iraq despite the fact that the UN inspectors were still working in it, despite the fact that they claimed that they could in a matter of weeks reach a definitive judgement on Iraq’s WMDs. Turned out that they were right. But Bush wanted to invade Iraq and he was never serious about consulting the UN.
I believe strongly in the war against terrorism and want to see Osama captured or killed. But Iraq still remains a war sold on the basis of lies and exaggerations and that is inexcusable in a democracy. ”
Did I read this correctly…”they claimed that they could in a matter of weeks reach a definitive judgement on Iraq’s WMDs”
Um – who made this claim – when? Matter of weeks? On what date was this claim made?
Because if you’ll pardon me for saying so – thats the biggest load of shite I have heard in a LONG time
July 15th, 2005 at 4:44 pm
Excellent piece thank you very much.
And initially some intelligent comments. Before it turned into a bunch of self satisfied right wing Americans and Israelis doind exactly what the original post was complaining about. Talking about another culture (Europe) in an extremely blinkered fashion.
America is a good place that has on balance done a great deal more good than harm in the world. But if its inhabitants could get over their egos and admit to themselves the many times they have either screwed up, gotten it wrong or just plain been the bad guys they could achieve a lot more. As the original piece was saying.
Keep up the good work
July 15th, 2005 at 4:53 pm
People who don’t see the role of oppressive Israeli policies since 1967 in creating and sustaining the Islamic terrorist threat are just as willfully blind and determined to ignore reality as people who ascribe terrorism solely to “oppression” or “colonialism”. The connection between Israeli behavior and the level of popular support for terrorism in the Arab world is clear and obvious.
I followed somewhat the opposite path of the author of this essay — from a skeptical, non-idealized but overall positive view of U.S. influence in the world before 9/11, to an understanding of exactly how dangerous my country could be to the rest of the world after seeing our response to terrorism. In this essay, the author says:
“The sooner Americans detach themselves from the delusion that they are the sole arbiters of freedom and democracy in the world the betterâ€Â
What he doesn’t seem to understand is how deeply this delusion is bound up in our military policy, the way we deal with and administer client governments abroad, the economic interests of our military, the self image of too many of us Americans, and so on.
Americans use the belief in our good intentions as the arbiters of freedom to excuse and ignore brutal and bullying behavior. In the last paragraph, he says that Americans are not “playground bullies” but instead “do-gooders”. That’s a false dichotomy; we are bullies because we believe we are do-gooders. But you cannot genuinely do good without humility.
July 15th, 2005 at 5:01 pm
“exactly how dangerous my country could be to the rest of the world after seeing our response to terrorism.”
Right – because routing the Taliban and toppling the Saddam regime were such awful things weren’t they
Give it a break will ya – your kind only see’s the crimes of the world if you can blame them on Israel, America and/or the West
July 15th, 2005 at 5:45 pm
“i think a lot of europeans are sick of americans acting like they are the only ones who are free.”
Funny, I get annoyed by Europeans telling me that I don’t know anything because Bush controls the American media and that 9/11 was a CIA setup. It seems to me that idiots abound regardless of the continent.
July 15th, 2005 at 6:04 pm
Greets,
Another Andrew Sullivan referral here. Very nice essay. I encourage you to continue on the disorienting and lonely independent trail. It will lead you to more stimulating places than the paths worn by the tribes of the left and right.
A week before the invasion of Iraq, I was one of about 5 counter-demonstrators at a 70,000-strong anti-war protest in San Francisco. After careful consideration, I’d rejected my initial picket-slogan “Give war a chance” in favor of “Iraqis deserve democracy”. Though my first choice was more intellectually defensible (I supported the war on the basis of WMD), in the end I’d decided it was too flippant.
It was the right decision. 5 hours spent in lively debate were interrupted only occasionally by mob-intimidation shout-downs, and even those were thrilling in a way (since this was the USA, I didn’t fear for my physical safety). The most memorable exchange I had was with a Filipino woman who scorned, “We remember what happened when you brought us democracy.” Unlike the easily swatted softballs of oil-grubbing, colonialism, etc, for that I had no swift reply.
If Americans hadn’t been so concerned about the possibility of a nuclear sequel to 9-11, do you suppose that our political leadership could have mustered the support of the electorate for sacrificing treasure and children in a dicey nation-building enterprise? The danger posed by America’s conceit in its freedoms is overblown. The chauvanism common to all cultures is more galling when seen in the one currently enjoying its fleeting stay at the top, but our political institutions keep our leaders acountable to the small people who pay the price for excessive adventurism.
Perhaps this will be true of the new Iraq as well — if it survives. I wouldn’t supported buying into that chance with thousands of American lives, hundreds of billions of dollars, and the enormous risk of unleashing the dogs of war based solely on bringing American-style freedom to Iraqis, however. And whatever the calculus of Iraqi lives lost through the current conflict vs. the number chewed up by Saddam Hussein’s murder machine, those lives weren’t ours to gamble with.
July 15th, 2005 at 6:14 pm
I have spent the last hour or so cutting and pasting some the excellent comments on this site to share with my family. I was referred to it by andrewsullivan.com. Excellent post. Thank you for your insight. Since 9/11, I have been committed to learning more about how others see us in America. Your evolution of thought proves the old adage, “walk a mile in my shoes”. An open and caring mind is the only solution to our world’s ills. (Those comments coming from a conservative Catholic living in a red state – it seems that we get a bad rap for not having open minds or an ability to care about our downtrodden or to think for ourselves – OK, maybe I’m a bit sensitive about being misjudged all the time). I’m so glad that I discovered your site. Thanks.
July 15th, 2005 at 6:15 pm
Dearest EINY,
First welcome to America. Don’t know how long you’ve been, nor how long you will stay, but I hope your visit is positive. Thank your countrymen for their support, even those that did not want to give it.
Your piece is very interesting. I would reiterate a previous poster, that to develop a better sense of “America”, you will need to take a much wider cross section of samples than only New York City.
As an “extra-chromosome” (Al Gore’s term for me and my ilk) from a Capitalist Pig conservative pickup-truck-&-gun-toting state, I often find it difficult to believe that leftist Amerikkans and I grew up in the same culture. Quite frankly, I cannot relate to many of my own countrymen politically, let alone to the views of most foreign nationals regarding America’s role in modern history.
I just don’t get it.
But the views you will encounter in New York are far more similar to your own countrymen’s than are any of the opinions held by the “kulaks” out in someplace like Dallas, Tx. or Kansas City, or Baton Rouge. Most leaving comments here seem to be somewhat leftwards leaning too.
Let me be a dissenter then.
Now, I’m no apologist for any of the bad stuff that has gone on in my country, or been performed by my country. But viewing historical events through liberal rose colored glasses is just as much a disservice as ignoring the unpleasant facts. Yes, it sure would be nice to live in a world where everybody got along, but that’s a fantasy Utopia that will never exist. Socialism will cause more problems than it will ever solve.
Seems to me, overall, the good stuff about America outweighs the bad. But I admit a high level of prejudice on that opinion.
England too has a great record of acheivement, but, hey, you chaps have been at it for longer!
So, next time you are out anti-anything marching with the Commie Symp crowd, tell somebody at random you think Bush is a “great chap”, just as an experiment to see how tolerant socialists and communists really are of different points of view.
Good luck, and good post.
July 15th, 2005 at 6:22 pm
#6 Otto.
The Jews are NOT settlers and colonialists in Israel. This is a sick and twisted myth ala George Orwell. It is an erasure of history. For centuries the Jews we the natural residents of the land of Israel, until such time as Muslims CONQUERED the land and turned them into dhimmi’s according the Koran. If it is “settling” and “colonialism” for oppressed peoples to proudly take back what has been taken from them, then this is a very upside down world.
Further, you ought to look at the number of Arab Muslims freely educated in Israeli universities, the healthcare offered without prejudice to Jew and Muslim alike, and the unbelievable freedoms with Arab CITIZENS enjoy in Israel. The same generous treatment of Jews cannot, and will not EVER be found in a Muslim country. All Muslim countries subjugate all non-Muslims to dhimmitude.
Read your history, understand the reality. Don’t live in a fantasy and you will be set free from the hatred which now engulfs you.
May you live in peace and harmony with all peoples. And remember, the Jews have been endeavoring for many years to give the Palestinain people their own state. Arafat sold his soul to the devil and left the Palestinian people as they are.
July 15th, 2005 at 6:25 pm
A fascinating and moving essay, Mr. Berger. As someone who experienced 9/11 as a (former) Nader supporter from San Francisco, I empathize with your intellectual trajectory. I’d make two slight pushbacks, which hopefully you find useful:
In my estimation, removing Saddam from Iraq was very much a response to 9/11, because doing so was the only way to undermine Al Qaeda’s key grievances without seeming to appease them, the only substantial way to undermine Al Qaeda’s allies in the world, and the only substantial way to empower his natural enemies in the Muslim world.
To drill down further on that: Bin Laden galvanized Muslims with three key grievances– infidel US troops in the Holy Land, US military support for Israel’s occupation of Palestine, and US sanctions against Iraqis. But the US troops were in Saudi Arabia to contain Saddam, and so the only way to get them out would be to eliminate their reason for being there. The US was trying to broker a Israel/Palestine peace treaty which would end the occupation– but Saddam was financing Hamas terror attacks that made such a treaty impossible. Again, ending the occupation required cutting Hamas’ purse strings– which required removing Saddam. As for US-led sanctions against Iraq (which were grossly abused by Saddam at the expense of the Iraqi people) the only way to end them would be to first remove Saddam. (Consequently, US troops left Saudi Arabia the very moment main combat operations in Iraq were over, as were the sanctions against Iraq, and at the Bush administration’s behest, Israel is now substantially withdrawing from the territories.) Meanwhile, rebuilding Iraq’s oil infrastructure and putting it on the world market will eventually take the power of economic blackmail away from the Saudi royal family, many of whom are active supporters of Al Qaeda (not to mention their official subsidized exportation of Wahabbism, Al Qaeda’s version of Islam, throughout the Muslim world.) At the same time, fostering a Shiite-majority democracy in Iraq is a powerful strike against Al Qaeda and its allies. Shiites are despised by Wahhabists and Al Qaeda supporters as much as Christians and Jews. (Zarqawis’ ceaseless butchery of Shiites amply demonstrates this.) And that these Shiites embrace *democracy*, an infidel, non-Sharia political system, gives brass knuckles to the blow. (It also empowers the Shiite minority in Saudi Arabia, a further groin kick to Al Qaeda’s supporters there– Google “Saudi Paradox Foreign Affairs” for background on that.)
None of this, it should be said, did the Bush administration devote much effort explaining to the public (though secondary officials hinted at this strategy from time to time), and so no one can be blamed if it seems like news. Or assuming that it really was so simple as finding WMD or “connections” to 9/11.
I also wanted to make a point on this:
“The sooner Americans detach themselves from the delusion that they are the sole arbiters of freedom and democracy in the world the betterâ€Â
I understand your objection to this belief, but it’s important to understand how it came about. Historically, there has always been a deep philosophy of isolationism in America, but that ended during World War II, when, in fact, with the UK on the ropes, and all the world powerless against Hitler and his erstwhile ally Stalin, America *was* the sole arbiter of freedom and democracy in the world. This sense of World War II is a deep, deep part of our defining mythology; it also happens to be largely true. I do agree with you that we need to remember the importance of our Western allies’ support for democacy and freedom, as we did then. I’d just caution you to recall our deep history of isolationism, which is, paradoxically, a *conservative* philosophy, with a long history of conservatives complaining that we should not get involved in world affairs, since we are not, after all, the sole arbiters of freedom and democracy. In this, Pat Buchanan is the consistent conservative, while George W. Bush is closer to the liberal tradition espoused by Wilson, FDR, and JFK.
Someone recommended Paul Berman’s *Terror and Liberalism*, and I second that motion– then again, I also recommend *Team America: World Police*, which pretty much follows your line of thinking, just with a lot more swearing and puppet sex.
July 15th, 2005 at 6:39 pm
It’s true, I think, that many Americans are quite a bit over-the-top crowing about how free we are; I think many people are still living, psychologically, in a time about 50 years ago when the Iron Curtain was still up. Americans don’t travel much, and our news media really stinks. Many people really don’t know what’s going on in the world today.
And I’m tired, too, of all the complaints about Israel. Obviously the government there makes mistakes, like all governments do, but the incessant worldwide furor over them is anti-Semitism and nothing more. If terrorism would end, all suppression of Palestinians would stop instantly, and everybody knows it.
The “Muslim world” should really get a life.
July 15th, 2005 at 7:05 pm
The Truth Shall let you Free
July 15th, 2005 at 7:06 pm
Europeans are critical of American FP for the wrong reasons- they just want to rant. It may be good for America to be less involved in the world, in terms if conflict- Pretty soon you would see the EU have to secure gulf oil on their own and we could regain the moral hectoring edge over them.
July 15th, 2005 at 8:00 pm
For the man who wrote if we had followed Sweden’s path of neutrality, 9/11 would never have happened: It might interest you to know Sweden was the first nation to recognize Hitler as the leader of Germany.
July 15th, 2005 at 8:34 pm
I always thought America’s foreign policy was to clean up europe’s messes, e.g. Vietnam, Bosnia, World War II, World War I, the Middle East, the Soviet Union…………….
July 15th, 2005 at 8:40 pm
Another Lefty Speaks
Granted, he’s not yet reconciled that the “right” might be, well, right. But, very importantly, his eyes have opened to the fact that there is more than one valid way to view the world. Yes, it causes him distress and discomfort and dissonance. But …
July 15th, 2005 at 10:07 pm
Also came here from the Sullivan link.
A hard thing to do, to change your mind in public. Thanks for sharing that.
If you do dig that “further reading” thing I also very much enjoyed Natan Sharansky’s most recent book, and the late Michael Kelly’s articles for the Atlantic magazine, and of course Bill Whittle’s essays. For what it’s worth, anyway.
July 15th, 2005 at 10:31 pm
Interesting essay. I’m a Brit who’s spent the last 33 years in the States, with no inclination to return, until recently. Even now I’m not sure that the U.K. is any freer or safer than the U.S., but its public figures (with the usual extremists as exceptions) do appear more rational. I’m increasingly disturbed by the politics of polarization, a tactic that the Bush administration has honed to a fine edge and the Democrats, as a general rule, slavishly follow. The cause of this appears to be structural: gerrymandering is so rife in the States now that centrists seem to have no political voice, nor any chance of one in the foreseeable future. The inevitable result has been one in which incompetence is rewarded, public discourse is shrill and irrelevant, and corruption is ignored. Examples of these public traits are too numerous to mention, articles on them plentiful in the mainstream press, and their exposure the very lifelblood of Left Blogsylvania. Curiously enough I find that Americans, person to person, still remain the friendliest, most generous, considerate and tolerant people I’ve ever met, though not quite as friendly as they were 33 years ago. My fervent hope is that these intrinsic attributes of ordinary Americans will somehow haul their political leaders back towards the center, that public outrage will somehow force American politicians to act in consonance with the actual values that ordinary Americans display. But I’m afraid I’m just fantasizing and more likely the polarization is seeping slowly down to the level of the individiual, the extremism of the few will become the template for the behavior of the many and the great experiment of American democracy will pass into another dark period where fear, intolerance, and hatred become stronger than tolerance, friendliness, and the recognition of the importance the many other ideals of democracy that Americans have worked so hard to disseminate. These periods of repression are cyclical in America, and, for all I know, intrinsic to the maturation of democracy. I’m not sure I have the patience to wait until it passes. I probably do. American democracy is a set of powerful ideals, historically much more powerful than those who abuse it.
I doubt I would have stayed if I’d come here at the same time as you, though.
Mark
July 15th, 2005 at 11:28 pm
You are being acculturated. Swallowed by your host country. Don’t worry its perfectly normal. In fact if you didn’t feel this way you might be feeling worse more uneasy, perhaps even depressed! Fortunately, you have come from a country where the culture is not startlingly different so you can cope apparently quite well. I think it is quite healthy to have two or more points of view coexisting at the same time. Listening to the two (only two, its quite sad) voices everything political is either black or white. Not much tolerance for anything else. America is a melting pot if you come to America you’d better become exactly like us as fast as possible please. Now with this frame of mind Americans go into the world. They know they have the best form of government, best freedom, best workforce, best technology, best armed forces, best education, richest economy sooo what exactly are YOU going to teach ME?? I assume you are lusting after what i have. After all if we didn’t lock our borders we would be swamped by immigrants. Now if I am insensitive, impatient, uninterested in your inferior culture YOU SURELY will understand won’t you? Why aren’t we accepted with open arms anyway?
Of course, perhaps I exaggerate a little but you get the point.
One more observation, American Foreign Policy can be best understood as an extension of Big Business.
Business demands, stability and free access to raw materials and markets. When this is not forthcoming trouble follows. (i.e. Chile,El Salvador, Jamaica,Iraq(Saddam nationalized oil) this infuriates Big OIL companies. WATCH OUT Venezuela(Chavez nationalize the oil)the US has already tried to take him out once. Big OIL wants their cut but Chavez is wildly popular among the vast majority of regular Venezuelans because for once they are reaping the benefits from their most precious natural resource. But as we speak there are CIA and state dept officials trying to figure out how to depose him. Sad isn’t it. Americans need to understand what their government is really doing in their name. Their FREE PRESS? is only telling them part of the story.
July 16th, 2005 at 12:01 am
[...] Not only to try win arguments over facts, but to pursuade others.
To that end, I offer this blog entry. I don’t agree with everything in it, but my hope was that some of the points I iden [...]
July 16th, 2005 at 12:34 am
On London
A left-leaning Brit in New York has some interesting thoughts on his metamorphosis (Via Andrew Sullivan):
So, after 12 months of living in New York is it any surprise that Israel starts to look a little less evil? And that Europe starts to look a litt
July 16th, 2005 at 1:10 am
Paul Berger is the author/contributing editor of seven books:
pdberger on twitter
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