June 21, 2006
Europe v. America
Roucaute again.
The old Continent is wilting in the global war against terror, just as it did when faced off against fascism and then communism. When at today's summit with U.S. President George W. Bush the European Union will once again take its ally to task over Guantanamo, it will expose its own, not America's, most serious moral crisis of the post-Cold War era. A philosopher -- a French one no less -- can try to set the facts straight and offer some Cartesian good sense.Posted by Carine at June 21, 2006 12:37 PMFaced with dark forces that want to destroy our civilization, we might recall that the U.S. is not only Europe's ally but the flagship of all free nations. If America can sometimes make errors, the sort of anti-Americanism that drives the hysteria over Guantanamo is always in the wrong. Guantanamo, though, is not an error. It is a necessity.
There is little support for president Bush so-called war on terror in Europe indeed. The Pariah President
Posted by: FFF at June 23, 2006 03:56 AMAh, M. FFF,
Well, you have abandoned Pave perhaps thinking you will have an easier time of it here.
I see you have tossed a headline link over the fence and left us.
"The Pariah President", hhmmm, what respected European source are you quoting to give us the pulse of Europe? Why it is not a European at all, it is an American, a Califorian, one Heather Wokusch. M. FFF, if all I had to do to establish the facts was post the opinions I found congenial, well, wouldn't my life be as simple as yours. Ah, but facts, facts are not your strength.
But let us amuse you. Let us concede that Mr. Bush and by extension America enjoys little support in Europe. We will not even ask you to quote one of those UK-France-Germany-Italy-Spain polls that purport to give the opinions for the whole of Europe (last we looked there were some 20 additional countries knitted up in the EU, and even more in greater Europa).
No. We accept your proposition on its face.
To which we reply, "So what?" Europe has a remarkable history of being wrong. Let's begin at Versailles, wrong there, wrong at Munich, wrong at Vichy, wrong in Madagascar (1947), wrong in the Suez and on Hungary (1956), wrong in Algeria (1961), wrong on Czechoslovakia (1968), wrong in the Comores (1975-), wrong in Bosnia (1990s), wrong in Rwanda (1994), wrong in Côte d'Ivoire (present), et al. -- action, inaction Europe never seems to get it right. So to our above "So what?" we add, "Who cares?"
Of course, there is some support for Mr. Bush and America in Europe, why, from none other than the current President of the EU, speaking on behalf of the EU:
Unbidden, Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schuessel rose with an impassioned defense that seemed to surprise the president [Mr. Bush]."I think it's grotesque to say that America is a threat to the peace in the world compared with North Korea, Iran, a lot of countries," Schuessel said. Europe would not enjoy peace and prosperity if not for U.S. help after World War II, he said.
"We should be fair from the other side of the Atlantic," Schuessel said. "We should understand what September 11th meant to the American people."
We venture Herr Schuessel knows a thing or two more about Europe than Ms. Wokusch. Why he may even know more than you.
DGB
Posted by: Damian Bennett at June 23, 2006 05:51 AMDamian,
What a deluded person you are if you believe Bush is popular with common Europeans but if you like to think so, well good on you then. I'm glad Mr Barroso & chancellor Schüssel came to president Bush rescue when he was having a rough time with reporters'hard questions, incidentally.
BTW. Your blog is probably the cosiest place on earth.
Posted by: FFF at June 24, 2006 12:07 AMAh, M. FFF,
You have conflated three separate things and pronounced on them as one: Mr. Bush's Euro-popularity, Euro-support for the war on terror, and Euro-support of America (the Wokusch article). If you had read our post carefully we are not arguing Mr. Bush is popular with Euros, just that it makes little difference to us or the progress of the world.
Of course if you, with your Euro-compeers, wish to delude yourself thinking that America is the biggest threat to world peace, while American tax-dollars and the American military subsidize your NATO security, oh, dear boy, suit your delusional cosy self.
As we posted earlier, "Who cares?"
DGB
Posted by: Damian Bennett at June 24, 2006 06:02 PMFirst Irag
Then Iran
Then France!
