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Wed 25 Jan, 2006 08:32 am
Recent discussion in US Congress was like ravings of a madman!!! They talked about Russia expel from G8. Our congressmen forgot that there exist economic interests of USA and other club members besides their own political views and personal dislike. That's nonsense to expel such strong state with natural resources and nuclear weapons.
At the same time we promised help Ukraine to become nuclear power! That's mostly instable country. Nowadays even Russia seems to be more settled! But with all this going on our government protests loudly against Iranian nuclear program. And many of Americans see that discrepancy.
I say that it is rather hard to break away from artificial world surrounding us. They made American image as fat and narrow-minded greedy blockhead! Just look what they're writing in I-net in European forums! It seems to all the world that Americans see nothing before the tip of their nose. That's because of mass media we're like character of Jim Carry in "The Truman Show" living in some kind of myth. They're indulging American ideas of national superiority and don't allow a single thought that world outside changed and that USA aren't leading state that can allow itself to do what it wants anymore. Some of us suspect that.
Because of some events (September 11, Afghanistan and Iraq, hurricane Katrina) US informational "iron curtain" had cracked. And light disappointment in community appeared. That just little cracks and we can't see whole the picture but at least we can see difference between myth and reality. For instance I can tell that the same Congress performs White House political order. If it's not so they've believed in American supposed omnipotence and impunity. Just believe me that Washington scream against China or Russia make others laugh! It is time to wake up and begin to act properly. Otherwise our false world would play malicious joke on us.
First signs of such turning point is Human Rights Watch report on human rights violation in USA:
http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/01/13/global12428.htm
Yes, i think many Americans are aware that the United States is not terribly popular around the world. It is very likely, though, that the usual suspects will show up to attack you for daring to suggest that there is anything wrong with the United States.
Big Dog, what say you and I team up and do a goodwill tour as ambassadors of this great country?
You know, set people straight (no pun intended) and get the world loving us again? I'm pretty bored with squinney gone and I could use a distraction.
Give Soros a call, and let me know . . .
Set, Jackman,
I won't try to make excuses for alleged Human Rights violations of the US. Abu Gharaib has shown that our hands are not clean.
My problem with HRW's annual report is that it is completely inconsistent in its evaluation of different countries. The report is simply a random compilation of hot-button human rights violations in different countries, while in many cases, other widely recognized human rights violations are conspicuously absent in those same countries. For example, eight nations were listed as "Countries of Particular Concern" (i.e. severe violators) in the 2005 report of the US International Commission on Religious Freedom State Department's. The HRW 2006 report only mentions religious persecution as a human rights issue in four of those eight countries. In one of the other four, persecution of minorities (including religous minorities) is addressed. In the other three (Saudi Arabia, Burma, and Sudan), it's like religious persecution does not even exist there.
If there's anything I've figured out in my 44 years on the planet, its that people will always find something to complain about. This report is the same way, it simply ignores the hundreds of years that the US has honored human rights and led the battle to export them to other countries. Instead it expounds page upon page on the plight of 650 people who waged war against our country, slaughtered thousands of our fellow citizens here and overseas and would gladly do it again, if given the chance.
I'm not offering an opinion on whether the US is right or wrong in the human rights it extends (or does not extend) to these 650. But I am arguing, that if HRW really wanted to provide a "fair and balanced" report, it would define a set of human rights that it desired to see, develop a way to measure a country's compliance on that right, and then prepare a final report that provided both the good and bad found. For example, freedom of religion would be assessed in every nation. Those with a legacy of persecution (e.g. Sudan) would be properly chastised, and those with a legacy of freedom (e.g. US) would be commended.
Only then could the HRW report be used as a true reflection of the status of HR in countries and not simply as a platform to voice anti-US sentiment.
I initially thought this was going to be about Ted Kennedy. Oh, well.
Kennedy's backpedaling too quickly on his Owl club misogynistic leanings to deal with human rights abuses.
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