Does the E.U. Hate You?

Does the E.U. Hate You?

www.alternet.org

In Europe, as in nearly everywhere else in the world, the image of the United States has taken a severe battering during the Bush years. Survey after survey shows that negative feelings toward America and U.S. policies have soared. Only 36 percent of Europeans, for example, view U.S. leadership in world affairs as desirable, according to a 2007 German Marshall Fund poll. Markedly lower is their approval of the Bush administration: a dismal 17 percent. In Harris polls since 2003, the majority of Europeans have even cited the United States as the greatest threat to international security -- more so than Iran, North Korea or Russia.

But distinguishing between an all-encompassing animus toward the country and its people, and legitimate criticism of U.S. government policies, has proven extremely difficult. Only the former is anti-Americanism -- an irrational, deeply embedded cultural aversion to a presumed American “national character.” A standard distinction between America-bashing and rational critique is between disapproval of what America is and what America does.

(visit the link for the full news article)

There are many who think that dislike of bush and his policies equates to dislike of America - which is simply not true.

Of course there is a hard core of US-haters in Europe, just as in America there is a hard core of Europe haters, but we shouldn't confuse the thoughts of the minority with those of the majority.

The majority of Europeans are able to distinguish between what bush&co do and what the American people actually want him to do.

As the "war on terror" has dragged on in Iraq and Afghanistan, approval for these actions on both sides of the atlantic has fallen steadily, especially as some of the more unsavoury aspects have come to light.

In Europe, we are all hoping that the next president will be one who doesn't think he's above the law, and who will not launch wars of aggression on the flimsiest of pretexts, which later turn out to be outright lies.

www.alternet.org
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by budski


As an European I must say I hate the American government just as much as I hate my own (Dutch) government. They're all the same scum.

I grew up on my own piece of Americana, most music, tv-shows and movies shown over here are American and I love the culture.

Sadly though, America is also a country where ignorance thrives, even more than in my own country.

So I hate the US government, I hate the fact that ignorance reigns in America, but I don't hate Americans.

reply to post by budski


I think this poll is on the money when it highlights Europe's dissent at the US becoming 'to big for its own boots' on a global scale.

Its leadership is dictatorial; its people - without voice; and foreign policy - bullish and uncompromising.

Notwithstanding this, I think the people of Europe may sympathise with what the American people have went through since 2001. Although, most fingers are pointed to the Bush administration for such atrocities and therefore it is a self inflicted wound on the American psyche.

Although, it could also be argued that a fair proportion of the American population have a 'let them eat cake' mentality (this we are very conscious of in Europe and totally disagree with) - the U.S. Government needs just speak words of hate against a country and the psychological targeting system of such invalidated hate become manifest in such people o too easily. This is the ignorance that Europeans are disgusted with.

We should expect and demand from our Governments attention on its own people, not someone else's - and when they fail to deliver, they should feel our angst.

And before any Americans on ATS take the above personal and feel that its just bashing:

''true friends stab you in the front and keep you from getting what you want when one more fix could kill you''.
- Thrice - The Beltsville Crucible

My thoughts,

Brei.

Yeah true, Dislike the US gov but the people are nice enough. But heck, we mostly feel the same way about our own gov and we generally don't have any selfloathing so it's politicians in general that we would love to see tied to a tree while we all go on vacation and hope they don't gnaw through the rope and escape.