MichaelJackson,

Hows it going up in the great white?

I do not want to go to far off topic of this off topic thread so I will respond to your comments about Clinton on another thread. Watch for it soon under Politics.

I also do not want to get into the "gun control" issue. But let me say at least two of your comments were factually incorrect. First, your comment that there are more gun deaths in the US than any other country is correct only in the sense that The US has a very large population. Per capita there are more gun deaths in a slew of countries. That information comes from a UN report. I am goin gto dig it up. And we know that the UN is always right.LOL. Mexico( where I live)is just one of the countries that bans private ownership of guns yet has a higher gun homicide rate per capita than the US.

Maybe I will open another thread on this topic. It seems that since I am on hiatus from visiting the lovely senoritas of the zona norte, I have nothing relevant to add to the on topic part of the site. Bummer.

Jamesbr,

Someone, maybe not you, said that Blair used twisted logic to justify military action under Res 1441. I believe that even the French understood completely the meaning of the resolution. But the legal justification for war goes back to the first gulf war.

Resolution #678 of Nov. 29, 1990, which authorized "U.N. member states to use all necessary means to uphold and implement resolution 660 (1990) AND ALL SUBSEQUENT RELEVANT RESOLUTIONS and to restore international peace and security in the area"

Saddam has not obeyed the terms of the original cease fire. Under international law the combatants can enforce the terms of the cease fire. As we say in mexico, FIN y PUNTO.

The US is a member state of the UN, in fact it provides a disproportionate amount of the UNs funding, It was the principal power that established the UN, and it is the host country for the UN. I think that alone gives it the moral authority to enforce UN resolutions. And why are we worried about the UN anyway? It is a not some type of idealistic world government. It is a political forum that gives the same weight and vote to a despotic dictator or a totalitarian regime as to open democratic societies. There is no moral comparison.

Lets get it over with. I am curious to see how all of these conspiracy theories unravel.

Batsterwhostillwantstobelieve

Ok now I think I need a quick trip to Nuevo Laredo tomorrow to get my mind off of politics. It is only a 2 hour drive for me, hell yea. We should be ok as long as the US does not go to war with Mexico, or Brazil, Argentina,

Batster,

It's going great up here in the Great White North. Spring is just around the corner, as evidenced by temperatures SOARING to 40 farenheit degrees! I've got shorts on.

If I made comments that were factually incorrect, I'd be happy to have you set me straight. But I've heard that one about Canada's death by gun rate being 1% of America's from more than one source. I don't think I said America has the highest rate of gun death's per capita. I know Columbia's for example is much higher. So what? You aren't going to take solace by pointing to a desperate 3rd world nation's situation being marinally worse than yours are you? America leads the developed world in so many things, why the disparity when it comes to the handling of guns?

As for Tony Blair and Res 1441, that was me that said he was playing fast and loose with the facts. Here again, I stand to be corrected, but it's my understanding that the resolutions must be enforced under the auspices of the UN, after a vote. I really can't take seriously your contention that being a founding nation or host of the UN gives America any kind of special right to enforce resolutions unilaterally. That's ridiculous, as was your suggestion that America might have some special kind of moral authority. No country has that. America has been motivated by many things on the international stage, but not morality. Not singling your country out on that count - as I said - NO COUNTRY can make that claim.

As far as the UN being flawed, yes of course it is, and one of the more serious flaws was the decision to grant veto power to some nations.

Lastly, Kendricks thanks for that 'glorious' war post. When I have the inclination to ridicule you in the future I won't have to feel guilty.

Jackson,

I need help from you.

I mentioned I was going to boycott all Canadian products and encourage my friends to follow suit.

The problem is, I can find no Canadian products that I am currently using. Even my maple syrup is from Vermont.

There must be something I use that says "made or produced in Canada"

Oh, high on Saturday in San Diego is expected to be 71 and a low of 55, but please keep your devalued Canadian dollars in Canada and stay away from San Diego. We need no help from Canada thank goodness.

Benwhowantsnothingtodowithcanada

Well....you could stop whacking off to pictures of Michael Fox.

We'd be hurt, but we don't want to impede your show of patriotism. Afterall, it's so damn entertaining watching you guys.

"Freedom toast"

BWWWWWAAAAAHHAAAAAAAAA!

Bennyboy,

Next time you want to start a battle of wits, come armed. ;)

LJ,

If Michael Fox is the best you can come up, no wonder Canada has so many economic problems.

Like I said before, I could care less if you are laughing at me or for that matter that you would be hurt..

I wonder how entertaining we are to Saddam Hussein and Al Qaeda these days?

Again, I am just happy we don't have to depend on our friends from Canada.

Of course our country will probably be there to bail your ass out the next time you need help.

"Well....you could stop whacking off to pictures of Michael Fox."

Your right LJ, I give up.

Your intellectual superiority is under whelming.

Jackson,

If you cant realize that there is a moral comparison and difference between a democracy and a totalitarian regime, you are lost buddy.

I did not say America was perfect. But its moral authority in comparison to most of th eethical pygmies in the UN is absolute.

Let me remind you of what you said. " People in the US use them on each other much more than any other place in the world". There is no other interpretation of your words. You say that no other place on the planet has so much gun play and that is incorrect.

When I get back from my mini skiing vacation, I will look up the UN report. I think the US is 19th on the list for violent gunplay. Does it lead the indistrialized world, probably. But that has a hell of alot more to do with our fucked up culture than it does our gun laws. Switzerland and Finland have a very high percentage of households with auto-weapons, but have very low gun crime rates. I hate to use the tired old mantra, But guns dont kill people, people kill people.

I gotta run. My plane departs soon for the snowy wilds of Colorado. I am going to leave all this political BS behind for a few days. At the rate things are proceeding Iraq may be an oils spot by the time I return.

Best wished to everyone even Jamesbr and Action michaeljackson. Dont take any of this to seriously. I leave with words of wisdom from Charles Barkley. A few years back, by circumstance I was at a bachelor party where King Charles was in attendance. He told all present.

"If your not thinking about pussy 100% of the time, you just aint concentrating" So on that note maybe everybody should go back to writing about pussy.

See you all.

Have a good time skiing in Colorado. Allot of new snow.

Glad to see your not going to Whistler.

"If Michael Fox is the best you can come up, no wonder Canada has so many economic problems."

???? I didn't think it was possible to actually SEE an mental stutter until now.

Ben, you're sounding more and more like the stereotypical big bellied, skinny legged white guy with the personality of an ice cream sandwich.

Why on earth would you be aiming your pathetic peacenik baiting at me? I've been consistently for the attack on Iraq. In your small mind the fact I live in Canada somehow overides my opinion?

Why do so many Americans find it hard to understand that the most patiotic thing you can do IS look at your government with a critical eye? You fellas that fall in for this shallow kind of mindless 'love it or leave it' mentality are not real patriots in my view.

And I don't know about Saddam, laughing at you, but yeah - unfortunately I do bet Al Qaeda is having a good chuckle at American expense. A war that stirs up more anti-American feelings is the best those loons could hope for. I just hope America does as good a job rebuilding Iraq as it's bound to do tearing it down. Otherwise, all this effort will be for nothing.

Batster,

Ah yes, you're right. I did say that, and it's not technically quite right is it? Thanks for catching that one.

As for as the morality thing, I said America is not right to base it's actions on morality. I didn't say there's no difference between a democracy and the nastier governments out there. I think there's a huge difference between the way such governments treat their own people, and not much difference between the way they treat people in OTHER countrys. ;)

Take it too seriously? Never. ;) Have a good time skiing, I'm gonna get some of that in myself this weekend.

(Message edited by luckyjackson on March 20, 2003)

"an mental stutter until now."

I think you meant "a" mental stutter" uh uh hey? Any way I give you credit for the thought. That was good.

Man if you think Al Qaeda is having a good chuckle, you have a very strange sense of humor and evaluating the facts. AQ has gone from a well organized terrorist group which was sheltered in Afghanistan by an anti-American government, to a group which has lost millions of dollars of assets, with most of their leadership dead or captured and those that are left in hiding.

As far as the anti-American feelings are concerned, nothing is really new. I am glad the U.S. is standing up to Iraq's current despot as apparently no one else is capable of or has the guts to do it.

By the way you seem to be the one taking this down to a personal level, which is fine with me, but please try to remember your previous posts.
Maybe too much CC and water hey?

"And I don't know about Saddam, laughing at you,"

Will if you don't know if he is laughing or not right now, I guess perhaps you should just think, you know ponder, what it must be like to be hiding from themost powerful army in the world, whose main goal is to have a new government take over Iraq and kill your ass.

"I just hope America does as good a job rebuilding Iraq as it's bound to do tearing it down. Otherwise, all this effort will be for nothing"

I guess we do agree on at least part of your post. Based on the modern history of our country, we have done a damn good job of rebuilding our old enemies countries.

If you took my something said in my previous posts personally, then you misunderstood. I ridicule the idea, not the person behind it.

And America hasn't done such a great job rebuilding everywhere. America's effort in Europe were nothing short of heroic and incredibly generous. It's actions in Chile, Grenada, and Nicaragua were the opposite end of the extreme.

Please understand, I don't have any intention of riling or upsetting Americans when I point out what I see as your shortcomings. I think it's right to give you the credit that's due, which is considerable. What I've noticed though, is that many Americans equate any admission of being less than perfect, with being unpatriotic. You don't do your country any service with that kind of unthinking obstinate attitude. In fact, you do it a disservice and alienate those that could otherwise be better allies.

Just because I defend my country against foregein
criticism does not make me one who finds my country perfect. In fact I probably critcize the Federal Government more than most on this board.

Yes, many of your remarks have been personally insulting, but more importantly totally inane to the discussion about the U. S., Iraq and Canada. Quite frankly the personal stuff is unimportant to me, except to point out that you must not remember what your previous posts have said.

Lets just move on.

Does anyone know if it is true that Iraq has fired off some missles today that supposely they denied even having in their possission?

Mixed stories on the SCUDS. I doubt that we'll know exactly what they were shooting for days.

I've just started my second call-up in as many years. Today, I saw a couple more friends off to Turkey.

It's time to finish this crap.

Yes, I can see how 'unimportant' the stuff you took personally was to you. I can practically see the tears of frustration spilled between the misspelled words.

My last post was intended to soothe, now I'll just have to go back to countering your arguments. If you continue to provide the same level of challenge, I'll be able to play ping pong with one hand while I type with the other.

Can you feel that? Can you feeeel it?

Boo Hoo Hoo, I guess I should have done spell check, but this post is really just so unimportant, when talking to an alien.

I bet I am in better shape, have more money, have more fun, bigger dick, better car, fuck more beautiful women and yes thank God a U.S. citizen than you have ever dreamed.

But I certainly don't mean this as a personal attack on an asshole like you.

Go in peace motherfucker!!

(Message edited by ben on March 20, 2003)

I hate Canadien bacon other than that I have no problems with those hosers up there eh.

I remember the old rivarlies between the Montreal Canadiens and the Boston Bruins

If I am not Mistaken don't they offer free healthcare for everyone ?

And I bet I am much fatter than you guys have less money and less fun, a smaller dick 2.2 inches when I hang a 5 pound ball bearing from it, worse car GMC Gremiln green with the back window missing , fuck fatter uglier girls than you and thank god that I have already applied for my Mexican citizenship

Besos
Milkman

Why are people even wasting their time with this Michael Jackson piece of shit?

The bottom line is, the USA is fucking kicking ass, and the camelfucker lovers are sucking a big fat cock.

As much as I used to detest Republicans, I am now voting a straight Republican ticket in the future. It is great to see something done totally right.

Keep on kicking ass, W! W is definitely doing the right thing by completely ignoring these know-nothing loser faggots.

There is no data supporting or controverting the theory that the Iraqi missiles fired at Kuwait today were illegal (ie Scuds). Kuwait is so close to Iraq that long range missiles really aren't necessary.

Yeah, that's the great thing about Republicans, they like to drop bombs on Moslems in far away places, and then get all indignant when those Moslems fight back the only way they can, using terrorist tactics.

Well, duh, what do you expect?

Act One: Reagan administration, 1982: the battleship New Jersey fires its 16 inch guns blindly into the suburbs of Beirut (blindly due to lack of forward observers). Lots of civilians killed off-camera, although the guns firing made great video for the nightly news.

Act Two: Reagan Administration, 1983: hundreds of US marines killed when some Lebanese lunatic drives a car bomb into the barracks in Beirut. Gee, do you think that maybe firing Volkswagen sized shells into civilian populations might get some people mad at us?

The consequences of the current action in Iraq is TBD, but it will probably not make people here too happy.

If we didn't take action now, Iraq would become a Cuba-like state, with a few minor differences - it would continue to raise money selling oil to chickenshit countries like France, would
develop weapons that will one day be used against us, and would harbor training camps for enemy terrorist organizations, much like Afghanistan did.

Accordingly, the future consequences of the current action (i.e., the deprivation of a source of cash, weapons, and training ground for terrorist groups) should be cause for great joy here.

Going through life as a disgusting pussy just gets you shit on. Taking decisive action is a must.

Keep on kicking that arab ass, W!!!!

(Message edited by kendricks on March 20, 2003)

Kendricks, are you in this picture?



-snapper-who doesn't want to see the PC Patrol show up in this thread

LOL! No, but that picture originally comes from my church, www.churchofeuthanasia.org

OK here's my take on the current war plan:

a) we don't want to send lots of planes to hit Bagdad with a nearly full moon

b) we don't really need to send a lot of planes and troops to get the Iraqis to surrender

So, the hope is that cruise missiles and troops in the field far from Bagdad will compel the Iraqis everywhere to surrender. If not, we then give them the shock and awe when the moon is not a factor.

I think you guys aren't comprehending how the rest of the world is seeing this conflict, its like watching a movie with Bruce Willis fighting MiniMe, and you guys are cheering Bruce every time he pounds MiniMe. For everyone else, its rather appalling.

BTW, I doubt that Saddam created a special video in which he read off the date March 20 to prove he was still alive - to be played in the event of his death. I mean, would he really care about any of this if he were dead?

LuckyJackson,

In retrospect, my last post (a feeble attempt at humor) was really not funny and I apologize.


Benwhoisfeelingsheepish
.

You guys are mucho entertaining. As I have too mych time on my hands today (RIP Benito, you purebred Indian midget), I will chime in with my worthless dos centavos:

I have nothing against LuckyJ, but it's good to see through all of this that Canada is playing it's rightful role in the world: isolationist and irrelevant. Fox sticking his finger in the wind and wimping out is classic Mexican politics as well. Joining the Security Council was a complete waste. Way to go!

Oh, one more thing re: Canada: Strange Brew is indeed a classic. Canadians tackle Shakespeare.

I never fucking ever ever EVER thought I'd say this, but Exploder is right. All this expulsion of testosterone and baby killing is going to do is piss off the next generation of towel-head terrorists. Yeah, we can kick Saddam's ass (maybe. he survived OK in the last crusade for some reason), but being deathly afraid of the weapons WE SOLD HIM is kind of funny. But wait 'til America experiences suicide bombings like Israel sees on a daily basis. Every brown guy with a backpack is a suspect? And they have the Mossad to deal with it. We have 'Bumblefuck Homeland Security' despite total disregard of the Constitution in the name of counter-terrorism.

I think Osama bin Laden is indeed laughing his ass off over all of this. Nobody gives a shit about looking for him anymore and his message of jihad is going to be stonger than ever.

Batster, re: paying a 'disproportionate' amount of UN dues, this only occurs when the US ACTUALLY FUCKING PAYS THEM, as they decided not to do for a few years under BJClinton. 25% of your budget sitting in the Accounts Receivable bin for three fucking years does a lot more to kill the UN than making Security Council votes irrelevant by reckless vigilante-ism. But re: the UN, who the fuck gave the Frogs a veto power anyway? Can we have a do-over?

Thanks for the tips re: Guardian online. Good reading. I totally disagree re: Jimmy Carter, though. He is a credit to our country. If the norwegian peace freaks gave him a long overdue award to flip the bird at Bush the bozo, more power to them.

Kendricks, the good news is that after we bomb Iraq 'back to the stone age' (one of my favorite historical quotes), there will be many other anti-American regimes to pummel and exploit. Where were these squelchers of dissent during Vietnam? Two buldings get blown up and now we have a license to kick ass all over the world? LBJ shoulda thought of that.

As many of you can tell, I am just a bitter schizophrenic. I think this 'war' is stupid. I hate Saddam Hussein. I hate the U.S. foreign policy legacy of the last 40 years. I hate having to listen to Canadians and Frogs whine about the U.S.

The best thing about this war as far as U.S. interests go, is that it is exposing European unity as a pipedream.

Oh, and watching some cunt reporter in Kuwait doing the talking head thing in a gas mask was nauseating. Iraq poses about as much danger to anybody right now as my neighbor's malnourished dog does behind a 12 foot wall. How much does the Pentagon pay these fucking sycophants?

Gotta love the live coverage of tanks speeding across the empty desert. Riveting. Note to the networks: War's no fun without bad guys and danger. In 1991 at least there was the element of surprise. Fortunately CBS decided to do the right thing and show hoops last night.

(Message edited by porker on March 21, 2003)

(Message edited by porker on March 21, 2003)

Porker you are a racist (RIP Benito, you purebred Indian midget) just has Amos or who ever it was suggested. I am not a midget and sure as hell not purebred.

I don't agree with allot of what you said, but man you know how to write well, or is that gooder than most.

By the way, lets give the U.S. credit for a positive thing from invading Iraqi. The price of oil has dropped from $40 a barrel a month ago down to $27.50 a barrel as we speak.

I think that we will see a more stable Middle East as the new Iraqi government takes over and we rehab Iraq. Back in the 60's and early 70's when we had "our" dictators running most of the middle east, oil prices were stable and Iran and Iraqi were very friendly in their policies toward the U.S..

Good post Porker

I thought Amous would like that about Sr. Juarez, actually.

With oil prices dropping, if that continues for 6 mos. or so, the price gouging gas station owners might actually lower the prices at the pump. And Ben, as you are the financial genius, can you tell me how much your taxes are going to rise to pay for this little soiree? On the heels of Afghanistan... And North Korea or Iran's next...

I'm glad I don't pay taxes! George the twat can spend YOUR money however he sees fit! And he's giving you free SUV's too to take advantage of all this cheap oil. FREE!

Mas propaganda:

"As such, terrorism can be perpetrated by men in black balaclavas, or by men in B-52 bombers. The real distinction for Western governments is whether the terror serves their cause or not. Thus a teenage suicide bomber who blows himself up at an airport is a terrorist, while a pilot trained to drop several megatonnes of civilised, Christian nuclear firepower on a city is a hero. The former, as Jack Straws says, has 'no respect, however minimal, for human life,' while the latter accepts 'the rules and values that we in the rest of the world would recognise.'"

-- Taken from some commie website. Is this like the blind squirrel finding a nut?

You are just to negative.

I mention a positive, you turn it into a negative.

What are the gas gouging owners suppose to do when the price of oil goes up? Sell the gas at a lost? Why don't they just close all the gas stations.

Your right about taxes eventually going up to pay for defense. I just wish more of my taxes went for defense and less for some of the other branches of government.

The Feds spent approx 2.0 trillion last year (none of your money)with only $382 billion going for defense. The military is one of the few areas where we seem to get allot of bang for our buck.

Ben:

We get literally more bang for buck spending my taxes on DoD, but the economic results from that spending are very poor. Its better for the economy to give poor people extra cash so they buy more beer. And, its actually better just to throw dollars out of some government high rise than to give it to the DoD hoping for downstream economic results.

I am sure Anheuser Busch agrees with your economic theory, but Boeing and Lockheed Martin strongly diagree.

Please don't suggest that the government should throw money out the window. I see that everytime I visit the INS or whatever they are now called.

"And, its actually better just to throw dollars out of some government high rise than to give it to the DoD hoping for downstream economic results."

That opinion depends on who owns the DoD contractor stocks and who funds your campaigns, doesn't it?

And Ben, I did mention a positive: Your FREE gas guzzling SUV. FREE!

And re: your theory about gas station owners, why is it that gas prices always shoot up IMMEDIATELY when there is a FEAR that oil prices will rise, and trickle down months later if the price actually falls? Please tell me how this is 'selling at a loss' instead of price gouging.

But at least you have the 'freedom' to fill up your SUV. You know, in case there's a blizzard on the way to soccer practice.

Maybe the huge sunk costs of these wars will pay off in the end, though. Sell arms to all the countries in the world who want to fight 'terrorism', then use our own arms to take away the arms from the now 'bad guys' when they get corrupted by the terrorist. How long is Pakistan going to remain our 'buddy'? When Turkey makes it's next attempt to slaughter the Kurds, we're going to suddenly have to intervene to defend their human rights, right? Since the U.N. doesn;t matter anymore, we have free reign again to sell arms to anyone we want, right?

Rumsfeld interrupting the NCAA tourney coverage with a briefing on the war. Gee, why doesn't he say anything about his meetings with Saddam as a Reagan envoy pursuing U.S. 'economic interests' in the 80's? I'd sure like to know more about that.

You are right about the gas stations raising prices quickly and lowering slowly. I am not here to defend the practice, but one of the reasons gas prices are so high is taxes of course, but there is also a more subtle reason for high prices, which is lack of completion.

The local, state and federal governments, along with the environmentalists have made it so difficult and expensive to open an independent gas station that only the AM/PM's and Exxon's of the world can afford the capital to build new gas stations. At the same time, because of the above stated groups, many independents have had to either shut down their businesses or spend hundreds of thousands to up grade their stations.

Just boycott the gas stations. That sems to work.

I do enjoy driving an SUV and also my old Lincolm Towncar.

Most businesses operate that way in the U.S. Look at the banks.

competition

Ben, apology accepted - and offered in the same spirit. Let's stick to arguing the issues. ;)
Now if Kendricks can just get through puberty, we might have a chance at a genuinely adult discussion.

Porker's comment about Turkey and the Kurds brings up an interesting point. It's my understanding that the U.S. is now resisting Turkish overtures of cooperation. The Turks are apparently too late to get their piece of the pie, having missed their opportunity to grant access to northern Iraq when the U.S wanted it. Part of the Turkish reward, (in addition to 15 billion), was supposed to be a relatively free hand with the Kurds. Any opinions on what the U.S. attitude should be to this situation?

I was in Turkey in October, so I'm a bit biased. The Kurds were some of the nicest people I met there.

Lucky Jackass, the reason I am mocking you instead of "engaging you in adult conversation" is simple: you are not worth engaging in conversation.

Like some moronic religious zealot who knocks on your door on a Sunday morning, you are just regurgitating idiotic platitudes, without actually having any true comprehension of the reality.

What truly matters is, we are having a ball kicking the fuck out of Baghdad, as I write these words. Worrying about your pointless words during such a joyous event would be like worrying over what a hooker is thinking about while I am spewing my goo inside of her.

As far as the rest of you guys go, just lighten up and enjoy the war. Why sit around wringing your hands, when you could be tipping back some brews and enjoying watching Saddam have his ass handed to him? Shit, you guys helped pay for these firecrackers, you might as well enjoy blowing them off!

Well said Kendricks - also I'm happy to welcome you to the Republican party.

I have several Canadian friends as I grew up near the frozen tundra (and Strange Brew is a Top 10 movie of all time) but for all the Montreal Canadian fans who boo'd the National Anthem yesterday I wish we could ship you all to Sadaam's bedside where you'll get your ass blown off.

T_bone

Hey hoser that Milk is 6 months old
I lubba that Movie they keep saying that part 2 is in the works.

What about the losers that wanted to be human shields? Did they ever get entry into Iraq ?
If so they are coming back in pieces
Talk about winners

Doug Mckenzie

WHY THE EUROPEANS REALLY DISLIKE US

After the terrorist outrages of September 11, the solidarity we Americans received from European governments and peoples was heartwarming. Unfortunately it did not last. Over the past year, the opinions of governments, opinion leaders and media over much of the old continent have been ones of constant criticism of America in general and President Bush in particular as the American government takes steps to eliminate future terrorist threats.

September 11 was a wake up call to America, and one of the refrains heard frequently in the aftermath of the attacks was “Why do they hate us?”, with “they” referring to the Arab populaces that celebrated the attacks. Failed civilizations, hatred of Israel, and general fear and envy of our open society are obvious answers to this question. In retrospect, maybe we should not have been surprised; given the vast religious, cultural and wealth gaps between our two societies, perhaps they will always hate us.

Today, we are seeing a new visceral dislike, if not hatred, of America bubbling forth out of Europe. The question we should be asking ourselves is why do the Europeans hate (or at least intensely dislike) us. The answer to this question is very interesting and complex. It involves American history, culture, and attitudes, and boils down, I think, to three facets of “Americaness” that Europe cannot abide.

For all the Euro-whining that we hear about American imperialism, one could perhaps be forgiven for forgetting that a mere century ago the world was ruled (with the exception of the British Empire, misruled) by European empires. Today none of those empires exist. ALL have been destroyed by actions of the United States. Indeed, almost all of our wars have been about fighting other people’s empires. Before independence, our colonial forefathers helped to fight and defeat the French Empire. In the revolutionary war, we fought and defeated the British Empire, the greatest empire since Rome. In 1898 we delivered the coup de grace to a tottering and enfeebled Spanish Empire. In 1917, our entry into the First World War broke a protracted stalemate and led to the defeat of Germany and the destruction of the German, Austro-Hungarian, and Ottoman (Turkish) empires. The enormous war debt that Great Britain and France ended up owing us was the first nail in the coffin of their empires. The Second World War saw us put a permanent end to German imperial ambitions, as well as finish off the nascent Italian Empire and the Japanese Empire. Our refusal to intervene in the Suez crisis of 1956 marked the end of any real imperial pretensions on the part of France or Great Britain. Finally, on Christmas Day, 1991, the last and worst of the European empires, the Soviet empire, disappeared, bankrupted by the United States in a cold war that mercifully never turned hot. A significant portion of opinion leaders in Europe is aware of this, and cannot forgive us for removing them, forever, from the stage of world relevance.

We don’t just destroy other country’s empires. We are a bad example. We are so disgustingly free it is embarrassing. Americans do not carry national identity cards. We are not required to register our addresses with the police when we move. A significant portion of us owns guns. An American newspaper could call President Bush a worm and not fear being fined for “insulting the president of the republic”. (This is actually happening to The Sun, a British tabloid that does not, to put it mildly, like French President Chirac.) Our freedom encourages us to take risks that would be unbearable to a European. We change jobs more often that a Frenchman changes his underwear. We move from one state to another, one career to another, even one religion to another without a second thought. Our willingness to take risks brings occasional dislocation, but has also made us far richer than any European nation.

Lastly, our culture, tacky though it is, dominates the world. Period. How many French rock songs does one hear on Indonesian radio? Mexico City and Cape Town are full of Pizza Huts, not French bistros or German beer halls. Teenagers in Siberia watch movies about Rambo, not some French war hero. This has to be infuriating for the state-supported doyens of a dying culture.

And Europe is dying, make no mistake about it. Falling birthrates across the continent are going to bring doom. In 75 years, Germany or Italy may not exist as European nations. Perhaps they can hang out a sign “Country cancelled for lack of interest”. For whatever reason, continental Europe is not reproducing. America’s higher birthrate and open immigration assure us of an ever younger and more vibrant society even as continental Europe moves into the geriatric ward.

Many, perhaps a majority if we judge by recent events, Europeans cannot forgive us for this. If we look at those European countries that have been supporting us, New Europe, we find Great Britain, which semi-willingly transferred its imperial responsibilities to us after WWII, and which is not suffering from a low birth rate, and those countries of Eastern Europe that were victims of either the German or the Soviet empire, rather than imperialists themselves. We are lucky. The new Europeans who support us are growing, both in population and economics, and do not have imperial hangovers. The other Europe, the Old Europe, is a dismal continent of shrinking populations, diminished prestige, stagnant economies, closets full of horrible crimes, and no future. Why do they hate us? Is it any wonder?

Ken doll,

You have a way to go before you reach the level of 'mocking' anyone. Your post read like a brat's.

"Tough" words like yours always hide the same thing; insecurity. Understandable if you're just a youngster who doesn't know better, but you're probably no longer young, are frustrated with your unfullfilled life, and make yourself feel better by identifying with the decisive action your military is taking on the other side of the globe. You long to do something as decisive. The fact you speak disparagingly of the women who are nice enough to fuck you, and refer to war as a 'joyous' thing, is just proof of your emotional immaturity. I'd throw a jibe at you, but I get no pleasure from kicking someone who's so clearly down. Good luck bud.

To T-bone who brought up the incident in Montreal, and to all Americans, I can't tell you how embarrassing it is for the MAJORITY of Canadians. Trust me when I tell you that the actions of those few idiots who boo'ed your anthem are not representative of most Canadians. People here reacted especially strongly to it because it wasn't too long ago that our anthem was boo'ed at a couple of hockey games down there.

I work in an industrial area with Canada's highest concentration of American owned companies. The overwhelming opinion in that community is that our government was wrong to take the position they have. Many of the people up here who are against the war, still believe that when crunch time arrived, we should have supported the U.S. The only reason we didn't, is that the present Prime Minister will be out in February and knows that he won't have to stick around and answer for damaging the relationship between the two countries. In the short term he was able to score some popularity points because most people up here wanted to give the WMD inspectors more time. Politics as usual.

(Message edited by luckyjackson on March 21, 2003)

Powerslaver,

Thanks for that article. I think it does contain the answer to the question of why their is resentment towards America in Europe. However, the reason(s)are not those put forward by the author. For the moment, let's put aside reasons why the Arab world might hate the U.S., and consider only Europe.

I have dual citizenship, and am in Europe quite often. (I'm sure someone will rush to hold that against me. ;) )

The different forms of envy touched on in your article, are for the most part not reasons that Europeans feel resentment towards the U.S. Maybe they were valid 40 or even 30 years ago, but not anymore. Today, citizens of the EC have freedoms and levels of wealth quite comparable to America's. Generally they have less disposable income, but better social services. I don't think that point is arguable.

No, the reason most Europeans, (and Canadians for that matter), resent America, is because America is like an individual who walks into a room, starts blowing his own horn - and doesn't stop. Even if another country wanted to recognize America's greatness, they wouldn't be able to get a word in edgewise because America never stops proclaiming it's own greatness. That's the first reason.

The second reason, is that most places are more liberal (socially) - and do not agree with, or often even understand, America's conservative social mores. I don't want to bring up the whole Clinton thing again, except as an example here, but I truly think Americans are unaware of how incredulous the rest of the world was about the drama that exploded over a blowjob.

T Bone, thanks for the welcome. It took a very dramatic event for me to come over to the Republicans, but seeing these complete fucking morons protesting our glorious war with their asinine slogans made me feel very, very ahppy we have men like Bush, Cheney, and Powell running the show.

Pseudointellectuals like Lucky Jackass, with their completely unrealistic, unworkable world views, are what got us to the point where we allowed terrorist organizations like Al Queda to prosper, and pull off large scale attacks against us.

The whole "we should roll over and take it up the ass" crowd really make want to vomit. But, all I have to do is turn on the TV and watch Saddam's palaces get blown to shit, and I feel all warm and fuzzy again!!!!

FUQ IRAQ