Comments on: They hate us, but they keep buying our stuff

By: Rick Moran

Rick Moran — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 23:40:34 +0000

It’s puzzled me in recent years that the left pushes the notion that somehow, prior to George Bush taking office, we were beloved in the world. Where they get this cockamamie idea I don’t know.

The fact is, we have not added one single enemy since Bush took office. We’ve actually eliminated one in Saddam Hussein. But were we pals with Kim Jong Il before Bush. Did we hang with the mullahs of Iran when Clinton was in office?

Which nations hate us now that didn’t hate us on January 19, 2001? Europe? Give me a break. The French have been an enemy in all but name since DeGualle’s time. The Middle East? Yeah, right. We were very popular with the Arabs under Clinton.

The point being, nothing has changed – except the perception pushed by the left that all of a sudden, we’re some pariah nation because the left in Europe hates us even more than usual because of Gitmo and Abu Ghraib. Ask conservatives in Great Britain or Germany or even France and all of them say they wish they could be more like us and less like the socialist weenies who run their countries.

But since that viewpoint is surpressed in Europe – with a few brave exceptions – Americans think we’re universally hated.

But just wait. If a Democrat is elected in 2008, we’ll be all kisses and cuddles with the Eurotwits again.

Makes me want to puke…

By: GrimJack

GrimJack — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 21:58:27 +0000

I think most of this hating America is the “in” thing in many of these countries, much like hating America is the “in” thing at many universities. Why take responsibility for problems and the obligation to fix them when blaming America is so much easier? I have been stationed in Australia, Turkey, and currently in Germany. In Australia, the only folks I ran into that hated America, were the same types that inhabit many universities in the US. Turkey was very unusual in that their perception of America was based on what they saw in the movies and on TV (an oxymoron in that the same Americans creating this garbage are usually the same ones railing how hated we are). Many Turks saw marrying an American as a status symbol at the same time they were against the values promoted by our entertainment industry. Being able to buy American goods in the base commissary (grocery store) and the BX (base exchange–military Walmart) was the height of status for many Turks. Although many Turks may denounce America as part of their political theater, same as most liberal rallies here in the US, most would move here in a heartbeat. In Germany, I think the biggest issue is ego. We politely listen to them as an ally, but they aren’t as big a player as they would like to be. The UK gets consulted on many things, while Germany is an afterthought. The US has a big political influence on Germany, while Germany has little political influence on the US. Case in point is Germany was making noise in hopes of influencing our decision on Iraq. As soon as the US began talking about closing bases and moving them East, the Germans decided to tone it down because they didn’t want to lose all that money. We make international decisions and the many Germans take notice. Germany makes international decisions and few Americans pay attention. For most of Western Europe, giving up free health care and all the other socialist goodies is hard, so they are not as interested in moving to America. For most folks in Eastern Europe, Africa, South America and Asia, the US is seen as the promised land, a chance to get away from crappy dictatorships and general lawlessness.

As far as goods and services, its amazing how things work here in Germany compared to the US. At my first house, it took me 10 days to get phone service, and a month to see if I could get the internet service I wanted because I lived in a very small town. When I moved, it took 14 days to get the new phone service. Fortunately, I moved to an area that had plenty of internet options, so I got my internet at the same time, but still, it was 14 days of waiting. In addition, you pay an approximation every month of what they think you will use in utilities based on how many folks in your household. At the end of 12 months, you find out if you owe or if you get a refund. American music is very popular. It is very strange to be listening to American songs on the radio and then a German DJ. There’s more than a few Germans that know very little English that can sing along with American hit songs.

By: walterc

walterc — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 19:14:46 +0000

If they hate us so much, let’s cut off the aide, withdraw all of our military and withdraw from and evict the U.N.

And if that doesn’t make them like us, then as my old Master Sargent used to say “F**k-em if they can’t take a joke.”

By: Mark Nicodemo

Mark Nicodemo — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 19:08:29 +0000

The BiPolar International View on America…

In addition to buying our stuff, they keep invading our borders. Seems like international opinion about America may be low, but that doesn’t seem to prevent foreigners from personally advancing themselves through America. They hate us, but they keep b…

By: iowavette

iowavette — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 18:58:53 +0000

Who gives a hairy rat’s what other countries think? They can’t run their own business, and not one can take the moral high road – they’ve all had their Viet Nams and much, much worse.

I, too, travel frequently in Europe, Central and South America. Mexico, Central and South America have been settled as long as the U. S. yet still resemble Louisiana in the ’40s. There’s no excuse for it. Europe is fascinating but they’re running their countries into the ground attempting to maintain socialist proclivities to prevent strikes and riots.

An interesting fact when traveling the tourist trail in Europe and the near East: The UK is reviled by the Mediterranean countries for filling museums with their artifacts. Guides are very vocal and still quite bitter. I doubt the artifacts would exist at all if the Brits [and French] hadn’t purchased and spirited these treasures to safer locations. Go further north to the low and Baltic countries, Russia and her ex-satellites all despise the Germans for the soulless torching of national treasures whenever their military was on the retreat. These people hate us AND they hate each other. So, again: WHO CARES WHAT THEY THINK???

By: Alphonse

Alphonse — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 18:49:40 +0000

Last year, U.S. multinationals …

How can they be US and multinational?

Robert Reich of the Clinton administration famously pointed out that multinationals have little loyalty to the US.

The same might be said for the business globalists like Jorge Bush, the Wall Street Journal, and the Council on Foreign Relations, for whom the US is merely a commercial zone filled with overpriced labor that should be merged with cheap labor from around the world to form a Chinese or Indian type of low wage high profit economy wherein the businessman and investor is king.

By: lionking

lionking — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 18:32:34 +0000

India is a great example of the love/hate relationship of America. I have written about it here at The Jungle Report. Please give it a read. On the one hand they hate us and our ways, on the other hand they love our companies, jobs, technology, and want to come here bad.

By: billhedrick

billhedrick — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 18:11:27 +0000

foxforce91, they hated us just as much if not more when the USSR was around. America hatred is based on 2 things:
1) America is blessed with natural resources beyond a lot of people, and we worked hard to make the country a success. Also in our success we sometimes don’t understand how others, not so well blessed, aren’t as successful. It’s not a simple thing, but our hard work condemns others while our arrogance is not attractive.

By: foxforce91

foxforce91 — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 14:03:24 +0000

I don’t think they don’t “hate” us per se. The reason they resent us is because we are the one and only superpower. Our culture is the prevailing culture worldwide. As stated in the piece: they gobble up our culture; they love our rock stars, our movies, our movie stars, our TV shows etc. If the world is like a big high school, we’re the jocks, the Europeans are the drama queens who hang out by the drama dept., etc. (you can fill in the rest of the blanks.)

By: DaleC

DaleC — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 13:40:45 +0000

I have gotten to know many people from South America over the past few years . It seems they think we are born rich . We are all lazy and arrogant . They think we do not deserve our way of life because we have not lived in poverty . It is some sort of resentment . Of course I tell them my own life story but they just write it off as an exception. Whatever .
When I went to Brazil everything American is coveted. Music , movies , electronics , etc….
I only see rich and poor. They cannot seem to develop a middle class which is essential to a successful economy.

By: It’s fashionable to hate America… but is it real? | BitsBlog

It’s fashionable to hate America… but is it real? | BitsBlog — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 13:27:09 +0000

[...] Michelle Malkin: Go figure: Foreigners don’t have a high opinion of the United States, owing to the war in Iraq, but that hasn’t done much to deter a ferocious appetite for American goods and services, as had been expected. [...]

By: almeehan

almeehan — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 11:48:50 +0000

They hate us for envy yet contempt for the values upon which this country was founded. Mainly, Christian faith principles found in Scripture which extol freedom of the individual, equality of mankind, law based on God’s law,and love and compassion. Most of these values are not shared culturally in the parts of the world referred to here. The human heart desires these values but most of the world population is trapped in culturally perverted societies dominated by godless values which are characterised more by enslavement and domination of the individual. Thank your God that you have been blessed with what you have been blessed and pray for those born in our own country who have spurned the God who gave them all their blessings and opportunities. They will surely be held accountable for their ingratitude and woe be unto them.

By: Gabe

Gabe — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 11:25:53 +0000

But just as a reminder at how Blessed our beautiful shores really are. As for those who dislike us, who cares.
Zorro

The main problem, though, is we keeping importing into our country those who hate us and Israel (devout Muslims), who bring all their family members that hate us and who immigrate just because of our economic success, not our democratic values. We need a sane immigration policy. We need to also make sure that we are allowing immigrants who love us and our government into the country, not the haters of our government and lifestyle.

By: zorro

zorro — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 10:54:01 +0000

kouti, do you own a car??

By: graysonret

graysonret — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 08:27:25 +0000

I once spent some time in Malaysia, back in ‘99, and had the opportunity to watch the reactions to their new budget on tv. There were 5-6 news people sitting around commenting on the budget and it dawned on me after 30 minutes or so, that none of them had an opinion or disagreement with anything! All I heard was “great”, “wonderful”, “very good”. They went through the entire thing and never once disagreed with any of it! It was then that I realized that I was not in the U.S., where we are free to disagree. There, disagreement in an Islamic state could be major trouble. I’ve been throughout Europe and some of Asia, and I’ve been always happy to be back home. Those who have never been overseas should go and visit. It will be an eye-opener to them.