Samplings of World Opinion About the US

With all the bullshit coming out of the MSM about the US and Britain foiling a non-existent terrorist threat, let’s take a look at what the world actually thinks of America. Theweekmagazine.com printed a few opinions in its 8/14/06 issue, titled, “Unwilling—or Unable—to Stop Israel” and subtitled, “Contemplating U.S. involvement in the Middle East crisis”: “The United States is ‘morally complicit in Israel’s murder of civilians,’ said George Monbiot in Britain’s The Guardian. The U.S. supplies Israel with F-15 and F-16 fighter jets, Apache and Black Hawk helicopters, M-16 rifles, and much of the rest of the arsenal that has been laying waste to southern Lebanon. U.S. diplomatic backing in the U.N., meanwhile, prevents the international community from condemning Israel’s reckless overuse of force. If the U.S. chose to use its extraordinary leverage over Israel, it could order a cease-fire and the beginning of negotiations tomorrow. Much of official Washington, however, is in thrall to the “Israel lobby,” and it would take an especially perceptive president to recognize and stand up to such a bully. Instead we have President Bush, who, with his blinkered worldview, sees the Islamic militants from Hezbollah as ‘terrorists’ who attacked Israel for no reason. He is blind to Israel’s crimes, such as its earlier occupation of Lebanon, its continued occupation of the West Bank, ‘its beating and shooting of children,’ and ‘its bulldozing of homes.’ As far as Bush is concerned, Israel can do what it likes. Why should we be surprised? asked Germany’s Nordkurier in an editorial. ‘No U.S. president has done less for the Middle East peace process than Bush.’ We can hope that now that Israel has botched its attempt at smashing Hezbollah—leaving Lebanon in ruins and allowing the militants to claim every propaganda victory—Bush might intervene simply to minimize the damage to the cause of the War on Terror. ‘But given his inaction in the past, we’re skeptical.’ Doing nothing is no longer an option, said France’s Le Monde. The threat facing Israel is real and immediate. Hezbollah is an arm of Iran, and Iran is unambiguous in its pledge to eradicate Israel. Those who accuse Israel of retaliating against Hezbollah with disproportionate force fail to realize that ‘Israel owes its survival to its ability to inflict disproportionate damage.’ Yet by allowing Israel a free hand for so long, Bush has helped ‘provoke an unprecedented wave of anti-Americanism’ and anti-Israel sentiment, which is undermining the moderate Arab regimes that have helped defuse crises in the past. At this point, only a multinational force made up mostly of Europeans can ensure that Israel is protected and Lebanese civilians are spared. That’s a tall order, said Michael Streck in Germany’s Die Tageszeitung. That anyone would propose assigning the often squabbling and frequently paralyzed E.U. the role of global cop is a measure of ‘how much authority and legitimacy the U.S. has lost.’ But any European tempted to indulge in schadenfreude at the humbling of the superpower should think twice. ‘America’s inability to end the violence and chaos’ everywhere it intervenes, from Iraq to Afghanistan to Somalia, ‘reveals its weakness and emboldens radical Islamists.’ The U.S. used to stand for the rule of law, might used for right. Under Bush, the U.S. has become synonymous with torture and failure. ‘Until a more farsighted U.S. president, who can renew America, is elected, we’re in for turbulent times.’” And there you have it. The world thinks the United States is a bullying, terrorist, fascist nation in desperate need of regime change. And if the Republican Party pulled its head out of its ass for three seconds, it would see that three-quarters of the people in the United States agree with the worldview.