The ugliest American alienates the world

[Flagg]

Commentary: The Ugliest American


In three years, George W. Bush has managed to alienate most of the world. What will he do next?
By Mick Youther


The U.S. has a serious problem with international relations. It is called the Bush Administration. Admittedly, it is hard to live up to the Jeffersonian ideal of “Peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations,” but the Bush Administration can’t seem to get along with anyone—even our allies.

• “For Germany's centrist Sud-Deutsche Zeitung he is ‘Bully Bush.’ For Britain's center-left The Guardian, heralds ‘the return of The Ugly American.’ For Italy's La Repubblica, he is ‘the executioner- in-chief.’ For France's Le Figaro, he is ‘the toxic Texan.’…the Financial Times sniffs ' has managed to strike a combination of alarm and antipathy into just about everybody who matters.'”-- United Press International, 6/11/01

• “Across British public opinion, George Bush is seen as the global village idiot…he is Ronald Reagan without the brains.”-- Andrew Rawnsley The Observer, 1/16/03

• “There is something almost comical about the prospect of George W. Bush waging war on another nation because that nation has defied international law. Since Bush came to office, the U.S. government has torn up more international treaties and disregarded more United Nations’ conventions than the rest of the world has in 20 years.”-- George Monbiot, The Guardian, 8/6/02

• “A lot of people had sympathy for Americans around the time of 9/11, but that's changed. They act like the big guy riding roughshod over everyone else."-- Cathy Hearn, 31, a flight attendant from South Africa, NY Times, 9/11/03

• “Under Bush, America has rapidly projected an attitude that causes even its closest allies and friends to shake their heads. Their egotism has prevented U.S. leaders from grasping the true scale of the anti-American emotion now spreading around the world.”-- Kaname Saruya, Professor emeritus, Tokyo Women's Christian University, 12/26/03


http://www.interventionmag.com/cms/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=613

[DBoon]

1. Ronald Reagan without the brains?

The scariest thing I've read in a long time.

[Laughing Mirror]

3. The funniest thing I've heard in a long time.

And the Europeans know all about Reagan and his flash cards at summit meetings whenever a question was posed to him. He'd listen for a key word in the question, such as "terror," and would flip through his cards until the one marked "terror" would come up and would read whatever was written on it, whether it had any relevance to the topic or not. President Mitterand, according to a book by Jacques Attali, Miterrand's right hand man, was astounded by this.

[buff2]

2. Oh shit........I just ate

Looking at that knuckle dragger's mug has turned my stomach! :puke:

[Kellanved]

4. well

The "Süddeutsche " is center/left, not centrist.

Interesting quotes, thanks for posting.

[Say_What]

5. Great quotes... the Toxic Texan

Regarding LatAm, he managed to piss off Venezuela twice in one week along with Argentina and Cuba. But what would one expect from an, er, *diplomatic* corp made up of THUGS recycled from RayGun's Iran Contra debacle?

“…for every one of his Latin American appointments so far, Bush has picked leftovers from the Reagan State Department: architects of one of the bloodiest and cruelest periods of U.S. policy toward Central America.... Instead of healing old wounds, he has re-opened them…Bush’s Latin American team reads like a roster of ‘America’s Most Disgraced Diplomats.’”-- Bill Press, Tribune Media Services, 9/7/01

• “Do we really want a man like him making snap decisions on whether to drop bombs or go to war? Do we really like the idea of his finger on the big trigger?… is a thoroughly dangerous, unpleasant piece of work who shouldn't be let anywhere near the White House."-- The Mirror, a British tabloid, quoted by The Washington Post, 1/7/01

The President of the United States is our representative. He is the face we present to the world. He is our voice. In this capacity, George W. Bush has failed us miserably. His simple-minded “You're either with us or against us. You're either evil, or you're good.” proclamation and his eagerness to use military force has set us at odds with our friends and multiplied our enemies.

A year from now we can have a new President making his inaugural address. It will mark the end of four years of irresponsibility, and we can start back in the right direction again. The whole world will breathe a sigh of relief.

In 15 or 20 years young adults will look at him the way we in the 1950s looked at Hitler and his Nazi thugs. Pray that there's a Nuremberg for SmirkBoy and his junta as well there should be.

[rexcat]

6. I am currently in Amsterdam, The Netherlands

and the people here do not like Bush* one iota. The quote from the article:

The President of the United States is our representative. He is the face we present to the world. He is our voice..." is sadly the truth. When the rest of the world sees Bush* they see the USA. He is us and we are Bush. What a cluster-do-do!!!!!!

[wonderwhy]

7. Excellent

That reminds me of an excellent essay I read
recently on Atrios by
some Princeton professor (no, not Krugman).
I'll try to dig it up from the archives and post it.
I bet you'll enjoy it.