Captain America To Save The World
This past Tuesday (Jan. 31) "Bushy" gave his annual state of the union address to the American public, and in turn the rest of the world.
My initial reaction to his impending speech was something like "those fuckers preempted Scrubs!!". But then I thought about it a little further and decided it might be fun to watch. Grab a bag of chips and view the circus!
And without further ado, I'll let Matthew Good give his impression, because I fully agree with and support the way Matt thinks.......
===============================================================
A single word can be used to describe much of last night’s State of the Union address by President Bush, and that word is arrogance.
Beyond the usual suspects, last night’s featured target was ‘isolationism’, something I find ironic given that Americans are some of the most isolated and insulated people in the world. Were that not the case, then world opinion might actually matter to many of them rather than allowing for the now familiar stereotyping of others in an attempt to save themselves from having to actually look in the mirror. The French, among others, have often been targeted, heavily stereotyped, and immaturely demonized, something I have always found bizarre considering that had it not been for France, the United States may never have achieved independence.
Americans are always quick to point to the Second World War as proof positive that they’re capable of sacrificing for the greater good, and the French are constantly reminded of that fact whenever the subject presents itself. Last night, the President of the United States made a comment during his speech about liberating concentration camps, something I can’t historically disagree with. But given the overtly neo-imperialistic tone of Mr. Bush’s address with regards to foreign policy, I take great offense to the context in which it was mentioned – especially given the fact that much of his own grandfather’s assets were seized under the ‘Trading With The Enemy Act’, as a considerable portion of them were operated on behalf of the Germans and assisted the German war effort.
20 million Russians died during the Second World War. They too liberated concentration camps, though we’re encouraged not remember that. Rather, we’re inclined to focus on the global military infrastructure created by the United States following the Second World War to safeguard against the threat of Soviet expansionism. At the end of the Cold War much of that infrastructure became redundant, though over 700 different bases remained, as did the global notion that the United States is, as Trey Parker and Matt Stone put it – the ‘world police’.
Last night, Mr. Bush declared that US leadership is the only way to secure world peace. If that’s the case, the world’s in trouble, never mind the Union.
Whenever I listen to someone in the Bush administration talk about Iraq and Afghanistan I am utterly stunned as to the massive over simplification of their information and, quite often, its outright inaccuracy. Last night President Bush continued this tradition with the following…
“A sudden withdrawal of our forces from Iraq would abandon our Iraqi allies to death and prison, would put men like bin Laden and Zarqawi in charge of a strategic country, and show that a pledge from America means little.’
The most obvious flaw in this statement is that Zarqawi’s al Qaeda linked group wasn’t in Iraq until after it was invaded and occupied by the United States. If anything, the US is responsible for Zarqawi’s presence in Iraq. Beyond that, let’s also not forget that the United States is currently in direct negotiations with the leadership of various factions of the insurgency in an attempt to transition them into the political process.
Mr. Bush went on to use a letter from a single soldier killed in Iraq in an attempt to represent, or misrepresent, the commitment of every American serving in Iraq. Ironically, Cindy Sheehan was forcibly removed from the 5th Congressional gallery for wearing an anti-war t-shirt, which was the night’s only mention of an actual dissenting opinion with regards to how many Americans, and US service men and women, feel about the war in Iraq. The family of Staff Sergeant Dan Clay was, of course, treated with respect and afforded a standing ovation. Sheehan, on the other hand, who also lost a son and simply has different views about the war, was thrown in jail.
It’s difficult to talk of freedom when things of this nature occur. But it’s even more difficult when most simply dismiss someone like Sheehan as a crackpot rather than seriously examining their own complicity in the degradation of Constitutional rights. How is the Constitution supposed to be taken if not, for the most part, literally? If freedom of speech and expression aren’t convenient at the State of the Union, then where are they convenient?
Being that President Bush’s speech was devoid of any real depth with regards to hard foreign policy details, it’s pointless, in some ways, to speculate on intentions. Iran was, of course, singled out, and there are those that have pointed to last night’s address and cautioned that we could very well be at the beginning of a consensual build-up with regards to action being taken against Iran. But I am of the firm belief that the only real option available the United States is the implementation of sanctions. The US currently lacks the capability to support anything else, and it’s unlikely, given the sordid history of the invasion and occupation of Iraq, that foreign powers would be willing to enter into a military coalition.
I’ve made my position clear on the domestic spying issue, so I’ll simply refer you to the look on Hilary Clinton’s face when Bush started defending it. Beyond that, Bush subtly attacked both same sex marriage and abortion, something one has come to expect from this President. He also announced that there would be a 22% increase in alternative fuel research spending, and that an ethanol alternative should be available within the next six years.
As for the rest, it was the standard. African AIDS relief was promoted while the fact that safe-sex education is not looked on kindly by this administration was not. Genocide was mention for effect and to denounce the evils of isolationism, but any real address of what is transpiring in Sudan, for example, was not.
My initial reaction to his impending speech was something like "those fuckers preempted Scrubs!!". But then I thought about it a little further and decided it might be fun to watch. Grab a bag of chips and view the circus!
And without further ado, I'll let Matthew Good give his impression, because I fully agree with and support the way Matt thinks.......
===============================================================
A single word can be used to describe much of last night’s State of the Union address by President Bush, and that word is arrogance.
Beyond the usual suspects, last night’s featured target was ‘isolationism’, something I find ironic given that Americans are some of the most isolated and insulated people in the world. Were that not the case, then world opinion might actually matter to many of them rather than allowing for the now familiar stereotyping of others in an attempt to save themselves from having to actually look in the mirror. The French, among others, have often been targeted, heavily stereotyped, and immaturely demonized, something I have always found bizarre considering that had it not been for France, the United States may never have achieved independence.
Americans are always quick to point to the Second World War as proof positive that they’re capable of sacrificing for the greater good, and the French are constantly reminded of that fact whenever the subject presents itself. Last night, the President of the United States made a comment during his speech about liberating concentration camps, something I can’t historically disagree with. But given the overtly neo-imperialistic tone of Mr. Bush’s address with regards to foreign policy, I take great offense to the context in which it was mentioned – especially given the fact that much of his own grandfather’s assets were seized under the ‘Trading With The Enemy Act’, as a considerable portion of them were operated on behalf of the Germans and assisted the German war effort.
20 million Russians died during the Second World War. They too liberated concentration camps, though we’re encouraged not remember that. Rather, we’re inclined to focus on the global military infrastructure created by the United States following the Second World War to safeguard against the threat of Soviet expansionism. At the end of the Cold War much of that infrastructure became redundant, though over 700 different bases remained, as did the global notion that the United States is, as Trey Parker and Matt Stone put it – the ‘world police’.
Last night, Mr. Bush declared that US leadership is the only way to secure world peace. If that’s the case, the world’s in trouble, never mind the Union.
Whenever I listen to someone in the Bush administration talk about Iraq and Afghanistan I am utterly stunned as to the massive over simplification of their information and, quite often, its outright inaccuracy. Last night President Bush continued this tradition with the following…
“A sudden withdrawal of our forces from Iraq would abandon our Iraqi allies to death and prison, would put men like bin Laden and Zarqawi in charge of a strategic country, and show that a pledge from America means little.’
The most obvious flaw in this statement is that Zarqawi’s al Qaeda linked group wasn’t in Iraq until after it was invaded and occupied by the United States. If anything, the US is responsible for Zarqawi’s presence in Iraq. Beyond that, let’s also not forget that the United States is currently in direct negotiations with the leadership of various factions of the insurgency in an attempt to transition them into the political process.
Mr. Bush went on to use a letter from a single soldier killed in Iraq in an attempt to represent, or misrepresent, the commitment of every American serving in Iraq. Ironically, Cindy Sheehan was forcibly removed from the 5th Congressional gallery for wearing an anti-war t-shirt, which was the night’s only mention of an actual dissenting opinion with regards to how many Americans, and US service men and women, feel about the war in Iraq. The family of Staff Sergeant Dan Clay was, of course, treated with respect and afforded a standing ovation. Sheehan, on the other hand, who also lost a son and simply has different views about the war, was thrown in jail.
It’s difficult to talk of freedom when things of this nature occur. But it’s even more difficult when most simply dismiss someone like Sheehan as a crackpot rather than seriously examining their own complicity in the degradation of Constitutional rights. How is the Constitution supposed to be taken if not, for the most part, literally? If freedom of speech and expression aren’t convenient at the State of the Union, then where are they convenient?
Being that President Bush’s speech was devoid of any real depth with regards to hard foreign policy details, it’s pointless, in some ways, to speculate on intentions. Iran was, of course, singled out, and there are those that have pointed to last night’s address and cautioned that we could very well be at the beginning of a consensual build-up with regards to action being taken against Iran. But I am of the firm belief that the only real option available the United States is the implementation of sanctions. The US currently lacks the capability to support anything else, and it’s unlikely, given the sordid history of the invasion and occupation of Iraq, that foreign powers would be willing to enter into a military coalition.
I’ve made my position clear on the domestic spying issue, so I’ll simply refer you to the look on Hilary Clinton’s face when Bush started defending it. Beyond that, Bush subtly attacked both same sex marriage and abortion, something one has come to expect from this President. He also announced that there would be a 22% increase in alternative fuel research spending, and that an ethanol alternative should be available within the next six years.
As for the rest, it was the standard. African AIDS relief was promoted while the fact that safe-sex education is not looked on kindly by this administration was not. Genocide was mention for effect and to denounce the evils of isolationism, but any real address of what is transpiring in Sudan, for example, was not.
posted by Chris Prowse at 3:43 AM
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