Blair: anti-Americanism is madness

[bigfootedfred]

well...

Tony Blair today described anti-Americanism across Europe as "madness", although admitted the US could be a "difficult friend to have".
In a speech in the Australian parliament overshadowed by his remarks about making a "mistake" in announcing his retirement early, the prime minister paid tribute to the Australians for joining in the "global struggle" against terror,
likening it to their joining the war against the Nazis.

And Mr Blair reminded his audience that he spent three years of his childhood, aged two to five, living in Adelaide, and that the country was the inspiration for his "Britain is a young country" speech early in his premiership.

more nazi reffrences.

Mr Blair told the Australian House of Representatives: "I do not always agree with the US.
Sometimes they can be difficult friends to have.
"But the strain of, frankly, anti-American feeling in parts of European
and world politics is madness when set against the long-term interests of the world we believe in.

Full article here

[Primvs Sextvs Loverlord]

Well, anti-Americanism is madness. After all, who else would've shown such unprecedented benevolence to the people of Iraq and sent a army there to topple the evil bad guy and his evil bad buddies (Chemical Ali, Toxic Lady and so on) so that the people of Iraq, who also have mutual and unconditional love for the Americans, could live in freedom.

[Rhah]

Well, anti-Americanism is madness. After all, who else would've shown such unprecedented benevolence to the people of Iraq and sent a army there to topple the evil bad guy and his evil bad buddies (Chemical Ali, Toxic Lady and so on) so that the people of Iraq, who also have mutual and unconditional love for the Americans, could live in freedom.

quoted for excellent sarcastic content.

Whats that called, when people constantly compare things to the Nazi's?? Godwins law or something?

Anyway, anti-americanism is exactly correct. Most people like Americans, we just dont like the unilateral, dumbheaded actions of the US government. There IS a difference.

[Last Roman]

Anyway, anti-americanism is exactly correct. Most people like Americans, we just dont like the unilateral, dumbheaded actions of the US government. There IS a difference.

hell, there are a lot of Americans that don't like our current Administration (ie, me)

[Rhah]

hell, there are a lot of Americans that don't like our current Administration (ie, me)

Which just makes "Anti-Americanism" an even more stupid phrase.
Maybe "Anti-Republican partyism" would be better, but even thats wrong because they're are plenty of Republicans that dont like Bush as well.

How about "Anti Bushism"? Because thats what it is for the majority of people.

[dashizller]

Well if the polls say anything, most Americans hate the current government. Then again, the government probably hates the polls.

[Darth Wong]

I love the way NeoCons pretend that NeoConservatism = America. That's why they equate anti-NeoCon to anti-America.

[technishn08]

I dont know, bu tim pretty sure that the original idea of the "Homeland" and the homeland security was Hitler's......

[Rhah]

Neo-Conservatives are like Parasites. First they attached themselves to the Left, believing they could use the Democrats to start "Regime Changing" other countries, then they moved on to the Republicans, and took advantage of their patriotism, religious ties and pro-military stance.
Now they are trying to equate Anti-americanism with Anti-Neoconism because either they are too afraid to take responsibility for the mess they knew they would cause, or more likely because its just another way to garner support from the average American.
I seriously doubt the majority of Americans (Including the conservative types) actually would agree with what Neo-Conservatism is actually about, which (seems to me) to be basically about making the world "safe" for US Business's, and to install Israel as the regional power in the ME.
I thought most Americans would be more interested in having a government who was concerned with their own country. Since when did America actually want to volunteer to be the Worlds police force? When Clinton was in power, the US Right-wing were giving him serious grief for some of his interventionist foreign policy.
But i suppose 9/11 changed everything? Lucky for the Neo-cons i guess.

[technishn08]

Hold on, i kno this is a some what noob question, but what is neo-conseervatism? i would really like to know...

[Rhah]

Hmm, thats not an easy question to answer, because different people will use different definitions. I'll try though

Neo-Conservatists were basically students of a guy called Leo Strauss, who advocated using American military dominance to topple any government that was not "friendly" to the US. The Neo-Cons most people have heard of are people like Dick Cheney, Donald Rumsfeld, Richard Perle, Paul Wolfowitz, John Bolton.
Originally in the 60's and 70's, IIRC, the Neo-cons were affiliated with left wing groups, who also advocated Regime change (but for different reasons). Eventually, in the 80's, the Neo-cons detached themselves from the left, and infiltrated the Right, (thats why they are called Neo-conservatives, "Neo" meaning "new", New conservatives).
Its basically a political ideology that believe American dominance is the only way to world peace

Here's some further reading, if your interested.

Wikipedia entry on Neo-Conservatism

And this is an interesting site, called the "project for the new American century", where the actually state their long and short term aims (whether its accurate or not is hard to tell. I'd imagine that they wouldnt want to advertise their strategy to everyone)

Project for A New American Century

[Tom Paine]

Blair: "Anti-Americanism is madness."
Me: "Blairism is madness, brown-nosing the Americans is madness"

Typical Blair, to be utterly and completely honest, with his friends the Americans... a very black and white view of the world, with us or against us, anti or pro America, can't be against policies but must be against the country.

[MadKow]

Whenever i hear of anti-americanism i feel the urge of pointing to this article:

http://www.cs.princeton.edu/~chazell...cs/antiam.html

And so i do.

[sephodwyrm]

Dude, if I'm anti-America I wouldn't be in the US.

I think these guys are just trying to clamp down on the freedom of expression. People should have the choice to express their political ideology, and government to choose policies that they think are most beneficial.

[Tom Paine]

I gotta say that the fact anti-Americanism is so prevalent in all areas is in part because Americans so eagerly push themselves and thieir agenda everywhere, and here is the crucial part, by labelling everything that criticises them as antiamerican...

[Denny Crane!]

I gotta say that the fact anti-Americanism is so prevalent in all areas is in part because Americans so eagerly push themselves and thieir agenda everywhere, and here is the crucial part, by labelling everything that criticises them as antiamerican...

Fanatical Patriotism is akin to religous fanaticism.

Peter

[Tom Paine]

All fanaticisms are alike, yes.

[Ó Cathasaigh]

If it's horribley wrong to be fanaticly for something, it is equaly wrong to be fanaticly against it. And who is to judge what is fanatical? What is fanatical to one person, is not necissarily so to another. Are we to conform to your views just because we are different?

[Denny Crane!]

If it's horribley wrong to be fanaticly for something, it is equaly wrong to be fanaticly against it. And who is to judge what is fanatical? What is fanatical to one person, is not necissarily so to another. Are we to conform to your views just because we are different?

A person marked or motivated by an extreme, unreasoning enthusiasm, as for a cause

Fanatical people will defend there cause regardless of the facts, fanatical belief or following anything fanatically is a bad idea. It is obsession, my reason for bringing up fanatical patriotism is that I find it ironic that fanatical patriots in the west support a war against fanatical zealots in the ME.

Peter

[Darth Wong]

And who is to judge what is fanatical?

Anyone who can observe the characteristic behaviours of a fanatic, such as:

1) Ideology is essentially immune to evidence.

2) Lack of compassion for harm inflicted upon others as long as the cause of this harm is consistent with preferred ideology.

3) Few or no limits to the sacrifices one is willing to make, either personally or nationally, for a preferred ideology.