(no subject)

[cheekbones3]

Forgot to mention-heard on the news today or yesterday Colin Powell (I think) was basically calling the French and the Belgians ungrateful bastards for not supporting America after all they help the gave during the second world war. Are they so out of touch with the rest of the world? Because they helped liberate those countries, does it mean that those countries must forever more be at their beck and call?! What a load of shite.

Although I have to say that I can understand the stance of Tony Blair-he's backed into a corner basically defending the principles of the UN, and although I do not want war, I believe that at least we'll be going in behind a set of good principles. If only I could trust George Bush to be doing the same.

Mind you, I'd be much happier again if we got around to enforcing all of the other UN Resolutions which have suffered "material breaches". Israel anyone?

Comments

[nickys.livejournal.com]

And did you see the Guardian today - there's an article about how grateful America has been for Britain's (or at least Blair's) unceasing support for Dubya's every whim.
So grateful, in fact, that they excluded Noraid (fundraisers for the IRA) from the list of organisations supporting terror which were banned in the US after Sept 11th...

[guyinahat.livejournal.com]

I think in some ways that it is because America liberated France during WWII that the french resent the Americans so much. Being in someone's debt and admitting that they are more powerful than you doesn't sit well with DeGaulism, which has shaped a lot of modern french thought.

And it is worth bearing in mind that the United States did send millions of it's ordinary citizens halfway accross the world to fight and die in a war that they could have stayed out of. The world has moved on, and it has no bearing directly on the right or wrong of a different situation, but I'm not sure that the debt in human life can be forgotten in just fifty years. So if they mention it once in a while, I think we should let them off.

Germany I can respect as being a genuinely pacifist state and holding to that principle. France, Russia and China have agendas which they want America to make good on. I should imagine Russia and China will be bought off with private deals related to monies tied up in the Middle East, along with some concessions on issues such as Tibet, Taiwan and Chechnya. France alo has commercial interests around Iraq, though I think they are also taking advantage of the oppertunity to be seen on the world stage. They are currently up to their eyes in muck in Ivory Coast where they have three thousand troops backing up a peace deal they have brokered in private talks. OK, so the general population are rioting because they dont want their government to share power with unelected rebels, but France is just looking out for it's french nationals abroad right? Nothing wrong with a bit of dabbling then....