An America The World Can Love

Vagabond, as usual, was right on target. I'll take it one step further...why should we even care whether the rest of the world loves us? We're the bad guys, but who is the first one the rest of the world comes running to when the poo hits the fan? Who comes with aid within hours throughout the world when catastrophe strikes, faster then we come to the aid of our own? The answer is the same for both questions: America. Stating the obvious, I know, but it needs saying again upon occaision.

Sure it would be nice if the rest of the world loved us...but no one loves the giant. Respect or fear, perhaps both, but never love.

Vagabond, you certainly deserve a nice fat applause for that post.

And you are absolutely right. Yeah, we do lots bad things. Yet who bothers to stop us? All the finger pointers reap big rewards anyway. What would happen to the West if we did play fair? Not much in the third world would really change.

Its nothing new. Rome was once hated too.

Here's why America is hated by "the world", and please note that the haters are the non-Christian nations, in the main.

Joh 15:19 - Jesus said:
"If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. "

If you can get 51% of the world to love America, then the reverse will be true, that is, the world will have become Christian nations.

Al Paccino knows best...

I always knew the right path. Without exception, I knew. But I never took it, because it was too dang hard. -Scent of a Woman

Oh and I almost forgot... "If I was the man I was 5 years ago, I'd take a FLAMETHROWER to this place!" (Ibid)

Curiousity, I really do not believe that this has anything to do with Godliness. Have a look at Ireland. A X-con (christian conservative) wetdream. You can barely get a divorce, much less an abortion. Conspicuously neutral while America was purging Europe of the godless earlier this century. A safe haven for American deserters today.

No, as I said earlier the people take exception because what we're doing is wrong and the governments pay only lip service because they know the price of doing the right thing.

And as I said, we could find a way to cut them in without blowing the margins. Don't mistake my earlier comments for any statement that we are in the right. The world is grey. Nothing is ever gained that is not taken from somewhere else and there will ALWAYS be someone stuck with the short end of the stick.

The difference between exploitation and trade though is merely taking the time and the effort to bring more people into the bargain until everyone is getting something they need. And I do mean REAL time and effort- it would take a friggin genius often enough, but it can be done a lot more than it is.

Curiosity, in all honesty can you question this matter at length and conclude that a shamanist in Uganda will be down on us if a concerted effort to build functional multilateral trade agreements between the US and India and East African nations and others gives him a good job and 3 hot meals and a government that can protect his children from rebel factions which kidnap children and force them into military service? Will followers of Buddhism and Shinto in Japan hate us when we don't twist their government into backing us up in wars that at the very least could have been shorter and less horrific if we'd simply worked harder?

We'll never please everyone, we're never please the majority, but do you mean to tell me that we can't gain one heart or one mind without first forcing it to embrace our culture?

I'm sorry but I have to disagree with you Curiosity. We're not trying hard enough. We can embrace cynicism (which is tempting and often gets me) but let me run an old Christian favorite by you in regard to that proposition. A storm once washed thousands of starfish up on the beach, and a man encountered his friend on that beach throwing them back into the sea. He tells his friend, "How can you possibly make a difference?". The man throws another one into the sea and says "I made a difference for that one".

I assume you'd agree that christians should try to "save" as many as they can, though the Bible makes it clear that not everyone's gonna make it and that this WILL BE an evil world.

I say that by the same token that if we are going to claim a moral highground we have to do right by as many as we can in our foreign policy, because we can't help them all, and we can't turn them all, but we can make their lot and ours that much better for every one we do manage to help.

If you can get 51% of the world to love America, then the reverse will be true, that is, the world will have become Christian nations.

Why would the nations have to become Christian in order to love America? The US isn't even a Christian nation?

Show respect to people and their culture, mind your own business, and only get involved with them if they benefit from your involvement... really simple. If I use this philosophy exactly in my (personal) life then I have 0 enemies and only friends, how is it that political geniuses only make it worse, when the answer is so simple?

[edit on 26-12-2007 by Novise]

The U.S. is perceived to be a bully by much of the rest of the world. They think we use our money and our power and our aid as ways to influence and sometimes to dictate the actions of their own governments. A case in point is when the U.S. sent military aid to the dictator Pinochet when he was overthrowing the Allende government in Chile. Pinochet was a bloody tyrant, but we (meaning the U.S.) didn't like Allende because he was a socialist. Needless to say, many Chileans did not love the U.S. after that. Then of course there were/are the "wars of agression"--Vietnam and Iraq--when the U.S. tried to impose our ideals and our way of life on people who didn't want them (I am aware that ALL Iraquis don't feel that way).

On the positive side, the U.S. is the most generous country in the world as far as helping other nations, and we have done much good.

With much power comes much responsibility. And sometimes much envy.