Why Do Europeans Hate Us?

Off Topic Politics & World Issues
61

[quote]Grimnuruk wrote:
GDollars37 wrote:
…

Some of it comes from the fact that due to American arms and American money, Europe has been saved from real war for a couple of generations. I think Robert Kagan is generally right here: http://www.amazon.com/Paradise-Power-America-Europe-World/dp/1400034183/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1196022370&sr=8-1

Some of it comes from American cultural hegemony. I would think most true conservatives would realize Brave New World is slowly coming true, and we shouldn’t be cheering the McDonaldsization and Walmartization of our own country, let alone that of others. You can’t bemoan the rot of our popular culture on the one hand and then take offense when its export leads others (Europeans, Muslims) to dislike us.

Some of it comes from the fact that Europe has a much deeper experience of war, and still to some degree in living memory, than America has ever had. Our casualties in WWI and WWII were nothing compared to that of much of Europe. 58,000 dead in Vietnam? The British lost almost double that in a few months on the Somme. We haven’t had foreign troops on our soil since 1814, unless you count the Aleutians. My grandmother is German, her brother disappeared on the Eastern Front, and she viscerally reacts to all war as being stupid. Many Europeans understandably feel the same way.

…
My own experience has been that I (a former Marine who certainly believes in the controlled use of force) can make friends with a Serbian bad ass martial artist, bouncer, etc. who had to sit in basements watching our cruise missiles smash the city around him, a young conservative Russian nationally trained boxer and street fighter, a very young conservative Czech who holds the U.S. responsible for all wrongs to his country from the Prague Spring onwards and others from Europe by being open and frank with them. As an individual I have my own opinion on things and often disagree with what the powers-that-be have done and I make no secret of it. I’ve noticed that some of my younger European friends are thrown by this as if they expect me to defend every little quirk of American policy…[/quote]

Not necessarily a hijack to the thread, but a point to add to the US/Euro resentment. A European may dislike the hegemony, but they freely call on US power when needed (Remembering that Euros asked the US to bomb Serbs so that Muslim Kosovars would not die or move to their neighborhoods.)

And some Americans resent being forced into the position of policemen and garbagemen to the effete snobs of Europe, among them some governments who covertly supported the dissolution of Yugoslavia for their own reasons, and against the US judgment. ( Read here Germany and Austria, arguably. History still out on this one, folks.)

So here I show the problem of US-Euro mutual distrust and dependency, in our next dust-up in the Balkans:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2007/11/23/AR2007112301237.html?nav=rss_opinion/columns

http://www.captainsquartersblog.com/mt/archives/016097.php

63

[quote]LIFTICVSMAXIMVS wrote:
orion wrote:
We feel inferior because of the mighty average American penis size.

But that data is skewed by a “minority” segment of the total population. 52% of all Americans are, in fact, penis-less.[/quote]

OMG!

That means that those who have penise have even longer dicks!

65

[quote]nukepower wrote:
orion wrote:
I will break it down for you:

The reason the World, including Europe thinks you are a danger for World peace is the fresh faced, clear eyed killers you send abroad.

Maybe the American way is the one and only way, but to send teenagers to spread the gospel with the sword makes you modern crusaders, and no, that is not a good thing.

nukepower wrote: i am not sure what world you are living in where you think america is the only place on earth where fresh faced, clear eyed killers come from, cuz if you think for one second that any man capable and not bound to the fundamentals of society wouldnt come into your house, kill you, your brothers, and your father, and fuck your mother in the ass while eating a sandwhich… you are a moron.

people havent evolved much over the past 200,000 years. we still have the same urges, we are just better at killing each other. there are no crusades this is a test of survival (sorry for making it public if we intend to live to fight another day)

[/quote]

There is probably a world full of misguided people out there but the US has the power to channel them to destroy whole countries.

A lot of people would if they could, but you actually can.

67

[quote]GDollars37 wrote:
As an American who’s been living in Europe (well, England) for the last three years:

Some of European antipathy (I wouldn’t really call it hatred, most of it) toward America comes from envy. For all our faults, we are the lone superpower in the world. But Europe isn’t exactly collapsing, contrary to what the more unhinged right-wing flacks in the U.S. write. There is a real argument to be made in favor of a relaxed European life-style versus the crazy work and minimal leisure that most Americans deal with. I wouldn’t necessarily make it, but it can be made.

Some of it comes from the fact that due to American arms and American money, Europe has been saved from real war for a couple of generations. I think Robert Kagan is generally right here: http://www.amazon.com/Paradise-Power-America-Europe-World/dp/1400034183/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1196022370&sr=8-1

Some of it comes from American cultural hegemony. I would think most true conservatives would realize Brave New World is slowly coming true, and we shouldn’t be cheering the McDonaldsization and Walmartization of our own country, let alone that of others. You can’t bemoan the rot of our popular culture on the one hand and then take offense when its export leads others (Europeans, Muslims) to dislike us.

Some of it comes from the fact that Europe has a much deeper experience of war, and still to some degree in living memory, than America has ever had. Our casualties in WWI and WWII were nothing compared to that of much of Europe. 58,000 dead in Vietnam? The British lost almost double that in a few months on the Somme. We haven’t had foreign troops on our soil since 1814, unless you count the Aleutians. My grandmother is German, her brother disappeared on the Eastern Front, and she viscerally reacts to all war as being stupid. Many Europeans understandably feel the same way.

And much of it comes from the fact that since 2003, at least, American foreign policy has been arrogant, ignorant, and disastrous. European counsel on Iraq was rejected, European help was actually rejected in Afghanistan at first, America supports Israel 9 times out of 10…the list could go on forever.[/quote]

This ia one American poster who I think gets it…

68

[quote]gatesoftanhauser wrote:
lixy wrote:

It’s not like you just play music too loud or drive flashy cars. You actually KILL lots and lots of people on the other side of the planet. It’s pretty normal to get pissed at that.

In the instance this “Ronnie Coleman” subscribed to the teachings of Sayed Qutb and Ayman Al Zawahiri, promoted a bigoted, intolerant religion that celebrates beheading and the rape of underage girls then you’d gladly say “Al-Salaam Alieukem” and pour him some tea in your desert tent.
[/quote]

But our metaphorical Ronnie Coleman has not subscribed to Islams murderous teachings and yet he kills Muslims at a ratio of 1:1000 for every dead American.

Isn´t it interesting that Islamofascism is the danger to world peace yet you kill practically all the people dying in this “conflict”?

There comes a point when numbers matter more than intentions and carrying on means you can no longer claim to have made an honest mistake.

69

[quote]Mick28 wrote:
orion wrote:
Let cut the BS and get to the point.

We feel inferior because of the mighty average American penis size.

It’s almost become funny how unimportant that you and your comments have become on this forum. Please continue your downward spiral.[/quote]

As opposed to your posts that never had any significance to begin with?

71

[quote]electric_eales wrote:
Do you realise how desperately immature America looked after the government of France disagreed with the government of America, and then educated well paid Americans that run restaurants, changed the name of French fries to freedom fries?

[/quote]

Like the French have not been expunging English words from their language for years before this? Take the situation in Quebec for example. It looks desperately ignorant to Americans. Why are they afraid of the influence of our language in their country? The inferiority complex again?

72

[quote]orion wrote:
There is probably a world full of misguided people out there but the US has the power to channel them to destroy whole countries.

A lot of people would if they could, but you actually can.

[/quote]

Don’t European countries have nukes also? What about Russia, do you consider them an european country? If so, or if not, couldn’t they also destroy whole countries if they wanted to?

73

[quote]Chushin wrote:

And there it is folks: the core reason for Whorion’s hatred of the US. He feels totally impotent in the face of American power.
[/quote]

Oh no, that is because of your giant penises.

Especially yours.

74

[quote]Gkhan wrote:
orion wrote:
There is probably a world full of misguided people out there but the US has the power to channel them to destroy whole countries.

A lot of people would if they could, but you actually can.

Don’t European countries have nukes also? What about Russia, do you consider them an european country? If so, or if not, couldn’t they also destroy whole countries if they wanted to?[/quote]

Maybe, but that would not make much of a crusade now wouldn`t it?

Since they do not travel halfway around the word to kill people, who cares?

“Every two years or so, the United States needs to pick up some small crappy little country and throw it against the wall, just to show the world we mean business”.

78

[quote]orion wrote:

Since they do not travel halfway around the word to kill people, who cares?

[/quote]

Hey, weren’t the Europeans the ones who had colonies all over the friggin world? Before the USA was even founded? And retained them till the last half of the last century?

What about the African slave trade? What about atrocities in the congo? South America? Mexico? Elsewhere?

If that is not travelling half way around the world to kill and enslave people, I don’t know what is. You guys did it long before us and did it better. In this, we can not begin to compete with Europe.

You have no room to talk.

79

Hey, my kind of thread!!!

I wanted to pop by and point out that there is a segment of europeans who always have some “convenient” excuse to hate the Americans.

If it isn’t one thing, it’s another.

It’s just hard to get too worked up about many of your criticisms.

Further, it isn’t just the actual criticisms, it’s the manner in which you voice them.

You’ll see on this very board (bota/orion) and other’s will attempt to condescend to us. Such choice phrases as, “We’ve grown beyond that…” Or, trying to lecture us on the VALUE OF HUMAN LIFE.

It’s beyond insulting. It’s beyond hypocritical.

I’ve even gone on the record here to suggest how bota, or other’s like him, could actually get through to an American.

Start off a criticism with something like, “Learn from our mistakes.”

Now, I’m not going to sit here and say that America acts perfectly towards our european brethren.

However, one WOULD think, that after all the trials and tribulations of the past, that we’d AT LEAST get the benefit of the doubt.

Oh, I wanted to quickly suggest that certain euro-weenies drop the Iraq War as a “disaster” crap.

Check out osama bin laden and his growing desperation about the state of affairs in Iraq.

In closing, I tell our people in Iraq, the patient ones garrisoned on the first line of the religion and sanctities of the Muslims: the malice has increased and the darkness has become pitch black, and with the likes of you, nations reinforce themselves and climb summits.
He calls on Muslims of the Middle East to rejoin the fight, challenging their honor and willingness to fight when they are needed.

So where are those who prefer the religion to the lives of themselves and their children? Where are the people of Tawheed and those who topple the banner of unbelief and polytheism? Where are those who find torture to be pleasant and don’t fear the blows? Where are those who find difficulty to be easy and bitterness to be sweet, because they are certain that the fire of Hell is much hotter? Where are those who go out to fight the Romans, as on the day of Tabuk? Where are those who pledge to fight to the death, as on the day of Yarmuk? Where are the soldiers of the Levant and the reinforcements of Yemen? Where are the knights of the Quiver (Egypt) and the lions of the Hijaz (western Saudi Arabia) and al-Yamamah (central Saudi Arabia)? Come and aid your brothers in Mesopotamia and relieve them by coordinating with them by way of dependable guides.

Oh, for the tools who keep saying that America only invaded Iraq for mass stockpiles of WMD, I’d like you to look up and actually READ what Bush said circa 2002, 2003.

There were MANY reasons to invade.

Right at the top of the list was the fear that saddam’s hostility toward America was leading to an alliance with terrorist groups. Bush refused to allow Iraq to coddle guys like al zarqawi.

I’ll bet you euro-weenies didn’t know that saddam himself refused the King of Jordan’s extradition request for al zarqawi!!!

Bet, that didn’t make your biased-ass headlines.

Don’t believe me, look it up yourself.

However, we reached this point, it is becoming increasingly clear that Bush’s approach of TURNING ON THE INSECT LIGHT to attract and kill the terrorism bugs, is bearing fruit.

There are many, including bin laden himself, who know the supply of BUGS is drying up.

Read this quote from above: “Where are those who pledge to fight to the death, as on the day of Yarmuk?”

Read it again.

Perhaps it might be time for some of people who used the Iraq War as an excuse to hate America, to man-up and admit that good has been accomplished. If you are feeling particularly noble, you could even read Bush’s speeches of 2002-2003 and ADMIT that, with the exception of mass stockpiles of WMD, the goals have been or are being met.

If you don’t, then you confirm what many suspect.

JeffR

P.S. http://www.longwarjournal.org/...ess_has_bec.php

80

[quote]orion wrote:
Since they do not travel halfway around the word to kill people, who cares?
[/quote]

Funny, you and Lixy seem to agree on this point:

Slaughtering bordering countries, nationalities is ok. As long as you do not have to travel to do it, genocide is ok, in your opinions.

Following this logic, you must really hate the French, English, Spanish, Dutch and Portugese then. Right? Or do you only hate America?