Seeing America as Europeans See America,
a Firsthand Look
By the time this issue hits the press, I will have just returned from an 11-day trip to Central Europe, with stops in the Czech Republic, Germany, Austria and Hungary, with multiple-night stays in Prague, Vienna and Budapest.
And frankly, while I didn’t plan on advertising the fact that I’m an American, I fully expected to get an earful.
I know this from past experience. I took a trip to Ireland in 2003, shortly after the Iraq War broke out.
I did get an earful. And I spent a lot of time emphatically stating that I didn’t vote for George W. Bush.
Still, it was a pretty eye-opening experience. First, many of the Irish were upset that their government consented to let the U.S. military use the Shannon Airport as a staging area for the war.
In general, the Irish people I spoke to were angry about this war and did not care for the American president. People, in general, were polite. They weren’t hostile toward me, especially because I went far and away out of my way to clearly state that I didn’t agree with W’s policies or any of that.
The Iraq War was appalling, and the whole manner in which the Administration used lies to justify the war was obscene. And the Irish people I met understood this very, very well, perhaps better than many Americans.
What I found particularly fascinating was the sense that the Irish people I met viewed themselves as citizens of the world, certainly a far cry from how Americans view themselves.
The Irish live on a relatively small island, but it’s Americans who view themselves as living on an island, and it’s an island surrounded by two very large oceans.
I seem to recall writing about this in this same space many, many years ago. A very striking experience I had in Ireland was, without fail, if I was on a two-land highway and I approached a vehicle that was moving slower than I, it would move to the shoulder to let me pass. I never had to flash my lights or honk or do anything like that—which might cause a road-rage incident here.
This meant that those Irish drivers would routinely glance at the rear-view mirror!
This meant that they didn’t act like they lived on an island isolated from the rest of the world.
Again, citizens of the world.
I met a United Nations soldier, definitely a citizen of the world. He was a soldier but called himself a peacekeeper. He was very proud of the work he did all around the world for the UN. And he was very angry about the Iraq War. As for W, he straight out said that he was a bully.
I can’t help but think what the peacekeeper would say about Giant Baby Man.
Bully for sure. And as an American, I know I’ll have a lot to answer for, even if I didn’t vote for him, even if I resist any way I can.
A big difference with GBM is that I’m sure Europeans feel under attack. Obviously, there’s the tariffs and trade wars that are probably having an inflationary effect on their economies. And I’m sure Europeans don’t appreciate GBM stating that the European Union has been ripping off America for years.
And I know there exists an awareness that between tariffs, deportations of immigrant workers who do crucial work and the firing of 10s, if not, 100s of thousands of federal employees, GBM risks driving the American economy off a cliff that would drag down the rest of the world with it.
Europeans also probably feel like they’re in a state of siege given GBM’s inconsistent and inadequate support for Ukraine and are sickened by the obvious fact that’s he’s Putin’s toady, either as an actual Russian asset or a Useful Idiot.
Ukraine isn’t all that far from the countries I will visit, and I’m sure folks haven’t slept well after the invasion.
And while the situation in Gaza doesn’t immediately threaten Europe, the world would be a much safer place if lasting and meaningful peace could become a reality in the Middle East. And GBM basically gave a free hand to Netanyahu to conduct the genocide with the greatest degree of barbarism possible. He clearly didn’t give a crap about the Palestinians. Let’s not forget that of Gaza and what he viewed as prime, ocean-front real estate, he said, “I will have it.”
Oh yeah, there is the cease fire in Gaza, the so-called “Trump Plan.” He’s already doing victory laps and demanding that he be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. However, this so-called plan is deeply flawed, and I have to seriously question whether GBM has the attention span to follow through because, in his mind, he’s already won the Nobel Peace Prize, so there isn’t more that he needs to do.
Like I said, the plan is deeply flawed. It contained little to no input from the Palestinians. It followed a massive offensive by the Israeli military in order to coerce the Palestinians into accepting a cease fire. How can peace be achieved if it involves one party holding a gun up to the other party’s head?
And lastly, the plan says nothing about eventual Palestinian sovereignty. Without the guarantee or even the prospect of a Palestinian state, it’s all wash, rinse, repeat.
It is worth noting that this so-called plan actually borrows a lot from a path to peace plan leftover from the Biden Administration. I seriously question how much of a role GBM played in drafting the plan and negotiating the settlement. I’m sure this process was nothing like how the Camp David Accords spearheaded by Jimmy Carter that led to peace between Israel and Egypt.
And it should be noted, as reported by The Intercept, that GBM’s interest in the cease fire only came after Israel airstrikes in Qatar, which has extremely strong financial ties (influence over/with) GBM’s family.
I can see how GBM’s actions are affecting Europe. I certainly feel empathy for them, but I won’t claim to know how they feel but instead will listen with an open mind.
And I know I will be asked how he could have been elected a second time, how he managed to avoid prison, how he can be allowed to consolidate more and more power without any meaningful checks and balances.
And I know I will run into people who are horrified that military personnel are being deployed against the very citizens he swore an oath to serve.
I will express my opinions on these questions, but again, I will listen attentively to what my European friends have to say. I have learned through my previous travels that often people from other countries have a greater knowledge of what is happening in America than Americans have of what is happening in the rest of the world.
Ireland and Jamaica may be islands, but the citizens of those countries don’t act like they live on islands in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by two very large oceans.
And in some parts of the world, it is commonplace to actually look in one’s rearview mirror for vehicles moving rapidly from behind.
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