What America Should Do

[umalak_]

America’s relationship with the world is in disrepair. Anger, resentment, and fear have replaced the respect the United States once enjoyed. So, we asked a group of the world’s leading thinkers to answer one question: What single policy or gesture can the next president of the United States make to improve America’s standing in the world?

http://www.foreignpolicy.com/story/files/story4096.php

[St. Stalin the Apathetic]

Originally Posted by umalak_

Anger, resentment, and fear have replaced the respect the United States once enjoyed.

When was this respect enjoyed?

Clinton? Thinking no.

GHWB? Maybe.. briefly.. with the coalition he put together

Reagen? Hardly, the massive protests in Europe deny any respect

Carter...Ford..Nixon....LBJ.... please

JFK? hard to say, he was only there a short time

Eisenhower? Maybe... but Europe was pretty grateful not to be speaking German... well, excepting the French who resented having the Americans come in yet again and give them their country back... Incidentally... the Brits are the only state that didn't balk on paying back their war debt....

Truman? FDR? earlier?


tell me... when did we anjoy this sunshine era of respect from the world?

[umalak_]

did you read any of the essays in FP?

[Dionysos]

Originally Posted by xian

When was this respect enjoyed?

Clinton? Thinking no.

GHWB? Maybe.. briefly.. with the coalition he put together

Reagen? Hardly, the massive protests in Europe deny any respect

Carter...Ford..Nixon....LBJ.... please

JFK? hard to say, he was only there a short time

Eisenhower? Maybe... but Europe was pretty grateful not to be speaking German... well, excepting the French who resented having the Americans come in yet again and give them their country back... Incidentally... the Brits are the only state that didn't balk on paying back their war debt....

Truman? FDR? earlier?


tell me... when did we anjoy this sunshine era of respect from the world?

He said they respected us, not that they loved us. There's a distinct difference.

[umalak_]

it was FP that said it and anyways, it's a stupid fucking point to argue xian... he totally missed the entire point of the article which shows he probably never even read it.

[St. Stalin the Apathetic]

Originally Posted by Dionysos

He said they respected us, not that they loved us. There's a distinct difference.

Um... ok... what does that have to do with my question?

Originally Posted by umalak_

it was FP that said it and anyways, it's a stupid fucking point to argue xian... he totally missed the entire point of the article which shows he probably never even read it.

Your article, or perhaps you, asserts that we were recently well respected and there is a path back to this sunny position of respect from the world.

I simply asked when this was so that I know what we're returning to.

If you're unable to defend the challenge I've made to that premise.. we can assume its faulty and if the basic premise upon which the article rests is faulty... then your article serves no purpose.

[umalak_]

what did your question have to do with the substance of the article?

once again you show that you're only interested in one thing... being an argumentative prick. which is fine, because i can relate... but there is some substance to that article that is flying right over your head because you refuse to read it. as usual.

[St. Stalin the Apathetic]

Originally Posted by umalak_

what did your question have to do with the substance of the article?

once again you show that you're only interested in one thing... being an argumentative prick. which is fine, because i can relate... but there is some substance to that article that is flying right over your head because you refuse to read it. as usual.

Good lord man... if the fundamental assumption, that we were once respected throughout the world, is faulty then your article is based on bullshit... that would be my substantive criticism....


The argument is old and tired... the archetypal argument is "return to eden" and I'm pointing out that eden in this context didn't exist... ergo your author is talking out of his ass.

[umalak_]

you are such an asshole

there are 12 essays on what America should do to improve it's foreign policy. forget for a second that you don't believe America ever had any respect from anyone in the entire world and go read the fucking essays. otherwise, shut the hell up.

[St. Stalin the Apathetic]

Originally Posted by umalak_

you are such an asshole

bully for you ... you're an idiot. Isn't this fun?

Originally Posted by umalak_

there are 12 essays on what America should do to improve it's foreign policy. forget for a second that you don't believe America ever had any respect from anyone in the entire world and go read the fucking essays. otherwise, shut the hell up.

You've already established how much credibility I should grant this author by conceding that the fundamental premise upon which he based his argument is a crock of shit....

What America should do to improve its foreign policy? Don't you mean what America should do so that other governments like us more? Who is to say that this is a desireable goal?


You keep posting articles by authors who don't know what they're talking about and I'll keep pointing out that they don't know what they're talking about.

[umalak_]

you're a lost cause

how can your wife stand you?

[St. Stalin the Apathetic]

Originally Posted by umalak_

you're a lost cause

how can your wife stand you?

she suffers idiots as poorly as I do...

[umalak_]

yeah, so again I ask... how does she stand you?

you don't even bother reading what the essayists had to say, you just read the little blurb and then made an assumption about the rest of it based on some bullshit opinion you have about whether America ever had respect.

just the fact that you don't think America ever garnered any respect from the rest of the world is absurd anyway.

[St. Stalin the Apathetic]

Originally Posted by umalak_

just the fact that you don't think America ever garnered any respect from the rest of the world is absurd anyway.

then answer the question... when was this wonderful era?


The essays may have merit... the intro goes a long way to discredit them though by asserting a false premise and suggesting an opinion as fact...


I edit shit, that's what (one of the things) I do... when something starts out that badly.... I stop reading

[umalak_]

well none of the essayists wrote that intro. so chalk it up to a disagreement you have with whomever wrote the intro and read the essays. i'm willing to discuss the content of the essays with you all day. i'm not going to discuss the intro any further because it's retarded.