-Caveat Lector- http://www.onlinejournal.com/Commentary/Deak102402/deak102402.html
The View From Abroad Our presidential parody By Linda Deak Online Journal Contributing Editor October 24, 2002—Recently on a BBC Sunday morning talk show David Frost interviewed Tony Blair. An open window with a view to a roadway was in their background. As though it were a Monty Python movie set, a bus with its side covered in a No War in Iraq sign kept driving slowly by and then turning around to do it again while the interview was in progress. The joke in Europe when Tony Blair and George W. Bush share a stage is: "Oh, there is Bush and his interpreter." David Frost asked Tony Blair if he really liked Bush. "Why, yes," said Tony. He then used some adjectives like open, friendly accessible and added, and "I do not know why he has been made such a parody." Tony Blair knows exactly why Bush has been made a parody. He feels, for some reason, that it is his role to shelter and protect this weak American leader. At least Tony Blair admitted to the widespread feelings about the American president. I do not see how Mr. Blair can expect to lead his country to war in Iraq when clearly two-thirds of the people he represents in a democratic country are against it. People ponder if there may be more reason for Blair's support than to fill a vacuum now felt in global leadership. Some people have wondered if he had been offered money, perhaps a board position in the Carlyle Group. Bush I and James Baker III offered Blair's predecessor, John Major, this lush benefit once he was out of office. This opportunity has made John Major rich beyond his wildest dreams. The more wars, the more threats, the more bellicose the rhetoric and the louder the war drums, the richer the Carlyle Group becomes. The British media has from the beginning acknowledged that Bush was in the White House because of machinations that usually are not considered kosher in polite societies. People around the world remain incredulous that instead of throwing Bush and his gang in jail, after Florida Republican voting crimes were turned inside out for the world to see, the Supreme Court appointed him to the presidency. I know that it is considered to be in poor taste in America to discuss the election, but outside the US, it is acknowledged openly and truthfully. The historical facts remain the same whether they are discussed or not. Straw polls outside the USA reflected that Gore was the preferred candidate by 86 percent. The big questions became "what has happened with the American people? How can they tolerate this president? What has happened to democracy in America?" There are a lot of theories put up to try to figure these problems out. Here are some: (1) American culture is so imbued with ads that brainwashing is expected and easy. (2) The indifference to book learning that the early settlers demonstrated for three generations has never really been overcome. (3) We have so little grounding in history that we overvalue the immediate present; cannot sort out what is truly important from that which is not. Here, of course, there may be some finger pointing to the tabloid infotainment that has become American news. (4) It is purely a mercantile society with a Puritanism that has only hardened as the centuries roll over. What do you expect from such simplicity, righteousness and naivety? (5) There is a feeling of freedom in the American culture, but decorum is rarely given heed, so they expect to be run over by gangsterism regularly and they have the freedom to be gangsters if they so desire. There is a definite anti-intellectual atmosphere that would prop up presidential ignorance. When Bush said he wanted the boys in Lubbock to be able to understand his National Security Strategy, he told the outside world that the know- nothings in Lubbock were more important than the foreign ministers in the outside world. This document reads as though it was written with crayons mixed with gunpowder. The boys in Lubbock may be pleased but others in this wide world find that spelled-out arrogance alarming. In the Netherlands recently the cabinet collapsed and the government resigned. There is a caretaker government in place until new elections happen in January. What was the reason for this? Well, it happened because of voter sloppiness. During the campaign a new, different candidate distinguished himself on the scene; Pim Fortuyn dazzled people with his flamboyance, his derring-do and his open complaints about the growing Muslim population in the Netherlands, adroitly dodging charges of racism by declaring that he was not a racist since he slept with Moroccan boys. Then Pim Fortuyn was assassinated. This tragedy was something that has not happened in this staid, well-organized, comparatively crime-free country for many centuries. In the immediate aftermath of this shock to Dutch society, Pim Fortuyn's newly formed, inexperienced and reckless political party gathered a lot of sympathy votes and won 26 of the 150 seats in this coalition government. The seasoned and steady elected officials worked hard to get the new government functioning smoothly but six months later, after much bickering and unDutch behavior from the newcomers and plenty of indication from the populace that if they had it to do over again they would have never sent such a bunch of rabble rousers to represent them, the government disbanded. Now there is an opportunity to get it right. In the Netherlands, it is an honor and a hard- earned privilege to be elected to serve in government. Top students with strong leadership potential shape their lives early towards this goal. The government is run excellently by kind, learned, caring, and very democratic policy wonks, like Al Gore, who make their decisions based on the common good. People have grown use to responsible and reasoned government. They trust their leaders and want the old established way back. They are going to rectify their situation. It is my sincere hope that we can win democracy back in my country. I am tired of cringing in embarrassment at our careless and reckless government that was not put in place by democratic practices. It would be such a relief to have a president who could work with other countries and who would govern for their citizens rather than for their corrupt corporate friends. Imagine having an American president again who was informed and responsible and could command respect rather than derision. It seems, from the outside, that it has become those boys from Lubbock vs. the rest of the world. America is still a great country and we do not deserve a presidential parody at the top of our government. He is not there because of voter sloppiness. He is there because of forces much more dangerous to democracy than that. Linda Deak is an American currently residing in The Netherlands. Download a printable version. For a free copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader, click here. The views expressed herein are the writers' own and do not necessarily reflect those of Online Journal. Email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Copyright © 1998-2002 Online Journal™. All rights reserved. You may not alter or remove any trademark, copyright or other notice from copies of the content. <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/";>www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. 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