I think we probably need to go further than Vam - though he is clearly right on the West. The ignorance amongst our own people of what we have actually done and keep doing is very scary. Ho Chi Minh is reputed to have thought that the US (as a democracy) would actually help his country escape imperialism (mostly French). US intervention in 'Suez' was reputed at the time to be about curbing the idiot Anglo- French attempt to return to power in the Middle East. I suspect this was more to do with ensuring that form of Europe did not arise again as a competitor to the US. Britain has been clinging to US coat-tails ever since, frankly (and perhaps blessedly) looking more and more pathetic. What's needed is some kind of 'people's solution', but they are keeping us well away from that. I've mentioned before that India is building a major highway in Afghanistan to ports in Iran - something that would cut Pakistan off from whatever trade it's assumed would be generated. Oil has long been the major resource the West has been stealing - and probably preventing others getting use of it. BP at one time was taking more from Iran than the Iranians were allowed to take in revenues for themselves. - both British and Russian troops occupied Iran. Much as the British ripped India off, it was never the British who were benefiting, just a small elite. Generally, the Western model was one in which its own populations were taxed in order that wars could be fought on behalf of a few. It is still not taught to us like it was. Now we imagine we have democracy and are somehow engaged in some new kind of missionary work - in fact it's business as usual - but it may well be that other emerging powers have rumbled 'us' - even the Saudis - and that the resources to dominate through 'money' are no longer 'ours'. This is potentially (and probably actually) very dangerous. In the West we can think we are the 'good guys' for many disparate 'reasons' - from neo-con imperialism to bleeding-heart liberalism. The truth is that we have failed our own populations and maintain 'superiority' through equally stupid ideologies. There are even some who would regard Vam as some kind of ingrained racist for daring to say what he has - these people generally pretend some form of understanding of the other whilst believing their own position is objective, fair and properly considers others, something only their education can give. Vam, of course, can become 'one of them' - as long as he adopts their ways. This is as dismal as regarding him as a terrorist (and plenty would). If my friend asks 'on what evidence', I can only say they never need any. More honesty would help - but what hope when we are still able to have political leaders urging us to be proud to be British (etc) in public but always ensure we can't actually talk to each other about our real experiences and learn about each other in an honest manner. Sometimes Vam, watching science fiction in which the alien mothership is terrorising poor, badly armed white people who eventually triumph against overwhelming power, I suspect I'm watching recent history against Western (or Soviet) air power against the so-called terrorists of Vietnam, South America, Chechnia, Indonesia and so on. The grim question is whether 'we' intend to withdraw or make some last bid to use current superiority to lay waste to competition. I believe we are still so uneducated (or over-educated) that we 'liberal democrats' are not the best form of defence for the rest of the world to rely on.
On 8 Oct, 21:45, ornamentalmind <[email protected]> wrote: > The question is easily answered. The US removes its military > occupation from Iraq and Afghanistan. The US stops shoveling money at > both countries. Obama needs to find advisors who are not influenced by > vested interests in the military-industrial-complex. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups ""Minds Eye"" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/minds-eye?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
