On Monday 07 November 2005 15:28, Robin van Spaandonk wrote: > In reply to Michael Foster's message of Mon, 7 Nov 2005 12:02:14 > -0500 (EST): > Hi, > [snip] > > >Jones wrote: > >> In particular, the situation with the Iraq war > >> betrayal and treachery was absolutely deplorable > >> to Cheney, Rummy & Co. - even though Chirac's > >> judgment proved to be correct (adding insult to > >> injury) - this is certainly a buildup for a > >> certain kind of behind-the-scenes "vengeance ". > > > >Mais peut-être le mot juste est "justice". > > Note that the French didn't actually *betray* anyone over Iraq, > they simply refused to support a wrong position (loudly). > They don't run around complaining about betrayal every time the US > vetoes a resolution in the Security Council. > A vote in the Security Council is democracy in action. Sometimes > it doesn't go your way. Get used to it. > The real problem is that the US is all for majority rule, as long > as it is part of the majority, but when the shoe is on the other > foot, it throws a temper tantrum like a small child. > E.g. changing the name of "French fries". This was palpably a > childish act. > Regards, > > Robin van Spaandonk
We actually DID betray the French, in wartime, in Dien Bien Phu back in the last century. The French were trying to hold onto their colony, Viet-Nam, then called French Indo-China. Cute name for an ancient country with a proud history of independance against Chinese aggression for over a thousand years. They even beat Ghengis Khan three times when they tried to invade them. The French thought they could do better. It was said by a German politician that the French should have been able to hold on to Viet-Nam as they 'had the best killers in Europe'. He was referring to the inside joke among world politicians that the foreign legion, heavily involved in the Viet-Nam campaign, was composed of very large numbers of former Deutschen Schutzstaffeln on the run from the Nuremburg Trials-----fugitive SS. Even Elie Wiesel looked the other way at the French use of these. Elie probably hoped, and was later vindicated in this, that southeast asia would become the graveyard of most of these psychopaths. Point of fact the French were losing because the level of casualties even among these people were becoming politically unacceptable to the French citizenry. DeGaulle turned to 'Give 'em Hell Harry' Truman for help, and ole' Harry came up with 'Operation Vulture' This was an Air Force plan to use the big silver birds, B-36's and the new then secret B-47s to bomb Viet-Minh army positions in the mountains around Dien Bien Phu in order to drive Mr. Ho Chi Minh to the conference table. Sound familiar?! Well Mr. Ho and Gen Vo (actually a cousin by marriage with my ex!!!!!! along with Madame Nhu) stood pat knowing they had a winning hand if they could just hold the People's Army together a little longer (not exactly a sure thing then). Problem for the beleagured former SS men cowering in the valley of death was that Truman did not run for re-election, preferring to go back to his farm in Missouri. This left 'I Like Ike' Eisenhower to make the actual decision to act on the warplan and gooood ole' smilin' Ike, whose picture hung like an insipid dream over just about every civil and uncivil servant's desk, decided to let the French hang out to dry. He cancelled the plan and put out the disinformation that 'we knew nothing about the plan' for public consumption. So Operation Vulture joined the UFO presence in the government's world of blissful non-existance. This incensed the French general staff, and one Gen DeGaulle in particular who saw it as a personal betrayal by a former comrade in arms, Ike. That betrayal rankles in French politics and colors its opinions and actions to this day. Standing Bear
