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| Europe |
| VDH: Eurospeak |
| 2005-03-04 |
| President Bush supposedly charmed the Europeans, and now they purportedly don't hate us any more. But from the recent trip, it is clear that Americans can still expect two things from the European public and its leadership: deep-seeded anti-Americanism and embarrassing contradictions. In that context, let us examine all the recent Eurobabble. Don't dare divide us into old and new! We speak with one voice from Warsaw to Lisbon. We aim to be as united as your states are in America — BUT help us to ensure that Europe has separate U.N. Security Council seats for Britain, France, and, we hope, Germany as well. Stop using force to solve problems! Listen to our diplomats. Promote international courts. The world no longer works according to your silly laws of military power and deterrence — BUT don't dare take any more American troops out of Germany. Stay in NATO! You are pledged to the collective defense of Europe — BUT get used to the fact that we will soon have a new and rival independent EU military force. Pay attention to the Muslim world! Hear us who have more experience with the Middle East. Try to incorporate, rather than isolate, the "other" — BUT stop telling us that we have to let Turkey into the EU. Cease militarizing the globe! See instead the world as an interconnected family of liberal societies that is trying to settle differences by reason — BUT stop trying to prevent us from selling hi-tech arms to big Communist China to threaten tiny democratic Taiwan. Learn from our more humane culture! See how our short work week, cradle-to-grave entitlements, and pacifism promote well-being — BUT how exactly do you rich and powerful Americans do all that you do? Remember that we are your critical partners in the war against terrorism! Appreciate our unheralded work that goes unnoticed amid the loud bombs and tanks of you rowdy Americans — BUT Hezbollah is not a terrorist organization and cannot be labeled as such (and Hamas isn't either and needs our financial support). Sign Kyoto! Start acting like good global citizens! BUT quit suggesting we had a hand in the Rwanda mess, the Balkans mess, the Oil-for-Food Mess, the Saddam-reactor mess, the Hezbollah/Hamas mess, the Arafat mess... Quit proceeding unilaterally! Refer events that affect the world to the U.N. Don't just act on your own as if your deeds don't affect others — BUT don't remember the Falklands, the Ivory Coast, the unification of Germany, or the oil deals with Saddam. Don't tamper in the Middle East! Do you cowboys realize what madness you are unleashing? BUT if you succeed we might just stop our caricatures — IF democracy follows and we can take credit for and profit from it. What are we to make of this strange passive-aggressive syndrome? The usual explanations, offered weekly during the last three years, are that in the post-Cold War era the monopoly on military force, and its accompanying opportunities for unilateral action by the United States, naturally earn opposition. Our military prompts envy and with it mistrust from those far weaker who seek to curb raw power with multilateral protocol, shame, and bureaucracy. Perhaps. |
| Posted by:tipper |
| #12 I thought Deap-seated ment big assed. |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2005-03-04 6:37:02 PM |
| #11 DB-:) Seems like there's one in every family. |
| Posted by: Jules 187 2005-03-04 1:08:09 PM |
| #10 maybe it's short for deeply seated. |
| Posted by: 2b 2005-03-04 1:07:29 PM |
| #9 Jules- You just described my cousin Brenda! ;) |
| Posted by: Desert Blondie 2005-03-04 12:36:35 PM |
| #8 This second-to-last paragraph actually sums it up - Dr. Hansen is articulate and too much of a gentleman to say certain things. I am neither, so I will opine. The world as we knew it is now in flux, and in one of greatest transformations since the fall of the Berlin Wall, the Middle East is slowly rejoining civilization. Nothing much positive has happened to the Middle East since 1453, when Mehmed conquered Constantinople, and upon entering the city on May 29..."He went directly to Haghia Sophia Church and ordered to convert it into a mosque."1 Yup. God is truly great! In response, Europe snores, awakening only to chastise the United States, which alone set off the chain reaction of liberty. Remember - line is that we Americans are unilateral. The Brits, Poles, and Italians are lackeys, and don't count. The true Europe, France, Germany, and their hangers-on "understand"...Understand what? I do not know! After all, would Europe send help to the Lebanese if the Syrians brought in more troops? Would it do anything if Iran announced that it actually does have five or six nukes and the missiles to deliver them? The only thing missing, I fear, is the official announcement about Iranian Nukes. The only thing the Europharts are buying is that the last two Iranian Nukes will be saved for Paris and Berlin. And would the vaunted EU joint force or the French navy mobilize if China invaded Taiwan or of North Korea shelled Seoul? Or does the free world stop at the borders of Europe? Did the Spanish army ensure the election in Iraq? I think we need to visualize Fred's "Hell Freezing" Clipart here... WE ARE THE BIG DOG... And as the sweatshirt I happen to wear in rainy California today says, "This is what attitude looks like!" So, if we have to do it ourselves, so be it... In the meantime, it is better to damn the United States, which got al Qaeda out of Afghanistan, toppled Saddam, and ignited democratic movements across the Middle East. How does one say "Hand Wringing Time" in French, German, or now, Spanish... If you appeasing cheese-eating surrender monkeys coated with radiation think you can refugee here after your capitals glow in the dark... Think again. 1Conquest of Constantinople |
| Posted by: BigEd 2005-03-04 12:24:21 PM |
| #7 IAMAF (I am not a former) but I believe deep seeding is a relatively modern agricultural technique except in very dry regions. Where as the idea of somethng being seated deep with in the soul or a castle is an older one, so I think it is the original. John Ciardi would have known, but I have all his books packed away. |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2005-03-04 12:21:32 PM |
| #6 I think the closer analogy would be the fully aged relative of 50, who keeps making the same mistakes again and again, expecting his family to bail him out time and again...the same relative that badmouths the relatives that rescued him when out of earshot...the same relative that lies around on the couch of his parents, taking the money they earn without a single thank you. |
| Posted by: Jules 187 2005-03-04 11:43:48 AM |
| #5 Right you are! But I have to wonder if it wasn't originally "seeded" - Websters has the definition as, "situated far below the surface". And it has a cousin word, "deep-rooted". Maybe it's actually deep-sea-ted :-) |
| Posted by: 2b 2005-03-04 11:27:40 AM |
| #4 They both make sense, theat's why I Googled them both. There is a clear winner. |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2005-03-04 11:08:11 AM |
| #3 I don't know Mrs. D. I too thought it was deep-seated, but deep-seeded makes much more sense. |
| Posted by: 2b 2005-03-04 11:03:22 AM |
| #2 Another great column by VDH, especially the last four paragraphs. But after 4 years of the language, I cannot resist the urge to play gotcha with a Latin teacher, or is he really only an olive farmer?. 625,000 hits for deep-seated, 25,500 for deep-seeded. |
| Posted by: Mrs. Davis 2005-03-04 10:55:29 AM |
| #1 Europe as teenagers! I love it! They still have an aristocracy, I guess, whereas, our "aristocrats" got their money the old fashioned way - the earned it. |
| Posted by: Bobby 2005-03-04 10:37:17 AM |