Furrin Affairs
We are not a xenophobic nation. We just don’t seem to be aware of the rest of the world, or care about it. Our major enemies have been Nazis, fascists, communists and Islamic terrorists; all furriners, so to speak. Many of our politicians have made use of this fact, promoting fear of a foreign bogeyman to take our attention off of much worse problems at home.
Our ignorance of world affairs is appalling. During the height – or depth – of the Iraq war, more Americans could name the judges on “American Idol” than could find Iraq on a map of the world. Meanwhile our government, in collusion with the arms industry, has been involving us in conflicts around the globe as though our one planet were some kind of board game.
Consider some of the stories in the news today that underscore the brinksmanship nature of our foreign policy. For instance, that U.S. commandos, operating in Afghanistan, crossed the border into Pakistan, and killed 20 people, including women and children. There was also a failed assassination on the Pakistani prime minister. Pakistan, a nuclear nation, is coming apart at the seams.
Speaking of nuclear nations, North Korea is reported to be reassembling its Yongbyon nuclear reactor. That will enable them to resume their production of atomic bombs. So all that hype about successful negotiations was just spin. Of course the hostility from the new Seoul government hasn’t helped. And the people in the North are starving to death.
In a “friendly fire” incident north of Baghdad, a U.S. military unit in a river patrol boat shot dead seven Iraqi security personnel; two others are missing and presumed dead. It was a case of mistaken identity. That’s what happens in war, even one that is winding down.
And then there is the news that the Bush administration is planning to provide a billion dollars in aid to help rebuild war-torn Georgia. This while Dick Cheney is on a four-nation tour of former Soviet republics. All that this will accomplish will be to further exacerbate tensions with Russia.
Indeed, the prospects for peace on Earth don’t seem bright at the moment, but at some point, we’ll get it.
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