Gennifer Flowers.

[hollodero]

(10-08-2016, 12:30 AM)Dill Wrote: Thanks much Hollodero. This was above and beyond the call. (Die berumhte deutsche Tuetigkeit gilt auch fuer Oesterricher, ich vermute!)

Your welcome.
And I know politeness would demand that I applaud your German here, but I'm no liar :) I got what you said, though. Answer, we are not known as particularly hard working people and we also generally do not like to be compared to Germans :)

(10-08-2016, 12:30 AM)Dill Wrote: I share many of your views regarding the parliamentary system; I would add that the public becomes better informed when there is real, differentiated and articulated political spectrum before it.

Yeah well, maybe, don't overestimate that aspect though.

(10-08-2016, 12:30 AM)Dill Wrote: Without that we hear centrist Democrats regularly called "socialists"; our political discourse is often muddy, insufficient to the task of clarifying options and consequences.

Yeah well, that is of course nonsense. There is no left wing and no socialist party in the US and Americans seem to use that term as an expletive. Your democrats much more resemble our conservative parties while your republicans resemble nothing here; Nader, Edwards and Sanders are the only ones I know that might be called left in the first place. Trump resembles Le Pen, Farage and those people. But these classifications in a political spectrum also do not clarify anything.

(10-08-2016, 12:30 AM)Dill Wrote: My mention of "strength" was in scare quotes; a segment of our electorate believes we must affirm our power in word and deed or others will "test" us. If Putin invades a former satellite or Iran Pakistan threatens India or North Korea detonates a nuke or ISIS moves into the Levant it is because they all perceive Obama as "weak." Our European allies will feel safer if we bluster and rattle our saber. The bad guys will retreat. The addition of another aircraft carrier and two more nuclear subs to our navy will make ISIS think twice before attacking Americans.  Diplomacy=weakness. Even people in "petty" countries will no longer respect us if we seek peaceful solutions to conflict. No more apologizing for America!

Yeah, I heard that... I feel like I might burn my fingers here. I mean, this whole power affirmation point, although I dislike it, is not completely moot in the first place and I have to admit that. Which makes this debate tricky.
We are overall glad that you are there and that you are in some cases willing to intervene. We couldn't. I always get severely booed by almost everyone here (so I do not talk for the whole Europe here, for a change) when I say our own lack of real military potential is an awful thing and we need to build armies, that this is one of the major reasons why we need to be united as Europe. People here tend to deny that because "war is bad" and the US does it for us anyways - while we do nothing and just make gleeful comments when your interventions go wrong. But thanks for Kosovo, that was necessary, we couldn't do it, we couldn't stop the cruelty, still people back then actually said where is America and why have these clowns not done something earlier. In our own back yard. Pathetic.
So well, if you weren't here... we would have quite a different "Yugoslavia" region, that was a good thing. We would have quite a different middle east, and that is more ambivalent. I have no idea what kind of Russia we would be facing now if NATO, which means US presence and protection, didn't exist. And I'm glad about not knowing that, so yes, your strength is important.
What's torpedoing this strength are of course failures like Iraq (and we generally do not have two opinions on that one) and we don't think it's necessary to show these kinds of cojones. We're glad Obama didn't start a new war like that. But there won't be diplomacy without military strength to put weight on your position in negotiations. A "military intervention is not an option" position is somehow double-edged. I hate all the words I said here, and I'm all for peaceful solutions and would protest for them, but I can't just deny it. The willingness to as a last resort make use of the military might be just a necessity when dealing with "bad guys". Sanctions might not do it. (Good work on Iran, though. Kudos.)
So here's the actual point. We know, at least I know, there are people in this world that you would call "bad". We do not doubt that Saddam ISIS etc. are "bad guys". Despite all, we are just not so sure if you are the ultimate "good guys". We know you're less bad, for sure, you're inherently better, we would always choose you over anyone to run the global show. But you do have your dark spots and especially Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib and all the torturing taking place really had a bad impact on your reputation as "the good guys". On the respect we feel for you. I'm not sure if the American people are fully aware of that.

So well, Europe. We do not really need you to "rattle your sword" and bomb someone once in a while so we are assured you still are capable of bombing someone. But we sure need you to be able to. We also need you to spend huge amounts of money in your military to keep your supremacy - so we feel safe and can use our money to spend on social security and our welfare state instead and making fun of you not reaching our social standards. But sometimes we also feel (as you do, obviously) that you overdo it. Many wars nowadays aren't fought by aircraft carriers, you know that and I do, too. But still. This is a hot iron and only the sincere man can carry it the whole nine yards (or so) - and I certainly can't.

(10-08-2016, 12:30 AM)Dill Wrote: Were I European, I would be anxious and wondering what sort of history is, or isn't, taught in U.S. Schools. Why is our press, with so little to fear compared to Russia or Iran,  so timid?

I'm happy if you do not teach creationism, for starters.
I don't really know where you are going here, maybe I'm underinformed about the timidness you refer to. So I have nothing clever to add for now (which I seldomly have, but here that fact actually makes me shut up for once.)