"I know we are the greatest nation in the world"

[TheStinger]

Originally posted by Ethelred


Rubbish. The Supreme Court knocks down laws every single year.

As do the courts in the UK

[Ethelred]

Originally posted by MOBIUS
Britain doesn't do those things (at least actively try not to!), what you're talking about happened 57 years ago. What you did say clearly is that we did resort to the same tactics the US did. I'm not proud of what the UK did on that fateful day - you don't seem to care!

Of course I care. The US doesn't do those things either.

57 years ago its still a fact that Britain did it. Its also a fact that Britain AND the US are not doing it now.

I don't dispute the fact that US doesn't intentionally kill civilians - what I do dispute is whether they overly care if they happen to kill civilians...

Is that why we use very expensive missles and smart weapons? Just to make sure we have accidents?

Thats not disputing thats inventing something that is clearly not true.

In that regard, we are not like the US and don't intend to be - why is also probably a good reason as to why we've never had 4 passenger planes hijacked and rammed into several of our national landmarks...

More likely you just have a shortage of good targets and jets.

Get with the program - nobody will like US in the rest of the World while it continues it's arrogant 'we are the greatest BS'...

Oh dear. Some Eurowhimp might get upset if they notice the US telling the truth. I am devastated. Mind your own politics. That speech wasn't for the UN or Europe. It was a standard phrase in US politics. Has been for a long time. Its just that now the Europeans can't deny the truth of it and they are hoping that complaining will make the truth go away.

[TheStinger]

What sort of politician stands up and says his country isn't the best in the world when speaking to a domestic audiance.

[Q Classic]

What sort of politician stands up and says his country isn't the best in the world when speaking to a domestic audiance.

a) an honest politician, or b) a politician that won't get reelected.

those two things are often found in the same person.

seriously, i think it's kinda funny how people view other countries' leaders. for one thing, kim daejung seems to be extremely well regarded outside of korea-- so much so that he got a nobel peace prize.
thing is, nobody in skorea likes him. he's a poor leader, he's a corrupt hypocrite, and he hasn't done squat for the economy.

just goes to show that whether you like a leader or not is entirely contingent upon whether you live in the country and agree with his politics.

that said, bush appeals to the conservatives and those americans who are knee-jerk patriots. he also appeals to a lot of somewhat moderate conservatives. so i'm not surprised he said somethign along the lines of the us being the best country in the world-- it's something americans have started to believe about themselves, which kinda is detrimental to foreign relations. even if the us is the best, rubbing it in as so many americans do isn't the way to make friends.

but see, the thing is, you have to realize, politics is all about the spin: what you say, who you say it to, and how you say it. bush's speech was to allay the fears of his own people that the us economy would tank, etc., and not for the un, not for the eu, not for the pacific rim, and definitely not for latin america, africa, and s asia. it's just like reagan's old "god bless you, america" phrase he threw into every speech at the end-- one could say that god blesses every country and every person, but in politics, it doesn't matter what the facts are. all that matters is spin.

[TheStinger]

Exactly

everybody knows they just want your vote, People on the whole wnat to hear that where they live is the best they can expect

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by red_jon
We are all too aware of the consequences ... too much government power.

Since when?

[Deathwalker]

A politician's ultimate goal is to stay in office, so that why they do what they do. Its the same for all contries

[chequita guevara]

notyoueither, stop speaking for us. Thank you very much.

[Sikander]

Originally posted by chegitz guevara
notyoueither, stop speaking for us. Thank you very much.

He has as much right to kibbitz as the eurowhiners.

[Sava]

Bush talking about Corporate Responsibility is like...
Ray Charles endorsing contact lenses...
OJ Simpson speaking out against domestic violence...
Ted Kazinksy calling for the capture of the anthrax mailer...

insert other analogies at your leisure

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by chegitz guevara
notyoueither, stop speaking for us. Thank you very much.

He has as much right to feed trolls as anyone else.

[Solly]

Originally posted by Sava
Bush talking about Corporate Responsibility is like...
Ray Charles endorsing contact lenses...
OJ Simpson speaking out against domestic violence...
Ted Kazinksy calling for the capture of the anthrax mailer...

insert other analogies at your leisure

So true, so true...

Although Mobius has been making some great points, I'd like to distance myself (being a fellow Englishman and all) from this comment:

In that regard, we are not like the US and don't intend to be - why is also probably a good reason as to why we've never had 4 passenger planes hijacked and rammed into several of our national landmarks...

[Roland]

"Rubbish. The Supreme Court knocks down laws every single year."

Which proves exactly squat.

"It was a standard phrase in US politics. Has been for a long time."

Absolutely. But still I don't quite understand this american inferiority complex.

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by Sikander
He has as much right to kibbitz as the eurowhiners.

It's not that he's speaking his mind that I mind. It's that he's speaking for us. And frankly, I find his stance a little hypocritical, talking about how great we are cuz we kick ass when his country lives in our shadow and doesn't do anything.

[Ethelred]

Originally posted by Roland
"Rubbish. The Supreme Court knocks down laws every single year."

Which proves exactly squat.

It shows you are wrong. If you can't see that then you are merely trolling. Which is likely the case.

Absolutely. But still I don't quite understand this american inferiority complex.

Thats you inferiority complex you are thinking with. It was a simple statement by a politician to the home audience. Its wasn't a knock on your tiny little island or its lack of consititutional protections of civil rights nor was it a knock on the Official Secrets Act that you are burdnened with and unable to overturn via that constitution you don't have.