Monday, May 29, 2006
If at first we fail
"We have met the enemy and he is us." If recent incidents in Iraq and Afghanistan haven't convinced us that we are in deep doo doo, this will probably not go down in history as our finest hour. Almost everything we have tried to accomplish in those areas have met with varying degrees of misfortune and downright failure. I really believe bad luck accompanied by bad decisions were equal partners here. Our intrusion into the affairs of those countries has never been accepted or wanted. The plain truth, as appalling as it is for most of us to come to grips with, is that we
are not just considered to be cultural and spititual infidels, but are hated
for the economic advantages of our people and how we appear to flaunt them. I don't believe that we, as Americans, will ever really 'get it' as long as we maintain an arrogant and superior attitude toward other cultures and feel compelled to impose our will on them, especially when we do it for economic or military gain. I don't doubt that if the shoe were on the other foot that WE would receive like treatment, but that is a long shot at best and not a viable excuse.
I understand the futility of throwing up our hands and pointing accusing fingers at the politicians whom we hold accountable for failed policies and blundered missions, but a quick glance in a mirror might remind us that therein might lie the real enemy. We can't sit in judgement on those who lead us in ignorance if we the people wallow in our own. We need to know and understand the world we live in before we set out to dominate it. The recent findings of how well our kids identify places on the map should make us weep.
George Morin
Auburn, GA
are not just considered to be cultural and spititual infidels, but are hated
for the economic advantages of our people and how we appear to flaunt them. I don't believe that we, as Americans, will ever really 'get it' as long as we maintain an arrogant and superior attitude toward other cultures and feel compelled to impose our will on them, especially when we do it for economic or military gain. I don't doubt that if the shoe were on the other foot that WE would receive like treatment, but that is a long shot at best and not a viable excuse.
I understand the futility of throwing up our hands and pointing accusing fingers at the politicians whom we hold accountable for failed policies and blundered missions, but a quick glance in a mirror might remind us that therein might lie the real enemy. We can't sit in judgement on those who lead us in ignorance if we the people wallow in our own. We need to know and understand the world we live in before we set out to dominate it. The recent findings of how well our kids identify places on the map should make us weep.
George Morin
Auburn, GA
