Rest of the World Wants Obama

[natty bumppo 297]

This is the response I expected. America's standing among its allies, let alone the rest of the world, is apparently of no consequence to these people.

when what america think affects their elections, then i'll pay heed to what they think of our elections.

in case you didn't get the memo, it's the american people voting, not other countries.

Wait, so if you choose to get along with your friends, it's your friends making the choice for you to get along with them? How does that work?

no wild tangents while i'm having lunch, thank you.

It isn't the other countries trying to "Spread Democracy", so, being a good leader means listening to people and trying to get along with them to set an example. Not telling them "#### you, listen to me or 'lalalalalala' *plugs ears*".

I wonder what kind of arrogant person doesn't listen to voices abroad when it comes to foreign policy, a big part of these elections, when our foreign policy directly affects them. No better results than the opinions of who we directly affect today.

so ... your friend tells you to jump off a 100 foot cliff ... you do?

[Laura+Tom 2]

We seem to be very pro-Obama in the UK as we have had a lot more positive press, for example him coming to Europe. That's not to say McCain has had negative press, it's just that he doesn't seem to feature as much. To be honest you would think the election was occuring over here, the amount of coverage there has been.

Obama also seems to reflect alot of the feelings over here such as the withdrawal of troops and a with abortion, a womans right to chose. Ultimately it will affect us, what with us being one of the US' closest allies.

Edited September 9, 2008 by Laura+Tom

[Peikko 1,575]

This is the response I expected. America's standing among its allies, let alone the rest of the world, is apparently of no consequence to these people.

when what america think affects their elections, then i'll pay heed to what they think of our elections.

in case you didn't get the memo, it's the american people voting, not other countries.

Wait, so if you choose to get along with your friends, it's your friends making the choice for you to get along with them? How does that work?

no wild tangents while i'm having lunch, thank you.

It isn't the other countries trying to "Spread Democracy", so, being a good leader means listening to people and trying to get along with them to set an example. Not telling them "#### you, listen to me or 'lalalalalala' *plugs ears*".

I wonder what kind of arrogant person doesn't listen to voices abroad when it comes to foreign policy, a big part of these elections, when our foreign policy directly affects them. No better results than the opinions of who we directly affect today.

so ... your friend tells you to jump off a 100 foot cliff ... you do?

It all depends on how big and how much influence the friend has...allegedly

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Well I suppose you need only look at the continued fascination this country has with Tony Blair. On what basis is Obama being judged overseas I wonder...

[IAMX 3,055]

it's a wild azz comparison. what may be your friend today may well be your enemy tomorrow. that is precisely why america shouldn't heed outside voices trying to influence our politics.

You realize how influential this country is abroad? That's quite hypocritical.

Mexico's government is in high contrast to this government, as is Canada, France, Georgia, Afghanistan, all of them influenced highly by this administration. Harper, Sarkozy, Calderon all representatives of the conservative mantra of privatization and military aggression, with variable difficulty in changing their country's course, so to speak. And, in regards to the Iraq debacle with Saddam, the U.S. government is to thank for that intervention. Supporting Democracy my ###.

More simplistically, if you find yourself having trouble with friends turning into enemies, you should either consider it may be your own actions causing it, or consider your methods of how you get/keep friends.

so ... your friend tells you to jump off a 100 foot cliff ... you do?

So, if your friends tell you not to jump off a 100 foot cliff, do you jump off anyways?

[metta 0]

This is the response I expected. America's standing among its allies, let alone the rest of the world, is apparently of no consequence to these people.

when what america think affects their elections, then i'll pay heed to what they think of our elections.

in case you didn't get the memo, it's the american people voting, not other countries.

Wait, so if you choose to get along with your friends, it's your friends making the choice for you to get along with them? How does that work?

Well, just a reminder to you that in international relations,

there are no permanent friends , only permanent interests.

From that perspective, Americans will vote for who ever they think is right for America not for who they think is the most popular in other countries.

Edited September 9, 2008 by metta

[IAMX 3,055]

Well, just a reminder to you that in international relations,

there are no permanent friends , only permanent interests.

From that perspective, Americans will vote for who ever they think is right for America not for who they think is the most popular in other countries.

To suggest there are permanent friends (dunno who did that, wasn't me) is to suggest people are perpetually static. However, how do you think people keep friends for any amount of time? Of course people change, but the mentality and ideals of friendship are still there, along with cooperation and understanding, which can only happen with dialog. In a world of diversity, the extending of a helping hand has a far greater, more positive effect than a show of power, without the unnecessary amount of energy to consistently show that force.

Has anyone here ever suggested that we take a poll as to who the rest of the world likes and we can base our President on that? I've never seen it period, not from someone from the U.S., that is. So no idea where people got this mentality that everyone else matters more than the people here.

[natty bumppo 297]

it's a wild azz comparison. what may be your friend today may well be your enemy tomorrow. that is precisely why america shouldn't heed outside voices trying to influence our politics.

You realize how influential this country is abroad? That's quite hypocritical.

Mexico's government is in high contrast to this government, as is Canada, France, Georgia, Afghanistan, all of them influenced highly by this administration. Harper, Sarkozy, Calderon all representatives of the conservative mantra of privatization and military aggression, with variable difficulty in changing their country's course, so to speak. And, in regards to the Iraq debacle with Saddam, the U.S. government is to thank for that intervention. Supporting Democracy my ###.

More simplistically, if you find yourself having trouble with friends turning into enemies, you should either consider it may be your own actions causing it, or consider your methods of how you get/keep friends.

so ... your friend tells you to jump off a 100 foot cliff ... you do?

So, if your friends tell you not to jump off a 100 foot cliff, do you jump off anyways?

not the friends place to decide or tell me what to do ...

[HAL 9000 96]

Well I suppose you need only look at the continued fascination this country has with Tony Blair. On what basis is Obama being judged overseas I wonder...

According to the McCain campaign probably like a Kobe Bryant or a Brittney. Which would explain a LOT of that popularity... since we know that those pesky foreigners know nothing about the USA other than celebrities and athletes.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Well I suppose you need only look at the continued fascination this country has with Tony Blair. On what basis is Obama being judged overseas I wonder...

According to the McCain campaign probably like a Kobe Bryant or a Brittney. Which would explain a LOT of that popularity... since we know that those pesky foreigners know nothing about the USA other than celebrities and athletes.

Well in that other thread there is a quote by Ed Koch on Tony Blair...

[metta 0]

Well, just a reminder to you that in international relations,

there are no permanent friends , only permanent interests.

From that perspective, Americans will vote for who ever they think is right for America not for who they think is the most popular in other countries.

To suggest there are permanent friends (dunno who did that, wasn't me) is to suggest people are perpetually static. However, how do you think people keep friends for any amount of time? Of course people change, but the mentality and ideals of friendship are still there, along with cooperation and understanding, which can only happen with dialog. In a world of diversity, the extending of a helping hand has a far greater, more positive effect than a show of power, without the unnecessary amount of energy to consistently show that force.

Has anyone here ever suggested that we take a poll as to who the rest of the world likes and we can base our President on that? I've never seen it period, not from someone from the U.S., that is. So no idea where people got this mentality that everyone else matters more than the people here.

More simplistically, if you find yourself having trouble with friends turning into enemies, you should either consider it may be your own actions causing it, or consider your methods of how you get/keep friends.

Actually, I am referring to your statement above.. In international relations, friends turn into enemies and vice versa.

I don't agree with GWB's unilateralism and could well understand the antipathy that exists in the world toward Bush. But that does not mean we have to heed what other are purportedly thinking (according to this poll and the article which is a thinly veiled attempt to sway opinions of American voters) )into our own election dynamics.

As for me, I don't give a diddly squat who they want us to elect as POTUS.

[Laura+Tom 2]

I'm interested, purely because I will be moving to the US next year.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

I'm interested, purely because I will be moving to the US next year.

Yeah I moved here just in time to see the last election and the re-election of W. Surely a booby prize if ever there was one

[Laura+Tom 2]

I'm interested, purely because I will be moving to the US next year.

Yeah I moved here just in time to see the last election and the re-election of W. Surely a booby prize if ever there was one

Lucky you

[IAMX 3,055]

not the friends place to decide or tell me what to do ...

Who says they are though?

Actually, I am referring to your statement above.. In international relations, friends turn into enemies and vice versa.

I don't agree with GWB's unilateralism and could well understand the antipathy that exists in the world toward Bush. But that does not mean we have to heed what other are purportedly thinking (according to this poll and the article which is a thinly veiled attempt to sway opinions of American voters) )into our own election dynamics.

As for me, I don't give a diddly squat who they want us to elect as POTUS.

Obviously their vote for POTUS matters not, however, it makes sense to vote for someone who will actually get along with other nations. Learning from history's past, the more people you piss off and attack, the more you heighten your chances of not lasting very long, and find yourself constantly in a tiresome fight unnecessarily. You also put yourself in a position, economically, to be squeezed out.

It isn't much longer now until we share the "superpower" status, so the less we focus on building bridges and making friends, the greater the chances are of other, more hostile or influencing countries of forcing policy changes by coercion. Two nations already do this -- Saudi Arabia and China. Bush's tough talk on China is just that -- talk. And, of course, having a much larger stake in this economy, Saudi Arabia doesn't even get the tough talk, Bush just flat out openly kisses their ### and holds their hands like a dog with it's tail between it's legs for it's master. Quite embarrassing.

The big mistake people make is refusing to actually understand why these countries might be upset, just like if another country is pissing us off, we probably try to get them to understand why. Part of any relationship or partnership or friendship in general is the willingness to take criticism and learn from your mistakes. Evidently some hard-liners want to mix that up with others voting for us, which is an excuse for setting one's self up for a conflict rather than bringing an understanding and mutual listening on both sides. You lead by example, not lead by force.