Great Britain – seems like they don’t have the stomach for it anymore; Greatness that is.
"Cameron forced to rule out British attack on Syria after MPs reject motion"
Greatness was a colonizer’s idiom that enabled the ever-drizzle island persuade itself that it was a superpower. Great Britain had influence and authority, cultural, industrial and technological aptitude. A culture that exported its language and wares worldwide has shrunk into a self-serving, quivering lower lipped, diminishing entity, with a posterior bow of parliamentary spinelessness. While history will show that PM Cameron is made of the right stuff, his mandated vertebrae - "the people", have misplaced their collective scrotum, and with it, the nation’s stature within global leadership.
The signs have been there for decades. Were it not for US supplied crutches, England would have slipped into provinciality in the 1970’s. Special-Relationship status will not bury the fact that nothing great has come out of that island since. Industrial and technological prowess have long since evaporated, leaving it a client nation with a penchant for self inflicted middling mediocrity. England has now finally placed itself in its correct rank within the global community - just another unremarkable nation that voluntarily relieved itself of universal clout and impact.
As to the Special-Relationship status... time will tell. One thing that we do know is that the US never forgets, its recall-with-a-vengeance has traditionally been cross-partisan, spanning centuries and administrations. Hanging on to the superpower’s coattails will now be that much harder, as one hanger-on relieves its perspiring clutch, a hoard of others vie for that same small piece of sodden textile.
"In a devastating blow to his authority, the prime minister lost a government motion..."Edit: John Kerry, in his 'Evidence' media address this evening, recounted a long list of American friends and allies. Great Britain was not one of them.
16 comments:
What do you expect from a nation of dimwits and dhimmis? Courage?
1. "Greatness" isn't measured in what John Kerry says. According to his speech Number 1 "American friend" is Arab League (that would be Islamo-fascist states of KSA and Yemen).
2. Given the record of this administration in supporting real allies (and I don't mean Lebanon, Turkey and France which have all been listed), it is safer to join the other side.
3. The objective of this war was stated as "punishing" Assad. That sounds like he is a child who will learn from a little punishment. Pure bullshit. The real objective is to make Obama look a little less impotent back home.
4. The time to act in Syria was 2 years ago. That would be the time when US backed off and supported Turkey and KSA in overwhelming pro-western fraction and supplying Jihadists with weapon.
Katie,
Where was the Brave and Mighty nation of America in 1940?
Sending supplies to Great Britain and dying in the ships sunk by the Germans along the way.
A few enlightening facts:
1. US was well paid for the supplies.
2. Land-lease didn't start till March 1941 (!)
3. Prior to enacting Land-lease, US bankrupted Britain. It took ALL gold, and confiscated the most valuable British companies (e.g. Shell). It also forced exorbitant interest rates.
4. American vessels were not attacked by Germany till October 1941.
Katie,
I'm a Yank, but I'm afraid BHCh is right on all accounts.
FDR had to deal with a Congress that was extremely isolationist. In fact that he could do anything was a miracle. At this time Charles Limburg was touring America promoting isolationism and how great Adolph Hitler was. A gallop poll at the time showed:
Statistics from a Gallup Poll show that 83% of the American people are against entering the war.
http://historiation.tripod.com/daysjune/june03.html
FDR was not a dictator. 1940 was an election year and the American people DID NOT WANT TO GO TO WAR!!
That changed on 7 Dec. 1941 and the United States entered the war.
For the record: The US DID NOT declare war on Germany. They declared war on Japan. Germany declared war on the US.
I rest my case.
1. Correct, "Greatness" is defined in the post above in terms which have nothing to do with Kerry's speech.
2. In his speech, Lebanon was not listed as an ally. However "Our oldest ally, the French" is the former slot which England occupied till recent events. Yemen was not on the list.
3. You start this point with the wrong terminology - WAR. The administration has iterated their intention very clearly. If the US strikes, they will strike the dictator's capabilities to inflict horrors on the Syrian people - the apparatus. In your terminology - remove some of the toys from baby Assad's crib. As to your Russian, vis-a-vis Obama, sounds a bit like a Soviet accent creeping in.
4. With "Russian obstructionism", the rout to act at any time was always in doubt. Kerry's address represents a point well iterated: the US does not need the UN (where Putin can pull out his Niet card) to act at this juncture. Which Pro-Western factions are you referring too?
Russia is the wholesale supplier of weapons to the Syrian regime, and yes, geographically Russia to the West of Syria, pardon my Englisher English....
Courage would be good.
1. Lebanon and Yemen are members of the Arab League and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. Numbers 1 and 2 (!) on Obama's list of friends.
2. There is no doubt that Russia and Iran are directly responsible for the atrocities, as well as survival of Assad's regime. Syrian regime has been shelling civilians with Iranian missiles from Russian helicopters for over two years. Russia has also assisted Iran with the development of nuclear capabilities.
3. My Soviet accent is indeed very strong. I inherited it from my grandfather, who did quite a bit of time for "anti-Soviet activities" (article 58).
4. "the US does not need the UN". Then why has the US been using the excuse of the UN for over 2 years? Wouldn't be because the US under this administration is important and trying to hide the impotence behind the US?
5. From Tunisia to Egypt, to Syria, the administration has backed off, and allowed KSA, Qatar and Turkey to move in with the funding, weapons and establish Islamist regimes.
Two years ago Syrian opposition looked very different. The US did sweet nothing. Today they are dominated by Al Qaeda affiliates, supported from KSA via Turkey (blatantly anti-Semitic Islamist Erdogan is this administration's best ally).
If you damage the regime, you help Al Qaeda in Syria. If you don't damage the regime, then what have you achieved?
6. Given the current cycle of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, I am also curious how Obama is going to reward his top three allies and friends.
You are also dead wrong that nothing great has come out of England since 1970s.
Maggie's Britain has impacted the world in a very fundamental way. It has turned around the ascend of socialism within the country, defeated unionism, turned around economic doctrines throughout Europe and had an impact on the US.
Last but not least, Britain played a huge role in the defeat of USSR in the cold war. It was second only to the US.
Dead wrong? Now that's a very heavy Soviet accent indeed. Thatcher's personal achievements impacted the country internally. Her personal achievements influenced leaders worldwide. Her greatest achievement was to strengthen the Special Relationship status. Her personal achievements, put a temporary spit-shine on the dulling blade of GB's global impact and stature. Nothing more, nothing... more.
The defeat of the Soviet Union? Really? I mean Really?
The Soviet Union defeated itself, it self imploded, an act which was certainly not external, not predicted and caught the west by complete surprise.
1. Yes, I think that was a slip. Seeing the clip again, there was a full stop after "The world is speaking out, and many friends stand ready to respond." Those you speak of seem to belong to the first part of the sentence; "The World is speaking out". Kerry should have divided the sentence into two parts.
2. We agree then.
3. Those are fine credentials you display, non-unique, or should I say Snap. However my grandfather spoke of freeing himself of Soviet induced mindset, he was convinced that the hardships of the Gulag freed his mind.
4. Obama can thank Collin Powell's UN powerpoint address, regarding Iraqi WMD's. The US will never live that one down.
5. The US is still traumatized from its Iraq and Afghanistan sojourn. This has been a "cat caught in the headlights" moment for Obama. I agree that Obama will pay in a big way for his inaction.
6. If he attacks, he will not be able to reward Israel in the event that we are attacked by Syria. The I-P negotiations will take a deep hit if he is seen to be weak. Obama's early inaction in the Arab Springs as a whole, Egypt as a prime example, have left him in need of a political Viagra.
And they nearly elected Vendell Wilke
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