Due to my Carmen Sandiego-ness, had to check out for a while... I'll keep checking on the thread as it develops, but I may be out of commission/connection until Monday. I like the discussion so far, however... let's keep talking.
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Originally Posted by Ustwo
My example was not of the Burmese people, but of the people in other Western nations who now want us to come help the Burmese (while doing almost nothing to help themselves) and bitch if we don't, or call us hypocrites for not freeing everyone.
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Which Western nations are calling for the US in particular to do something? Maybe I missed this in the news, but I don't think anyone is handing the entire responsibility over to the US. As I've said before, I am not saying that the US should be the world police, nor should anyone be asking us to do so. If anything, we've taken that duty upon ourselves, not because people asked us to, but because it was in our interests to do so.
But what pisses me off (and thought I had made clear in several posts, but apparently not) is that the US *preaches about democracy and uses it as an excuse to go to war* but does shit-all to ACTUALLY intervene when democracy is the exact matter at hand. If we just went about intervening only when it mattered to us, without all the crap rhetoric about freedom and whatnot, then fine... I'd be a little less pissy about this issue. Once again, at least we'd be consistent.
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Originally Posted by Ustwo
If this is big news in Norway like you say, shouldn't the EU be sending troops? Why turn to the US for leadership when all the rest of the free world does is bitch about US leadership?
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Yes, I think the EU should be sending troops as well. I think EVERYone should be sending troops, or something... whatever it takes to stop this junta, as it ought to have been done anytime in the last 35 years.
We could have all pleaded innocent before the advent of instantaneous news, as I said earlier... but now, there is just no excuse. We all know what's going on there. Inaction is a form of complacency. The only people who can be said to be effectively ACTING and resisting these assholes are those very monks and civilians on the street in Yangon... and it appears that they are utterly alone, and are going to be shot or beaten and imprisoned, alone. Yay, one more point chalked up for oppression.
I believe the UN is sending a special envoy to Burma, arriving on Saturday (what good that does, don't ask me, but at least they are sending someone/thing). No one is pointing fingers at the US, except for me... and that's only because this is one stinking shithole of hypocrisy, if I've ever seen one. I thought it was bad enough with the Lebanese/Israeli summer war... but this is just unbelievable. We either need to stand down on our pro-democratic bullshit, or stand up and do something about it. There are just no two ways about it, if you ask me. We either mean what we say, or we don't.
Charlatan gets my point here:
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Originally Posted by Charlatan
Personally, I don't think the US should involve itself in Burma's business. It should be China and ASEAN that stick their nose in and help the people of Burma.
However, given the rhetoric of Bush around being a supporter of democracy and willing to squash oppressive regimes, etc. Burma seems perfect. Sadly, Bush was just speaking spin.
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