In what woefully promises to be the “first in a series”, Vadino wonders, “Which affects British perceptions more: Stereotypes of the ‘ugly American’ or our country’s foreign policy? Or is something else at play?”
I can only imagine how often Vadino will say how much we are hated because of our foreign policy in this series, but whatever is to come this first segment is chock full of hating Americans by Brits… even as they are happy to eat our fast food, watch our movies and listen to our music not to mention take our money.
Vadino leads with the “ugly American” example (MSN even supplying the quintessential “ugly American” photo to accompany the article), recounting how we are loud, brash, stupid and annoying when we visit other countries. Yet, as she leads with all this negativity, she then turns around and says that this “unflattering view appears to be in the minority”, at least among the British people she spoke with.
This begs the question, why lead with the negative, then, if it is such a “minority” view? Why the series on how much our foreign policy ruins our favorable viewing by foreigners if that is a “minority” position?
She does clarify that the favorable view of Americans only pertained to a single American aimlessly walking around the countryside, but that when more than one American congregated, hate resulted. Indeed, Vadino quotes a Brit saying, “A group of Yanks is loud, raucous, insular and appears to have no interest in the local culture.”
In any case, we Americans are called “wankers”, and all sorts of names by the Brits that Vadino interviewed. And, of course, our commercial power is chalked up as the greatest of evils. Even as they sop up those same commercial offerings like a sponge.
The capper is Vadino “apologizing” to an Iraqi for the fact that we evil Americans overthrew one of the worst dictators in the world by investing ourselves in Iraq. Our traveling apologist met an Iraqi in England and couldn’t help but fall to the ground in abject supplication over American foreign policy.
I changed money at a booth on busy Oxford Street. The clerk asked me where I was from, and I asked him the same. "Iraq," he said. "I'm sorry," I replied, not knowing how to respond. What do you say to someone whose country your own has invaded?
However, I am sure that Vadino was even more shocked by the man’s answer.
"Don't worry for me," he said. "I'm a Kurd. My family is better than ever. Saddam is dead. We love George Bush!" And he pointed to a small picture of the U.S. president on his desk.
She is probably still puzzling over this encounter to this very day. But the fact that she felt compelled to “apologize” for America is telling in and of itself that she is a hate America type herself.
And, even as she recounts that one Brit says that British travelers in the USA find Americans to be “as hospitable as you could ever want”, this interviewee still thinks we are bad people because of guns, alien abductions, and intelligent design.
I have to say, with “friends” like Vadino giving such a forum for the hate America set, who needs enemies?
I can just imagine how many haters she’ll find in the rest of her series.. starting with herself.
