America from overseas
Mar. 21st, 2011 02:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
snousleIt's been really interesting reading the newspapers here and getting an overseas perspective on American politics. I would like to point out a very interesting article about the King hearings on Muslim radicalization, which I read in the paper this morning:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=10713833
I would not call this article beyond reproach; it pulls a few sneaky sleights of hand itself. But is it being reported in the US that Peter King, who is leading these hearings, has himself provided material support for terrorists? That shocked the hell out of me. What a fucking hypocrite. Also interesting was the reference to the START world terrorism database, which shows that, in terms of number of incidents, the US has a much bigger problem with far-right terrorism than it does with Muslim radicalization. No, the body count to date is not as high, because 9-11 was such an extraordinary case, but at present the threat from white christian extremists seems much more alarming.
It's clear that there are an awful lot of things that just aren't getting reported back in the States. Liberal media, my ass. The American far-right has become so masterful at pre-emptive accusations that you pretty much have to assume that whatever they say, the truth is exactly the opposite.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/opinion/news/article.cfm?c_id=466&objectid=10713833
I would not call this article beyond reproach; it pulls a few sneaky sleights of hand itself. But is it being reported in the US that Peter King, who is leading these hearings, has himself provided material support for terrorists? That shocked the hell out of me. What a fucking hypocrite. Also interesting was the reference to the START world terrorism database, which shows that, in terms of number of incidents, the US has a much bigger problem with far-right terrorism than it does with Muslim radicalization. No, the body count to date is not as high, because 9-11 was such an extraordinary case, but at present the threat from white christian extremists seems much more alarming.
It's clear that there are an awful lot of things that just aren't getting reported back in the States. Liberal media, my ass. The American far-right has become so masterful at pre-emptive accusations that you pretty much have to assume that whatever they say, the truth is exactly the opposite.
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no subject
Date: 2011-03-21 01:52 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-21 01:57 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-21 10:51 pm (UTC)That's not to say UK or Canada (the other English-speaking places I've been to) don't have their own biases and local-only interest, they do...but the scale of it in the US seems more like a sort of propaganda bubble across the board, and a sort of dumbing down - and judging by the interactions I have with those who don't travel, I think it has a real effect on foreign policy and people's ideas of the rest of the world. Really disturbing.
no subject
Date: 2011-03-21 10:59 pm (UTC)*splutters coffee all over keyboard if I was drinking any*
Sorry, that's pure chance. Unless the bombs in London, Warrington, Guildford and Northern Ireland to name a few had little targetting systems that checked people's nationalities before they blew up *eyeroll*.
Separate to the argument of cause/why etc, that statement is total BS...the IRA didn't really care who got killed by those bombs, usually. Which is why I was never a supporter, terrorism is far from democratic, fascist more likely - and random assaults on a population are rarely a war...although I have big sympathies about why, like in South Africa.
no subject
Date: 2011-03-25 12:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 08:45 pm (UTC)