Jonanthan Freedland has an interesting op-ed in today's issue of The Guardian where he spells out just how radical and un-American the war in Iraq and George Bush's rule in general are.
This is not to pretend that there is a single American ideal, still less a single US foreign policy, maintained unbroken since 1776. There are, instead, competing traditions, each able to trace its lineage to the founding of the republic. But what's striking is that George Bush's war on Iraq is at odds with every single one of them.
He goes on to compare the current situation to a previous paralysis of dissent:
The limits of acceptable discussion have narrowed sharply, just as civil liberties have taken a hammering as part of the post-9/11 war on terror. You might fall foul of the Patriot Act, or be denounced for insufficient love of country. There is something McCarthyite about the atmosphere which has spawned this war, making Democrats too fearful to be an opposition worthy of the name and closing down national debate. And things don't get much more un-American than that.
Everything about the presidency of George W. Bush goes against American tradition, starting with the way he was installed in office. I can't wait until the day he's sent back to Crawford, Texas, with his tail between his legs. I hope we survive that long.
Posted at 10:49 AM
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