Daily Show: Three Generations of "America to the Rescue"
By SilentPatriot Wednesday Aug 22, 2007 12:50pm
In perhaps the most brilliant segment on "The Daily Show" I've ever seen, last night Jon ran through the last three decades of United States intervention in the Middle East to show how incoherent, ass-backwards and counter-productive it has been.
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Frist
Sheer genius. Stewart that is, not the carpetbagger in the WH.
Brilliant.
Seemed to pass the crowd by, but I agree, a great skit. Peel away the skin of comedy and it is an indictment on the foreign policy practices of USA.
(disclaimer: i have not watched the clip, but that [hopefully] does not discount the following...)
our involvement in the ME goes back to 1776. it is a long, confusing and contradictory legacy. from anti-zionism to uber-zionism, from hands-off to hand-up-the-ass, and everything in between.
for a great study of this, might i suggest:
Power, Faith, and Fantasy: America in the Middle East: 1776 to the Present
-by michael oren
(on top of the fascinating and important information contained, you get other little interestig tidbits. such as the fact that our statue of liberty was ACTUALLY first created for egypt. and that america's civil war and cotton production had INTENSE implications on egypt and the relationship it had/has w/england)
It's sad that a guy on a comedy station is the best anchor we have. Stewart for life
When Democrats are to the rescue:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-2218Btx3wY
When it's booshco to the rescue:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4H0eSJXmd4
This should be required viewing for all those who still support the Bush agenda. Of course, they will not comprehend it at all, and will stubbornly insist that whatever the U.S. does in the middle east is ordained by God, Almighty.
I've been waiting for you guys to post this today! Watching it last night, I said the exact same thing: THE most brilliant segment-- perhaps of a comedic, political, and pointed nature-- EVER. I know that this is one bit Fox News will NEVER talk about on air--they don't want any Americans to ever know that the war-mongering, money-throwing, underhanded scheming that the Republican Party calls its "foreign agenda" can be as direct a cause of our own suffering (terrorism) as well as the REASON that the nations we go to war to "free" are in peril to begin with! Absolutely BRILLIANT.
This should be required viewing--what a funny way to look at such serious behavior.
So ON THE $ ... War is for the War profiteers. Period.
Those of us who said five years ago what Stewart is saying today were called conspiracy theorists, if I remember correctly. I know I was.
One thing is certain. If the economy comes apart before Bush Co leaves office. And it's looking pretty damn shaky. The jig is up for The Bush Cabal. The long Bush jig is up.
And people want to continue the "C" in B-C-B- ???
hareli @ 12:
Moi aussi
Your average ditto-head doesn't want to hear history lessons. It's easier just to say they hate us for our freedom. If you can figure out a way to condense decades of history into a catch phrase that fits on a bumper sticker, people might get it.
Best and most entertaining history lesson I have ever seen. Clean up a bit of the language and show it on regular tv.
Goddamn, that was awesome.
BlueKnuckle @ 16:
Exactly...and sooner or later I will be able to remove this hat of tinfoil regarding BushCo's involvement with 9-11.
Fascinating...
look at the way the weapons merchants keep making thier cash... both coming and going... and who suffers? all the poor people caught in the crossfire...
sure wish there was some kind of international body... you know, representatives from all the different countries... that could promote peaceful discussion and settlements of centuries-old disputes... we could call it something like... I dunno... the united nations?... just a suggestion...
ROTFLMAO!!
That is too funny.
Watched it last night. F'ing amazing. It's funny, profound, striking and exceptional all at the same time. It is by far one of their best reports. This is proof that the folks at The Daily show can mix in real world Foriegn Policy and comedy in one and come out with something that shadows actual journalism.
Space Coyote said" Your average ditto-head doesn't want to hear history lessons. It's easier just to say they hate us for our freedom. If you can figure out a way to condense decades of history into a catch phrase that fits on a bumper sticker, people might get it."
What an inditement of the US population this is. True but sad commentary of a nation.
This was a great skit, and would even make for great comedy, if it weren't so,sadly, true. American taxpayers have unknowingly financed this series of regimes to carry on these conflicts that we give lip service to ending. Our forefathers would be soooo proud.
I got goosebumps watching that last night. That clip alone should win an emmy.
JS is the best journalist we've got.
The MSM are unable and unwilling to put any perspective on anything because they try to maintain an aura of impartiality (except fox). As a result they never say anything.
They're not even good at reporting facts. It's pathetic.
As for the audience not getting it, I think it was more that they were in tears. Yes, the segment was funny, but ouch.
BlueKnuckle @ 16:
I think many here have been in the know for at least that long
I saw this; it was absolutely brilliant. Jon Stewart and TDS does it again! You'll never hear the msm talk about the relationship between the American CIA and various ME dictators who hate us for our freedom
Someone could watch the evening news for a dozen years and not learn as much about the Middle East as they could from this two minute clip.
jones @ 28:
It was pretty evident on 9/11 that some part of our foreign policy may not have been working properly.
might be the best daily show clip i've seen! He's really getting it right here....
For decades American foreign policy has consisted of military bases around the world, "foreign aid" to prop up nasty dictators, and of course - assassinations, coups and wars...
It doesn't work. period. We need to end this insane policy of being world police, before it ends us.
That's my rant. Read on if you'd like:
"Can America Bring Peace to the World?"
http://www.populistamerica.com/can_america_bring_peace_to_the_world
Brilliant!! Summing up our foreign policy in a couple minutes, now if we could just get Chomsky, Zinn, etc. to do the same maybe the corporate news would interview them for once....Ahhh wishful thinking.....
He forgot Iran. Yes their nuclear program was started by the the U.S.
[Deleted. Off topic]
Love Jon Stewart.
Love Jon Stewart.
Love Jon Stewart.
I can't say it enough. Does he write his own material? Does he put together these bits? He's amazing. Why re these tings so clear to him and those who watch his program and not to MSM? Why do they just buy the bushco. crap?
Why? Why does the stupid sh*t get through to the knuckle-draggers, but the sensible stuff doesn't?
Wake up, America!
"...comin' again to save the mother f#*k'n day yeah!"
Not only did he forget to mention our support of Iran's nuclear program, he forgot to mention specifically Iran-Contra, which for all you youngsters, was when we sold arms to Iran at the same time we were supporting Saddam in the '80's. And oh, yes, Dick Cheney's Halliburton doing business with Iran right up to 1998 or 1999 or thereabouts.
Jon Stewart for pres...
[Deleted. Off topic]
[Deleted. Off topic]
50 years of trying to achieve peace by brute force the lesson of history seems to be if at first you dont succeed use a bigger stick
I must admit I didn't get the "midnight basketball" thing, but everything before it was brilliant!
Propacis,
And then we could go a little further back to the past in Iran -- say 1953 -- when the CIA helped to overthrow the democratically elected government of Iran. I don't know about since 1776, but the U.S. has taken over from the British for quite a while now, screwing things up in the Middle East.
15 BlueKnuckle Says:
hareli @ 12:
Those of us who said five years ago what Stewart is saying today were called conspiracy theorists, if I remember correctly. I know I was.
Moi aussi
_________________________________________________________________
Is that an Australian trying to talk French?
This dude is funny.I think when you can laugh at how absord these repubs are about ragen and bush it makes you want to just hit them with a history book.Why is there no one talking about when clinton was in office how the econmy was booming, war was almost no where around and overall the country was at a pretty good place.Sorry I forgot about the repub blowing up our kids and family in ok.
And he left out
• our engineering of the overthrow of Mossadegh that gave us the Shah in place of a secular left democratic government that wanted to nationalize the oil assets;
• our support for Saddam and the Baathists as a counterweight to more left parties in Iraq;
• our support for Iraq's attack on Iran (mentioned in passing);
• our support for both Israel's and Syria's invasions of Lebanon;
• our support for just about anything that Labor or Likud or Kadima does vis-a-vis the Palestinians . . . .
This sort of brilliant statesmanship, in which the sure hands at State (and the CIA and the DOD) cleverly outwit those Middle Easterners, has been described, in a related context (Israel's tacit support of Hamas as a counterweight to the PLO in the 1980's), as "like a guy who sets fire to his hair and then tries to put it out by hitting it with a hammer." -- Larry Johnson, Deputy Director of the U.S. State Department’s Office of Counter Terrorism, 1989 - 1993, quoted at http://lawrenceofcyberia.blogs.com/news/2004/09/careful_what_yo_1.html
Covering those additional issues might take a little more time. Maybe Katie Couric will tackle it.
Just knew this would be on C&L. Seriously one of the best segments I've seen on The Daily Show.
whatsthe worry here ? 30 billion here 30 billion there, hey its only paper right? its not like thiers any gold backing it up,
Those of us who said five years ago what Stewart is saying today were called conspiracy theorists, if I remember correctly. I know I was.
Moi aussi
Exactly…and sooner or later I will be able to remove this hat of tinfoil regarding BushCo’s involvement with 9-11.
-----------
Let's hope it's sooner...say,tomorrow.
A more detailed but much less comedic summary: http://www.juancole.com/2005/08/fisking-war-on-terror-once-upon-time.html
Am I now barred from commenting? I pointed out that Jon Stewart missed the fact that we armed Iran in the first place during the Shah's regime.
What is off topic about that?
I also block quoted someone who was not deleted.
[...] Stewart and The Daily Show look at three decades of United States intervention in the Middle East. Filed under Asides. | var blogTool = "WordPress"; var [...]
We need a constitutional amendment making it illegal to sell arms to ANYONE. Oh, sorry, i forgot it's just a gawddamn piece of paper. Nevermind.
I've said it before and I'll say it again, Jon Stewart is the Walter Cronkite of our generation.
[...] think I’ll leave it to the other blogs to post clips from the Daily Show, but this one is amazing. Jon lays out our history in the middle easy a little bit. I wish he would have gone back to the [...]
[...] Best Daily Show clip EVER entitled Three Generations of “America to the Rescue” [...]
propacis @ 37:
It gets better than that, North Korea obtained its nuclear reactors mostly through ABB engineering. A giant swiss energy/engineering firm which had as a member of its board of directors a Mr. Ronald Rumsfeld.
They get money creating the mess, and they get even more money cleaning it up. I mean if that is not the definition of win-win, I dunno what it is.
War is a racket.
They should have taken it one more step back to the Shaw of Iran
Major General Smedley Butler @ 58:
I know it's giving me a headache.
If I had no morals and wanted to make the most of my 401k, I would invest in corporations that manufacture weapons. This is the primary export of USofA. The country that i love is in the business of killing for profit. To be American and not feel that the blood is on our hands is pure denial. The more exposure that we can do the better chance we have of turning this around, but how do you appeal to the same people that have invested in Haliburton for their retirement.
Henry @ 46:
Don't forget our merry two century long tradition of f*cking up every country and fledging democracy south of the Border. This is our hemisphere, god damn it... manifest destiny bitches.
The greatest blow back has been Castro, you know the terrible guy that made the puppet regime we installed, after we kicked them Spaniards out of hemisphere, look good. Who would have thought it, Cubans did not enjoy being a banana republic under our thumb so that they could provide cheap entertainment to fat sweaty American mafia pigs. The gall of these people! I know, let's starve to death... you know, it is for their own good really. Tough love, American style.
We sure can dish it out, but when I saw our country collectivelly crying like scared little bitches when they knocked off them towers it was blatantly obvious to the rest of the world that we couldn't take it.
Kudos to Jon Stewart and the Daily Show team.
And here I was, worried that the Daily Show might lose its edge after Karlin left. Once again, Stewart and company manage to distill 2000 dry pages of Noam Chomsky into a digestable and funny piece that is both bleak and hilarious, and the most important comedy news program....ever!.
Two words for you, Ku-dos.
Paul.
That was great and I agree it had to be the best segment he's ever done.
How many Frenemies do we have now?
MeMyselfAndI @ 62:
Say What?!
It was truly a brillian piece, but not for the simplistic reasons that a lot of commentors cite.
I didn't look at it as a simple bashing of the Bush Iraq policy, but as an illustration that our policies in the Middle East are complex, and always have been so, not least because we react differently in different time periods, which affects our future relations with each player. Bashing the Iraq War is easy on its own "merits", you don't need to drag in our whole history in the Middle East. But other aspects and effects do need to be watched.
Supporting UBL against Russia in 1980 made some kind of sense, and supporting Saddam against the Ayatollah in the lat 1980s, in that we were still fighting proxy wars with the USSR. We then have to deal with the public-relations nightmare created by our support of X power, then sudden withdrawal, that creates resentment (see, e.g., Eric Hoffer on the True Believer to gain some insight into mass psychology - when conditions change, especially a bit for the better or a bit for the worse, that foments revolts)
[...] From Crooks and Liars [...]
Thanbo @ 67:
You can't have it both ways. You can't respect and ignore history simultaneously. Stewart's point is entirely appropriate. The U.S. has a several decades long history of giving guns to different sides and warring factions . . . then we're shocked when they're firing at us ten years later.
It's a valid historical point, plain and simple. Of course, you have to draw in our "complex" history with the Middle East as a whole. Blowback is very relevant. 40% of Americans STILL think that Iraq and Saddam masterminded 9/11.
Hooray to the Daily Show.
the military industrial omplex help put these tyrants in power, fund extremists, arm tyrants and then make money out of send US troops over to fight there puppet tyrants.
war is a racket.
This article I saw on yahoo news yesterday ties into the foreign policy experience argument Jon presents. NOW that things are well and truly FUBAR, Sec. Rice is replacing some of the idiots with people who actually know what they are doing.
more here http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070822/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_diplomatic_push
andy @ 70:
There's still a Commander-in-Chief and a Congress. These elected officials have a different job description from the CEOs of weapons manufacturing corporations. They need to be held to it. There will always be war racketeers, and they should always be prosecuted. Don't replace justice with an assumption of Standard Operating Procedure.
[...] completely with SilentPatriot, I believe this is the Best Stewart Segment [...]
Congress has the power to end this non-sense. It refuses.
Aperturius @ 42:
It was one of the "Thousand Points of Light"; #863, if I recall correctly.
The sequence was definitely one of the best ever. He missed one little point, though. If you look at the text of the NYT article on the $30B aid to Israel, it says "administration officials admitted that the package would help them get approval for the sale to Saudi Arabia of $20B in weaponry" or words to that effect. So - the USA gives country A $30B to help Boeing et al to get $20B in sales to country B. Brilliant.
But, the Obama interview in the next segment was as sycophantic as Neil Caputo's interview of W that Jon made so much fun of. It's a good thing that Fox show is dead or they would have had some material to throw back at him.
Dan @ 20:
Actually we went into the Iraq War under U.N. resolutions and not by vote of Congress. Totally illegal btw, we should be a sovereign nation and not a servant of Israel.
This sh*t is hillarious. This is GOD speaking.
So in a sense all the current middle east problems started with the iran-iraq war, which in effect means that it started with the cold war, which also implies it all srated by the first world war which in the end puts all the faults on Gavrilo Princip...
Daaamn yooou Gavriloooooo
There is a reason why within the Carlyle Group or as they like to call themselves "THE COLLECTIVE, War is defined as "URBAN RENEWAL".
Getting paid to blow things up and getting paid to build them.
It is not about who wins or loses, the money is in the game.
The banks are behind all of this mess.
Remember, nothing moves before money moves first.
- JJ
Jon Stewart is a patriot and a funny one at that ;).
OMFG! That was brilliant, andextremely well delivered and put together!
The emmy goes to.....
GeneralInsurance @ 36:
".......so lick my butt and suck on my balls!..."
AH, YES!!
Man, that was AWESOME.
It literally sent me to the floor laughing!
Except that our involvement with the middle east goes back to the time of Jefferson.....shores of Tripoli and all.....learn some history.......its just a freaking comedy show.
"Those who refuse to learn from the mistakes of the past are condemned to repeat them."
- George Santayana
Barack Obama was the guest in the next segment of that show and made the "foreign policy experience" point very well by saying, "No had a longer longer resume than Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfield and look how well that worked out for us."
Having served in the military during all the proceeding times JS was so comically highlighting, it is hard to believe that I and others were continually scratching our heads ore: things that were done and with whom it was being done with/for/to/etc WHILE IT WAS GOING ON. To see it capsulized like that, while delivered in "perfect comedy", leaves me deeply sad once again.
Thanbo @ 67:
I'm going to attempt to blow a hole in your theory: The only way supporting these various groups/countries over the years could possibly "make sense" is if you buy into the propaganda we've been sold and the priorities our leaders were setting at the time (and are setting now).
There are a lot of complex political regions in the world. Why does it "make sense" for us to send money and arms to them?
I can answer that simply:
It's not because we're afraid the Reds are going to turn our babies into atheists.
It's not because the Axis of Evil is going to band together to rule the world.
It's not because the terrorists are going to attack our local grocery store.
Because powerful interests want to control resources and markets, and there are huge profits in weapons. Whether they're driven by pure greed or by the "need" to keep our economy growing and stockholders happy.
These priorities have become more important than our own peace and security. To the point where propaganda must be created to convince Americans to hand over their wallets.
Nothing short of genius. Everything else has been said. I just wanted to put my vote in for the funniest and sharpest segment on ANY news station.
[...] read more | digg story Posted by distroid Filed in Uncategorized [...]
Here is the YouTube Link for people who loathe Windows Media format (and can't view Quicktime):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8maMmj5u58
Larry @ 43:
Thanks for mentioning this. It has a lot to do with why we're hated in the ME.
[...] Exhibit 1 [...]
And Fox wanted to actually challenge the Daily Show...? The sorry assholes who made "Half Hour News Hour" wouldn't even understand something like that. Not after ten times viewing it.
Just fabulous.
[...] East knows that our track record isn’t all that great. Crooks and Liars has a clip from The Daily Show: Three Generations of “America to the Rescue”. A clever quote: Oh, $20 Billion Dollars - is there any problem you can’t [...]
show me the oil
oh and the Shah, too
Funny. Very funny. Unfortunately it wasn't laughing funny. It was sad, pathetic funny. I'm moving.
"In the court of the king, only the jester can speak the truth"
Bar none, best Daily Show segment of '07, if not of all time!
English @ 77:
What do you mean? The Congress voted to authorize the use of military force in Iraq after Powell's pathetically unconvincing fairy tale failed to impress the Security Council. When America formed the Coalition of the Willing, no UN resolution was in place to authorize its or any other country's invasion of Iraq.
This piece of work was brillance at the least. So poignant and precise it was, it made me sick to think...how could my country betray so many mothers and fathers into sacrificing their kids by supporting such lies. And all for DEMOCRACY. Thay word is starting to ring hollow these days.
I guess I'm never gonna get an explanation or an apology from Sitemon.
We finally get the underlying truth: Ronald Reagan caused 9/11.
Reagan gave Saddam arms to fight Iran. Saddam used those arms to threaten Saudi Arabia. Reagan put US troops in Saudi Arabia. Osama Bin Laden declares war against US for having troops in Saudi Arabia. Remember, "A Full 20% of the 9/11 hijackers were not from Saudi Arabia"
[...] Since I ain’t got no cable, I’ve been getting my fix of The Daily Show via iTunes and Crooks and Liars. Anyway, last night was one of the most brilliant segments I’ve ever seen on the show. Watch the video via Crooks and Liars [...]
Michael Boldin @ 31:
All of that is why we were attacked on 9/11, as any informed person knows. The "they hate us for our freedom" crowd has no knowledge of history or world affairs before then, so they believe the first thing they're told.
"Son of a bitch! What the fuck!" It'd be funnier if it wasn't so true. AND...
Does it make anyone else sick the way they're advertising/recruiting for the Army etc. Nothing against the military at all. I know we need a strong military but the whole "Do it for your country" thing makes me sick these days. Cue patriotic music...MORE horns please! I think that used to mean something long ago. You can have the most patriotic well trained country loving soldiers in the world, but if they are sent into wars by complete morons who are really only interested in creating more wars so they can profit even more off these brave soldiers. Well then they really don't "support the troops" at all do they? They use them and their love for their country like they're not even human beings. Like they aren't leaving behind grieving parents, children, wives and husbands, friends and companions (yes companions). "Hey, you love your country don't you, defend it, and we'll sit back and act like we support you." They don't care, the warmongers that is. There is so much red tape and neglect in the this country for the returning troops that it makes me physically ill to hear politicians criticize anti-war people as not supporting the troops.
"Vote for me, I'll set you free!"
What a sad day for America that now only the court jester can tell the truth.
[...] America To The Rescue! [...]
Only Ron Paul seems to understand what Jon Stewart is talking about and offer a way out.
Sounds to me like all these people sayung all these things must of been draft dodgers.
HOLY SHIITE JOHN YOU NAILED THAT ONE!
BEST OF A LONG HISTORY OF NUT SMASHING.
BILLO IS AGAIN "IRREGULAR."
SPLAT, SPLAT, THE WATER RAT !!
Congressman Ron Paul's call for change in our foreign policy makes a whole lot of sense, don't you agree?
[...] and Liars shows a really nice spot form the Daily Show about the proliferation of weapons by the [...]
[Deleted. Off topic]
"...this move may intimidate our circumcised friends to the west." This is somewhat inaccurate. All Muslims as well as Jews are supposed to be circumcised. An uncircumcised male in the Middle East is almost always a Christian. Just a little fact. ;-p
The Reality @ 34:
Why?
[...] -I haven’t had a chance to watch this yet, but then, come on, when is Jon Stewart not funny? [...]
[...] that’s worked out real well for us hasn’t it? As usual here’s the video, courtisy of the team at Crooks and [...]
Cabby @ 111:
That's why a major sponser for FAUX is ExLax.
TheMattressMan @ 4:
If you're referring to the end bit where it seemed like there was no reaction, I think it's because the truth left the audience in shock. Showing how the government has spent 30 years trying to fix the middle east ("America to the Rescue"), but when it came down to helping itself, there was no America to the Rescue. So much was said with so few words. Even though it was a comedy skit, it's one of the finest pieces of journalism out there. Iraq would never have happened if MSM was pointing these things out.
Comic relief is a necessity when the situation is so serious!
Wow. Ben already linked it @50, but Juan Cole did a post recapping this, and more - but Stewart covers some really complex and important territory in short time and is funny, to boot!
Dr. Acula @ 2:
Yup. Ron Paul is really the only candidate running that wants to completely reverse our foreign policy.
We have a much better shot of him getting the Republican nomination then worrying about which brand of anti-Bush but still pro interventionist foreign policy on the democrat side is better, so register Republican and vote in the Republican Primery for Ron PAul.
Tracy
Yep, when Ron Paul say this, he's a wacko, but it's funny coming from Stewart. Don't think the Dems are gonna do anything different.
John Stewart has touched upon the truth.
What isn't talked about is the fact that War is profitable and the mainstream media makes money off the war, which is why there is not much serious opposition to it on the MSM news. It's also why there are propaganda artists, and even entire "news" organizations whose sole job is to promote war full time. Money, power, and profit are the primary considerations, not democracy, "terrorism", or freedom. If you want to really know what is going on in the world today, take the time research a little deeper into who is really funding Al Qaeda. I'll give you a hint: it's not Iraq. The answer is in this comedy sketch.
[...] Daily Show: Three Generations of “America to the Rescue” (You have to click the links on the page to view or download the video [...]
An absolutely incredible recap of a foreign policy gone horribly wrong... right from the beginning. Thanks TDS and Jon for putting it in such a coherent and cohesive way. You... each and every one of you... are heroes!
That was genius!!!!! You can't get any better than this!!!!!
Ron Paul has been saying the same thing for a long time; however, because he makes sense, is logical and for the American public, he's virtually dismissed.
Very funny, good piece. Elite war planners have been doing this a long time and it just keeps getting more outrageous that people keep falling for it and thinking that voting for someone different will actually make a difference:
http://www.strike-the-root.com/61/davis/davis3.html
Stop supporting the corporate-state system and free your mind. Flipping the Democrat/Republican coin every couple of years doesn't change the system, it supports it.
[...] Three Generations of “America to the Rescue” The fabulous Jon Stewart takes us through America’s foreign policy contributions to the Middle East. (tags: Middle_East Iraq Iran Saudi_Arabia war Jon_Stewart) [...]
[...] From crooksandliars.com [...]
[...] (Source). [...]
A lot of people forget middle eastern militaries run on 7.62mm rounds, not found in American produced military weapons.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arms_sales_to_Iraq
Saddly enough, large weapons dealers in America have to compete with a free market where Russia and China are strong in producing and distributing cheap weapons. Runner ups are France, Briton and Israel. Of course, we are the king, we produce so much new stuff for ourselves and dump our old on the market.
Most Americans agree Iraq was foolish endeavor. But the No 1,2 and 3 weapon dealers to the region were the first to beat their chests and flood America with misinformation. Russia, China and France were filling their coffers on the blood of the middle east no less than US, the mullahs, fascist dictators and regional gorillas.
Otherwise, John Stewart is funny as usual. I would say we shouldn't help anyone with anything: military weapons, tech, commodities, medicine or food. Somehow somebody can turn it into a scam to ripoff the well intended and slaughter innocents.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil-for-food
Well I guess Japan, 3/4th of Germany and half of Korea were done right in the end...
Chronology of US in Middle East since 1951 by Jacob Hornberger
http://www.fff.org/comment/com0212i.asp
[US should be a] sovereign nation, not a servant of Israel.
Riight. Israel did the US' dirty work in the 1956 Sinai war, and got nothing for its trouble. Israel again did the same in 1967, and had to give away the Sinai again.
In 1986 Israel again does what the US doesn't want to be seen doing, and destroys the Osirak reactor. Saddam never got nukes? Thank Israel.
Israel is attacked by Saddam in 1991, missiles raining down every day. Israel survives largely by its reputation as the best military in the region. But they have to sit and take it because the US refuses to give them transponder codes, to allow them to participate in air raids and not get shot down by US forces as "unidentified aircraft, potentially hostile." What does Israel get in return? A smear campaign by "one lonely guy" Bush and "F-- the Jews, they didn't vote for us anyway" Baker his Secretary of State, over the loan guarantees. Not a gift of $10B, not a loan of $10B, but a $300M deposit on a loan as a cosigner, for a nation that has NEVER defaulted on its loans (unlike say, Egypt, which has defaulted on loans to the tune of several billion American dollars).
Servant of Israel? Israel is the US' vassal. Truman recognized the State of Israel in 1948, the US continues to sell them arms and parts and ammunition, and requires certain...services in return. That's how international politics is done - the big dogs require the little dogs to render unto Caesar. Feudalism worked the same way - the lord protects the tenants from enemies, in return for a large share of the crops.
Bush II, much as I may despise a lot of what he does, has been quite laissez-faire on Israel, which has been a big relief in many ways.
No, it didn't. The Afghnai regime was theoretically socialist/communist but in reality, in practice, the regime was one step forward for Afghanistan, from the Middle Ages, to something like the 19th century. Americans helped suppress the secular, idealistic efforts of the educated young men and women to enlighten the Afghanis. Americans armed and suported the backward islamic fundamentalists to "eliminate" =(kill) the teachers in every village, who were not teaching the quran or held "mixed" classes. In the process, Americans created bin Laden and al Qaeda. The Soviets' only interest at the time was to suppress what they feared the most, i.e. a Muslim fundamelist insurrection in the Causasians regions of their empire. Idiotically, the US helped bring about exactly that!
Why would you think that the USSR supported Iran? The Iraq-Iran War had little to do directly with the two superpowers' confrontation. That was the US pitting its ex-clinet, Saddam Hussein, against the Iranian uppity clerics who dared overthrow that other ex-clinet, the Shah of Iran. Yes, it all comes down to petroleum. The US is extremely dependent on it. Controlling a prime strateghic commodity such as petroleum is also of primary concenr for a superpower.
In conclusion, there's little "complex" about these things, when we come to the basics. And there's no need to belittle the people's understanding for what goes on. The United States is the most destabilizing factor in the world today. And it has been that way for decades....
thanbo @ 135:
I'm sorry but this is incorrect. In 1956, Israel joined the Anglo-French adhoc alliance which attacked Egypt. The British and the French were after the Suez Canal, a piece of Egyptian land, that the uppity Egyptians (horror of horrors!) claimed back as their own. Israel, on the other hand, joined in the fun in order to help destabilize and weaken Egypt, the country which Israel rightly considered as the most fersome militarily among the Arab "front-line states".
The Eisenhower administration was not consulted by London, Paris or Tel Aviv about that. Being the new Godfather of the block, the US did not want without its acquiesence, a Suez adventure that would change the balance of power in the Middle East. And pulled the plug under it. That was the last time, by the way, that Washington did not do the bidding of Israel -- and I challenge anyone to dhow otherwise.
Excuse me, but what sort of "America's dirty work" was the Six Day War?? Israel pre-emptively attacked Egyp and Syria not to do "America's dirty work" but to accomplish, as it did, its own strategic objectives, i.e. to neutralize its mightiest Arab foes, to inflict a heavy prychological blow to all adversaries, to gain the land of Greater Israel, to create a buffer between Israel & Egypt (that could be negotiated away later on in exchange for peace -- as it did), etc.
The United States' strategic interests have always been with the side that has the petroleum. There is practially zero strategic interest for the United States to be supportive of Israel, a state directly antagonistic to the side that possesses said commodity.
That reactor was constructed with the aid of western nations, such as France. The United States was only mildly protesting the existence of said reactor. Can you guess why? Yrs, because Saddam Hussein was alright in Washington's eyes! He had helped "eliminate" the West's most vicious enemies (the secular Left!) in a series of bloodbaths.
Whoa. Israel complaining about the inadequacy of American help is ....rich.
Baker might or might not have said that. The fact of the matter is that Bush Sr did not get the Jewish-American vote, precisely on account of his intentions to apply some moderate pressure on Israel in order to achieve an accomodation between Israel and the Palestinians. An anathema in the eyes of Israeli leadership, and the AIPAC.
As to what the United States has provided Israel with, here's a partial list:
-- Only with billions of dollars of military aid, in material, training and designs. (The biggest aid package has just been announced; it will run in the tens of billions.) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel-United_States_military_relations
-- Only with unqualified military aid, when the need arose, e.g. Yom Kippur War.
-- Only with a veto every time Israel is threatened with censure at the UN Security Council, e.g. when Israel rocketed an empty beach in Gaza and killed a whole family except for the little daughter who went mad.
-- Only with the most one-sided political support ever for another country, in the Middle East conflict, in direct opposition to the US' own interests.
Can you google "Jonathan Pollard" to see what Israel paid back the US with? Can you even google "U.S.S. Liberty" to see how Israel assassinated U.S. servicemen?
Yeah, Bush had a "ROAD MAP" prepared, for those who remember it; a piece of paper that God Almighty Himself ordered him to produce, as Dubya stated when he met with Palestinian leaders. That ROAD MAP was discarded to the trash bin as soon as Ariel Sharon read it. "Palestinian state"?? Never happen.
[...] rendition of our foreign policy faux pas' of the past in regard to arming our future enemies: Crooks and Liars
[...] The best Daily Show so far? [...]
Bravo, Team Stewart. This man is becoming a serious force to be reckoned with: Stewart has slain his dragons and become the man he was destined to be.
Yes, Wake Up America, indeed! Can we strap 'em in and make them learn critical thinking skills, the scientific method, the essence of the constitution, and the general lessons of history?
The problem is America is seen as the dumb, big, testosterone-fueled bully by the world. How true is this view?
Well, at least somebody has the gutts to come out and tell the truth. Well done John and Co. It's lonely out there but it's worth a fight for the truth
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