Getting the world to like U.S.

we'll eat ourselves to death.

I'll pass on the chicken though for right now.

You would be welcome, if you like, to take on the identity of the prez and pen the entire outbound message yourself.

Hi S.G.,

I'm quoting your open letter.
As in: "We are not interested in hearing about evils of the past but want to move forward."

After I posted, I wondered if you'd take it the wrong way. I should have elaborated a bit. I sure didn't mean to say your idea was ridiculous. To the contrary, I think it's great. What I meant to imply is that we (and for the most part Rep administrations, lately) are forever assuming the big Kings X, you know? A clean slate and no blame no regrets no oops's and most especially, no I'm sorrys. We've done some gosh-awful foreign policy things. We've backed some horrible monsters. We've shunned and insulted our friends. We lay down dire consequences for any who balk at our 'do as we say, not as we do' proclamations. Don't want to have to say you're sorry? Don't do the crime! Play it straight. People don't just forget just because we eat a cracker and take a sip of wine. Whether or not we want to hear it, they're talking about us out there. But then of course, "We are not interested in hearing..." We come off looking like we're only interested in slapping people into line and can't be bothered beyond that.

I think we stand a better chance with a little more listening. It costs nothing and we might gain some useful perspective. When we're wrong, we're wrong and we almost always end up paying for it. Most of the time there's a story to be told on our side of things but we can't tell it if we disallow the conversation to begin. I'm just saying: Buck-up people. Listening doesn't mean you've rolled over and stuck your paws in the air. And it doesn't stop you from taking any actions in the future. It just means that we're a little less likely to keep making the same mistakes over and over again. And the folks who should naturally be on our side won't be so insulted by arrogance that they have to speak kind of quietly and with so many qualifiers.

So anyhow, that's what I find ridiculous and that's my recommendation, Mr. President. Don't add insult to injury by including that line in your letter.

Charge this to my growing senility as, because you did not italicize the line as my quote, I did not recall it as such. My letter from the prez was meant as a possible example and not something I would necessary suggest if being the ghost writer of it. It was deliberately included, however, to attempt to state that there might really be no value in flogging the US for what may have happened....that we would like to get past that and that we would be looking for constructive responses and not just criticism. This was just an exercise that I put myself through after reading many posts here and elsewhere citing the US as creating it's own enemies. I could agree there is value in this thinking but I cannot agree that we can vote this problem away. I would say that attempting such is a copout. The prez (past/present) was not the cause and will not be the cure.

When the Ugly American / Hate America discussion comes up on TV, I keep hearing: "We LIKE the American people. It's your administration and it's foreign policies that we can't stand." I think one of the prime factors in the hatred of America is exactly and precisely that Republican administrations are forever saying: "We are not interested in hearing about evils of the past but want to move forward." . People don't work that way. It's impossible. It's not going to happen. Put the shovel down.

We strengthen our enemies and disarm our allies by refusing to listen and own-up to our past sins. We are going to move forward. . Don't worry about that.