Newsweek is American news for Americans.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Have you read Newsweek? Joel and the rest of his TPJC kakis are made to subscribe to it, so whenever he is done with the editions, he passes them to me.
Man, how they reek of American-biased rhetoric. At least, that is how I interpret it. The best example came in the sept 15th issue, with the article "The top 10 myths about Russia", by Denis Mcshane. I think he sings God Bless America every morning and before he goes to bed.
"Myth 3"
Russia has been humiliated since 1989. In fact, no other former foe of Western Democracy has been so welcomed. Russia has been brought into the G7. The Council of Europe has opened its doors to the Russian Duma even if it refuses to recognise the European Court of Human Rights. Every European city has welcomed Russians.
--> Europe has depended much on Russia for oil as an energy resource. How can they not want to cooperate with the Russians? It's one of the main points that drives their need for alternative energy sources, so that they can also depend less on a seemingly hostile neighbour. Meanwhile, they've got to grin and bear through it, don't they? Also, what the heck does the agreed Missile Defence plan by Poland and America say about European cities welcoming Russia? The warm welcome should be embraced similiarly by Russia, but please ignore those proposed missile defences specifically meant to be trained on Russia?
"Myth 5"
The West has sought to encircle Russia. Can a nation that stretches from Europe to Japan and China be encircled? Russia is the only nation allowed to station antiballistic missile rockets around its capital city. Poland and the Baltic states may not like Russia but are not going to invade.
--> Do we want to talk about technicalities with encircling now? In this day and age, encircling hardly entails physical envelopment of a nation. Besides, who ever said that the West had sought to encircle Russia in the first place? No specific planned trade embargoes, no naval blockades on the drawing board. This is not agreeing with the debunking by Newsweek, however. It's simply showing that American propaganda cooks a myth to debunk itself, in order to show it's not the aggressor.
Also, does Russia have to be ever so grateful to America for agreeing to let it station defences around its capital? This is not even the entire perimeter of the Russian territory, it's just their precious capital! Poland can be allowed, even pushed by America to station missile defences system, but Russia can't protect its own homeland? Lastly, what sort of ridiculous reasoning is "Poland and the Baltic states may not like Russia but are not going to invade." Of course they aren't! There's no need to argue here, it would be insane for them to want to invade! And why was invasion even on the drawing board? There are so many more overt but less aggressive tactics to employ!
"Myth 9"
There is nothing Europe can do. Oh yes, there is. Already parliamentarians on the Council Of Europe have called for Russian membershi to be suspended.
... there will be calls for Russian Duma members to be suspended as long as the Duma stands by its unanimous decision to dismember Georgia
-->Good one. What is being done is entirely rhetoric. Why, this is no more effective from the usual condemnations of presidents on terrorist bombings or neighbouring nations conducting atrocities. Remember reports also mentioned that the EU was unwilling to go ahead with America's push to criticise Russia? They were afraid of their oil and their sovereignty, so all they did was to condemn the invasion. They sure did a fat lot there, they did.
This isn't just one article or one issue. The latest one, issue for Oct 20th, has the heading that reads:
Russia is weaker than it looks, which is why NATO's soft-power can still prevail.Go ahead. Extoll the way European nations whimper when Americans push them to make a strong stand with Russia. Try convincing, too, the heavily overstretched American forces, the bulk of the active reserves for NATO. Is that why they want a soft-power approach?
If you read it, it also describes the might of the USSR back in the Cold War, one that is hardly present today. I think it is only meant to justify the deliberating American attidude at that point of time.
Seriously. I think this is some badly veiled American propaganda when it comes to foreign politics.
posted by joseph at 8:47 AM