Originally posted by Belaja smert:
Gentlemen,
Although I agree that Chris was just trying to piss off the Americans reading this forum, this kind of slander is not acceptable.
I for one come from a country that has never been and will never be one of these "major" powers. My country has had its share of "friendly" nearby superpowers. As history shows superpowers have always exploited smaller or poorer countries, throughout history. Or maybe this is just a leftist student from Europe rambling? 
Remember that history is written all the time...
But I digress. Fabs, I know you feel that you have to defend your own country, I'd do the same, but those kind of comments are simply wrong.
Sic transit gloria mundi,
Belaja smert
Hi, Belaja smert!
Actually, I was not defending my country at all.
I was born in Lugano, Switzerland. My father is from Lugano and my mother is Spanish. I have served my time in the Swiss Army twentyfive years ago, and moved to England where I've been living and working for most of my adult life.
What does that make me?
I assume that you are from Finland, a country that has earned my undying respect because of the brilliant way in which it stood up to the Soviet Union.
I understand your comments about superpowers from your perspective.
I would argue that America has been a unique example of a superpower in many ways.
Especially since the collapse of the Soviet Union, very few if any examples can be found in history of a power with such a dominant global position.
What is special about America is that while it will always act according to its national interests (and why not?) it will normally try to be a force for good and progress, albeit in a slightly naive way at times.
You will find that mostly American involvement in any region of the world in the last century has put back as much if not more than what it has taken out, with few exceptions.
Their brashness and the uniqueness of their position may be envied and resented, but if one looks at things with a detached historical perspective one must agree that their behavior has been unmatched by other previous and recent "superpowers".
As for your criticism of my comments I assume you were getting at the "European left wing student" thing.
I grew up among quite a few of these burgeois "revolutionaries" and the sort of comments that Chris made were their routine "mantras".
They conveniently ignored the fact that their freedom to make such comments had been bought with an important contribution in American blood, and that it was American economic aid that started Europe back from the depths of despair prevalent at the end of the war.
Thankfully, we will never know what would have happened if the strong socialist/communist current that was prevalent in most European countries from the war until the early eighties would have won the political argument.
I am not saying that he is left wing, I assume that he is a student because it says so in his details.
If my comments were too harsh, I apologize to the other members of this forum. I will not apologize to Chris because I mean what I said, and if he was going to express such an opinion he could have chosen better words in both postings.
I also believe that other members have used somewhat more direct language, for which I have some sympathy.
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Fabs
