Today's diary is not about energy, but not to worry, you will can your daily dose by reading Chris Kulczycki's
fine diary on electric cars, and look out for
Meteor Blades' soon to come draft of the Energy Contract with America, following on the work we did on earlier diaries.
No, today is pure in-your-face arrogant French Schadenfreude...
Karen Hughes should be French - it would make her job easier
Even in Poland and Britan, for chrissakes!
On world stage, France's role is audience favorite (CSMonitor, September 30)
PARIS - Karen Hughes should be French - it would make her job easier.
As the US undersecretary of State for public diplomacy returns home from her first foreign trip burnishing America's image in the world, she might feel a touch of envy at the glowing international reputation that France enjoys, highlighted in a recent study by the Project on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA).
In the survey of people in 23 countries across the globe, a majority or plurality in 20 described France as exerting a positive influence on world affairs. The US, by comparison, is seen as having a negative impact by majorities in 15 countries.
France's European identity is central to its popularity, suggests Dr. Kull, of PIPA. "France is most associated with the European Union, which has an even more positive rating than France," he says. "The EU is seen as using soft power and diplomacy, drawing other countries towards it, while the US uses more hard power and direct pressure, imposing its will."
Though France is still a medium world power, with a UN Security Council seat, a nuclear weapon and a worldwide network of alliances, says Vedrine, "and though France is often pretentious and grandiloquent, she is not threatening."
The whole article is reasonably balanced, and presents a realistic vision of France (including its role as an arms exporter and its popularity from simply being anti-American). The good news, in a way, is what I have noted in the last paragraph above: France is not threatening.
It's terrible to have to remind Americans, the inventors of soft power, that it works better than hard power, but there is still the hope that your country can still come back to its senses - and that an administration that understands this simple lesson can be voted back into power. I mean, lok at Europe, we are a hopeless mess of argument, bureaucracy, ridiculous military forces and (supposedly) economic stagnation and look at where out soft power is taking us, with all our neighbors begging us to take them in and all the NGOs on the planet looking to Brussels to do something about global problems like warming, pollution and the like.
As you guys here on Kos are the best placed to bring a change to sanity about, I certainly don't want to turn this into a lesson, but just to warn you fairly of one thing:
America is now seen as threatening by a majority of the world. It has loss the trust of most of the planet. True or not, this is a fact. The hooded man of Abu Ghraib has replaced the Statue of Liberty as the symbol of the country, and that will linger for a long while. Trust can be lost rapidly, as Bush has demonstrated to the desperation of the world and of most of you here, but Bush's departure will not be enough to earn it back.
Actions will be needed, that show that America actually cares about the rest of the world, and realises that other countries and peoples have sometimes diverging interests and priorities (even friends) and that these are no less legitimate.
Frankly, for the USA to be appreciated even less than the French means that you have fucked up really badly. And since you don't master the gallic shrug, you need to do something about it. Seriously.
You know there is something not right when the best golfer is black, the best rapper is white, Germany doesn't want to go to war and France accuses America of arrogance