Eugene Robinson: Exceptional, You Bet

[babylonsister]

http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/exceptional_you_bet_20130913/

Exceptional, You Bet
Posted on Sep 13, 2013

By Eugene Robinson

snip//

So when Putin tries to lecture “the American people and their political leaders” from a position of moral superiority, no one on earth can take him seriously. And as for Syria, the sinister and barbarous government of dictator Bashar al-Assad would not last one week without the military hardware that Russia generously provides. Putin thus has the blood of tens of thousands of innocent civilians on his hands.

snip//

It is an article of faith among Obama’s critics that he believes the United States is just a regular country, no better or worse than others, and that, accordingly, he seeks to abdicate any leadership role in the world. Where do these critics get such an idea? From their own fevered imaginations, mostly.

What is supposed to be the smoking-gun quote came in 2009, when Obama, responding to a question during an overseas trip, said the following: “I believe in American exceptionalism, just as I suspect that the Brits believe in British exceptionalism and the Greeks believe in Greek exceptionalism.” Aha, said the critics, he believes we’re just like post-empire Britain and bankrupt Greece.

But if you read the rest of the quote, the president was clearly saying that most people around the world have national pride—but the United States, in his view, is indeed unique.

He spoke of unmatched U.S. economic and military power. He said he was “enormously proud of my country and its role and history in the world.” And he added that “we have a core set of values that are enshrined in our Constitution, in our body of law, in our democratic practices, in our belief in free speech and equality, that, though imperfect, are exceptional.”

snip//

To me, the concept of exceptionalism underpins Obama’s strongest argument for taking military action in Syria. When we see more than 1,400 men, women and children killed with poison gas, it is not our nature to look away. We ask ourselves whether there is anything we should do. We weigh the costs and benefits, the risks and rewards, and we do what we can. The moral case for a strike against the Assad regime is predicated on the fact that if the United States doesn’t do something, nobody will.

Yes, Mr. Putin, you can call that American exceptionalism. I like it a lot better than the Russian kind.

[Katashi_itto]

1. Are we talking about the Syria, the sinister and barbarous government or the

Syria, the sinister and barbarous rebels? The civilians are just collateral damage here.

[dkf]

2. If American exceptionalism means continual threats from us and wars I'd rather be like Canada.

Screw that.

[treestar]

3. OK

Can they defend themselves on their own?

With no help from us. None whatsoever.

[dkf]

5. Why do they need to? Who wants to kill Canadians?

[treestar]

7. If they were known to be defenseless

There would be some country willing to go after them.

See the history of the entire planet.

[Guy Whitey Corngood]

22. Please tell us more about this history thing. You seem to know so much

about it.

[Cali_Democrat]

9. Are you still opposed to the ground zero mosque being built?

[Pretzel_Warrior]

12. Ooooh. Interesting factoid.

[dkf]

14. If they think that is good PR for Muslims so be it.

Personally I think it's self defeating but it's not my call.

Frankly I'm beginning to see the argument that we take Muslim's lives much too lightly, constantly involved in killing people who aren't white.

How the hell do we morally justify killing innocent Syrians to punish Assad? It's sick.

[Cali_Democrat]

17. You were pretty wound up about it and you felt it was an insult to the victims of 9/11

If you want me to dig in the archives, I can. But I suspect you remember what you said.

Do you still feel that way?

[dkf]

21. They felt it was an insult to them and I respect that.

If glbts feel its an insult to be called certain things I respect that. If AAs feel its an insult to be called a word I respect that. If people who have special needs feel hurt when they are called something I respect that.

My philosophy is don't intrude on the things that hurt people. The mosque community may have had good intentions but they were hurting the families of people that died in 9/11. That bothers me.

Why can't all communities be sensitive to each other, especially when it comes to their worst hurts?

[Barack_America]

4. As always, thank you, Eugene Robinson.

That last paragraph summarizes perfectly my position on this entire matter.

[Scurrilous]

6. K & R

[Skittles]

8. I'm a huge Eugene Robinson fan

yes INDEED

[Doctor_J]

10. While Putin lecturing is comically ironic, his assessment was correct on many points

We are a fading anachronism, headed for the museums. And this quote by the president

“we have a core set of values that are enshrined in our Constitution, in our body of law, in our democratic practices, in our belief in free speech and equality, that, though imperfect, are exceptional.”

Is also quite ironic considering where we stand compared to the civilized work on things like safety, education, and health care.

[Pretzel_Warrior]

15. It's never unfashionable to denigrate the U.S. with hyperbole

[Doctor_J]

16. It's always unfashionable to point out the truth about our collapse over the last 30 years

We like to threaten and some times annihilate places like Grenada, Iraq, and Syria periodically since our military might is the only thing that is still world-class

[Pretzel_Warrior]

18. Tell that to our tech sector which is still leading the field

[warrior1]

11. rec

[n2doc]

13. "it is not our nature to look away."

No, it's our nature to meddle, bomb and kill. By the way, I wonder if Eugene ever thinks about what we did to Iraq. For example, today alone over 33 were killed in sectarian violence.

http://bigstory.ap.org/article/iraq-officials-bombing-inside-mosque-kills-28


We really left things in great shape there, didn't we? And we sure aren't "looking away" as thousands more die in the failed nation that used to be Iraq. Or are we?

[Doctor_J]

19. I am pretty sure Eugene was against the Iraq destruction

The fact that he's now supporting the Syria intervention is telling

[n2doc]

20. Party Uber Alles n/t