European hatred of America has come to a head since the election of the "illegitimate" George W. Bush. I'm wondering if anybody has a fix on my premise.

Brian: <BR>Give this subject a break!!

The "fix" on your "premise" (actually more of a wild, unsubstantiated assertion) is to screw your head on correctly. <BR> <BR>Europe doesn't hate America. Never has. Liberal newspapers are having a ball, but they mean absolutely nothing, just as here. <BR> <BR>Go get some facts.

Brian must not have known about the greatest troll thread from last week. His post is a doosy (sp?)!

Unrelated to the topic ... why did you pick Brian Piccolo as your pseudonym? Just asking as a Bears fan.

Well, this qualifies as a near-troll or perhaps full troll, but it's not a bad subject if you filter out the rhetoric about "illegitimate" Bush and "liberal" press. <BR> <BR>I think it's not nuts to discern that Europeans are, at the very least, wary of the new administration -- but they also have reason to think the general American public may have lost its collective mind during the Nov. election (no matter which side you think should have won). And any time the dollar gains strength against European currencies, there's resentment. <BR> <BR>Meanwhile, neither US political party has much to brag about just now, but much of Europe is governed by groups who are not as right-leaning as the US has been, esp. since the Reagan/Bush eras. So they are going to be concerned -- given Bush's recent pronouncements -- about US actions on the UN, the environment, the Middle East, etc., and particularly about trade and economic actions given the uncertainty about the future of the EEC and Euro/Union. And after all, much of W's administration are recycled from his father's. <BR> <BR>Finally, don't forget that many countries don't entirely understand or trust what happens when there's a power shift in the US -- if an administration of one party has negotiated a treaty and then another party comes to power, what is going to happen? <BR> <BR>Hatred tends to arise in response to arrogance and throwing one's weight around. Some Europeans may think "the shoe fits" but I don't really think it's universal.

...and definitely add defense build-up/star-wars plans to the list of things to worry about.....

I wonder why Americans are going to Europe? Seems to me if the Europeans don't want the US to develop a system to defend against missile there can only be one meaning ... <BR> <BR>the Europeans want to attack the US. <BR> <BR>This is a good time to advise all Americans going to Europe to check their clothes, luggage, hair, fingernails, etc., for weapons of mass destruction, death-dealing biological agents, etc. If these Europeans are considering attacking by rocket, we don't know what else they're planning. <BR> <BR>Mistrust every European!

Yeah and that troller caught several fishes also. Some big fat ones and one skinney one. LOL <BR> <BR> <BR>Reel reel reel reel <BR> <BR>I got another one Chester, and he's a bigun too by Yiminey!! <BR> <BR>Reel reel reel reel

Europe and the United States are like a married couple. They usually get along but once in a while one of them gets annoyed, or angry, when they feel the other isn't listening. <BR> <BR>

Haven't been there in 2 years, but people have always been friendly and helpful. I've never has any problems.

It's not hatred, it's just extreme jealousy.

Europeans are a bunch of sissy sonsabitches. Your average European has a hand out wanting guvmint alms. Cowards. Reading the Manchester Guardian one notices the hate the English Left has for America. Good. I hate English lefties, too. I'd love to ball my fist down Tony Blair's throat. The Brits showed what kind of louses they are by voting that garbage back in. The Brits are so stupid, too. They want Labor to spend more on their 1950 style healthcare system. They don't get it. Socialism doesn't work. Socialist health care doesn't work. Brits, you're falling behind, ya nitwits. The French and Germans are worse. And the Dutch and Scandanavians are degenerates. So why don't we fold NATO and we Americans can go home and let you Europeans stew in your unsustainable welfare states and fight off the Ruskies and Towelheads on your own, too.

When you are rich and powerful you don't make a lot of friends. But European people and European goverments are two different things, just like in the USA. My wife and I have been going to Europe for over 15 years and have always found the people to be warm and friendly even in Paris.

Tom Daschle says, "I think Bush ought to listen to foreign governments. I think he needs to hear their concerns because they're real." I think Mr. Jospin and Mr. Blair and Mr. Shroeder and Mr. Chirac and Mr. Carlsson and all the rest of those no-named European lamebrains ought to take a flying leap to Anarctica. I hope their European Union goes into the toilet along with that toilet paper currency of theirs. And to all you Europeans who are against the death penalty- UP YOURS. American loves the DP---makes us morally superior to you.

I can't say I blame Europe, or Europeans, for being puzzled by America, or American people. <BR> <BR>For example, Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Monaco, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, San Marino, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the Ukraine, and the United Kingdom are all countries whose laws do not provide for the death penalty for any crime. <BR> <BR>On the other hand, the United States, of course, does. And I believe that that most Americans (sadly, IMO) continue to support capital punishment. <BR> <BR>The question I have is whether or not the anti-capital punishment policies of the European countries named above accurately reflect the will of their citizens (in the same way that the pro-capital punishment policy of the U.S. accurately reflects -- apparently, anyway --the will of U.S. citizens? If that's the case then this seems to be an issue on which Europeans and Americans strongly differ. <BR> <BR>

Think about it . . in those countries where the citizens do not trust their governments, deep resistance to anything as final as the death penalty. <BR> <BR>By and large, in those countries where the government is trusted, it is not the same concern. <BR> <BR>z