Comments (73)

America is not very popular with the rest of world, that is true. I myself am from Slovenia (stuck somewhere between Italy, Austria and Croatia) and I can understand the sentiment towards America.

It is believed to be short-sighted and as such sees only own interests - even then mostly short term interests.

We all know that the global pollution is a concern; the CO emissions are growing and need to be curbed. However, as far as I know, US have been undermining any efforts to cull the emissions, while Europe has been busy working towards the proposed goals. US continues to ignore the emissions, well, to be frank, so do China and other industrial countries, so Europe and other 'enlightened' countries feel like jackasses. For now, the money rules the world; screw the future generations, they can buy canned air with the money we earn now.

That is only one example.

I myself am aware that there are great people living in America, that they are trying to make a change, however unfortunately the money still rules the world, not common sense.

It is the same elsewhere on the world.

13571113

Thank you.

13571113

Thanks for the kind words. I try.

I do not attack Americans for the sins of their ancestors. Pots should not call kettles black.

Most Nations have skeletons in their cupboards which they are reluctant to disturb or to be reminded of.

As to your comments on anti semitism I can only speak as I find. It does of course exist in my country but it is something that I have not personally come across or that I have ever met amongst my acquaintances. It is marginal and widely condemned. Whether it is more common among "elites" I do not know - my contact with "elites" has been slight.

I will never forget the things I was told by my uncle about Bergen Belsen. I will never understand how one human being can do such things to another. But I am sure that it starts with people being taught to hate.

My best wishes to you.

Thanks, 13571113.

davidrushworth; Bob T; Darden Cavalcade:

Gentlemen (and Lady?),

Thank you for an interesting exchange of views. I have three points to add to yours.

1) I am impressed that David Rushworth is a genuinely decent man. The kind of friendship his represents is one that Americans ought not lose no matter how offended they may be by the kulturkampf waged against American society and culture. The criticism of culture is, I think, what Darden Cavalcade finds so offensive and has counterattacked with a broadsword.

The American posts on this site roil with anger. Perhaps it is righteous. I can't explain why so many of America's traditional friends have chosen to remind it of the sins of its ancestors when so many of those ancestors and sins are shared. Perhaps Europeans are no longer your friends and you share far less than Australiaview believes.

Or perhaps American anger is misplaced and should be directed where it will do more good. Europeans may irritate, but they are not the source of your current distress.

2) I am a Russian Jew. My parents and I left the Soviet Union in the 1970s. We lived for ten years in Europe and then emigrated to Canada in the late 1980s. I can testify personally of anti-Semitism in Europe. I have heard the term "East Coast conditions" (in Germany) and far worse. I have read *Uncouth Nation,* recommended (and rejected) above, and based on my experience I judge its conclusions about European anti-Semitism to be accurate.

3) Every Jew on earth knows that "America is different" and bears a burden of complaint for its hospitality to Jews at home and support for Israel abroad. Darden Cavalcade is correct when she points out that anti-Semitism and anti-Americanism are linked globally. And Bob T is right to ask what Americans get out of their relationship with Israel.

Nothing but grief, Bob T. Nothing but grief. And still they are steadfast. Remarkable.

In reading these posts I get a sense that a few of the Americans who post here immediately seem to translate a view of America into "criticism" and then it is morphed into "Anti Americanism" This is too much of a leap, particularly when it is leveled against other western democracies. Some of the most heated arguments occur in families and between friends but the basis of family and friendship are so solid that the argument doesn't affect that relationship which endures.

While it is true that there are countries which could be put into the Anti American basket such as North Korea et al it should be noted that they hate us too or at the very least they hate our liberal western ways.

It is odd that Europe has been thrown into the Anti American basket in some of these posts. Do you really think Europeans hate Americans? Have you seen all the American products that sell well in Europe or how interconnected EU and US companies are, particularly in the areas of financial services and manufacturing? Have you been to poor, non western countries where the kids are wearing baseball caps, US branded T shirts and watching American movies?

I think we need to be clear to separate the rhetoric of some governments from the reality on the ground. Some of posts almost have a siege mentality that Anti Americanism lurks everywhere. It is a very broad brush with which to paint the world and Europe in particular. I don't think it is helpful.

However we may feel about globalisation it is a fact. Harking back to the good old days of isolation doesn't make sense when US companies depend on call centers and software programmers in India and beyond.

How did we go from a discussion about branding, which I see in purely marketing consumer perception terms, to a discussion of Anti Americanism? The American brand is important because a good brand is good for business. American corporations have their brand but also carry in some portion Brand America.

So a positive perception of Brand America is good for American business and assists in opening up new markets or maintaining market share . I would venture that American corporations are very concerned about the positioning of Brand America in the minds of consumers around the world because it relates to their bottom line and the shareholders they answer to.

Additionally, how a population may feel about the current Administration is not exactly aligned with Brand America which I perceive as only marginally less robust than it used to be. It would only require a little marketing spin and the brand will be as strong as ever. It could be as simple as a change in style rather than substance.

I don't doubt that the US has the intelligence and resilience to turn this around in the same way that the US has overcome other temporary blips in its history. It is unwise to underestimate the ability of the US to adapt, change and bounce back stronger than before. Anyone, who thinks that this is somehow the "end of the American empire" hasn't read US history.

darden cavalcade

NEVER apologize to these Euro-peckerheads. If they can't take the truth about the way Americans feel about them, so be it. They've earned it.

darden cavalcade

You, after reading a book, obviously know more than I about the country in which I have lived for the last 62 years.

I think that I will trust my experience over your book.

As for your declared hatred I, like Bob, will have to learn to live with it. It is obviously very important to you.

As for myself I shall refrain from hatred for people I do not know.

Sincerely, you have my best wishes.

"Israel is involved in Iraq, Bob. Without fanfare and vitally."

Really? How? I'm surprised I haven't noticed anything about that in The Jerusalem Post or Ha'aretz, or anywhere else, for that matter. I look forward to being enlightened. Mind you, doesn't seem to be doing much good, whatever they've been contributing.

"And I apologize for expressing hatred toward you."

Thanks - appreciated.

"Is the Rosetta Stone a stolen object?"

It probably is, but there's no point in judging the effects of history by the standards of today. Are you proposing to hand back most of the US to what's left of the Native American nations, or does your earlier comment that there were no Americans before 1619 mean that they don't really count?

Of course, I recognise that's not what you meant - your point about extermination starting under the Crown has some weight - but it's illustrative of the American trait of holier-than-thou sanctimony which relates, I think, to one of Bakshi's original arguments.

davidrushworth:

May I suggest a book? "Uncouth Nation: Why Europeans Dislike America" by Andrei Markovits.

Markovits is a European immigrant to the United States, a Jew, a leftist, and a professor. His book describes the origin, development, and current state of European attitudes toward America, Americans, Israel, and Jews.

If the views in my post aren't something you recognize about your own society, then Markovits may/may not help you see things in a new light.

With best wishes.

DC

Bob T:

Israel is involved in Iraq, Bob. Without fanfare and vitally.

And I apologize for expressing hatred toward you.

May I ask you a question about something I posted earlier?

Is the Rosetta Stone a stolen object? How does it make you feel when you see the patrimony of other nations claimed by force of arms and displayed as your own?

To say that you hate a nation is no different to saying that you hate a religeon, or a race, or a class.
It is to condemn a whole group of people not for what they do but for what they are.
It is the same as judging Albert Einstein as "a Jew", Nelson Mandela as "a negro", Tolstoy as "a capitalist"
It is the same method as used by Stalin and Hitler to demonise whole categories of human beings and thus make their persecution and extermination acceptable.
While I may hate a man for what he does (not for what his ancestors did), I cannot hate a nation.

"And, Bob, I wonder if you know that the creation of Israel was the work of the United Nations supported throughout by the government of the United Kingdom."

Dunno about 'supported throughout', Darren. The British, exhausted by six years of war, finally gave in to the terrorist campaign waged by the Irgun, later to become the government of Israel. I note you haven't actually answered my question about why Israel is never criticised as one of the US 'allies' who didn't actually support you with men or materiel during your latest imperail venture. Any comments on that?

"Yes, Bob, we hate you."

Ah well, I'll just have to live with that.

Darden Cavalcade
"How could civlized Europe, advanced Europe, require the help of an inauthentic culture and swaggering people?"

I am not a member of any elite, but simply a retired civil servant. I was born in 1945, so grew up in the aftermath of the war. I do not recognise the stereotype of my country that you describe. After the war and today we felt an enormous debt of gratitude to those nations that fought with us in defence of our common values. Many thousands of Americans died in that war to win us all the freedom that we enjoy today. Why should I feel resentment towards those whose parents and grandparents fought alongside my own in a common cause?

"Ever hear anyone in the UK worry aloud about "east coast" conditions emerging in Europe."

No. This is the first time I have come across the phrase. Why should we espouse an ideology which we spent so much blood and treasure to destroy?
Yes, of course there are anti-semites in Britain, as there are in your country. But they are as despised and marginalised by the vast majority here as I am sure they are in the USA. We do not have such short memories. We remember what such irrational hatreds can engender. My uncle visited Bergen-Belsen in 1945. He suffered nightmares to the end of his life.

I have always admired Americans - their vitality and passionate love of freedom. It saddens me to see some of the feelings expressed in this thread. You may be assure: I do NOT hate Americans.

Bob T:

When Wilberforce began his campaign against the Atlantic slave trade, he offended British commercial interests as well as American. The British began the slave trade across the Atlantic. In 1619, when the first African slaves arrived in North America, there were no Americans.

And the Indian extermination in North America began under the British Crown. The British Army destroyed the Northeastern Tribes during the French and Indian War. The rest we did on our own.

And, Bob, I wonder if you know that the creation of Israel was the work of the United Nations supported throughout by the government of the United Kingdom.

You are right about one thing. We shouldn't bash the Turks over the slaughter of Armenians.

We should be reminding Europeans of 500 years of conquest, slaughter, imperialism, and the enslavement of millions. We should be asking men in Scotland if they have ever visited the British Museum in London and felt the slightest twinge of guilt for the archeological and artistic treasures stolen from scores of cultures not their own.

When I see the Rosetta Stone, I see the property of Egyptians not the British. When I see the stone murals of Assyria and Babylon, I'm reminded of only one British accomplishment...theft.

Don't presume to talk to us about religion. Europeans know only one god, self-interest.

Yet, there is a bright hope for all. Every New Year's Day there are fewer native Europeans than there were one year earlier. Keep up the good work.

Yes, Bob, we hate you.

"American support for Israel reflects the only genuine special relationship the United States has abroad. Europeans (I include Canadians here, Bob, the last European colony in North America) have never appreciated the close link between political and religious freedom in American political philosophy." - Darden

I don't believe many Americans realise that the rest of the world, particularly Britain, does actually recognise this rather strange, one-sided 'special relationship' with a state implanted on a region that didn't want it. What we're wondering is what the US gets out of it. We know some of you genuinely think you have to support God's chosen people otherwise you won't make it to Heaven, but allowing this to inform your foreign policy for fifty years to the obvious detriment of the welfare of your citizens .... Still, maybe that's just more manifest destiny.

"Scarcely a European country can escape the stain of prejudice and mass violence against Jews. But not the United States."

True, but you have your own dubious history with Native Americans and slavery. That's why smacking the Turks for their historical treatment of Armenians strikes the rest of us as another example of US hypocrisy - you assume that the standards the US holds the rest of us up to don't apply to you. The world admires the best of America and 'Americanism', but we're getting a bit bored with the idea that you know what's best for the rest of us.

P.S.
And do this, not because it is good for your image, but, as a post above says, because it is the right thing to do.
And if so, you are with us, not against us.

At last it is said. Many of us have been waiting a life time to hear it.

Yes! Listen! It is so simple really. But study the multitude of American comments about diplomacy and all you get is to the effect of 'We must make our message more clearly'. The story of the British, who simply spoke English more loudly when the locals did not understand, is relevant.

The truly serious consequence is that propaganda, the tool of war that is as stupid as war, is regarded by almost all Americans to the 'highest' levels, in academia and government, as a tool of diplomacy: you know the natives out there are not very clever so slip them a little lie and they will be more compliant, and if you sing it they will love it.

What is not made sufficiently clear in this article is how terribly stupid America looks while it behaves like this.

America has a serious problem while finds this, which is so simple, so difficult.

davidrushworth:

"Over-paid. Over-sexed. And over here."

Yes. I mean to say that British elites, among others in Europe, have detested America and Americans for centuries, David. The New World's attraction to the European immigrant represented cultural norms turned upside down, and the American revolution the political world turned upside down. The fact that the UK, France, Holland, Belgium had to ask for American help twice in the last century to save them from conquest did not endear us to you. How could civlized Europe, advanced Europe, require the help of an inauthentic culture and swaggering people?

And since the second world war anti-Americanism has been linked with Europe's oldest sustained prejudice, anti-Semitism. Ever hear anyone in the UK worry aloud about "east coast" conditions emerging in Europe...an acceptable reference in polite European circles to supposed Jewish control and influence in American society being exported to civilized Europe.

Bob T:

[Possibly relentless US support for Israel has something to do with the link between anti-Americanism and anti-Semitism.]

American support for Israel reflects the only genuine special relationship the United States has abroad. Europeans (I include Canadians here, Bob, the last European colony in North America) have never appreciated the close link between political and religious freedom in American political philosophy. You've never understood the American protestantism isn't like the one found in Europe. Protestant churches in America are local institutions, not national. And from the beginning American Christians welcomed and accepted Jews. In the 19th Century, American boys were more likely to have the names of Old Testament prophets than Christian apostles. Scarcely a European country can escape the stain of prejudice and mass violence against Jews. But not the United States. As scholars of anti-Semitism have written repeatedly, and accurately, "America is different."

"Since World War II, anti-Americanism and anti-Semitism have been conjoined in the minds of the extreme left and extreme right, particularly in Europe. If you don't believe me, consult the report of the European Union's investigation of the growth of anti-Semitism in European political discourse." - Darden.

Possibly the relentless US support of Israel has somenthing to do with that? BTW, why does the criticism of supposed allies who didn't get involved in Iraqi Freedom (sic) never include Israel? Surely it's about time you got something back for your $3-4 billion pa investment?

3 European powers absolving themselves of imperial guilt by re-writing history. For all the talk of American colonialism, we all know that it was the European empires that screwed everything up. Putting the blame on America spares Europeans from facing the fact that it was they that cynically exploited the Middle East, South Asia and the Far East and created the conditions that exist today. I won't even go into Germany love of America-Nazi comparisons.

4 The media's liberal and anti-American viewpoints poison the debate. The world media does a miserable job of informing people. It suits a variety of needs (ideology, sensationalism, laziness) to just say "America bad".

Pew's surveys demonstrate that Americans hold our media in contempt, a little reported fact for obvious reasons. Perhaps it is time that the "media listen to Americans". I'll start holding my breath.

Amari, slice the data however you want, but it is clear that most countries dislike other countries as much or more than they dislike America. Kind of looks like most countries hate their neighbors and America. (Kind of like how most baseball fans dislike their team's division opponents and the Yankees.)

The world press has taken a cynically one-sided view of the phenomena, choosing to view it as a symptom of American failings. For all of the pretense of intellectual rigor, your blog has never addressed other contributing factors to poor American approval numbers. For instance:

1)Nobody likes a hegemon. One could make the argument that America could employ Switzerland's foreign policy and still face criticism due to its power and wealth.

2) World leader fanning anti-American sentiment for political gain. Recent reports in he NY Times detailed how Germany officials publicly decried military options against Iran in public, but gave tacit approval in private. Putin recently scolded America harshly in front of the media, yet everyone agreed that the meeting was cordial in private.

Mike, relatively speaking, that same Pew Survey shows America is disliked more broadly than any other country. Point taken that the world these days isn't buddy-buddy anywhere, but these numbers do show specific, and surprising trends for Americans.

Darden, solid point about world view of America being widely divergent, and so the need to listen to each in turn. And also strong argument about media presenting the rest of the world to America: there are certainly headlines, the question is how to infuse other American media with pieces of the world, and that is largely driven by interest. These days, as in the early 80s, we're getting a lot more films that deal with international issues in one way or another. The point you raise is good: it matters what people are interested in first. What is out there with no audience isn't the most effective to say the least...

George P: "The bottom line is that America has no friends that we can rely on when things get tough."

Well, there's Turkey...oops.

George P

Davidrushworth said: "Just don't bother calling us when Putin comes rollign into Europe or starts extorting with energy. Frankly, I hope he does."

I didn't - Abill said that.

Davidrushworth said: "Just don't bother calling us when Putin comes rollign into Europe or starts extorting with energy. Frankly, I hope he does."

Well said!! The Europeans at large have completely left us hanging in Iraq. They have bailed and chosen not to participate. The British - our #1 ally for decades - are abandoning Basra, exposing our southern supply line, and leaving chaos in the wake. In Afghanistan the Germans put convenient national caveats on their participation in anything remotely related to fighting. Fine. But that goes both ways.

There has been little to no committment or public expenditure from the Euro socialist utopia towards things like defense and as such Europe's responsibility to our fellow global citizens is a royal sham. Why else is Darfur allowed to disintigrate into chaos and genocide? Why else were the Balkans allowed to do the same before the US arrived on the scene? Why else could Europe only muster a handful of choppers to provide relief to earthquake torn Pakistan? So instead what do Americans get? Well we get blamed of course. We get blamed for Darfur. Blamed for a lack of response in Pakistan. Blamed for Rwanda. Blamed for terrorism (convenient excuse - that it's our policies which cause jihadists to murder scores of people rather than their wharped inability to adapt to modernity).

It's time for America to wake up, throw off the yoke of this twisted Euro narcissism, and instead turn towards Asia - at least the Asians practice capitalism. Ask Microsoft what it's like to do business with the EU - a joke. If you're competent and effective and start to win you get punished - just brilliant. The entire European enterprise is rotting from within - whether militarily, economically, politically, and especially demographically - and it's time we focused elsewhere.

The bottom line is that America has no friends that we can rely on when things get tough. So either we do it on our own recognizing that we have no friends - or else we disengage and leave the rest of the world to fend for itself. The world can learn to deal with the Russians and Chinese this time.

davidrushworth:

You are darn right it isn't. Stabbing your "friends" in the back doesn't engender warm feelings.

The Post needs to start giving voice to Americans attitudes towards the world, instead of just constantly harping on the converse.

We know all to well that you dont like us. The word needs to get out that we don't like you either.

Abill

"Just don't bother calling us when Putin comes rollign into Europe or starts extorting with energy. Frankly, I hope he does."

Nice to see the "hatred" is not all one way.

davidrushworth:

You miss the point. Our problem is with the unrelentingly one-sided nature of the debate. The American media is flooded with articles moaning about Europe's opinion of America and declaring America solely resposnible for the rift. Those of you in Europe also wrire exclusivley of how the rift is exclusively America's fault.

Perhaps if more people in the Europe viewed the breakdown in Euro-American relations as more than just America's fault, we wouldn't be so offended. This doesn't even take into account Europes complete denial of responsibilty for the current status of the world. Europe's empires are what created the mess in the Middle East, but you want to lay it all at our feet. Frankly, we really don't need more "friends" like the Europeans. Just don't bother calling us when Putin comes rollign into Europe or starts extorting with energy. Frankly, I hope he does.

One of the points that anti-American propogansists like Bakshi ignores is that countries have a tendancy to have negtive opinions of each other as well.

As the following graphic indicates, as much as the Asian powers dislike America, they seem to like each other even less.

http://pewglobal.org/reports/images/255-1.gif

Of course, American liberals want to act as if the rest of the world loves each other, and that we are some kid of exceptional pariah. The truth that folks like Bakshi don't want to acknowledge is that the fact that foreign countries don't "approve" of America is consistent with their disapproval of everone else.

Give me a break wrote: "Over the past 60 years, because of this country and its immense generosity (second to none I might add) there is less poverty on this planet than ever before. On average the standard of living has risen sharply for all peoples of this planet. Now that people have food in their bellies like never before ... they don't like us for helping them get there; our way. We as a country are not perfect, but we have done the best for ourselves and for the rest of the world. ... What would these people's lives look like if not for America?"

Whenever I read statements like the above, come to my mind the following statistics out of the UN's Human Development Reports: "The income ratio of the one-fifth of the world's population in the wealthiest countries to the one-fifth in the poorest countries went from:

3 to 1 in 1820,

to 10 to 1 in 1900,

to 30 to 1 in 1960,

to 60 to 1 in 1990,

to 74 to 1 in 1995."

That "we have done the best for ourselves" seems obvious to me.

Darden Cavalcade

I am British. Are you really suggesting that we have a long history of hatred for the USA?
Did we hate you in 1918 (WW1), in 1944(WW2) in 1950 (Korea), in 1991 (1st Gulf War), in 2001 (Afghanistan) in 2003 (2nd Gulf War)
British and Americans have fought together for nearly 100 years in defence of our common beliefs.

The USA is, like it or not, the sole remaining superpower. It's policies affect in one way or another everyone on earth.
But if we dare to criticise or suggest that you may be wrong then we are just "America haters".

Michael Kelley & Amir Bashi:

Gentlemen, listen to what the world is saying?

The world does not speak with one voice, ever. And to suggest that it does is preposterous. Do you really mean to suggest that Pakistanis and Indians; Turks, Greeks, Kurds and Armenians; or the Irish and British speak with one voice and mind when they wish to communicate with the United States?

And the idea that "the media" don't carry foreign news is perhaps the most ridiculous comment ever to emerge from the Bashi File. Go to the periodicals section of a regional library fellas! The smallest of them will carry "media" dealing with general and specialist topics in international affairs...many of them written by non-Americans for the benefit of interested readers of all nationalities. Heard of the Internet? You can find the on-line version of every major American daily newspaper...all of which have international/world affairs sections. I won't bother to name the foreign press on-line editions published in English expressly for the purpose of communicating with audiences like those found in the United States.

The United States is Mr. Big. It's a great comfort to many to criticize the United States because of its supposed power and influence. Anti-Americanism, by which I mean unthinking hatred of America and Americans...not opposition to specific policies, has a long tradition among elites in Europe and foreign elites educated in Europe. Asians and Latin Americans attending European universities can feel a rare degree of social inclusion when everyone is ranting against the United States.

Since World War II, anti-Americanism and anti-Semitism have been conjoined in the minds of the extreme left and extreme right, particularly in Europe. If you don't believe me, consult the report of the European Union's investigation of the growth of anti-Semitism in European political discourse.

There are millions of people who have every right to hate America...Guatemalans, Vietnamese, Iraqis. Pakistanis and Europeans aren't on that list.

Bakshi, any chance you might do a post about what we Americans think of the world and what the world should do to get in our good favor?

Or is the point of your blog to just find other people like yourself who want to blame America exclusively for the world's problems?

I am so SICK of the world pointing the finger our way and lecturing America. You say listen to the world - I have yet to see the world listen to us. Look no further than the utter shock and disbelieve when Bush won a second term. The world couldn't fathom that. Why? Because you don't listen to what we're saying!!! Got news for you - America isn't New York, the Northeast, and California. Our values differ from these places 180 degrees. Frankly, I think America has just about HAD it with the rest of the world's fickle condescension. In many ways, Americans are now the new Jews of the 20th century... You hate us - message heard. Now listen to us:

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=70a_1188074004

I am so SICK of the world pointing the finger our way and lecturing America. You say listen to the world - I have yet to see the world listen to us. Look no further than the utter shock and disbelieve when Bush won a second term. The world couldn't fathom that. Why? Because you don't listen to what we're saying!!! Got news for you - America isn't New York, the Northeast, and California. Our values differ from these places 180 degrees. Frankly, I think America has just about HAD it with the rest of the world's fickle condescension. In many ways, Americans are now the new Jews of the 20th century... You hate us - message heard. Now listen to us:

http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=70a_1188074004

Goodmorning form DC. This is an interesting Pew graph:

http://pewglobal.org/reports/images/247-3.gif

Mike S, you raise the point that 'listening' may just be a code word for acting the way others want. Clearly substance matters over style, but to what extent is style valuable, and is listening a style. This chart perhaps speaks more to substance. Anyway, thought it'd be of interest.

CORRECTION

"June 1940 and June 1941 when Hitler declared war on the USA"

"USA" should of course read "USSR".

Sorry about that.

"We again watched as Hitler and Tojo came to power and waited for the world to act. Again nothing. So, we were forced to take the lead as best we could."

Sorry but I can't let this one go.
The USA entered WW2 in December 1941.
Britain and France declared war on Germany in 1939 and between June 1940 and June 1941 when Hitler declared war on the USA Britain was the ONLY country fighting Germany. (and, in the same period, had suffered about 40,000 CIVILIAN deaths.
Europeans acknowledge a debt of gratitude for the part played by the USA in WW1 and WW2 but resent it when Americans ignore the contributions and sacrifices made by other nations in these conflicts.

As to whether other peoples "hate the USA", from reading comments by some Americans they interpret any criticism of US policies as demonstrating hatred of Americans.
Not so. A true friend tells you when you are wrong. To do otherwise is NOT friendship - it is sycophancy.

I won't even go into how the mechanisms by which we would "listen" to you (email, telephones, television, Internet) were invented by us in the first place, since I'd hate to make you seem so...ungrateful.

So Americans invented phones and tv? No wonder we're so ungrateful here in Scotland ....

To start, Microsoft (on behalf of America) Must listen to the rest of the world and FIX THIS UNSTABLE THING called Windows!

The rest will follow.....If Windows and Coke are the symbols of America, we must first reconcile the image in practice......

Are you listening Bill Gates?

People who say they want Americans to "listen" are really saying that they want America to act in the way that they think it should. Well, take a number and get in line. I'm still waiting for my own government to listen to me.

What would America hear if it were to listen? "If you really believed in (insert universal ideal here), you wouldn't be doing x or you would be doing y (in the self interest of the speaker)." Then the inevitable accusation of hypocrisy.

"Anti-Americanism" is still a useful concept. It is the inclination to blame America first for causing or not preventing every bad thing that happens on the planet. And it is widespread. "Pro-Americanism," on the other hand, is meaningless as the term is used here. It is the desire for opportunity and freedom. That's not pro-American; it's human nature.

Seems to me that outside the US, America is held up as an ideal, then reviled for not living up to that ideal. People who do this are living in a fantasy world. How's this for a new marketing slogan: "America. We're not perfect. Get over it."

How completely clueless... The responses here show just what kind of failure the American educational system has been. Before WWI and WWII this country wanted nothing to do with either war. We were isolationist, we didn't want to involve ourselves. Only when forced, did we get involved in the world's messes. Before each war we had virtually no military, only somewhat of a navy. We learned plenty from the rest of the world, that's why we spend billions of dollars on military preparedness, foreign aid, the IMF and world bank. We watched Europe's monarchies during WWI try and kill each other for nothing! We again watched as Hitler and Tojo came to power and waited for the world to act. Again nothing. So, we were forced to take the lead as best we could. Over the past 60 years, because of this country and its immense generosity (second to none I might add) there is less poverty on this planet than ever before. On average the standard of living has risen sharply for all peoples of this planet. Now that people have food in their bellies like never before and even have internet access, they don't like us for helping them get there; our way. We as a country are not perfect, but we have done the best for ourselves and for the rest of the world. If people are so heavily focused on America, you need only ask why these other countries use weapons of mass distraction, so that their own people can blame America instead of their own personal and governmental failures. Before we should ever listen to the rest of the world, how about proving that their own governments are actually listening to them first and that they and their governments are ready to act in a positive and constructive way, instead of the opposite, like using terrorism and violence. What would these people's lives look like if not for America?

How completely clueless... The responses here show just what kind of failure the American educational system has been. Before WWI and WWII this country wanted nothing to do with either war. We were isolationist, we didn't want to involve ourselves. Only when forced, did we get involved in the world's messes. Before each war we had virtually no military, only somewhat of a navy. We learned plenty from the rest of the world, that's why we spend billions of dollars on military preparedness, foreign aid, the IMF and world bank. We watched Europe's monarchies during WWI try and kill each other for nothing! We again watched as Hitler and Tojo came to power and waited for the world to act. Again nothing. So, we were forced to take the lead as best we could. Over the past 60 years, because of this country and its immense generosity (second to none I might add) there is less poverty on this planet than ever before. On average the standard of living has risen sharply for all peoples of this planet. Now that people have food in their bellies like never before and even have internet access, they don't like us for helping them get there; our way. We as a country are not perfect, but we have done the best for ourselves and for the rest of the world. If people are so heavily focused on America, you need only ask why these other countries use weapons of mass distraction, so that their own people can blame America instead of their own personal and governmental failures. Before we should ever listen to the rest of the world, how about proving that their own governments are actually listening to them first and that they and their governments are ready to act in a positive and constructive way, instead of the opposite, like using terrorism and violence. What would these people's lives look like if not for America?

The true problem is that our common folk take the easy route and watch television shows that are easy on the brain and on one's emotions. They want to de-stress and not worry about un-related issues.

It would be nice if people used their local public library, and simply read newspapers such as New York Times or Washington Post, or magazines such as Time or Newsweek. But most folks are just happy to put their work day behind them, and attend to their family, and relax.

Educated people in poorer nations, depending on the resources available in a given country, usually have access to the local newspaper which may cover world events in some detail. Their lives are less complicated than ours.

However, the poor and illiterate of those nations have very little or no opportunity to learn about events within their own country, let alone the rest of the world. The uproars (in other nations) that we hear or read about are mostly from students or organized by some interest group, political or otherwise.

More of us (of stable economic means) should take our civic duty seriously, and follow the goings on in our nation's capital. We have little or no excuse for not using our resources, such as the public library (usually supported through our property taxes or some other tax vehicle) to widen our knowledge of the world.

Mr Bakshi.

Thank you for your response above. You stated "it begs the question of whether re-branding, whatever that is, means return to a prior brand, or the development of something new?"

I don't think it is possible or even desirable to return to a prior brand. However, I could envision the future branding incorporating elements of the past brand such as innovation, intelligence, strength, democratic ideals, entrepreneurial competence, likability etc. The future brand could also incorporate elements of resilience and the ability to overcome difficult obstacles to come out on top. This would be particularly the case once the US overcomes obstacles such a health care, the viability of Social Security, current economic difficulties and the problems of Iraq. The brand could be a powerful message of resilience which the US has shown before in its history.

I agree with Neelima that the brand could be reshaped and relaunched whether it is by a Democrat or a re-invented Republican party.

I don't agree with Rory that "listening to the world" so to speak is a sign of weakness. It could actually be a communication of strength. A nation confident with itself and its fortitude would actually project strength engaging with those who may hold different views. It can accept or reject those views but the act of engagement comes from a sense of strength and projects confidence.

Lastly, it was an interesting comment by Stephen Boyington that to perhaps many Americans foreign nations are semi fictional. I am not in a position to judge whether this is true but I would venture that America, due to its power and media presence around the world, is actually quite real in the minds of many of those outside the US. That is why the issue of "brand America" is quite an important issue.

Much of American self-absorption has to do with the economic reality that very few Americans can afford to travel abroad. When Americans do travel abroad, it is usually many destinations in a concentrated period of time, with a corresponding massive overhead on arrival, departure, travel--instead of really getting to know one single destination in depth. My feeling is that this was different generations ago, but perhaps it has always been the American elite who make it abroad for holidays.

It is just a different experience to immerse yourself in a foreign culture for a period of time. Americans have grown ignorant of what cultural differences really are, prefering more immediate entertainment and amusement to reflective and historical perspectives.

Rebranding in our case would be just taking the collective wisdom of the past and present foreign policy experts, and incorporating the positives in one or several coherent polic(ies) at the level of foreign as well as domestic policy-making.

Call it a new version, as in the case of computer software.

America has to work with totalitarian regimes like China, fascist regimes like Russia and North Korea. You have such a mish mosh of semi civilized repressive religious culturally diff countries yet we are expected to listen and hold the high moral ground. Do you side with the Turks or Kurds or Greeks ?. Support the Japanese/Taiwan or tremble at the Chinese. In the absence of a cold war enemy which we all disliked, we are pulled in so many directions. The nonsense that the left spews "oh , no one loves us and respects us anymore" as if that were ever really possible. Yep, if we reverted to a do nothing country with no impact in the world like Switzerland, everyone would love us.

To Mr. Boyington:

I understand your frustration with the ignorance of many Americans and their attitudes about the rest of the world, but you paint with too broad a brush. There are over 300 million Americans and many, if not most, are not represented by Rory and his peers. The ignorant voices are often the loudest, but that doesn't make them the most representative.

“So what should America do to improve its image in the world?”

America should do nothing to improve its image in the world. Nothing, at least, with that specific goal in mind. Instead, it should concentrate on living up to its own rhetoric about tolerance, freedom, human rights, and the other positive aspects of its propaganda. America should continue to provide the world aid - fiscal, charitable, medical, and so forth, and should be a progressive and engaged member of the international community. The US government should endeavour to return to the high ground on human rights and civil rights domestically, in order to have legitimacy when it confronts the worlds great abusers of these rights.

None of these things should be done with the stated goal of improving our image - they should be done because they are the right thing to do.

One can only hope that under these circumstances our image would improve, but realistically, in the end, our leaders aren't likely to make consequential decisions with our image as their primary concern. In their minds our image will always be less important than our power. At least we can find some hope in the notion that the two don't have to be mutually exclusive.

Mr. Bakshi,

In my opinion, you are very right in your article. Americans in general do not listen to the outside world, and many do not care to.

Our nation is large enough and geographically isolated enough that we don't need to interact with people of foreign lands to have a full life. We don't learn second languages. We don't travel across the oceans to see new worlds.

This allows us to exist in a simplified state where foreign nations are semi-fictional. We only see them on TV or in the movies. We believe whatever we are told, because we have no first-hand experience.

A pervasive nationalism inherent to most places is strong here. It finishes off any predisposition we have to seeing any situation through the eyes of non-Americans.

It is sad, but it is reality.

Rory's post on this thread is a great example of popular belief here: if you aren't American, you aren't worth a crap or wo