You’ve probably read by now that Dennis Kucinich, longshot candidate for the Democratic nomination for President, went on Syrian TV to say our war in Iraq is based on lies, praise Syria for taking in Iraqis, laud Assad as a reasonable man, and accuse Bush of causing a humanitarian crisis. It’s easy to blast Kucinich’s foolishness, and this episode obviously proves the man would be a disaster as President. I believe Kucinich is working against America’s best interests, but no less than Harry Reid, and many conservatives go too far when they accuse Kucinich of treason or hatred of America.
I am more interested to know why liberals pretend foreign despots are decent or even admirable, while imagining Bush, and America itself, is far worse than it actually is. How can people hate Cheney but love Che? Michael Moore, it appears, would rather spend time with (murderer/torturer/oppressor) Fidel Castro than any Fortune 500 (employer/leader/entrepreneur) executive. He’s not alone, and I don’t get it. But I want to understand.
Kucinich just visited a country that is allowing fighters - toting IEDs - to pour over its border into Iraq, a country that our State Department lists as a sponsor of terrorism, a country that is probably working with North Korea to build its own nuclear program, and he (Kucinich) endorsed President Assad as a man who seeks peace. While he was in the Middle East, Kucinich declined to visit American troops.
So he holds the Syrian President and his government in far higher esteem than President Bush. How does this happen? I’m not asking a rhetorical question; I really want to know how people come to think this way. Why did Jimmy Carter adore Arafat, why did millions buy Chairman Mao’s book, why does the left overlook mass murder but despise people like, well, me?
I guess, you meant IRAN, not Iraq is likely working with North Korea.
For my past 45 years of adult life, I have been surrounded by people who seem not to analyze their political preferences but they seem to CHOOSE to believe. To believe that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence, in particular when the fence is very high so they can not have an effortless peek. The same people tend to be proud atheists and hold themselves as being highly spiritual. They seem to think they know how to improve society, make everyone equal (and be all those equals’ leaders)but rarely commit themselves to loving concrete neighbors of theirs. Of course, they do not respect you and me - we are too common!
Comment by vera muensch — September 12, 2007 @ 2:11 pm
Re. the country - and sorry if I wasn’t clear - but it’s Syria who (like Iran) is working with North Korea on a nuke program, according to a story released today. I don’t believe Kucinich took time to visit Iraq.
For your comments on what people choose to believe, your thoughts mirror my own, but I’m not comfortable with the conclusion (my opponents believe what they want to) because it seems self-congratulatory. I agree that athiests are more likely to accept silly conspiracies, I agree that liberal politics is blatantly envious (what other description for class warfare?), I believe those who seek to build utopia automatically view their opponents as evil or immoral.
But I’m not satisfied with stopping here, and I want a dialog with people who genuinely believe conservatives are bad and leftist strongmen are worthy of respect. I’m convinced Sean Penn believes himself to be noble; why does he support Hugo Chavez?
Comment by Sean Farrell — September 12, 2007 @ 4:32 pm