A couple of years ago, I made the mistake of subscribing to a British online publication called openDemocracy. Week after week I have been subjected to the most vile anti-American viewpoints from the world’s foremost liberal elites. These “intellectuals” have had nothing but scorn for our efforts in Iraq and have displayed an almost mocking disdain for President Bush in general. They are apparently oblivious to the irony of being Islamofascist apologists and blind supporters of tyrants and dictators in a journal that includes the word “democracy” in its title. I don’t know why I have kept reading it week after week; I guess it’s the not being able to avert your eyes from the train wreck syndrome. Or maybe I’m just a masochist.
So this week’s edition just hit my inbox, and the lead story is a hopeful piece entitled “How al-Qaida can win”. (Ok, to be fair I didn’t read this article. I found the headline alone was enough to raise my blood pressure to dangerous levels). My eyes were however drawn to another article called “Hope and Humour in Afghanistan”, and subtitled “The photographs of Keirón Allen and Rupert Edis depict a country where American soldiers encounter local people as human beings not enemies”. [UPDATE: I just noticed there is yet another title to this piece: Humanising a beast – the American military]
That it is considered “news” that AMERICAN troops can actually treat the locals as human tells you all you need to know about openDemocracy and its view of the world. My daughter is now midway through her second tour of duty in Afghanistan, and her reports of the contribution our troops are making as the Afghani people build the foundations for a future of peace and prosperity are very encouraging. [You can read more about Hillary here.] So I just couldn’t resist reading OD’s take on the situation.
And I was astounded. This is the first time I have seen any endeavor undertaken by the USA given a positive spin by these America-haters. Oh, the apparent shock and awe of the writer as he discovers that American troops are about more than destruction and torture is cause for some bemusement. But overall it does honor to the men and women who are doing important work under difficult circumstances. I encourage you to have a look at this article.
Man, I can’t believe I just linked openDemocracy. Well, there is a first time for everything I suppose. And since I have gone through years of hell to find the one worthy article they published, I feel an obligation to make sure you see it also. Enjoy!
UPDATE: Ok, I broke down and read “How al-Qaida can win”. It was presented as a farce, but it still pissed me off. As I said, a good article in openDemocracy is the rare exception. Still, it is good to remember that there are lots of people hoping we lose this fight, and they are not all radical Muslims.