Thursday, April 14, 2005
Why Read Rick Steves?
Let's resume our analysis of Rick Steves' El Salvador essay. This post examines the section "Why Visit El Salvador?"
In spite of my privileged position, I have an appetite to know the truth. For many Americans, privilege brings with it the luxury of obliviousness. We don’t need to know what the forces of globalization are doing because they don’t effect us. We don’t need to know the impact of a new International Money Fund (IMF) regulation on a person who sews clothing in Honduras or plants beans in Panama. Paul Wolfowitz may well be running the World Bank. Who cares?
For someone who has an appetite to know the truth, Rick Steves sure has trouble with facts. Check out the Amazon reviews of his book Europe 101 (mine's entitled "Gullibles' Travels"). It has all kinds of obvious errors. For example, Lenin did not overthrow Russia's czarist government. The Algerians weren't 90 percent literate before the French took over. One thing I learned since I posted the review is that the Hessians weren't drunk when George Washington crossed the Delaware to attack them. Instead of traveling, Rick Steves should read a decent history book.
It's ludicruous to argue that the forces of globalization "don't effect us" (or affect us for that matter). America is heavily involved in world trade. IMF and World Bank regulations affect us a great deal, since we often foot the bill when their loans go bad. Let's hope that Paul Wolfowitz helps the World Bank as much as he helped Iraq.
The victims of structural poverty care. Free trade, neo-liberalism, and globalization are all concrete and real issues to the half of humanity trying to live on $2 a day. When it comes to these issues, you’d be impressed by their savvy.
Here's some Economics 101: When Jones buys a loaf of bread from Smith, both Jones and Smith are better off. Jones would rather have the bread. Smith prefers the money. Voluntary transactions increase human happiness. The more the better. If half of humanity is living on $2 a day, they can't be too savvy. And when did neo-liberalism become a bad word? I thought Wolfowitz and the neo-conservatives were the bad guys.
When we learn that people in the poor countries know so much about us and our policies, I’m inclined to figure it’s merely out of admiration of our way of life. When we are ignorant about others and their struggles we are also ignorant about ourselves and our impact on others.
This blissful ignorance seems innocent and innocuous. But, combined with power, it can bring smug self-delusion, belief in our own superiority and a presumed right to dictate morality to others. This is the evil cocktail that causes good Americans to celebrate American Imperialism.
Again, if Americans are so ignorant, and poor countries are so wise, why are we the most prosperous and powerful nation in the history of the world? Why do Salvadorans come to America to earn money? Americans aren't imperialist. When Iraq is ready for us to leave, we'll leave.
This privilege-rooted ignorance makes Americans easy to mislead into war. “Fighting for freedom,” we willingly send thousands of our children to die and almost eagerly divert billions of much needed dollars from domestic spending to “defense.” To populations on the receiving end of the American crusade, the “freedom and liberty” our president touts is freedom for corporations to exploit natural resources and liberty to take advantage of the labor of weaker countries.
Americans entered the war to liberate Iraq with its eyes open. No one was misled. There are no children in the American military. Everyone is a grown-up who volunteered. The military believes in the mission in Iraq. So do the Iraqi people. So far little significant money was diverted from domestic spending to the defense budget. Our bloated domestic budget is the real problem.
Both the Afghans and Iraqis seem to appreciate being on the "receiving end" of their liberation. Let's hope their transition to self-government is successful. America didn't enter the war to get good business deals from Iraq. If that was our main goal we would have imitated the French and made corrupt deals with Saddam Hussein.
Like El Salvador, Iraq and Afghanistan will benefit from more trade with America. I hope the sour grapes from the Rick Steves of the world don't prevent freedom and prosperity in those countries.
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Let's resume our analysis of Rick Steves' El Salvador essay. This post examines the section "Why Visit El Salvador?"
In spite of my privileged position, I have an appetite to know the truth. For many Americans, privilege brings with it the luxury of obliviousness. We don’t need to know what the forces of globalization are doing because they don’t effect us. We don’t need to know the impact of a new International Money Fund (IMF) regulation on a person who sews clothing in Honduras or plants beans in Panama. Paul Wolfowitz may well be running the World Bank. Who cares?
For someone who has an appetite to know the truth, Rick Steves sure has trouble with facts. Check out the Amazon reviews of his book Europe 101 (mine's entitled "Gullibles' Travels"). It has all kinds of obvious errors. For example, Lenin did not overthrow Russia's czarist government. The Algerians weren't 90 percent literate before the French took over. One thing I learned since I posted the review is that the Hessians weren't drunk when George Washington crossed the Delaware to attack them. Instead of traveling, Rick Steves should read a decent history book.
It's ludicruous to argue that the forces of globalization "don't effect us" (or affect us for that matter). America is heavily involved in world trade. IMF and World Bank regulations affect us a great deal, since we often foot the bill when their loans go bad. Let's hope that Paul Wolfowitz helps the World Bank as much as he helped Iraq.
The victims of structural poverty care. Free trade, neo-liberalism, and globalization are all concrete and real issues to the half of humanity trying to live on $2 a day. When it comes to these issues, you’d be impressed by their savvy.
Here's some Economics 101: When Jones buys a loaf of bread from Smith, both Jones and Smith are better off. Jones would rather have the bread. Smith prefers the money. Voluntary transactions increase human happiness. The more the better. If half of humanity is living on $2 a day, they can't be too savvy. And when did neo-liberalism become a bad word? I thought Wolfowitz and the neo-conservatives were the bad guys.
When we learn that people in the poor countries know so much about us and our policies, I’m inclined to figure it’s merely out of admiration of our way of life. When we are ignorant about others and their struggles we are also ignorant about ourselves and our impact on others.
This blissful ignorance seems innocent and innocuous. But, combined with power, it can bring smug self-delusion, belief in our own superiority and a presumed right to dictate morality to others. This is the evil cocktail that causes good Americans to celebrate American Imperialism.
Again, if Americans are so ignorant, and poor countries are so wise, why are we the most prosperous and powerful nation in the history of the world? Why do Salvadorans come to America to earn money? Americans aren't imperialist. When Iraq is ready for us to leave, we'll leave.
This privilege-rooted ignorance makes Americans easy to mislead into war. “Fighting for freedom,” we willingly send thousands of our children to die and almost eagerly divert billions of much needed dollars from domestic spending to “defense.” To populations on the receiving end of the American crusade, the “freedom and liberty” our president touts is freedom for corporations to exploit natural resources and liberty to take advantage of the labor of weaker countries.
Americans entered the war to liberate Iraq with its eyes open. No one was misled. There are no children in the American military. Everyone is a grown-up who volunteered. The military believes in the mission in Iraq. So do the Iraqi people. So far little significant money was diverted from domestic spending to the defense budget. Our bloated domestic budget is the real problem.
Both the Afghans and Iraqis seem to appreciate being on the "receiving end" of their liberation. Let's hope their transition to self-government is successful. America didn't enter the war to get good business deals from Iraq. If that was our main goal we would have imitated the French and made corrupt deals with Saddam Hussein.
Like El Salvador, Iraq and Afghanistan will benefit from more trade with America. I hope the sour grapes from the Rick Steves of the world don't prevent freedom and prosperity in those countries.
