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Thursday, June 12, 2008
Mexicans split when it comes to U.S.
A new poll reveals just what Mexicans think of the United States, and the result is decidedly lukewarm. The Mitofsky Group asked Mexicans what they thought of 10 countries, and the U.S. fell squarely in the middle. Its cumulative score of 19.4 was enough for 5th place (37.3 percent had a favorable view of the the States while 17.9 percent had a negative image).
Mexicans’ favorite country? It’s France, followed by Spain, China and Argentina. And Mexicans apparently aren’t big fans of Castro as Cuba got the worst rating (-4.7), just a hair behind Colombia (-4.6).
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South Korea’s beef with the United States
As tens of thousands of South Koreans flooded cities to protest this week, it created a worry for Washington as reflected in a story by the Yonhap News Agency: “Beef protest raises specter of anti-American mood”.
The demonstrations - sparked by a decision to lift a 5-year-old ban on American beef because of mad cow disease - have been driven partly by domestic concerns, particularly a slowing economy.
But South Korea has grown from an agricultural backwater into a world economic power over the last 50 years and the protests also reflect wounded pride: South Koreans don’t want to feel like the United States, which stations tens of thousands of soldiers in their country, is calling the shots.
That anger was on display in Seoul, South Korea’s capital. After the government walled off the center of the city from protesters, some people posted up leaflets calling the wall part of “the U.S. state of South Korea,” according to The New York Times.
I’ve seen that wounded pride on several trips to South Korea. In 2006, I sat with Korean university students and watched their national team beat the United States in the World Baseball Classic. The students erupted with satisfaction when South Korea won. One local newspaper smugly described the victory as a humiliation heaped on “the vaunted U.S. major leaguers”.
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak seems to have stoked that nationalism by accepting the U.S. beef, which some Koreans believe is not safe.
Unless Seoul and Washington can find a face-saving way to convince Koreans that their government isn’t kowtowing to the United States, the protests are likely to continue.
President Bush is scheduled to visit South Korea early next month. He’s certain to dig into a few American steaks and argue they are perfectly fine. He’s also likely to hear why South Koreans have a beef with the United States.
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Auf Weidersehen Mr. President.
Germany never much liked President Bush, currently in Europe on a farewell tour. But one thing’s for certain: he was able to unite Germans like no one else. According to today’s Der Spiegel, hating the U.S. president was about the only thing the country could agree on in recent years.
“One almost has to feel badly for German journalists, editorialists and political cartoonists,” the newspaper said. “In just a few short months, Mr. Reliable will no longer be available for lampooning. The German media’s greatest foil is riding into the sunset.”
The newspaper lamented the fact that the president will soon cease delivering a steady stream of material for headline after Bush-bashing headline.
It is difficult to pinpoint the exact moment when Bush-bashing became Germany’s new national pasttime. Even during his campaign against Al Gore, George Bush Jr. was portrayed as the not especially bright heir to the Bush family throne. Political cartoons were suddenly full of cowboy hats and sheriff’s stars.
Even the massive wave of sympathy for the United States following the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 did little to improve Bush’s image in Germany, and once it became apparent that the U.S. president was intent on invading Iraq, it was open season.
Left-wing Die Tageszeitung was among the first to go on the offensive. A piece on Jan. 15, 2002 documented a mysterious “Pretzel Attack” against Bush. According to the tongue-in-cheek piece, “the pretzel was arrested by the Secret Service and taken to the prison camp Guantanamo in Cuba for interrogation.” Another headline on the occasion read “Guten Appetit Mr. President.”
With Bush nearly gone, it’s hard to imagine how German media will fill the void. Will Michelle Obama or Cindy McCain become the press’ new whipping girls? It’s a tough job but somebody’s going to have to do it.
