Posted on 08/04/2007 7:45:03 AM PDT by fieldgate
After the particularily insulting and disengenious comments made about President Bush on this weeks 'Any Questions' on BBC radio -in which the panel rejoyced that Britain and America are 'no longer joined at the hip'- I would assert that the British liberal intellegencia, with its forgetfullness of history, have not only abandoned, but forgotten the meaning of the 'special relationship' and its benefits.
In his very insulting performance with the President at the Camp David press conference Gordon Brown suspended this special relatonship; at least for the period that he or the Republicans remain in office (including the possibility of a Rice presidency if Condi makes progress in the Israeli-Palestine issue).
It was noticed in the US that while the President gave commeration to the British troops that had died in Iraq, Brown refused to reciprocate. It was also noticed that at no point did Brown express any understanding of imperatives in Iraq or support for US coalition presence there.
Rather there was a dark threat hanging overhead of a cowardly pullout which would hand S.Iraq to the Iranians while the US remained exposed in the North.
Whatever his pronouncements at the press conference, Browns whole attitude was more in keeping with the flavour of an anti-Bush 'anti war coalition' rally than an important bonding session with Britians (previously) greatest ally.
Germany and France will no doubt be delighted to move closer to the US to fill the vacumn created by Brown, and as Brown believes that the relationship is only one of doing business then we will end up with a 'shared realationship' competing alongside fellow Europeans.
It may not be easy in the future to return to the status quo once we have granted such latitude to other leaders, and Brown most certainly will not get the extra co-operation from the US that Tony Blair might have expected in the plans that Brown took with him to the White House. After all the US owes Britain no special favours now that we are 'no longer joined at the hip'.
To my mind the essence of the 'Special Relationship' is the promise; not always certain but likely whenever possible, that the US and the UK will come to each others aid at a time when one party is without friends.
An example would be any seizure of British territories such as the Falklands, or a situation in which a brutal coup takes place in one of our former colonies such as Jamaica.
In any such scenario Britain would almost certainly stand alone with both the UN and the EU opposing our use of military force. At that point we would need to turn to our ally the US for succour and support, not necessarily militarily but certainly in intelligence and political backing.
I would postulate that the President would not feel the imperative to risk that support given the ending of the 'shoulder to shoulder' relationship by Brown.
Furthermore, the choice of Malloch Brown as a foreign minister was a calculated snub to the White House and Republicans, and one has to ask if the damage caused to US-UK relations by choosing him was worth it.
I was also concerned by the body language between David Milliband and Condi Rice in which it was my perception (possibly mistaken)that Milliband was disdaining and talking down to the Secretary of State.
My major concern about the appointment of Gordon Brown as PM was that his knowledge and grasp of Foreign affairs did not stray far from Africa. I fear I was right. To my mind he completly lacks the instincts of a Margaret Thatcher or a Tony Blair in this respect
Churchill attributed the strength Anglo-American relationship to our shared traditions and ethnic consanguinity.
Now as our populations are changing rapidly on both sides of the Atlantic we are losing both.
And if things get really bad, we will definitely go over there to help them.
It sometimes appears that way but successive generations develop an ability to shift to the center.
In the UK there is a fast change in attitudes among young Muslims for instance. We now have ex-Jihadis writing books about their conversion to British values and the US has been the most successful integrator of Muslims.
Where values can change is if the basic principles become undermined by abandoning for instance the English language as the main language or if the media sways the public to abandon the historic course of the nation in the name of appeasement, or the business ethic falls to corruption.
I would not be so pessimistic. The values of the US and the UK remain virtually the same, polarisation and distortion rise and fall with waves of immigration and events but eventually revert to the center.
It is a historic outcome that both Britain and the US, in pursuit of world goals based on their values, have at times to wield military power; more so currently than any other nations.
However, it only takes one leader or another to break a close bond and the result is that one country or another finds itself alone against the world in a time of crisis.
And, I've never seen this item before, can you document this?---:
"In his very insulting performance with the President at the Camp David press conference Gordon Brown suspended this special relatonship; at least for the period that he or the Republicans remain in office (including the possibility of a Rice presidency if Condi makes progress in the Israeli-Palestine issue). It was noticed in the US that while the President gave commeration to the British troops that had died in Iraq, Brown refused to reciprocate. It was also noticed that at no point did Brown express any understanding of imperatives in Iraq or support for US coalition presence there."
And, what does "commeration" mean?
commemeration
Commemoration, perhaps?
Who wrote this? Is it a vanity? Can you provide documentation re: my initial post?
May I ask the source of this commentary?
It seems bizarre to to say the least.Brown hasn’t pulled UK troops out of Iraq and has towed the same line on the issue as President Bush. Britain has increased it’s committment to Afghanistan.
Brown has repeatedly praised the US, especially for its leadership against terrorism. What more is the guy supposed to do? Hurl himself at the feet of Bush? Brown has reaffirmed the special-relationship. Just look at all the articles on this issue on this very website.
The ‘not joined at the hip’ line came from Malloch-Brown. He was promptly told off by the Brown government.
Britain is lost to the muslims. We should perhaps allow some of their scientists etc to come over here.
The rest are not worth saving.
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