Saturday, June 13, 2009
Uighurs and wobbly
It was nearly 19 years ago that Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher advised President George H.W. Bush that "now is not the time to go wobbly," regarding Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. Their conversation was indicative of the "special relationship" that has existed between the U.S. and U.K., which continued during the Clinton administration and the George W. Bush administration, primarily with PM Tony Blair.
It's about 5 months into the Obama administration, and there are more and more signs that the special relationship isn't all that special anymore, the latest being the sending of the Uighur detainees to Bermuda, and the extent to which the move has upset the Brits, both toward the U.S. and its Commonwealth member Bermuda. Was it "smart diplomacy" to keep London out of the loop in order to shield it from anticipated Chinese anger, as was claimed by an unnamed U.S. official?
4 Comments:
By 
Elise, at
Sat Jun 13, 05:50:00 PM:
Was it "smart diplomacy" to keep London out of the loop in order to shield it from anticipated Chinese anger, as was claimed by an unnamed U.S. official?
Only if the British were in on being kept out of the loop. Otherwise it was high-handed and patronizing. We would be betting that China would shrug and tell Britain, sure, we understand there was nothing you could do. If I were Britain I'd like to decide for myself if I wanted to take that chance.
By 
, at
Sat Jun 13, 07:55:00 PM:
"Special Relationship" means we get stuck being the butt boys for all of the follies of empire.
The Boer War, the Sudan, ther Boxer Rebellion, Galliopoli, the Western Front, Iraq, Isreal, India and Pakistan, Kenya, the list of British failures that we got stuck with goes on and on.
Winston Churchill, that warmongering son of empire, has kept generations of Ivy leaguers enthralled.
It would have been better if Lord Randolph and Jenny Jerome had been sterile.
By Gary Rosen, at
Sun Jun 14, 03:11:00 AM:
Anonymous 7:55 (or Chrissy, or Wheezer or whoever you are) I don't mean to piss in your Wheaties, but Pat Buchanan is an "Ivy Leaguer". Oh well ...
By Viking Kaj, at
Wed Jun 17, 11:21:00 AM:
We'll excuse Pat Buchanan since he seems to have his head in the right place.
But most other Ivy Leaguers do not, they still think Winston Churchill farted roses when it came to war and foreign policy.
Anon 7:55
