there has been considerable anti american sentiments expressed. some are no doubt legitimate, but one must not condemn the nation or its people because of the actions and interests of those sojourning in power. this is no different from a form of racism.
the 1973 speech below is a memorable one for many reasons. one may not agree with parts of it, but it is difficult to disagree with its spirit. most of all, it brings to light realities rarely remembered, but nevertheless undeniable.
in friendship,
prad
LET'S BE PERSONAL Broadcast June 5, 1973 CFRB, Toronto, Ontario
Topic: The Americans
The United States dollar took another pounding on German, French and British exchanges this morning, hitting the lowest point ever known in West Germany. It has declined there by 41% since 1971 and this Canadian thinks it is time to speak up for the Americans as the most generous and possibly the least-appreciated people in all the world.
As long as sixty years ago, when I first started to read newspapers, I read of floods on the Yellow River and the Yangtse. Well, Who rushed in with men and money to help? The Americans did, that's who.
They have helped control floods on the Nile, the Amazon, the Ganges and the Niger. Today, the rich bottom land of the Mississippi is under water and no foreign land has sent a dollar to help. Germany, Japan and, to a lesser extent, Britain and Italy, were lifted out of the debris of war by the Americans who poured in billions of dollars and forgave other billions in debts. None of those countries is today paying even the interest on its remaining debts to the United States.
When the franc was in danger of collapsing in 1956, it was the Americans who propped it up and their reward was to be insulted and swindled on the streets of Paris. And I was there. I saw that.
When distant cities are hit by earthquakes, it is the United States that hurries into help... Managua Nicaragua is one of the most recent examples. So far this spring, 59 American communities have been flattened by tornadoes. Nobody has helped.
The Marshall Plan... the Truman Policy... all pumped billions upon billions of dollars into discouraged countries. And now, newspapers in those countries are writing about the decadent war-mongering Americans.
I'd like to see one of those countries that is gloating over the erosion of the United States dollar build its own airplanes.
Come on... let's hear it! Does any other country in the world have a plane to equal the Boeing Jumbo Jet, the Lockheed Tristar or the Douglas 10? If so, why don't they fly them? Why do all international lines except Russia fly American planes? Why does no other land on earth even consider putting a man or a women on the moon?
You talk about Japanese technocracy and you get radios. You talk about German technocracy and you get automobiles. You talk about American technocracy and you find men on the moon, not once, but several times ... and safely home again. You talk about scandals and the Americans put theirs right in the store window for everybody to look at. Even the draft dodgers are not pursued and hounded. They are right here on our streets in Toronto, most of them... unless they are breaking Canadian laws... are getting American dollars from Ma and Pa at home to spend here.
When the Americans get out of this bind... as they will... who could blame them if they said 'the hell with the rest of the world'. Let someone else buy the bonds, let someone else build or repair foreign dams or design foreign buildings that won't shake apart in earthquakes.
When the railways of France, Germany and India were breaking down through age, it was the Americans who rebuilt them. When the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central went broke, nobody loaned them an old caboose. Both of them are still broke. I can name to you 5,000 times when the Americans raced to the help of other people in trouble.
Can you name to me even one time when someone else raced to the Americans in trouble? I don't think there was outside help even during the San Francisco earthquake.
Our neighbours have faced it alone and I am one Canadian who is damned tired of hearing them kicked around. They will come out of this thing with their flag high. And when they do, they are entitled to thumb their noses at the lands that are gloating over their present troubles.
I hope Canada is not one of these. But there are many smug, self-righteous Canadians. And finally, the American Red Cross was told at its 48th Annual meeting in New Orleans this morning that it was broke.
This year's disasters... with the year less than half-over... has taken it all and nobody... but nobody... has helped.
ORIGINAL SCRIPT AND AUDIO
COURTESY STANDARD BROADCASTING CORPORATION LTD.
(c) 1973 BY GORDON SINCLAIR
I think that there are times when the US is unfairly criticised, and that the US does do a lot of good in the world (as well as quite a few crappy things). American technology is the best in the world in very many areas. A couple of points, though:
1. It is for the rich (and the US is certainly the most prosperous nation on Earth) to help the poor, not the poor to help the rich. So I don't quite see why the writer makes so much of the fact that poor nations don't reciprocate America's generosity in times of need. I do agree though that the US does not receive enough recognition for the good works it has done.
2. US prosperity comes partly at the expense of native Americans, whose land was taken, and African slaves, who contributed a great deal of labour. Not that I'm pointing the finger - Australia has a very similar history in some respects. Also, I recognise that a great deal of America's wealth comes from American ingenuity and entreprenurial 'can do' spirit, and that's something the world can learn from the US. Then there's the 'free trade' issue - the US says it supports free trade, but is very protectionist in some areas such as agriculture (as Australian negotiators are finding out as they try to thrash out a free trade agreement between our two countries).
3. US scientific/technological superiority is partly a function of the political freedom and prosperity it enjoys. How many immigrants have contributed to this lead? Einstein, the German rocket scientists who worked on the US space missions, Teller and other A-bomb researchers, etc etc etc...Same in the arts - there was a mass movement of avante-gard artists from Europe to the US after WW2. The US seems to attract talent as much as (or perhaps more than) it breeds talent.
4. The US does not pay its UN dues. Perhaps if it did, that organisation would be able to be a more effective force in world politics. It certainly has the money to do this...is it just because the UN refuses to be a pliable tool to aid the US achieve its foreign policy objectives?
On the whole though, I think the world would be a much worse place without the US. God bless America! I hope you guys retain that technological lead far into the future.
The US is the most powerful country in the world. It won't be forever, maybe not even for the rest of my lifetime, but it is right now. Historically speaking, I don't think any other dominant country was as altruistic to the rest of the world. It is far from perfect, but no other country would be either. If a country was completely altruistic, it wouldn't be powerful, and it would be vulnerable to the whims of countries with power.
Throughout human history "Might makes right". I think the US has been pretty good about restraining itself from bullying the world, as it could, and as most other countries would. Not perfect, but pretty good. and better than any other country I can think of.
Originally posted by dfm65Well said, dfm65...well rounded and unbiased...thanks
I think that there are times when the US is unfairly criticised, and that the US does do a lot of good in the world (as well as quite a few crappy things). American technology is the best in the world in very many areas. A couple of points, though:
1. It is for the rich (and the US is certainly the most prosperous nation on Earth) to help the poor, not the ...[text shortened]... t the US. God bless America! I hope you guys retain that technological lead far into the future.
America was certainly generous in the Marshall plan. Is it still true?
Most measures of the foreign aid are based on percentages of GNP with 0.70% being accepted as a target. Between 1992 and 1996, the USA contributed between 0.10 and 0.20% of GNP. making it in every year the least generous of OECD nations. In 1995, the USA contributed 0.01% while Gernany, France and Japan contributed between 0.28% and 0.55% In the same year, Denmark contributed 0.96% or nearly ten times more on the basis of the size of their economy.
How about measuring actual dollars given? As the US is a very large economy, thsi should make the US look better. In 1995, the US gave away $7 367 million dollars. In the same year, the Japanese figure was $14 489 million or nearly twice as much cash from a smaller economy. Germany, France and Japan gave in foreign aid a total of $30 000 million or four times as much as the US in that year
Figures came from http://www.jei.org/Archive/JEIR97/9726EAtab.html.
Originally posted by steerpikeYeah but Japan, France and Germany doesn't have to police the whole world like the US has to do. If it was up to me I'd pull the US out of the UN and have my tax dollars put to use here in the US.😠
America was certainly generous in the Marshall plan. Is it still true?
Most measures of the foreign aid are based on percentages of GNP with 0.70% being accepted as a target. Between 1992 and 1996, the USA contributed between 0.10 and 0.20% of GNP. making it in every year the least generous of OECD nations. In 1995, the USA contributed 0.01% while Gerna ...[text shortened]... n that year
Figures came from http://www.jei.org/Archive/JEIR97/9726EAtab.html.
Originally posted by steerpikeWhat did New Zealand give?....😲
America was certainly generous in the Marshall plan. Is it still true?
Most measures of the foreign aid are based on percentages of GNP with 0.70% being accepted as a target. Between 1992 and 1996, the USA contributed between 0.10 and 0.20% of GNP. making it in every year the least generous of OECD nations. In 1995, the USA contributed 0.01% while Gerna ...[text shortened]... n that year
Figures came from http://www.jei.org/Archive/JEIR97/9726EAtab.html.
Originally posted by flexmoreAbout 20% of the GNP of the US is spent on defense. If you take that into consideration it is a heck of a lot more than what Germany, japan, and France paid to the UN. I got an idea why don't above mentioned countries be the policeman of the world and the US will give more to the UN.🙂
i believe individual countries (ALL countries) look after their own self interest.
the u.n., though far from perfect, is more of a police force.
as for your money - i believe steerpike's point is that your money does mostly stay locally for your own good.