11/04/2004 06:28:35 AM|||Nathan Moore|||

Brian Reade, one of the children over at The Daily Mirror, has spoken.

To the overwhelming majority of you who didn't, I simply ask: Have you learnt nothing? Do you despise your own image that much?

Do you care so little about the world beyond your shores? How could you do this to yourselves?

How appalling must one man's record at home and abroad be for you to reject him?

Funny how a candidate of vision and a hankerin' of freedom (to borrow some of the condascending parlance from Reade's rant) is viewed as some sort of danger to the cultural elites from abroad. Obviously, we as Americans should be more concerned with appearance than substance. Though appearance is important on some levels, our image as a country to appeasement-minded snobs is about as important as that mosquito I swatted last night on my deck, and should be treated with the same contempt.

How dare you, sir, and those who think like you. Mr. Reade possesses a historical ignorance that should be uncommon in Europe. The continent has been through too much, and its history of tragedy so well detailed, that no one should be foolish enough to believe as Mr. Reade believes. Unfortunately, for us and them, it prevails. It is as if we should care that we are not willing to trade national security for cocktails and keish. Somehow, because war is no longer fashionable, we ought not wage it when we have to. We should appease those wishing us destruction, because it is the "sophisticated" thing to do.

Yes, sophisticated, and suicidal. The Islamists, wishing to kill us for not worshiping Allah as they think we should, are certainly interested in sophistication. The Taliban, certainly, were interested in sophistication. And of course, the Baathists are quite sophisticated. Not to mention Colonel Quadaffi - blowing up nightclubs and Pan Am jets full of innocent people is most certainly sophisticated. The PFLP certainly shows its sophistication by blowing up buses full of children and old ladies, only because they were born Jews.

I hate to be so crass, for it certainly shows a lack of sophistication, but it is the mark of a complete and utter dimwit to think there is a sophisticated approach to defeating those who sponsor, execute and solicit others to do the most base and barbarous acts.

The Independent takes a slightly more sophisticated approach, with less namecalling and ranting, but somehow comes to a rather odd conclusion. On the heels of the first majority presidential selection in 16 years, the paper wonders whether Bush will change, or will be more convinced of the rightness of his cause.

So, if you win an election, outright, by a clear majority, for the first time in almost two decades, and pick up seats in the House and Senate for the second election in a row, one should not be convinced of the rightness of one's cause? Is that not a complete misunderstanding of democratic republicanism? Or is it evidence of a futile hope that President Bush will wake up weak and tired like the rest of the Western world?

Silliness and weakness wrapped all up in one. But yes, Europe, when the time comes, we will save you from yourselves again. Give us a break while we try to make it less costly to us than the last three times.

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