Thursday, July 21, 2005

No News Here. Nothing to See. Go Back to Your Homes, Now . . .

This isn't news. Condi Rice's entourage was roughed up while meeting with the president of Sudan, by Sudanese security forces at the presidential compound. (thanks, Austin Bay) But you don't see much press indignation, despite the fact some reporters of note were roughed up as well. You might recognize the Sudan as a place where there is considerable unrest including human rights violations. Also involved is radical Islamists. But let's just ignore this sort of thing because making a fuss would be so, oh, I don't know, declasse'. It's just how they do things in that culture. You wouldn't want to judge by our cultural norms, for that would be arrogant and bigoted.

You've heard of carrot and stick diplomacy, I'm sure.

Well, if a person has no intention in the first place of using the stick, and the opposition knows that person won't use the stick because they've tested and seen that one won't strike out even when it is justified -- well, at least take the damn carrot back! And do it in a noisy fashion so as to be instructive to the many other jerks and jackasses our foreign policy must confront..

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