Current Events — HabitableZone

Current Events » in reply to Did I miss something

Re: Recently

Our prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt apologized for the responsability of Belgium during the Rwanda genocide in 1994. That, I'm absolutely sure of. Belgium did not expect the massacre to happen and did not act to prevent it, at the time (neither did France nor the US).
I know France did not apologize; did the US?
As for the colonies, well, most European countries withdrew from their colonies within a period of 20 years (1945-1967) and the colonized countries. As decolonization was something demanded by those newly independant countries, they obtained it. What is a thorny issue (like nowadays in France), was the torture inflicted to locals in Algeria, at the time. A book has recently been written about this (by a retired general) where all the grueling details are explained. I'm not sure of the French government position about this. Several politicians did express their regret, but was it official? I don't know.

To believe most countries hate the US is quite ridiculous. Or perhaps, it's just an argument to justify not bothering anymore. The fact is that within any country, there are those who do resent and those who appreciate. The US government seems perhaps more interested in listening to those who can justify its inaction and withdrawal.
Like the protests against global economy: they make a lot of noise, they are numerous, they burn McDonalds restaurants (even though all the food was produced locally), but they don't represent everyone.

Raoul

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