Reynolds Butler,
Please be assured that I intended no "insult" to Krauthammer, in
my having quoted his recent observations about the French in my
posting. He might feel complimented -- he may like smelly cheese.
I did say "ad nauseam"... But my basic point was not necessarily
that Krauthammer has done something wrong, but that both he and
the rest of us now must increase our efforts to understand the
French. If we are going to criticize them so heavily, now, and
they us... That is my point about the need for "translation".
As for your term "kneejerk liberal", again this was not the point
of my posting. French intentions in their criticisms of us are
not entirely clear, to me: if they have more than one motive in
making them, well, that would not be the first time.
Whatever the motives of the French this time, however, it seems
to me we could do better on our "intelligence" in the areas of
international relations and diplomacy, as well as in others --
and a beginning, there, would be to focus on the languages used
rather than insist that everyone speak our own. Translation...
That way we might begin to "See better, Lear": what exactly we
will see, as a result of the effort, is not any more clear to me
than it is to anyone else -- but that we might "see better", is.
Jack Kessler, kessler@well.com
On Fri, 16 Jul 2004, Reynolds Butler wrote:
> 1) Is it ok to post insults on this list?
> 2) Not everyone on this list is a kneejerk liberal.
>
>
> On Thu, 15 Jul 2004 16:19:10 -0700 (PDT) Jack Kessler
> <kessler@well.com> writes:
>
> > FYI France: Digital Library reference -- translation
> >
> > .. aaaaand a very large truckload of very smelly cheese to...
> > Charles Krauthammer...
> >
> > Time Magazine, July 12, 2004
> >
> > "Why the French Act Isn't Funny Anymore : Their
> > resistance to helping in Afghanistan and Iraq is now
> > downright dangerous"
> >
> > by Charles Krauthammer
> >
> > "It is easy to make fun of the French and their pompous
> > pretense... the grandeur they shed a half-century ago...
> > second-class power... Gaullist anti-Americanism..."