. . . from Mark Steyn, in which he uses the recent "assassination joke" on the part of a countryman as a point of departure to discuss cool irony and the European penchant for passivity. As in, how does it fit into the current world conflict, with people getting their heads chopped off just for attempting to do good works?

Not very well, he concludes:

This new war requires action, resolve, ongoing participation—and most of America's "allies" just can't be fagged. The Spanish vote was a vote for passivity, a call for inaction, and a quiet life no doubt with many "ironic jokes" about the absurd Americans. The "civilised world" sees itself like Continental skating judges at the Olympics, watching the Yanks career all over the ice and then handing out a succession of cranky 4.7s. The decadence of passivity does not express itself solely in "ironic jokes".

My problem is that John Kerry is part of that culture: he wants to criticize people of action rather than actually doing anything himself. Look at his lackluster Senate record, and listen to his micro-criticisms of the Bush Administration's accomplishments. Listen to his own plan: I'd have done everything better somehow, and people in other countries wouldn't dislike us so.

It may be too late for John Kerry to grow a spine, but I still have some hope the Western Europeans will figure things out soon. Certainly there are plenty of English who "get it." And then there are the Australians, to whom I'm grateful. Even a few Canadians (Kate, are you reading this?). And the Polish, for whom this is a labor of love. God bless them.

Posted by: Attila at 10:47 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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