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Ten French Troops Killed Fighting The Taliban, After John McCain Belittled France At The Saddleback Forum. Shame on John McCain!
France send their troops to fight on our side after 9/11.
Today they paid a terrible toll for being a good friend.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080819/ap_on_re_as/afghanistan
John McCain made the usual Republican condescending remarks, at Saddleback, about the French.
Keep in mind, that without the help of the French, the odds are great that the American Revolution would have failed.
Last week the president of France moved quickly to obtain a ceasefire between Russia and Georgia, and deserves all the credit for quickly defusing a very dangerous confrontation. That is while Bush/McCain/Rice were reduced to uttering their usual bellicose statements from afar, but not doing a damn thing to actually negotiate a halt to the military confrontation.
Also, when is America going to thank France for being a true friend, that was right when they tried to save us from a disastrous invasion of Iraq. They had nothing but abuse hurled at them, with stuff like the Freedom Fries childish taunts from America, when they were trying to save us from our own worst impulses.
Tony Blair, on the other hand, became our chief enabler, and without him, we probably would not have been able to go ahead with Bush's Iraq Follies.
Where was Blair during the past week, when the Russian/Georgia conflict erupted. No where to be found. France moved swiftly and deftly to cool things down.
France is the good friend that America always abuses, while the Brits can do no wrong, even though they were the one's we had to fight to gain our independence and all they have ever done is take take take, or prop up an idiot like Bush.
Ten French Troops just gave their lives fighting for America. Honor their sacrifice, and stop with all the unjustified bashing of France.
It is America's oldest and greatest true friend.
Comments (24)
"France send their troops to fight on our side after 9/11.
Today they paid a terrible toll for being a good friend." It isn't a good friend who participates in your worst mistakes, it is merely a sycophant.
And Tony Blair is now a private citizen. Still an asshole, but now a private citizen, with no governmental standing, whatsoever.
August 19, 2008 12:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
I watched the event, and I thought McCain was bragging about the fact that Sarkozy is "pro-American." That would be in spite of Iraq, and, presumably, McCain is trying to make the case that the surge has improved the US's position internationally. I'm not saying any of that is true, and I'm thinking you won't agree with McCain, but that was my take on the comment.
August 19, 2008 1:04 PM | Reply | Permalink
McCain made a very snide remark about if you live long enough even a French president will come along that likes America. That is pure crap, and French bashing. Like I pointed out; France was the Midwife that delivered baby USA.
He was giving France a backhanded compliment.
Had the Bush/Cheney/McCain cabal taking the sincere and sound advice of France they would have been spared their Iraq Follies.
France was the good friend that tried to stop them from driving while intoxicated, while the Brits said sure you can drive, and I will ride shotgun with you on your power drunk rampage.
Time for America to apologize to France for treating it so poorly. They are our oldest and most genuine friend.
August 19, 2008 1:36 PM | Reply | Permalink
I agree, anyone who didn't see that as a very strong and undeserved swipe at France is ignorant of history.
Without France's help, England wouldn't even have noticed our revolution. And they gave us that cool statue.
August 19, 2008 6:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oh, for chrissakes. Are we going to get into who owes who what after two world wars? Except for the French/Indian war, their role in our Civil War, and a couple of skirmishes on the Mexican border, haven't the United States and France been allies forever? Stuff happens between friends. We've been there for one another when it counted. McCain was telling a joke.
August 19, 2008 9:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
Iraq invasion was our worst mistake. The French tried their very best to stop us from committing it.
Tony Blair is still on the international stage. He is being pushed forward to play a key role in the Israel/Palestine situation. He is also seeking to become the first EU President.
August 19, 2008 1:40 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, President Sarkozy has endorsed Senator Obama. Sarkozy did not have a press conference when he met with him during McBushSame trip. I did watch the press conference, and also I also read the French news daily. (I was born and raised in France)
I was shocked to find out that GWB was bullying Sarkozy last week because Sarkozy had decided not only to set up the peace treaty but also to act on it.
It worked. I have a sense that McBushSame and his best buddy wanted the situation to worsen.
As far as Blair is concerned, he has no credibility. He became Bushs' puppet and he still is. I do hope he will not get elected at the EU president.
August 19, 2008 2:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
Thank you France for:
the Marquis de Lafayette's contributions to our Independence from Britain,
your Navy defeating Cornwallis at Yorktown and thus liberating us from Britain,
being the first nation to recognize our independence and thus our first and longest standing ally in the world,
the Statue of Liberty,
celebrating and appreciating our artforms, such as jazz and our literature, when we ourselves fail to do so
and for gracefully putting up with the indignities to which the US has for the past been years been subjecting you as a nation.
Also, thank you Liam for this post.
August 19, 2008 7:26 PM | Reply | Permalink
for the past few years been subjecting
August 19, 2008 7:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
Wow. You are really good at that. The few French I know would be rolling their eyes. Sadly, I'm guessing you're sincere.
August 19, 2008 9:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
Les plusieurs français, que je connais du temps que j'ai habité en France, seraient vraiment content d'entendre un homme americain dit des compliments comme ça. Comme t'as dit: tu ne connais pas beaucoup de français. Et je suis sûr qu'ils voudraient que tu parles pour eux. Merci. =)
August 19, 2008 9:49 PM | Reply | Permalink
We don't have the same friends. But we knew that already, didn't we? Have you seen The Battle Of Algiers? Just curious.
August 19, 2008 9:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
No. It's on my lost list of films to see. I know too much about it already, though. Happens with classics like that.
August 19, 2008 9:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
long* not lost. I really need sleep.
August 19, 2008 10:00 PM | Reply | Permalink
Do not be sad, I also thank France for the exquisite Clairet I drink. I wrote these words with my French friends who suffered humiliation in this country back in 2003 in mind.
Had Britain been the honest ally that France was then rather than the yes-man accomplice it turned out to be, we would now be in better considerably shape today.
August 19, 2008 10:11 PM | Reply | Permalink
Too much Clairet,
'considerably better shape'
August 19, 2008 10:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
All right. I'll drink some Champagne and Cognac. Night cap. Why not?
August 19, 2008 10:28 PM | Reply | Permalink
For your penance, leave the echo chamber and watch The Battle of Algiers.
August 19, 2008 9:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
ah, yes. much more deserving post. good work, liam!
August 19, 2008 9:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
Merci beaucoup, liam! =) Je n'ai rien d'autre à dire, je crois. Great post.
August 19, 2008 9:55 PM | Reply | Permalink
I've been against France bashing since before Freedom Fries, but it's simply not very accurate at all to say Ten French Troops just gave their lives fighting for America and, I believe, some French might even take offense.
First, they wouldn't be in NATO if they didn't think it was in their self-interest. Second, they wouldn't be in Afghanistan if they didn't think it was in their self-interest. It's almost Amero-centrically imperialistic in a way for you to say that. Actually, I believe some French of the type who are prone to believe in a "war of civilizations" might find it quite offensive or arrogant for an American to think these troops were fighting for the U.S. and not "western civilization."
They've had a "war on terror," long before we did, including Islamic terrorism, with special anti-terrorism courts chasing al Qaeda and its precusors long before most Americans ever heard of al Qaeda, and with powers way beyond what most civil libertarians would accept here. Their top counter-terrorism judge, Judge Louis Bruguiere, already had two decades time into this "war" at the time 9/11 happened:
http://archives.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/europe/12/27/inv.french.judge/index.html
August 20, 2008 2:15 AM | Reply | Permalink
I should add that those French who think the war on Islamic terrorism is un tas de merde, and don't believe in a war of civilizations, would be the most likely ones to say that those 10 soldiers gave their lives for America, and be very pissed about it to boot.
August 20, 2008 2:27 AM | Reply | Permalink
In this piece in today's Le Monde, for example, it's not at all about the U.S., it's all about continuing France's fight against terrorism:
until, that is, you get to right wing extremist and xenophonbe Jean-Marie Le Pen, who does indeed sseem to agree with you that they died for "Uncle Sam":
August 20, 2008 3:13 AM | Reply | Permalink
Billy the Contrarian are you pretending that McCain is not attempting to make use of the Republican party's well-earned nationalistic cred? They worked hard to accuse Americans who did not support their neo-conservative agenda as being unpatriotic. It took a lot of effort for them to paint France an other countries who opposed the invasion as weak and feed off of the anti-French sentiment. "Rally the votes everyone is against us!" They attacked Kerry for looking French and would use the opening line "Or as John Kerry would say, bonjour."
There may not be as much mileage left on this disgusting device for manipulating public opinion (at the detriment of our cultural and diplomatic relations) and McCain has to be much more careful how employs it, but he'll squeeze what he can out of it. The only joke here is that anyone still thinks McCain might be a straight-talker.
August 20, 2008 10:20 AM | Reply | Permalink
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