A recent Huffington Post article has shocked - shocked - its readers with the bold accusation that people with my views care just as much about people in other countries as we do about helping Americans.
You caught us, Ian Fletcher. The rabid USA-first business council you work for really pulled out the stops by employing someone so willing to broadcast naked American exceptionalism and protectionism. Your corporate monkey-wrenching has revealed that we don't think the lives of Americans are more important or precious than the impoverished masses in third world countries.
Wednesday, January 26, 2011
Guilty as charged
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Thank you for highlighting the line between me and many other liberals. If there's one thing I can't stand, it's provincialism. I love the United States - it's my home and has accomplished many great things worthy of praise - but I cringe when people talk about not wanting to buy goods from other countries (or even other states) - as if people there deserve less business.
ReplyDeleteI realize this is a broad generalization, but the ironic thing, however, is that when it comes to culture, it seems Tea Party activists are quintessential American exceptionalists and liberals demonstrate a lot of cosmopolitanism. This mix up is probably derived from the same reason liberals favor fewer restrictions on immigrants and conservatives want to militarize our border.
How do we explain the discrepancies?
I could be wrong, but I think the Tea Party believes the American system of government in its classic form is superior to other nations, and the buy-American anti-illegal immigration stance is a different mindset - one that unfortunatly overlaps.
ReplyDeleteI see liberals supporting immigration, but not importation - that is, the want the people here and the fruits of their labor so long as its domesticly produced - they don't want people to stay in their home country and sell things here. I think this can be expressed as a love of diversity but not a love of free trade.
Perhaps that is because they assume that the same workers will be treated poorly abroad, but well in America.
I'm shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here!
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