True. The US once again has a unique opportunity to show that they too, despite their best efforts not to be, are indeed a part of the global community. That they will honour treaties, international law and human rights. What they do with that opportunity is up to them, but if they blow it?

The hatred of the US has waned considerably after Obama's election, in the HOPE that the US intends to grow up. At least here in DK, distrust and suspicion of the US is still very much alive and kicking. (We're not particularly pro-Obama here, but we're highly anti-Bush and that's what we're celebrating; the end of his murderous reign and the defeat of yet another of his ilk, the warmongering McCain.) W...

True. The US once again has a unique opportunity to show that they too, despite their best efforts not to be, are indeed a part of the global community. That they will honour treaties, international law and human rights. What they do with that opportunity is up to them, but if they blow it?

The hatred of the US has waned considerably after Obama's election, in the HOPE that the US intends to grow up. At least here in DK, distrust and suspicion of the US is still very much alive and kicking. (We're not particularly pro-Obama here, but we're highly anti-Bush and that's what we're celebrating; the end of his murderous reign and the defeat of yet another of his ilk, the warmongering McCain.) We're kind of waiting to see what happens now and if Obama will bring change things for the better, and revise the US' disastrous foreign policies and especially stop disregarding and bombing sovereign nations and to stop torturing people.

If the US feels hated now (pre-Obama) , then I would not like to be in their shoes in the future, if they snub the world, yet again, like they did after 9/11. The world can be a very lonely place if you are isolated and with the US economy as it is, they can barely afford to play world bully for much longer anyway.

I can understand the anti-American setiments particulary under the warfaring Bush-regime. But it wouldn't be right to hold the USA totally responsable for all bad things that happen in the world. Bush may have made things worse, but he did not invent onflicts that weren't already there.

My country (The Netherlands) did they're share too, like many other west-european countries, not only by taking part in the recent military agenda, but also further back in history, with colonisation, exploitation and slavery, by making laws that protect own economy at costs of third world countries, et cetera. All these things have made the world today as it is and it wouldn't be fair to hold one nation acc...

I can understand the anti-American setiments particulary under the warfaring Bush-regime. But it wouldn't be right to hold the USA totally responsable for all bad things that happen in the world. Bush may have made things worse, but he did not invent onflicts that weren't already there.

My country (The Netherlands) did they're share too, like many other west-european countries, not only by taking part in the recent military agenda, but also further back in history, with colonisation, exploitation and slavery, by making laws that protect own economy at costs of third world countries, et cetera. All these things have made the world today as it is and it wouldn't be fair to hold one nation accountable for that, or to demand a change of tactics while the rest keeps it's arms crossed.

If any country would be in danger of getting isolated, it would be the country that does nothing. I don't think America under Obama will be that nation. Not with the upcoming shift of power and economics. They are smart enough to focus on new politics.

I would rather think that the old-fashioned european politics are getting behind the facts, as they still want to project the west-european way of doings and thinking to the new and upcoming economies like China and Middle-East. Europe still has very old fashioned views of those cultures. And it sees those cultures as a possible threat. But those cultures have changed, they want to develop into something new and better, they want to surpass their past and go beyond. Not necessarily at cost of the European style, but it can not fit in either. So there has to be some space. There has to be mutual understanding about the need of development. There has to be an adjustment of speaking tone. And as long as Europe doesn't take interest in what visions and ideals these fast developing cultures might have for the future world, and how much room they need to get there, then there's true danger of getting isolated.