the great Satan

When I went to Nicaragua, I expected some anti-Americanism, what with a decade-long proxy war & all, but it never materialized.

When I went to Egypt, I expected some anti-Americanism, what with US policy in the Middle East & all, but it was rare & most people were happy to talk to me, to try to figure out why the US government acts as it does.

When I came to Serbia, I expected some anti-Americanism, what with the NATO bombing & all, but it has been slight: an unfriendly police officer and stumbling upon the monument to "the children killed by NATO aggression" last week.

What I did not expect was the tremendous anti-Americanism from Western European ex-pats here. Sure, the US is imperfect. Our foreign policy is misguided. Our insistence on driving collosal cars hurts the environment. The lack of a national healthcare program is criminal. We eat too much.

But America's absurd military spending kept Western Europe free from communism. Coca-Cola wouldn't be everywhere if people didn't buy it. Our unemployment rate is nowhere near the 30+% it is in Sweden.

Maybe we deserve a little bit of credit.

Maybe people shouldn't say "and you admit it?" when I say I'm an American. American citizenship is not a pathology.