E-mail 1
From AD
Bitch please Americans are the best, if
that itches your vagina too fucking bad asshole, the next time
tragedy befalls on a country we should just forgo any phony sympathy
and laugh our asses off at your tragedy and instead blame your
own country and claim it is a "conspiracy" we do shit
for countries that we are not obligate do ( like eliminate evil
dictators and people don't appreciate it) Yet we have to get on
our knees because we get coffee from Brazil and Mexicans cut our
grass. I hope you get your head cut off by a terrorist you America-hating
asshole.
***
From Z
You believe in taking others wealth by
keeping the death tax? Why don't you get off your commi ass's
and create your own wealth! Matter of a fact you lazy bastards,
get the fuck out of my country since you seem to hate it so much!
You are what is wrong with this country, thus the enemy within.
I guess the killing of tens of millions under communism is just
what, a slight reaction? Sod off and move to North Korea and take
your hatred of my country elsewhere. Who am I? I am someone who
believes in the American dream and 7th generation of man who put
his live and fortune on the line to sign the Declaration of Independence,
and know for a fact, he did not do it for you! You are disgusting
traitors! Go apologize yourself and leave my beloved country out
of your demented sick views or get down and kiss the ground she
was formed on! WTF is wrong with this country is people like you.
Get off your asses and move!
Your website I am sure is already being
watched by the F.B.I. but I went ahead and forward it on to be
sure.
***
From JS
I just dont care about the third world.
If we had any more zulus and ricecake eaters (overseas) dictating
policies for the United States I would puke. I dont particularly
care for George W Bush, President, but I have the natural American
hatred of North Korea and Iraq, the latter being strong. If nuclear
weapons did not hurt the global environment (beyond Iraq and Korea)
I would fully advocate making Ping Pong and Ragbag glass.
***
From NA
Thanks for your amazing website which
I just stumbled on a few minutes ago. I began to get a sense
of which way the wind was blowing back in 1992 when I began to
listen to shortwave radio programs (in English) of various countries
around the world. Since that time Radio Nederlands, in particular,
has aired first-rate documentary programs on structural adjustment
and human rights issues in developing countries. In fact, having
discovered shortwave, I haven't paid much attention to the mainstream
media in a number of years. About a year or so ago, I happened
to listen to the local 6 o'clock news for the first time in eons
and was truly shocked at the lack of substance. What's so odd
is that I find that my sense of the world is mostly out of sync
with that of other "well informed" Americans who depend
largely on the mainstream media for their sources of information.
Anyway, I hope your website stays up for a long time - and as
a college English professor, I will try steer my students in its
direction whenever I can.
***
From JB
This has to be one of the best, if not
the best, links' pages for progressive thought and argument. I
hope you're able to stay committed to this project because you're
doing a very great service to the real democratic principles upon
which this country was founded.
***
From Joe D
I have been logging onto thirdworldtraveler
since April. I am a Political Science/History/Economics professor
at a few colleges in the NYC area. I have found TWT.com to be
enormously informative. So much so that I now list it in my course
syllabi as a source of information for my students. You are doing
a tremendous public service with this web-site.
*
I just want to reiterate what a great
job and service you're doing with thirdworldtraveler. Frankly,
in these last six months since I logged on I've probably leaned
more from your site than I did in graduate school. All of my students
at ... College in NY have used TWT (at my instruction). In fact
just this past week a student shared his fascination, particularly
about the School of the Americas.
***
From DC
your site is the most informative and
interesting site i've seen on the web. i want to thank you so
much for helping me wake up to the realities of injustice and
see through the massive propaganda machine of the u.s. your web
site helps seed real notions of freedom and democracy to all who
come to it and then those who talk to those who came to it, and
so on. you are doing a service that is amazingly valuable and
worthwhile. i deeply respect what you are doing. my heartfelt
appreciation to you.
***
From MC
All in all, this website is informative
but there are so many obvious inconsistencies that I just had
to write this email. First of all, I am of Portuguese heritage.
I have studied Antonio Salazar's regime at University of Lisbon
and also here in the United States at Long Island University.
Here are some facts that could shed some light on the rampant
lies about Salazar.
1) First of all, Salazar did not "worship"
Mussolini or Hitler. To say that is an insult to the whole Portuguese
people as a whole. He openly condemned Hitler's invasion of Poland
and Mussolini's invasion of Ethiopia. He sympathized with Great
Britain and the United States during WWII thus letting them open
a vital air force base on the Azores three years before the war
ended, not after!!! He sent food and supplies to London during
Hitler's bombing campaign there and stayed neutral so the Allied
ships could use Lisbon as a vital port for repairs, refueling
and supplies.
2) Although Salazar was a fascist, he
did not support Communism in any way. He openly fought communist
entities in Africa (Angola, Mozambique, Guinea). Castro had sent
thousands of troops to fight the Portuguese in Africa. China and
Russia were supplying arms to the nationalists in return for influence
and accessability in the area if Portugal were defeated. It is
a fact that Communists were in the area because many were captured
and killed my Portuguese Forces. How would you have liked a Communist
Angola & Mozambique in Africa?? Communism would have spread
like wildfire in these newly indepenedent countries because there
leaders were corrupt and were easily influenced.
3) The United States did not back Portugal
in any way during there colonial conflicts. It stopped selling
Portugal weapons in the mid 1960's. The U.S. wanted to see a free
democratic Africa, not one still with an influence of a European
power present. The U.S. threatened Portugal on many instances
with sanctions if it did not grant its colonies independence or
at least negotiations peacefully.
4) Lastly, the concentration camps that
you so carelessly posted on this site. Do you know what a concentration
camp is? ever been to one? what happened there? Its very easy
for you to just throw that out there but that depiction is not
accurate. Although Salazar did silence his critics, the camps
were prisons. Just like the American government did in California
to all Japanese citizens during WWII. You make it seem like he
was throwing his critics in a gas chamber and then into an oven.
Salazar was a devout Catholic, in his frame of mind he was doing
what he thought was best for his country.
Well, thank you for your time and next
time try to read up on what your putting on your website you jackass.
_____
Steve's reply
Thank you for your comments. It's nice
to see that some readers of my website are so "reasonable".
I did not write the Friendly Dictators
information. Based on my knowledge that the material about most
of the other dictators is accurate, I will leave the descriptions
up until I have information that clearly disputes them.
I am not insulting the Portuguese people
by putting up unflattering material on Salazar, any more than
I would be insulting the American people by putting up unflattering
information about Ronald Reagan (which I did). We get into big
trouble when we equate politicians' actions with the wishes of
the people over whom they have control. People don"t usually
deserve the politicians they are forced, by the system, to accept.
Politicians don't often act on behalf of the "people";
they act on behalf of the business interests and the wealthy elite.
You state that that there are "many
obvious inconsistancies" on the site, but you only discuss
the brief discription of Salazar. If the information about Salazar
is incorrect, it is very small inaccuracy considering the size
of the website.
You said that you studied history of Portugal.
I also studied history, in this country, and have come to understand
that much of what I was taught were lies, half-truths, misinformation,
propaganda. These quotes about history are informative.
"History is written by those who
win and those who dominate." Edward Said
"History is the memory of states".
" Henry Kissinger
"History is fables agreed upon."
Voltaire
"History is an account mostly false,
of events mostly unimportant, which are brought about by rulers,
mostly knaves, and soldiers, mostly fools." Ambrose Bierce
You asked how I would like a communist
Angola or Mozambique. That is a false choice. I would like neither
fascism nor communism nor U.S.-dominated imperialism. I would
like democracies in which the people of those countries have the
opppurtunity to make their own mistakes and elect their own leaders
democratically. The governments of the industrialilzed countries,
led by the U.S., care nothing for the people of the Third World.
Their only interest is to exploit Third World peoples' cheap labor
and to gain unlimited access to their countries' resources and
markets. That has always been the case and it still is.
The U.S. has no interest in democratic
countries in Africa or any other Third World region. If it did,
it would have supported socially-reformist governments which have
been democratically elected in countries such as in Chile, Brazil
and Guatemala, Iran, Egypt, Congo, etc., instead of supporting
right-wing coups and propping up dictators. What the U.S. wants
is a world filled with compliant Third World authoritarian regimes
that "bow and scrape" to U.S. demands - client states
that do the bidding of the U.S.. What they do to their own people
in the process is of no concern to the U.S. government.
Salazar may have been a devout Catholic,
but so were those who pursued the Inquisition. Being religious
doesn't necessarily make one good or moral. Many evils have been
done in the name of religion.
What the U.S. did to Japanese-Americans
during WWII was an atrocity - a violation of their civil and human
rights. What the U.S. "justice system" is now doing
to many blacks and hispanics in this country is a violation of
their civil and human rights as well. My website is most critical
of U.S. policies, here and around the world. If you spent any
time viewing the site you would see that.
The purpose of the site is to expose lies
and propaganda that Americans have been fed for decades about
the goodness of this country. It's time to "get real"
and understand that we, in America, are subjected to the same
kinds of propaganda that we charged that the people of the Soviet
Union were subjected to. We are not immune to our government's
manipulation of the facts, to our government's lying.
You may disagree with some of the material
on my website, and you may have information about Salazar that
disputes what I put up, however, since you are wrong about me
- I am not a jackass - I must assume you may be wrong about Salazar
as well.
*
MC's reply
Thank you for your quick response to my
email. Now that I had time to think about it, I apologize regarding
the remark I had previously made. I was a little hotheaded at
the time and sometimes we do things that we regret later.
Thank you for your explanation of the
subject matter on your website and I do agree with your opinion
on most matters now that I had some free time to thoroughly peruse
it. But I firmly stand by the comments I made about Salazar. I
have first hand knowledge of most of the thinks he did and did
not do. My father Manuel was recruited for PIDE in the early 1970's.
His main goal was to "uphold the integrity, security and
ideas" of the State. He does not wish to discuss with me
most matters of what happened because he feels that we should
move on and stop thinking about the past.
Steven, I just want you to know that I
am not defending Salazar in any way, shape, or form. As you know,
the Portuguese people are one of the nicest and hospitable people
in all of Europe. Portugal has come a long way since 1974 and
the toppling of the fascist government. Its just very disturbing
that any Portuguese, even Salazar, is depicted as worshiping Hitler
or Mussolini. It makes me sick to my stomach. Also, please do
not assume just because you read material about Salazar in some
American history book that you know everything about him. As you
have stated, propaganda and half-truths are all around us. I was
born outside of Lisbon in 1969. I do remember the Carnation Revolution
and I have spoken to hundreds of people regarding Salazar and
his viewpoints. I compliment you, your opinion is the first that
has actually made me write an email, so congratulations.
Well, Steven, you know what happens when
you assume, right? You make an ass out of u and me.
***
From Jeff
I wanted to e-mail you simply just to
express my praise for your page. I think it is the best page I
have looked at... ever, on the net. I went to see Dr. Chomsky
speak today actually, for the first time. I was very touched by
the personal experience of reading his body language, and other
aspects of the human link to all of the topics he was talking
about. I am very "green" to the Left or New Left, I
guess you can say. I am not sure the proper terminology but I
have always been drawn to the classic radical thinkers of the
past... I am pleased to see this page recognizes many I have read
and sympathized with in my life, and introduced me to some I will
surely research. Thank you for spreading the information further,
***
From JP
I cannot praise your web page highly enough.
You are truly one of the most courageous, thoughtful, and compassionate
voices I have come across on the internet. Please keep up
the good work... I really thought I was losing my mind until I
found your page.
_____
Steve's reply
Thank you for your comments. You have
not lost your mind; the people who run our country have.
***
From RL
I am an instructor of history at ... in
West Virginia. I am working on incorporating the use of the internet
into my Third World class. I am currently one month into the semester,
but intend to develop more fully by the beginning of the fall
semester. Imagine my excitement when I stumbled across your site!!
I teach this course because I am passionate about the subject,
both the historical background and the origins of the Third World,
or the "Other World" as per the title of the text I
am currently using. I also am passionate about the plight of the
countries: social, economic; conflict; environment; exploitation
by developed countries; government; gender issues and minority
conflicts; well, the list of problems is endless. I am a hands-on
teacher, and believe my students must be active in their learning
process. Can you offer any suggestions for chat room, email, research
through links, etc that my current and future students could use?
I would love for them to be able to communicate with students
in the Third World, and I understand there is an organization
comitted to technology in some Latin American countries. Any suggestions
or advice would be appreciated, and thrilled to receive. In the
spirit of learning,
***
From Laine F
Why do we not see Howard Zinn, Noam Chomsky,
Michael Parenti, etc. represented in the mainstream media? why
are they not hosting talk shows on ABC, CBS, NBC. why are they
not writing editorials in the Washington Post, NY Times, Dallas
Morning News, etc? I was talking to a friend of mine in California
and he was amazed that "someone in Texas" knew who Noam
Chomsky was. I'm a senior at the University of North Texas (don't
pity me), and did an independent survey in several of my classes...not
one single student had ever heard of the countless numbers who
could do so much to disturb (shake up) the thinking of our future
leaders. I'm aware of the obvious, and perhaps somewhat tuned
into the more subtle implications of this veil of secrecy. But
in your own words...why isn't someone moving these thinkers and
their wealth of knowledge into the mainstream light? I plan to
develop my independent research into the foundation for future
graduate studies, and any insight you can give me will be greatly
appreciated.
*
This is my second message today...didn't
tell you how much i appreciate your site. However, many of us
see a distinct correlation between these third world issues and
prevailing conditions in so-called post-industrial nations. I'm
searching for a site similar to yours that addresses the disparity
between the wealthy and the poor in this country; a site that
addresses the ways that the poor are manipulated and used in the
good old USA. And while I previously questioned the vehicles used
by the left to "inform" the populous, I firmly believe
that enough of us are armed with the truth that I now question
why so little is being done in a substantive way to alter the
course of mankind. The left movement still resembles the days
of Eugene Debs and the course of action highlighted at the turn
of the century...beat the subject to death with words. We're about
to turn the corner on another century and all we have in hand
is more intelligent sounding rhetoric, new relaxation techniques,
and a prescription for Prozac. Can you point myself and my friends
toward an organization(s) that does more than shuffle paper and
give inspiring speeches? Anxiously awaiting your reply/replies...
___
Steve's reply
Laine
You sound like I did several years ago.
I asked that question and then went looking for answers. I began
reading the left press - The Nation, The Progressive, In These
Times, Covert Action Quarterly, New Internationalist, Toward Freedom,
Mother Jones, Z magazine, Dollars and Sense, Multinational Monitor
and others (and still do).
I bought books by Noam Chomsky, Michael
Parenti, Edward S. Herman, Howard Zinn and other authors. I read
about foreign policy, the military budget and the Pentagon, the
IMF, World Bank and World Trade Organization, the media, economics,
the justice system, education, health care, human rights, justice,
and democracy (and still do).
I came to the conclusion that there is
a ruling elite, a military-industrial-financial complex, a national
security state, and a media that is controlled and that gives
us propoganda instead of truth. That there are vested interests
that want to keep Americans uninformed and distracted, and will
marginalize anyone who tries to show that the "emperor has
no clothes." That the idea that America is the good guy,
supports democracy and human rights, and acts from altruistic
and humane motives, is a myth.
So, what does a person do when he or she
comes to the conclusion that much of what had been taken for granted
is a lie. What I did was put up a web site to provide others with
alternative views and alternative sources of information. I joined
organizations that are fighting to make America a true democracy.
I work with local activists to inform the uninformed and to try
to change things.
Most Americans would get sick if they
knew what their government is doing is their name and how these
policies are impacting Americans here at home and others around
the world. And they would be outraged if they began to understand
that most of the news is propaganda, designed not to provide the
truth but to distract people and to control their ideas. It is
the responsibility of those who are knowledgeable to demand a
free and open press, to work to reform our system, and to fight
for true democracy and social and economic justice in the world.
We don't see Chomsky, Parenti, Herman
and Zinn, or hear them, or read them because those in power don't
want us to.
Therefore we must inform ourselves, we
must inform others, and then we must demand change.
***
From BJ
Get out of the country...the USA...if
you are so adverse to it. Stop the diatribe from here, where you
have freedom of expression. Try expressing yourself from another
country...of your choosing. Say, a communist one.
___
Steve's reply
I have heard all of this before. But,
instead of "love it or leave it ", how about "change
it."
We have a great system that is being screwed
by people with too much money and corporations with too much power.
The American people are asleep -- distracted by MTV, the Superbowl
and Monica Lewinsky -- as their democracy is taken from them.
Our freedom of expression is even now
being snatched from us. We will wake up one day to find that we
can no longer disagree with Disney or General Electric or Microsoft.
Already, the mainstream media is controlled by about ten transnational
corporations whose only purpose is to make more money. They don't
care if people have access to health care, a place to live, enough
to eat, a job, or the truth.
Democracy in America is not a "slam-dunk".
If we don't keep an eye on it and actively fight to keep it healthy,
we will lose it. If we become another country without freedom,
like Russia under communism, it will be because we didn't give
a damn.
It's up to us.
***
From J
I'm a history major--cum laude and dep't
honors--and I've just found out the plethora of little-known facts
in your site. As I type I have 5 browser windows on your site.
I will be printing a lot and accessing your site frequently.
I think this site is great and I wish
many people access it so they'll learn of the lies, manipulation,
and crimes perpetrated by the CIA and by higher echelons of the
US government.
I'm currently reading William Blum's "Killing
Hope" and I am enjoying it immensely, and I know already
I'll greatly enjoy your site.
And, to finish, a remark on email you
received. I get particularly annoyed when people make comments
like, "love it or leave it!" or "shut up commie"
to those who publicize the truth like yourself. I am not a US
citizen but spent many years in America and that's where I got
my college education. I live and was born in Brazil and know full
well of what it's like to live in a Third World society although
I've been middle-class here and in America. And I guarantee you
that many Brazilians, both educated and simple, often do not like
America much as they perceive Uncle Sam to be arrogant and imperialistic.
A powerful and much-needed site. Keep
up the good work!!!!
***
From A
I am very impressed by the vast knowledge
that you have gathered here on your web site. As a human I know
that America the beautiful is not what it seems from it's image.
I am in search on info that is linked to the MK-Ultra project,
a.k.a "brainwashing technique" I have no doubt that
the project is still in operation... I believe the people have
the right to know about the truth about or leaders and their nation,
even if it's an unbearable nightmare. If you have some info, please
help me out here. I'm just a person in search of the truth...
***
From TP
We on the left must speak out and let
people know that they are being misled by the corporate media
and by a national security state that has a very specific agenda
which doesn't include true democracy.
We do feel isolated, but the Internet
may be part of the solution to allow people who have no way of
being heard to reach other people. Individuals can do very little,
but organized people can have an impact.
Its time to join organizations and act
with others for change.
***
From W
Since you quote socialist after socialist,
and even have a page dedicated to the great American-hater, pseudo-historian,
Howard Zinn--I have a question. Why don't you go to one of these
third world countries and *STAY* if the USA is such a rotten,
racist society? Maybe the paradise of the African continent? There
ARE regularly scheduled flights out of SFO, LAX, and Kennedy to
Kenya, Ethiopia - take your pick! I'm sure you'll find them very
democratic, a lot of "economic and social justice",
and --hey-- I'm sure you can't beat their judicial system! You'll
be enjoying the African pride that American blacks are so proud
of preserving, while cursing the mean, terrible, oppressive -
USA
___
Steve's reply
I am a white, male, upper-middle-class
professional. I am not a communist or a socialist.
I agree with most of the people I have
quoted. I happen to think Howard Zinn is one of America's true
heroes for telling the truth about American history, not just
restating the myths that we have all learned from childhood.
I have traveled extensively in the Third
World and I recognize the many great things about America. The
problem is that most Americans (including me) are spoiled. We
are just plain lucky that we were born here and not on the streets
of Calcutta or Rio or Hanoi.
Most of the poor around the world didn't
choose to be poor. They were just born in the wrong place, at
the wrong time, to the wrong parents.
In my opinion, the most patriotic Americans
are those who recognize how fortunate they are and want to make
sure that others who are not as lucky get a fair shake in this
world. But, too often, America has made it tough for many in the
world to better their lives, enjoy freedom and democracy, and
live lives of dignity. Too often America has just "looked
out for # 1", and has hurt many people in the world in the
process of protecting America's prosperity.
That's my belief based on my reading and
my experience. There should be room in America for both my opinion
and yours.
***
From BK
Great web site. I have been a fan of the
writing of Chomsky and Zinn for a few years now. You should set
up some sort of chat line so everyone who has an independant thought
doesn't feel like an ODDBALL like Chomsky says. People like you
and me need to inform, not stay on the side. The only way to make
a change is to get this great info to as many people as possible
because without the knowledge they will all remain sheep of the
corporate flock. Keep up the good work Steve.
***
From Eric O
I am a graduate student studying to be
a high school social studies teacher. I also live my life based
on certain moral principles. The combination of these two aspects
of my life often leave me with a tremendous amount of frustration.
This frustration comes from the fact that even at the graduate
level, History professors are all too often afraid to point out
the hypocrisy, ruthlessness, and disgrace of our representative
governments throughout the years. In seminar courses, as we discuss
different books, my fellow students often spit out as much trivial
drivel as they can stir up, never questioning the moral implications
of these facts; or even whether they are facts at all. When I
offer my view, which comes to me through a moral lens, I am answered
with blank stares. My professor even told me that "although
{he} agreed, it was not relevant to the course." In other
words, I often feel helpless due to the fact that, I.......we,
are greatly outnumbered in that very few want to think about what
we ALL know is wrong.
So I wanted to thank you. Your website
is a tremendous resource which leads me down many paths I have
not yet looked into, and also because you ease some of my frustration
in that I know that you and many others are out there. Any information
about how I can use all this frustrated energy would be greatly
appreciated.
With deepest thanks,
___
Steve's reply
Eric
Thank you for your comments. Those of
us with thoughts and ideas that do not coincide with those of
the mainstream do feel isolated and alone. But we are not alone;
we just have no way to communicate with others of like mind. The
Noam Chomsky quote below says a lot about our situation and the
situation of many others in our society.
"As long as people are marginalized
and distracted [they] have no way to organize or articulate their
sentiments, or even know that others have these sentiments. People
assume that they are the only people with a crazy idea in their
heads. They never hear it from anywhere else. Nobody's supposed
to think that. ... Since there's no way to get together with other
people who share or reinforce that view and help you articulate
it, you feel like an oddity, an oddball. So you just stay on the
side and you don't pay any attention to what's going on. You look
at something else, like the Superbowl."
We are propagandized and distracted. We
are told not to think seriously about the issues, unless our point
of view supports the establishment's view.
In this regard, there are two kinds of
Americans -- those who are uninformed and ignorant of the truth,
and those who are informed but feel isolated and alone. We are
in the latter catagory and there many out there like us. The solution
for the uninformed is to become informed, by reading progressive
books (Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn, Edward S. Herman, Michael Parenti,
and other progressive writers), subscribing to progressive magazines
(Z, The Nation, The Progressive, In These Times, Mother Jones,
Toward Freedom, CovertAction Quarterly, and others) , and listening
to listener-sponsored radio (Pacifica radio), and talking to the
informed.
The solution for the informed, is to find
other like-minded individuals, talk with them, and work with them
in progressive organizations.
Those in power may have control of the
system, but their policies are immoral and they are wrong. We
are on the moral high-ground. We know more of the truth about
this country and its policies than the uninformed do, and we have
to find some way to get the information to them. The internet
is my attempt to do that.
***
From JZ
Steve, What is the point with your page?
Where would you like to see us go as a society and under whose
direction would you like to see us get there? Of course our gov't
has lied to us repeatedly, but utopia just doesn't exist.
___
Steve's reply
The point of this website is to inform
people. The mainstream media is controlled. There is censorship.
The terms of discussion are dictated by the corporate media which
are the handmaidens of the ruling elite and the military-industrial-financial
complex. Business calls the tune, not the voters.
This country is moving inexorably toward
a Third World model - a powerful ruling elite, 10-20 % of the
population doing well, the rest of the population in this country
and in the rest of the world just expendible bodies for hire on
business' terms.
First, people must have knowledge. Then,
they must act together to reform the system so that it serves
the majority, not a minority.
The problems are obvious to anyone who
stops to think - better education, universal health care, living
wages, fewer pesticides in our food and toxins in our water, reduced
energy use, less waste, less interference in the lives of the
people of the Third World, an informed citizenry, a real democracy,
a just society that values truth and principles.
These reforms will only occur when informed
individuals join together and act. Individuals alone can do little,
but acting with other concerned people, we can have an impact.
If Americans do not become informed and
join with others to make this a truely domocratic and just society,
we will see the American experiment with democracy fail, and most
of us will just be cogs in the wheels of the transnational corporations'
global machines.
We can't just agonize; we must organize.
***
From Sue B
Wow! I wish I had found your site much
earlier. Thank you for having the courage to tell the world about
these atrocities.
We have been living in Romania for the
past 6 years (as missionaries working wilth the blind and physically
handicapped ... and street kids). This country is being robbed,
raped, destroyed ... and why? Do you know what is behind all this
... except to steal a country for big business? The rich are getting
richer, and the poor, much poorer. Many are disgusted wilth "capitalism"
and want to go back to the days before the Revolution. They say
they had money, but little to buy in the stores ... and now ...
plenty to buy, but no money.
So, the orphanages are full ... street
kids are plentiful ... the elderly are seen on the street stopping
cars... begging for money. A family only makes around $100 ...
and their utility bills take up half of that ... if they have
very many kids. And prices are as high as in the States. How much
more can these Romanian people take?
What is going on? Crime is increasing,
naturally, when there are no jobs ... no money except for those
who are on top ... ironically, the same who were on top under
Ceaucescu / Communism. (the security police, the Communists, military,
politicians) Banks are springing up everywhere ... and yet, many
Romanians, especially the elderly, are living on bread and tea
... and little else. They say, it's either eat or stay warm ...
they can't afford both.
Who is responsible for this ... do you
have any information on Romania? We took clothing and money to
an orphanage in Soviet Moldova. The situation there is even more
desperate than here. The blind people and handicapped haven't
received their pensions in months. They have no heat and little
water.
There is just too much unnecessary suffering
in the world. God help us.
***
From Lars
You include an interesting and disturbing
quote from George Kennan on your web page. I'm not sure what the
context of this quote was, but it contradicts what I have learned
about Kennan. James O. Freedman of Dartmouth wrote:
"Yet Kennan was repelled by the virulence
of the anti-communist rhetoric of the Cold War decades and by
the headlong acceleration of the nuclear arms race. As he often
stated, he preferred to emphasize the importance of following
a rational, disciplined foreign policy based upon a recognition
of the balance of power and a respect for the zones of vital interest
of the contending superpowers."
My point is this: I'm sure you have some
good things to say, but your message tends to get lost in noise
and fragmented sound bites. What is the message?
_____
Steve's reply
Lars
Quotes are always out of context, but
they give insights into the attitudes of their authors.
It may be that George Kennan was a decent
man, and this quote may not accurately represent his overall foreign
policy philosophy, but his statement does give pause to those,
like myself, who were raised to believe that American policies
toward the Third World were essentially humanitarian and altriustic.
Whether or not Kennan personally felt
that the disadvantaged of the world should have rights and should
not be exploited, as a high-level representive of the US government,
he came to believe that social and economic justice and human
rights for Third World peoples were a luxury that the US could
not afford to support.
The history of US foreign policy reveals
many Kennans and other individuals much more malign, who were
willing to sacrifice the lives of the least powerful in the world
for US profit and power. It is a history for which all who have
knowledge but stay silent share guilt.
There is much more information out there
than quotes. Check out some good progressive publications, and
the rest of my website.
Those who don't want to support a US foreign
policy of exploitation should become informed and then inform
others. That is what I am trying to do.
***
From Stan D
I just wanted to send you a small note
in appreciation for your website. I am impressed with your links
and quotes used throughout. I tend to be on the right on most
issues involved with politics these days, but have not lost my
mind enough to not have compassion for those less fortunate than
myself. One quote I saw made me think. It was about conservatism
being about the moral justification for greed. I would have to
agree with your source on that one. I have many friends and associates
that find ways to justify their desires for more. While at the
expense of so many. I, myself, have no desire to become wealthy,
but just to have enough to survive going into old-age.
In short, I feel this is one of the most
informative and thought provoking websites I have ever encountered.
I find that it allows for the use of critical thinking, and that
it opens the mind up to new dimensions of information the public
has little or no access to.
***
From Bill A
I agree. U.S. leaders should worry about
our country and not a bunch of third world scum. Fuck'em all.
We should cut off all financial aid to these ungrateful bastards
and let them make it on their own. Let continue their unending
wars with each other to hell and let them starve so we reduce
world population. Screw all of them.
But something tells me that if we have
absolutely no involvement with any foreign powers I would predict
they'd still blame us for anything and everything.
I don't need (or want, actually) a reply,
I just wanted to let you know what I thought about all your anti-American
propaganda. I bet they love you in Hanoi.
***
From Adam B
Just wanted to express my appreciation
for your Third World Traveler web-site. It's one of the best sites
of it's kind that I've seen. I especially appreciate the Howard
Zinn page. Thank you!
***
From Leonard P
Came across your great web page and enjoyed
reading all the material very much. Am sending along a quote that
you might want to include. It ranks among the most outrageous
to be sure.
" If all history is equal, as some
now believe, there is no reason why we should study one section
of it rather than another, for certainly we cannot study it all.
Then indeed we may neglect our own history and amuse ourselves
with the unrewarding gyrations of barbarous tribes in picturesque
but irrelevant corners of the globe: tribes whose chief function
in history ... is to show to the present an image of the past
from which, by history it has escaped ..." Hugh Trevor Roper
in the Rise of Christian Europe, Thames and Hudson, 1965
***
From HG
I'm clearly amazed! This is the first
time anywhere that I have seen anything truthful written and posted
about what really happened in Grenada.
Incidentally, the U.S. bombed on the morning
of my sister's eighth birthday. I was eleven. It has been so frustrating
telling people the glimmering truth of what actually was occurring
at the time. And, boy oh boy that great Reagan lie.
You tell the truth and the disbelieving
public hold firm to their ignorance. As if our government, who
treats its own people poorly, wouldn't treat a neighbouring nation
any worse.
I remember right after we came back to
the U.S. when my sisters and I were arguing with these "hicks"
on the radio as to what "really" happened over there.
Debating OUR very real experiences of my Mother having to respond
to my little sister's query (who no doubt now has a complex about
her birthdays), "Am I going to die on my birthday?"
And, us sitting in a room with numerous people listening to our
short-wave radio, while U.S. bombs are dropping all around, and
hearing Reagan's lies coming in loud and clear.
So you try not to, but can't help sounding
like someone who believes in conspiracy theories and extra-terrestrial
aliens, especially all those vacationing aliens who simply can't
wait to see all those U.S. landmarks!
Thanks a lot.
***
From Kevin M
I am a high school world civilizations
teacher and I found your site on friendly dictators to be quite
interesting. However, I do believe that your short essay on Ian
Smith of Rhodesia is slanted and does nothing more than restates
what was the prevailing, pro-communist view of him and Rhodesia
during the late 60's, thru the early 80's. A complete study of
Ian Smith and Rhodesian situation shows a much different country
than the one described in your short entry.
___
Steve's Reply
Kevin
I did not research or write most of the
information on the Friendly Dictators page, including that on
Ian Smith. The point of the Friendly Dictators series is to show
a consistant pattern of US support for any government that is
friendly to US business and financial interests, no matter what
the level of injustice and human rights abuse.
In order to ensure that transnational
corporations continue to have access to the markets, raw materials
and cheap labor of developing countries, the US has been willing
to support unsavory leaders the world over. Ian Smith was one
of them. His kinder and gentler form of apartheid may not have
been as oppressive as that in South Africa, but his government
sanctioned racial exploitation, exclusion, discrimination and
injustice establishes him as a repressive, anti-democratic leader
whom we should know about.
***
From Kev
Thank you for this great page! Your site
is one stop shopping for free speech and justice issues. The quotes
are passionate and heartening. I am sending your url to all.
***
From Jim
I notice that nowhere on your rather extensive
'Third World Traveller' page of quotes is there to be found a
single one by Karl Marx. I find this a rather telling omission,
considering the debt the world working class owes to Marx and
to those who have followed in his footsteps, fighting for humanity's
freedom. Of course, it is simplicity itself for a 'westerner'
to write off Marx and marxism, especially if one comes from a
narrow 'liberal' background, or if one casts off one's workingclass
background in pursuit of the favors of the rich.
Of course you understand that we are 'encouraged'
to know absolutely nothing about the organized workers' struggle
for socialism, and also to accept at face value the rich's lies
and half-truths about that struggle. Many have suffered and died
on both sides, and we all know about the crimes committed on the
'communist' side -- the mass-media of the rich make sure of that
-- but any balanced view demands that we acknowledge the crimes
of the capitalists, as your site appears to well-document.
And so I ask you again: why is there a
conspicuous absence of even one quote from the most influential
fighter for human rights in the past 200 years?
___
Steve's reply
The quotes I put up are from books and
magazine articles I have read. I concentrate on comments about
the hypocrisy and immorality of U.S. policies, especially toward
the Third World.
Although I have read a little Marx - the
Communist Manifesto and excerpts from Capital - I am not a student
of his work. In my opinion he was a genius, he was prescient,
and he was right about capitalism.
I am not an ideologue. Whether Marx was
100% right or not, there are others who have important things
to say. I am not adverse to his ideas nor am I against using his
quotes. If you have some you think would be of interest, please
let me know.
Capitalism has achieved good things, but
it is an inhumane and immoral system for most of the people in
the world. However, I don't want to overthrow it, I want to change
it. If we on the left cannot agree to disagree while we work together
to change the economic system, the right will win and capitalism
as it is now constituted will continue to dominate.
Our job should be to not just to criticize,
but to inform and to try to provide answers in order to achieve
a more people-centered and humane world economic system.
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