Would Australians like to be characterised by everything Julia Gillard, Bob Menzies, John Gorton or John Howard did while in office? Made feel accountable for every movie made in Australia? For every Right or Left wing nut in the country? Blamed for everything our companies did overseas? Would you like to be characterised overseas by the views of Paulin Hanson, Bob Katter or Paul Howes? What do you think about Australia being known as the place where the Hoddle street or Port Arthur massacre happened or where 4 yr olds get killed by vicious dogs? Or that we are warmongers who send their troops to many countries overseas we know little about?

No? Well, that is exactly what we do to Americans. By disliking 'Americans' we hold their citizens personally repsonsible for the deeds of people they know nothing about and probaly never voted for.

Its just plain stupid, really.

Atman
Who is holding the American citizens responsible. Most rational people agree with you. The anti-American sentiment is not about Americans it is about disagreement with US policy. Blind Freddy can see that. It is too easy to charge people with being anti-whatever just for disagreeing. Examples are the well trotted out accusations about anti-Catholicism for seeking to address problems around pedophilia or anti-Christian for suggesting secularism is fair to all beliefs etc. It is a non-argument.

Does an accusation of being anti-American mean there is no room for debate about US Policy? I hope not all we would all be hamstrung by the martyr complex.

Anti-Americanism us easy, if you just count up all the wars they’ve been in. The Yanks always join the interesting ones, usually on the wrong side. If Americans aren’t involved, its probably not worth following. Take the utterly pointless Iran-Iraq War, for instance. It lasted eight years and cost half a million lives, but I reckon not one in twenty remembers the first thing about it. The Soviets had a go in Afghanistan between ’79 and ’89, but even after killing 1-2 million nobody noticed; the Americans didn’t get there until 2001, and STILL haven’t broken six figures with their body count, but they’re all over the Ruskies for generating outrage. Everybody remembers Vietnam ... something like two millions dead, and of course the Americans killed every one of ‘em. Well, almost. There’s the small matter 1.8 million Cambodians done by Pol Pot from ’75 to ’79 ... and of 2.5 millions killed by the North Vietnamese between ’75 and ’87. They don’t count, though, because it wasn’t a war involving Americans; the Khmer Rouge and the Vietnamese Communists just did it to find out if the Americans would intervene to stop it and, surprise, surprise, they didn’t. Americans didn’t actually FIGHT in the Six Day and Yom Kippur wars, but everyone knows Israel couldn’t have withstood the combined might of Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Pakistan, Libya, Algeria, Morocco, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia without help from the Yanks. Just think how much simpler life would be today if the Americans had let the Arab States win! Stalin killed 18 millions in his labour camps, but since it was only a COLD War with the Americans, they don’t get all the blame, even if everyone knows it wouldn’t have happened if the Americans had been nicer to Stalin. The Americans weren’t very nice to Mao Zedong either, but since that wasn’t a war, nobody counted how many died during the Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution. Some people have suggested 70-100 millions might have died, but they’re probably Americans. Yep, anti-Americanism is easy. Only history is hard.

Well said Donkey.

Dear Donkey,

THanks for that. I am a dual citizen of the US and Australia who is often critical of the policies of both countries. However, it rarely is a choice between good and bad, it is often a choice between bad and horrible. When the world is dominated by one country that country is going to use its power in oppressive ways whatever country happens to hold the power. Contemplate a world dominated by Nazi Germany or Soviet Russia.

I never been to the US but from what I see & hear in the media & people I meet the Americans far outstrip Australians so far as patriotism is concerned.
I simply couldn't imagine an american council not flying the national flag for fear it might upset some cranks.