Of course, that’s not restricted to Europeans. Japanese people have sometimes asked me exactly where the source of pride in being American is because we’re not all related by clan. Once I had to say, “I can’t believe I have to say this as an American to a Japanese, but what you don’t understand is that we all think alike.” I mean, of course, in terms of valuing initiative, personal responsibility for your own destiny, and the freedom to choose community with those of like mind. And then there’s the fact that most of us have ancestors who made major efforts to get to America; those who don’t usually have ancestors that worked hard at building the country up when it was still pre-industrial.

Anyway, I do think that most of our politicians do get that they’re representing American interests, actually. It’s mostly from academics and media figures that you get the feeling they’re bothered that the cool kids don’t like us.

You are correct, this is nonsense. I was in Europe — as an European — as a late adollescent at the end of Carter’s presidency and moved in (All My Sins Remembered) “intellectual” circles. The anti-americanism might not have been as public or in your face as it is now (after all, if the Sov Union came marching in we’d need the US.) The things you heard about the US then were exactly the same as we hear now. “Too big” “Too Powerful” “Must be taught a lesson.” Etc. The underlaying feeling was a desire to rub the US’s face in the dirt. The US UNDER CARTER!

Why? I don’t know. Possibly because the US isn’t “respectful” enough of Europe. Possibly because at some level they view us (Yes, aculturation successfully accomplished) as a “mongrel people.” (My mom whom I never suspected of racist tendencies — nor does she seem to have them in contact with other races as such — wrinkled her nose during a drive on her second week in the US and said what bothered her was that there wasn’t a national “look.” That Americans looked like “anything.” [The answer "yes, isn't it wonderful?" is probably responsible for her never coming to visit again.])

I could speculate on many other reasons for them to resent us, but all I can attest to is that it was going on 20 years before Bush. And will go on twenty years after. And I wish our politicians KNEW that. Making them love us is a lost cause. Europe is only going to return our chocolates and spit on our flowers. They’ll work with us if they have to, but the rest of the time they’re best ignored. (Or casually watched in case they get weird again.)

P.

Well, what they were actually overreacting to was what Anne Applebaum had written; IIRC, people weren’t flipping out on Althouse herself, for once. Unless what you’re saying is that it shouldn’t be surprising they did it to Applebaum given that they do it to Althouse.

And yes, I think that if Obama is elected, in a lot of places, the elites will feel duty-bound to show how racially tolerant and accepting they are by giving him the extra-warm embrace and the extra-wide smile.

At first.

But while he’s been admirably unflappable thus far, it’s not yet clear that he has the steel needed to deal with serious partisan differences effectively. I’m not saying I don’t think he does; we just don’t know.

Zak, I can’t wait to see the piercings and tatts your children have in fifteen years.

…Just kidding.

I think Virginia is basically right. Arnold is a good example, but he discarded his oft-stated political principles and adopted policies consistent with his opponents’ views pretty early on. Obama, OTOH, gives no indication of doing that. He has been pretty consistent about offering traditional liberal solutions further down in his speeches, after repeating the professional sppechwriters’ mantras about hope and change, and probably will continue to do so after election. There really doesn’t seem to be anything “new” about him, except his race and his relative lack of experience. The difference is no one is paying attention when he references his actual solutions now. They will if he is elected. Obama’s relations with the press that actually follow him are not particularly warm (it appears that the further the media person is from Obama the better they like him). This does not bode well for friendly coverage once in the White House.

That said, I think Obama has the potential for muting the rampant anti-Americanism found among foreign elites, as Clinton did.