SPIEGEL: "America's Shame: Torture in the Name of Freedom"

(By Ray D.)

Just when you thought you were safe. SPIEGEL has just released another one of its famous hate-America covers. They really can't help themselves. There is an enormous demand for anti-American innuendo in Germany that is simply too lucrative to pass up. The latest edition is a cynical masterpiece:

"America's Shame: Torture in the Name of Freedom"

Torture in the name of freedom? Since when has America advocated torture as a means of promoting freedom? When someone is tortured or abused in a German jail in violation of established standards, does that mean the German government is torturing in the name of democracy as well? When illegal immigrants suffocate or commit suicide in German custody is that also in the name of democracy? It is as if the United States had never addressed the issue. It is as if the McCain bill torture ban had never been passed by Congress and signed by the President.

This is a dangerously cynical equation of two concepts. Particularly in a Europe where the general public is already so jaded that many no longer believe in the concept of freedom. Why? Because instead of reporting on the systematic violation of human rights in nations like North Korea and Iran the German media finds it necessary to exploit two year old photos of Abu Ghraib for profit (again and again). Never mind that Saddam's Abu Ghraib was a thousand times worse or that hundreds of thousands are starving to death in Kim Jong Il's gulags. There is no need for context in the world of asymmetric journalism.

Germany's Shame: Standing By While Dictators Murder Millions

Germany opposed toppling Saddam and his regime of mass graves. It was not Germany or the UN but the United States that ended the killing in the Balkans. And while SPIEGEL lectures us on "America's Disgrace," the German government is out actively promoting business ties and trade fairs with the Sudanese government as the slaughter in Darfur continues. Ex-Chancellor Schroeder favored lifting the EU arms embargo on China, perhaps the world's most prolific violator of human rights. German efforts to stop Iran's nuclear ambitions have proven to be more of the same impotent diplomatic dupery that too many Europeans support at all costs. In the meantime the Iranians have taken advantage of the stalling to advance their insane ambitions to destroy Israel and threaten the world.

The most disgraceful aspect is that Germany has repeatedly coddled, condoned and even assisted regimes of dictatorship and mass murder despite its own disgraceful national history. And then, in an effort to relativize its own shameful history and diplomatic impotency, German media publications like SPIEGEL pump the numb, jaded audience full of the vile America hate to which so many have become emotionally addicted. The irony of it all is that publications like SPIEGEL would not even have the freedom to print this exploitative trash had it not been for the massive sacrifice in lives, blood and toil of American soldiers to liberate Germany from Fascism and defend it from Communism.

No context. No differentiation. Shock value. Manipulation. Emotionalism. Sensationalism. And then the same publication dares lecture us on the dangers of anti-Americanism.

For that there can be but one word: H-Y-P-O-C-R-I-S-Y

UPDATE: One of our regular commenters had this to say:

"The regulars here know that I consider what happened at Abu Ghraib and elsewhere torture. Spiegel’s latest has nothing to do with opposing torture. How could it? It plays into the hands of the torturers, and pulls the rug out from under those who genuinely oppose torture, and want to stop it once and for all. It is really just so much red meat thrown out to the hordes of pathetic, bitter, envious America-haters who are Spiegel’s “core constituency.” The editors know that anti-Americanism is synonymous with big bucks in Germany. It pays. They’ve been a little reserved in expressing it lately, though, because they know they’re being watched. They don’t want to sacrifice respectability entirely in the pursuit of profit. For that reason, the “new” Abu Ghraib” pictures seemed like a godsend to them. They could strike the all usual phony poses with all the usual fake pathos from the increasingly shaky high ground, and convince themselves no one would call them on it, because, after all, they were “opposing torture.” Their imbecile readers will swallow the bait as usual. Problem is, nobody with a brain is buying it this time around. It’s just to easy to see the money trail leading up to the “moral high ground.” (emphasis ours)

UPDATE #2: If you have the stomach, you can read the entire four-part feature on "America's Shame" on SPIEGEL ONLINE's English site. The sub-headlines tell the entire story, the magazine's objectives remain the same:

• Undermine and tarnish America's moral standing.
• Disgrace the US military establishment.
• Paint the Iraq conflict as a lost cause. Ignore good news.
• Attack and discredit President Bush.
• Exploit the "clash of cultures" divide.

Money quote:

"The images from Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib will endure, and they will haunt America for decades to come. A global power can make mistakes and give in to folly, but when its moral foundation begins to crumble, it is constantly forced to deal with the images of its own humiliation and disgrace."

That is what it is really about for SPIEGEL: Long-term humiliation and disgrace for the United States. Abu-Ghraib as the new Mai Lai. This is not about thoughtful, constructive criticism. This is not about genuine, collegial interest in seeing America right its wrongs. This is not about transatlantic dialog and understanding.

This is about a harmful, vindictive rush to the moral high ground at America's expense. Americans should recognize this shameless bashing for what it is and become extremely wary of any and all criticism they hear blaring from across the Atlantic. Americans must begin to tune-out and turn-off the hateful voices that seek only to profit from their misfortune.

By the way, don't ever expect SPIEGEL to dedicate a cover to this story (no it doesn't matter that it's actually current and not over two years old): America's Pride.

Here's a great cartoon from Cox & Forkum.

Endnote: For more on this topic, see our recent posting: "Valley of the Wolves Iraq: "Today I hated Americans more than ever." Time for SPIEGEL to go back and reflect on our earlier suggestions, particularly point #6. Politically Incorrect has a highly worthwhile German-language post on reactions to the release of more torture pics. We changed the translation of "Schande" from "disgrace" to "shame" to match SPIEGEL's English translation. Both "disgrace" and "shame" are acceptable translations for "Schande."

Comments

[flux]

@James: Der Spiegel and Spiegel Online are not one and the same. Which is to say that not everything that's printed in Der Spiegel can be linked to. What happened was that Der Spiegel printed a picture of the cartoons as they were printed in the Jyllands Posten. The story is old news, though, the Welt article was written almost two weeks ago.

[frank]

@americanbychoice

I know that the civil aviation business is a part of national pride here and in the US but both Airbus and Boeing are doing more than well at the moment and their will be no change in the near future.
boeing had a market share of more than 80% ten years ago now it is below 50% and airbus is the number one and so it is more than fair to say that we saw a airbus decade. This might change in the future and boeing archived to create a well performing plane with the 787 and airbus had problems int he widebody market last year. they will have to act in terms of the 340. The 320 family is dominating the narrowbody market and they would even get more market share from boeing if they could produce more of this planes.
You can predict the future and you know that the 380 is a failiure but it is more wishfull thinking. The 380 is sold until the year 2010 and it has a market. Airbus thought the 380 will be a door opener for additional business with boeing customers mainly the japanse airlines where airbus has a hard time because of the "special relations" of boeing and japan but also others. That has not been the case and is a clear dissapointment for airbus until now.
That brings us to the subsidies issue ( japan pays a lot of direct subsidies for the 787). I know that a lot of boeing fans will be very dissapointed about the WTO ruling. Both do not deserve subsidies but both benefit from very different ways of getting taxpayers money. There are reasons why both producers found a compromise years ago on that topic and boeing has also a lot to lose on this issue and i still belive that there will be a compromise because the only winner will be the taxpayers in very different countries when we see a wto ruling.

Now the macroeconomic discussion we are export world champion vs but our growth numbers are higher and our unemployement and so on.

The german situation will not improve without a growing domestic demand our very good export situation and our very good position on hte world market will not greate the growth we need. but it will take additional years of pain but i am very confident according to the developement in the last years. germany gets more and more competitive and there is no indication that this will stop but it is also a reason for the low domestic demand due to sinking incomes etc.

The situation of the US is a complete different one. The good growth numbers are based on consumer spending and a very unique behavior of the american people. Looking at the present numbers it is very doubfull that this will continue in the future. Even if there is no housing bubble or other doom scenarios. Consumers can spent their housing equity only one time and they can not save less than they had in the last years. Nobody belives that the house prices will increase in the upcomming years in the way we saw it in the last years. There is simply no real space for additional grwoth of consumer spending given the fact that there is a wage pressure in the US too and increases will produce a even higher trade deficit due to additional outsourcing. The party is over and in my view greenspan left at the right time.

[americanbychoice]

@rayd
I believe a better word for Schande would be dishonor rather than shame?