Real Opinions

Dear America,

Even though we don’t always wish to admit it, your cultural footprint is staggering, impacting us and the rest of the world in many ways.  We communicate in English wherever we travel and we all have a romanticised view of the southern accent. We use Facebook, Twitter, Instagram while the younger generation are regular Snapchatters. The dating scene is synonymous with tinder, while we listen to American music, and regularly binge on our cherished Netflix accounts. In Europe, everyday life is very much “made in America. “

American history is also taught in our schools, and we are well versed in how your abandonment of isolationism saved the world from an otherwise doomed fate - for that we are, from a young age, taught to appreciate that we are growing up in era where America is today’s super power. 

However, with great power comes great responsibility. The blemishes that come with global dominance are acknowledged in this part of the world.

To start with we want you to know that free public health care works - it is not a waste of tax dollars.  Please can you also stop focusing so much on same sex marriages and abortions. The entire conversation seems archaic to us and we thought it was put to rest a long time ago. Let the LGBT community be in control of their own love lives and let women be in control of their own womb.

Also, what is up with the second amendment? How one school tragedy does not make you reconsider the constitutional right to own a gun astonishes us. Seriously the “right to keep and bear arms?” It sounds so very ‘game of thrones’ like. Maybe consider changing it to “the right to safe schooling?”   Now that sounds much more relevant! We have heard the pro-gun slogans and we spend a lot of hours amused by their absurdity - our favourite is “guns don’t kill, people do” seriously America? Please keep them coming, we get a real kick out of these.  How many more school shootings or innocent bystanders will there be before serious reform?   

Also, why is your national anthem sung before absolutely every sporting event? Weirder yet, pledging allegiance to the flag every morning by small school children? Sorry but that feels a bit excessive. Most Europeans would completely oppose our kids being forced to adhere to that type of forced patriotism. That is not to say that we are not equally patriotic and proud of our countries in this part of the world, but we do it without the constant standing and saluting the flag business. Let it come more naturally, from the things that the country offers its citizens.

Talking about fairness - we all agree that the slave trade was a dark time in history - we find your united view against this chapter in American history reassuring. However, it is time for you as a nation to acknowledge that many of the legacy issues continue to impact black Americans today. No white American will understand the daily struggles of black Americans and that is ok, but every American should at the very least be empathetic and under no circumstance should anyone deny the existence of racial inequality. Indeed, the progress made since the 1920s is positive and while certain African American athletes/movie stars have plenty of money, they have still experienced social injustice - despite their wealth and stardom - and if you have a voice in society many feel an obligation to speak up. Taking a knee during the National anthem is part of exerting your first amendment right and unlike the second amendment, one we totally agree with! To us it seems absurd that some Americans claim that taking a knee during the national anthem is a crime akin to treason all while suggesting that bearing arms is a God given right.

All this leads us to your infamous president - we think he is entertaining and we have never followed a US president more regularly then we follow this one. America, while entertaining, your president bewilders us. If he visited any major European city, it would likely result in mass protests as we disagree with so much of what he stands for. He has divided your nation and from our viewpoint, he stands to be a force of regress for the whole of mankind. He has threatened to use nuclear bombs, denied the existence of global warming, derailed the journey for gender and race equality and masked his own personal insecurities behind a macho bully persona - all under the illusion that this path will make America great again?  We are perplexed by how as a nation you seem to have been convinced that by only focusing on your own wellbeing and by overindulging at the buffet, you and those around you will automatically live a better life. If you are Christian, it is frankly unchristian.

We over here don’t care much about his affairs with porn stars, or him trying to keep his ex- lovers quiet. That is pure entertainment to us on this side of the Atlantic. We are generally more forgiving of our politicians when it comes to marital deceit. But President Trump has reminded the world that fear unites, and politicians can be forgiven for any misjudgement, regardless how serious, if they are consistent in their message of fear and hate. This is alarming. Trump consistently targets any one that opposes him, labelling them enemies, including and perhaps most worrying his attack on the free press, embodied by the oxymoronic “fake news” slogan. 

Free journalism is the corner stone of a free society and something that we very much cherish. We are not naive, and while we acknowledge that every journalistic outlet can have a political angle, calling journalists the “enemy of the state/people” just because they oppose you feels fascist like. When facts no longer matter, it is a dangerous state of affairs.

America, to summarise, you are now acting like the ultimate bully in the classroom and because of your size you think no one will dare disagree with you for fear of an ass kicking (sanctions, trade barriers, nuclear bombs etc). While this behaviour is making you appear respected, you are slowly losing all your old friends. You are instead spending your energy trying to make friends with the other bullies in the classroom (Russia) - but please can we remind you as your oldest friends to govern with the values that once made you an inspiration to the world.

Your oldest friend

Europe