Posted by
Gregory Kelly on Thursday, December 07, 2006 2:38:49 PM
Posted by Joerg W in Transatlantic Relations on Monday, December 4. 2006
While some newspapers and magazines run very critical or even Anti-American opinion pieces, some of them also write very pro-American commentaries: "America: The Misunderstood World Power" is the headline of an article in the travel section of arguably Germany's most influential newspaper. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ, in German) argued on November 18, 2006 that everybody who spends holidays in America, returns with an "image of the friendliest nation of the world," because:
In hotels visitors are treated as if they have left home for the first time; walk into any store and you are received like a family member; before ordering in a restaurant you are invited to be on a first name basis with the wait staff; and if you need to ask for directions at a gas station, you may find yourself exchanging life stories with the attendant. This combination of the pioneer spirit of helping your neighbor and the business practice of taking customer service seriously has developed into a type of openness which I would not hesitate to characterize as the realization of Kant's categorical imperative.
According to the FAZ, the only reason, why America has an image problem, is that there are still people who have not traveled somewhere between San Francisco and New York. Those people's image of America is shaped by Kyoto, Guantanamo, Iraq war and Abu Ghraib. A recent opinion poll in 17 countries concluded that Americans are considered materialistic, arrogant, loud, and lacking interest in other cultures. To change this perception, America should encourage more people to travel to the United States, says Keith Reinhard in the FAZ article. Reinhard has founded the Business for Diplomatic Action initiative. [Thanks to David for the translation]
Overview of Atlantic Review Posts
In the last few weeks, the Atlantic Review published these posts:
Europe:
• A European Army with a Single Command? (November 20, 2006)
Iraq:
• Iraqi Fulbrighters Speak about their Concerns (November 17, 2006)
• German President Koehler Calls for more European Help to Stabilise Iraq (November 12, 2006)
• Should the United States Send more Troops to Iraq or Start the Withdrawal? (November 24, 2006)
Economics
• Could European Economies Withstand a US Downturn? (December 6, 2006)
• Germany's Economic Problems (November 29, 2006)
• Strong EU-U.S. Trade (November 22, 2006)
Germany:
• Positive and Negative News about America in the German Media (December 2, 2006)
• News Round-up About Germany's Foreign and Security Policies (November 21, 2006)
• Terrorism News from Germany (November 18, 2006)
• Prosecution of Secretary Rumsfeld in Germany? (November 11, 2006)
• Bad News from Germany (November 9, 2006)
Midterm Elections:
• Two American Experts Comment on the European Reactions to the U.S. Elections (November 16, 2006)
• German Reactions to the Midterm Elections (November 10, 2006)
• US Election Results, German Prejudices and Direct Democracy (November 8, 2006)
• Will U.S. Foreign Policy Change if the Democrats Win the Midterm Elections? (November 6, 2006)
NATO and Afghanistan:
• Germany and the United States Failed to Train Afghanistan's Police (December 6, 2006)
• NATO's Afghanistan Policy (November 30, 2006)
• Opinions About the NATO Summit in Riga and the Future of the Alliance (November 28, 2006)
• Should Germany Send Troops to Southern Afghanistan? (November 28, 2006)
• More German Support for Iraq and Afghanistan? (November 14, 2006)
• Afghanistan Intervention "on the cheap" (November 14, 2006)
Misc:
• Still Deadly: World War II Bombs, Modern Cluster Bombs, Landmines and Small Arms (November 1, 2006)
• Transatlantic Approaches, Quagmires, and Iran (November 25, 2006)
• Fulbright Workshop on Implementing a Digital Library for the Maghreb (November 3, 2006)
• Carnival of German-American Relations on December 11th (November 14, 2006)
• Thomas Friedman: Energy Cooperation Will Unite the West (November 7, 2006)
• European Union Directive: American Exporters Must Use the Metric System Only (November 4, 2006)
• Naumann: Bush "does not give a damn" about "the dying of millions of children in Africa" (November 11, 2006)
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