Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id EAA23296 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Fri, 15 Feb 2002 04:01:04 GMT X-Originating-IP: [209.240.222.132] From: "Scott Chase" <ecphoric@hotmail.com> To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk Subject: Re: Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 22:55:31 -0500 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Message-ID: <F1605kJSpySyPQv5tz800005a44@hotmail.com> X-OriginalArrivalTime: 15 Feb 2002 03:55:31.0874 (UTC) FILETIME=[9D3C1820:01C1B5D4] Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
>From: "Steve Drew" <srdrew_1@hotmail.com>
>Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
>To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
>Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 21:35:21 +0000
>
>Date: Wed, 13 Feb 2002 20:56:35 EST
>From: <AaronLynch@aol.com>
>Subject: Re: An odd addition to the axis of evil
>
>I doubt that the poll results regarding France in a neo-conservative
>US magazine have much at all to do with actual military history,
>alliances between countries, or who sold weapons to whom. All
>of that would be forgotten by most of the US public and most of
>the readers of The Weekly Standard. Rather, what Vincent says
>about their unusual grasp of foreign affairs is the stronger
>explanation. Only the "unusual grasp" is really not so unusual
>in the USA any more. (Religious neo-conservatives were Bush's
>main political base.)
>
>In addition to Religious Right views on other countries' sexual
>morality, big government, and godlessness, there is also the abortion
>issue that comes into play in the French case. The drug RU-486 is
>known as "the French abortion pill." The Religious Right here regards
>it as a chemical weapon being used to commit genocide against
>"unborn children." They adhere to a view that life (as a person)
>begins at conception, and that aborting even an embryo is murder.
>Because France has liberal abortion laws, and is regarded as the
>inventor of RU-486, it probably gets a special "evil" status in the
>minds of the US Religious Right.
>
>I actually think that if The Weekly Standard had conducted a poll on
>"evil" countries before Bush's state of the union speech, France
>would probably have gotten more votes than the other so-called
>"axis of evil" countries named by Bush. Higher, that is, than Iraq,
>North Korea, and Iran.
>
>- --Aaron Lynch
>
>Hi Aaron,
>As you may be aware we have our own brand of god botherers in the UK that
>believe in the idea of conception as the start of life and are just in the
>process of a court case to outlaw the *morning after pill* (is this the
>sanm
>thing as RU-486?). This will mean the Gvmnt pushing thro’ emergency
>legislation to retain it. Not too sure if high church Blair will be that
>keen. Is that why we got off lightly in the opinion poll for the axis of
>evil (ain’t that WWII?), or do’s the average american think that Blair
>really is the US foriegn ambassedor! ? :-)
>
>regards
>
>Steve
>
>BTW. over here, a lot of the general public cannot name our gvnmt either.
>Mind you, i read the papers every day and can't!
>
>
Lots of folks, whether in the US or UK are too busy dealing with the
struggles of life, raising a family, working a 40 hr week, taking night
classes, and escaping into sitcoms and videogmes to bother much with gov't
and foreign affairs. It would take oddles of time to get a grasp on all the
nuances of local, state and federal level politics and what each individual
foreign nation is up to and lots of folks don't have oodles of time. But
that person who may not have much of a grasp on the intricacies of the
middle east is the person who might just be the best choice to fix your car
or your plumbing or to help you with your taxes or whatever else their
speciality is. Ignorance is relative. Let's see some ivy league math wiz dig
their own drain field for a septic system ;-)
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