New Chancellor comes to call (Germany´s Merkel meets President Bush)

Washington Times ^ | Robert Gerald Livingston

[Michael81Dus]

Germany's new Chancellor Angela Merkel, due for a warm welcome in the Bush White House tomorrow, represents a new political phenomenon in her country. Her government embraces her conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) with their Bavarian allies in the Christian Social Union, and the Social Democrats, the first time such lineup in 37 years.

It is quite unlike its predecessor, the Red/Green coalition of 1998-2005, in which the ranks were filled with "sixty-eighters,"offspring of the 1968 anti-Vietnam War and anti-establishment student revolt, in whose new-leftist hearts dislike and distrust of America lingered.

Germany's relations with Washington have nearly always been better with CDU-run governments.

[defenderSD]

You're welcome. It's so obvious to me that the Europeans who visit FR are not the trashy leftists, but instead they are usually the most educated, well-informed and reasonable people in Europe. That young man from Sweden, Kristopher, is very cool too.

[defenderSD]

Post #41 was supposed to be to you....I don't know what happened there.

[StarCMC]

Point taken, but you should advise your friend that making statements like "I agree with her, Gitmo is dirt on the white vest of the US." will get him quite well tarred and feathered around here. I for one am sick and tired of Gitmo getting the shaft from people who think they know better while sitting in their cozy livingrooms under the protection of the US.

[La Enchiladita]

You attended UCLA, eh? I think the mind poison hasn't completely worn off. I looked at his posting history, by the way. I don't like the arrogance. I've got a "thing" about foreigners talking like they know more about the U.S. than we do. I've got a LOT of pride in this country and in being American.

More than that, I've got the most pride in our military, the best the world has ever seen, in every way.

It seems you don't share that pride when our military is being slandered.

[Darksheare]

Sure, if they're American citizens or UNIFORMED soldiers.
If not a uniformed soldier, they fall under the wartime dealings with spies and 'undeclared combatants'.

Terrorists have no rights under the law.

[conservative barking moonbat]

Can't argue with that.

[StarCMC]

Fair trials for criminals are the basics of our western world...

Right there is your problem Michael. The people being held in Gitmo are there because they are TERRORISTS not CRIMINALS and there's a big difference. As a terrorist they have no right of due process.

[TASMANIANRED]

Gitmo is a military affair and not a civilian one.

[La Enchiladita]

I guess you are in agreement with his slander of our military then...

[luvie]

The problem I have with your criticism is that you have no idea what you are talking about. You are judging Gitmo, and what we are doing there, without ever setting foot on the place and getting first-hand knowledge of what you are seemingly concerned about. When you have spent time there with our hard-working military personnel who are having to deal with these terrorists--or potential terrorists--every day, then you can come back here and criticise our decision to lock them up rather than take a chance on our being attacked again like we were on 9-11. I have no respect for people who talk before having the facts.

[RockinRight]

I'm in agreement with:

And I was for the war against mass-slaughterer Saddam Hussein, unlike 80% of my fellow-citizens.

That's the only thing I said I agreed with.

[Michael81Dus]

You raise several points, and I´m not sure whether this really has something to do Merkel and Bush will address. However, the burden during the cold war was shared. Germany paid a high sum for your troop presence, and we also maintained half a million soldiers. It´s also a common theme in the US to say that you won the cold war alone. That isn´t true, it was our all victory.

I´m not accusing the treatment of the prisoners, but the lack of trials, judicial control. 38 inmates were innocent and released after years! There is no such thing as "unlawful combatant". Either you´re a combatant, a non-combatant (like priests, medicals) or a civilian (= e.g. a terrorist). Treat the captured Taliban as POW if they have the right to that, and the rest as civilians (= try them!).

I don´t think that NATO has outlived. We should still promise to defend the other, as we did for instance in 2001 when we fought the Taliban.

[Diva Betsy Ross]

LOL.... unjustified lack of judicial control ............Ummm buddy- Stick the unjustified part in your ear... and if what you claim were true ~Iraq, would not exist.

We just happen to be highly compassionate people- so it does exist.

I think you have missed the discussion of Americas military capabilities.

Or don't they teach that at you little German high school?

[La Enchiladita]

De facto, you agree with his slander of our military if you do not object to it.

[RockinRight]

Alright, whatever, get off it. I didn't see at all where he was slandering our military!

[RockinRight]

I do object to it. I had only briefly read that one post, and no others. So I take it back, he is out of line.

[GodBlessUSA]

These poor prisoners(terrorists) are treated better than criminals in some of our prisons. They are terrorists. Rights, they are worried about rights of terrorists. When they blow up Berlin or Frankfurt they will come running to us. I bet there would be a change of heart then about Gitmo.

[La Enchiladita]

Thank you! Boy, that was hard work, getting you to see it!

[TASMANIANRED]

Well said.

[fatima]

Thank you RockinRight.Just read your profile-very nice.