Posted on 11/21/2004 8:23:44 AM PST by Chi-townChief
FLORENCE, Italy -- I sure picked an interesting time to move across the Atlantic. Regardless of the outcome, I knew much debate would ensue after this month's U.S. Presidential election. If Democratic challenger John Kerry had pulled it out, celebrations would have erupted all over Europe for a man regarded by many as the last hope for peace, love and understanding in these troubled times. But since President George W. Bush won re-election, the mood among much of the population here is one of indcredulity. Shock. And genuine apprehension about how the U.S. President's subsequent policies will affect everything from global warming to future world conflicts.
One gets the sense that the citizens of Europe comprise one big "blue state" that surely would have sent Kerry to the White House by large margins.
But on this continent, where so many of the national economies depend on tourist spending from abroad, how will this month's election -- now that the majority of the electorate has spoken -- affect their perceptions of American tourists who will travel here in the future?
I must admit that for me, an American who relocated to Florence less than three months ago, Nov. 3 was a tough day. Despite our Democratic leanings, a fellow American expatriate journalist friend and I were genuinely reluctant to leave the house the morning after the election, wondering how we'd be greeted in the streets by puzzled Italians. So we were determined to stalk around Florence behind our ever-present dark shades, chatting as much as possible in broken Italian, and not calling attention to our American selves. Sure enough that week, we were constantly asked how we felt about the Bush victory. (Many expressed surprise at our ability to vote absentee and at least were pleased we made our voices heard from across the ocean.) In this country where citizens staged massive demonstrations before the start of the war in Iraq -- despite Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's support of both Bush and the invasion -- the Republican president's win was seen as a giant leap back for world relations.
Which really is incredible when one flashes back to Sept. 11, 2001, that horrific day when people worldwide, including all across Europe, proclaimed, "We are all Americans today." Riccardo Zucconi, a 58-year-old owner of four upscale Florentine hotels, recalls a gathering in the city's famed Piazza della Signoria that fateful night. Thousands of people came out to express solidarity with the United States, he said, many clutching American flags they'd bought at shops around town. Zucconi -- whose hotels and wine bars host many U.S. tourists -- remembers giving his small flag to some Americans he met that night.
Times certainly seem to have changed. Says Zucconi: "The spirit of the 11th of September is gone just because of the war in Iraq."
In the United Kingdom, says 26-year-old Tom Harrow -- himself a recent transplant to Florence -- "American stock of being the world leader has suffered as a result of the incumbent president, not in the least because it affects us." A former officer-in-training with the British Army -- and with friends serving in Iraq -- he cites his country's increasing involvement in that conflict as one example. Plus, the recent vote "diminishes faith in the American people -- it seems against reason." Harrow says that to many in the U.K., it's more important who sits in the White House than who lives in the British prime minister's residence at 20 Downing Street. No wonder the Guardian newspaper in London urged readers to write to independent voters in Ohio's Clark County in a much-maligned effort to sway presidential votes Kerry's way.
From trattoria owners to mobile phone dealers, from Italian language classmates to taxi drivers, I'm quizzed daily in both English and Italian: "Are you happy about Bush?" Once they hear my frustration, they feel comfortable sharing theirs for as long as I'll listen. Admittedly, it's much easier in Europe these days for those of us who voted for "the other guy," as we were as surprised and disheartened by the final vote as are most of the Europeans we encounter in the streets. One young American female student says that even the Senegalese street vendors -- the ones peddling fake Louis Vuitton bags that tourists nearly trip over on every corner in Florence -- have come up to her saying, "Man, we're sorry."
And while no one I've talked to has seen overt hostility directed at Americans, nor really expects to, they know Europeans want to engage willing Americans in conversation, wanting desperately to make sense of what seems unfathomable to many on this continent. Of course, no tourist or traveler wants to be forced to talk politics -- or to apologize for or explain their country's electoral choices -- but like it or not, we're all ambassadors when we go abroad. Regardless of where one stands on the "red" or "blue" political spectrum, the recent election offers an incredible opportunity to share a view from the American homeland. And if I can play a small role in helping shed some light on my country, it's a small price to pay for living here during a time of intense change.
"Europeans are much more into world politics than Americans -- they know every single nuance," says Ricki Stevenson, an American journalist living in France and founder of Black Paris Tours, which offers behind-the-scenes tours about black history in the City of Light. It's little wonder they do, as they feel as much a stake in our presidential elections as we do. (Interestingly enough, Stevenson says the French often seek out African Americans taking her tours, wanting to engage them in discussions about the Iraq war and U.S. foreign policy.)
Because many Europeans consider this month's Bush win as a vote for U.S. isolationism, they wonder if this signals Americans' unwillingness to travel, to connect with folks from other parts of the world.
Despite their frequent penchant for fatalism, some Italians actually express hope that just maybe a second Bush term might prove uniting, that somehow the strained trans-Atlantic relationship will be bandaged up and healed. They realize it's in all our best interests for the hard feelings to soften -- and from a very pragmatic standpoint, for the battered dollar to rise in value and spur Americans to return to Europe in large numbers.
"Of course (Europeans) were sorry about the election and Kerry," Zucconi says, "but now they say we must find a way to rebuild a relationship with George Bush and the United States, because there is no other way."
It may have taken three long years for the historic European-American bond to weaken, but I'll bet it takes more than a little time to restore the bruised friendship and trust. But for those of us who believe travel is one of the best ways to shrink not only physical distance but also global misunderstandings, we can only hope.
Over the next year, Chicago native and freelance writer Maureen Jenkins will write monthly about her expatriate experiences in Europe for the Chicago Sun-Times Travel section.
mailto:travel@suntimes.com
The answer is simple..."We ain't a'goin' to Ur rope.We'uns is a goin' to spend our bucks at home in the Red States of Amurica. Gonna go see me some more NASCAR!
That's what all good liberals think--only foreigners are smart. Americans are dummies.
And any foreigner that disagrees with them must be part of a xenophobic hard-right party. Review the articles. If the foreigner AGREES with the left, the party they are affiliated with is never mentioned. If the foreigner disagrees, they're always members of a Nazi-wannabe hate group.
"The one thing that is deeply troubling is that they have substantially brainwashed a large part of s generation of young people. I do not see how to counteract that at this time."
I used to worry about this--but I think people get wiser about solving problems via bureaucracy as they get older. It's easy to get more cynical about government the older you get. That drives most voters into the GOP by the time they're actually voting regularly.
This would have been a much more intersting article if the author has been a Bush voter.
And to think -- Jesus Christ almost needn't have had to come back.
Gee - there's insight for you. 'Euro's are SOOoooo into . . politics. And the nuance is that the President is an isolationist.
So why are the 'euro's complaing about Iraq? That's halfway around the globe from the US. Or maybe this essayist is misrepresenting the 'euro's when only she believes that, not them?
All these self-proclaimed 'Americans' living/working in Europe and trying to appease their hosts remind me of the masses of French who must have welcomed the Germans into France in WWII. "...don't let my place of birth fool you....I'm on YOUR side".
10, 11, 12, 20 whatever it takes.
The Europeans are just now coming to grips with the fact that the 60 year post WWII vacation is over. They are going to have to defend themselves and work competitively in a world market. Bush has given them notice that the US will not bend over backward for their approvals and votes in the UN or posturing against a now non-existant USSR. The bitterest pill for them to swallow is their complete irelevance.
I'm glad for another ad nauseum article about what Europeans think. I mean, that really has an enormous effect on my sense of purpose and well being.
If they understood every single nuance they would understand why Bush won. What bull. I am expected to believe that Europe is a better judge of US politics than I am. Sorry Europe I live here and your opinion means nothing to me. Get over it.
Well, let me try to fill the void. The author of this Sun Times article attempts to pass off cowardice as a virtue, rhetorically selling out her country to be in solidarity with the spineless and corrupt European Leftists.
I'm here in Shanghai - and there's a boatload of European ex-pats in the city. I'm playing guitfiddle at an Irish bar ("We have Country AND Western Gaelic")- and after a few incidents - I keep reminding all of the would-be debaters - "Didn't your mama ever tell you - never discuss politics or religion at a bar? And especially... an IRISH bar." This I learned from several Irish bars in Boston and San Francisco.
However, the few times I did engage - were pretty fun. These people are completely unarmed - both physically and polemically. Sorta like 'Rats - except even more out of it. I've enjoyed telling them things like "You people are parasites on the world civility we enforce", and "Yes, I play Grateful Dead stuff, and I'm a Republican - you think that's impossible because you are clueless as to the cultural movements in the US. We've realized it is not necessary to be stupid to be cool. You need to update your slavish attentions to our cultural fashions." All this with a big smile...because it IS fun to buff their little brains.
My favorite line to people who insisted they should be taken into account in our election process was "Well, the last I checked, England and Germany aren't states of the Union, but I've been away for awhile and maybe we've invaded and taken y'all over - so maybe you SHOULD have a say."
In general, though, the proper way to look at Europeans is as wayward children - who look to big daddy USA to lead the way. They don't admit this to themselves - and are truly relieved deep down when you have the gumption to look them straight in the eye and say "We ARE a superpower - and that involves responsibilites that you have the luxury of not having to be responsible for. We do, and we're going to deal with them."
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