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That question hinges on what is actually 'hated' here... I cannot speak for the author of this diary, but I can think of several ways this list is not 'racist'.

I don't like to think in terms of 'hating' countries. What would I hate? The 'nation state'? I certainly have no warm feelings for Bush, most of the American political establishment, with more contempt for Republicans than Democrats, disdain for a system that seems geared towards encouraging extreme rates of incumbency at most levels of government, and detest for the unpleasant collusion of politics and capital interests. I also love my American friends, and the wonderful experiences I was fortunate to have in University there. I would not have such strong thoughts on the issue had I not lived in American society for some time and seen some very ugly sides of it. (I was not so far to the left until I encountered the homeless of Boston, for example. My privileged (small Swedish town) background had not allowed a proximity to such dystopian conditions before.) Does familiarity breed contempt? Yes, sure, it's hard to have strong emotions towards that which one doesn't know well. (Don't worry, I 'hate' things about Sweden as well, and find that 'it' does others quite well. Some of the things I 'hate' about Sweden come from getting more distance from the country, and thinking differently about things that I had never even considered to question while I was still 'embedded' in that society. Conversely, some things I 'like' about 'Sweden' I gained appreciation for after seeing what other options had been actualised in a different society. The door swings both ways, it seems.)

As for the "brown" countries, I am sure that they could be 'hated' as I 'hate' the US, but as I know far less about them, I cannot be as vocal on this topic. A lot is wrong with African nations, a lot which seems rather strongly causally linked to 'western' exploitations. To 'hate' the 'nation state' of a patch of land seems a bit simplistic to me. It's expression is not necessarily 'racist', though.

So, to richardk, I ask: would you please elaborate on what it is that you 'hate' when you provide us this list of 'nation state' names?

by someone (s0me1smail(a)gmail(d)com) on Sun Jan 21st, 2007 at 08:11:16 AM EST
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