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comment by rezzeJ
rezzeJ  ·  3179 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Who Got What They Wanted– Understanding the Iran Nuclear Deal

    I live in the United Kingdom

    My condolences.

Agreed. I can't wait to leave.





kleinbl00  ·  3179 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I used to really love the UK. They seem to have spent the past 30 years doubling down on fear, however. I think Reagan was rough on the middle class but Thatcher was f'n brutal.

hyperflare  ·  3179 days ago  ·  link  ·  

    They seem to have spent the past 30 years doubling down on fear, however

Not unlike the US since 9/11. And you certainly seem to have them beat at that game.

kleinbl00  ·  3179 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I beg to differ. The surveillance dtate enacted by the British makes the US look like a libertarian paradise. Snowden himself said the intelligence take in the UK is extensive enough to make the NSA salivate.

hyperflare  ·  3178 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I was talking less about state surveillance (but yes, it's apalling. Especially infuriating is how they don't even think it's an issue.) but more about political rhetoric and things like the patriot act/ invading whole countries. You can't deny that the invasion of Iraq was based on fearmongering - remember those weapons of mass destruction?

kleinbl00  ·  3178 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Believe it or not, I'm arguing that the invasion of Iraq was a lot more "business as usual" in the course of empire than an anomaly. Vietnam was justified by the Gulf of Tonkin incident. We did the same thing with the war in the Philippines, the Mexican American war, etc. We've always been trigger-happy.