Comments on: After the U.S. fades, wither human rights?

By: Kindoalkun

Kindoalkun — Sun, 22 Apr 2012 05:35:31 +0000

Yup, game over. The United States is doomed. And anyway, it was actually an evil empire to begin with. It never really served as a symbol or inspiration to others. In fact, the world would be a better place if the country had never existed. If only everyplace could be like Sweden or Cuba, we would all be so much happier! [drips sarcasm]

By: leslie20

leslie20 — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 07:43:28 +0000

Yes, I was wondering about that “wither” (whither?), too.

By: stambo2001

stambo2001 — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 12:25:25 +0000

American journalism the beacon of human rights?!? You have got to be kidding! I mean there are jokes and then there are complete and utter perversions being passed off as jokes. American journalists stumbled, fell and dropped the ball decades ago. I’m not sure a western journalist could even spell ‘investigative reporting’ in today’s day and age. Pandering, self-censoring, cowardly jack-in-the-boxes the entire lot of them.

By: scythe

scythe — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 10:13:59 +0000

did you mean whither or wither?

as it is, the headline suggests the green branch of huamn rights will wither

By: paintcan

paintcan — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 01:37:33 +0000

The authors don’t once mention the UN’s Declaration of Human Rights. And it never gets much mention here in any media. In years, I can’t remember seeing more that a word or two about it. To learn anything at all one has to go the UN site for the document.

The Constitution of the United States was not enforced because a few big states (or even one) were able to dominate the political life of the country, the way the US tends to think it must dominate the planet.

In any event, no one gets to play the agenda setter forever. Citizens of every advanced country are taught that honest and reliable civil institutions are better than the help of the biggest armies to ensure security, “domestic tranquility” and even prosperity.

But wars aren’t respecters of human rights until they are over and the participants and victims can reclaim their human rights or the nearest local version of them. The wars don’t seem to be able to deliver national prosperity anymore either.

And other than military might – there isn’t much that distinguishes the US from the other advanced countries that share the same definitions of human rights as stated in the UNUDHR.

It hasn’t been said here – but the question of appropriate or innate human rights isn’t settled by any means. And most citizens doesn’t really live at the cutting edge of human rights, let alone understand what they all are, even here. One has to learn them to some extent.

That is an educational challenge as much or more than an issue for journalists and warriors.

By: trevorh

trevorh — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 23:15:46 +0000

@txgadfly is highly accurate.

“a population under continuous surreptitious surveillance”.
This is the biggest threat to free-speech and the first amendment. And journalism is simply a very restricted locality of free-speech.

As it stands today, journalism from the “main stream media” is simply the propaganda machine for the “main stream politicians”

By: PseudoTurtle

PseudoTurtle — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 15:04:11 +0000

You state “The U.S., however imperfectly, often hypocritically, and at times mendaciously, nevertheless possesses a default mode in favor of freedom and human rights.”

I submit that you are completely wrong. That statement does not fit the reality of what this country has been and still is.

We mouth “freedom and human rights” like it was a campaign slogan, but then like all good politicians we do as we please.

By: Spacetime

Spacetime — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 12:31:12 +0000

It’s kind of interisting to me what makes the author of the book as well as the author of this commentary feel so good about themselves. They failed to point out, or purposely concealed the fact that, these “independent journalists”, are employed and commanded by the “wealthy American aristocrats” and untimately serves for their interest. The “human rights” is only an excuse these “wealthy American aristocrats” and their puppet governments use for interfering and subverting developing countries who rejects to submit themselves to the interest of these “wealthy American aristocrats”.

By: txgadfly

txgadfly — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 16:49:09 +0000

The self-righteous assumption of American journalist virtue is a bit sickening.

The American press has covered up public corruption and mendacity in and by the US Government ever since John Kennedy. They have created a political secular religion of American saints who just happen to be born wealthy American aristocrats, by some strange coincidence. Whatever light of revelation has been shined has been on foreigners or those who domestically challenge the pantheon of “Post WWII” saints who have done and cannot do wrong.

The American Press would do better raking our own especially deep and pungent domestic dung heap for stories of injustice and oppression. War, war, and more war. More taxes, fewer benefits, halo polishing and finger pointing, prisons bursting with inmates and a population under continuous surreptitious surveillance. Who could possible find fault here? Not our Panglossian press.

By: ShivaForJustice

ShivaForJustice — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 15:49:43 +0000

The world will be a place for the political criminals if US and the Western countries fail. Although the Western nations and the US may have had issues with human rights from time to time due to mockery leaders like George Bush and Tony Blair, it is much better place than China or Russia where human rights activists and defenders have no place. The West has to isolate Israel that commits human rights abuses if they want to bring any credibility to their stand on human rights. If not Iran may win the battle in the long term against the West.

Russia, China, India and other nations have no respect for human rights. Indian Congress regime was boasting on human rights and it has collaborated with the Sri Lankan regime in committing human rights abuses and war crimes against the Tamil minorities.