[Dean's World] Scott Kirwin: The Kiwi and the Eagle: Anti-Americanism in New Zealand

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Posted by Scott Kirwin:
The Kiwi and the Eagle: Anti-Americanism in New Zealand
http://www.deanesmay.com/posts/1191930631.shtml


   I recently wrote about my Wife's experience while serving at a
   hospital in Tanzania with a 24 year old New Zealander. The girl was
   well versed in anti-American propaganda and felt compelled to heap
   abuse on my Wife. The Wife is quite capable of defending herself, but
   she lacks my background knowledge of American foreign policy and world
   history. During our brief phone call, I provided her with some basic
   facts to combat the Kiwi's propaganda regurgitations. Afterward I
   decided to dig deeper into the youngster's bigotry and did some
   research into New Zealand's attitudes towards Americans. What I found
   changed my mind about wanting to visit the place anytime soon.

   Part of New Zealand's anti-American bigotry is no doubt due to size.
   New Zealand has four million people - roughly the same number of
   Americans who[1] eat in their sleep or [2]believe they've been
   abducted by aliens. Living in a tiny nation may make one cheer any
   victory over comparative giant - [3]even in such a yawner sport as
   yachting. However New Zealand shares similar history and culture to
   the United States. It is a former British colony with an established
   democracy and [4]similar religious background, with more Protestants
   than Catholics, and more Buddhists than Jews and Muslims. New Zealand
   has spent most of its time since independence under European-style
   socialist governments. However over the past decade it has become a
   strong advocate for free trade, especially in closed agricultural
   markets.

   [5]Yet Only 29% of New Zealanders had a positive view of the United
   States in 2004. [6]That puts it on par with Pakistan at 30% and below
   Russia (43%) and China (42%). So much for the idea that shared
   cultural ties can bind people together.

   In 2005, an American working as a high school teacher in rural New
   Zealand [7]filed a lawsuit in the country's Human Rights Commission
   after being verbally abused by his students because of his
   nationality. Another American, Douglas Sparks, [8]brought his family
   to the country to oversee the Anglican Church's Wellington Cathedral.
   Two years later he left vowing never to return after being the target
   of anti-US graffiti and his children were taunted in school by
   classmates telling them they hoped American soldiers would be killed
   in Iraq.

   That same year outgoing US ambassador Charles Swindells in his final
   speech [9]slammed New Zealanders for indulging in "empty, inaccurate
   criticism of US ideals or actions that offers no constructive
   alternatives and gives no credit where credit is due."

   Many are quick to leap to conclusions that the anti-Americanism is a
   recent phenomenon due primarily to the Iraq War. However
   anti-Americanism in New Zealand predates the Iraq War by about 40
   years, starting with the Vietnam War protests and more importantly for
   New Zealanders [10]to the country's refusal to allow port calls by the
   US Navy starting in 1986, which resulted in a US freeze on high-level
   political visits there. In 1998, the Clinton Administration [11]tried
   to warm relations up in one way by approving a deal that gave New
   Zealand a squadron of F-16 for a pittance to upgrade its obsolete air
   force. However the following year New Zealand elected an anti-American
   Labor Prime Minister Helen Clark who refused the offer.

   In 2002, New York Times senior staff writer and former Clinton
   speechwriter James Gibney visited New Zealand to give a speech and
   [12]was stunned by the level of anti-Americanism he found.

     There was a very black and white view of US actions towards Iraq,
     and what our motivations were in the world. There was a sense that
     the US was much more of a rogue state than many of the countries
     that it labelled rogue states and that was kind of surprising to
     me. The other thing that was surprising was that people talked of
     US opinion as being monolithic. It was like we were all one and
     there was no distinction made between Democrats and Republicans or
     people who might disagree with Bush administration policies. That
     was unfortunate, because there seemed to be an animus directed
     towards America as a whole rather than just the administration's
     policies [emph add] . That took me aback."

   New Zealand Ambassador to Washington Denis McLean attributes
   anti-Americanism to the country's "[13]residual pro-Britishness." "For
   a long time we were quite happy with the British and I think a lot of
   people in New Zealand would still rather prefer the British to be
   running the world. We do think like them." McLean also notes New
   Zealand's isolation as being partly to blame. It's nearest neighbor,
   Australia, is a thousand miles away - greater than the distance
   between New York City and Bermuda. It's nearest neighbor to the south
   is Antarctica at 3,000 miles and to the east is Peru, 6,500 miles
   away. "

   The World War 2 generation that waited for the arrival of US marines
   in New Zealand to save them from an expected Japanese invasion is
   slowly dying off, replaced by generations who have grown up without
   any direct threat. Like the kiwi which lost its ability to fly in the
   absence of predators, young New Zealanders have lost the important
   role defense and patriotism play in their own nation's policies.
   Writer [14]Joanne Black notes, "the flag-worship of Americans could
   not be further from the position of many New Zealand schoolchildren
   who would be unable to differentiate New Zealand's ensign from
   Australia's." Australia, having been attacked by the Japanese during
   World War 2,[15] tends to take defence issues more seriously than its
   isolated neighbor. Former Ambassador McLean states "They're slightly
   closer to Asia, but the real bottom line is that they know they are
   vulnerable. We tend not to think in those terms..."

   Word is getting around. Travel forums are filled with posts by
   Americans traveling there who are worried that [16]they will be
   discriminated against for jobs and housing. Even Left-wing ideology
   [17]doesn't protect expatriates like University of Auckland senior
   lecturer in political studies Dr Paul Buchanan, who visits the US
   twice a year and is "struck when I get there by how it is Rome before
   the fall." "I have in the past couple of years, particularly related
   to some public commentary I've made, had some nasty emails saying,
   `bloody Yank, go back home'."

   For millions of years the kiwi thrived in its isolation. However today
   it is endangered by introduced predators including [18]stoats, dogs,
   cats, weasels - and just about anything else that is fast enough to
   catch it. [19]Only human intervention has saved the flightless bird
   from extinction. Likewise New Zealand has thrived under the global
   security umbrella provided by the United States and its neighbor
   Australia. While radical Islam hasn't caught hold in the nation yet,
   the support of jihadis in Iraq by some in New Zealand along with the
   nation's anti-American bigotry should give New Zealanders pause for
   one important reason:

   The weasel is a greater threat to the kiwi than to the eagle. 

   Years ago a Japanese once told me, "Japan is a small nation, and we
   Japanese have small hearts. America is a big nation. You Americans
   have big hearts."

   I answered that it didn't have to be that way, that Japan may be a
   small nation, but it played an increasingly large role in the world.
   It was only a matter of time before the Japanese found that they had
   "big hearts" too.

   Since that time Japan has sent peacekeepers to Cambodia, Afghanistan
   and Iraq. It has provided crucial logistical support in the Iraq and
   Afghanistan wars as well as for the Tsunami relief effort. It has also
   backed US policies vis-a-vis North Korea at critical times, thereby
   helping East Asia - and the world - become a safer place IF Kim
   Jong-il gives up his nukes (and [20]doesn't sell them on Ebay to
   Syria). Have the hearts of Japanese gotten bigger? I'd like to think
   so.

   New Zealand, on the other hand, is a small nation, but its growing
   anti-Americanism only makes it smaller still.

References

   1. http://mentalhealth.about.com/library/sci/0502/blsleepeat502.htm
   2. http://www.csicop.org/si/9805/abduction.html
   3. http://www.sandiegometro.com/2000/apr/nz.html
   4. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_New_Zealand
   5. http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0620/p07s01-woap.html
   6. http://pewglobal.org/commentary/display.php?AnalysisID=1019
   7. http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0620/p07s01-woap.html
   8. http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0620/p07s01-woap.html
   9. http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0620/p07s01-woap.html
  10. http://www.iht.com/articles/2000/08/08/edpaal.t.php
  11. http://www.iht.com/articles/2000/08/08/edpaal.t.php
  12. http://archive.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2004/7/14/215350.shtml
  13. http://www.listener.co.nz/issue/203/features/6019/upping_the_anti,2.html
  14. http://www.listener.co.nz/issue/203/features/6019/upping_the_anti,2.html
  15. http://www.listener.co.nz/issue/203/features/6019/upping_the_anti,3.html
  16. http://64.233.169.104/search?q=cache:QMkXeeX8LDEJ:www.emigratenz.org/forum/archive/index.php/t-1715.html+anti-american+New+Zealand&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=5&gl=us&client=firefox-a
  17. http://www.listener.co.nz/issue/203/features/6019/upping_the_anti,3.html
  18. http://www.savethekiwi.org.nz/AboutTheBird/Threats/Predators/
  19. http://www.savethekiwi.org.nz/Home
  20. http://www.dailytech.com/Kim+Jongil+Internet+Expert/article9182.htm