Why Do They Hate Us?

I was at an outdoor cafe, here in Spain, watching the USA vs. Ghana world cup game, and something like 20 US American youngsters turned out. The seats were arranged around tables and there was space in the front and back between the seats and the buildings at the edge of the alley, where pedestrians could pass. There was also shade close to the building in the back. A group of six or seven yanks arrived late, and took back row seats near my group. Well, they took the seats and moved them against the back wall so no one could pass, and they cooled off in the shade.

At first pedestrians found other ways around, then they approached the seats that were blocking the way, hoping the occupants would move to let them through, but they didn't. Insults were then given to the young yanks. By now, Ghana was winning 2-1.

A leader of the group said, "Let's move somewhere where people don't hate us." A colleague overheard and pointed out that there were seats near her. The leader asked if they were in the shade, and if they had a good view of the tv. They were and did, so they all moved and the foot traffic once again resumed its normal course.

What struck me was the complete denial that the group's actions could have caused the ill feelings the leader described as hatred. It reminded me of quotes I've read from Israelis saying that Palestinians hate them, and from the US that Muslims are full of hate for the USA. If this is going to be the future generation, the USA is in trouble.

As a further observation, the USA gets about the same amount of respect in the world as their football team, despite their world-class uniforms, which the tiny fourth-world Ghana soundly eliminated from the World Cup tournament, by far the biggest sporting event in the world by any measure. And this, of course, mirrors the performance of the US military in Iraq. Why do they hate us?