Commentary:

Reactions

There is an interesting contrast of reactions to criticisms regarding the amount of aid provided by the United States for recovery from the tsunami disaster.

Tom Watson provides some context of how much money goes into other areas, such as the salaries of baseball players, and then points out a missed opportunity, "...Bush might've recognized the chance for a master counterstroke with the seething Muslim world - by pouring resources into Indonesia, where the region of Aceh and its hard-core militant Islamists were particularly hard hit."

Andrew at Verite reacts with anger, writing, "We're helping your citizens because you CANNOT. Be grateful for anything we give you. And don't you DARE say that the U.S. isn't paying its dues while turning around and no doubt criticising our policy of homeland security."

Please note that the two quotes above are used for illustrative purposes and do not provide the full discussion of either author. Read the entire posts to understand their respective vantage points. What I write here is not intended to establish or refute the details of what they argue but instead to comment on the style of reactions.

I understand the origins of these two reactions, and neither is irrational. They also show in microcosm some general trends I have observed. It seems that many cannot stand any criticism of the United States or whatever is their sacred cow (their political party, their candidate for President, their beliefs), and react with what strikes me as a defensive "victim mentality". This victim mentality appears on both extremes of the political spectrum and shuts down all discussion or possibility of change, resulting in people shouting at each other and issues festering rather than being resolved. Then there are others who react by thinking about what the criticism said, comparing what was said with things not necessarily directly related to the issue at hand in a search for context, and then seek opportunities.

Unfortunately, it seems that human nature is inclined more towards the "drama" of the victim rather than the drudgery of thinking in search of a way to achieve at least part of the ultimate goal.

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