esel-globallocal.de

Category: The Big World

  • Conflicting Spheres

    —

    by

    esel-globallocal
    in

    Europe was surprisingly quiet when a president — one could reasonably call him a dictator — was kidnapped in Venezuela. There was little concern about threats directed at Cuba or about moves to take control of the Panama Canal. There was some discussion about the renaming of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of…

  • Hypocrisy

    —

    by

    esel-globallocal
    in ,

    I am fed up with the hypocrisy surrounding Greenland. It is a colony of Denmark. Colonisation is wrong. Full stop. Greenland should be independent. If Europe has any political spine left, it should support Greenlandic independence, recognise Greenland as a sovereign state, and establish diplomatic relations. Independence must mean independence from everyone. Greenland must not…

  • What has morality got to do with it?

    —

    by

    esel-globallocal
    in

    Europe weakens itself through inconsistency in international politics. Israel is granted an almost unlimited green light under the banner of self defence, even when an entire population is labelled terrorist. The United States can act with impunity in Latin America, threatening governments and kidnapping presidents. There are open threats against Iran, including calls to overthrow…

  • The end of (our liberal) history?

    —

    by

    esel-globallocal
    in

    The liberal world order is under threat, the German Chancellor declared today in Munich. I declared it dead in 2016, when I was studying international relations and diplomacy. In our second week, we discussed Fukuyama’s The End of History. Even then, I could see its flaws and weaknesses. Not without sadness — the concept was…

  • Old Habits

    —

    by

    esel-globallocal
    in ,

    Venezuela, Greenland, and now Iran. Add threats towards Colombia and renewed talk of controlling the Panama Canal. All of this is on the table, and Europe seems unable to respond in any meaningful way. At the core lies an old idea: control of hemispheres and the desire to be the big boss. Power politics are…

  • Silenced

    —

    by

    esel-globallocal
    in

    Death is imminent for young people, imprisoned, uncharged, yet labelled terrorists. It feels that no one cares for them and their hunger strike. Silence in the media. Silence in the government. Protests are silenced. They challenged a governments view on the war in Gaza and labelled the war as genocide. Many international organisations do too,…

  • The Monroe Doctrine: Control Disguised as Protection

    —

    by

    esel-globallocal
    in

    The future of Latin America was not decided in 1832, but in 1823, when US President James Monroe articulated what became known as the Monroe Doctrine. Framed as a warning to European powers not to interfere in the Western Hemisphere, it was presented as a protective measure for newly independent states. In practice, it marked…

  • Haunting Memories

    —

    by

    esel-globallocal
    in ,

    Yesterday’s events in Venezuela stirred long-forgotten memories. In 2011, Libya was attacked. It was presented as a humanitarian intervention. Gaddafi was framed as the enemy of the West, a dictator who had to be removed. At that point in history, the United States still acted together with its Western allies. That is an important difference…

  • Has the Condor returned?

    —

    by

    esel-globallocal
    in ,

    Some histories do not stay in the past; they wait for the right moment to resurface. I did not want to start my blog with this topic, but I am shocked by today’s unfolding events. I am not a fan of Maduro at all. I find him dull, incompetent and power hungry. Venezuela deserves better.…