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Kosovo’s Dark Meaning
The current Serbian regime is not as nationalistic as its opposition is. But, Eagleburger says, Serbians generally "are not known for their nuanced view of life." If—when—the Kosovo majority behaves, in the Balkan tradition, beastly toward the minority in its midst, expect trouble.
Ethnic disaggregation in the name of "self-determination" must alarm Spain, which has separatist Basques. Greece, with assertive Albanians in its northern region, and Macedonia (another fragment of Yugoslavia), with a restive Albanian minority, cannot be pleased that Albanians in Kosovo have succeeded in making self-determination a synonym for independence. That concept could someday have interesting implications for southern Texas.
In a New York Times op-ed, Vuk Jeremic, Serbia's foreign minister, was too polite to dwell on the fact that the United States, which promptly recognized Kosovo's independence, has not always been so tolerant of the principle of secession. Jeremic noted that "the forced partition of internationally recognized, sovereign states" is an odd undertaking for the United Nations, particularly given that the 1999 Security Council resolution endorsed nothing more than "substantial autonomy and self-government" for Kosovo. Jeremic predicts that only about 40 of the almost 200 members of the United Nations will recognize Kosovo's independence.
When the Balkans boiled over in the 1990s, Europeans said: We'll handle it. They couldn't, or wouldn't. NATO, meaning primarily the United States, did. Today, Europeans, vociferously unhappy about U.S. "hyperpower," want a less assertive America. Good. Most Americans, recoiling from a few Americans' enthusiasm for their country's being the world's "benevolent hegemon," are in no mood to police Europe's backyard. The next Balkan crisis will be a European problem.
Surely there will be a next crisis. What Pat Moynihan called "the liberal expectancy" was that ethnic attachments and religious animosities were diminishing echoes of mankind's infancy and would be steadily drained of their saliency as definers of national identities. The liberal expectancy is, like Yugoslavia, defunct.
© 2008
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Member Comments
Posted By: getzel @ 04/11/2008 11:44:47 PM
Comment: George Will is a USA government Minister of miss information.
The spark George refers to was an excuse and a well planned one at that, not a spark. The Moscow weapons company, then operating under the Czar, wanted: free access through the Bosporus straits and Constantinople; France wanted Alsace-Lorraine; both wanted a European war to achieve their goals; and they got one. Moscows, precursor to the KGB, armed and assisted in whipping up a nationalistic fervor in Serbia against Austria. Franz Ferdinand was caught in the Turkey shoot on June 28, 1914; France and Russia rushed to war almost before the dust settled and Russia was mobilized and moving by July 24 before Serbia responded to the Austrian ultimatum. Bosnia and Herzegovina had been annexed by Austria in 1908 because Russia encouraged Austria to annex them, while at the same time Russia was telling Serbia how bad the annexation was and that Serbia better stand up to Austria.
Ethnic nationalism predated the Great War by a generation.
So Why does the Government Minister of miss information, George Will, go on to tell us about nationalism and self determination after the war?
We must assume this is the governments way of telling us about a coming war.
Source material: C J H Hayes: A brief History of the Great War 1920
A F Pollard: A Short History of The Great War 1917. J S Bassett our War With Germany 1919.
No, the USA should not take actions that result in the implementation of a Sharia terrorist government; in Kosovo, the West Bank, Gaza, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Lebanon, et al. A representative government is fine provided the people of the area want one; not fine at the point of a gun. Kosovo is a Sharia terrorist government today: bad policy. The Hamas independent government in Gaza is a Sharia terrorist government; likewise West Bank; likewise Lebanon if Hizbully gets it, Likewise Iran since Jimmy brought the Ayatollah, watch out or you get one in Pakistan; et al
It is never the moral high ground to assist in imposing a Sharia terrorist government on people that always includes: honor killing, hanging gays, women as chattel: virtual slaves, legal to murder & rape & pillage non -Muslims; that is the moral low ground. Yes, these throwbacks to the seventh century should be confronted or you get a burqa, will bow to Mecca or be killed.
Why Will George not write about Condoleezza Rice and the Oil Supertanker with her name on it; OK they erased her name so she could go in politics;
Islam is at war with The West because Islam can not survive a free market, free speech to criticize Islam world, representative Republic.
The governments of the world led by the USA and Russia and international law, have defined a set of war rule parameters that guarantee no war can be won by good guys and that guarantee nice long lasting wars with lots of weapons sales.
Intelligence analyst: Getzel
Posted By: Ellinas @ 04/01/2008 10:46:14 PM
Comment: I just wanted to add as information to the forum that the Arvanites of Southern Greece do not consider themselves Albanian because they have been incorporated into the Greek melting pot for generations and hundreds of years. This is what I meant about "feeling" Greek regardless of blood. They are now simply Greek and don't want to hear anything more about it. Unlike the muslim Chams who fled into Albania after WW2.
Posted By: Ellinas @ 04/01/2008 10:36:27 PM
Comment: altin36: Let's agree to disagree about Greeks being brainwashed by our Church. And I never claimed that we are direct descendants of our Ancients. However, being Greek is different than blood genaelogy: it is about "feeling" Greek which is more important. The rest is simply easy to fall into place once this exists, including fervent patriotism for anything Greek. We are similar to the US in the matter of being a historic melting pot. Look how seriously we defend our Macedonian history and heritage. I will also disagree with you regarding Greece's view of "Northern Epirus". While historically during the creation of our Republic, there was the idea of a Greater Greece (Megali Idea: Big Idea), and during communism a need to "protect" our fellow Greeks in Albania, there is no modern movement to take any Albanian land by any serious person. As far as I am concerned, we have no major "Albanian" problem in our country or yours. Except for maybe what the Greeks are to do with all those illegal immigrants.
You may be right about Kosovo not joining Albania...yet. Perhaps it will need to be separate for the moment to act as leverage (2 Albanian areas instead of one on the international stage). But eventually, I think it will join. It would be interesting what will happen when the Albanians of FYROM and Montenegro decide to act more loudly. Also, it will be interesting to see what the Serbs in Mitrovica will decide to do. How much can you cut down an area so the minority becomes a majority before this becomes just silly? I wish that both you and your Serbian neighbours find a mutual and acceptable solution.