Selective Memory, Selective Patriotism

Here's a bit from a very interesting article in Slate magazine:

Would a No-Fly Zone Over America Save the Democracy Movement in Bahrain?

By Tom Scocca

It can't compete with the earthquake/tsunami/nuclear-meltdown sequence in Japan, or the civil war we're about to start dropping bombs onto in Libya, and, honestly, after nuclear disaster and air strikes, it's totally reasonable for the news-following public to watch some college basketball, but, still: Bahrain. It does also matter, Bahrain.

The helpful thing, if you're overwhelmed by so much news going on at once, is that Bahrain is roughly the same story as Libya—only instead of pro-democracy protesters being murdered by a terrorist-sponsoring monster of a dictator who has been on America's enemies list for ages, the pro-democracy protesters are being murdered by a government that is America's very own dear ally. And where Qaddafi brought in foreign mercenaries for support, King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa of Bahrain brought in troops from our even more vital ally, Saudi Arabia.

...

So basically, take all those proud feelings about the United States standing up for freedom and human rights in Libya and turn them inside out, and vomit into them. That's Bahrain.

Nicholas Kristof, in a column deploring the violence, wrote:

Today the United States is in a vise — caught between our allies and our values.

Are we? Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are the same rotten royalist dictatorships they've always been. And they've been on our side. The helicopters over the square were reportedly American-made Cobras, because the Royal Bahraini Air Force flies what we sell them; the rifles on the ground are American M16s. Freedom and democracy are what we talk about. Values are what we do.

Sadly, American "values" are slippery things. Well greased by oil.