My anger at the state of our country has been mounting for a few years now, and it reached an all-time high in the months following the November elections. It was therefore with great anticipation that I awaited this year's Spring Break, as I had plans to go abroad for the first time in over four years. Aside from the usual reasons for jubilation at spending a week in London, I was also looking forward to visiting a country where I expected most of the people would feel as much enmity towards the Bush administration as I do.
Unfortunately, my focus on Bush left me unprepared for the harsh reality of the current exchange rate. Everything costs double in England, a rather disconcerting fact that I was financially unprepared for. My first thoughts were how could the dollar be worth so little?
Now, I don't know much about economics, and I don't presume to be able to justly lay blame, but I did visit London six years ago during the time of Clinton, and the exchange rate then was closer to $1.50 to the pound. Everything was still expensive, but not to the point of crippling my adventures. This time, I was forced to travel around in economic shackles, constantly refusing one pricey activity after another. I might be mistaken, but I suspect this has something to do with the Bush administration's fiscal policies.
Now, don't get me wrong; London provided countless memories and great fun. However, my experiences were always limited by that horrible exchange rate. For instance, at bars and clubs, I had to constantly explain my unwillingness to purchase any drink over ?5. However, I did not encounter as much hostility towards America as I expected, and our original plans to wear those shirts with the lines "Don't Blame Me, I Voted For Kerry" turned out to be unnecessary. In general, I was more troubled by the Bush administration's actions than they were. Those British who did express political concerns were primarily enraged at their own Prime Minister and his blind support of President Bush.
I left London with many stories and a somewhat depleted bank account (though I was very proud of my frugal bearing). Strangely, the most shocking part of the trip came aboard the plane as we were descending into JFK airport. Mind you, we were not flying United Airlines; we're students, after all, and we chose Air India, which offered the cheapest airfare we could find. I was talking to the two Scottish girls next to me about New York when one of the stewards seated across from me, a middle-aged man with a heavy accent, chimed in. The descent was very loud, and I couldn't hear most of what the man was saying. I was able to decipher some small pieces, however, and I was woefully unprepared for what I was about to hear.
The man began by stating that he'd been traveling to and from the United States for over 20 years, and in that time he had come to appreciate how great England was, and conversely how horrible America was. He pointed out how New York City has nothing to offer, especially when compared with the cities of Europe. There were no old buildings, no great historical monuments. He laughed when I suggested the Statue of Liberty. I kept a smile on as the man continued to attack my country. Eventually, his verbal assaults turned to our policies: airport security, in particular, was a prime target. I tried to reason with him.
"I understand that our security measures are a bit severe," I told him, "but 9/11 has forced us to tighten up, particularly in New York." As I soon learned, this only added fuel to the fire; it was obviously a mistake to bring up 9/11.
Again, I couldn't hear most of what he was saying, but I managed to make out certain parts. He said something about "those two buildings," and I nodded in agreement, assuming he was acknowledging the tragedy. The next thing I heard, however, froze my smile in its place. "If you hit someone, they'll hit back."
This man believed that we deserved what we got. He had no sympathy, only enmity. I sat back, refusing to listen any more. I wanted to fight this guy, this man who had the nerve to tell me how much he hated my country, just as we were landing in it. There's a reason we have such tight security, I wanted to say, and it's because of people like you.
It's one thing for me to attack Bush, even for foreigners to express their displeasure at our President. However, a line is crossed when someone starts attacking America, the country. There's a difference between our government's policies, and the country itself. Many of my articles have criticized Bush's actions.
However, I still love this country, and despite all its faults, I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. I'm reminded of a quote by Winston Churchill: "Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others."
Everyone can see that America isn't perfect. It has a great many faults. Yet it's still leaps and bounds beyond the others, and it took only a short conversation at the end of my trip to remind me of this. Despite the unpleasantness, I remain grateful.
James Gerber is a freshman who has not yet declared a major. He can be reached via e-mail at james.gerber@tufts.edu.
