A Turning Point in National History

A Turning Point in National History

__NOTOC__ "Een keerpunt in de vaderlandse geschiedenis" (Dutch: "A turning point in the history of the fatherland") is a 2005 Dutch book by Amsterdam University professor Karel van Wolferen and NRC Handelsblad reporter Jan Sampiemon. Its secondary title is "A manifesto to the Dutch people".

Despite the 'fatherland' in the title referring to the Netherlands, the book is mostly about the changes in the foreign policies of the USA since the presidency of George W. Bush and the effects these have had on the Atlantic partnership.

ynopsis

The first two-thirds of the book describes how the USA changed from a force for good in the world, in general, and a transatlantic ally of Europe, into a solitary force, after it effectively unilaterally broke its alliances by largely withdrawing from the United Nations and assorted international agreements and organisations, and consequently invading Iraq. Europeans, especially in the Netherlands, are having a difficult time coming to grips with, and even acknowledging, this new situation. The authors say part of the problem is that the media is effectively controlled by the USA, introducing terms like 'rogue states', thereby suggesting there are such states.

The authors suggest that Europe should change its orientation from the USA to the UN and rising powers like China and use diplomacy instead of brute force, thus continuing the process the USA started, but has recently turned its back upon. In the world, Europe has more authority than it realises and within Europe the Netherlands is in a good position to effect such a change as one of the founding nations of the European Union (and international law) and a country that has always had a very international outlook (for trade purposes). According to the book Germany, France and Spain no longer follow the USA, as shown by their reaction to the Iraq war. According to the authors, once this new world order is established, the USA may once again take its place in it.

upport

The book comes highly recommended by the former three-fold Dutch Prime Minister and European Community ambassador, Dries van Agt: "This is an important and brave book. The writers may expect a lot of resistance and indignation. But it will certainly shake awake the daydreamers of the trustworthy Atlanticism from their comfortable snooze." (quote on the back cover) Mr. Van Agt also participated in the presentation of the book (see photo).

External links

*http://talk2000.nl/mediawiki/index.php/Karel_van_Wolferen (in Dutch)
*http://www.sp.nl/nieuws/tribune/200310/wolferen.stm (in Dutch)

References

ISBN 90-290-7698-4, paperback, 136 pages, 7,50 €


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Turning point of the American Civil War — There is widespread disagreement over the turning point of the American Civil War. While the Battle of Gettysburg (often cited in combination with Battle of Vicksburg) is the most widely cited, there are several arguable turning points in the… …   Wikipedia

  • History of Bolivia — This article is part of a series Overview …   Wikipedia

  • The Turning Point (1983 film) — The Turning Point Der Aufenthalt DEFA film poster Directed by Frank Beyer Written by …   Wikipedia

  • History of the Jews in Poland — The history of the Jews in Poland dates back over a millennium. [ [http://polishjews.org/ polishjews.org] ] Poland was home to the largest Jewish population in Europe and served as the center for Jewish culture, ranging from a long period of… …   Wikipedia

  • History of Iran — see also Kings of Persia · Timeline of Iran Antiquity …   Wikipedia

  • History of Zionism — Although the Zionist movement was created by Theodor Herzl in 1897, the history of Zionism can be seen as beginning earlier and related to the Jewish religion and history. Before the Holocaust the movement s central focus was the creation of a… …   Wikipedia

  • History of French wine — The history of French wine spans a period of at least 2600 years dating to the founding of Massalia in the 6th century BC by the Phoenicians with the possibility that viticulture existed much earlier. The Romans did much to spread viticulture… …   Wikipedia

  • History of the Puritans — The history of the Puritans can be traced back to the Vestments Controversy in the reign of Edward VI ending in a decline in the mid 1700s. Background, to 1559 The English Reformation, begun his reign in the reign of Henry VIII of England, was… …   Wikipedia

  • History of Pakistan — also see History of AJK · Balochistan · G B · KPK · Punjab · Sindh Timeline of Pakistan …   Wikipedia

  • History of Uttar Pradesh — The history of Uttar Pradesh, an Indian State, can be divided into five periods: (1) the prehistory Early Vedic Period(up to c. 600 BC), (2) the Buddhist Hindu period (c. 600 BC to c. AD 1200), (3) the Muslim period (c. 1200 to c. 1857), (4) the… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”