Opinion: Toning Down the Political/Historical Rhetoric
Denver, Colorado USA
11 December 2012
As I’ve pointed out in past posts on this blog, I’m rather opinionated. That presents some problems because I also function as the International Erosion Control Association's unpaid “Ambassador” for their SOIL Fund. Ambassadors are supposed to practice cultural sensitivity and not offend people in other countries. I think I’ve done a rather good job of not attacking individuals in my blogs (and I really don’t want to) although I've been rather harsh on some countries, particularly India and Turkey. I’m very interested in history and politics. Thus, from time to time, I’ve tried to present some political and historical context to places I’ve visited. A case in point is the Balkans - the former Yugoslav republics and Albania (Bulgaria and sometimes, Greece, are also considered part of the Balkans but I didn’t visit them on this trip).
11 December 2012
As I’ve pointed out in past posts on this blog, I’m rather opinionated. That presents some problems because I also function as the International Erosion Control Association's unpaid “Ambassador” for their SOIL Fund. Ambassadors are supposed to practice cultural sensitivity and not offend people in other countries. I think I’ve done a rather good job of not attacking individuals in my blogs (and I really don’t want to) although I've been rather harsh on some countries, particularly India and Turkey. I’m very interested in history and politics. Thus, from time to time, I’ve tried to present some political and historical context to places I’ve visited. A case in point is the Balkans - the former Yugoslav republics and Albania (Bulgaria and sometimes, Greece, are also considered part of the Balkans but I didn’t visit them on this trip).
As far as I can tell, most of my readers are Americans. And when Americans hear about Serbia, Croatia, and Bosnia, they tend to think of the Bosnian War back in the early 1990s because it was so recent historically, we were involved in the NATO bombing campaign, and we don’t often hear any other news from that part of the world. So, in my recent post titled “Southeastern Europe: Four Countries in 24 Hours,” I pointed out some specifics about the difficult relationships among Bosnian Muslims, Serbs, and Croats. I tried to be objective and I wanted you to be able to better understand the sources of these conflicts. I also didn’t want you to think I was trying to ignore history while describing beautiful landscapes.
In the process, I “ruffled some feathers” in the Balkans. I received a constructive, thoughtful email stating that a few paragraphs were too strong and were inappropriate. As the email stated, “People would like to forget this. In all countries, there are good guys and bad guys.” The reader went on to note that the good guys I met in those countries would take offense because they would feel I was attacking people of their nationality. Even my negative labels for Enver Hoxha, the former Communist leader of Albania, could be considered offensive by Albanians who remembered his leadership in the resistance to Fascist occupation of Albania during World War II.
I thought about the offending paragraphs and decided to make some revisions earlier today. I could see how 20th Century Balkan history is a sensitive topic to people who have lived through it. I don’t see any need to stick peoples' noses in the negative parts of their histories. The point is that the Balkans have had a difficult time of it stemming in no small part from their geographic location where they became a battleground between Ottoman Turks and the Austro-Hungarian Empire; World War II Fascists and the Allies; Soviet Communists and Western Capitalists; and Roman Catholics, Orthodox Christians, and Muslims. In recent years these countries have been making great strides toward greater economic prosperity and human rights for their peoples. I think we should commend them for these efforts and not dwell on the past.
At the same time, I think it’s a mistake to try to erase the past. New generations should learn important lessons from the mistakes of their ancestors. We Americans are no exception. Any pride I might feel for the United States is tempered by our shameful history regarding the treatment of black people, Native Americans, and other minority groups as well as our very foolish and destructive involvement in some recent wars. I’d like to think that most of us are trying to learn from our past and do better.
In the process, I “ruffled some feathers” in the Balkans. I received a constructive, thoughtful email stating that a few paragraphs were too strong and were inappropriate. As the email stated, “People would like to forget this. In all countries, there are good guys and bad guys.” The reader went on to note that the good guys I met in those countries would take offense because they would feel I was attacking people of their nationality. Even my negative labels for Enver Hoxha, the former Communist leader of Albania, could be considered offensive by Albanians who remembered his leadership in the resistance to Fascist occupation of Albania during World War II.
I thought about the offending paragraphs and decided to make some revisions earlier today. I could see how 20th Century Balkan history is a sensitive topic to people who have lived through it. I don’t see any need to stick peoples' noses in the negative parts of their histories. The point is that the Balkans have had a difficult time of it stemming in no small part from their geographic location where they became a battleground between Ottoman Turks and the Austro-Hungarian Empire; World War II Fascists and the Allies; Soviet Communists and Western Capitalists; and Roman Catholics, Orthodox Christians, and Muslims. In recent years these countries have been making great strides toward greater economic prosperity and human rights for their peoples. I think we should commend them for these efforts and not dwell on the past.
At the same time, I think it’s a mistake to try to erase the past. New generations should learn important lessons from the mistakes of their ancestors. We Americans are no exception. Any pride I might feel for the United States is tempered by our shameful history regarding the treatment of black people, Native Americans, and other minority groups as well as our very foolish and destructive involvement in some recent wars. I’d like to think that most of us are trying to learn from our past and do better.
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