Big Think

Pagrotsky: The Bush administration has meant a disaster for American standing in the world. America is so strong. It is present everywhere, and when America is led by an administration that lacks the respect and credibility in the rest of the world, that’s a problem for all of us. Of course, me as a Social Democrat, as a man of the Left, as we call it in Europe, of course, I’m happy that you, the American people voted for a President that is more leaning towards the left than the old one, but it’s more than that. It’s also that the present administration has pursued a view of the world which means that they do things alone. They don’t consult others. They don’t cooperate in multilateral organizations, but they select individual partners that work bilaterally instead of being part of the global community as an active and leading member. Instead of that, they’ve chosen an isolated individual path. I hope that would be the biggest change that would influence the rest of us, more than the temperament, the character, the charisma of the individuals involved.