I've been to Europe many times over the years and know Europeans. I was in Spain a couple months ago, and McDonald's was full of people. I was in Italy ten months before that, and the same story. You hear that Europeans hate Texas and the cowboy mentality because of Pres. Bush, but every time I'm in Europe, I always see Texas promotions (Texas burger, Texas breakfast, etc.). The dirty secret is that a lot of Europeans don't like each other very much (many French and Italians express contempt for each other), yet they buy each other's products. I remember one French friend who detested Italians and even called them sub-human, yet that didn't stop her from eating Italian food in Italian restaurants. The fact is that for most Europeans, they might be against the "war" in Iraq (in quotes because there is no war by any sane definition), but they really don't care that much either. They're ten times more concerned with immigration and other domestic issues than they are US policies. That we think that we're so important to everyone in the world smacks as arrogance.

Hmm, as a European myself I see your point. But don't confuse being interested in our own politics meaning that we don't look beyond our own borders... The Iraq conflict (which it can justifiably be called given the enormous number of foreign troops - please note I avoided the word occupation - on Iraqi soil and the permanent threat of civil war) does keep us occupied. The US is the dominant force in international politics - and as such is obviously a target for criticism. Meanwhile, it seems as though the US concerns itself mainly with homegrown politics, of which any foreign policy is an extension. The thinly-veiled hypocrisy of these politics makes the US impopular, especially if the president of the country so clearly seems to represent them...

only once?