Photo via US Army
Former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani has spent the last 14 years reminding us that he shepherded New York through 9/11. By most measures, he made a good figurehead for the city during that time, and he might believe that's given him a lifetime supply of patriotism tokens.But his lifetime supply may have recently run out when he got in front of an audience of Republican moneymen and said, "I know this is a horrible thing to say, but I do not believe that the president loves America. He doesn't love you. And he doesn't love me. He wasn't brought up the way you were brought up and I was brought up through love of this country."Unsurprisingly, liberals were outraged by the remarks. TV conservatives were more muted in their reactions, and gave him some space to clarify his remarks. But what about people who hate America? Do they think Obama doesn't like America either?It's incredibly hard to find a journalist or activist who has shouted that they hate America and is willing to be interviewed about. A South American musician we interviewed (who asked to remain anonymous) isn't a political activist. But VICE had heard that he hated America, so we asked him what he thought about Guiliani's remarks:VICE: Rumor has it you hate America. Is that true?
Anonymous: I dislike it. My friend and I were talking and I was like, "I hate it." I don't want to say it too much, or be misunderstood. We have a saying in Spanish: "Me llega al pincho," meaning something like, "It's under my balls."Why don't you leave then?
I'm a musician, so here is the best place to be.So what's wrong with it?
America goes to war, and they say it's about creating peace, but they want to take something from that other country. My country is never in wars, so I'm not sure.Anything else?
Well, I even have American friends who say, "Americans are stupid."Stupid how?
They care about stupid shit. For instance, near my apartment, there's a Nike store, and once a month I come out and people are lined up to buy shoes. On the other side of the world, people die because they don't have shoes.Do you think that Obama loves America?
He does. Totally. He's super American.What makes someone "super American"?
Usually it means not knowing or caring about the rest of the world.You're saying he believes in American Exceptionalism?
Less than other presidents. Bush was someone who believed, "America is the best country in the world, and that's it." Obama is much warmer in his relationships with other countries than other presidents. Don't you feel it? He's trying to do a little more work for the world.But he definitely loves America.
Obama is an intelligent guy, but there's no way he doesn't love America. If he doesn't love America, what does he love? If he didn't love America, he'd do something else rather than invest all that time and money trying to be president.But he has something to gain.
If you want money over fame, you'd be in another part of politics, not there.Obama kills American citizens with drones if they're believed to be terrorists. Does this affect your answer?
No. He's trying to make his country a "pure" and "safe" country I think. Patriotism here works differently.People have different definitions of "pure" and "safe" though.
Americans are not [as] united as they act like they are.So speaking as someone who doesn't like America, how do you regard Giuliani saying Obama doesn't like it?
Well you're just talking about a fight between political parties. They always say shit about the other side. Always. That's the first rule of political parties.Follow Mike Pearl on Twitter.NOTE: The name of the interview subject was removed from this article.
Advertisement
Anonymous: I dislike it. My friend and I were talking and I was like, "I hate it." I don't want to say it too much, or be misunderstood. We have a saying in Spanish: "Me llega al pincho," meaning something like, "It's under my balls."Why don't you leave then?
I'm a musician, so here is the best place to be.So what's wrong with it?
America goes to war, and they say it's about creating peace, but they want to take something from that other country. My country is never in wars, so I'm not sure.Anything else?
Well, I even have American friends who say, "Americans are stupid."Stupid how?
They care about stupid shit. For instance, near my apartment, there's a Nike store, and once a month I come out and people are lined up to buy shoes. On the other side of the world, people die because they don't have shoes.
Advertisement
He does. Totally. He's super American.What makes someone "super American"?
Usually it means not knowing or caring about the rest of the world.You're saying he believes in American Exceptionalism?
Less than other presidents. Bush was someone who believed, "America is the best country in the world, and that's it." Obama is much warmer in his relationships with other countries than other presidents. Don't you feel it? He's trying to do a little more work for the world.But he definitely loves America.
Obama is an intelligent guy, but there's no way he doesn't love America. If he doesn't love America, what does he love? If he didn't love America, he'd do something else rather than invest all that time and money trying to be president.But he has something to gain.
If you want money over fame, you'd be in another part of politics, not there.Obama kills American citizens with drones if they're believed to be terrorists. Does this affect your answer?
No. He's trying to make his country a "pure" and "safe" country I think. Patriotism here works differently.People have different definitions of "pure" and "safe" though.
Americans are not [as] united as they act like they are.So speaking as someone who doesn't like America, how do you regard Giuliani saying Obama doesn't like it?
Well you're just talking about a fight between political parties. They always say shit about the other side. Always. That's the first rule of political parties.Follow Mike Pearl on Twitter.NOTE: The name of the interview subject was removed from this article.