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At this point one has to ask the question: who's afraid of the big, bad USA? And the answer more and more seems to be "Everybody". From Putin emphasising that

At this point one has to ask the question: who's afraid of the big, bad USA? And the answer more and more seems to be "Everybody". From Putin emphasising that Snowden stops hurting "Our friends the Americans", to the whole of Western Europe succumbing to their outrageous demands, not to mention the reversal of Ecuadorian President's change of stance after a talk with Biden. Is this the States showing off it's true colours or is it the administration failing badly at handling this embarrassing situation? I honestly hope it's the latter.

Svip 13y ago
Agreements between these countries exists to allow them to call on the other signatories to deny specific planes airspace. Portugal could ask the USA to deny a specific plane airspace into the USA, if it felt so inclined. I doubt this is pressure, but rather standard diplomatic channels.
- morganwilde 13y ago
  To follow your parallel, let's imagine it's not the plane of the Bolivian President, but say, Airforce One, flying over South America with Barack Obama on board towards Washington. Let's say Spain has suspicion that someone that broke Spanish law is on board. Please, honestly, tell me you believe that The President's plane would be grounded?
  - Svip 13y ago
    As funny as that would be, I'd doubt it. Though in particular because I doubt Spain would risk calling for the closing of airspaces for Air Force One in the first place, because it would eventually mean Spain would have to face a massive diplomatic incident between them and the USA, and possibly wouldn't risk it. It's ridiculous if the USA does not have to apologise following this incident.
jasonkolb 13y ago
It does give off the smell that the US thinks it rules the world, doesn't it? (Not that it hasn't been an unspoken idea in everyone's minds for the past 50 years, but it's still weird to see it played out in the open.)
- javajosh 13y ago
  Generally no-one really cared that the US ruled the world because, despite our flaws, we were the good guys. 9/11 changed that. We started torturing people. We started targeted killings. We started invading countries that hadn't lifted a finger. Now we spy on our citizens in secret, silence journalists, and we hunt-down the whistle-blowers who put it out in the open. And the rot is spreading. Selective application of the law is happening at all levels - HSBC launders billions, and pay a 300 million dollar fine, no jail time for anyone involved. But the DoJ defends its request for a 7 year felony jail sentence for Aaron Swarz for downloading academic journal content because, simply "he broke the law". Bank of America defrauds tens of thousands on their mortgages, and nothing. Snowden breaks the law to reveal systematic abuse of governmental power, and not only do our elected leaders (with a few exceptions) not come to his aid, but denounce him as a traitor and redouble their efforts to "hunt him down". At the local level, it seems that not a day goes by without some new evidence of abuse of local law-enforcement, such as that marshall who arrested a young woman for claiming that he'd harassed her, to a judge who didn't even acknowledge her existence. Osama bin Laden, looking up at us from hell, is laughing. With three planes and a few thousand deaths he managed to move the US, a country with over 300 million residents, toward the path of the Taliban: selective application of justice, system-wide corruption, amoral acts of torture and indefinite detention, system-wide abuse of our freedoms, and violent, ferocious pursuit of those who bring these abuses to wide-spread attention. We do rule the world, and for that reason I fear for us all.

Svip 13y ago

Agreements between these countries exists to allow them to call on the other signatories to deny specific planes airspace. Portugal could ask the USA to deny a specific plane airspace into the USA, if it felt so inclined. I doubt this is pressure, but rather standard diplomatic channels.

morganwilde 13y ago
To follow your parallel, let's imagine it's not the plane of the Bolivian President, but say, Airforce One, flying over South America with Barack Obama on board towards Washington. Let's say Spain has suspicion that someone that broke Spanish law is on board. Please, honestly, tell me you believe that The President's plane would be grounded?
- Svip 13y ago
  As funny as that would be, I'd doubt it. Though in particular because I doubt Spain would risk calling for the closing of airspaces for Air Force One in the first place, because it would eventually mean Spain would have to face a massive diplomatic incident between them and the USA, and possibly wouldn't risk it. It's ridiculous if the USA does not have to apologise following this incident.

jasonkolb 13y ago

It does give off the smell that the US thinks it rules the world, doesn't it? (Not that it hasn't been an unspoken idea in everyone's minds for the past 50 years, but it's still weird to see it played out in the open.)

javajosh 13y ago
Generally no-one really cared that the US ruled the world because, despite our flaws, we were the good guys. 9/11 changed that. We started torturing people. We started targeted killings. We started invading countries that hadn't lifted a finger. Now we spy on our citizens in secret, silence journalists, and we hunt-down the whistle-blowers who put it out in the open. And the rot is spreading. Selective application of the law is happening at all levels - HSBC launders billions, and pay a 300 million dollar fine, no jail time for anyone involved. But the DoJ defends its request for a 7 year felony jail sentence for Aaron Swarz for downloading academic journal content because, simply "he broke the law". Bank of America defrauds tens of thousands on their mortgages, and nothing. Snowden breaks the law to reveal systematic abuse of governmental power, and not only do our elected leaders (with a few exceptions) not come to his aid, but denounce him as a traitor and redouble their efforts to "hunt him down". At the local level, it seems that not a day goes by without some new evidence of abuse of local law-enforcement, such as that marshall who arrested a young woman for claiming that he'd harassed her, to a judge who didn't even acknowledge her existence. Osama bin Laden, looking up at us from hell, is laughing. With three planes and a few thousand deaths he managed to move the US, a country with over 300 million residents, toward the path of the Taliban: selective application of justice, system-wide corruption, amoral acts of torture and indefinite detention, system-wide abuse of our freedoms, and violent, ferocious pursuit of those who bring these abuses to wide-spread attention. We do rule the world, and for that reason I fear for us all.