Former European Presidents are avidly applied to earn money, such as German Gerhard Schroder, at the service of the multinational Russian Gazprom, or Tony Blair, who takes advantage of his lucrative book of memories to put stock to his successor and colleague Gordon Brown. In the best cases, these posh retirees are dedicated to a discreet and pleasant retreat, as Helmut Kohl or Jacques Chirac, and at worst, as it is the case with Jose Maria Aznar, to create political problems to his compatriots: not only to Rodriguez Zapatero, ideological rival to the end and Cape, but also his own anointed and disciple, Mariano Rajoy. Unlike Americans, almost any former European President devotes his time to altruistic missions in the service of their country and, if possible, of all humanity. Here we have, if not, to Jimmy Carter, rescuing a fellow prisoner in Korea of the North after making dozens of more or less questionable actions. The same could be said of Bill Clinton, special UN Envoy to coordinate international aid to Haiti, how five years ago went to the Asian countries ravaged by the tsunami.
By that defendant sense of solidarity and shared responsibility, it is not strange that announcing the American withdrawal from Iraq Barak Obama has pondered a publicly efforts and patriotism of George Bush in that war. And it is that, aside from what each one thinks, all of them believe that they paddle in the same boat and it is important that this always go forward. That is fair, just, the opposite of what happens here.