AP Discovers Colonialism, Forgets Its History Books
AP frames Trump's passing interest in Greenland as a novel geopolitical event causing Greenlander 'crisis' and 'fear.' Yet, the historical amnesia is glaring. The United States purchased Louisiana from France, Alaska from Russia, and famously tried to buy Greenland itself in 1867 and again in 1946. This isn't a new concept for US foreign policy, it's a centuries-old tradition often followed by
military basing rights or outright annexation. And let's not forget the US 'leased' Greenlandic Thule Air Base from Denmark decades earlier. While Trump’s bluntness certainly lacks diplomatic finesse, framing it as an unprecedented 'threat' from a single, eccentric figure neatly sidesteps a deeper, more systemic pattern of resource acquisition and strategic influence, often backed by military
presence, that the U.S. has engaged in for centuries. Perhaps the 'dog sleds' comment is offensive, but the real insult is pretending the acquisition impulse is isolated to one man and not a recurring motif in American power projection.