I was glad when they killed Osama bin Laden, but sickened by the duplicity of our so-called Pakistani allies. They played us for fools while receiving billions of dollars from us over the years. Osama was their cash cow as they laughed up their sleeve. And that's the problem with foreign aid: it seems to backfire on us, especially when we dole it out in the Middle East. We supported the Shah of Iran with aid and weapons, and then the Iranian Revolution came along and turned our weapons against us. We entered Somalia to prevent a humanitarian crisis and ended up seeing our troops humiliated and dragged through the streets.
We supported the mujahedin in Afghanistan and then saw them support Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden. We supported Saddam Hussein and then he turned on us and caused us to fight two very expensive wars. We paid the Mubarak regime billions, and then saw him swept away by popular discontent. For 40 years Khadaffi in Libya antagonized us, baited us with oil, supported terrorism, got out of our doghouse, somehow arranged for a terrorist bomber to be let out of a Scottish prison, and then caused the West great expense to bomb him into not destroying civilians in his own country.
George Washington warned us in his Farewell Address that gratitude and true friendship do not exist between nations. Every country on earth acts in its own self-interest. Sometimes we can rely upon allies, but too often those allies end up stabbing us in the back.
Our biggest mistake was not appreciating that many Muslims throughout the world hate our guts. I personally thought they would love us if we liberated them from Saddam Hussein, but I was badly mistaken. Western society is decadent according to many Muslims, and of course they have a point in that regard. But Western society is also well educated, dominant economically and militarily, generally governs itself responsibly through elections and a free press, and is responsible for most of the scientific progress over the last few centuries. For these superior attributes, people who believe they are supposed to conquer the world will never forgive or love us. We cannot buy, conquer or force friendship or loyalty, nor can we make dissimilar nations and cultures conform to our values. The futility of trying has nearly bankrupt the United States.
What we can do is walk softly and carry a big stick. When nations in the Middle East or elsewhere decide to fight each other or when civil war breaks out in those nations, we have no obligation to help them. The United States of America has already defeated fascism and communism, and it is time for us to rest awhile from our international police activities. We cannot police the world, and we will go under if we keep trying to do so. Yes, we will have to stand by while death and misery continue to infect the world. That's the way of the world. If our strategic or vital interests are threatened, and only if our strategic or vital interests are threatened, we can use our power to protect the United States and our loyal allies. It used to be said in international law that nations had no legitimate interests in the domestic affairs of other nations. We should return to that principle.
We supported the mujahedin in Afghanistan and then saw them support Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden. We supported Saddam Hussein and then he turned on us and caused us to fight two very expensive wars. We paid the Mubarak regime billions, and then saw him swept away by popular discontent. For 40 years Khadaffi in Libya antagonized us, baited us with oil, supported terrorism, got out of our doghouse, somehow arranged for a terrorist bomber to be let out of a Scottish prison, and then caused the West great expense to bomb him into not destroying civilians in his own country.
George Washington warned us in his Farewell Address that gratitude and true friendship do not exist between nations. Every country on earth acts in its own self-interest. Sometimes we can rely upon allies, but too often those allies end up stabbing us in the back.
Our biggest mistake was not appreciating that many Muslims throughout the world hate our guts. I personally thought they would love us if we liberated them from Saddam Hussein, but I was badly mistaken. Western society is decadent according to many Muslims, and of course they have a point in that regard. But Western society is also well educated, dominant economically and militarily, generally governs itself responsibly through elections and a free press, and is responsible for most of the scientific progress over the last few centuries. For these superior attributes, people who believe they are supposed to conquer the world will never forgive or love us. We cannot buy, conquer or force friendship or loyalty, nor can we make dissimilar nations and cultures conform to our values. The futility of trying has nearly bankrupt the United States.
What we can do is walk softly and carry a big stick. When nations in the Middle East or elsewhere decide to fight each other or when civil war breaks out in those nations, we have no obligation to help them. The United States of America has already defeated fascism and communism, and it is time for us to rest awhile from our international police activities. We cannot police the world, and we will go under if we keep trying to do so. Yes, we will have to stand by while death and misery continue to infect the world. That's the way of the world. If our strategic or vital interests are threatened, and only if our strategic or vital interests are threatened, we can use our power to protect the United States and our loyal allies. It used to be said in international law that nations had no legitimate interests in the domestic affairs of other nations. We should return to that principle.
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