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By Shempatolla (registered) - website | Posted December 10, 2010 at 22:06:20
The problem is that the people proposing that America is the Great Satan of this world more often than not like to cherry pick their examples and then ignore the other things in the world that America does and that America achieves most often for the benefit of others.
They will cite CIA support for the mujahadeen in Afghanistan in opposition to the Soviets, then the abandonment of the Afghan file once the Soviets departed. Thats what happens in democracices. Once something isn't popular any more or falls off the evening news cycle, it gets "shuffled off to Buffalo".
Support for Sadam Hussein even while he gassed his own people. They forget to mention that he was fighting a war against Iran who had held hostage 44 American citizens for over a year. And yes America was a supporter of the Pahlavi regime and he wasn't always a nice guy. However under the Pahlavi's Iran was a secular, progressive, modern society more closely modeled after wester society than religious califate. The Iranian Revolution has set that country back at least 100 years, isolated it in the world and has ultimately destabilized the region.
Here are some interesting facts about what the US does in the world.
The single largest contributor to AIDS education, prevention, treatment and research in Africa. They achieved this under ......wait for it George W Bush.
Largest single contributor to aid in Haiti with $712 million dollars to date, economic development assistance, a food program that feeds 500,000 children 3 meals every day.
The largest single aid contributor to Cental America at over 1.87 billion dollars per year.
Because of Americas global military assests they are frequently the first available and always deployed whenever natural disasters occur. The Tsunami, the earthquake in Haiti, volcanic eruptions in the Philipines, earthquakes in Japan, have all seen US troops and equipment deployed to render assistance. There was no benefit to America in this. There was no geopolitical advantage to doing this. They did it because they could.
There are dozens of more examples.
General Smedley was one officer of hundreds of thousands of officers who served America in the 20th century. His story is unique certainly. It stands out because he is one of only a few who have denounced his country's actions. Are the other officers who held his positions or equivalent positions just dumber than him? Gullible? I don't think so. Perhaps they had a better grasp of what was at stake. I don't know.
Again, there is more right with America than wrong. Are there political challenges within that country? Certainly. There always is in a democracy. But for people to even attempt to compare the US and what it does in the world to places like China, Cuba, Iran, Soviet Russia, among others is absolutely rubbish.
Cheers
Greg Galante
Hamilton
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