The US Military Knows

The US Military intelligence has finally caught up with common sense and revealed that the exaggerated threat of Saddam Hussein never had much to do with the underestimated threat of Al Qaeda. And although the military operation in Afghanistan was widely supported, the one in Iraq was not. And that is due to the perceived threat of the Taleban. An organisation that took over a nation in political turmoil after it was created mostly by the cold war if not the CIA to oppose the Russian invasion. Al Qaeda claims to be inresponse to the American occupation of Islamic Holy Lands, and the attacks the alliance of the Saudi elite and the US Government unreflected democratically in that country. Pakistan moved away from military rule when given the democratic option. At least that means it can evolve albeit fairly slowly from the status of the oppressed to that of the free. "Free" meaning that part of the world that pays its taxes, supports a huge military and is agressive to everyone else except one or two "allies".

Another way of looking at the twentieth century is seeing American dominance as a beneign hegemony over its own fragmented empire. A Federal State with 50 client states many with national sized economies has augmented the most in terms of debt and militarised economy in human history. But now the rest of the world sees it as a hungry beast. One that must be fed ahead of everyone else. This is not hatred of Americans or anything like that. The poor will always look at the rich with some antipathy, but wealth is a choice, or in fact a series of choices. How can you be the wealthiest and yet the most in debt? If "communism" is such a failure as Regan promised, why is China just as successful as India?

That is what makes democracy so smart. It is like evolution, if it improves things, those in power get more power. If things get worse, they are on thin ice. In theory.

Probably exactly the opposite has become true due to the distortions in the social order imposed by the weight of American debt, how the lack of investment in basic needs for progress rather than paranoia has become an American trait - why America is very likely to actually go for John McCain. The dream ticket is evident for the Democrats, democracy will win through. In the end though it seems that the choice of VP will make all the difference no matter who runs for the White House.