American Ideals Perpetuated

In a recent on one of my favorite blogsites Exporting Democracy criticism over the ways the United States exports its ideals of freedom and democracy is drawn. According to the author of this post, "It is now widely agreed that American foreign policy in Afghanistan and Iraq has failed miserably and the world is definitely not a safer place to live in. Among a rising tide of Terrorism and global anti-Americanism, it has become imperative that America re-evaluate its foreign policy and support the same ideals of democracy abroad as it does at home if it is ever to realize its dream of exporting democracy and freedom to the rest of the world. There are many reasons why American policy has met with such disaster in places like Afghanistan and Iraq. One cannot help but notice a certain double standard when it comes to American interests and the interests of other sovereign nations. Too often, the greater ideals of freedom and justice that the American nation was founded upon are set aside in the name of strategic interests and politics when it comes to foreign policy. The current situation in Afghanistan and indeed the problem of global Terrorism that America faces are in part a consequence of these double standards. While it is unthinkable that any other country might try to interfere in American politics and support a dictatorship in the United States, it is considered perfectly acceptable for the U.S to support regime change and to influence the democratic process in other countries like Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan among others."

It will be interesting to see how history records these events in the schoolbooks used to teach future generations of Americans in the classroom.