Americans Aren't Interested in the World's Problems

I think at some point we have to start to worry about running out of resources and protecting what we have left for our children and their children.

If the 3rd world wants to breed like cockroaches... that's their business, and they will pay the price in famine, starvation and overpopulation, but DON'T let them come here and use up our remaining resources that we should be protecting for the use of our children and grandchildren.

Oh there are just a few futilities that come to mind. What was the purpose of the prolonged nation building commitments in Iraq and Afghanistan and the huge material and human sacrifices that went with it?

Obama's failure to negotiate a SOFA in Iraq negated the blood and treasure we sacrificed to win the war. Instead, we lost the peace. The world is a far better place with Saddam and his two sons gone. We should have taken him out during the Gulf War. I drove through and flew over the "mile of death" and the burning oil fields of Kuwait.

We went into Afghanistan to get OBL and remove the people who harbored him--the Taliban. Mission creep led to nation building. We should have just concentrated on our national security interests. Still, if we leave Afghanistan entirely, then the Taliban in Pakistan will return Afghanistan back to a safe harbor for militant Islamists. And the regime in a nuclear Pakistan is vulnerable to an Islamic fundamentalist takeover.

Ever consider that the attempt to introduce or impose Western values to these places in itself gives rise to “Islamic fundamentalism”?

I was in Iran during the fall of the Shah. The rise of Islamic fundamentalism can be traced directly to Khomeini and his defeat of the West. If you read OBL's 1996 fatwa declaring war against the US, his rationale resembles your assertion. It is nonsense. The rise of fundamentalism is a reaction to the corruption and oppression of the Middle Eastern dictators. It is far easier to blame the West and our values than it is to blame your own people.

A different course of action by the US during the Iranian Revolution would have prevented many of the problems we face today in the region. Jimmy Carter was dead wrong in what he did and we are paying the price today for his failure of leadership.

What is the purpose of the United States aiding and abetting political Islamists in in Syria?

We missed an opportunity early on to aid the nationalists in Syria to overthrown Assad. Obama's dithering allowed the foreign Islamists to flock to Syria and now we have a mess on whom to aid. The main thing we need to do now is to try to contain what is happening in Syria from spreading throughout the region.

Can or should the United States attempt to influence evolving Asian affairs far from our shores. Should not the Asians themselves work out a consensus and balance?

We have defense agreements with Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea. We have US military bases in Japan and South Korea. We are involved now. The last thing we want to do is to retreat from the region. It will lead to Japan and South Korea developing their own nuclear weapons and there will be risks of hostilities as China tries to extend its influence, witness the Chinese recent declaration of an illegal air defense zone, which not only affects the region but commercial international aviation as well. Should we accept these new air defense zones?

If wealthy South Korea cannot stand on its own, then more American treasure and sacrifice is not the answer.

South Korea provides for most of its own defense and helps subsidize the costs of maintaing the 25,000 US troops there. The war in Korea is not over, which is why we have a US presence at the DMZ. In addition to the US tripwire military presence, the US provides a nuclear umbrella for South Korea rather than having them develop their own, which could destabilize the Korean peninsula.

If nations choose downward spiraling economic socialist or quasi socialist debt producing systems, why should the American worker be expected to provide rescue capital?

I have no idea what you are talking about.

Finally just where to you recommend sending brave young Americans to die and just how is the security of the United States enhanced?

As a Vietnam veteran who spent a year in-country, I am well aware of the sacrifice we make when defending our national interests. No American should be sent in harm's way unless US national interests are involved.

My greatest fear is that the US will retreat from its global leadership role partially due to the weariness you mentioned, but also because the welfare state is forcing us to reduce our ability to project power around the globe.

We spend more on defense than the next ten or eleven countries combined. We spend trillions of our dollars so people like Germany and France and Poland don't have to. And I'm sorry, but I'm tired of it. If the rest of the world is so concerned with China and Syria and Iran then the rest of the world had better beef up their armed forces and take them on. We didn't do so well the last couple times we tried. I'm willing to sit back for a while and let someone else see if they can do better.

Sorry but you are simply not persuasive. American over extension in world affairs neither enhances the security of those area where we insert ourselves or the United States. Virtually every example you gave has been a costly failure or has no long term viabilty. You cannot impose values on a foreign culture at the point of a bayonet. Next time our leaders should send thirty thousand laptops with a good internet connection instead of thirty thousand brave young Americans. Carefully reflect. The sixty five thousand young American who have died abroad since 1965, the countless wounded, those who are permanently deranged: Just how did their sacrifice enhance the security of the US and how might it been handled differently?

Sorry but you are simply not persuasive.

I am not trying to persuade you of anything. I am just giving you my opinion based on 28 years as a foreign service officer and 8 years as a naval officer. I have lived and worked 26 years in 11 foreign countries.

You cannot impose values on a foreign culture at the point of a bayonet.

Cite one example where we have done that save for Japan after the war? And that was a resounding success.

The sixty five thousand young American who have died abroad since 1965, the countless wounded, those who are permanently deranged: Just how did their sacrifice enhance the security of the US and how might it been handled differently?

Since 1945 the US had a policy of containment for the Soviet Union and the spread of communism. The fall of the Berlin in 1989 was the culmination of those efforts that led to the downfall of the Soviet Union and the liberation of Eastern Europe. You need to include the dead and wounded in the Korean War to your totals.

And exactly what would have you done to enhance American security after 9/11? Or the invasion and takeover of Kuwait by Iraq? Or what should be done with Iran and its pursuit of a nuclear weapon? When should the US use military force?

We won the war in Vietnam and Iraq and then lost the peace. We abandoned South Vietnam including shutting off military assistance after our military forces departed. It took the North almost three years to defeat the South Vietnamese forcing millions to flee and millions more placed into reeducation camps. The Communists won. It is a sad chapter in our history. We snatched defeat again from the jaws of victory in Iraq.

Still, the elimination of Saddam Hussein was a good thing for the region. Iraq had invaded Kuwait and Iran and used WMD against the Iranians and its own people. The Israelis took out the Osirak nuclear plant in 1981 that could have led to Iraq having nuclear weapons--something that Saddam was still pursuing before we eliminated him. The Libyans. as a result, gave up their nuclear weapons development after the Gulf War.

US military losses are regrettable no matter when or where they occur. We lost over 400,000 in WWII and 50,000 in Korea. I have seen and experienced those losses during my military service. We who have served or are serving know the risks and we have had a voluntary military for almost 40 years. As bad as combat deaths are, they are exceeded in number by military training accidents, motor vehicle crashes, suicide, etc.

60 million people lost their lives in WWII, Stalin killed an estimated 20 million of his own people during his purges and gulags. Mao contributed to the death of 40 to 70 million of his people. 15,000 to 20,000 Americans are murdered each year. From 1965 we have been averaging 45,000 deaths per year due to motor vehicle accidents. So spare me the emotional argument of lives lost needlessly. Personally, I don't view the 65,000 lives lost since 1965 as being lost in vain. They died defending American interests. The only animus I have is for the politicians who failed to seek victory as an outcome. The military personnel have nothing to be ashamed about. They did their duty.

“So spare me the emotional argument of lives lost needlessly”. Those lost lives should be used as a template against which the actions they participated in and future actions are judged. Politicians who are woefully ignorant of history or local realities are too quick to commit the United States to futile interventions. There is is a reason that defeat was snatched from the jaws of victory in the cases you mention. The reality was that chances that the long term goals of the American interventions would be realized were practically nil. Our leaders would do well to study how the thinking and positions of Douglass MacArthur evolved over time and how some of his insights still pertain. MacArthur came to understand at least some of the rational of why Japan fought. Japan and most Asian intellectuals were humiliated by European dominance in the economic and political life of Asians. They abhorred the British presence in Malaysia, India, the Mideast, Hong Kong,China and Singepore. The Dutch in Indonesia , the French in Indochina and the Americans in the Philippines. They were of course nationalistic and ravenous imperialists but MacArthur came to understand this important point. Today the Chinese claim to be Asia’s leader and absolutely abhor American involvement in Asian affairs be it in Iran, Korea, Taiwan, the South China sea etc. MacArthur also understood that the vast population and political currents in Asia were beyond the capability of the US to change meaningfully. He warned against American military involvement on the Asian mainland. Now this is not to say that MacArthur’s conclusions should be the be all and end all of American foreign policy but his insights were hard earned and should not be forgotten. Also just have to wonder as you look back on your career that the America you were fighting to protect and defend as a young man would become a place where officials dump fresh water into the Pacific ocean during a drought to protect an obscure fish while farmland dries and people suffer, or if you ever thought that Detroit would resemble Hue after the Tet offensive. America has a lot of mending that will not come easy, and really should not squander its resources on futile foreign entanglements.

The reality was that chances that the long term goals of the American interventions would be realized were practically nil.

We could have had an independent South Vietnam in much the same way that we have a Republic of Korea. We intervened in Kuwait and rescued that country from Saddam. Obama got out of Iraq on the timetable established by Bush, but Obama failed to negotiate a SOFA, which could have reduced the current violence and provided the time for the country to recover from the war. And frankly, it is far to early to come to any conclusions about the impact of our "interventions" in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Our leaders would do well to study how the thinking and positions of Douglass MacArthur evolved over time and how some of his insights still pertain. MacArthur came to understand at least some of the rational of why Japan fought. Japan and most Asian intellectuals were humiliated by European dominance in the economic and political life of Asians. They abhorred the British presence in Malaysia, India, the Mideast, Hong Kong,China and Singapore. The Dutch in Indonesia , the French in Indochina and the Americans in the Philippines.

Virtually all the countries you mention have good relations with their colonial "masters." The British left behind democratic institutions and economic systems that have contributed to the stability and success of these countries. The British helped defeat the communist insurrection in Malaysia, which took 12 years.

You need to get better informed about Japan and its own imperialism. The people of the Philippines, Korea, China, Singapore don't have fond memories of the Japanese or their rationale for killing millions of them.

They were of course nationalistic and ravenous imperialists but MacArthur came to understand this important point.

And the point is? Why did Japan invade Manchuria and set up a puppet state in 1931 if they were upset about European dominance? Why did they commit the Rape of Nanking? I guess we also need to understand that the harsh treatment of the Germans at the end of WWI led to WWII. So we must understand why Hitler acted the way he did. Yeah, right. Japan and Germany were just victims. The Japanese had no other choice but to attack Pearl Harbor and the Germans were forced into attacking Poland.

MacArthur also understood that the vast population and political currents in Asia were beyond the capability of the US to change meaningfully.

But MacArthur's leadership in Japan created a modern democratic country with a constitution. I would consider that to be meaningful change. Our defense and support of Korea has led to a modern democracy and a booming economy.

Also just have to wonder as you look back on your career that the America you were fighting to protect and defend as a young man would become a place where officials dump fresh water into the Pacific ocean during a drought to protect an obscure fish while farmland dries and people suffer, or if you ever thought that Detroit would resemble Hue after the Tet offensive.

We are definitely heading in the wrong direction. While Europe is moving away from the welfare state, we are expanding it. Our immigration policies have rapidly changed the demographics of this country as we enter the era of tribal politics. America is in decline economically, culturally, militarily, and morally. We are losing our personal liberties in the name of security.

I was in Danang during the Tet Offensive, but as bad as Detroit is, it in no way resembles Hue and the carnage there.

America has a lot of mending that will not come easy, and really should not squander its resources on futile foreign entanglements.

We are a global power with global interests. That said, we will be, by necessity, less and less able to project our power abroad. We will suffer the same fate as the UK when it had to make hard choices between guns and butter. As I have indicated, butter (welfare state) wins every time because it has more constituents.

Nature abhors a vacuum. Someone else, perhaps China, will take our place. If that happens, the world will remember fondly the days when the US was the world's lone superpower--a generous, gentle giant who believed in freedom and liberty for oppressed people everywhere.

I was in Warsaw during the days of Solidarity. I can recall vividly the time when Pope John Paul II drove by our Embassy in the Pope-mobile. A crowd formed spontaneously behind the Pope shouting long live America and Ronald Reagan. Riot police attacked them with clubs sending them scattering thru the side streets. This was an act of defiance in a Communist police state. What America says or does matters to many people who look to us for support.

I lived four years in Berlin when the wall was still in place. JFK's 1963 speech still resonated with the people of Berlin almost 25 years later.

I am proud to come to this city as the guest of your distinguished Mayor, who has symbolized throughout the world the fighting spirit of West Berlin. And I am proud to visit the Federal Republic with your distinguished Chancellor who for so many years has committed Germany to democracy and freedom and progress, and to come here in the company of my fellow American, General Clay, who has been in this city during its great moments of crisis and will come again if ever needed.

Two thousand years ago the proudest boast was "civis Romanus sum." Today, in the world of freedom, the proudest boast is "Ich bin ein Berliner."

I appreciate my interpreter translating my German!

There are many people in the world who really don't understand, or say they don't, what is the great issue between the free world and the Communist world. Let them come to Berlin. There are some who say that communism is the wave of the future. Let them come to Berlin. And there are some who say in Europe and elsewhere we can work with the Communists. Let them come to Berlin. And there are even a few who say that it is true that communism is an evil system, but it permits us to make economic progress. Lass' sic nach Berlin kommen. Let them come to Berlin.

Freedom has many difficulties and democracy is not perfect, but we have never had to put a wall up to keep our people in, to prevent them from leaving us. I want to say, on behalf of my countrymen, who live many miles away on the other side of the Atlantic, who are far distant from you, that they take the greatest pride that they have been able to share with you, even from a distance, the story of the last 18 years. I know of no town, no city, that has been besieged for 18 years that still lives with the vitality and the force, and the hope and the determination of the city of West Berlin. While the wall is the most obvious and vivid demonstration of the failures of. the Communist system, for all the world to see, we take no satisfaction in it, for it is, as your Mayor has said, an offense not only against history but an offense against humanity, separating families, dividing husbands and wives and brothers and sisters, and dividing a people who wish to be joined together.

What is true of this city is true of Germany—real, lasting peace in Europe can never be assured as long as one German out of four is denied the elementary right of free men, and that is to make a free choice. In 18 years of peace and good faith, this generation of Germans has earned the right to be free, including the right to unite their families and their nation in lasting peace, with good will to all people. You live in a defended island of freedom, but your life is part of the main. So let me ask you, as I close, to lift your eyes beyond the dangers of today, to the hopes of tomorrow, beyond the freedom merely of this city of Berlin, or your country of Germany, to the advance of freedom everywhere, beyond the wall to the day of peace with justice, beyond yourselves and ourselves to all mankind.

Freedom is indivisible, and when one man is enslaved, all are not free. When all are free, then we can look forward to that day when this city will be joined as one and this country and this great Continent of Europe in a peaceful and hopeful globe. When that day finally comes, as it will, the people of West Berlin can take sober satisfaction in the fact that they were in the front lines for almost two decades.

All free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of Berlin, and, therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words "Ich bin ein Berliner!"

PS: You need to learn how to create paragraphs.

The point that is not being communicated is that the Western values of the European enlightenment (articulated so beautifully in JFK’s speech) and the bedrock inspiration of post War American foreign policy, are not always compatible with the culture and customs of the lands that Americans find themselves intervening. Afghanistan is just one example. The natives eventually resent the intrusions and view it as cultural imperialism. American soldiers should not be deployed as cultural missionaries. As a former foreign service officer, it is a bit surprising that you are not aware how bitterly most Asians resented European dominance of their political and economic lives despite the “benefits”.

You are correct that changing demographics has changed America forever and will affect foreign policy. An example is how support for Israel is declining. Post war America was largely of European descent and was very sensitive to the Holocaust and supported the founding of Israel and supported it during difficult times. Today that support is withering and the policies of Obama and Kerry, who themselves are in power due to those demographic shifts, reflect those domestic political changes.Simply put there no longer exists in the US a common social consensus that would result in broad support for US interventions of the types you historically described. America has changed and not
necessarily for the better.

The point that is not being communicated is that the Western values of the European enlightenment (articulated so beautifully in JFK’s speech) and the bedrock inspiration of post War American foreign policy, are not always compatible with the culture and customs of the lands that Americans find themselves intervening. Afghanistan is just one example.

Your condescension aside, these values are universal. Culture and customs may have some effect on how they are implemented, but the basic concepts of liberty, freedom, and individual rights are and should be embraced. The preamble of the UN Charter states, "to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small."

At the behest of Congress, the State Department prepares an annual human rights report for every country in the world. It is also worth noting that all cultures and customs are not equal, even in this age of multiculturalism that seems to require that we not place one culture above another. In reality, there are inferior cultures. For example, how can anyone accept the treatment of women in Afghanistan or countenance slavery in Sudan or the forced ritual of female circumcision in more than 30 countries in Africa and the Middle East? I can guarantee you that the women in Afghanistan do not want to return to the cultural and customs of the Taliban.

The natives eventually resent the intrusions and view it as cultural imperialism. American soldiers should not be deployed as cultural missionaries.

I find your characterizations of America to be offensive and wrong. You stated earlier that, "You cannot impose values on a foreign culture at the point of a bayonet." And now you assert that American soldiers are deployed as "cultural missionaries." What kind of country to you think we are and what kind of people do you think inhabit our military? Our military goes to extraordinary lengths to accommodate local cultures and customs and even at the risk of our own personnel, they try to minimize collateral damage. We are liberators, not oppressors or occupiers.

If America is such a cultural ogre, then why do 1.2 million legal immigrants enter annually, most of them from the Third World? There are literally billions of people that want to come to America and enjoy the benefits of that "evil culture." Many risk life and limb to get here. We have 800,000 foreign students attending our universities, including almost 45,000 from Saudi Arabia. You should see the lines at many of our consulates around the world with people applying for visas.

And the US is not alone when it comes to being a magnet for foreigners. Europe is a destination for many. They come from all cultures. Why? Because our culture (Western Civilization) is superior to theirs and offers more opportunity for the individual. Our culture and values allow people to flourish. I have been to Ethiopia, India, Bangladesh, and many other third world countries. The grinding poverty and human misery is overwhelming. There is a lack of hope and no expectation of change. These are failed cultures.

America is the shining city on the hill for most of humanity. We have nothing to apologize for. Whenever there is a major catastrophe around the globe, the US is there providing aid and assistance. We provide more foreign aid than any country in the world from both government and private sources.

We spend more on defense than the next ten or eleven countries combined. We spend trillions of our dollars so people like Germany and France and Poland don't have to. And I'm sorry, but I'm tired of it

First, one of the primary responsibilities of government as provided in the Constitution of the United States is to defend this country. Without an adequate national defense, everything else is in jeopardy.

Our defense posture is based on an assessment of the threat posed by our enemies and potential enemies. It has nothing to do with spending money so France, Germany, and Poland don't have provide for their own defense.

We have been reducing steadily our defense expenditures including reducing the number of military personnel. Our military is in a state of decline.

If the rest of the world is so concerned with China and Syria and Iran then the rest of the world had better beef up their armed forces and take them on.

We should be concerned about China, Syria, and Iran because we will be affected by what happens in those countries whether we like it or not.

Political Science - Randy Newman

No one likes us-I don’t know why
We may not be perfect, but heaven knows we try
But all around, even our old friends put us down
Let’s drop the big one and see what happens

We give them money-but are they grateful?
No, they’re spiteful and they’re hateful
They don’t respect us-so let’s surprise them
We’ll drop the big one and pulverize them

Asia’s crowded and Europe’s too old
Africa is far too hot
And Canada’s too cold
And South America stole our name
Let’s drop the big one
There’ll be no one left to blame us

We’ll save Australia
Don’t wanna hurt no kangaroo
We’ll build an All American amusement park there
They got surfin’, too

Boom goes London and boom Paris
More room for you and more room for me
And every city the whole world round
Will just be another American town
Oh, how peaceful it will be
We’ll set everybody free
You’ll wear a Japanese kimono babe
And there’ll be Italian shoes for me

They all hate us anyhow
So let’s drop the big one now
Let’s drop the big one now

Firstly, never characterized America as a “cultural ogre” or the culture as “evil”. Does your argument no good to mis characterize mine. The point is that the proactive forward interventions that you champion have largely failed and cost Americans dearly. You rightly point out that many (perhaps most) women in Afghanistan dread the return of the Taliban. Then it is up to them and their own men to reform Afghanistan from within. As said previously American soldiers can kill many Taliban, but they cannot by force change attitudes and customs. The American military cannot enforce American values on the Afghan people. Would you have them guard Afghan abortion clinics? After all the UN champions abortion and you seem to cite the UN as a moral guide.True that African and Muslim cultures have been failed political entities and cultures. Muslims flee toward the lands formerly known as Christendom and Africans, despite all the allegations of racism, seek to live with Caucasians since they know their lives will be better. No law or border will prevent a rational human being from fleeing miserable poverty and chaos toward prosperity and order.These migrations will continue until their native lands become stable and prosperous. Eventually this will happen when technological and scientific advance overwhelm and transform the failed endemic cultures. It will happen with time, not at the point of a bayonet wielded by well meaning American soldiers who’s politician masters are full of all sorts of good wishes and ideals. The soldiers end up being killed or maimed and the politicians and bureaucrats get tenure somewhere.

You celebrate “45,000 Saudis” studying in the US and imply that it is the spearhead of some sort of cultural transformation. Too bad your colleagues in the State Dept. parrot this propaganda and have failed to properly assess what really happens in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere. The House of Saud finances and allows the Wahhabi to operate openly. In return the Wahhabi for now hold their criticism of the decadence of the Saudi ruling royals. The Wahhabi in turn motivated and financed the 9/11 hijackers (15 of 19 were educated Saudi citizens)Saudi intelligence was well aware of the plot but somehow despite a huge US diplomatic presence in Saudi Arabia, the State Dept reported nothing. This is just an example of how ineffective the State Dept. has become representing, understanding foreign peoples and protecting Americans. State is staffed with “progressives” who at heart find themselves apologizing for America rather than promoting its interests. Would not be proud to be an alumnus of an organization that has performed so poorly and has John Kerry as its jet lagged gasbag narcissist leader.

You should reflect a bit more on where America now is rather than where it has been. Sure you must wow high school students on career day, but simply am not impressed with your arguments.

The point is that the proactive forward interventions that you champion have largely failed and cost Americans dearly.

The US took on the mantle of leader of the Free World in 1945. The Marshall Plan and the Truman Doctrine rebuilt Europe and created alliances like NATO to contain the spread of Communism and protect Western Europe. We oversaw the transition of Japan from a defeated, devastated country into a successful democracy and economic powerhouse.

We stopped the communist invasion of South Korea and enabled the country to set up democratic institutions and establish a vibrant economy. The Cold War ended with a spent Soviet Union that collapsed thus liberating Eastern Europe and allowing the reunification of Germany. I can name many more accomplishments of our proactive leadership. Suffice it to say that we have been spectacularly successful. Vietnam was an exception, but it was due to a lack of political will to achieve a victory over the Communists. However, the dominoes of Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia did not fall.

The US did not lead from behind until the feckless policy of Obama. He failed to take advantage of the Green Revolution in Iran and made the wrong choices in response to the Arab Spring. His reset with Russia was a disaster. His concession of not following thru on missile defense in Poland and the Czech Republic got us nothing and it hurt relations with the governments of those two countries who took an enormous risk domestically and with Russia by approving the installations. The lack of leadership will cost us far more in the future than the so-called "failed interventions."

You rightly point out that many (perhaps most) women in Afghanistan dread the return of the Taliban. Then it is up to them and their own men to reform Afghanistan from within. As said previously American soldiers can kill many Taliban, but they cannot by force change attitudes and customs.

Right now we have Afghans who are fighting alongside us an against the Taliban. They are suffering the brunt of the casualties as did the Iraqis. We are withdrawing from Afghanistan, but hopefully will leave a residual force to continue supporting the Afghans who want to keep the gains they have made. In a few months there will be elections. Among the candidates, there is one area of consensus, i.e., they want the US to stay and help them. America does not stay where it is not wanted whether it is in South Korea, Japan, or Europe.

The American military cannot enforce American values on the Afghan people. Would you have them guard Afghan abortion clinics? After all the UN champions abortion and you seem to cite the UN as a moral guide.

Now you are being silly. The American military has no interest of "enforcing" American values on anyone. I cited the UN to demonstrate the universality of the values we espouse. I am not touting the UN as a paragon of virtues, but the fact that there is widespread agreement on human rights is indicative of a global consensus.

No law or border will prevent a rational human being from fleeing miserable poverty and chaos toward prosperity and order.

If we or any nation cannot secure its border, then it is no longer a country. I don't accept the inevitability of mass illegal immigration. Countries can and have secured there borders whether it is Israel, Greece, or India.

These migrations will continue until their native lands become stable and prosperous.

Or the countries they are invading become less stable and prosperous than they countries they left. Once you get too many people in the lifeboat, everyone is lost.

Eventually this will happen when technological and scientific advance overwhelm and transform the failed endemic cultures. It will happen with time, not at the point of a bayonet wielded by well meaning American soldiers who’s politician masters are full of all sorts of good wishes and ideals. The soldiers end up being killed or maimed and the politicians and bureaucrats get tenure somewhere.

A vile and disgusting statement. Again, cite me some examples where America at the point of a bayonet tried to impose its values on others. In point of fact, it is the people we have fought against who see military force as a way to force their values on others whether it is the Nazis, Fascists, Communists, or militant Islamists. I have experienced firsthand what the Communists and the Islamists do when they achieve power.

You celebrate “45,000 Saudis” studying in the US and imply that it is the spearhead of some sort of cultural transformation. Too bad your colleagues in the State Dept. parrot this propaganda and have failed to properly assess what really happens in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere.

I lived five years in Saudi Arabia including during the Gulf War from start to finish. My point on mentioning the number of students studying here is that despite coming from a far different and more restrictive culture in many ways, they still come to the US. If our "cultural imperialism" is so hated, then why come here? The answer should be obvious.

I know what happens in Saudi Arabia much better than you do. They have been our allies and have assisted us in many ways that are not public knowledge. They are also significant trading partners when it comes to consuming American products and services. They buy military weapons from us. We have over 20,000 American civilians working there. The Saudis are the world's biggest exporter of oil and have the largest proven reserves of oil. Until we come up with a substitute for oil, the Saudis will continue to have a major impact on the global economy. It is in our strategic interests to keep the oil flowing.

The House of Saud finances and allows the Wahhabi to operate openly. In return the Wahhabi for now hold their criticism of the decadence of the Saudi ruling royals. The Wahhabi in turn motivated and financed the 9/11 hijackers (15 of 19 were educated Saudi citizens)Saudi intelligence was well aware of the plot but somehow despite a huge US diplomatic presence in Saudi Arabia, the State Dept reported nothing.

Nonsense. The Saudis were not aware of the 9/11 attack. And OBL detested the House of Saud and wanted to overthrow it. AQ has launched attacks in the Kingdom against the Royal family and others, including our consulate in Jeddah.

The Saudis are very concerned about the the threat of Iran and the problems with the Shi'a in the Eastern Province who make up about 10% of the population. If anyone thinks that removing the Royal Family would be a good thing, then they should refer to what happened after the Shah was removed. It would destabilize the region and impact the global economy adversely.

This is just an example of how ineffective the State Dept. has become representing, understanding foreign peoples and protecting Americans. State is staffed with “progressives” who at heart find themselves apologizing for America rather than promoting its interests. Would not be proud to be an alumnus of an organization that has performed so poorly and has John Kerry as its jet lagged gasbag narcissist leader.

LOL. You can attack the State Department all you want, but you don't have a clue what we do or say abroad. We never apologize for America. We leave that up to the political appointees and elected officials to do that. We have no control over who is President or who is the Secretary of State. We represent American interests only. And many Foreign Service Officers have given their lives in the service of their country.

You should reflect a bit more on where America now is rather than where it has been. Sure you must wow high school students on career day, but simply am not impressed with your arguments.

I don't have to impress you. You prefer to deal in emotion and innuendo rather than facts. As a former naval officer and foreign service officer, I found your comments to be uninformed, offensive, and insulting.

The world watches us and we watch TV

It is absolutely astonishing that you could have served in Saudi Arabia for five years and yet believe such absurdities. First and foremost this is 2014 and not 1974. There will never again be another “Arab oil embargo” You might have noticed that there are now over thirty five million people living rather comfortably on the Arabian peninsula. In 1940 there were probably less than three million . Without the sale of oil, food and technology imports, desalination and a resident force of foreign technical exports, Saudi Arabia would wither. There would be chaos. They can no more stop selling oil to buyers with hard currency than they can stop breathing. Oil would find its way to America as long as we are able to pay for it.

Post bin Laden al Qaeda has become a Saudi financed international Sunni fighting force. It takes huge amounts of money to recruit, train, deploy, equip, pay and maintain those fighters in the field. Currently they are deployed in Syria and Iraq. Why? Because the Saudis hope to create an Arabic speaking Sunni confederation that would include large parts of Iraq and Syria to oppose Iran. You might have noticed that these thugs have not been too tolerant of Christians or other minorities. By the way did you notice any Christian Churches or open congregations during your time in Saudi Arabia? Ever wonder why not?

Also if our crack foreign service officers were doing their jobs and not just issuing visas and giving out pretty pamphlets, they might have come to understand what the Wahhabi are doing and the involvement of the Saudi government.

Finally you no doubt are familiar with the recent intelligence report made available to Congress and the shock yes the absolute shock that the Congressmen expressed when the didacted sections demonstrated Saudi knowledge and inherent complicity in the 9/11 plot. Apparently Bush hit the wrong country. Wonder what the Chinese response would be if fifteen Saudi citizens hijacked four of their airliners, crashed them into Shanghai, killed three thousand of their citizens and caused $3 trillion in direct and indirect damages. Doubt they would have invaded Iraq.

It is absolutely astonishing that you could have served in Saudi Arabia for five years and yet believe such absurdities.

It is absolutely absurd that you have the arrogance to believe that you know something better than someone who has actual firsthand experience in the subject.

First and foremost this is 2014 and not 1974. There will never again be another “Arab oil embargo” You might have noticed that there are now over thirty five million people living rather comfortably on the Arabian peninsula. In 1940 there were probably less than three million . Without the sale of oil, food and technology imports, desalination and a resident force of foreign technical exports, Saudi Arabia would wither. There would be chaos. They can no more stop selling oil to buyers with hard currency than they can stop breathing. Oil would find its way to America as long as we are able to pay for it.

Oil is fungible. It is a global commodity. The Saudis sell the vast majority of their oil to countries other than the US. No one is suggesting that the Saudis would willingly stop selling their oil. If there were chaos due to the downfall of the Saudi government, there would be an interruption of the oil production for a host of domestic reasons. For how long is anyone's guess.

Post bin Laden al Qaeda has become a Saudi financed international Sunni fighting force.

BS. AQ is the archenemy of the Saudi Royal Family. I have no doubt that any arms being sent in the Syria are done with the knowledge and support of the US. The Saudis did the same thing for us in arming the Afghanistan rebels against the Soviets.

US secretly backs rebels to fight al-Qaeda in Syria-- However, the Telegraph can reveal that in late December, a delegation including US and Saudi officials met in Turkey with senior rebel leaders.

According to two sources – one whose brother was at the meeting: "They talked about the fighting with ISIS, and the Americans encouraged the commanders to attack."

By the way did you notice any Christian Churches or open congregations during your time in Saudi Arabia? Ever wonder why not?

There is no religious freedom in Saudi Arabia. There is a reason why the King has the title of "Custodian of the two Holy Mosques," which are the two holiest sites in Islam. You should read the State Department's Human Rights Report on Saudi Arabia.

Also if our crack foreign service officers were doing their jobs and not just issuing visas and giving out pretty pamphlets, they might have come to understand what the Wahhabi are doing and the involvement of the Saudi government.

You must be joking. The State Department is constantly reporting all political and economic developments in the Kingdom back to Washington along with the other intelligence agencies that have personnel in the Kingdom. You don't seem to have a clue about what our embassies do abroad. The consular function is just one of many.

Finally you no doubt are familiar with the recent intelligence report made available to Congress and the shock yes the absolute shock that the Congressmen expressed when the didacted sections demonstrated Saudi knowledge and inherent complicity in the 9/11 plot.

Didacted? I guess you mean redacted. Cite me one official source that says the Saudis were complicit in the 9/11 plot. Why would the Saudi Government want to attack the US? Are you also a truther? Was Bush complicit as well?