I've been to Dubai, too. I've never said it was Heaven on Earth.
What allies does America have, who can't be made to look like dirt bags with enough opposition research?
Great point. Can't improve on that, this thread's done its job.
Or, for that matter, has anyone considered how America would look, if we applied the standards? After all, the 19 highjackers were from the Middle East, but they were living in the US. We were carelessly harboring them. If we have shut down charities, our financial institutions were involved. If we have, in fact, convicted 500 terrorist sympathizers doesn't that make us a major threat to any country that is worried about such things?
i don't think we should make our allies "look like dirt bags". but we should run our own ports, airports, and borders (without smearing our allies).
many of our allies have mixed histories.
we need to keep separate the importance of our security and the importance of not smearing our allies.