American governments support corrupt, autocratic regimes whose way of doing business is antithetical to our national political thought, our philosophy of life, because "the enemy of my enemy is my friend". NOT.

Realpolitick, the art of sleeping with the enemy for mutual advantage, was championed, if not invented, by Otto von Bismarck, who used it to build the German Empire of Wilhelm I out of Prussia. He was no friend of democracy either. He routinely advocated making fragile alliances based only on political advantage with the ultimate aim of establishing German hegemony in Europe. When America adopts this method, we are contaminated by its empire-building objectives. As empire is truly not part of our national character (so far), practicing realpolitick results in a fissure between who we are and how we act on the world stage.

Autocrats know instinctively that America and its ways are a threat to them. Ultimately, once their immediate problem has been disposed of with America's help, they will view America as the enemy. The true enemy. They will try to take out this way of life based on saying what you want and doing what you want and treating other people as at least potential equals.

The cognative dissonance between American belief and American policy really needs to end.

Mary Anne