It used to be considered a virtue. Now many people seem to think its a crime to think the US is the best country on Earth. Never mind that people desperately try and get here from other countries and that our country grew big and strong because of its founding principles and the many immigrants who came here to take advantage of them. I'm sure there are many countries that suit individuals better and many countries that beat the US in certain statistics, but there is no large country that has all the advantages the US has. Bush believes in america and this is one of the things that irritates so many on the left and internationally.

I believe in the US because I study history, current events, and have talked to many people from other countries about the conditions in their home lands and why they came here. On the other hand the US is not perfect and should be willing to listen to constructive criticism from its allies, NGOs, and even the UN. That does not mean we have to abide by their comments, especially when someone has behaved as poorly as France has on Iraq issues over the last decade. It also doesn't mean we have to brag to the world or play the bully. I do not approve of many of the US's cold war tactics and believe we are paying the price of international distrust due to our any enemy of our enemy is a friend policy during the cold war.

There is nothing wrong with the US being the dominant military power because it has never misused it's power to the extent of other great powers in past history such as France, Germany, Russia, China, Japan, Rome, Persia, Axtecs etc. The closest historical analogue is Britain, and while we may not beat them in a comparison to the reigning standards of the day we are doing better currently. It has also done far more major good deeds on the world stage over the last century than any other country.

Regards,
Mark