Floundering America.

The U.S. has been afflicted with intellectual and moral midgets to run our foreign policy.

If you think of America's foreign policy since the time of Bill Clinton, it’s been all about military intervention, a sick obsession with regime change, and connivance.^[1]

We cry crocodile tears about supposed Russian meddling in our elections but won’t admit to the $5B we invested in bringing down an elected Ukrainian government, or to our determination to destroy Libya, or to the reality of our unconstitutional and illegal war on Syria with its enormous expense and civilian and military (Syrian) deaths approaching, if not exceeding, 500,000. Military bases, military interference, control, and regime change are our stock in trade. The Russians interfered in our elections? Seriously?

Accept what I just wrote, if you will, as a rough, incomplete description of America's record. Now contrast the diplomatic, military, and economic activities of China, Russia and various and sundry national groupings seen in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the Asian World Bank, and others. Elijah Magnier is a very perceptive analyst and I commend the article of his^[2] in the note below. Though I think it is accurate and reliable, I think it’s worth looking at to make a rough comparison between

• the U.S. approach to foreign policy – neocon military invention anywhere and everywhere with asinine and truly cringeworthy proclamations of American "exceptionalism" and hogwash about the world’s hunger for “American leadership” – and
• the steady, relentless expansion of relationships both economic and military, remorselessly not involving the U.S., organized by mature, realistic men.

If Mr. Magnier’s analysis strikes you as sorta kinda accurate, it ought to be very unsettling to you indeed.

Donald Trump electrified voters by re-injecting the idea of “America First,” all the more startling for the idea’s startling contrast with the “Foreigners First” approach of many previous administrations stunningly demonstrated by the Flâneur-in-Chief, a recent – so help me God – occupant of the Oval Office.

If Trump's hoping to set America back on a firmer foundation without the mania to kill or control foreigners he's got his work cut out for him. The withdrawal from Syria he's spoke of recently would be a good start, however long overdue.

How in the world did we stray so far from the simple idea of taking care of business at home as the first priority of any human or nation? Of late, we've had troops killed in Niger and Syria and killed hundreds of Russians in Syria. Not 10 Americans can explain why. All to the tune of $32,000,000 per HOUR.

Notes
^[1] " Will America Accept Its Defeat or Challenge the Bear and the Dragon? Part 2: The Middle East." By Elijah J. Magnier, Russia Insider, 4/2/18 (credit for graphic).
^[2] "Will America Accept Its Defeat or Challenge the Bear and the Dragon? PART 3: ASIA." By Elijah J. Magnier, Russia Insider, 4/4/18.