Wikileaks Reveals U.S. Government’s Delusional Foreign Policy
by Ron Paul
We may never know the whole story behind the recent publication of sensitive U.S. government documents by the Wikileaks organization, but we certainly can draw some important conclusions from the reaction of so many in government and media.
At its core, the Wikileaks controversy serves as a diversion from the real issue of what our foreign policy should be. But the mainstream media, along with neoconservatives from both political parties, insist on asking the wrong question. When presented with embarrassing disclosures about U.S. spying and meddling, the policy that requires so much spying and meddling is not questioned. Instead, the media focus on how so much sensitive information could have been leaked, or how authorities might prosecute the publishers of such information.
No one questions the status quo or suggests a wholesale rethinking of our foreign policy. No one suggests that the White House or the State Department should be embarrassed that the U.S. engages in spying and meddling. The only embarrassment is that it was made public. This allows ordinary people to actually know and talk about what the government does. But state secrecy is anathema to a free society. Why exactly should Americans be prevented from knowing what their government is doing in their name?
In a free society, we are supposed to know the truth. In a society where truth becomes treason, however, we are in big trouble. The truth is that our foreign spying, meddling, and outright military intervention in the post-World War II era has made us less secure, not more. And we have lost countless lives and spent trillions of dollars for our trouble. Too often “official” government lies have provided justification for endless, illegal wars and hundreds of thousands of resulting deaths and casualties.
Take the recent hostilities in Korea as only one example. More than fifty years after the end of the Korean War, American taxpayers continue to spend billions for the U.S. military to defend a modern and wealthy South Korea. The continued presence of the U.S. military places American lives between the two factions. The U.S. presence only serves to prolong the conflict, further drain our empty treasury, and place our military at risk.
The neoconservative ethos, steeped in the teaching of Leo Strauss, cannot abide an America where individuals simply pursue their own happy, peaceful, prosperous lives. It cannot abide an America where society centers around family, religion, or civic and social institutions rather than an all powerful central state. There is always an enemy to slay, whether communist or terrorist. In the neoconservative vision, a constant state of alarm must be fostered among the people to keep them focused on something greater than themselves — namely their great protector, the state. This is why the neoconservative reaction to the Wikileaks revelations is so predictable: “See, we told you the world was a dangerous place,” goes the story. They claim we must prosecute — or even assassinate — those responsible for publishing the leaks. And we must redouble our efforts to police the world by spying and meddling better, with no more leaks.
We should view the Wikileaks controversy in the larger context of American foreign policy. Rather than worry about the disclosure of embarrassing secrets, we should focus on our delusional foreign policy. We are kidding ourselves when we believe spying, intrigue, and outright military intervention can maintain our international status as a superpower while our domestic economy crumbles in an orgy of debt and monetary debasement.
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Glad someone is talking about what I have been thinking. Wish we could get the media to talk about this.
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Ron Paul is not only Assange’s only hope but everthing democratic, just & humanitarian in the world.
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Well spoken Ron. I hope for your country, that they listen and learn.
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Wait.. is this THE Ron Paul talking? never thought I’d agree with him on anything, but I stand corrected. Wikileaks will go away once the world media starts opening their eyes and doing their job i.e. digging, publishing, and critically reporting on the empires and secret societies that are crushing this fair planet of ours. It’s a global issue – or rather, a plethora of global imperatives that every country must tackle together. yes, there will be other Wikileaks. It is only the beginning.
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Freeee traitors.
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Thank you Wikileaks for finally providing the public a foolproof way to hold governments accountable, all around the world. The secrecy that serves to separate us all will now die the death it deserves. No more will the people be victims of false propaganda used to start wars, or compartmentalized information that breed corruption. The world has been waiting a long time for this. Over a million people have joined Wikileaks Facebook page, in common support for the truth. And many more will join this effort.
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Well said. I thought I was a staunch democrat, but I thoroughly agree with you here.
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Ron Paul lost my support.
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The US public and politicians worldwide condemn this, of course they do.
The rest of the world thinks it’s fascinating and hillarious, of course they do.
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It doesn’t matter what the US does now, it’s just a bunch of irrelevant peasants trapped by stupidity and owned by China. An army so shit it can’t move 5 metres without costing a billion dollars and raping a hundred people. Politicians so corrupt as to make the mafia blush. Now even the bridges, roads, and schools are crumbling.
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I ask myself what governmet think they will achive if they will remove Assange?
Tomorrwo will come someone else who will show us the filty things which government do and what they hide from us. The truth always come out no mather how they try to hide it. Just don’t understand people who support governmet with removing Assange from earth. He is not the problem, problem is people who make this drty things, who made therorism and who earn money from it.
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if the government succeeds in ‘removing’ Assange, it will merely go to re-inforce what the leaks are showing. That the government is becoming unaccountable for its actions.
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As individual and as society, we possess the intellect to see the path of cowardice, privacy, and ignorance is not the one given us by the Omnipotent, Omnipresent, and Omniscient to follow for our well being and security. Support courage, public access, and sharing of knowledge, they continue to be under attack.
»crosslinked«
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Last week it was TSA, this week it’s Wikileaks. Anything to keep us distracted from the common denominator- our useless government.
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TOo bad the tea party is too retarded to copy your stance on America. Even though I disagree with you on certain social issues and maybe even on Korea. I would support you and would give a thumbs up to you only. Until “they” corrupt you too like the yhave with Obama and the rest of the puppets in the government.
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I promise to do everything I individually can to get Dr. Paul nominated. Although I wish that Dr. Paul would run as an independent if he doesn’t get the republican nomination in 2012. You sir are an amazing human being with true integrity, you have no idea how much your constituency appreciates your actions.
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Wish Ron Paul was Canadian, you are so lucky to have a politician who has not been corrupted, one who has such a level head and peaceful approach. He really is for the people and I hope to see him as your president. I don’t think you would find a finer leader, more honest or real. Take care of him and best of luck!!
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Some people says that wikileaks are the most lies. Please people open your mind. If taht was lies, than why they search him and some want’s to kill him? The most are the truth and everyone can see that. Just need a lot of time and search the net, aftzer that connect the ends and you find it, almost all is the truth. Now I know that Zeitgeist is not a lie.
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In the world of politics, Ron Paul gives me sanity. Ron Paul for 2012
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RON PAUL FOR THE PEOPLE!
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Ron Paul. The only true statesman left in America..
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i loved every word! Mr. Paul deserves a lot of respect, unlike the government of his country! Lots of love to each American who thinks in this “clean” way!
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Any government that has to hide so much of what it does that it wants to have a man killed for releasing this collection of lies and half truths.American Imperialism has been exposed and the government doesn’t like it,except for RON.Way to go.
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Ron Paul for president. I think right now that is our only hope. We can still turn this country around if we could get him elected president. He is the only honest, sane, courageous politician out there. I am awed by his guts but there is also shrewd political judgment behind his statement. The establishment is outraged because Assange is tweaking their noses. They forget that the people may not feel the same way. In a recent poll, 82% of Australians agreed with Assange that he was getting screwed by the Australian government. 82%! The Australian government quickly backpedaled and decided that maybe Assange was welcome home after all. Most people do not like establishment politicians. Assange may be a villain to the political establishment, but he is a hero to most of the people. Dr. Paul has recognized this. I hope Dr. Paul will run for president in 2012.
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America, from across the pond in the UK, we need you now more than ever to recognise that we need Libertarians like Ron to be the voice of you, a true patriot.
Only then when the ordinary populace of the worlds superpower recognises the monster of the elites in the shadows pulling strings of all government policies, which only sicken and anger the world at large.
They have bankrupted us all, and here we are in 2010, our children to be born into debt with an ever increasing ‘bare necessities’ maintenance bill to ensure us rats work the treadmills till our graves paying off an un-payable ever-growing debt, so we further continue to feed the machine.
That’s pretty much Communism in practice with merely more material daily requirements to exist to distract us, all nice and shiny distractions.
Why nobody ever ask why we pay for our electricity, when technologies of Tesla proven we can all be self sufficient?
Why nobody ask why?
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I wonder if more republicans are going to start supporting Wikileaks like Ron is doing. It will make our current leaders look bad.
If this happened during Bush’s presidency, then he would have already declared war on Wikileaks and the rest of the internet.
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You know something Ron? – right about now, you may be the only American politician or public figure making any sense.
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Sent 12/5/10 to the CEOs of Amazon, EBay and PayPal:
I am appalled by the withdrawal of support of Wikileak (Julian Assange) by Amazon, EBay and Paypal.
Here we have an individual courageous enough to do what no one else has in the history of our planet – certainly not a CEO of any international corporation.
Assange has stood up to provide transparency and thus accountability with respect to corporate, governmental and military behavior at a level greater than we have ever known in the history of humanity.
This is a GOOD thing for life on Earth. Only those involved in malfeasance and/or wrapped in fear or the illusion that what the corporate, governmental or military worlds say is count-on-able would view otherwise.
So what is it that Amazon, EBay and Paypal have to hide, I wonder?
We need corporations such as these to demonstrate vision and courage to stand up in support of what improves us at individual, organizational and systems levels – as uncomfortable as it may seem in the beginning. Otherwise, we’ll never clean house of the very corruption, dysfunctionality and outright dishonesty responsible for today’s unprecedented global malaise.
If Amazon, EBay and Paypal are not willing to do this, then I’ll not do business with them, rather do everything I can to encourage a boycott on the part of others.
Time to wake up and stand up here, INCLUDING those in our own government who lack the decency and huevos to do what is right – all the way to the top, if need be!
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Such a shame his views on civil liberties are so limited
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How in in the love of god are his views on civil liberties limited???
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Ron. I haven”t voting rights in USA, rather in two other countries. But how can it be, that you disapeared so quick from candidates list in president elections. Interesting. It was been soon after biocybernetical measurements of all candidates. And your biosystem wasn”t been worst in that time.
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I never thought the day would come when I would be saying this to a Republican ” Your country Sir needs you 2012 ”
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Why the hell did we not elect you President?
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Ron, I think you have shaved off from the understanding that it is “illegal” to put out this information. Now, I can agree with you that we do need to have less secrets in the government, however, it is not necessry to have absolutely every little thing said and known be made known to every man, woman and child. If certain items are “classified” or “top secret” then there needs to be a law that is implemented to make those things known. “don’t blame wikileaks…”??? I blame Julian Ass…whatever for making information, that was deemed confidential, known to the public without regard for what this information might do. Let’s have more information, less secrets, but let’s do it the right way, the legal way. I am not opposed to the US limiting our military occupation around the world, but I am for the US being a moral country that is able to lead, and promote freedom around the world. And yes, doing so legally.
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problem is the government just marks everything ‘secret’, ‘top secret’ and ‘classified’.
case in point, the ‘terrorists’ locked up in G-bay. Sure some of them are really bad people, and no in general i don’t want them to be roaming around.
However you must remember, if you give the government the power to arbitrarily take away anyone’s rights without due process of court (and due process is evidence presented and challenged, not government saying ‘the evidence is classified’), then one day when they come after YOU, who will be protecting your rights?
And its not that you haven’t done anything ‘wrong’.
Black people hadn’t done anything ‘wrong’ either, they were just born black, and laws existed to exclude them.
Japanese Americans did not do anything (the Japanese imperial navy did) in WWII, but they were interned.
Now all American Muslims too are ‘evil’.
Next it will be Chinese Americans.
And when the drug war comes across the border it will be Mexican Americans that the government can arrest and detain without trial.
Where does it stop? When the ‘war’ ends?
Newsflash, there will NEVER be an ‘end’ to this ‘war on terror’. It is the only way government can justify its extension of civil liberties erosion.
your 4th amendment is gone at the airport (not to mention your car in your driveway too).
your 1st amendment is likely to go too if they get to get an internet kill switch/ censor and/or succeed against wikileaks.
10th amendment due process rights are already gone if you’ve been labeled a ‘terrorist’.
do you ‘feel’ safer? hey if I lock you up in solitary confinement in a prison you should feel 100% safe. no terrorist or criminal can attack you there.
Lastly, stop blaming Julian Assange and find out the facts. The 250,000 cables being touted have NOT all been released. Only about 680 were released, many were redacted by the NYT and Guardian newspapers with input from the US authorities. If wikileaks had leaked current operational and tactical military plans by all means I would say they should be prosecuted.
But towing the party line of ‘transparency is bad’ is NOT in our interests.
I’m sure Nixon would have listed Watergate as ‘top secret’ if he could. Should we have arrested the reporters who reported on that?
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Being a pretty left wing liberal, I never thought I’d agree with Ron Paul. But I agree whole-heartedly on this topic.
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sounds very honest to me
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Sir, i salute you.
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