Commentary: A Cure For Double Standards

Whomever this general is, he should run for President. His idea -- that the American public should be used as guinea pigs for certain new crowd control weapons -- is ingenious and could be expanded to include all types of things, like torture and weapons, generally. This, of course, may sound like a very harsh idea, but right now probably the greatest challenge Americans face in the world is this image problem, this foreigner's view that we perceive ourselves to be better than everyone else and are willing to kill thousands of their countrymen to save the lives of our own. As the people in other countries usually are, those -- and there are millions -- that hold such thoughts are wrong and simply fear freedom and democracy; however, just because they are wrong isn't making us any safer or our values any more appealing. But just imagine if we started "torturing" our own populous or bombing civilian areas in America in search of ever-elusive criminals -- neither terrorist nor European could ever complain of a U.S. double standard; and then, as they look at our superior way of life and love of liberty and democracy, they won't be blinded by our actions overseas and will embrace us as the world's policeman.