From: "Eliezer S. Yudkowsky" <sentience@pobox.com>
>No, actually I think we're despised for three reasons:
>1) We're richer than anyone else; furthermore we're arrogant
>about it. Whether this is actually true doesn't matter, because
>that's the perception.
We are pretty well off. Gosh darn hard work......
>2) America uses its power to ride roughshod over the interests of
>other nations, except when we get to play hero, at which time we
>care more about image and token victories than actually getting
>the job done. I think this one *is* true.
We have made mistakes here, I say "we" loosely because I personally would not have commited us to many of these actions. I think we try to do too much most of the time, and not enough other times. I also agree we try too little too late sometimes and incorrectly use military force at times.
>3) America's foreign-policy agenda of freedom and liberty makes
>us a huge annoyance to petty and not-so-petty dictators, so
>reporters in the controlled press that write pro-American stories
>are shot.
Truer words were never spoken.
Lets not forget our little 4% of the population went to the Moon, and is soon headed out to Mars.
Brian
Member, Extropy Institute, www.extropy.org
Life Extension Foundation, www.lef.org
National Rifle Association, www.nra.org, 1.800.672.3888
Mars Society, www.marssociety.org
Ameritech Data Center Chicago, IL, Local 134 I.B.E.W