Ms. Kamala Harris is trying to convince Asia that the USA is a “global leader” and that her country “takes this role seriously“:
http://www.naharnet.com/stories/en/283414-u-s-vp-harris-vows-enduring-engagement-in-asia
Her words sound beautiful, even when they seem less convincing or… empty.
Indeed, the reality on the ground seems to be completely the opposite, especially as per the images from Kabul or stories from the Middle-East.
Perhaps China and/or other players are becoming more dominant globally?
Surely and sadly, Islamism (political Islam) is on the rise too.
It would not be surprising to even see ISIS (Al Qaida)-like forces becoming stronger again, not just the Taliban in Afghanistan. Such forces (historically backed by Saudi Arabia) may get into (a classical) competition with the other Islamist forces in the region (backed by Iran). Who knows? Some countries may perhaps be backing these two sides of the same coin of fundamentalism at the same time.
Although Bambi may be wrong, Islamist forces may find their legitimacy in their shared hate for Israel (in their competition with the Jewish religious counterpart over Jerusalem, which everyone calls “holy” ). How can you solve a deep conflict if it has an ideological component to it? How did the Europeans end their religious wars? What can we learn from them? Will the endless cycle of violence (in large part in the name of religion) ever stop in the Middle East? When will we see “resistances” (to occupations, actual or former ones) not calling themselves a religious-based name (e.g., Hezbollah means the party of God)?
Anyhow, in and beyond the Middle East, Bambi is afraid that the dictators of our world will become more authoritarian and the religious extremists even more radical. All this while the USA (+ Canada and, by extension, the Western world) is as weak as ever because it is being divided into tribes, obsessed with race/racism (i.e., wokism) or by other identity-based modern forms of sectarianism. In contrast, as the most cynical among us would say that, the Taliban (as awful as they are for women!) are historically and notoriously efficient at defending their land/ interests… regardless of the occupier.
