Buddy,

While I agree free trade is good on a whole bunch of levels look at how the game is working out. We made a move to seize control of the Oil in ME and we are having a bad time trying to maintain that control (if you don’t like the wording just substitute it with your preferred terminology – put that oil up for sale in the free market). Meanwhile our foes in this grand game are making their moves with some more success. Russia is poised to control the gas pipeline through Georgia further controlling Europe’s comfort and China is moving steadily ahead securing their access meanwhile you sit back bleating about moral supremacy whilst we are powerless to change the situation. This is poor play in grand strategic game. The finer points of Iraqi history are lost on most of the world as we claim justification for violating Iraqi sovereignty similar to our scoffs of derision at Russian claims of a peacekeeping mission in Georgia. What we are witnessing is, if not a collapse of the US financial system (thus rippling around the world) then major stresses with a risk of systemic failure. Free trade is on the wane (as evidenced by the recent failure of the latest negotiations) and more and more oil is moving out of the ‘free market’. Your righteous indignation does little to mitigate the disastrous policies of the current administration. Iraq’s a peachy keen place now is it? We netted out on that did we? riiiiight…