It Ain't Just Mubarak -- 7 of the Worst Dictators the U.S. Is Backing to the Hilt

[Better Believe It]

It Ain't Just Mubarak -- 7 of the Worst Dictators the U.S. Is Backing to the Hilt
From Saudi Arabia to Uzbekistan to Chad, the U.S. keeps some very bad autocrats in power.
By Joshua Holland
February 5, 2011

Embattled Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, whose regime has received billions in U.S. aid, has been in the global media spotlight of late. He's long been “our bastard,” but he's not alone.

Let's take a look at the other dictators from around the planet who are fortunate enough to be on Uncle Sam's good side.

1. Paul Biya, Cameroon

2. Gurbanguly Berdymuhammedov (or Berdymukhamedov), Turkmenistan

3. Teodoro Obiang Nguema, Equatorial Guinea

4. Idriss Deby, Chad

5. Islam Karimov, Uzbekistan

6. Meles Zenawi, Ethiopia

7. King Abdullah Bin Abdul-Aziz, Saudi Arabia



There you have it -- a grand collection of bastards, yes. But remember: they're our bastards!

Read the full article presenting the facts on these dictatorial regimes at:

http://www.alternet.org/world/149805/it_ain%27t_just_mubarak_--_7_of_the_worst_dictators_the_u.s._is_backing_to_the_hilt/?page=entire

[tekisui]

1. knr. Expect more blowback in the future.

[indepat]

6. Blowback can be such a nettlesome

bitch: it can be like getting bit in the ass. ;)

[FLAprogressive]

2. K&R

[Fearless]

3. The photo is photoshopped and offensive.

[provis99]

7. two men kissing is offensive?

[Fearless]

25. Using the photo to demean Bush is offensive yes.

Gay isn't a weapon. Gay is who we are.

[walldude]

9. The fuck it is. That photo is REAL

I saw it happen live.

I hope you think it's offensive because of who's in the picture...

[Fearless]

26. It isn't real. The tradition is kisses on the cheeks not on the lips.

This is the real photo; he's going for the cheek. Using gay themes as a way to bash anyone is wrong.

[Better Believe It]

13. How do you know if it's photoshopped and why is it offensive to you?

[Fearless]

27. Why is it there?

There are thousands of other photos of him with Saudi's. I find that offensive. Gay is not a weapon to hate people with, to make fun of people with, or any such thing intentional or otherwise.

Futhermore this is the real, undoctored photo:



Notice the difference? Note the photographic double up in the gap between their bodies. You can even see the photo lines where the two come together. Also, note that he is going for the cheek in the real photo, which is the traditional greeting, not the lips. Additionally close speaking is traditional, as the smell of another's breath is an important sign of welcome and friendship. It could be that as well.

[Smashcut]

36. I'm looking at it and I'm telling you it's photoshopped.

A) The real photo has been posted
B) Look at the "seam" in the picture below their faces
C) Look at the border of the lips against Bush

Clearly the two parts of the original were pushed together to make it look like they're French kissing in an effort to conjure the "ick" factor.

BBI, I love your posts but this should have been left out. It's offensive.

[Catherina]

14. No. Not a photoshop, quite real. n/t

[Fearless]

28. No, actually it IS; here is the real one...

That one was a sloppy merge-job using this photo. It is fake. Arab custom has men greet each other by kissing on the cheek not on the lips. I find it offensive because the OP chose this picture over all others to "catch Bush in an embarrassing situation" or something along those lines, as if it is scandalous if he actually were to kiss him, which it is not, but he also is not as aforementioned.

[markpkessinger]

23. It is a customary Arab greeting among men

[Fearless]

29. Kisses on the cheek are, not lips and the photo is doctored, the original is below...

[originalpckelly]

33. Yeah, it's pretty clear that it's a photoshop...

but I don't really think they're homophobic, I think that they're just trying to imply in this circumstance a closeness between Bush and the King.

[Fearless]

34. It is possible

However, unintentional or intentional IMHO it can only hurt gay people if you think of the clientele who would find the photo amusing or funny and it perpetuates negative feelings toward gays.

[Kurovski]

37. I knew it was a photoshop and a bad one.

it looks like the magic-marker black moustache is crawling up Bush's nose.

it's terrible all around. And so is our relationship to the Saudi's, particularly the Bush cabal.

[Smashcut]

35. Agreed. Homophobic

[Cleita]

4. It's our terrible foreign policy that has been in place for

at least fifty years and probably longer. We need to change it. If Hillary isn't willing then maybe Obama needs to replace her and have a change of heart as well.

[Angry Dragon]

10. The problem is that Hillary does not set foreign policy

The President sets foreign policy
so if you want it to change
you better talk to him..........

[Better Believe It]

12. She agees with President Obama's policy and implements it.

She's the Secretary of State for christ's sake, not a low level diplomat!

[chimpymustgo]

16. Nonsensical. The buck stops at one desk. Hint: it's in the Oval Office.

[Better Believe It]

20. Yes, but don't give Clinton a pass on this!

[chimpymustgo]

24. I SUSPECT she is like-minded, but can't know for sure, because she IMPLEMENTS Obama's policies.

And that's the bottom line.

[sufrommich]

30. Are you serious? Do you think Hillary is some kind of rogue

element in the government. You know, they all get together at a big table and form a consensus,then Obama OK's the plan or nixes it.

[LynneSin]

5. I don't think we're backing Saudi Arabia, I think they are backing us

They have alot of our debt that either we be nice to them or they start trying to collect on what we owe them.

[Initech]

8. Prince Alalweed controls many of our corporate entities, including News Corp and Citibank

I've developed a serious loathing for that man. I hope the people of Saudi Arabia rise up and kick them out like they're doing in Egypt. Then we might finally be free.

[RandomThoughts]

11. That is the exacty wrong thought.

If they are 'your bastards' then you are a bastard.


Here is the thing, the word bastard has multiple meanings. People don't understand the purpose of that. It has the macro meaning of bad, because of status quo groups that want to define what is what. Basically the whole concept of bastard ignores many concepts people don't know.

Although I agree with the concept of loving relationships that are together relations, within those that think of noble lines, bastards occur to get the family lines out of the influence of being raised by corrupt spoiled family members.

That is the story of man in the iron mask, and the story of Aragon, and the story of Count of Monte Crico, King Arthur story, and many others.


So first people don't understand the term bastard, and second they think that people raised in spoiled environments have something, when those exact environments led them to thoughts that lost their inheritance.

Although it is not about blood lines, it is about spirit, that is not about birth lines, but many people think on that, causing many spoiling.

Bastard in most thoughts is bad, in reality it has multiple meanings, because most of the time the bastards are actually the people that remain in a spoiled environment, while the legitimate are outside of that where they can learn virtue with regular people they may some day be charged to care for.


Although I don't believe in noble lines most people don't understand that, so bastard has two completely different meanings and the label trap of it is by lack of understanding.

Why did Bush 43 have so many problems? Because he was raised in a spoiled environment, very sad. And decisions from that learning made him illegitimate.

So people have to learn the concepts not the label Bastard.

[Better Believe It]

15. They are fucking bastards!

:)

[treestar]

17. Let's send the troops to each country with a dictator and force them into democracy!

The irony is hilarious.

We are backing them to the hilt? So they'd fall if not for us? We really do run the entire world. How evil of us not to install Democracies everywhere!

So then why weren't we all supporting Bush? Saddam Hussein was a dictator, was he not? Why did we oppose the war then?

[ohheckyeah]

18. How about we just quit supporting them.

No need to go to the opposite extreme.

[hfojvt]

19. only 7?

I'd have thought there were more.

Does China count?

I guess we are not sending them aid as much as trade.

[Better Believe It]

21. And who is the bloodthirsty dictator in China?

Who is the ruthless dictator, Hu?

I don't think he is in the same league with Mubarak and company.

He is not Mao or Stalin.

[sufrommich]

31. "I don't think he is in the same league with Mubarak and company."

You can't be serious.

Maybe you should read up on human rights in China.

From Wiki:
China executes more people each year than the rest of the world combined.<78> According to the United Nations Secretary-General, between 1994 and 1999 China was ranked seventh in executions per capita, behind Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Belarus, Sierra Leone, Kyrgyzstan, and Jordan.<79> Amnesty International claims that real figures are much higher than official ones, stating that in China the statistics are considered State secrets.

Amnesty International reports that, in recent years, China has had the highest number of executions of any country.

[markpkessinger]

22. Exactly, which is why . . .

Which is why every time I hear some idiot utter the question, "Why do they hate us?" I have a burning desire to cane the soles of their feet!

[Fearless]

32. This is two photos mashed together... and I can prove it... and it's offensive...

Look at the gap of air between them by the Saudi's right shoulder. The car windshield was doubled up to disguise the overlap of the two photos. You can see the photo lines along the windshield running vertically between their two bodies. It's very sloppily done.

Fake photo:



Additionally it's offensive as I previously mentioned because the OP is using such a photo portraying apparent homosexuality as a negative to bash Bush and the Saudi king. Gay isn't a weapon to be used to hate someone for EVEN if it's Bush.

And finally the real photo is below.

[Kurovski]

38. That's not the real one either, but the other is still afake.

The angles are all wrong. There are more photos of the event than this one.


And the OP is great, by the way! K&R & bookmarked even.