May 03, 2015 "Information Clearing House" - "NOC" -  It’s no secret that the U.S. is most certainly not the most loved country in the world because of its government’s long history of highly aggressive military actions, as well as its interference in the internal affairs of countless nations. But what we are seeing today is that an increasing number of nations are turning against the U.S. and taking various actions to rid themselves of its presence and influence.

In a recent article entitled, “The Decline and Fall of the United States” David Swanson pointed out that, “Latin American nations are standing up to the United States. Some have kicked out its bases and ceased sending students to the School of the Americas. People are protesting at US bases in Italy, South Korea, England, and at US embassies in the Philippines, Czech Republic, and Ukraine. German courts are hearing charges that it is illegally participating in US drone wars. Pakistani courts have indicted top CIA officials.”

The U.S. Embassy in Libya remains closed; not long ago the embassy in Yemen closed and we can expect others to follow suit in the future. Even if the U.S. is the most powerful militarily, if the nations and people of the world no longer want its presence in their countries, there is little that Washington can do anything about it. The U.S. government’s extremely aggressive military policies are making new enemies at an alarming rate.

This is just the tip of the iceberg. The Middle East is in flames from Syria to Iraq to Yemen with more and more militant factions in those countries rising up in anger and frustration after being subjected to decades of oppression by foreign powers, including the U.S. Fighting is raging in these three countries and could easily spread to Pakistan, Somalia, Afghanistan, and any number of other Middle Eastern countries. Take a bow, G.W. Bush, Dick Cheney, and Barack Obama.

Talk about a complete transformation: America, once the most respected nation in the world has now become the most feared and, according to independent international organizations who study and report on world opinion on key issues, it is viewed by a majority of the nations of the world as a great threat to world peace.

The people of the world watched as the U.S. invaded, occupied and fought bloody, prolonged wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, two relatively small counties with populations of less than 30 million; they saw how U.S. forces were held to a standstill by guerilla-style fighters in each of these countries. These rapidly growing militant groups in various Middle Eastern countries, such as ISIS and Al-Qaeda, have learned from the Taliban in Afghanistan and the Sunnis and Shiites in Iraq on how to go up against U.S. forces and prevail.

This U.S. government, former President G.W. Bush and now President Obama, have followed a policy that states that, in certain countries that are suspected of harboring terrorists, all males between 18 and (roughly) 54 years of age are presumed to be terrorist combatants “unless there is explicit intelligence posthumously proving them innocent.”

In other words, they are all guilty as charged and subject to being wiped out by drones unless they can somehow come forward and show themselves to be innocent before they are attacked. To think that these war-obsessed government officials could possibly come up with such a misguided, inhuman policy is beyond comprehension.

It’s not only these angry and oppressed nations who are turning against the U.S. In Europe, among the nations that have been a part of NATO for decades, just below the surface there is an undercurrent of growing resistance against the U.S government and its overly aggressive military agenda, which does not bode well for the future of that North Atlantic alliance, one that originally was a “defensive” organization.

There’s a saying from the Christian Bible, “Those that live by the sword shall die by the sword.” Its meaning is, of course, that those who use violence against others will find that this same violence will eventually be used against them. That’s similar to another saying, “You will reap what you have sown.” And it’s happening as we speak.

We live in a world of 7.3 billion people in some 195 countries. Most of these countries and their citizens have watched as the U.S. government has appointed itself as the “policeman of the world”, acting in the role of prosecutor, judge and jury, and determining the fate of nations that refuse to bend to its dictates. That’s no way to make friends but it’s a sure way to make many enemies.

An increasing number of countries have decided that they have had enough of this intimidation and they no longer will be controlled and dominated by the U.S. government. That’s largely why we are seeing the emergence of so-called terrorist groups such as ISIS in Iraq and Syria, the escalating growth of Al-Qaeda all over the Middle East, the Houthi in Yemen, and Al-Shabaab in Somalia.

Other evidence that nations are severing ties with the U.S. can be found in the fact that many are aligning themselves with the BRICS group, i.e., Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, the growing consortium that, as one of its key objectives, intends to establish its own currency to eventually replace the U.S. dollar in world trade.

Yemen is in the midst of great internal strife with various militant factions fighting against each other. It was only a matter of time before this country and its people reached a boiling point and erupted in anger and extreme violence after being subjected to years of non-stop drone attacks by the Obama administration. Now it is being bombed relentlessly by air attacks by Saudi Arabia, aka, the country which has now been exposed as the region’s greatest facilitator of terrorism.

Some years ago there was a famous best-selling book entitled, “How to Win Friends and Influence People” written by Dale Carnegie. Now, based on what we have seen going on in the world for quite some time, it is very evident that the leaders of America have never read that book because their policies and actions are exactly the opposite of what Carnegie advised on how to win over friends. And instead of making new friends, they are making a plethora of new enemies.

Another book the leaders of America should have read, but obviously didn’t, is “Discovering the Power of Positive Thinking” by Norman Vincent Peale.

In contrast, is seems as if the leaders of China must have read both of those books and have adopted their main principles in carrying out their objectives in the world. While all we hear about the U.S. government is war and more war, what we hear about China is positive and constructive endeavors such as the initiation of numerous projects to build infrastructure in countries in Eurasia, Central Asia and other regions of the world. They have no time for war, they are too busy winning over new friends and making lasting alliances.

Now the U.S. government can try to ignore and dismiss the fact that these many countries are turning against America but that’s the worst thing it could possibly do. Those in positions of power and responsibility would do well to understand that it’s time that to read the handwriting on the wall and act accordingly; that is, before it’s too late.

Michael Payne is an independent progressive activist. His writings deal with social, economic, political and foreign policy issues; and especially with the great dangers involved with the proliferation of perpetual war, the associated defense industry, and the massive control that Corporate America holds over this government and our election process; all which are leading this nation down the road to eventual financial ruin if the conditions are not reversed.He is a graduate of Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois and a U.S. Army veteran.