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This is something that we need to have a real national debate about. If the United States is supposedly going to be in the business of "spreading freedom" around the world, then it begs the question: what does freedom mean?
Is capitalism the natural extension of freedom, or does capitalism run the risk of compromising freedom? Indeed, there are free and democratic countries around the world that are capitalist, but there are just as many socialist countries that are considered free and democratic.
What about minority rights? The new Iraqi government seems to be forgetting about that part of the Federalist papers. The rights of ethnic, religious and sexual minorities must be protected, and yes, even people who might be lawful Saddam Hussein supporters.
What about the military? The truth is that many of our founding fathers greatly feared the United States developing a large and permanent military establishment. Some of the attendees of the Constitutional Convention even opposed creating a permanent standing army, for fear that a permanent army would only enable a would be dictator.
These are only some of the questions that need to be asked. There are many more, but I am concerned that the neoconservative definition of freedom is a twisted and perverted one, that only really benefits large business organizations, American foreign policymakers, and a few chosen interests.
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