I agree with 90% of what you've written here, praktike. The one area in which I disagree has to do with America's role as leader of the free world. I think it's irrelevant. There are several different kinds of leadership. One kind is the one in which you figure out which way the parade is going and get out in front of it. This was Clinton's method viz. Kosovo. Another type is when you cobble together a coalition, figure out how far you can go without your coalition flying off in all directions, and stick to it regardless. That was Bush 41. Too much Realpolitik for me (and I'm a pretty Realpolitik kind of guy). The kind that I'd prefer is when you figure out what's right and what we need to do and do it. If the world follows, so much the better. If they don't, it tells you something about the world. That's the kind of presidential leadership that I wish we had. Don't you? Obviously, what we're getting now isn't good enough.