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They did go through periods of instability after independence, as of course you know. There's still some going on, though much less than there once was. I don't see any reason to assume that this...

Malaysia, Indonesia, and India are hardly "newly independent".

When a nation achieves independence, or when a long-lasting dictator is removed, a power vacuum is created. Often the government...

Given the absence of any evidence or body of credible informed opinion to suggest that these events were/are consequences of US action, it's pretty clear which position involves pretense.

Good... so we can stop pretending that the Arab Spring, the Color Revolutions, and/or Vietnam or ASEAN's position re China are/were made in the USA?

They were known, they just weren't publicly admitted. this is not at all uncommon.



Assisting a spontaneous rebellion and initiating a rebellion are entirely different things.



Possibly...

This is getting silly.

Of course there are times when governments do things and deny them. Often the denials don't hold up for long: there's informed speculation, then leaks, then evidence. In...

Official denials don't make a thing secret. The US denied that it was aiding the Contras in Nicaragua, but the subject was still widely discussed and reported.



What "universal truth" would...

Yes, we all know about US support for the Afghan resistance to Soviet occupation. It was not exactly secret at the time. What I don't see is how you jump from there to the assumption that the Arab...

I certainly wouldn't accuse the US of purity; I just don't think they have the capacity to generate revolutions on demand.

RCJ made this comment:



and it's true to some extent, It's...

Of course it's nothing out of the ordinary. The sanctions and verbal support coming from the US and Europe are also nothing out of the ordinary. Given Syria's close relationship with Iran, we can...

To outside observers, yes, but outside observers aren't the ones who rebel.



Maybe because they aren't allowed to talk? Any time you deal with a group as large as "Muslim women" or "the...

The people living under the regime, of course. Who else would have an opinion that means anything?



"The Chinese"? Obviously they don't all think the same thing. Some feel the regime is...

Rebellion against tyranny and foreign occupation is as old as tyranny and foreign occupation, which is pretty old. Certainly rebellion against tyranny and foreign occupation dates back to well...

Again this looks like a topic for another thread, but...

I think the impact of foreign influence on domestic rebellion is being vastly overrated here. Rebellions against strong governments that...

Indonesia had its share of issues with foreign influence during the Cold War.

Like many in the Middle East, Indonesians are willing to cheer and support AQ's fight against foreign intervention in...

Do you really think these changes occur because they are promoted by some global leader? Did the Americans in 1776 or the French in 1848 need a global leader to tell them they wanted to be rid of...

I don't think I'd call that a model that we established, more a balance that evolved... the other guys also played a major role in establishing it. It's gone now, and a new balance is still...

I wouldn't make assumptions about sectarian conflict in the Philippines based on observations in the Middle East and South Asia, very different environment, very different conflict. The US presence...

I would also say that nations here are calling their own shots, and that they are not really aligning with the US or moving into a US camp, rather they are managing their relations across a spectrum...

Given the state of the Philippine Navy, I doubt that the Chinese are shaking in their boots... but the show must go on, and it will. Expect more push-and-shove around the edges, but not much more...

Ray,

Again, I think you're trying to push events in the Philippines into a China-dominated paradigm where they really don't belong... the situation between the Philippines and China is only one...

For once I agree completely with JMA... will wonders never cease. Speaking multiple languages and living among the people gives a perspective that living in an expat enclave or other restricted area...

Is concern a function of ethnicity or a function of assessment of threat relative to other concerns? I doubt there's a uniform level of concern even among Indians... some would be very concerned,...

And yet you tell me with great confidence, from India, that:



On what basis do you make this assessment?



Possibly a minor point, but the first time he was elected pretty much nobody...

It'll be 33 years in September, minus a few spent elsewhere. Not exactly a short time. In my observation there is no "local psyche and mindset". There are many, sometimes overlapping, sometimes...