Obama’s Foreign affairs ideology is known as: Cultural relativism, the view that all beliefs, customs, and ethics are relative to the individual within his/her own social context. In other words, “right” and “wrong” are culture-specific; what is considered moral in one society may be considered immoral in another, and, since no universal standard of morality exists, no one has the right to judge another society’s customs
Read more: Cultural Relativism
The only thing that Obama seems to think is valid across all cultures is “Democracy” and then whatever the majority wants within the social context of their democracy is ok, because according to cultural relativism who are we to judge if what the people want is right or wrong? And he is doing the same thing in Egypt. The military in Egypt is restraining the tide of unvarnished Islam, but because Obama perceives that this is not being done via “Democratic means” of the local social context then foreign aid should be withheld! It is an insane premise and one that is undermining the international view of the U.S as being the global rational policeman.
The U.S. is holding out the possibility of restoring hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to Egypt if its Mideast ally moves toward free and fair elections, even as the U.S. remains dissatisfied with Egypt’s progress toward reinstating a democratic government.
At stake is a sizable portion of the $1.5 billion the U.S. provides to Egypt each year. Much of the aid is in military equipment, and at least a quarter-billion in cash assistance to the Egyptian government and $300 million in a loan guarantee are also now in limbo.
The State Department made clear Wednesday that the decision to freeze the aid wasn’t permanent and it could be restored if “credible progress” is made toward setting up an inclusive government in the wake of the military coup that overthrew the elected if unpopular government of President Mohammed Morsi.
In Cairo, military spokesman Col. Ahmed Mohammed Ali declined to comment on the announcement. Before the announcement, Gen. Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, the Egyptian military leader, described his country’s relations with the United States as “strategic” and founded on mutual interests. But he told the Cairo daily Al-Masry al-Youm that Egypt would not tolerate pressure, “whether through actions or hints.”
The Egyptian military set up an interim government after Morsi’s ouster, which came after massive anti-Morsi demonstrations in July. Military crackdowns against the Muslim Brotherhood and other Morsi supporters have left hundreds dead amid ongoing turmoil and soured U.S.-Egyptian relations.
The consequences of suspending aid extend beyond Egypt. The move will anger Gulf states, push Egypt to seek assistance from U.S. rivals and loosen decades of U.S.-Egyptian ties that that have been a bulwark of stability in the Middle East.
Neighbouring Israel also has indicated concern. The Israelis consider the U.S. aid to Egypt to be important support for the peace agreement between Egypt and Israel.
Cabinet Minister Gilad Erdan said Thursday that while Israel was “disturbed” by the threat of a U.S. aid cutoff, “I hope this decision by the United States will not have an effect and won’t be interpreted as something that should have an effect” on the treaty.
“The United States continues to support a democratic transition and oppose violence as a means of resolving differences within Egypt,” State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Wednesday. “We will continue to review the decisions regarding our assistance periodically and will continue to work with the interim government to help it move toward our shared goals in an atmosphere free of violence and intimidation.” . . . . .
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