Reading Kishore Mahbubani's article, The Case Against the West, I got the exact impression I was expecting from such a title. The first sentence immediately claims that "there is a fundamental flaw" in the West's strategic thinking. He then goes on to say that the West constantly assumes that it is the final solution to any and every problem the world may face, when in fact it is apparently a "major source of these problems".
While I do agree with claim that the West immediately considers itself as almost a messiah to all other cultures, that it's the one and only true way of being, the West isn't completely at fault. It's not as if all the world's troubles are because of the west - that's just absurd. In another paragraph, he begins talking about the war waged on Iraq, adding a cheeky sentence that in essence implies that George W. Bush and Tony Blair in reality did have malevolent intentions regarding Iraq, without any evidence for this accusation. Not to say that the Iraq war is completely just and absolutely necessary, but it's definitely not something plotted wickedly in a dark corner of a cellar.
Another thing that I agree with in Mahbubani's article is that in the US, politicians are very wary to mention any Palestinian support at all, preferring to either keep hushed about it or boldly proclaim support for Israel. I personally am not involved nor informed enough to have my own opinion over the situation, though the "pro-Israel stranglehold" on Congress remains something that I believe needs to be addressed properly.
The information about the NPT & UN violations are yet more things that I find myself in accordance with. I can understand how someone would be incredulous when told about what the US has violated, yet still viewing itself as the global police force - it doesn't jive at all. To cut to the chase, I do agree with some points Mahbubani brings up. However, his contempt and disdain held towards the West/the US discredits him in my eyes.
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