The debate in the US is the extent to which the US military should be involved in protecting the government of Iraq against ISIS. The debate should be incredibly nuanced, but, at least in public, the debate is insipid. The Christian Science Monitor has a compendium of comments made by various public officials which betrays the lack of depth in the debate. Note carefully, that none of the comments specifically identifies a concrete US national interest. The only real questions President Obama should ask are: how can, and under what conditions, will defending the Iraqi government enhance the power of the US? Are the costs of that defense commensurate with the benefits?
In response to the criminalization of homosexuality, the US cut aid to Uganda, imposed visa restrictions and canceled a regional military exercise. The US took the action because it believes that the laws violate the human rights of Ugandans. The penalties, however, represent the expression of American interpretations of human rights, to which the Ugandan government does not subscribe. The dispute is a classic example of how the process of universalizing human rights is a difficult and problematic process.
Sri Lanka endured a long civil war that ended in 2009 with serious charges against the government of war crimes. The UN has asked Sri Lanka to allowed to investigate those charges, but the Sri Lankan Parliament has refused to permit an investigation. The vote cannot prevent a UN investigation, but it will unquestionably hamper the ability of the UN to conduct a thorough investigation.
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