Positioning itself as the "beacon of democracy" and labelling its adversaries as anti-democratic has been a long-standing practice of Washington.
BEIJING, June 30 (Xinhua) -- One of George Orwell's most famous works, "Animal Farm," was first published in 1945. Orwell died in 1950, at the beginning of the Cold War, unaware that a few years later, an animated film adaptation of the novel would significantly alter his story to serve as a tool for Washington's anti-communist propaganda.
Following Orwell's death, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) persuaded his widow to sell the rights to the novel and funded the production of the above-mentioned film that drastically changed the plot to align with American "universal values."
The CIA-funded film adaptation of "Animal Farm" premiered in 1954, spreading the anti-communist message of "democracy vs. totalitarianism" under the guise of universal values. This covert manipulation was not exposed until 1974, revealing the extent of U.S. efforts to propagate its ideology.
Seventy years later, Washington continues its manipulative tactics.
FALSE NARRATIVE
At the opening ceremony of the so-called third "Summit for Democracy" in March, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken claimed that "this is a turning point for our world toward greater freedom, greater dignity, and greater democracy."
Positioning itself as the "beacon of democracy" and labelling its adversaries as anti-democratic has been a long-standing practice of Washington.
In his classic work "Propaganda Technique in the World War," published in 1927, Harold Lasswell pointed out that experienced political leaders know that "more can be won by illusion than coercion."
Over the past two centuries, significant American political figures have described the United States as the "empire of liberty," the "city upon a hill," the "last best hope on earth," the "leader of the free world," and the "indispensable nation," among other titles. The concept of "American exceptionalism" has been deeply embedded in America's political discourse.
Take the 19th-century Monroe Doctrine, which contrasted the "republican, democratic" Americas with the "autocratic, decaying" old Europe to control Latin America as an example. During the Cold War, "democracy" became a core tenet of U.S. foreign policy used to rally other nations against the Soviet Union and the socialist bloc.
More recently, Washington has been framing the narrative of "democracy vs. authoritarianism" to label certain countries as "authoritarian" and cobbling together a so-called "democratic alliance."
Many expressions of "American exceptionalism" assume that American values, political systems, and history are unique and universally worthy of reverence, which implies that the United States is destined to play a role as a moral leader on the world stage.
Nevertheless, as Stephen Walt, a columnist at Foreign Policy and the Robert and Renee Belfer professor of international relations at Harvard University, has pointed out, the only thing wrong with this self-congratulatory portrait of America's global role is its primarily mythical nature.
It was during the early Cold War that U.S. political elites of that time were more candid in their discussions about their actual views on democracy than their successors now.
John Dulles, secretary of state under U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower's administration and a Republican, once told former French President Charles de Gaulle: "In every society a minority always dominated. The question was how to do it. If the minority affronted the majority, it lost influence. If discretely exercised ... the minority influence could be effective and desirable."
Dean Acheson, secretary of state under U.S. President Harry Truman's administration and a Democrat, had an even sharper view of democracy. He once said, "You all start with the premise that democracy is some good. I don't think it's worth a damn ... People say, 'If the Congress were more representative of the people it would be better.' I say the Congress is too damn representative. It's just as stupid as the people are; just as uneducated, just as dumb, just as selfish."
DIVISIVE AGENDA
Under the guise of democracy, Washington engages in interference, subversion, and aggression, severely undermining global stability and development. The instrumentalization and weaponization of democracy contradict the spirit of democracy itself.
Moreover, Washington has never truly adhered to democratic principles in international relations, often using the cloak of democracy to create divisions and provoke confrontations, fully exposing its hypocrisy and double standards.
After the escalation of the Ukraine crisis in February 2022, the United States has repeatedly promoted the claim that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO's) eastward expansion is the "defense of Western democracy against Russian authoritarianism."
In reality, after the end of the Cold War, Russia once leaned towards the West, adopting radical reforms for a Western-style economy and even seeking to join NATO.
However, the United States, aiming to maintain NATO's existence after the Cold War and ensure its continued control over Europe, was not interested in turning Russia from a foe into a friend. Instead, it continued to view Russia as a potential threat and increased its geopolitical encirclement.
Washington not only pushed for NATO's continuous eastward expansion, bringing the military alliance's borders closer to Russian territory, but also orchestrated "color revolutions" in neighboring countries, using the narrative of "democracy" to sow discord between Russia and its neighbors.
The specific tactics employed by the United States include funding non-governmental organizations, fostering pro-American sentiments, penetrating target countries, cultivating pro-American leadership, supporting opposition movements, exploiting systemic shortcomings, influencing the media to highlight political corruption, and creating negative perceptions of these countries' political systems.
Following the "color revolutions" in 2004 and 2014, the relationship between Ukraine and Russia deteriorated further, eventually leading to armed conflicts.
After the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, John Mearsheimer, a political science professor at the University of Chicago, pointed out that "the United States is principally responsible for causing the Ukraine crisis."
"My key point, however, is that the United States has pushed forward policies toward Ukraine that (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and his colleagues see as an existential threat to their country -- a point they have made repeatedly for many years," wrote Mearsheimer in an article entitled "The Causes and Consequences of the Ukraine War."
"The taproot of the crisis is the American-led effort to make Ukraine a Western bulwark on Russia's borders. That strategy has three prongs: integrating Ukraine into the EU, turning Ukraine into a pro-Western liberal democracy and most importantly, incorporating Ukraine into NATO," he wrote.
By organizing the "Summit for Democracy," planning NATO's expansion into Asia, and promoting "decoupling and supply chain disruption," Washington, under the false narrative of "democracy versus authoritarianism," seeks to divide the world along ideological lines.
今年春节假期琼州海峡客滚运输量较去年大幅增长 中新网广州2月19日电 (郭军 喻志专 赵卓)据交通运输部珠江航务管理局(简称“珠航局”)消息：2024年春节假期期间(2月10日至17日，正月初一至初八)，琼州海峡省际客滚 春节初一至初七逾130万人次访港 内地游客占近九成 中新网2月18日电 据香港《文汇报》报道，据香港特区政府入境处统计，今年年初一至年初七(2月10日至16日)共录得逾130万人次旅客访港，接近2019年春节的水平(140万人 共建“一带一路”倡议提出十年来，从亚欧大陆扩展至全球，为许多人带去了更好的发展机遇。与此同时，在某些西方媒体的宣传中，“债务陷阱”等阴谋论字眼却甚嚣尘上。中国日报起底工作室针对这一说法 2023年澳门旅客总消费同比增近三倍 中新社澳门2月22日电 澳门特区政府统计暨普查局22日公布，在入境旅客人次同比上升近4倍的带动下，2023年全年澳门旅客总消费(不包括博彩)比2022年增加近3倍，至712.5亿元(澳门元， 自然资源部：22个省级国土空间规划已获批准实施 中新社北京2月22日电 (记者 庞无忌)中国正加速推进各级国土空间规划编制实施。 中国自然资源部22日透露，截至目前，所有省级和新疆生产建设兵团国土空间规划均已 印度等不及了！当地制药商开始仿制“减肥神药” 财联社2月22日讯(编辑 夏军雄)为了从新型减肥药市场分一杯羹，印度制药商已经开始开发他们自己版本的“减肥神药”。 作为新一代减肥药物，诺和诺德的Wegovy和礼来 。本文链接：Reinvestigation: The false narrative of "U.S. Democracy"http://www.sushuapos.com/show-5-20305-0.html
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