With Friends Like These...

One of the reasons given for the war in Iraq was to remove Saddam because he was an evil dictator. The details of the US's support of Saddam during the Cold War are old news, but what get less attention is the fact that the US has been and continues to be openly allied with several authoritarian governments.

1) Hosni Mubarak, Egypt

Interesting Facts:

-Has ruled by Emergency Law for 25 years

-Average US Foreign Aid per year: $2.2 billion

2) Islam Karimov, Uzbekistan

Interesting Facts:

- prefers to boil opponents alive

-torture is "institutionalized, systemtic, and rampant"

-Hosted US air base at Karshi-Khanabad until 2005

3) The government of Saudi Arabia

Interesting Facts:

-From Fredom House: "The Saudi Ministry of Education Islamic studies textbooks ... continue to promote an ideology of hatred that teaches bigotry and deplores tolerance. These texts continue to instruct students to hold a dualistic worldview in which there exist two incompatible realms – one consisting of true believers in Islam ... and the other the unbelievers – realms that can never coexist in peace. Students are being taught that Christians and Jews and other Muslims are "enemies" of the true believer... The textbooks condemn and denigrate Shiite and Sufi Muslims' beliefs and practices as heretical and call them "polytheists", command Muslims to hate Christians, Jews, polytheists and other "unbelievers", and teach that the Crusades never ended, and identify Western social service providers, media outlets, centers for academic studies, and campaigns for women's rights as part of the modern phase of the Crusades."

Full Report here

-Jews are forbidden to enter the country

-Supplies 15% of US oil

-Special roads for Non-Muslims

The only difference between the government of Saudi Arabia and the Taliban (apart from oil) is that the Taliban are open and honest about their hostility to the US.