Some people are starting to sing the praises of the United States for potentially bringing democracy to the Middle East, and it will be wonderful if that happens, provided we like who is elected. But I don’t believe the rest of the world will ever treat us the same again. They have seen how the world’s only superpower has chosen to charge into sovereign nations.

On his overseas tour, our president was amusedly tolerated and then ignored as Europe now turns to China and other nations. The euro gets stronger against our weakening dollar. Our stretched-too-thin military doesn’t seem to be much threat to the countries we are lecturing.

As the superpower, we should have been leading the 190 nations to revamping and strengthening the United Nations as an engine for world law, health and sustainability – the best defense against any enemies. Instead, our record has been of threats, torture and breaking international law.

And now our president has nominated U.N.-hating John Bolton as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, throwing the latest pie in the face of the world community. Even if we win a democracy battle, we have lost the respect of world opinion. Our children will undoubtedly pay for the policies most of our citizens voted for in November.

Shirley L. Davis

Orono