The Enemy of my Enemy...

Our current White House machine had this to say regarding ongoing political violence in the Middle East. I especially like this portion: "President Bush reiterated to Prime Minister Siniora the unwavering commitment of the United States to help build Lebanese democracy, and to support Lebanese independence from the encroachments of Iran and Syria," said Gordon Johndroe, a spokesman for the National Security Council at the White House ... Vice President Dick Cheney is also headed for the region. He is to meet on Saturday in Saudi Arabia with Saudi King Abdullah to discuss developments in the Middle East, So, VP Cheney is meeting with Saudi KINGS to help build Lebanese DEMOCRACY? Does he realize that democracies don't typically have dictators? In searching for objective information regarding the US-Saudi relationship, I found this. As a footnote, information regarding the publisher of the article can be found here. It is the best information I could find, given that I have limited information available (basically, Internet searches). Any better references would be appreciated. In reviewing the progression of US allies in the middle East, one quickly stumbles across things like this. Iraq was our friend for a while, and then they became our enemy. There are multiple explanations that are possible: 1. The US is stupid, and took many years to determine the true character of Saddam. 2. Saddam has changed from the benevolent leader we supported to the maniacal killer we know today. 3. The Enemy of my Enemy is my Friend 4. The US does not care about the moral character of our allies, only in their economic/strategic potential. I fervently hope it is #3. Although it is not the panacea of moral enlightenment, it is the only option that does not smack of gross incompetence or moral ambivalence. Perhaps I give our leadership too much credit.