THE United States of America has cracked us up with lots of lectures about democracy, freedom, equality, human rights and other brilliant slogans.

The US says it wants to consolidate all these ideals in countries that it claims to be lacking in them. The US claim is to put into practice these ideals in accordance with its own standards, precisely the American standards. However, the export versions of these ideals drastically differ from the versions for its internal use.

It was under this pretext that the US interfered in the affairs of many countries, toppled some of the regimes and replaced others. It destroyed some countries while people of other countries were totally worn out as a result of the American interference. The US invented the so-called Arab Spring with the lie of introducing democracy to the people. Just ponder on what happened afterward.

Let’s examine the latest example of surprises and wonders thrown out by the US. It invaded and destroyed Afghanistan after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States under the pretext of eradicating the Al-Qaeda network, which was sponsored by the Taliban government. It toppled the Taliban, classified it as a terrorist organization, arrested a large number of its cadres and put them in the Guantanamo Bay prison. It also promised the Afghan people salvation from a primitive and barbaric government that took them back to the pre-modern era.

America brought in presidents and governments and became the patron of Afghanistan -- or its occupier. All these were in the name of ridding the country of terrorism and endowing it with democracy. The Afghan people breathed some fresh air from the breezes of freedom and hoped for more. But America, all of a sudden, turned the tables and betrayed them by deciding to quickly leave Afghanistan and give the country back to the Taliban.

Even so America, which has done this and much more, does not hesitate to give lectures on the need to improve foreign regimes so as to keep pace with the people’s need for democracy, freedom and human rights. Is there a double standard tougher than this, and is there a lie worse than this?