It's incredible to think that one powerful nation, guided by a megalomaniac Administration, could cause so much damage in the world.

And no, I'm not talking about France.

Watching the crackdown in Pakistan on CNN yesterday evening at the Y, I was struck by the crisis in foreign policy that arose out of the US reaction to 9/11.

We went to war in Afghanistan against the Taliban, killing many civilians in the process. The Taliban is back and growing more mighty.

We were particularly cozy with General Musharraf , our Pakistani ally, so that we could go after Osama Bin Laden. Bin Laden is in hiding, and some commentators argue that his group is also getting stronger.

Turkey and the Iraqi Kurds. No one is sure what will happen if the Kurds kill more guards in Turkey. It may be the relative affluence of the Kurds and the Turks that averts all out war.

And, of course, there is the endless fighting in Iraq.

To say that he couldn't have known what he was doing doesn't excuse him-or us. It will be a long time before other nations come to us for advice on democracy.