I am always confused by the mindset that we have to pick the best, worst government/country and align with it. I also don't understand the obsession with foreign nations' media because we're rarely, if ever exposed to it. Instead, we repeat verbatim rhetoric that distracts us from domestic issues.

You and I can say anything we want (unless you have a mass following that could sway public opinion) because we aren't influential. The US government punishes numerous reporters and whistleblowers. Edward Snowden, Julian Assange, Reality Winner, and journalists like Chris Hedges, who contested Iraq's WMD, don't feel free to speak.

It's not odd that none of the news sources question politicians' war campaigns, and there are no dissenting voices. I guess our government is never wrong, and their remarks don't deserve scrutiny.

The point of the essay isn't about us, our media, or our thoughts about our country's democracy. The world, aside from North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and South Korea is aligning to escape US foreign policy because it knows something we don't.

The world is shifting away from the US, and this isn't my opinion. It's ditching the USD and defying the rules-based order, which isn't international law. Nations aren't concerned with Russia's and China's domestic problems - they don't impact them, but US foreign policy has.

We are witnessing a global transition, yet we're too busy pointing at Russia and China to notice.