Australia is arguable the USA's closest ally, yet it is a daily occurrence here to see broadcast on our media, protests against the USA, the war, etc. When George W Bush visited last year, members of our own Senate stoof and jeered him and turned their backs on him whilst he addressed our Parliament. George W Bush is regarded as a "joke-figure" in Australia ... and this is coming from a country which is a virtual 51st state of the USA. The USA is becoming more and more isolated in virtual terms. By this I mean how many Americans actually read international news, and so are actually aware of what is going on in the world around them? The USA is a contradiction as it claims to be the land of the free, yet its citizens are among the most sheltered and ignorant of world news, anywhere in the world. ---How would you know? I think it is ignorant of you to be saying about a population of which you have idea of. Frankly, there is a alot of ignorance about the US. In fact, i think it equals americans ignorance of the world. You cannot understand the US by watching our TV shows or movies. Nor can you get an idea of the US by reaading your local paper about our FP decisions. No, in order to understand the US you must engage in conversation with Americans, you must visit the US and not just the big cities. Visit the small towns and states. Take a journey through the country. Only than can you begin to understand the US. Another factor which leads to isolation is the arrogance. The latest such example is this last week Donald Rumsfeld criticising China, for spending $90 billion this year on defence (Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/china/stor...96174,00.html). This is less than a quarter of what the US spends of defence (In 2003 [prior to the commencement of the war in Iraq], the US defence budget was $417.4 billion, or 46% of the world's total annual spending on defence [Source: http://www.janes.com/defence/news/jd...504_1_n.shtml] ), so what right does the US have to dictate other nations spending? ---Agreed. It is a rather foolish thing to do. I know people will respond and say things along the lines of "but the US isn't a terror threat", but I would suggest in advance that in the past three years the USA has invaded two separate nations, and not to mention one rather large and important fact - the USA is THE ONLY nation to have ever used a nuclear weapon offensively!!! You cannot argue the facts. ---Let's see Afghanistan HARBORED the terrorists who attacked our country. What is exactly your point here? A nation doesn't have a right to attack a nation that actively supported a force that attacked them? You attack where the enemy is at and that was afghanistan. Bizarre statement on your part. As for Iraq. This was a nation ruled by a terrorist. It wasn't a good idea to invade, but seeing who it was that was overthrown, I don't think you can draw mcuh sympathy for the former government of Iraq. As for the nuclear bomb. Well, it was YOUR grandfather who would have had to gone into Japan. A Japan that was still heavily armed and willing to fight to the finish. It's real easy to criticize a decision 60 years after the fact and you not having been impacted by it all. A hypocritical as well as an ignorant statement on your part. So, after my rambling blurb (apologies), my response to the original question is, yes, the US is increasingly isolated from the rest of the world.