Disrespectful distance

Well, that was fast. Just one day after Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said she had personally asked Turkey to refrain from violating the territorial integrity of northern Iraq, the Turks sent planes and helicopter gunships to attack Kurdish positions just outside of Iraq. On Sunday, the Associated Press reports, Turkey's choppers penetrated three miles into Iraqi territory and artillery shelled Kurdish positions inside Iraq. Is that respect, or what? The image of the United States abroad has fallen so far, even Turkey is willing to make our diplomats look bad. In just a few presidents, we have gone from a foreign policy that promoted human rights to one built on falsehoods and misunderstandings. We all know who is to blame for that.