Reply #84: I know that this may a hard thing to conceive

[MrScorpio]

But altruism IS NOT a central pillar in US foreign policy.

It never has been.

If it was ever manifested as such, it was a side effect of this country's pursuit of it's own self interests.

With every thing you mentioned, as with others, we always demand something else in return.

In many a case, the price for the beneficiaries of our largess was a high one to pay.