Hi clo,
"I did find it ironic when he said we are equal by God, yet denies equal rights for Gays! ;))"
Yes. He is a hypocrite. But even so, it is worth listening to what he is saying. And to take advantage of the opportunity to look in the mirror.
The idea that the US is raised above other countries because it pronounces itself "exceptional" is stuff and nonsense - and worse.
The good news about being non-exceptional, about accepting the common human condition, about permitting one's self to be ordinary. You are not exceptionally bad either.
The times we remember with greatest admiration are when leaders have adopted the brotherhood of mankind approach. That is why Alexander was Great. He conquered and then he instituted a sense of homonoia (equality) in his empire. This was why the greatest period of Islam was under caliph Harun al Raschid, when Bagdhad was known as the City of Peace and he fostered the sense of the umma (brotherhood) through the Moslem crescent. In the era of Charlemagne, though it was the middle of the medieval period, mansions were constructed without fortification because he made peace throughout Europe and became the emperor of Rome rather than the Frankish conqueror.
For the US, I would suggest the post WW2 period - the era of the Marshall plan - fits this ideal the best.
Putin is making the point that Obama should be making. We ought to strive to be equal and equally respectful of one another, as sovereign nations. International law applies to everyone. Even the mightiest of the mighty.
That vision seems to be lacking. And yet creating a fabric of peace and sovereign equality and international law is something towards which we should all aim.
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