In this Year of our Lord 2002, much of the world is still Hell on earth. Take a look at the Freedom House world map depicting the totally free, partially free and not free countries of the world today. Before you look though, hold this thought: "When I see the map, I will block off North America and Australia." (Click here.) Now, if you are able to remember the graphic, all the yellow countries are part of the modern, if not the Western world. Aside from them, what's left? Free world geography becomes minuscule after excising the Americas and Australia.

When translated from geography into population, about 35% of the world's 6 billion people exist in totally unfree countries such as Iraq, Iran and Saudi Arabia. Life inside Russia and other partially free countries is more tolerable but certainly not free as we know it, expect it and wrongly think that most other peoples are free too. They are not. Roughly 2/3rds of the world's people are not "free" as are the people who live in the world of Western civilization.

Freedom is the keystone in the arch of civilization. Without freedom, no other good flourishes. It is what makes civilization "civil" as opposed to barbarous, savage, repressive and ugly. The lack of freedom is that axis around which gather the evil countries of this world. Who emigrates to North Korea? Iraq? Cuba? People's footprints lead away from those countries and they always head to freedom, to the world of Western civilization. Irrespective of their politics, people living in Berkeley stay there; they do not move to a beach house in Cuba or a mountain retreat in Tibet.

A major hallmark of a free country is that a free country never goes to war against another free country. It is inconceivable that America would go to war with France; today's Japan would not attempt another Pearl Harbor. Wars are fought between free and unfree countries. And therein lies the kernel of America's foreign policy. It is simple. It is in America's and the world's interest to have every country be a free country where free means some form of self-determination as to the form of government whose leaders are freely chosen by its citizens.

It is that principle which underlies the regime change policy now being applied to Iraq. The administration believes that when Hussein and his cronies are dead and gone, that a form of free government will be installed and flourish. Iraq is a good place for this policy as it has a fairly well educated citizenry and plenty of oil to provide the lubricant for greasing the wheels of government. The expectation is that after Iraq is free, Iran and other now unfree Middle-Eastern states will also enjoy a regime change resulting from internal pressures, not the American mili-tary.

This policy is the only policy which works in every country, with people of every race, nationality and ethnic background. Critics, usually academics, carp that if this is America's policy America is going about it the wrong way. Typically they will agree that Western democratic values are more conducive to human happiness and well-being. Then comes the big "but". They prate about distinctions between good and evil being gray, not black and white. Usually these are conclusionary statements sans examples. Nevertheless, America's policy is not about good and evil or other moral distinctions. It is about freedom; freedom to choose one's form of government, freedom to choose that govern-ment's leaders, freedom to choose new leaders if the existing leaders fail. The belief is that freedom engenders an increasingly freer people who will prosper in their own unique cul-tural way.

The form of government in Great Britain is quite different from ours; yet freedom flourishes. Most Americans aren't even sure of the other forms of European governments, nor do we care as we know that they are democratic. That's enough; more than that is not available under any set of circumstances.

A second argument made is that Western values can't be imposed on a people. Sorry; that's clearly not true. We literally imposed a democratic government on Japan in 1945. It would be hard to find a more different culture from the America of 1945 than the Japan of 1945 but it still worked and, indeed, continues today. Who in Japan would return to the days of the Samurai, the Emperor and personal serfdom? Let them run for prime minister on that platform. See how many votes they earn.

When you hear the critics of America's foreign policy, ask them what they think that policy is. Few, if any, will say it is to plant the seeds of freedom in every country. You will hear he-gemony, imperialism, corporate greed, new world order; all trite buzz words for whiners who have no clue as to what is really hap-pening. But freedom is what the policy is. Obviously, all countries can't be treated the same. China, like the Soviets before, may take decades to change but it will change; it is not hypo-critical to use diplomacy with China but force with Iraq. Poli-tics, said one president, is the art of the possible. Change in China will more likely accelerate as the smaller countries surrounding it become free. To treat each country uniquely, always guided by our energizing principle, is the long-term policy of this administration. Its success will be adopted and adapted by successive administrations.

Think about it. If you disagree, to what alternative principle would you subscribe? Let freedom ring.