Angered by a US State Department report report about corruption and bad human rights record in Thailand, Prime Minister Shinawatra Thaksin lashed out against the US:

'The US is fond of preaching rectitude to the world. 'But sometimes, the person who teaches never practises what he preaches,'

Many nations are irked by the so-called "arrogant" attitude of the US for acting in a condescending manner towards other smaller nations. The US has this belief that theirs is the best political and social system in the world and there is no reason why other nations should not adopt their best practices.

The US could be right. But they have to understand that changes do not happen overnight. The US is lucky that they have a chance to evolve their system over a long period of time without being harrassed by a critical world opinion. They had their opportunity to learn and make mistakes and they should not deny this right to the new developing nations. "Seek to understand before you are understood" - one of Stephen Covey's "7 habits" is the attitude that the US should adopt.