Northern Californian psychiatrist Carol S. Wolman writes: Imagine how the US must look from other countries! We are bogged down in Iraq and Afghanistan, and being driven out. If the point of the Iraq invasion was to use their oil, it is a failure, as sabotage has actually lowered the output of Iraqi oil.

We are unable to enforce our will abroad, despite having a military that is more powerful than the next 20 countries combined.

Our long time allies are turning against us. Russia is aligning with Syria and Iran, so that nuking one of those countries could easily lead to all out nuclear war.

We have lost control of Latin America, which is, country by country, freeing itself from the grip of the IMF, NAFTA, and the other US-controlled financial institutions that have kept them in deep debt for so long.

Domestically, we are in the grip of a dictator and don't know how to get rid of him.

Our middle class is disappearing ... we are unable to take care of our own disaster victims in Louisiana. Hugo Chavez of Venezuela is giving charity oil to our freezing poor.

Although we are supposedly the richest country, our health care and education systems are poor. We have the highest percentage of people incarcerated in the world. Our voting system has been gutted by Diebold.

Our politicians are awash in corruption.

Our pResident shamelessly declares that he is above the law, and no one does anything about it.

Psalm 44: 14-15:
You made us the reproach of our neighbors,
the mockery and the scorn of those around us.
You made us a byword among the nations,
a laughingstock among the peoples.

• Carol S. Wolman, MD is a psychiatrist in Northern California. A lifelong peace activist, she has written extensively on the psychology of our times. She is actively working to impeach Bush and Cheney.

The US is a laughingstock