The US - which has been moving towards absolute unilateralism in a world which is now unipolar following the collapse of the USSR - is the biggest single threat to world peace and prosperity. With warrior George W Bush at the helm, it is now more lethal than ever before.

Perhaps we have read enough of how the US dictates and insults the international community and world bodies such as the United Nations and its various agencies including the WTO. It dictates its peculiar point of view on various matters from the protocol on the protection of the environment to international trade terms and practices, its own brand of liberal democracy and the definition of human rights.

Having promoted and enforced these protocols on others, it, at the end of the day, is amongst those who have violated the rules of the game by refusing to rectify and adopt these rules.

This had resulted in it being at loggerheads with the European Union, China and the rest of the international community from time to time. The attack on Iraq together with its Western allies and the unilateral sanctions that it imposed on various countries, which recently included Sudan, for not following its dictates are flagrant examples of this .

This is part of an arrogant display that 'might is always right' and that rules and protocols are only for others to comply. Even the prevailing all-time high deficit of its national budget and balance of payments has not been effectively managed and left for others to resolve through the international market mechanism.

However, it is the US' attempts to dictate to the world its own definition of human rights and brand of democracy and to link them with trade terms (though not always been successful) which is most disturbing and threatening.

With what has been happening in Iraq and with his knack for adopting a selective discriminatory stance against the Muslim world, Bush has stamped himself as the enemy of Islam. He is seen as the Cyclops, the one-eyed monster in the Greek mythology.

It is described as one-eyed as it would see only its own side of the story only and not that of others. Hence, it always rightly or wrongly dictates its own values and judgments for others to follow, but being a monster, it need not abide by any rules or principles. In the process, it would corrupt and destroy the whole of humanity.

The paranoia suffered by the American society as a result of Sept 11 has only helped to accentuate this situation further. Hatred and deep seated vengeance has made fear and revenge a very sellable commodity among a very substantial segment of the American society.

This so especially after Bush turned the Sept 11 incident into a 'cause celebre' against Islam. The main beneficiary of this regrettable state of affairs is no other than Bush himself as proved by his recent re-election to the office of the President of the United States.

It is therefore our hope that God would exorcise the Cyclops from our midst. Let us pray for the Almighty's guidance and that he would shower us with his love, forgiveness and compassion. With this, let us pray that we all will have a better time this year.