Just what does "freedom" mean?

Rarely spoken of in polite society, one of the reasons for the "Freedom agenda" is that it allows the US a far greater ability to influence the selection of governments and policies in the countries targeted for "Freedom."

I won't go through all the examples, but look at the funding of Fatah against Hamas or the sending of consultants to Mexico or Venezuela or the funding of anti-government groups in Iran, or the work of the IRI in Haiti and in the former Eastern Bloc. (Or, perhaps more to the point today, Lebanon.)

Without "freedom" the US would have to manage a Mossadeq type coup to change these governments and their policies.

Also, in a representative (paliamentary) government, it is far easier to place spies and operatives in the government as the spoils of the election are spread through many parties and because of governmental turnover.

I've just been thinking about this in the wake of US pressure on Russia to democratize while negotiations over her energy policies are ongoing. Why else would Cheney be utilizing the rhetoric of "freedom?"