A side-step in Cairo

DEEPA KUMAR wrote an excellent piece on Obama's Cairo speech, with one important caveat ("Looking beyond the symbolism").

Toward the end, she writes: "In short, the U.S., like all empires, has always sought to disguise its real aims behind fine-sounding phrases and goals. While Obama's speech is a step forward in that it eschews the hate-filled, Islamophobic rhetoric of the Bush regime, it does little for the real Muslims and Arabs who continue to face discrimination, harassment, rendition, torture, war and occupation."

As Kumar makes clear, Obama's rhetoric is intended to restore the credibility of U.S. imperialism at home and abroad in the wake of the disastrous policies of his predecessor--disastrous in terms of the interests of U.S. imperialism. We do not share these goals.

In what way, therefore, is attempting to hoodwink the public with liberal-sounding rhetoric to justify imperialist policy a "step forward"?
Paul D'Amato, Chicago