It’s more about politics than about status. The US is a violent culture.
They’d rather send military advisors to commit murder in coca-producing countries than go after the root of drug problems by paying for treatment and making sure that people aren’t trapped in hopelessness.
They think that Iran is bad, Saudi good because politicians and media are connected to Saudi oil producers, whereas Iran had the temerity to expropriate US/British oil company assets in 1979. It’s not about human rights, Saudi’s record is just as vile as Iran’s.
A war is a quick fix and a way to rally stupid people around the flag. “Grooooowk! HEROES! Grooooowk! Freedom!” Diplomacy is slow, hard, and often doesn’t have visible results to show for years.
I’m not saying all war is unjustified, but military and violence in general are often reached for as a quick fix by US officials.
Goes for internal law enforcement as well. As a recent case in NJ shows, it’s clearly better to harass people for drinking a beer on the beach, instead of living and letting live as most normal, non-theocratic countries would do. It’s about control — US governments (Fed, states, locals) know that they’re powerful, so they reach for the fist even when it’s often best to sit by and ignore victimless “crimes.” OMG, a 20-year-old girl had a beer on the beach! The world would end if that was allowed to continue! Bring out the cops! Call the Marines! Call out the WCTU!
