Yeah, the us did kick it off in Iran. Then religious extremists managed to transition that to longterm despotic control of the country. Before the us overthrew the former govt, Iran wasn't exactly an unconquerable empire for a very long time though. And the us didn't learn it's lesson, having done this over and over again in south america and central america and other places. It seems like we are currently in a period of not doing this but all it takes is a new presidential whim to kick it off again, probably.

US actions don't remove the ability for their to be reliable observation that certain leaders are terrible. Kicking up hate for muslims is not a good thing long term for India. Killing your democratic enemies and cutting them up with saws in embassies is also clearly wrong. I feel completely empowered to point these things out, while being able to talk about the many problems in the US too.