The world according to Bush, George junior that is, has changed in the last 12 months.

Yesterday's White House pariahs are today, allies of the Americans.

Those that were condemned for condoning human rights abuses are now welcomed as partners in the war on terrorism.

And the few that have stuck it out with the Americans through thick and thin are seeing their relationships wane.

Yes, the world according to Bush is becoming a new order built on the outrage from the unprecedented 9/11 attacks.

Russia, Pakistan, Malaysia, Uzbekistan, China, Yemen and, of course, Afghanistan which were all subject to heavy U.S. criticism for their lack of democracy or their abuse of human rights have now improved relations with the Americans in the wake of Osama bin Ladens trail of destruction.

Russian'ss regime in Chechnya is hardly mentioned these days, President Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan, who a year ago was regarded in Washington as an unsavory dictator is now a close ally while China's crackdown on the Falun Gong, involvement in Tibet and threats against Taiwan get little mainstream media play.

The revolving door of American international politics continues in Southeast Asia with Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore and Malaysia having been recruited in the war against terrorism.

Malaysia's Dr Mahathir Mohamad who was chided and ridiculed by the Americans for using the repressive Internal Security Act to stop political dissent, was welcomed by Bush in an unabashed show of friendship.

Singapore's free trade pact with the U.S. is now on the fast track after the island republic's willingness to allow the Americans a base in a region called 'a breeding ground for terror'.

Both Philippines and Indonesia have been given millions of dollars in aid post Sept 11 as they joined the U.S. anti-terrorism rhetoric.

On the other hand, Canada's relationship with the Bush administration has been steadily taking on a smell akin to the expired yogurt in the back of your refrigerator.

In a rarely seen burst of testosterone by a Canadian prime minister, Jean Chretien blamed America and the western world for much of today's problems. Despite Chretien's spin doctors insisting he said no such thing, the inference by Ottawa was clear--it was not just going to join any war the Americans decide to start.

Germany's Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder is another case for the waning side. Last September, he joined a pro-American demonstration by 200,000 people in Berlin and this September he has made opposition to the Bush administration a central message of his re-election campaign.

While America makes new friends and conveniently forgets their historical and contemporary wrongs, a frightening spectre is growing.

Countries and their leaders not known for the democratic values are using the power and cash of the U.S. to suppress what to many are legitimate political struggles.

The most recent case involves Jose Maria Sison, the long standing leader of the Communist Party of the Philippines.

Here we have a rebel who has been around for more than two decades and who is viewed by millions of Filipinos worldwide as a champion for their cause against a 'corrupt' Manila.

Two weeks ago as the world's attention once again turned to Ground Zero in New York, Sison, who is in exile in the Netherlands, was declared a terrorist. His affiliated organizations and assets have been frozen.

In China, the Muslim minority in Xinjiang, who were once described by the U.S. State Department as victims of discrimination and abuse, are now also terrorists.

As America prepares for war against Iraq by building fresh relationships it is doing little to advance the democratic values with it's new friends.

Preoccupied with a single focus of toppling Iraq's Saddam Hussein, Bush is coming precariously close to once again making the mistakes of helping regimes, that have the potential to come back and haunt the United States.

He seems to have forgotten that Osama bin Laden was once an American ally in Russian-occupied Afghanistan.

He does not mention the fact that during the 1980s, when Iraq was at war with Iran, the United States supplied Saddam with supplies and military hardware, including shipments of "bacteria/fungi/protozoa" that can be turned into biological agents.

Both Saddam and bin Laden have turned out to be American-made Frankensteins who have caused much grief.

There have also been others.

The world has to realize that when Bush turns yesterday's enemies into today's friends, he may also be making tomorrow's terrorist.