Do you really not consider yourself and family more important than most of the 7000000000+ other people on the planet? There are plenty of people more important than me, but I wouldn't sacrifice myself for any of them. In the same vein, it would be foolish for me, a US citizen, to say that my government should intentionally weaken itself for the benefit of the citizenry of other countries.
...government should intentionally weaken itself for the benefit of the citizenry of other countries.
Considering that the majority of Earth's people and natural resources lie outside the US, the long-term best move for the US is to promote global stability and equality. It's not a matter of weakness vs. strength, but short-term vs. long-term thinking.
There are plenty of people more important than me, but I wouldn't sacrifice myself for any of them.
Personally, I think humanity as a whole is pretty important. I wouldn't sacrifice myself for one other person without a really good reason, but I'm more than happy to accept a small short term decrease in local living standards in exchange for the long term stability and prosperity that would come from raising global living standards.
Specifically with regards to surveillance, the NSA is weakening the long-term position of US companies by leaving their systems and software vulnerable to known exploits, and by their actions, encouraging other countries to do the same. It's a negative sum game.
Searching all directions
with your awareness,
you find no one dearer
than yourself.
In the same way, others
are thickly dear to themselves.
So you shouldn't hurt others
if you love yourself.
