I was brought up with a mighty sense of fair-play. In elementary school we got “citizen” grades, and being a “good citizen” was, in my young mind, as important as getting good marks in the various acedemic subjects that were taught. We were encouraged to excell in team sports, but we were taught to accept defeat gracefully. In other words, “It’s not whether you win or lose; it’s how you play the game.” This is in direct opposition to General Patton’s admonition to win (at least, it appeared in his rhetoric) at any cost.
For a long time there was another superpower to balance us: the Soviet Union. We spent much of our time, national treasure, and lives balancing them. We kept each other in check. The USSR tried to put nuclear missiles in Cuba and we resolved that in our favour. We went to Vietnam (with other countries, of course) and the Communists won the day. We built relationships with South American dictators, and the Soviets built relations in Africa. I’m glossing over a lot, but I think you can see my point.
Then the USSR crumbled. We were left alone as the superpower. To touch on “Being an imperial power, however, is more than being the most powerful nation or just the most hated one”, it is a fact that the U.S. is geographically distanced from most other nations. In Europe the countries are smaller and closer together, have different languages, and had a history of wars with each other. Over the centuries many of their disagreements have been sorted out. Others have not. But being in such close proximity with each other, I think that they’ve learned to cooperate more-or-less civilly.
And then there’s the United States. We’re comparatively isolated. We entered WWI in 1917 and the war was over in 1918. We joined WWII in 1941, after the German regime had been battling since 1938. While it took four more years, America’s industrial might and isolation from the aggressive nations that protected her from most direct attacks ensured the Allied victory. Americans came to believe that we won the wars. Certainly we were among the victors, and certainly we contributed much to the victory. So Americans tend to think “we saved the world.”
Cut to the Cold War. The USSR could have overrun Europe, had it not been for the threat of American retaliation. I think it was necessary for us to be a superpower, in order to counter the Soviets. We “saved the world for Democracy”.
So we have attitude. We look at our mostly-Christian country and the values of fair-play we were taught as children, and we say, “There is a difference between right and wrong. We know what’s right, so we must educate the rest of the world as to what is right and fair.” We see how Japan treats us unfairly in their markets. We see how Europeans are loth to join us in “educating” other nations. We don’t understand why people nations in the Middle-East hate us. And yet we engage in unfair trade practices. We don’t take the time to explore other people’s points of view. We don’t take the time to work out our differences with other peoples.
Americans want peace. We want people to like us. We want to be comfortable. Being a Capitalist nation, we feel it is our right to buy what we want. So people in other countries get exploited? Well, they can pull themselves up by their bootstraps just like we did! Why should we worry that people in other countries don’t get enough to eat? It’s their problem.
And other countries see that as an arrogant attitude. We interfere in their internal problems (in our own self-interest) and that makes them dislike us. Some people retaliate with violence, which makes us more resolute, which leads to more violence. Some people (not I) think that the WTC attacks were justified because it was the only way they could fight back against this country that was interfering in their affairs. While I don’t agree, it did get our attention.
I don’t think we started out trying to become an empire. I think that without really noticing it, we have come to empire step by step. And now that we are an empire, we seem to be becoming more imperial in response to those who don’t like us being an empire. It’s a vicious circle.
What can we do about it? Well, we can accept our role. Or we can examine ourselves and our values and step back. Remembering that Americans tend to take the easiest path, which path is easier? We don’t want to “kill Muslims”. We want the violence to stop. And we’ll kill to stop the violence! (Aside: I once talked to an anti-abortion rights protester who said he would kill to save a life.)
This is what I think we want: We want people to stop killing each other. We want to have all the oil we can burn. We want to sit on our buts and watch TV. We want plenty to eat. We want people to like us. We want people to buy our products. We want peace on our terms. We want instant gratification.
What we don’t want is people telling us what to do. A lot of people do things they know is wrong just to show people who tell them not to do it that they can. We don’t want people messing with our friends. Israel is our friend, and there are some people that would like to see its destruction.
So I think we sort-of bumbled into Empire, and now that we’re here we don’t exactly know how to handle it. Should we be an empire? There are advantages and disadvantages. The advantages include often getting our own way. The disadvantages include other people not getting their own way.
How do we proceed? First, we – every American citizen – must come to understand that we are citizens of the planet. We need to change our ways of doing things so that we are environmentally responsible, even if it means some pain on our part. We need to assist other countries to become good environmental citizens. This will be costly, but by helping to improve standards of living, people will feel less exploited.
Concurrently, we need to understand that we are only one nation in a world of nations. A fundementalist Christian may not agree with a fundamentalist Muslim, but they both exist and have a right to exist. Different cultures must respect one another even if they don’t agree. So it is with other nations. “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.” “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.” If you don’t like your neighbour’s house, you don’t go over and remodel it. You accept that your neighbours have different tastes. In return, your neighbours accept your house.
In short, we should take the initiative to extend the olive branch. We should say, “I don’t agree with you, but let’s work things out.”
But what about Iraq? Sadam is a madman. I believe that he believes that if he has NBC weapons, the U.S. will back down. The U.S. believes that NBC weapons in his hands are a Very Bad Thing. How do we neutralize Sadam? President Bush & Co. have decided that a direct confronttion is the only solution. I think that such an action should not be taken unilatterally. If we are an empire, we should try to be a benevolent one. This means that we need to convince other nations that our path is correct. We also need to accept that other nations may not agree. Do we, then, go off on our own? I don’t think so. We need to work together.
But this doesn’t answer how we should deal with Sadam. We may very well have to initiate military action. But I think this should be a last resort, and not one of the first options. I think there is still time for diplomacy. I read on Drudge yesterday that other Arab nations may ask Sadam to step down in order to prevent a war. Will he? Probably not. But I think Sadam is more concerned with his own life and wealth than he is with his country. Let’s give diplomacy a chance – spearheaded by other nations, especially Arab ones. We can obliterate Iraq. We can kill the whole world if we want to. But I don’t think that’s a very good first option.
Disclaimer:
I’ve taken a couple of breaks while writing this. I know I’ve lost the thread in a couple of places, but I think this is a very complex issue. Also, I think I’m better in give-and-take conversations than in stating an absolute position. My beliefs are subject to change based on new information. So I’ll try to put my position simply: I think that the U.S. should strive to get along with other nations, assist them and their peoples when possible, promote international understanding, and take the lead in environmental matters.
And now, let the ripping-apart begin…
