generalspeaking

Walking Quietly, Carrying that Big Stick

The world admires and detests, criticizes and praises, fears and trusts the most powerful country in the world. Isn't that the way it is, after all? When a country is capable of exerting - without lifting much of its interior-contemplating head in the process - its influence on the entire globe, for good and for ill, it is only to be expected that it cause all of those feelings, along with with suspicion and dread, and a hope for the future, combined.

When it comes to throwing its weight around, the U.S. government is never very shy about doing what comes naturally to the world's premier powerhouse. The symptoms of which can be as relatively innocuous as leaning on a neighbour to accept their singular and self-protective laws, merging their own to produce the U.S. comfort of good neighbourliness, to propping up criminal regimes abroad when it suits their agenda, to invading countries which it assumes may harbour an intent painful to the U.S. economy, or security.

On the other hand, it is the United States of America that is always up front and first in offering aid and assistance abroad where it is needed. It is invariably the U.S. that will opt into lending their authority to assist a good cause. Or to help rescue a country from the debilitating effects of a natural disaster. In fact, despite the country's deserved reputation for egregiously interfering in the autonomous decision-making of other countries, it still stands as a sign-post of collective morality.

Just as individuals have their lacks and their faults, their idiosyncratic views and values, so do countries, obviously. If the international community had a choice over which country they would prefer to have such a great influence on that of their own and the world at large, might they, as an alternate to the United States select, say, Russia, China or India instead? One mightn't think so.

The political system may too often produce politicians and governing bodies whose end product is unsettling on the world politic and the international economy, but its system of justice is second to none, its collective conscience does shine through in the final analysis and - its decision-making propensities, though often enough badly interpreted and prosecuted - the world is still a better place for its dominance.

The quintessential benevolent dictator. Plenty of faults, balanced with a generous sprinkling of positives. In fact, reflective in large part of each and every one of us as individuals. Certainly far and above in universal social value those humanity-abusing regimes of which the world has far too many. So if the world is to be impacted by the whims and prerogatives of one powerful overseer, better it be the ogre we know than the devil we don't.

The simple fact is, of all the world's nations the United States of America is by far the most persuasive. Reject their agenda at your own peril, as a state, as a member country of the United Nations. This is not only the single most powerful military in the world, but the most impressive economy as well, one whose smooth operation benefits every other country in the world; those with which it trades, and those whose existence its charitable beneficence benefits.

This is a country that exhibits toward the world the persona of a strong ally, or, in reverse; a formidable enemy. Either camp pays very close attention indeed to the mood of the day, the month or the year, emanating from that country. The social upheaval evident in its population's democratic decision-making in selecting a new government has its impact across the globe. As evidenced of late, the health of its economy and financial institutions are echoed globally.

So it's little wonder indeed that people the world over are entranced by the current presidential pre-election proceedings. Since whichever way the wind blows there, it will most certainly blast elsewhere in the world. We hope that the U.S. electorate will exercise their mandate intelligently, give themselves a government that will represent their interests fairly and intelligently.

And by extension ours as well. We want that country to be stable, well-adjusted, balanced and well run. We like the U.S. to be comfortable with itself and its place in the world, for its financial institutions to operate smoothly and predictably. On the other hand, we're utterly helpless when those same public and private systems go awry through abandonment of caution and embrace of corrupting entitlements.

In a very real sense, the American electorate adores thinking of itself and its country as the number one of everything that counts in the world. In a very real sense, it's regrettable that they remain oblivious to the deleterious impact they and their country have on the rest of the world. Mostly because Americans are so self-absorbed, so smug about themselves that they don't waste their time thinking about other countries.

Yes, we exist, but so what? Americans are so deeply immersed in their singular culture, their traditions - their values that simply outstrip those of any other nation in their estimation - there is no need to become even remotely knowledgeable about the world around them. They are sedate in their complacency, their pride in self, their disregard of what simply holds no interest for them.

In the end, all of us pay for the outcome, dearly.

Labels: Justice, Political Realities, United States

posted by Pieface @ Sunday, September 21, 2008