8pov

The world can certainly do better than this. Here's why.

Sunday, January 9

U.S. Power

First, and foremost, the united States purports to be a free and democratic union of States, comprised of elected officials and representative of the people of the country they say they defend. However, this cannot, in the present discourse, be farther from the truth.

In a political environment where the neo-conservative majority REQUIRES that the support of Presidential mandate, support for the War on Terrorism, support for the troops, and support for the downstream economic winfalls for large corporations, specifically military contractors and weapons manufacturers, how can the interests of everyday Americans be addressed by the government? Any questioning of Presidential mandate, blinded from the President himself in the form of plausible deniability on any sketchy issue and bound from pubilc scrutiny by the interests of national security, the policies, processes and procedures that drive the U.S. economy constitute a juggernaut of unbridled consumerism that threatens to destroy all in its path.

The conduct of U.S. power simply -- very simply -- ensures the supremacy of the U.S. for the forseeable future. This policy cannot endure as it requires the consumption of more than half of the non-renewable resources of the globe on a daily basis and seeks only to plunder the resources of other nations under the banner of "American interests." While the conduct of a stable government ought to ensure the continued success of the nation under its command, it cannot seek to do so at the cost of the rest of the planet; for, in the end, that nation, too, will bow to the exhaustion of all plantary resource.

The responsible conduct of a powerful nation would ensure the perpetutity of not only that nation, but all of the nations in its charge. Since, then, the U.S.A. seeks to police the world under the banner of an indiscriminate and unilateral global War on Terrorism, all nations fall under the charge of U.S. foreign policy. From the perspective of policcy makers in the annals of neo-Con Americans, all is as it ought to be. In truth, the punditry and willing ignorance of neo-Con media outlets -- not the least of which is the FOX News Channel -- is a graphic example of the illusions of grandeur held by this empowered lot. Their self-sustaining dream of a New World Order created, maintained, and forever encircling the globe under American power is not dissimilar to the dream of the fascist enemy of the 1930s and 40s.

The U.S.A. has induced the creation of enemies across the globe, thus supporting their need for the vast standing armed force that patrols this planet. The ultimate equalizer; the Atomic Bomb, the H-Bomb, the Nuclear Weapon or thermonuclear device; once controlled only by the "good guys" is now both the threat and the answer. This new War, replacing the atomic threat of the Cold War, admits of no identity of enemy. The threat is greater now than it has ever been and, keeping the pressure on "ordinary Americans" through a culture of fear, freedom must be protected at all costs.

The Hegemon cannot be trusted to look beyond its own interests. While majority of the global population languishes in poverty, while the rate of global pollution steadily increases and the biosphere begins to break down, while the march of war continues to claim the lives of innocent individuals, and while the promise of future freedom perpetually comes at the cost of present vigilance, restriction and sacrifice, those in power -- those with vast wealth and political protection -- rule with impunity.

Where has democracy fallen short of its promise? Elected statesmen do not uphold their responsibility and easily bow to special interests and personal wealth management. Elections are held infrequently and with inadequate transparency. A massive and centralized government sturcture does not admit of interest in any issue which does not threaten the stability of the national economy, national security, national policy. One person cannot make a difference any longer, a determined individual can no longer become the leader of a democratic nation without substantial financial backing (read: corporate ownership).

How, then, can the Hegemon be disarmed?

The unilateral War on Terror, while desirable in principle, must be abandoned in practice. The audacity to declare War upon a non-specific notion that may enter the mind of any individual at any moment is absurd. Essentially, Terrorism is an Orwellian "thoughtcrime." Should the foreign policy of the world's most powerful nation follow the same dystopian path?

The declaration of the use of nuclear weapons as a crime against humanity could shift the balance of power more toward the search for peaceful resolution to conflict. Whether or not such a declaration would make a "terrorist" or, more correctly, "madman" more inclined to utilise such a WMD is left to the study of human nature. It would, however, make a "President" less likely to utilise such a weapon. The effects of nuclear detonation are well documented and far-reaching. The accidental meltdown of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor had global effects. There is no telling what havoc the nuclear detontations to date have wreaked upon the natural world. One thing is for certain, whereas the burning of fossil fuels and manipulation of the environment under human influence are things that may have happened accidently by natural means, atomic fission is something purely of human 'construction.'

The global economy, refusing to bow to U.S. hegemony, could choose to exclude the U.S. from trade; much as the U.S. has blocked nations such as Cuba and North Korea. The call for these economic sanctions, in response to the unmasking of false democracy and "War Corporatism" (What Barry Says), would probably initiate the Third World War. This is only becuase the policy makers of the U.S. government are the spoil-sport, crybaby, sore losers that they are -- also reminding me of the exploits of the Third Reich. This would further show the powers-that-be in America for what they are and, hopefully, would trigger a 21st century American Revolution. The dying wish of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. could be realized as the redistribution of vast wealth could provide for all people and an new America could rise from the ashes of old Glory-hog.

Or we could skip all the fuss and bother, impeach President Bush, and start living in the now. Mend ties with the world, withdraw U.S. occupation of foreign nations, build strong co-operative ties among people -- not nations -- and look to the future with open minds to provide the answers we are all desparately looking for.

0 Comments:

Post a Comment

<< Home