By Edward Lozansky Forget about claims that “America is back — we’re at the head of the table once again.” Not only does this statement sound pathetic in the face of our country’s long list of internal and external problems, […]
By Edward Lozansky
Forget about claims that “America is back — we’re at the head of the table once again.” Not only does this statement sound pathetic in the face of our country’s long list of internal and external problems, but it is also dangerous, since it drives us further along the path of other failed empires from the Romans to Soviets, who made similar claims. It is time to accept the reality that the brief era of US unipolar world domination is over and act accordingly with a sober realization that the world’s table is round, not rectangular with one boss at the top.
Stop using force, or other overt and covert actions, to promote democracy around the world. Americans who indeed adhere to western values do not claim that they are superior to those of the people of other nations. Those who do are violating the same values that they are trying to impose. Bombs, sanctions, and regime change operations have contributed to devastation and misery for tens of millions of people around the world, while at the same time inflicting huge human, material, and moral damage on America itself.
Transform NATO into IATO – the International Anti-Terrorist Organization. IATO should consist of well-armed international rapid response forces ready to liquidate terrorist threats in any part of the world. With its present expansionist mood and insatiable financial appetites, NATO is a problem for, rather than solution to, the world’s security.
America can lead in certain areas but must do it by example rather than force. Money saved from America’s futile attempts to be a world hegemon should be used for both domestic social and infrastructure development, and for working with other nations on resolving crises in global health, the environment, and shortages of food, water, and energy resources.
It is obvious that the nation’s security has found itself in a much worse situation than it was before the collapse of USSR. Isn’t it time, at long last, to rethink a failed, three decades-long establishment consensus on foreign policy?
