embedded in the floating world
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nmazca.blog embedded in the floating world |
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So Bush has asserted the United States' role in the world as this: "The government of this country has committed no act of malfeasance, subversion, assassination, invasion, isolation, bombardment, embargo, or act of economic or political destabilization -- or engaged in, coordinated, supplied or funded such acts -- in or against Zaire, Libya, Vietnam, El Salvador, Iran, Iraq, Yemen, Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Philippines, Lebanon, Israel, Nicaragua, Cuba, Sudan, Somalia, Turkey, Indonesia, Guatemala, Honduras, Egypt, Syria, Colombia, Panama, Chile, Nigeria or Peru..." This being the list that I came up with after a few minutes' consideration, using my lifespan on Earth as the reference. As unfortunate, harmful and lethal as the actions taken against US civilians and military personnel have been, it is untrue to say that "we ain't did nothin'." That is a gross lie. It's simple ignorance of the nature of cause and effect. And one of the things that the president, the administration (today, tomorrow or 10 years from now) will have to do -- in its effort to "do everything" -- is admit to the harm, death and pain that its actions, or those of its predecessors, have visited upon countless inhabitants of this world. There is no guarantee, of course, that such an undertaking (at its inception) would deter all those who might choose to redress their losses, to threaten a perceived enemy, or to assert their ideologies/egos through violence. But to take such a step would be a necessary shift toward true cooperation and community among nations, which so many decades (centuries) of American history has not born out. It would be way to establish, or a least embark upon, a path of reconciliation and communication with nations and cultures that might only regard the United States as arrogant and abusive, consumptive and conspiring. This would also be a way to acknowledge that this country is a part of the world, not the self-appointed leader, arbiter and enforcer of all nations. To _not_ take (or even consider!) such an action, to deny any culpability in history, to maintain a misplaced sense of superiority or destiny, to make broad pronouncements against foreign "evil," to ridicule and ignore the concerns and processes of political allies, peers and one's own citizens... all the while, rallying to battle with themes of righteousness and protection through destruction... This looks and sounds like intense ignorance. Obsession. Crusading. And I hope and I will pray that it does not lead to disaster... at least, a disaster greater than any kind in which lies are used to justify the willful and methodic ending of life. If these sentiments and actions like these are what Americans are meant to support, then it's time to support action to reorient America. "No, you must be talking about some other country." |
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