"you're either with us or against us" rant
so, this week, i've been writing a series of papers for my US and the Middle East relations class... i previously had knowledge of iraq and neoconservatives and US foreign policy, as i've minored in it and have studied it fairly intensively for almost 4 years now... but honestly... i don't think i had any idea of the extent of what is going on... and i don't blame this on a lack of information or studying... i think this had to do a lot with the fact that i'm not sure i hold the capacity to believe that people can actually have the beliefs that i have found to be the dogma of a neoconservative government.
Quoting an article i read today, to a neocon, a perfect world would be one in which:
1.the United States is the unchallenged superpower, immune to threats
2.the US would maintain an empire of sorts by helping to create democratic, economically liberal governments in place of "failed states" or oppressive regimes they deem threatening to the US or its interests
3.the entire Middle East would be democratized in the belief that this would eliminate a prime breeding ground for terrorists.
4.the world can only achieve peace through strong US leadership backed with credible force, not weak treaties to be disrespected by tyrants.
5.Any regime that is outwardly hostile to the US and could pose a threat would be confronted aggressively, not "appeased" or merely contained.
6.The US military would be reconfigured around the world to allow for greater flexibility and quicker deployment to hot spots in the Middle East, as well as Central and Southeast Asia.
7.The US would spend more on defense, particularly for high-tech, precision weaponry that could be used in preemptive strikes.
8.It would work through multilateral institutions such as the United Nations when possible, but must never be constrained from acting in its best interests whenever necessary.
maybe its just me... but that is a terrifying dogma. Already the US acts as it wishes with or without the United Nation's approval. (remember the beginning of the iraqi war? yeah... the UN did not support that at all, but did that stop anyone?) The forces of the UN in iraq throughout the war thus far have been small, but what presence was there was discounted. The United States has already not accepted the Committee Against Torture (CAT) and now, elbow-deep in an iraqi catastrophe, there is no respect for civilian life, no communication, and no turning back... the plan is to keep on with the original plan of democratizing all governments in the middle east... i don't even understand why they would want to do this... with the behavior displayed by the US thus far, Anti-American sentiments are higher than ever, people aren't against democracy, just american foreign policy; however, if democracy was to become an institution in each of the middle eastern states, the countries would reach an even greater height of non-cooperation with america. why? b/c in a true democracy, majority opinion is what is represented and the majority of any place would not be American approved or Pro-America.
I'm watching The world fall apart... Iraq, shattered; Lebanon, shattered; West Bank and Gaza, still shattered... these are the places of the beginnings of civilization, beautiful countries with beautiful cultures and beautiful people, all falling into shambles... and it makes me want to scream and cry and throw a 3-year-old's tantrum.
This movement of neoconservativism is terrifying... as it grows and discounts the United Nations, it turns into everything it is supposedly fighting for. It becomes a WORLDWIDE authoritative dictator. What is the difference between any "evil" dictator of history and these Neocon idealists? crushing anything that may interfere with their self-interests including use of extreme force... the United Nations must not only be respected but must be the highest authority on the planet. Peace isn't decided and kept by one nation... it is decided on by a compromise of all cultures and people, everyone working together. World peace can only be attained by a more powerful organisation of United Nations. If this was the reality, then genocides like that which occured in Rwanda could be opposed more easily and effectively. And yes, i think even an israeli-palestinian peace could be more readily attained if Israel wasn't backed whole-heartedly by 'the World dominator'. How can a person face the american people and make a speech, convincing them that they are saving the Iraqis, that they are liberator, while they turn their back on dictatorship and genocide elsewhere. shut up... seriously... if democracy is all america wants, why hasn't it bothered Saudi Arabia or Jordan, two major countries ruled authoritatively by a royal family? oh, what was that you say? they cooperate with america and Saudi agreed to house billions of dollars of military equipment and bases to make America's deployment elsewhere in Eurasia fast and easier... no... that would be silly... we are religious(oops, i mean secular),right(oops, i mean moral),and tolerant(well, as long as you agree with us, that is) humanitarians, working to uphold democratic ideas (ours only) throughout the world. geez... how silly am i... i think i'll go hop in my SUV and get two supersized mcdonalds meals (one to throw away and one to keep) and go cuddle up in with big brother and watch a few healthy brainwashing hours of fox news... yeah... that sounds like fun... and hell... as americans, we deserve it... keeping peace and saving backwards countries and their people is a hard and tiring job... we're heros...it really is a shame that it's all in vain... i mean... all those muslims are going to hell anyways, right?
god, i hate ignorance. the world has gone mad, and its a frustrating and sad thing.
on a more positive note, i'm so happy with how the comedy fundraiser went on monday. The Arab Student Association, Students for Peace in Palestine, and the Arabic Club raised 500 dollars for a hospital in southern lebanon. That warmed my heart just a little bit... i only hope we keep it up and do more...
Quoting an article i read today, to a neocon, a perfect world would be one in which:
1.the United States is the unchallenged superpower, immune to threats
2.the US would maintain an empire of sorts by helping to create democratic, economically liberal governments in place of "failed states" or oppressive regimes they deem threatening to the US or its interests
3.the entire Middle East would be democratized in the belief that this would eliminate a prime breeding ground for terrorists.
4.the world can only achieve peace through strong US leadership backed with credible force, not weak treaties to be disrespected by tyrants.
5.Any regime that is outwardly hostile to the US and could pose a threat would be confronted aggressively, not "appeased" or merely contained.
6.The US military would be reconfigured around the world to allow for greater flexibility and quicker deployment to hot spots in the Middle East, as well as Central and Southeast Asia.
7.The US would spend more on defense, particularly for high-tech, precision weaponry that could be used in preemptive strikes.
8.It would work through multilateral institutions such as the United Nations when possible, but must never be constrained from acting in its best interests whenever necessary.
maybe its just me... but that is a terrifying dogma. Already the US acts as it wishes with or without the United Nation's approval. (remember the beginning of the iraqi war? yeah... the UN did not support that at all, but did that stop anyone?) The forces of the UN in iraq throughout the war thus far have been small, but what presence was there was discounted. The United States has already not accepted the Committee Against Torture (CAT) and now, elbow-deep in an iraqi catastrophe, there is no respect for civilian life, no communication, and no turning back... the plan is to keep on with the original plan of democratizing all governments in the middle east... i don't even understand why they would want to do this... with the behavior displayed by the US thus far, Anti-American sentiments are higher than ever, people aren't against democracy, just american foreign policy; however, if democracy was to become an institution in each of the middle eastern states, the countries would reach an even greater height of non-cooperation with america. why? b/c in a true democracy, majority opinion is what is represented and the majority of any place would not be American approved or Pro-America.
I'm watching The world fall apart... Iraq, shattered; Lebanon, shattered; West Bank and Gaza, still shattered... these are the places of the beginnings of civilization, beautiful countries with beautiful cultures and beautiful people, all falling into shambles... and it makes me want to scream and cry and throw a 3-year-old's tantrum.
This movement of neoconservativism is terrifying... as it grows and discounts the United Nations, it turns into everything it is supposedly fighting for. It becomes a WORLDWIDE authoritative dictator. What is the difference between any "evil" dictator of history and these Neocon idealists? crushing anything that may interfere with their self-interests including use of extreme force... the United Nations must not only be respected but must be the highest authority on the planet. Peace isn't decided and kept by one nation... it is decided on by a compromise of all cultures and people, everyone working together. World peace can only be attained by a more powerful organisation of United Nations. If this was the reality, then genocides like that which occured in Rwanda could be opposed more easily and effectively. And yes, i think even an israeli-palestinian peace could be more readily attained if Israel wasn't backed whole-heartedly by 'the World dominator'. How can a person face the american people and make a speech, convincing them that they are saving the Iraqis, that they are liberator, while they turn their back on dictatorship and genocide elsewhere. shut up... seriously... if democracy is all america wants, why hasn't it bothered Saudi Arabia or Jordan, two major countries ruled authoritatively by a royal family? oh, what was that you say? they cooperate with america and Saudi agreed to house billions of dollars of military equipment and bases to make America's deployment elsewhere in Eurasia fast and easier... no... that would be silly... we are religious(oops, i mean secular),right(oops, i mean moral),and tolerant(well, as long as you agree with us, that is) humanitarians, working to uphold democratic ideas (ours only) throughout the world. geez... how silly am i... i think i'll go hop in my SUV and get two supersized mcdonalds meals (one to throw away and one to keep) and go cuddle up in with big brother and watch a few healthy brainwashing hours of fox news... yeah... that sounds like fun... and hell... as americans, we deserve it... keeping peace and saving backwards countries and their people is a hard and tiring job... we're heros...it really is a shame that it's all in vain... i mean... all those muslims are going to hell anyways, right?
god, i hate ignorance. the world has gone mad, and its a frustrating and sad thing.
on a more positive note, i'm so happy with how the comedy fundraiser went on monday. The Arab Student Association, Students for Peace in Palestine, and the Arabic Club raised 500 dollars for a hospital in southern lebanon. That warmed my heart just a little bit... i only hope we keep it up and do more...
posted by bitterhoney at 7:02 PM
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