Foreign
Policy:
Introduction:
So, what should the focus and
purpose of US foreign policy be? That is today's question. Foreign policy is a
tricky issue that involves both military and economic interests. There are
numerous real world subtleties that i will mostly ignore here.
Responsibilities of a "World
Power":
What responsibilities do the so called world powers (you could
use G8 or other categorizations) have to the rest of the world?
My
answer is that world powers have no stated or unstated duty to intervene in the
affairs of other nations. A country has a responsibility to its citizens (and
that is all). If citizens, private enterprise, etc feel the urge to donate to
things like the semi-recent "disaster" in Japan, that is one thing. However it
is a completely different animal using taxpayer funds for non-domestic purposes.
For the record, i do not believe federal funds should be used for
international issues. It is not responsible, especially for a debt loaded
country like the US, to spend taxpayer money on foreign concerns.
Military Role on the Global
Scale:
So what should the global role of a country's military be?
For me that is a straight-forward answer, but an answer that many will
not like - nothing. Yes, i am a fan of military isolationism. The only
military justification i see is a creditable, well-defined, and eminent threat
to locations on US soil. The "war on terror" is not winnable and does not
qualify.
i view the US military operations in the world as an archaic
relic from the post World War II and Cold War era. This seems to be more about
stopping the spread of Communism. It is not the duty of the US to foster
democracies through military force. i would prefer most, if not all, of the US
military bases around the world be closed. The US can no longer afford to keep
them in operation - and ego is not a valid reason.
The US military
should not be the world's peacekeepers. Let countries handle there own issues.
If some genocide happens, that is too bad. Military use should never be a
"moral" issue. Let the United Nations (the questionable organization that they
are) handle these problems.
i view the military as something that is
necessary for a country. However, as it is basically an non-productive use of
resources, it should be limited in scope and size. i will admit that some good
things came as the result of military spending (the Internet for one).
However, if a war situation happens... i wouldn't discount the use of
any method (even if that method is generally considered immoral or evil). If a
country needs to torture prisoners of war, assassinate a foreign leader it is at
war with or kill civilians, i wouldn't take that off the table. In the worst
case scenario, i see nothing wrong with actually using your nuclear arsenal.
World
Trade:
It is far better to be an economic power than a military super
power.
Really, it shouldn't be the interactions between countries, but
the economic interactions between parties (like corporations), etc that makes up
world trade. Unfortunately, it may be necessary for the federal government to
sign large scale treaties and trade agreements. To me, it is the economic
success and opportunities that define success for a country.
Trade
partners are a good thing to have, but it kind of crosses the line when a trade
partner gets involved in a military conflict. i guess, you could say that it
was ok (barely) if such actions provide a greater benefit to the
people/companies of a country than the cost of the action. Israel is probably
the trickiest example for the US.
That being said... countries should
strive to minimize interference with market forces. Protectionist tactics like
tariffs and even subsidies are largely counterproductive (and might result in
the same thing from the other side). i acknowledge that sometimes it will be
necessary for a country's people to assert its rights via the government. It
may also be the only way to help open up markets in certain circumstances.
Simply Summing it
Up:
Free trade is good, war is bad. Let other countries deal with their own problems
Original Post Date: 03/31/11
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