Indeed, and unregulated capitalism has time and again been proven to be disastrous, whenever it is tried. From the recent deregulation of banks, to previous deregulation of the health industry.
The same could be said of democracy. There are some things that are not up for vote, such as basic human rights. Also, there are times when unpopular policies must be enacted.
Personally, imho, the pretense of America serving as a Global Police has done more harm to the values of America than any other program.
I think we need to go back to the origin of this situation. Previous to WWII America took a mostly isolationist position. Until the bombing of Pearl Harbor public sentiment was very much against entering the war in Europe. The common saying was "Europe's problems are Europe's problems". Perhaps this was a bit naive, but that is a different subject for a different time.
After the war America took on a very vital role. It was the only country whose industry was not ravaged by war. America was in the position to supply loans and equipment to rebuild Europe and Japan (i.e. the Marshal Plan). Also, America served as an intermediary between old rivals which allowed for a cooling of hostilities even as the cold war ramped up. Compare this to the period between WWI and WWII where reparations for past transgressions were the rule. The Europe we see today is due in part to the influence of America as a global policeman. The presence of American troops in Germany and Okinawa (and even later in S. Korea) were a "guarantee" of peace, if you will.
After the rebuilding of Europe, America served as a very strong counterweight to the Soviet Union. You could put it in terms of NATO v. Warsaw Pact, but we all know who the heavy hitters were.
In the modern age the US is still seen as the global police when it serves the common good. In the eyes of many, including myself, the UN is too bogged down in bureaucracy and self interest. I'm not saying that the UN is broken, but at times there are too many interests and too much posturing.
There is also one truth that can not be ignored. The military power of America allows it to shape world events in it's favor. It is a source of influence that allows the US to pursue it's national interests. Military is power. We can argue back and forth as to whether economics or moral standing should be the source of influence, but you can not ignore the sway that tanks and aircraft carriers possess. Whenever the the US wants to make their voice heard in hostile situations what is the first thing that happens? The US sends an aircraft carrier to the region.
The question that needs to be asked is if we are paying too high a price for this influence. Can we keep pumping this amount of money into the military while citizens go without health care and a livable pension? What about the basic infrastructure of the country? I really think these things will come to a head in the next 25 years.
Personally, imho, I don't think any single nation can do this, for then who polices the police?
I think it is a matter of global opinion. As long as the US is seen as a (mostly) just nation they will be allowed to be the police. The election of Obama as president did a lot to earn back some of that respect. It was rightly seen as a rejection of Bush politics as well as a step towards a post-racial America. Now it is up to Obama to win back that respect.
I disagree. I think a strong case can be made for reducing redundant spending in the military: we don't need more atomic bombs for instance, nor do we need to do more testing.
I completely agree with your sentiment, but I think we all know how this can be spun. Any reduction in military spending can be spun in a way to make a candidate look weak. This goes back to JFK's "missile gap" tactic used against Eisenhower.
In addition, I think a strong case can be made for an international approach to Global Police and that many Americans would be relieved to have less of a national exposure to the world violence, especially when it has no apparent benefit to the US. Ask the average person why we are in Iraq.
The UN is too unpopular with Americans to make this work. Not only that, but any presidential candidate that speaks of handing over decisions to the UN is seen as weak. The ethos is that the US does not need to ask the UN to do anything, and any limitations put on the US by the UN is unconstitutional (whether that is correct or not). In politics, perception is reality. In order to change the reality you need to change perception first.
Indeed. Sadly, many Americans do not even have a high school education sufficient to qualify for higher education, so there could also be some remedial (science?) education built in - along with the lessons gained from service in other parts of the country.
This of course would also be like a return to the WPA jobs from the Great Depression (due, of course, to another failure of unregulated capitalism), and it could also provide much more than education.
This could also be a route for new immigrants to take into the country: work for the New WPA for two years, during which you learn the english language and the laws of the land, the provisions of the constitution, etc, so that at the end you are equipped to pass the tests for citizenship.
These types of jobs would pump service back into the country, and benefit the nation more than redundant military spending.
The difficulty here is running these vocational programs without taking jobs away from the public sector. If you have a publically funded auto shop that charges half of what Jim the Mechanic charges then there will be a lot of pissed off people. Even WPA projects would be a tough sell since these jobs are now filled by private corporations through a bidding process. During the Great Depression these corporations were gone and so the government didn't have a problem hiring people directly.
Perhaps a good way around this is to have a vocational education program for basic knowledge of the field and then an apprenticeship program that gives tax breaks to businesses for taking on newly trained workers. We could also send these apprentices abroad to build schools, hospitals, water purification plants, etc. in 3rd world nations.
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