{"id":18500,"date":"2012-04-09T12:00:51","date_gmt":"2012-04-09T11:00:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=18500"},"modified":"2012-04-09T12:01:40","modified_gmt":"2012-04-09T11:01:40","slug":"what-do-you-want-usa-up-or-down","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2012\/04\/what-do-you-want-usa-up-or-down\/","title":{"rendered":"What Do You Want USA, Up or Down?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

From Washington, DC<\/em><\/p>\n

One wonders what the US political leaders want.\u00a0 The incumbent lives in this world, playing an ultra-realist game: extra-judicial executions in maybe 70 countries, drone attacks; minimizing US losses, maximizing direct hits at what he sees as the problem, concrete identified individuals, not concrete unidentified conflicts.\u00a0 He has neither the moral nor the intellectual courage to do that.<\/p>\n

The challengers, with one exception, are focusing on one issue: down with the welfare state.\u00a0 Ron Paul, the libertarian, adds: down with the warfare state.\u00a0 He has registered Vietnam-Afghanistan-Iraq and the next in line, Iran-Syria, as unwinnable and unaffordable for a bankrupt economy. Young Republicans and others flock to him, but his discourse is too unusual. Warfare, not welfare makes sense.\u00a0 This has to do with the relation to conflict, a three-headed problem: attitude, behavior, contradiction.\u00a0 The USA wants an attitude of love for the USA, military response to evil people who do not and act on that, and contradiction, incompatibility are outside the thinkable. The deep culture of good vs evil and Armageddon for the latter take over.<\/p>\n

Well, does it?\u00a0 The reader is invited to look at the scheme below.\u00a0 There are three columns: a list of 15 conflicts in which the USA is currently involved–some say embroiled–,a list of what this author sees as reasonable solutions, nothing that radical, well-known formulas; self-determination, human rights, federations, communities.<\/p>\n

And the third column is what the USA tends to do.\u00a0 Violence, like Libya for the first conflict.\u00a0 Wars, intervention, bases, military coups. That may work with solid local elite support.\u00a0 But today that is missing almost all over and the net result is brutal, naked power that greases the downward slope.\u00a0 Obama thinks he can solve it by being sneaky; the Republicans have not yet discovered that their favorite world of admiring, obedient elites is gone; probably forever.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 15 CONFLICTS: CONSTRUCTIVE-DESTRUCTIVE US FOREIGN POLICIES<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
CONFLICTS<\/strong><\/td>\nCONSTRUCTIVE, POSITIVE<\/td>\nDESTRUCTIVE, NEGATIVE<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
FINANCIALECONOMY<\/p>\n

CRISIS<\/td>\n

Encourage local saving banksPublish M2\u00a0 Check Fed Reserve<\/p>\n

Tax speculation\u00a0 Drop bonuses<\/p>\n

Outlaw basic need speculation<\/p>\n

Democratic control of central banks; mixed world currency<\/td>\n

More F than Real growthMore money than value<\/p>\n

Serving loans not people<\/p>\n

Countries in debt bondage<\/p>\n

Globalization through<\/p>\n

privatized central banks<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

WAR ONTERRORISM<\/td>\nIdentify their just goalsPublish Atta\u00a0 Who did 9\/11?<\/td>\nExtrajudicial executionSOC-Drones\u00a0 Covert war<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
US-ISRAEL vs ARAB-MUSLIMSTATES<\/td>\nA two states solution, and<\/span>A Middle East Community MEC Israel and 5 Arab neighbors<\/p>\n

1967 borders with revisions<\/p>\n

Palestine recognized, and<\/span><\/p>\n

Org for Sec Coop Middle East<\/td>\n

Tail wagging dog:Israel wagging USA;<\/p>\n

AIPAC wagging Congress<\/p>\n

Judeo-Christ’n anti-islam<\/p>\n

Danger:<\/p>\n

Extreme US anti-semitism<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

LIBYA<\/td>\nSelf-determination for parts, federalism with democracy<\/td>\nContinued anarchyUnitary state illusion<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
SYRIA<\/td>\nSelf-determination for parts,federalism with democracy<\/td>\nAttack; SCO response?split Syria, rule parts<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
IRAQ<\/td>\nSelf-determination for parts,Federalism with democracy<\/p>\n

Kurdish autonomies community<\/td>\n

Withdrawal only:no rebuilding,<\/p>\n

no compensation<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

IRAN<\/td>\nOpen high level dialogue,Conciliation for 1953,<\/p>\n

Human rights for Iran<\/td>\n

Attack, SCO response?speculation in oil,<\/p>\n

and bio-fuel<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

PAKISTAN<\/td>\nPashtun autonomy, drop Durand\u00a0 Self-determination in KashmirIndian-Pakistan-Kashmir parts<\/td>\nExtrajudicial executionSOC-Drones\u00a0 Covert war<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
AFGHANISTAN<\/td>\nA Central Asian CommunityFederation\u00a0 Local autonomy<\/p>\n

Nonaligned, no bases<\/p>\n

OIC-UNSC joint peacekeeping<\/td>\n

Withdrawal only;no rebuilding,<\/p>\n

no compensation<\/p>\n

 <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

KOREA<\/td>\nPeace Treaty with NorthNormalization USA-North<\/p>\n

Korea as nuclear free zone<\/td>\n

Marginalizing NKUS-SK military exercises<\/p>\n

Breaking agreements<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

CHINA<\/td>\nOpen high level dialogue,Mutual learning in economics<\/p>\n

Civil and<\/span> economic rights<\/td>\n

Encircling, sub-sat-navyEconomic exploitation within and between both<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
JAPAN<\/td>\nJapan in NE Asian CommunityGood relations to USA, APEC+<\/p>\n

USA pulls out of Okinawa<\/td>\n

Impeding conciliationKeeping Japan as client<\/p>\n

Subverting A9<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n

AFRICA<\/td>\nWelcome African Unity!Build with China E-W highway!<\/td>\nAFRICOMMilitary intervention<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
LATIN AMERICA<\/td>\nWelcome CELAC integrationEquity Latin-North America<\/td>\nMilitary interventionSupporting coups<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
WORLD<\/td>\nAll human rights conventionsNational self-determination<\/p>\n

Dialogue of civilizations<\/p>\n

Stronger UN, with parliament<\/td>\n

Civil-political onlyUnitary state models<\/p>\n

Western universalism<\/p>\n

US exceptionalism<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n

That third column draws not only abhorrence, but also the yawn of “more of the same”, when will they ever learn?\u00a0 They want to go down?<\/p>\n

So, look at the second column of efforts to identify the conflict, dialogue with the parties, bridging what sounds like legitimate goals–by law, human rights, human needs–they are pursuing.<\/p>\n

No attempt will be made here to justify the reasoning behind column Two.\u00a0 But imagine that US politics followed such lines and that the world followed that USA.\u00a0 What kind of world would we live in?<\/p>\n

Strong regions, like Latin America, Africa, OIC (Organization of the Islamic Community, today<\/p>\n

Cooperation) and East Asia is one aspect.\u00a0 They have their own projects, not necessarily to copy the USA.\u00a0 They will trade with each other, support each other, regionalize and not repeat the UN formula of a security council with veto powers.\u00a0 No veto.<\/p>\n

Where would the USA belong?\u00a0 In the whole world like everybody, but also in a region with trade partners Nos. 1 and 3: Canada, Mexico (the USA is No. 1 for both of them).\u00a0 The basis is there, use it.<\/p>\n

Democracy and human rights, of course.\u00a0 But federations first in multi-national countries, then democracy in each part.\u00a0 Majority rule in Iraq means shia rule, majority rule in Syria means sunni rule; two neighboring countries.\u00a0 As federations with democracy in each part, neutrality would be a good option in order to avoid internal divisions.<\/p>\n

There are countless details like that in the scheme above.\u00a0 But the point is the USA, that ambiguous, violent, innovative, generous country. Go for something like column 2 options and a non-imperial USA would surge, up, up , up, in the hearts and minds, all over.\u00a0 There is that love for the US longing for a US to attach to, delusioned by Obama.\u00a0 A little distance in that direction would help already.<\/p>\n

Friends of the USA: help the USA find a better place in the world.<\/p>\n

_______________________<\/p>\n

Editorials by Johan Galtung and articles originated on TMS may be freely reprinted, disseminated, translated and used as background material, provided an acknowledgment and link to the source, TRANSCEND Media Service-TMS, is included. Thank you.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One wonders what the US political leaders want. The incumbent lives in this world, playing an ultra-realist game: extra-judicial executions in maybe 70 countries, drone attacks; minimizing US losses, maximizing direct hits at what he sees as the problem, concrete identified individuals, not concrete unidentified conflicts. He has neither the moral nor the intellectual courage to do that.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18500","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-editorial"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18500","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18500"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18500\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18500"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18500"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18500"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}