aka Greg is a liberal
Ron Paul and his followers are not very attractive when they sound crazy. I agree with 90% of what Ron Paul says so I don't mean to be unfair. My biggest gripe is their neo-pacificism. They want to end all war and go home. Nice - if it would really work.
America - the World's Policeman
In many ways the US is the world's policeman. We help provide the globe with security. We were dragged into wars around the world to kill bad guys. The Great War was a disaster for everyone, except the United States. One of the smartest of men and one of my least favorite presidents got us into Europe to support our allies in the fight. We returned to isolationism again until the Nazis could not be ignored. We killed them to support our allies. We teamed up with Stalin to fight the greater enemy. We could have kept fighting against the communists after the Nazis were beat but everyone was tired of death and destruction. We left eastern Europe to be taken over in the betrayal at Yalta and Potsdam. We wanted to go home again but the communists wanted to take over the world. We killed them in Korea, Vietnam, and backed them down everywhere else. Back to cars and rock and roll? Yeah, if only the islamists would get a life. So we fight on.
Empire?
We didn't intend to get an empire but we have one. We dominate with our language, our culture, our economy and our military. Oddly enough, we give all the land back. Through the last hundred years we have conquered most of the world and given it back. But we kept a few strategic bases. We told people how to live and once they complied we left them alone. We have a decent track record with Germany and Japan being our greatest successes but we helped Italy, Philipines, Cuba (before it was taken over again) etc. In Germany and Japan specifically we told them they couldn't have an army and that we would protect them. We gave them security against all threats but mainly the Soviets. We promised to save our friends in Taiwan from the Chinese communists. We keep the peace throughout the world. The US Navy is one of the best insurances for peace and the best guarantee of trade. They keep the sea clear and deliver help where ever it is needed.
We fight the bad guys. We build and buy and sell. We have the most money, the biggest armies, the free-est people. That puts us on top. Our enemies have failed and our allies burn themselves down with socialism. We are the world's policeman. (For those that want peace, there are still some neighborhoods that we don't enter.) We bring peace and democracy.
Bad examples?
Is the policeman always right? No. Should we have invaded Iraq after 9/11? The question assumes that one is the cause of the other but we were already in Iraq before 9/11. We were there to enforce rules imposed on Saddam because he was killing people in Iraq rebelling against him. They saw him as weak after we kicked his can when he invaded Kuwait. Yes, we wanted Kuwait's oil and we promised them we would help keep them safe in exchange. We can't have our own oil because of earth worshipping environmentalists but that is another story. Saddam has been killing his own people and invading his neighbors since he came to power. He bragged about training terrorists to kill us so we killed him. I hope we can enforce some laws there and give freedom a chance to grow there like in Japan and Germany but we might fail because we are too nice.
Libya invasion is a joke and Obama offers no explanation for that one. I don't know why Congress allows him to violate all laws to bomb people there.
If we don't want to be the policeman then we should give some notice so our friends can get ready. We need to give our allies time to build up their armies. Korea will have to beef up for the coming invasion from the North. You can kiss Taiwan good bye at the first sign of weakness. Japan and Germany will militarize. It might be good for France to try to figure out how to hold a rifle again. Russia will expand. Pakistan and India will nuke each other. Africa and middle east will go dark. South America will go tribal, each warlord fighting over turf. China and Russia will have to come to a truce to kill each other later as they attempt to play cop.
Worried about Money? We spend far more on welfare from the federal government than we do on the military. That is where we need to cut the federal budget. Social Security, medicare, and all the other twisted welfare ponzi schemes.
We need to end wars and be clear about our goals over seas but there is no reason for a retreat. We certainly shouldn't leave Guam and Diego Garcia as Ron Paul suggests. We are in the position of the leviathan. We bring peace through strength like no else can. If the Canadians or Australians want to take over I would welcome it but I don't see any good candidates for the job of world cop. Hopefully I made it clear that we need one. If we don't do it - there will be chaos or a new cop. Thinking everyone will play nice if we put down our guns and go home is silly. There are bad people in the world and they won't play nice just because the cop retires.
Use our military to help people, to bring order and peace. To deliver donated food in emergencies. To set an example of freedom. Kill bad people when necessary. Leave when no longer needed. But don't quit. Especially when no one else can do the job. We need to fight against evil.
