America is a country that has had the role of World Police thrust upon itself. My country did not ask for it, neither did we strive to achieve that position. It just happened. Why did it happen? Maybe it is because Americans are naturally tender hearted and caring people. Or perhaps it stems from our natural desire to see the world treating everyone equally regardless of rank and station in life. Indeed, my nation stands tall above the rest because of the way we value life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, frowning upon those who wish to trample upon the most basic rights of these individuals.
Pick up any world history book and one will realize that the American dominance of the international scene never stemmed from what President Barack Obama has termed the “arrogance” of our nation. We have never, in the history of the world, been a conqueror country. We do not dictate, we do not conquer. Rather, we are like parents who gave birth to freedom in a foreign land. We are merely guardians of countries with its democracies in its infant stages. If by guiding the nations who are only beginning to get their footing regarding international relations now, and advising them upon how to conduct themselves on the world stage sounds like arrogance, then why is North Korea continuing to defy American and United Nations requests for disarmament? Why did they just launch a missile into the Asian skies? If America were arrogant enough to bully such kinds of nations into bending to our will, then the world would have been a much safer place by now.
Under President George W. Bush, America came to be viewed as bullies who did not listen. His “If you are not with us then you are against us” policies truly sounded threatening and menacing coming from the only remaining superpower in the world. However, I believe that his actions spoke well of the needs of his presidency. He was a wartime president who was trying to bring peace and stability to regions of the world rocked by religious fanaticism the best way he knew how.
President Barack Obama has chosen the foreign policy path that allows him to take the path of least resistance amongst the international community. His foreign policy of listening before taking action would have been much more effective if he had actually taken decisive action, clearly indicating the point up to which he is willing to listen before sacrificing a whole continent’s safety when the real bully is rearing its ugly head.
On paper, his foreign policies sound admirable. However, I do not believe these are doable as the countries he wishes to break bread with and smoke the peace pipe with have always taken an adversarial stance against America regardless of whether our president has been a Republican or a Democrat. Even if he gets Russia to agree to continue with nuclear disarmament, the other smaller rogue nations will continue with their arms build up. In such cases, the country will have to take a stronger stance on foreign policies concerning those nations and be accused of “arrogance” and “bullyism” yet again.
President Barack Obama must understand that, just like with some delinquent youths of the land, an iron hand becomes necessary in order to set one upon the right path which will benefit the many. Listening to the concerns of the other nations is never bad. Finding a halfway point upon which we can rebuild our foreign relations is not bad either. What is bad, is when you do not deliver a strong enough message to the nations whose actions are truly arrogant and reek of bullying to stop their ill-advised actions before they endanger the whole world.