Dear editor:
I wish that I shared Mr. Langdon’s assessment of our noble
intentions with regard to U.S. foreign policy His letter of June
26th suggests that our ideals of
”
democracy, liberty, free enterprise, justice, freedom of speech
and religion
”
are the guiding principles for our behavior in the world
community.
Dear editor:
I wish that I shared Mr. Langdon’s assessment of our noble intentions with regard to U.S. foreign policy His letter of June 26th suggests that our ideals of “democracy, liberty, free enterprise, justice, freedom of speech and religion” are the guiding principles for our behavior in the world community. I wish it were so. Maybe I’m just too cynical. But when I consider U.S. international relations during the past 50 years, our history leaves a lot to be desired – recall Southeast Asia, Central America, Chile, Angola, Indonesia and so on.
Our actions abroad are all about wielding geo-political power to the benefit of our nation. The foundation of our policy is to create stable political situations around the world so that global capitalism can flourish. That’s why we support Saudi Arabia which is an oligarchy with a lousy human rights record. That’s why we had regime change in Iraq. We just could not tolerate the turmoil and hatred of our objectives, and so we had to get tough and demonstrate that we are on top now. That’s why we have military bases all over the world. That’s why we will spending more than $400 billion this year on ‘defense.’
I really take exception to Mr. Langdon’s characterization of people who are willing voice their concerns, challenging our government’s policies, as “faint-hearted.” Are Pope John Paul II or Nelson Mandela or Barbara Lee faint-hearted? I think not. They recognized that our stated motivations were a smokescreen. We liberated Iraq from a terrible dictator – why did we help him out 20 years ago when we knew he was committing crimes against humanity? Why are we not helping the people of Liberia and the Congo right now who are suffering terrible human rights abuses? Because aiding those countries is not a critical national interest at the present time.
This past week, George Orwell, the author of the novel “1984,” would have been 100 years old. Compare some of the phrases used in the book with the pronouncements from the George who is now in the White House. “Big Brother” with a new world order tries to extinguish individuality and critical thinking. In order to control the people, language must be controlled so “Newspeak” and “Double-Think” are created. Does our government manipulate information, does it say one thing but mean another, or does it hide the full story behind secret document classifications? And what do we think of the concept that “War is Peace?”
I have never been politically active before and I do not intend to lie down on the road and block traffic, but I think we need to send President Bush and his elite team home when election time rolls again. I want our government to truly promote democracy and freedom and human rights, without the gun.
Mike Monroe, Gilroy
submitted Friday, June 27, 2003 to ed****@****ic.com
