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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Hawkmoon who wrote (56143)	11/7/2002 9:40:42 PM
From: Ilaine	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 281500

>>Excuse me. Was the US ever elected ruler of the world or even its police?<< I don't know where Zonder is from, originally, but I doubt very much that it is a place where the rulers and the police are elected by anyone -- unless she is from Turkey -- since she said she is from a country that borders Iraq. Zonder's right about one thing - nobody has given the US "the right" to decide the fate of other nations unilaterally. We may have the power to do so, but do we have "the right"? It would be interesting to discuss where "rights" emanate from in our different belief systems, but it's certain that there are sufficient belief systems that are sufficiently different that we won't agree about where rights come from or what they are. It's far more accurate to say that the US has the ability to decide the fate of other nations unilaterally, and the US has an interest in deciding the fate of other nations unilaterally, but it's not necessarily in the best interests of the US to decide the fate of other nations unilaterally. After 9/11, I argued, as Bilow is arguing now, for a retreat to inside our borders, closing the gates behind us. Jay Chen explained to me that the world needed the Pax Americana. Maybe that's a tiny bit self-serving, since China prospers under the Pax Americana without having to expend a significant amount of GDP on weapons, but that means we can buy cheaper Chinese goods, so should we complain? Pax Americana does have a nice ring to it. Who can be against peace (even if achieved by constant war or threat of war)? It's like being against apple pie and motherhood.

To: Hawkmoon who wrote (56143)	11/7/2002 9:42:50 PM
From: gamesmistress	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

And of course, GWB WAS elected, and is accountable to the US electorate, not to the members of the UN or the EU either, none of whom were elected by or are accountable to anybody...