How travelers see the United States
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel shocked many media pundits and defense industry supporters this week by proposing that the American military budget and spending should be reduced to World War II era. The US spends more on its defense and military than the next 13 countries combined. This is common knowledge among Americans both young and old. In response to Hagel's proposal, Former Vice President Dick Cheney during an interview on Fox News, went so far as to chide President Obama on providing food stamps over cutting defense spending to the troops. Ironically military families also rely on food stamps as much as their fellow civilian countrymen. Social welfare within the United States has been frowned upon as inconsistent with America's often celebrated hyper capitalist society and society's towing the line of American exceptionalism. Now known as the Horatio Alger myth (without a hint of irony) many Americans have grown up to belief that every citizen should rely on themselves financially and socially without government aid hampering their self made success. The economic recession has all but put that myth to rest. Families living at the receiving end of financial crisis are reconsidering the benefits of a welfare state like the ones that exist in various European countries. The government shutdown has reinforced those benefits.
Despite, the still bleak state of the country's economy, President Obama, a few senators, the defense industry and Pentagon has turned their focus to threatening Russia for stepping up its military prowess in Ukraine and other rising regional power ie China and Iran with use of force via UN sanctions or indirectly bluffing with military force. The US still sees itself in exceptionalist terms as the World's Policeman. Since 1823 Monroe Doctrine which launched the American Empire, the US has used political intimidation via coups, excessive bombings, media demonization, sanctions and shaming to force its enemies "rogue states" into transforming into pro Western Democracies that is accommodating to US/EU sensibilities and cultural influences. It took decades for Americans to acknowledge the country was an empire or an imperialist. The US has shown no sign of ending its imperialist policy without fighting the rise of a multipolar world both metaphorically, physical and symbolically. The US military is still on the standby just in case Russia or another rising power moves against NATO. Never mind the economic recession, high unemployment in major cities and a long overdue protests against the reduction of unemployment benefits, rising student debt and gentrification pushing long term residents out of their homes while pushing rent and taxes through the roof. The article below is compliments of Margaret Kimberely at Black Agenda Report.
Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel shocked many media pundits and defense industry supporters this week by proposing that the American military budget and spending should be reduced to World War II era. The US spends more on its defense and military than the next 13 countries combined. This is common knowledge among Americans both young and old. In response to Hagel's proposal, Former Vice President Dick Cheney during an interview on Fox News, went so far as to chide President Obama on providing food stamps over cutting defense spending to the troops. Ironically military families also rely on food stamps as much as their fellow civilian countrymen. Social welfare within the United States has been frowned upon as inconsistent with America's often celebrated hyper capitalist society and society's towing the line of American exceptionalism. Now known as the Horatio Alger myth (without a hint of irony) many Americans have grown up to belief that every citizen should rely on themselves financially and socially without government aid hampering their self made success. The economic recession has all but put that myth to rest. Families living at the receiving end of financial crisis are reconsidering the benefits of a welfare state like the ones that exist in various European countries. The government shutdown has reinforced those benefits.
Project for the New American Century Part 1: See the rest here
Despite, the still bleak state of the country's economy, President Obama, a few senators, the defense industry and Pentagon has turned their focus to threatening Russia for stepping up its military prowess in Ukraine and other rising regional power ie China and Iran with use of force via UN sanctions or indirectly bluffing with military force. The US still sees itself in exceptionalist terms as the World's Policeman. Since 1823 Monroe Doctrine which launched the American Empire, the US has used political intimidation via coups, excessive bombings, media demonization, sanctions and shaming to force its enemies "rogue states" into transforming into pro Western Democracies that is accommodating to US/EU sensibilities and cultural influences. It took decades for Americans to acknowledge the country was an empire or an imperialist. The US has shown no sign of ending its imperialist policy without fighting the rise of a multipolar world both metaphorically, physical and symbolically. The US military is still on the standby just in case Russia or another rising power moves against NATO. Never mind the economic recession, high unemployment in major cities and a long overdue protests against the reduction of unemployment benefits, rising student debt and gentrification pushing long term residents out of their homes while pushing rent and taxes through the roof. The article below is compliments of Margaret Kimberely at Black Agenda Report.
Freedom Rider: America vs. the World
- War Against Syria [1] |
- War Against Libya [2] |
- U.S. imperialism [3] |
- Obama wars [4] |
- Regime Change in Ukraine [5] |
- Regime Change Venezuela [6]
by BAR editor and senior columnist Margaret Kimberley
President Obama has placed whole nations on his Kill List. Syria and Venezuela are to join Libya and Iraq as states that have been made to fail, while Ukraine is snatched into the NATO-EU orbit. “The neo-conservative project for a new American century has reached full fruition under a Democratic president, who now has many notches on his gun.”
Freedom Rider: America vs. the World
by BAR editor and senior columnist Margaret Kimberley
“A superpower can foment conflict anywhere it wants to at anytime it chooses.”
The word imperialism fell into disuse in recent decades. If it seems slightly retro, that is only because there aren’t enough Americans committed to telling the ugly truth about their government.
During the cold war era we were told that communism increased in influence via a domino effect, knocking down nations one by one and forcing them into Moscow’s or Beijing’s orbit. In the 21st century there is a new domino theory which puts every part of the world into America’s cross hairs.
Barack Obama has succeeded in expanding America’s influence in ways that George W. Bush and Dick Cheney could only dream about. The neo-conservative project for a new American century has reached full fruition under a Democratic president, who now has many notches on his gun. He and the rest of the NATO leaders began the trail of destruction with Libya, tearing that country asunder under the guise of saving it.
Using lies and their servants in the corporate media, they constructed a tale of a tyrant and a people yearning for protection. That evil success emboldened them and their gulf monarchy allies further and they decided that Syria would be the next domino.
The system can no longer sustain itself and brute force is the only out.”
That plan didn’t work quite as well as Obama and the rest of murder incorporated team thought it would. When the British parliament said no to new military adventures Obama was left sputtering on national television. He was forced to back down [8] from an adamant position he had taken just days earlier.
The semi-comedic setback was only temporary because the monster must be fed at all cost. The system can no longer sustain itself and brute force is the only out. There is nothing old fashioned about imperialism. This malevolent force is still alive and well.
George W. Bush made efforts to overthrow [9] the democratically elected Bolivarian revolution in Venezuela when he plotted with the opposition against the late Hugo Chavez. Obama is clearly more committed to violence than his predecessor and has helped to stir up right wing Venezuelans who want to rid themselves of Nicolas Maduro. Maduro has been weakened by the ginned up protests and is now forced into talks with an opposition that won’t be satisfied until he is dead and gone too.
The Venezuelan people have voted for their revolution numerous times. The U.S., a country that never ceases to call itself a democracy, has thwarted their clearly expressed will time and time again. But that is the essence of empire after all.
While armed force against Syria was temporarily blocked, the West, the Persian gulf monarchies, Israel, and jihadists have not given up their effort to topple [10] the Bashir al-Assad government in Syria. The savage war has made thousands of Syrians homeless and starving refugees, all because the empire needs its next domino.
Not only does United States meddles in its own backyard, it also relentlessly interferes on the other side of the world in far away Ukraine [11]. Popular discontent against that country’s president became a successful effort to bring that country into the western sphere of economic influence but with the awful strings of austerity attached. Ukraine has the choice of going bankrupt or being bailed out and dying a slow death a la Greece.
“Every invasion, occupation and disruption in recent years can be laid at the feet of the United States and its allies.”
While the machinations were afoot, president Obama warned Vladimir Putin away with threats of sanctions. The scenes of sometimes violent street protests in Ukraine made a fortuitous tableau for the United States which claimed the infamous “responsibility to protect” which never protects anyone who actually needs help and which has brought so much suffering to people around the world. Every invasion, occupation and disruption in recent years can be laid at the feet of the United States and its allies. Iraq has been destroyed quite literally, Iran has been destroyed economically. Libya was taken out and Syria is on the brink.
The United States quite openly makes it clear that it wants to have its way in the world. If Russia attempts to use its influence then it is vilified and caricatured as a cruel dictatorship controlled by a tyrant. No matter how many elections Chavez and now Maduro won, they are called dictators by American talking heads.
A superpower can foment conflict anywhere it wants to at anytime it chooses. Venezuelans must knuckle under or face the prospect of more turmoil and violence. Ukraine must sign onto economic policies which have already proven disastrous. The United States leaves its fingerprints in these and many other places and that is the essence of imperialism. It is all about control with the rawest brute force available.
The United States hasn’t officially made Venezuela or any other a colony but it doesn’t have to do that. It just has to show that it is boss and the dominos will fall wherever it chooses.
Margaret Kimberley's Freedom Rider column appears weekly in BAR, and is widely reprinted elsewhere. She maintains a frequently updated blog as well as at http://freedomrider.blogspot.com. [12] Ms. Kimberley lives in New York City, and can be reached via e-Mail at Margaret.Kimberley(at)BlackAgendaReport.com.
Links:
[1] http://blackagendareport.com/category/department-war/war-against-syria
[2] http://blackagendareport.com/category/department-war/war-against-libya
[3] http://blackagendareport.com/category/department-war/us-imperialism
[4] http://blackagendareport.com/taxonomy/term/1439
[5] http://blackagendareport.com/category/asia-europe-and-middle-east/regime-change-ukraine
[6] http://blackagendareport.com/category/americas/regime-change-venezuela
[7] http://blackagendareport.com/sites/www.blackagendareport.com/files/us%20imperialism.jpg
[8] http://blackagendareport.com/content/obama’s-humiliating-defeat
[9] http://venezuelanalysis.com/news/10401
[10] http://www.blackagendareport.com/content/planning-war-and-deception-how-obama-administration-celebrates-king-holiday
[11] http://rt.com/business/ukraine-35-billion-imf-462/
[12] http://freedomrider.blogspot.com/
[13] http://www.addtoany.com/share_save?linkurl=http%3A%2F%2Fblackagendareport.com%2Fcon
[1] http://blackagendareport.com/category/department-war/war-against-syria
[2] http://blackagendareport.com/category/department-war/war-against-libya
[3] http://blackagendareport.com/category/department-war/us-imperialism
[4] http://blackagendareport.com/taxonomy/term/1439
[5] http://blackagendareport.com/category/asia-europe-and-middle-east/regime-change-ukraine
[6] http://blackagendareport.com/category/americas/regime-change-venezuela
[7] http://blackagendareport.com/sites/www.blackagendareport.com/files/us%20imperialism.jpg
[8] http://blackagendareport.com/content/obama’s-humiliating-defeat
[9] http://venezuelanalysis.com/news/10401
[10] http://www.blackagendareport.com/content/planning-war-and-deception-how-obama-administration-celebrates-king-holiday
[11] http://rt.com/business/ukraine-35-billion-imf-462/
[12] http://freedomrider.blogspot.com/
[13] http://www.addtoany.com/share_save?linkurl=http%3A%2F%2Fblackagendareport.com%2Fcon
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