Pros And Cons Of American Imperialism

America, a nation built upon the values of ‘life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,' has been referred to as the most powerful country in the world. While some people praise the U.S. for this great triumph, others resent it. And despite this obvious victory, many of America's leaders and policymakers suffer from an ‘inferiority complex,' often feeling the need to act in ways that make the U.S. seem more superior. The actions exerted by America are reminiscent of a very outdated practice, called imperialism. This term has recently brought upon many arguments concerning the United States as an empire, particularly in the character and logic of U.S. domination that is at issue. America should not assert its economic, military, and cultural
Leaders, such as the president, are determined to spread "democracy" and deny any "predatory interests," despite avid force on other nations (Fellow). It seems that after September 11, many more Americans are willing to "avenge the attacks" by going overseas to "remake the world" to resemble one similar to the U.S. (Fellow). These goals quite comparable to an empire can only be achieved with the assertion of America's "supremacy around the globe" (Fellow). America is an empire, yet all the force and strength put into the role only creates burden. As the U.S. invades other countries to spread its democracy, "puppet governments" are formed to impose the rule (Hoffman). These types of governments almost always fail because the values that America holds are forced upon the weaker nations. America and its people are not "prepared for the burdens of empire" as they do not have sufficient funds or military to spread across the world (Goodman 9). With a decrease in resources as America expands its democracy, a decrease in allied powers will also occur (Ricks). The power that America holds is being pushed into countries, thus creating competitors and even enemies. Not only is the nature of America's intentions imperialistic, but they also seem to be for a particular purpose, namely oil. Especially with the war in
The military budget in our country has skyrocketed, and for what? Those opposing the argument say that defense is needed to ensure freedom, but defense should not be pre-emptive war. These types of actions have sparked "a series of diplomatic and political problems" with both friend and foes (Goodman 10). In addition to problems, spending has risen with "$5 billion a month" in a vain effort to defend freedom (Goodman 10). Even though it is apparent that the U.S. is constantly trying to nation-build, it remains in denial of being an empire. America doesn't identify that there are responsibilities when building nations. The fact that there is not "adequate cooperation and support" from those it supposedly helps further proves the nations stance as an empire (Ferguson). The steps taken toward building other nations should be "internationalized under civilian […] control" and not militarily (Goodman 9). Especially with freedom in mind, war should be that last form of action on America's list. "Intelligence and law enforcement" should be the first steps used in the battle against terror (Goodman 10). Such steps have previously been witnessed to work more effectively than military force. Additionally, "international diplomacy" could be another action used before military forces to manage crises throughout the world (Goodman