Wednesday, April 30, 2014

"Americans Want to Pull Back From World Stage”

WSJ Poll, today
Americans in large numbers want the U.S. to reduce its role in world affairs even as a showdown with Russia over Ukraine preoccupies Washington, a Wall Street Journal/NBC Newspoll finds.
In a marked change from past decades, nearly half of those surveyed want the U.S. to be less active on the global stage, with fewer than one-fifth calling for more active engagement—an anti-interventionist current that sweeps across party lines.
I get it. Who needs all that crap?
But let’s simply envision the POSSIBILITY of some of the consequences. Just among our allies.
  1. We tell Japan they are on their own unless invaded, but we will consult and work with them always.
    They then embark on a massive rebuilding of their armed forces, build the stealth jet Mitsubishi (makers of the Zero) designed, build ever large carriers, arm themselves with nukes, nuke subs and delivery vehicles, and in 20 years are far beyond where China is today, AT THE LEAST. They are a valuable ally, but our interests while somewhat similar are not identical, and they are feeling freer and freer to diverge, AND ACT
  2. We end all foreign aid, including that to Israel, and abandon efforts to be involved in forming a peace in the M.E.
    Israel’s private companies begin selling strategic electronics and avionics to nations not aligned with us. They begin to add SU-35’s, and sign an agreement for joint development of indigenous stealth jets with India,Japan, and Australia. They design a nuclear sub for construction by Germany (makers of the Dolphins) for general joint sale. They produce AEW aircraft based on the Airbus A-340 and sell it to any buyers. They sell drones to anyone who will pay.
  3. We sign an agreement with Iran over nukes and withdraw completely from the M.E. as a result.
    Iraq begins to slide towards being an ally/puppet of Iran and Kurdistan demands autonomy firing a full scale revolt in Turkish-Kurd areas, and ask for help from Israel to form a Kurdistan.
    The civil war in Syria never ends causing mass starvation, and as the situation deteriorates both sides break out WMD’s causing Israel to create a buffer zone inside Syria, bringing the IDF into direct contact with the IRGC.
The USA has no NEED to be involved in any of these situations, but these are all easily imaginable, and the direct result of simply turning inwards. None of them seem to be ‘bad’ for the USA.
But….add another 20 years
I don’t WANT to deal with any of that and am FAR MORE interested in seeing our economy be what it ought to be. I want to see more disposable income for everyone based on created wealth.
But, only today we have found radioactive tuna off Oregon from Fukushima. This is ONE WORLD. We can’t get out of it. We can neither be the world’s policeman, nor can we be some armed neutral in a mountain redoubt, not when a small nuclear exchange somewhere will have outsize effects and create a chain of events which can lead anywhere. Just look at a stinking tiny peninsula in the Black Sea we are NOT involved in.

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