Alfred McCoy - The Hidden Meaning of American Decline
Month by month, tweet
by tweet, the events of the past two years have made it clearer than ever that
Washington’s once-formidable global might is indeed fading. As the American
empire unravels with previously unimagined speed, there are many across this
country’s political spectrum who will not mourn its passing. Both peace
activists and military veterans have grown tired of the country’s endless wars.
Trade unionists and business owners have come to rue the job losses that
accompanied Washington’s free-trade policies. Anti-globalization protesters and
pro-Trump populists alike cheered the president’s cancellation of the
Trans-Pacific Partnership. The idea of focusing on America and rebuilding the
country’s tattered infrastructure has a growing bipartisan appeal.
But before we join
this potential chorus of “good riddance” to U.S. global power, it might be
worth pausing briefly to ask whether the acceleration of the American decline
by President Trump’s erratic foreign policy might not come with unanticipated
and unpleasant costs. As Americans mobilize for the 2018 midterms and the 2020
presidential contest, they might look beyond Washington’s mesmerizing celebrity
scandals and consider instead the hidden consequences of the country’s ongoing
withdrawal from the global arena. Indeed, this fitful, uncontrolled retreat
carries with it such serious risks that it might be time for ordinary voters
and political activists alike to put foreign policy, in the broadest sense, at
the top of their electoral watch list.
First,
let’s just admit the obvious. After 18 months in office, Trump’s one-man style
of diplomacy, though potentially capable of a few “wins,” is clearly degrading
American global stature. After surveying 134 countries, Gallup’s
pollsters recently reported that worldwide approval of U.S.
leadership has plunged from 48% in 2016 to a record low of 30%, a notch below
China’s 31% and significantly under Germany’s 41%... read more:
http://www.tomdispatch.com/post/176426/tomgram%3A_alfred_mccoy%2C_the_hidden_meaning_of_american_decline/#more
