Hence, Kenneth Waltz’s assertion that there is no counterweight to balance the might of American power is quite true. The United States, by virtue of being the only superpower, has the responsibility to protect and spread democratic values to all parts of the world. Its foreign policy should be much more than “defending and promoting material national interests”. Such was the vision of its founding fathers. In order to maintain the noble traditions of its early years, American policies should avoid making a distinction between foreign and domestic. This way, the standards applied to others will apply to themselves as well, ensuring justice to all. More importantly, America will win back the lost support from other nations (Mould, 1996, p.141). To rectify this state of affairs the United States must:
1. Pledge its actions to international law;
2. Commit itself to a consensual mode of decision-making as opposed to an independent one.
3. Upkeep policies of moderation as against extremism.
4. Successfully preserve harmony and prosperity within the union of democratic nations.
Bibliography:
Anderson, R D (Spring 2005)., Lessons from history on the limits of imperialism: Successful small state resistance to great power aggression., Journal of Third World Studies, 22, 1. p.21(20).
Allen, T. (March 1, 2003). Perception is everything: the West talks of a moral case for war, yet Iraqis believe the US has committed grave crimes against them. Terry Allen looks at the battle for truth. (Comment and Analysis)., New Scientist, 177, 2384. p.25(1).
Chomsky, Noam., What Uncle Sam Really Wants, First published in 1993.
Mould, D H (June 1996). Press pools and military-media relations in the Gulf War: a case study of the Battle of Khafji, January 1991. Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, 16, n2. p.133(27).
Richard Jackson, “Writing, The War on Terrorism…”, Manchester University Press, published on August 11, 2005, ISBN-10: 0719071216 ISBN-13: 978-0719071218, 240 pages.
Hope, David., “Torture.” International and Comparative Law Quarterly 53.4 (Oct 2004): 807-832.
Palmer, Alasdair. “Is torture always wrong? Alasdair Palmer says that our absolute ban on all forms of torture is inconsistent with our acceptance of shoot-to-kill.” Spectator 299.9242 (Sept 24, 2005): 40(3).
Chomsky, Noam., Hegemony or Survival: America’s quest for Global Dominance., published in 2003.
Daalder, I. H., James Lindsay, The Preemptive-War Doctrine Has Met an Early Death in Iraq, Los Angeles Times, 30th May, 2004.
Harnden, Toby. “Hoping for the worst: Toby Harnden talks to an anti-war journalist who wants to see more Iraqis die–so that Bush will be thrown out in November.” Spectator, 295.9171 (May 15, 2004): 26(2).
Kagan, R., America’s Crisis of Legitimacy, Middle East, Foreign Affairs., March-April 2006. p.23(4).
Nye Jr., J S (July-August 2006). Transformational Leadership and U.S. Grand Strategy., Foreign Affairs, 85, 4. p.139.
Library of Congress Archives, accessed on 11th July, 2008.from