The Age of Compromise Lost?

Whether we like it or not the United States has and will remain a dominant figure in the world of international relations. With her military might aside, the American Economy is arguably the most dominant player on the world stage. Even with promising newcomers such as Brazil, India, and the giant China, one  cannot ignore the power that the states hold over the global economy .  America accounts for nearly a quarter of the global GDP and is by far the largest consumer of energy in today’s world.

                With an expanding grip on the global economy and an energy crisis looming on the horizon for the planet it is impossible to ignore the political upheaval which has ground the states to a halt. The political division that has taken place in America today has created a rift within the country that has halted any significant progress in North America. The two political parties, Democratic and Republican, have decided to engage in what seems to be a pitched battle rather than politics. One could argue that this  political “war” began with the election of Ronald Regan and the end of the Southern Democrat in the 1980’s or was it the destruction of the Soviet Union shortly after? Whatever the reason for it the effects of this rift are all too tangible today.

                This rift was not formed overnight of course; it was a slow and gradual process resulting from a Nation with no rival other than herself. Without the Soviet Union we found the States assuming the role of “globo-cop” under the Bush and Clinton Administration. Both administrations decided to exercise America’s unrivaled military might to keep the world in check but, both inevitably encountered the same obstacle, politics. Whether it was the unfinished Gulf War or the failed humanitarian efforts of Somalia, their ends were political.  This did little to improve American popularity on the global scale, while the Gulf war proved the UN could act as an incredibly effective force for intervention, efforts in Somalia rebuked all gains. Following these and into today’s Global war on terror, the United States has done little to improve her standing on the global scale and continued to plummet in the world view. 

                One has to ask themselves, why? Why has the United States fallen into her present state? She was the mother or modern democracy, the savior of the west in world war two, a stronghold against the might of communism half a century, and placed a man on the moon in less than a decade. It is impossible to think that a country with the will and power of the United States would continue to spiral into her present state because of political strife. The Republican and Democratic parties are not new to the United States. Why now have they lost their abilities to work with each other and accomplish a greater goal? Was the destruction of NASA and end of the lunar programs truly worth the small political gain achieved? No, the United States and the world for that matter rests within the hands of a few men and I fear that if compromise is lost we have only seen the forefront of what is to come.