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Right, I'm 100% against the dismantling of our foreign aid programs, USAID included.. However, the world playing both sides of the coin on "US World Police" be
by steveBK123 1y ago
Right, I'm 100% against the dismantling of our foreign aid programs, USAID included..
However, the world playing both sides of the coin on "US World Police" being bad when it does stuff but also bad when it doesn't do stuff is part of how we end up where we are.
It's a minuscule part of our budget, but an easy sell for right wingers to say "well the world isn't grateful for it and its all a bunch of waste so we are killing it" then get if not majority support, less than 50% disapproval.
- refurb 1y agoI think it’s important for people to educate themselves about USAID. International aid isn’t the point, it’s a channel for shaping the world according to the US’ goals. For example, look up the role of USAID in the Vietnam war. It was used to fund village self defense forces and the Phoenix program which used targeted apprehension and assassination to combat the Viet Cong. Sure it dug a few wells but net net I don’t think anyone can argue USAID had a positive impact for Vietnam. USAID is 98% political interference and 2% aid. You’d think people who oppose US interference in other countries would applaud shutting USAID down. But apparently not.
- specialist 1y agoYou prompted me to learn something about USAID. Thank you. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Agency_for_International_Development https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Agency_for_Inter... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_United_States_Agency_for_International_Development https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_United_States_A... I've always kind of assumed the USA's hegemonic "soft power" (Peace Corps, USAID) was an outgrowth of Civil Affairs Units. Likewise, I assume the USA's chaotic, neurotic policies are the result of the never-ending food fight between liberals and reactionaries. Reflected in the tortured history of USA's domestic policy making wrt foreign policy. Carrots vs sticks. Regardless, hegemony is not great. Will a multi-polar world be better (overall)? Insofar as "soft power" prevents the greater evil of war, I'm all for it. (Per the cliché "war is the failure of diplomacy".) Obviously, reactionary tantrums (neocons, GWOT, Second Gulf War w/ Iraq, total failure in Afghanistan, etc, etc) are complete failures. Further, I am skeptical that any "soft power" can be more moral than not (on the balance). I acknowledge that the USA (and friends) have managed to pull off a few win/win scenarios, like PERPAR. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President%27s_Emergency_Plan_for_AIDS_Relief https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President%27s_Emergency_Plan_f... For future, I'm for whatever reforms or innovations or governance or moral progress or whatever which supplants hegemony with something better. The prospect of Pax Sinica, Pax Europa, Pax Indica, or whomever, is no more desirable than (our now waning) Pax Americana.
- account42 1y agoIt's because those people like (some of) the interference USAID has been doing.
- ceejayoz 1y agoPrecisely. If you wanna be the hegemon, you have to act like the hegemon.
- Filligree 1y agoThe rest of the world may think it's bad when the CIA does things, and bad when USAID doesn't do things. The nature of the thing which is being done is relevant.
- deleted 1y ago[deleted]
- account42 1y agoYes and if they want to choose what is done they don't get to demand that others do it.
- Gud 1y agoThis argument makes absolutely no sense. You can be against empire x taking action y while being positive it’s taking action z.
- AlecSchueler 1y agoYou can also be against American hegemony and include USAID in that while recognising that suddenly stopping it without any attempt to pivot towards a better balance makes no sense for anyone in the world.
- deleted 1y ago[deleted]
- ceejayoz 1y agoThe world lets us take action y (which they don’t necessarily like) because we do a lot of action z.
- Gud 1y agoNo, the US imposes its will on the rest of us by having an awesome arsenal and an eagerness to use it.
- datavirtue 1y agoYou forgot freedom and dignity. There is one source for that in the world, the US. You can flail all day but you won't be able to point to another power that preserves that chance for everyone.