“Why does America always have to help everyone and try to save everyone? It’s like we’re trying to act like Jesus,” said freshman Cynthia Kinney one day during a class discussion.
With the debate continuing back and forth about the war in Iraq, I have been asking myself the same thing: Who appointed America to save the world? Is this something that our own government has egotistically placed upon us, or has it been pushed onto us by numerous other countries around the world? And what good are we actually doing?
The war in Iraq is a sidetrack from the war on terrorism. After Sept. 11, we vowed to find Osama bin Laden, but apparently his ninja skills outweighed our own, as he has remained in hiding with an incredible support system.
So, what does America do? We go after the one dictator whose classification could be construed as “terrorist.” And don’t forget to mention the personal vendetta that our president has against him for the attempted assassination of his father, or the lucrative oil to which Iraq owes its survival.
Meanwhile, the progress-if you could call it that-in Afghanistan is void because the Taliban is gaining power and bin Laden is still around to influence that governing force. And since we ripped Saddam Hussein out of his dictatorship with no apparent plan of action for the aftermath, we have spurred a civil war.
There are some who may say that Iraq was heading for a civil war whether we stepped in or not. Or that evil can only exist if good men do nothing, which is something that I have operated on for the last 10 years of my life.
However, this evil is not the evil of a little child crying because he fell on his bike and you stop to comfort him. It’s not even the evil of an accident on Foothill Drive and the good Samaritan stops to give his account of the accident or to assist any wounded until the police and ambulance arrive.
No. This evil is something that we never see in our daily lives. As such, we must have a solid plan on how to proceed. And no-getting the bad dude out and shoving our own democracy on Iraq is not the answer. Yes, it worked for us, but it is not the quick cut-and-paste solution for every country, especially one like Iraq.
So, to the average folk, it does seem like America is trying to be like Jesus, minus the good, diplomatic nature and the miracles. It’s no wonder that our previous allies are filled with anger and hatred toward Americans and our government.
They will continue until America can walk on water-or until we stop pretending to be someone we’re not.
