SK asked me to work on one more post. Truth is though, it’s hard to work up the insensitivity to write what I intended to write, considering her post this morning. Understand that by writing what she has that she’s probably in a lot of trouble. I don’t think she cares right now, though. My best wishes to her though, in this time of difficulty.
There has been a strengthening resolve, especially in America, that no punches should be pulled in order to combat “evil” throughout the world. Protecting “the American lifestyle” has taken priority over United Nations mandate. Corporate interests have taken over even the interests of the American people. To make it clear, I’m not bashing Americans: I have many friends and even family that live in the US and they are good people. But, you see, that’s the key: They are people, like the rest of us in the world. What scares me about America–the rhetoric of the nation America–is this insistance on pre-destination. Even those who would blow me off for saying so likely believe that they have the right to defend their nation, that their nation is just, that the just are superior, and finally, that the superior must protect (perhaps even spread) their culture by any means.
Removing the equation of Powers from US military defense, the decrease in deployed and stockpiled nuclear weapons will actually be counterbalanced by an ability to manufacture an arsenal if necessary:
The administration’s work to restore a modern infrastructure includes, among other things, three ongoing initiatives:
(1) planning for a Modern Pit Facility to restore the nation’s ability to manufacture plutonium parts for nuclear warheads;
(2) an advanced concepts program to enable scientists and engineers at the national nuclear weapons laboratories to retain critical skills and to provide the United States with means to respond to new, unexpected, or emerging threats in a timely manner; and
(3) enhanced test readiness.
Completion of these programs and the realization of a responsive infrastructure will offer opportunities for the United States to reduce further the nuclear stockpile secure in the knowledge that the nation has enhanced its capabilities to respond to possible future challenges to its security.
Sincerely,
Linton F. Brooks
AdministratorUSInfo: U.S. Plans to Reduce Nuclear Weapons Stockpile Substantially
There is also the recent increase in Private Military Company usage, especially in the conflict in Iraq. Not only is this a case of civilians involved in combat situations, but that states are held accountable for the actions of the PMCs they employ without a well-structured international guideline.
In the case of PMC involvement in Iraq, holding employees of PMCs accountable for their actions proved difficult for the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) because of CPA Order 17, which stipulated that “contractors [including PMCs] shall be immune from the Iraqi legal process with respect to acts performed by them pursuant to the terms and conditions of a contract or any sub-contract thereto.” Since the termination of the CPA, Iraqi efforts to keep a closer watch on PMCs have proved difficult. In May 2005, erstwhile Deputy Interior Minister Adnan Asadi sent a letter to PMCs operating in Iraq, warning the companies that if they continued to disobey local laws, “the cancellation [of PMC licenses] will be circulated to all state offices, with the aim of shunning any dealing with [PMCs].” However, such threats have often been disregarded; the Washington Post reported in September 2005 that Iraqi citizen Ali Ismail was shot at by PMCs while in traffic. It therefore seems clear that it is a duty of the US government as well as the Iraqi government to rein in the PMCs.
Kwok, James “Armed Entrepreneurs: Private Military Companies in Iraq”
The ability to generate a nuclear arsenal at a moment’s notice and the ability to deploy armed civilians without proper international regulation? This doesn’t sound so different from the situation in Watchmen to me. That any other nation with the wealth to field the same abilities can does not comfort me at all.
If certain people in powerful positions within the US government truly believe America’s own Exceptionalist rhetoric, then it will only take another nation with sufficient firepower and a conflict of interest to cause another international ordeal, as Iraq has shown (whether or not you believe that there have been weapons of mass destruction housed there with the intention that they be used to attack Western powers). In the worst case, the Doomsday clock could be started all over again, though I hope no such thing ever occurs.
This extends too to the role of the superhero: With the highest concentration of Powered citizens in the world, yet another arsenal could be called into play by the United States. It will only be a question of where an individual Power’s allegiance lies. Powered citizens are no less exempt from rhetoric and politics, and in many ways, they would not be so much different than the PMCs that are fielded today. With what right does an exceptional individual judge whether they should side with one nation over another? It is only their own personal right to do what they believe in within the guidelines of the law: But what happens when both law and rhetoric promote fervent righteousness and ideological superiority? Again, I can only criticize the rhetoric that can hold people enthralled. Any ideology that promotes superiority of a person or people over another should be kept at mental arm’s length. If it nests in heart and mind, the only thing that separates a hero from a villain is social acceptance.
Look upon your works, ye mighty, so that we may not fall into despair.
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