A letter to my President: President Bush

Click here to return to my stories page.
Click here to return to my main page.
 

 
  Dear President Bush,
 
Well you and I have certainly had our disagreements in the past. We don't agree on your enviromental plan, nor do we agree on your economic plan. I will admit that I have even referred to you as a fake President, a man who was not even fairly elected.

  But doesn't that seem like yesterday's battle? Doesn't it seem like the world changed on Sept 11, 2001? It is true that the enviroment still matters, and that the economy still matters. But, at least for the moment, it seems like the world situation is more important.

  And today I say: Mr. Bush, you are my President. You are the leader of America. And I can also say that I believe that you are not a bad guy, that you certainly have the best interests of the nation at heart. And I can send you my prayers for you, and that you will take the best actions.

  I think that foreign policy is not one of your strengths. Up until now, it seems like your actions were fairly isolationist. You removed U.S. participation from the Kyoto treaty. You also threatened to unilaterally removed the Anti-Ballistic Missile treaty.

  Your response to this bombing has been to get on your warhorse. You plan to lead a "crusade". You want Mr. bin Laden, "dead or alive". And you have the happy plan to "rid the world of evil-doers". Isn't that nice and simple?

  But let's be realistic. It is possible that with the military might of the U.S., you may catch Mr. bin Laden, and bring him to justice. But do you plan to take over Afghanistan? And after that, maybe you plan to take over the Sudan, and Yemen? That could take a while. In fact it could be quite impossible.

  Impossible. Even for the world's superpower. Being the world's superpower doesn't mean that we can crush anyone with whom we disagree. The truth is more complex, and it may be somewhat disheartening. Previously, we had believed that in a violent and troubled world, we could live "inside the limo" (see book by Robert Kaplan), inside a bubble of peace and prosperity. We could sit around sipping our tea, and arguing about holes on a ballot, or Social Security surpluses.

  In fact, there is no limousine for us. We are citizens of the world. We are citizens of this world that contains the U.S. and Israel, as well as Palestine and Saudi Arabia. We are inside the U.S., where people commonly make $50,000 per year...compare that with India, where people may live on less than $500 per year.

  In this world, there is never victory. There is only the relief of living another day. The U.S.- the strongest military in the world- is small compared to the larger economic and socialogical forces of this world. It is possible that the forces of globalization will restructure the world, and the U.S., in ways that we cannot imagine.