A Modern Age Manifesto: Paradigm Shifts and the Push Forward | Eastern North Carolina Now

     My wife and I are on a mission to change the way we eat and, consequently, the way we live. The bad habits we developed over the years have gotten us to a point where a dramatic and radical reversal of direction became necessary. To successfully move in that new direction, we needed to honestly acknowledge the harsh reality that the way we were doing things was not working. We also needed to confront the internal and external issues that prevented us from making those changes before now; we needed to be brutally honest about who we had become and how that needed to change. In short, we needed a paradigm shift.

     That sort of “tough love” approach to our own personal situation got me thinking about where we are at in this country. Our internal dynamics must truly make our allies laugh at the infighting and pettiness that our politics has now become. The sad part is that while we react to the issues of the day in a manner more reminiscent of schoolyard disagreements, the world around us changes quicker than we can even comprehend. America needs to have its own paradigm shift.

     First, and foremost, we need to acknowledge the honest, albeit ugly, truth of America’s declining position as alpha dog in the world’s kennel. For decades after World War II, the United States accepted its role as leader of the free world and guardian against the expansionist exploits of the Soviets and their communist proxy states. Our economic, political, and military dominance was predicated on the fact that our allies depended on us. Furthermore, the international economic system that the United States established following WW II clearly tilted to an American advantage.

     With the fall of the Soviet Union in the late 1980’s, the United States was left as the only superpower capable of wielding global influence. The problem for American foreign policy was and remains twofold; first, we did not know how to deal with the world without the Soviets as our foil and adversary. Does anybody really believe that if the Soviet Union were still in tact we would be dealing with Hugo Chavez as a legitimate threat in our own hemisphere? If the United States didn’t tolerate socialist president Salvador Allende to become the democratically leader of Chile in 1970, we sure as hell wouldn’t have allowed a communist to have access to Venezuelan oil and become a thorn in the American side. Second, on a much more global level, American influence has been rendered impotent because we simply do not have the economic juice and influence as we have in the past. Part of this equation is not of our doing, but rather the natural progression of the world developing and growing over the course of time. However, there is part of the equation that we have failed to acknowledge and come to terms with; the American form of capitalism and our understanding of the nature and role of government in a free society are seriously outdated and restrain us from strengthening our ability to compete on the global economic stage.

     It is with much bemusement that I continually hear Republicans preach the mythology of advocating smaller government on the federal level; as if lower taxes and a smaller federal government presence is going to actually assist a country with over 320 million people and a rapidly decreasing international economic leadership role. The reality is this: over the last 30 years the world has caught up to us. It is fair to say that we still have the worlds preeminent economy if you were to look at a snapshot of today’s picture. The problem is when you compare it with a snapshot 15 years ago, 10 years ago, and 5 years ago; the slices of the international economic pie are getting smaller and smaller due to burgeoning economies such as China, India, and the European Economic Union. These “new” players on the world stage present tangible problems in terms of developing a coherent economic strategy. The problem is that our European allies are reaping the benefits of an American economic policy based on the Cold War model. We have lived in a world where the United States spends more on the defense of Europe than they do themselves for way too long. Absent that burden, these countries have invested their money internally and collectively to form a most formidable economic adversary.

     Another aspect of this complicated economic scenario is the role that multinational corporations play in global economics. With emerging markets, cheap labor in third world economies, and a global transportation infrastructure that makes the importing and exporting of goods easier than it has ever been, companies with the ability to maximize their own profit margins have little incentive to remain loyal to any single country. I would suggest that the traditional political boundaries of individual nations have blurred significantly due to this trend. With that concept in mind, it is the country that allows economic viability for corporations that will thrive. For the United States to compete globally, we will have to accept a partnership with international companies. This will require a greater federal government presence in the economic fabric of how business gets done; not only economic promotion, but also societal protection from the greed and predatory nature of these companies. It is a delicate balance that requires a sober and rational approach from our own government.

     The push forward for our economic future is dependent upon our ability to accept that we are not in the Cold War any longer and that the world‘s emerging economies compete with us on a much more equal level. Our external focus should not be on our maintenance of our old model of American dominance, but an adjustment to maximize the strengths within the system we already have in place. That paradigm shift requires a fundamental change in our approach to government that the founders of this country could have never imagined.
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