Rudolph Giuliani Makes Me Cry

I just finished reading Rudy Giuliani's version of "America's Next Foreign Policy" in the September/October edition of Foreign Affairs. My immediate reaction? I don't want that man to be President.

I understand that most politicians nowadays feel like you need to scare the public into voting for you, but it makes me sick. An election should be about choosing the best candidate, a campaign about showing why your candidate is the best. Never should the threat be made that failing to elect a candidate will result in disaster, whether that threat is veiled or not.

But, I am not that naive as to think that any political campaign will be that clean. What scares me even more, though, is that the policies being forwarded by Giuliani are taking fear-mongering to new levels. There isn't a Republican candidate on the slate that won't mention 9/11 in the first few lines of a speech, but Giuliani is the worst. Fear is his entire campaign. It is the basis for every policy he suggests.

"The United States must not rest until the al Qaeda network is destroyed and its leaders, from Osama bin Laden on down, are killed or captured." - Rudy Giuliani
"To kill the Americans and their allies -- civilians and military -- is an individual duty for every Muslim who can do it..." - Osama bin Laden

Am I the only one who sees the similarities in tone and message? Now don't get me wrong, I despise terrorism in all of its forms as much as anyone. The problem that I am having is seeing the fundamental difference between the non-state terrorism that al Qaeda practices and the ultra-violent American policies that have perpetuated the "War on Terror." Fear is fear, whether it is defended by the state system or not. And using it as a political tool whether you have legitimately gained power or simply claim it, is wrong.

America is the most powerful nation on Earth, for now. But if we keep wasting our energy on fear and fighting, we will lose that status as surely as every great nation has fallen. Instead, it is imperative that we use our power properly. It is in our abilities to fight injustice, fear, poverty and oppression. But, in order to do that, we must refrain from practicing such methods. Anger can not convince us that what is wrong is right. Torture is wrong, vengeance is empty, victory is fleeting, and glory is nothing without honor. Why can't we fight fear with tolerance, hunger with food, brutality with justice? American culture has much to offer the world in the realms of understanding and cooperation.

But we must realize the values of goodwill and cooperation. We must acknowledge that the greater good of the nation is indelibly linked to the greater good of the world. Why can't we forget the word enemy? Why can't we organize and centralize our peaceful, humanitarian efforts as Mitt Romney suggested? Why can't we begin converting our overseas military bases into universities? Why can't we rededicate a small portion of the money reserved for maintaining old, antiquated military equipment to providing AIDS medicine for Africa. Friends are so much more valuable than enemies.

The world certainly does not need a paranoid superpower. And America doesn't need Giuliani.