The United States, often high atop the mountain of self-righteousness, constantly hammers away at other nations, screeching that they dare not develop nuclear weapons. The implied message is overwhelmingly clear: certain countries, as a result of their perceived untrustworthiness, are not fit to possess the ultimate deterrent. And whilst this message is true (who wants a nuclear Russia, Iran, North Korea or Israel?), it is myopic.
You see, a fair and balanced look at history suggests that the United States might also fall amongst those nations not suitable to wield nuclear weapons. When we gaze upon the smoldering remnants of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, we are starkly reminded that the USA, alone among the world’s nations, has ignited the devastating fires of atomic destruction. The indiscriminate slaughter of tens of thousands of innocent Japanese souls, vaporised in an instant, remains the most horrific act of warfare in human history. Are these the actions of a country that should pontificate about trustworthiness?
Fast-forward to the WTO flagpole-grabbing of the Vietnam War, where the United States unleashed a chemical assault on the populace, spray-painting the landscape with Agent Orange and napalm. The fiery terror of flame throwers and the systematic destruction of Vietnamese communities was the stark reality of an international reckoning. Was this a beacon of reliability flashing from the American masthead?
As we move forward in history, we recall how the USA built a spurious case to justify attacking Iraq, which act many now believe was really just a cover-up for starting a war to protect America’s petro-dollar cycle, which Saddam Hussein had challenged. For its shame, Britain along with other NATO members participated in this outrage, the result of which was the loss of about 200,000 innocent lives.
Today’s Trump administration has not diminished the USA’s penchant for international brutality. Under the leadership of Donald Trump, the current war on Iran has been a costly exercise, leaving thousands of innocent Iranian civilians in coffins and a nation in ruins. Trump’s recent threats against Venezuela, Mexico, Canada, and even Greenland were the rhetorical equivalent of a drunken man swinging at anyone in close proximity. And now, the spectre of World War III looms, with the Commander in Chief daring to threaten any ships navigating the Strait of Hormuz.
Does it not dawn on the world that perhaps the United States, under the leadership of some of its most unpleasant presidents, in its myriad of militaristic misadventures, might actually embody the very threat to global peace that it likes to accuse others of? Are Americans so convinced of their nation’s inherent goodness that they cannot see the forest for the trees? When a country has stained its hands with the blood of innocents, employed indiscriminate weapons of mass destruction, and touted an international interventionist doctrine, does it really have the moral high ground to dictate nuclear restraint to others? We recognise that it’s true, some nations are clearly not responsible enough to wield nuclear weapons, but might not the United States of America be counted amongst this number?
We must confront the reality check that despite their self-proclaimed status as the light of the world, the paternalistic proclamations of the United States often mask a hypocritical, interventionist foreign policy that destabilises entire regions. It is time to stop holier-than-thou finger wagging and gaze inward, acknowledging your own history of military overreach and the damage this has wrought upon innocent lives, in recent history.
Only then can Americans engage in constructive dialogue about the dangers of an unchecked nuclear proliferation, without projecting its own shadow onto the global stage. The onus of responsibility rests not just with those nations Americans prodially rebuke but also with American citizens, as they grapple with the contradictions inherent in the US nation’s chequered past and its ongoing role in shaping an often chaotic international landscape.
And lest anyone think our thoughts are unduly focussed on US failings, we note that other nations, including senior Western nations, such as Britain, France and Germany have chequered pasts too. Yet, on the whole the conduct of these nations has been substantially improved in recent times, perhaps not least due to their diminished military power and depending on the nation, the result of defeat, invasion, or loss of Empire. The outcome is that these nations today possess a maturity and a humility, developed through loss of status that the US has yet to experience. The US though has its own humbling destiny to await (which event is being hastened by the reckless behaviour of the Trump administration), due to its astronomical level of unmanageable debt and its diminishing relative military power. In sixty to a hundred years time it’s quite likely that in relative terms the USA will find itself in a similar situation to Britain, France or Germany today. Perhaps then, with a sense of humility developed through loss of status will the USA be mature enough to possess nuclear weapons?
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BBC News – Pope criticises ‘tyrants’ who spend billions on wars after Trump spat
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvg0z3n5e5jo
Worldwide Temple of Aurora 