First let me begin by saying I was appalled at the 9-11 event at the world trade center. Ideally we would like to live in a world where this sort of thing simply does not happen. Having said that, would my response have been to launch a preemptive first strike against two other counties? Absolutely not. It is not the job of the United States to single handedly impose their set of values on the rest of the planet. While President Clinton was in office we moved closer to a worldwide civilization through greater use of the United Nations. During that time the average citizen could feel the people of the planet getting more in tune with each other. After Clinton’s term in office we seemed to have lost all that we had gained in the earlier years.

I think it is essential that we back the United Nations as the authority in world politics. I also believe that in all actions where US forces might be used on foreign soil that we only operate in support of the United Nations. We need to start thinking and working like one country in a world of many countries.

One other issue is important here. When Clinton was president I could sleep peacefully at night with him being in charge of the football. I know that if something were to happen he would exhaust all other options before even considering the football. As thing are now I would not be surprised if the football has been redesigned to resemble an old west handgun that is kept under a pillow at night. This is ridiculous, the fate of the world should not rest in the hands of a single person.

There is one other item that needs to be made clear here. While I believe the action to launch a first strike against another country without the support of the United Nations was wrong, this does not mean I do not support the US Military. It is there job to carry out their mission and they have done so admirably. The poor judgment of our nations leaders does not spill over into my opinion on how the armed forces have performed.

Ask yourself how you feel when someone you know is the recipient of a “cheap shot”. Your feelings toward the situation depend on the response. If the recipient shrugs off the cheap shot does not respond with an eye for an eye, usually you will gain a respect for that person. But if that person responds in kind you don’t have the same respect for them. Why would this not hold true on a National level as well.