Reflection #4

I thought that this week’s visit to the state department was incredibly relevant to our class discussion about democracy comparatively to the other trips we’ve taken. I really enjoyed what David Bame had to say about foreign policy and his experiences at the State Department. The way he respected our questions and remained interested in our thoughts made it hard to believe that he has spent so much time in the Middle East and was in the actual operation center on September 11^th 2001. In our class discussion the next day, we began to discuss whether or not it is right for the United States, or any other country for that matter, to enforce democracy.

To me, the phrase “enforcing democracy” seems slightly oxymoronic. Someone in class mentioned that democracy isn’t really democracy unless it is a product of the nation’s own citizen. I believe that democracy might not be for every single country for a variety of different reasons. For example, in many collectivist societies, harmony of the people and government along with preservation of culture and traditions are considered far more significant than individuality and competitive progression. In cases like this, a foreigner invading said nation would be seen as a threat to all that is valued by these people as opposed to the way we tend to view these situations. Interestingly enough, the State Department has different opinion on the matter. According to their website, “When historians write about [our] foreign policy…they will identify the growth of democracy as one of the United States’ greatest legacies.” While I have no problem with this statement, the page fails to go into detail about the means by which this is done. The page is filled with phrases like “prosperity for the new world,” and the U.S. will “establish vibrant democracies in [other] countries.” The colorful language provides a nationalistic feel, but I still can’t help but get an undertone of “the ends justify the means” type of attitude. Overall, I think this is a topic that will always be used to criticize our government, but truthfully after visiting the Defense Intelligence Agency, and learning that there are in fact many decisions being made that are deliberately kept from U.S. citizens, the sad but true fact is that many of us would rather believe that democracy is a perfect system instead of questioning the foundation and beliefs of our country.