The Washington Outsider

Democracy, Power, and Chaos Doctrine: Combating Special Interests and Unresponsive Government

1/5/2018

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Today, the Iranian Protests and the Trump Administration’s departure from traditional US policies dominate the news.  The first part of the Twenty-First Century has, of course, been defined by numerous democratic uprisings in the Middle East, North Africa, and, to a lesser extent thus far, Asia.  Most of these revolutionaries were not necessarily seeking democratic governance as their primary motivation was economic freedom and opportunity, but these protesters have embraced the democratization process by asserting their interests and demanding control over their governments.  Although the populations of Europe and the Americas enjoy varying degree of democratic revolutions, they too have protested in pursuit of greater economic freedom and opportunity.  Unfortunately, their efforts have had mixed results, at best, because their successes have been hijacked by those who seek power.
​Democracy is as much a means to secure individual freedoms and protections as it is a means for the People of a nation to assert control over their government.  Democracy is embraced by a population to empower individuals by affording them representation in government and compelling government to act in line with the interest of the governed.  From voting to civil engagement to protests, acts of democratic participation are a way for a democratizing population to assert influence control over their government.  In practice, no democratic government is a perfect democracy.  The democratic nature of a government, and society, is measured in degrees, not absolutes.  While democratic governments are supposed to pursue the common interests of the People, powerful groups and individuals capitalize on any opportunity to assert undue influence on government for their own gain.
 
The 2016 US Election resulted in the election of President Donald Trump, because Democratic voters had deep reservations about establishment-promoted Hillary Clinton while Donald Trump convinced Republican voters that he would return government to the People.  Trump voters voted for Trump, because they believed his election would give US citizens greater control over government and/or they believed Clinton’s victory would mean less responsive governance.  In other words, the 2016 US Election was a democratic act that sought to return control of the US government to the American People.  The American People have long sought to reign in their own government, yet it continues to be dominated by special interests and political elites who act on their own interests.  For most, however, Trump’s victory, like Obama’s Presidency, is failing to reform the US government.  It is a situation all too familiar throughout the world.
 
As the world’s first modern and most powerful democracy, the US serves as an example for the Peoples, nations, and governments of the world.  The failure of the US government to heed the collective, albeit often conflicting, will and interests of the American People says a great deal about the state of the world.  Trump voters sought change through the election of Donald Trump.  Similarly, Obama voters sought change through the election of Barack Obama.  Constructive change cannot be achieved by simply transferring power from one individual or group to another.  Government, any government, is a source of power.  Like all sources of power, government attracts those who would corrupt and abuse power to pursue their interests at the expense of others.  Consequently, the true threat to the Peoples of the world is those who seek to seize power for their own goals, not the institutions of power.
 
This threat can be better understood through foreign policy, specially US foreign policy toward the Middle East.  Westerners tend to interpret actions of leaders like Russian Vladimir Putin as an effort to dominate in the face of chaos.  The objective is for the powerful to use chaos to prevent opposition groups from uniting and undermining the interests of the powerful.  The Russian seizure of Crimea and subsequent support of separatists in Eastern Ukraine is seen as an example of a chaos doctrine at work.  Many see US foreign policy in the Middle East as the product of a chaos doctrine as well.  The so-called Axis of Resistance, i.e. powers including Iran and Syria that reject what might be called US Imperialism, is often framed as the target of a US Chaos Doctrine.  Anti-American groups go so far as to proclaim the likes of Saddam Hussein, Muammar Gaddafi, and Bashar al-Assad are victims of the US, because they resist US control and demands.
 
In the eyes of anti-American groups Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Iran are beacons of stability until US interference.  While it is true ill-conceived US policies have helped fuel conflicts, most notably the Palestinian-Israel Conflict and the Iraq War, the alleged stability of these countries is convenient for the regional power and International Community, yet stagnating to horrific for the Peoples of these lands.  Hussein, Gaddafi, and Assad were all able to sustain their grip on power by utilizing foreign support while Gaddafi had rigged his society to collapse in his absence.  Despite blame directed at the US, the US is not the architecture of Middle Eastern chaos when its people seek freedom and its regional powers seek to dominant.  That said, the US has, and does, cater to special interests groups that abuse US power to achieve their own goals in the Middle East.  
 
When the US under the leadership of President Bill Clinton intervened in Yugoslavia against Slobodan Milošević, which some do characterize Milošević as a victim of US Imperialism, it was largely framed as a humanitarian action, even though it defied the will of the International Community.  Seeing Gaddfi’s tanks and Assad’s barrel bombs unleashed on peaceful protesters, many Americans wanted to use US military might to protect the protesters from their own governments.  Not only have terrorist factions been able to benefit from material aid supplied to rebel factions by the US government, powers within the Middle East and beyond have steadily hijacked US action to pursue their own agendas.  If the American People want to protect the Syrian or Libyan Peoples, they have the say to do so.  Democracy is, after all, supposed to empower the People of a nation to use their national resources as they see fit.
 
The problem is that special interests have undue influence over the US government.  Empowering Russia or China over the United States, for example, would do nothing, because it would simply mean power is being transferred from one institution to another.  The abuse of US power and the power of other governments can only be stopped by securing the power for the Peoples of the United States and the Peoples of the world.  The United States, nor Russia or China, are threats to the world.  It is the individuals who wish to, or have, seized control of government power.  It is these individuals, who use any form of power, which is not limited to the power government amasses, to pursue their interests and agendas without regard to the harm done to others who are the threat.  The only way to fight these abusive power seekers is to empower the Peoples of the world.  It is to return the power of government and all other forms of power to the consensus of the People.  
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      • An Essay on the Role of Government: Why Each Generation Must Define Democracy for Itself
      • Democracy and the Narrowing Power Elite
      • Assessing the Limits of Democracy
      • Do Americans value freedom?
      • Belittling Our Political Leaders
      • Defining "Liberal" and "Conservative"
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        • Assessing US Elections Part I: Framing Issues Properly is an Important Political Tool
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        • Should the Government Control Talk Radio to Make it More "balanced"?
      • How the People Are Lost in the Extremes of 'Right' and 'Left' in Politics
      • Should One's Faith Influence a Citizen's Vote?
      • Should the U.S. Government Help Fund Election Campaigns?
      • On Defunding Political Science Research
    • Worldview >
      • Justice for All: The Case for Legal, Social, Economic, and Personal Justice
      • Why Hardliner Thinking in the NSA and CIA is Doing Damage
      • On the Baby Boomer’s Self-Centeredness
      • The Case for Personal Responsibility
      • What Modern Day Revolutionaries Need to Learn from Leader's like Mandela
      • Rising Western Acceptance of LGBT Primes Culture Clash
      • The Need for Wisdom Beyond the Numbers
      • Perceptions of the United States
      • How Honesty Relates to the Great Recession
      • Why the Middle Class and Rich Need to Support Their Long-term Interests
      • The Aristocratic Republic of the United States of America
      • Discussing the Need for Community Support
      • Why New Forms of Capitalism and Socialism Will Compliment Each Other
      • The Reason We Need to Understand What it is to Be Poor in America
      • Why the World Needs to Reinvest in America
      • Why Are We Against Terrorism?
      • Why Does Terrorism Exist?
      • US Influence: The Value of American Citizenship Around the World
      • Responding to "the Soldier as Sacrficial Victim"
    • Human Nature >
      • How comfort defines us as people >
        • Is Suicide a Cowardly Way Out?
      • Defense Against the Dark Arts of Manipulators
      • Defining Abuse >
        • On the Willing Victim of Abuse
        • How to Understand Abuse Victims
        • Recognizing Abuse
      • The Role of Substitution in Decision Making
      • Trying to Understand PTSD and Other Trauma-induced Mental Health Issues
      • Exploring Human Emotion >
        • Mental Illness is Not the Cause of Anger and Violence >
          • Trying to Understand the Boston Marathon Bombing and Other Violent Crimes
          • Getting into the Twisted Mind of the Tucson Murder
      • Describing the Mind as Modes of Thought >
        • It’s Just Sex?
      • Relationships, or Arrangement
      • Understanding the Effects of Groupthink in the Workplace
      • Relating Circular, Inductive, and Deductive Reasoning to the Scientific Method and Religion
      • What is a Redneck? Understanding Different Cultures and Thinking
    • Economics >
      • The Need for Greater Economic Leverage >
        • Evaluating NAFTA and TPP
        • Undercutting Logistics with the Underpaid Independent Contractor
        • Unions: Hindrance or Essential to Free Markets
        • Eminent Domain Used Against Banks
        • Haitians Sue the UN for Failure to Help With Cholera
        • Looking at How Corn-based Ethanol and Other Alternative Energy Subsidies Stack Up
      • Empowering the Sovereign Nation-State by Rethinking Trade Policy >
        • Irish Sovereignty Lost Before Bailout
        • Why Sudan's Greatest Long-Term Hurdle is Our Lowest-bidder Economy
        • Reduce US Imports by Buying American Made Products
      • Ending the need for government support and tackling poverty
      • Income inequality: understanding the limitations and psychology of disadvantage
      • Looking at the Future of American Jobs >
        • On Questioning the Need to Address Economic Disparity
        • Minimum Wage is Not the Problem
        • Responding to the "Blip"
        • Why Education Is Not The Civil Rights Issue Of The Twenty-First Century
      • Considering the Impact of the Capital Gains Tax Deduction
      • Embracing a Capitalist Mindset >
        • Capitalism Versus Socialism
        • The Negatives of Socialism
      • Stealing Intellectual Property
      • Changing Business Models: From Enduring Entities to Cash Cows
      • Consumer and Investor Evolution in the Great Recession of 2008-09
      • Dealing with the Issues Surrounding the Patenting of Self-replicating Technologies
      • Is Technology Threatening Jobs?
    • Education >
      • The Role of Education in Creating a More Dynamic Workforce
      • Primary Education in America and the Changing Needs of Society
      • The Greatness of the American Education System
      • Ideas for Improving the United States Education System
      • Are Teachers Treated as Professionals?
      • Is Engaging Parents in Their Children's Education a Major Factor in Turning Around Low-performing Schools?
      • Should Grants Be Awarded to School Districts that Try Innovative Methods to Improve Student Achievement?
    • US Constitution >
      • On Reading the US Constitution
      • The Senate should not do more to limit the powers of the Judicial Branch
      • On the DOJ Justifying the “targeted Killings” of US Citizens
      • Corporations Do Not Have the Same Rights as US Citizens >
        • Corporate America Pleads the First
      • Discussing the Constitutionality of Per Capita Taxes
      • Was the California Supreme Court Right in Legalizing Gay Marriage?
      • Should the Bible Continue to Be Used for Swearing-in Ceremonies and in Courtrooms?
      • Should Religious Student Clubs Be Allowed in Public Schools?
      • Should the Government Control Talk Radio to Make it More "balanced"?
      • The Second Amendment: Not Outdated >
        • Are We Losing Our Second Amendment Rights
      • Eminent Domain Used Against Banks
      • Should a Woman Have the Right to Choose Abortion? >
        • Should Fathers Be Able to Opt Out of Parenthood?
      • Should Smoking Be Allowed in Public Places?
      • Is Teen Driving a Right or a Privilege?
      • Should US Companies Be Required to Provide Equal Pay to Women and Men?
      • Is eighteen too young to vote?
      • First Amendment Rights: The Priviledge of The Press
      • Do Mandatory Seat Belt Laws Violate Individual Rights?
      • Should cell phone use be banned while driving?
      • Dealing with the link between video game violence and children's behavior
      • Should police have to submit to routine drug and alcohol testing?
      • Public schools should not impose mandatory drug testing on students
      • Are High Taxes on Cigarettes Proper?
      • Should pharmacists be required to violate their religious beliefs and dispense the "Morning After Pill?"
      • Should school counselors uphold patient privacy or report students who become unstable?
  • For the record
    • Ongoing Issues >
      • Red Dawn in Ukraine: Understanding the Actions of Russia >
        • On Russia’s Coercion of Ukraine
        • The Russian Annexation of Crimea in the Eyes of the World
        • Putin Has Overplayed His Hand With Crimea
        • Ukraine in Terms of Resovereignization
        • Avoiding a Conflict Between America and Russia Over Ukraine
        • What Drives the World’s Interest in Russia’s Actions in Ukraine
      • China’s Aggressive Pursuit of Interests Demands a Global Response
      • Iran Makes a Deal: A Start to a Long-term Diplomatic Effort to Denuclearize Iran >
        • On the Future of a Nuclear Negotiations with Iran
      • America's Sphere of Influence: Retaking South-East Asia >
        • Power in Asia: Looking at the Power Shift in Japan
        • The China Paradox: Why America is Worried About China
      • Assessing US Support of Israel >
        • Tread Softly Israel for a Heavy Step May Be Your Undoing
      • Understanding the Dysfunctional Nature of the US-Pakistani Relationship
      • Recognizing the True Threat Behind the Current Unrest in the Middle East >
        • Reacting to the Escalating Crackdown in Syria
      • Assessing the Threat of North Korea >
        • Answering North Korea's Call for Food Aid: Breaking the Vicious Cycle Forced Upon Us by a Warring Nation
        • Dealing with the Restarting of the Korean War
        • North Korea Attacks South Korea
      • Dealing with the Ill-effects of Climate Change
      • Racial Inequality and Oppression Do Truly Exist in Today's Society
      • Should energy independence be a high priority in the US?
      • An overview of world wide Human Rights violations
      • Nuclear Threat from Pakistan
      • Return of The Cold War?
    • World >
      • Coverage of FIFA World Cup is a Chance to Focus on Poverty >
        • The FIFA World Cup Offers Benefits for More Than Brazilian Soccer Fans
        • FIFA Can Bring Brazilians Together as a Nation
      • Being Prepared for Any Potential Dangers at the FIFA World Cup Games
      • Treading Softly on the Politicizing of the 2014 Sochi Olympics Over Gay Rights
      • Why NATO Operations in Libya Lack a Well-defined Mission
      • China Hijacks the Web
      • Lessons from the Great Japanese Earthquake of 2011
      • A Modernizing Cuba Offers an Opportunity for Capitalists
      • The Seeds of Democracy Take Root in the Middle East
      • The Rebirth of Democracy in Tunisia
      • What May Come from the Hurt Revolution in Libya
      • Responding to the Violence of Qaddafi and Other Besieged Leaders
      • Embracing the Rise of a Democratic Egypt
      • Protests in Afghanistan Turn Deadly for Coalition Forces and UN Personnel
      • Haiti: Another Failing Humanitarian Investment
      • What Karzai Can Learn from Calderon
      • START II: A Necessary, Easy Success that Nearly Failed
      • Why Does the U.S. Government Support Independence for the Breakaway Serb Territory of Kosovo but Oppose Independence for the Breakaway Georgian Territories of Abkhazia and South Ossetia?
      • Iraq's Electric Issues: When Human Wants Trump Economic Sense
      • The International Community Reacts to Wikileaks: We May Be Moving Toward a Third World War in Cyberspace
      • On Climate Gate
      • Assessing Obama's Afghanistan War strategy
      • 2009 Iranian Presidential Election: The Fallout
      • Resolving Sri Lankan Conflict through Free Media
      • What are the Global Consequences of Russia's Invasion of Georgia
      • The War in Iraq: an assessment of President Bush's surge strategy
      • Drug War: Actions of Venezuela, Columbia, Ecuador in terms of Resovereignization
      • Is the Iraq Refugee Crisis America's Responsibility?
      • US support for a united Kosovo, Abkhazia, and South Ossetia: why?
      • Should the US withdraw from Iraq?
      • Setting a Timetable for Troop Withdrawal from Iraq is a Terrible Mistake
      • War on Terrorism is needed
    • Law and Order >
      • Rape in the US Military
      • Ethics of Force-feeding Guantanamo Bay Detainees
      • Reacting to the Aftermath of the Tucson Massacre
    • Economy >
      • Affordability Drives Fear of Obamacare and the Individual Mandate
      • Is the Economy Built for a Job's Recovery?
      • Gutting Healthcare Reform of the Individual Mandate
      • Arizona Budget Cuts Lead to Lethal Healthcare Rationing:
      • Shameful Collection Practices of American Banks
      • The Fed Reveals it Actually Undertook an International Bailout
      • Thoughts on French Budgetary Reforms
      • Seniors Start Businesses
      • The Case for Slimming Down the US Military to Make it Better
      • Looking at the Obama Administration's New Approach to Economic Policy
      • Should the Government Regulate the Credit Card Industry?
      • The Big Three's Big Chance
      • The Unhealthy Tone of the Healthcare Reform Debate
      • Should the federal government offer a bailout for home owners?
      • Environmentalists: Do They Do More Good Than More Harm?
      • Responding to Scott Walker's Contribution to the War on Unions
    • US Government >
      • America Needs to Focus on the Impending Fiscal Crisis
      • Reacting to the Bush Era-tax Cut Extension Deal
      • Quitting the Obama Revolution: The Fickle Nature of American Politics
      • John Boehner's Circus
      • Is the Fed Putting Itself in Jeopardy?
      • Wikileaks Goes After the US State Department
      • Discussing the Political Environment Surrounding the 2011 Budget Debate
      • What the Democrats Can Do to Ensure a GOP Year in 2012
      • What the 2010 Midterm Actually Said
      • Congresswoman Kathy Dahlkemper
      • Democrats Minus Nancy Pelosi Equals Opportunity
      • Terrorists Go Postal: The Terrorism Threat Reexamined
      • Victory in the 2008 Election: Reaction to Barack Obama'a Win >
        • Expectations for Barack Obama
      • President Obama's first one hundred days
      • John McCain's Negative Campaign
      • Reasons People did not Elect John Mccain
      • History judges the George W. Bush Administration
      • Should the next US President focus on domestic issues?
      • President Bush, should he resign or be impeached
      • Should the Ban on Government Sponsored Assassinations be Repealed
    • Off Topic >
      • A Face of America’s Greatest Generation
      • A Story About a Man Who Made the World a Better Place
      • Making the World a Better Place
      • The Bipolar Ethical Nature of Google
      • Learning Computer Plays Jeopardy
      • Verifying Medicine is the Real Thing
      • Taking a Practical Step Forward in Optical Computing Using Slow Light
      • Scientists Take a Closer Look at How Lithium Batteries Work
      • Remarking on the First Blizzard of the 2010-2011 Winter Season
      • Driving in the Snow: Acceleration is the Key
      • How People in Northwest PA Are Coping with the Increasing Cost of Oil
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