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The United States’ removal from Afghanistan was a long time coming. One can argue about the consequences of this removal, namely the Taliban’s caretaker government swooping in to take over the country, but the primary takeaway should be this: The United States needs to keep their hands out of other countries.
The United States’ position as the world’s intermingler can be traced back to the post-WWII landscape. The United States had finally proved itself on the world stage. Before the conflict, the United States was seen as a rebellious child by much of the world, not the least of which was England. England certainly appreciated their help in ending World War One but the US leveled up after World War Two and the United States knew it. We began to expand our reach around the globe through ongoing conflicts with Russia. Throughout the 20th century, the United States and Russia slowly expanded their reach over the globe, never engaging in direct conflicts but instead choosing to exploit developing countries into committing proxy wars on their behalves. This conflict, called the Cold War, was centered around the two countries’ economic dominance, although many also attribute it to being a conflict between capitalism and communism (even though Russia’s brand of communism is a bit of a misnomer).
Despite what elected officials may claim, the United States has interfered in a multitude of elections around the world throughout the 20th century. When they chide interference from other countries in our elections, they are chiding the fact that countries’ other than the US are doing it, not the actual practice itself. This is just one effort of the American propaganda machine to distract the American people from the heinous exploitation of the global South that the United States has done over the past century.
Like all subjects, there is some nuance to this. There are certain situations where some measure of intervention would be morally right. Even though the United States did not enter World War Two until they were attacked by Japan, a conflict like the Nazi’s plan to exterminate those they deemed inferior is a situation where international intervention would be justified. Protecting human rights should be the mission around the world (even though it does not happen out that way).
The United States needs to remain out of the political process of other countries. For example, there is no reason for the United States to provide billions of dollars in aid to Israel, a country that is in no immediate danger or facing any political crises. The United States has influenced the political process of much of the Middle East since the fall of the Ottoman Empire and the destabilization that caused. This was due to a group of factors: the existence of oil deposits and the emergence of left-wing liberation theology in the region, and the growing war machine in the United States over the 20th century.
The United States needs to make a concerted effort to wind down the war machine. However, this country won’t because war is profitable and continual war is even more so.
