The Transformation of America

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The transformation of America is often discussed in both popular media and academic dialogue. Each generation has a name, new technologies define new eras, and events seem only notable when they are “historic”. While major events catch the interest of a broad spectrum of the public consciousness, subtle interactions between actors and slight shifts in beliefs are constantly changing the realities of the world. When the twin towers fell in 2001, the United States seemed to be thrust into a new world of Weapons of Mass Destruction, Jihadists, and a global fight against terrorism; bombs were dropped, ground forces were deployed in foreign states, and anyone who publicly questioned the urgency of war was at risk to be labeled a traitor. This one event was indelibly branded on the consciousness of the world and if often seen as a moment of sudden transformation. Most Americans believe that the troop presence in Iraq and Afghanistan are due to the terrorist attacks on the United States and while it is hard to deny that the 9-11 attacks was the impetus for putting boots on the ground, it is imperative that the chain of events following the horror of September 11 are seen to reflect the willingness and wants of actors in control before the towers fell.

In no field other than politics does the justification for action often come from a noteworthy event and the true cause stays hidden behind the headlines. The United States’ transformation from a new state to a global superpower has been a methodical journey molded by international conditions (the global terrain for statecraft), the role of institutions and their programmed actions, and ultimately, the interests of actors (the protection of participants in making policy’s items and i...

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...first through a war on drugs, and then a tacit protection of oil interests during Gulf War 1 and veiled protection of US petroleum interests in Gulf War 2. Implicit in public support for both of these wars was the desire to secure continued economic power to protect American interests of an inexpensive (at least monetarily) and high quality of living through control of oil reserves and the acknowledgment that the fates of multinational corporations are directly tied to capitalist American hegemony. The enduring global free trade and protection of American global market security enforcement is a result of efforts by multinational corporations to meet the demands of Americans for cheep products, the needs of industry for cheep supplies. These efforts have lead to free trade conditions that maximize outcomes for industry leaders while satiating the American public.

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