When President George Washington wrote his important yet long-forgotten farewell address in 1796, he stated, “It is our true policy to steer clear of permanent alliances with any portion of the foreign world.”1 These words from the Father of the American nation have been largely ignored since the United States declared war against the Central Powers in 1917. Since the close of the Second World War in 1945, the United States has remained the constant superpower on the world stage.
With the beginning of a military operation against Iran, there is much to say with regard to our foreign relations. The worry that Iran might secure a nuclear weapon is a real one. For clarity’s sake, they are not the good guys as many have already pointed out. But to commence a war against a country that is thousands of miles away from the United States, without the bringing of a declaration of war to Congress, with an “ally” that we have no treaties with and no clear reason as to why we are allies with them (at least in this writer’s opinion), is against the interests and principles of the United States.
Now, many have argued that this is a “just” military action. One might argue that if the United States does not take military action, then Iran would use their nuclear weapons against our ally Israel, and possibly even the United States herself. This might very well be true, but so might Russia if the American government keeps poking the great Siberian bear. It would not be ridiculous to say that the predicament America finds herself in, is the result of a long and disheartening road of American foreign policy done wrong. It is the logical end to a foreign policy that has been crafted to make America an empire.
It has led Americans to be overly concerned with what is going on in faraway lands versus what is going on at home. An American can be upset with the injustice happening to the Palestinian people or Nigerian Christians. A thoughtful citizen can find it despicable that Russia invaded a sovereign nation. None of that is wrong. What is wrong is the thought that the United States government has to do something about it. It makes no sense that after Russia invaded Ukraine, that American lawmakers were wearing pins with Ukrainian flags. This writer finds it detestable to see Europe lose itself with the mass of people entering the continent, and seeing the origin of so many Americans dismantled for one reason or another. But one thing is for certain: this isn’t America’s problem. As President Washington remarked,
“Against the insidious wiles of foreign influence (I conjure you to believe me, fellow citizens) the jealousy of a free people ought to be constantly awake, since history and experience prove that foreign influence is one of the most baneful foes of republican government. But that jealousy to be useful must be impartial; else it becomes the instrument of the very influence to be avoided, instead of a defense against it. Excessive partiality for one foreign nation and excessive dislike of another cause those whom they actuate to see danger only on one side, and serve to veil and even second the arts of influence on the other. Real patriots, who may resist the intrigues of the favorite, are liable to become suspected and odious, while its tools and dupes usurp the applause and confidence of the people to surrender their interests.”2
Patrick J. Buchanan makes the case in his book, Republic, Not An Empire, that one of the reasons the United States got involved in World War One, was because of American affinity towards the British.3 There is nothing intrinsically wrong with being proud of America’s British roots, but getting involved in a foreign war because of it? That is out of the question. It was an utter failure of a father protecting his sons in such a case. It seems that the United States is again falling into this trap, and there is no doubt that this is disordered and against reason.
The next major issue in this saga of recent actions of the American government is, “how do Catholics react to this?” The next article to come in relation to these world events will cover what Just War Theory is, and whether the recent military actions of the United States fulfill the requirements of a government waging a just war against another nation.
1 Washington, George. “Washington’s Farewell Address To The People of the United States.” Transcript of his address published in the Philadelphia, PA Daily American Advertiser on September 19, 1796.
2 Ibid.
3Patrick J. Buchanan, Republic, Not An Empire: Reclaiming America’s Destiny (Regnery Publishing, Inc., 2002), Chapter 13.
