Bacevich, “Appetite for Destruction”

Bacevich argues that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, principles on which the American government were based, has always been associated with the intrust to accumulate territories, business markets, and precious resources. In the present day, for many Americans, this political orientation equates with consumerism, and the consumerist/materialist/self-indulgent culture affects foreign policy. In the American conscience, intricacy, abundance, and freedom take up been inextricably linked.This linkage is most evident in the events and Americans economic and legions status directly following World contend II. The post-World War II expansion, however, reached a crisis point in the 60s with the Vietnam War, when America was transform into an Empire of Consumption. Now, these three concepts are not related reciprocally expansion is not leading to abundance. On the contrary, it is leading to scarcity. Bacevich argues that U. S.s reliance on oil colour and petroleum (and it s dependence on foreign sources for this resource) has led it to obscure from ethical foreign policy. This phenomenon was something that Carter recognized, but the American public was unwilling to assume that their primary threat was their own consumerist behavior (and not some away threat). Reagan indulged the American publics desire for instant gratification oil consumption jumped considerably as did the size of the national debt, and savings dwindled as Americans borrowed more and more. The dependency on oil has do the U.S. dependent on Islamic lands, and Presidents have generally relied on military power to retain access to these necessary resources. In the aftermath of folk 11, President Bush encouraged Americans to indulge their consumerism. Instead of advising them that saving might be prudent given that war costs money, Bush concentrate on preserving the American way of life. Because the American way of life has not been seen as a major problem, Americans now have exp ensive commitments in foreign lands and face dangers that they are poorly equipped to face.