Monroe Doctrine

       Though the US seems to have a more recent history of meddling in business that doesn't exactly affect them, there was one point in time when their policy was the opposite. After the many wars fought in Central and South America to gain freedom, and following the creation of the Principle of Intervention, James Monroe created an idea that later became known as the Monroe Doctrine. In his letter to European leaders, he said that while Europe had the Principle of Intervention, which made it so that any attempt at making a Revolution would be crushed by every country that could get there in time, America would never interfere with wars that don't directly concern them. He also stated that any attempt at retaking the territories in the Western Hemisphere that had recently gained independence would be considered as a threat to their security and treated as such. As can be seen by watching the news just about any day, this is not an idea that America has followed very well.

       The news article below is a satire on America's work against ISIS, a radical Muslim group now threatening the Middle East. The Middle East is nearly half a world away from us, and ISIS is not nearly large enough to threaten anyone not in their direct vicinity. By Monroe's logic, the US ought to stay out of such a war. However, the US has taken a leadership role in the defeating of ISIS. However, in another way the Monroe Doctrine would say that we should help the neighboring countries keep their freedom. So it would make more sense to help neighboring countries with defense without going on offense. There are more than just this one example of Americans not following the Monroe Doctrine, proof that our views are most definitely changing, though for better or worse only time will tell.

Racism in 'Murica

 Race seems to be a factor in just about every news story having to do with any two people of different races. Both today and about as far into the past as we can look. The multitude of Latin American revolutions during the early and mid-19th century are a prime example of such characterization, though back then it did have to do with race more often than not. So too is the more recent case of Ferguson Missouri, essentially the only story to be played on the news for the past several months. However, the question is, how much of these events is actually about race?

On September 16, 1810, Miguel Hidalgo y Castilla, a Mexican revolutionary, read aloud his Grito de Dolores, a call for Mexicans to fight for independence from Spain, and idea which they readily took to. Africans, Americans, and even some white Mexicans (people born in Mexico of Spanish decent) all took up arms against their mother country, albeit for completely different reasons. Hidalgo was the original leader of the revolutionary forces, until he was defeated, and later captured and killed, at Calderón. Many other leaders took his position afterwards. Not much of the early part of the wars was about race, until a new, more liberal government took hold in Spain. The new liberal government promised to help appease all groups in the Mexican Revolution. This included quite possibly giving African slaves more, if not complete, freedom. It was here that race started to come into play.

             Spanish Creoles, the people of Spanish decent born in Mexico, wanted to have just as much power as the people actually born in Spain. However, they had no intention of giving much more freedom to the black Americans and Africans who had fought in the revolution just for this freedom. As such, more and more of the Creoles started fighting in favor of independence. It wasn’t until early 1821, however, that this independence was gained.

            Race can also come a bit into play in American events. Ferguson being a prime example. In August, a white cop was accused of shooting and killing an unarmed black teen. The man was publically denounced by nearly the entire country to the point where, when a jury refused to indict him, riots occurred in Ferguson especially and in many other places all over the country. As stated in this article, many people from other countries took this as proof that racism was still prominent in America.^[1] However, it is not entirely known if race was a factor in this event. Stories have been told from the boy threatening that he had a gun all the way to him being on his hands and knees when it happened. There isn’t a ton of evidence to prove any of these claims. While race may have had a bit to do with the decision of the white cop, however, it is unlikely that it was a pure hate crime. While race does and likely will influence events in America, it isn’t probable that things can go much better. Racism is an idea that has persisted for centuries, and while recently things have gotten significantly better, it is unlikely, or at least will take a long time, for race to every truly become extinct.

[1] "How the Rest of the World Reacted to the Ferguson Verdict." Washington Post. The Washington Post, 25 Nov. 2014. Web. 1 Dec. 2014. <http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2014/11/25/how-the-rest-of-the-world-reacted-to-the-ferguson-verdict/>.