Michael E. Salla, Ph.D.
www.AmericasHeroJourney.com

[Note: This unpublished article was written in 1999, and is subject to US copyright laws. Please contact the author for permission to publish].

 

Introduction.

As the second American century is about to begin, America finds itself well into its seventh hero's journey. It has reached a point in its journey that will launch it into a more assertive and moral foreign policy course. This is made possible by America discovering its seventh 'grand synthesis' of power and morality in responding to foreign policy challenges. Internal conflicts, and the humanitarian crises and massive human rights violations they generate, form the current foreign policy challenge to which policy makers are responding. America's leadership in NATO's intervention in the Kosova crisis is the high water mark for America's 'grand synthesis' that can extend well into the next century.

The hero's journey was described by the mythologist Joseph Campbell in his ground breaking book, The Hero's Journey. He argued that the hero's journey was a 'monomyth' that could be found in all societies. The monomyth was that the hero would go through different stages of a journey of self-empowerment and self-discovery that would forever change both the hero and the society in which he lived. Campbell's ideas were so influential that George Lucas used them in writing the script for the original Star Wars trilogy. The success of Star Wars supports Campbell's belief that the hero's journey resonates deep within the collective unconscious of all societies.

The first stage of the hero's journey, the 'call to adventure', begins with the hero feeling discontent with the dominant values of his society. The hero then sets out to find a new set of values by which to live. In the process, the hero detaches himself from the practices and beliefs of his former life. In the second stage, the hero undergoes an arduous series of challenges to prove his self-worth. This is the heart of the hero's journey since it is here that the hero discovers himself. Two challenges are central in this stage. One is to overcome a fragmented sense of self that breeds self-doubt. The other is to discover one's 'life mission'. The sense of deja vu that is often experienced here makes this more of a recovery of something lost than a discovery of something completely new. This stage of the hero's journey can therefore be described as the 'great remembering'.

In the third stage, the 'return to society', the hero returns to his society with the charismatic energy and moral vision to reform it. The hero becomes a great moral teacher, enlightened political leader, or visionary prophet. The critical component in the return to society is that the hero has achieved a synthesis of moral vision and worldly power that forever alters the society in which he lives. King Solomon of ancient Israel, the Persian Emperor Cyrus, the Buddhist King Asoka, the Prophet Muhammad, and even Napoleon early in his career are examples of heroes that achieved such a synthesis.

According to Campbell, the hero's journey is a linear process that ends with the hero's return to society. He overlooked, however, a fourth stage that turns this linear journey into a moral cycle. The 'deep forgetting' is where the hero's synthesis of moral vision and worldly power collapses. Due to a range of factors - fear, pursuit of power or materialism - the hero forgets the lessons learnt in his 'great remembering'. It is here that the great moral teacher become a self-righteous judge, that the enlightened political leader becomes a self-serving tyrant, and that the visionary prophet becomes religious fundamentalist. This sets in place the need for a new hero's journey that makes the journey a cycle that can be repeated any number of times.

Rather than applying exclusively to individuals, the hero's journey can be applied to states. States are the institutional representations of a complex web of relationships between individuals, social groups and political institutions that combine to infuse morality into the foreign policy making process. This makes states moral actors that can undertake the hero's journey.

The single most important factor for explaining how states transit from one stage of the hero's journey to the next is the dominant 'national mood' at any one time. Like the tides of the ocean that shift in accord to the magnetic pull of the moon, so too do national moods shift. What accounts for these shifts is still not clear. In his The Cycles of American History, Arthur Schlesinger Jr, has argued that these cyclic shifts are due to generational changes. Others cite economic cycles, a combination of international and domestic factors that bring new policy makers to power, or even the astrological influence of the planets and stars. Despite the controversy over the origin of these mood shifts and their relatively small size quantitatively speaking, their significance may be huge in qualitative terms. In a liberal democracy, for example, a mere shift of 5% of a nation's population in any election may result in a landslide for a new government. New policy makers come into power who believe they have the mandate to radically change the course of domestic and foreign policy. States then move forward in their hero's journey.

The first stage of the hero's journey for states, the 'call to adventure', is where the national mood shifts into discontentment with the dominant foreign policy principles and practices in place at the time. Political leaders set out to define or establish a new moral vision for the nation. This will involve some degree of withdrawal from the way world politics is practiced. Here the national mood reflects an implicit belief in the moral, economic or political superiority of one's state, but no consensus exists on how to translate this into an effective foreign policy program that can decisively influence world politics. Nevertheless, the state has begun its hero's journey.

A further shift in the national mood leads to the next stage of the hero's journey, the 'great remembering'. For states, this has two components. The first is to unify all the heterogeneous elements of the state so that it becomes an economically productive and unified political actor. Domestic policies are crafted that aim at economic renewal and reconciling past divisions in society. In short, unity becomes the buzzword for national renewal. The second component is to define the 'national mission' through a new moral vision. Typically, the moral vision of a state's 'Founding Fathers' is the key to unlocking the secret of the nation's mission. An attempt is made is to reinterpret the significance of the Founding Fathers moral vision in the present set of social and historic conditions in which the state finds itself.

A further shift in the national mood leads to the 'return to international society'. This is where the state as a unified actor with a clear moral vision sets out to influence the dominant practices and value system in the international system. The state devotes its energies and national resources to this task. As for the individual hero, so too for the state, the key to this stage of the journey is the synthesis of moral vision and real world power possessed by the state. This 'grand synthesis' of morality and power can be achieved by maintaining and renewing the national unity and moral vision at the heart of the 'great remembering'.

A further shift in national mood leads to the break down of the 'grand synthesis'. The 'return to international society' is over and the final stage of the hero's journey, the 'deep forgetting', has begun. A range of factors can account for this shift in national mood. Public opinion can discern that the state is really using morality as a cloak for merely aggrandizing itself. A significant set of foreign policy failures may lead to the public questioning the effort to reform world politics. Alternatively, the national economy may strain under the expense of committing resources to foreign policy goals. The state then channels its energies into the domestic arena. The hero's journey is at an end. In time, the need for a new hero's journey begins to be felt. In this way, states can undergo a number of hero's journeys. The historian's task then becomes to discern the shifts in national mood and state policy that demarcate the different stages of the hero's journey.

America's first journey(1764 - 1823) - Beacon for Liberty and Democracy

America's first hero's journey begins with events leading up to the revolutionary war of independence. America's Founding Fathers firmly believed that the successful establishment of America as a Republic was an act of Providence. Providence was lending a hand to the beginning of a 'great experiment' where liberty, democracy and rule of law would be the guiding principles of a new society on the North American continent. Ensuring the success of America as a republic and democracy would be no easy task. Never before in history had this form of government been attempted on such a vast scale. Moreover, monarchical forms of government were the norm in Europe and republicanism was widely seen as an unstable and dangerous experiment that had repeatedly failed in the past. America's hero journey would be to make successful a form of government that ran against the trends of history and denied conventional thinking at the time.

The first stage of the journey for America began with its withdrawal from the unjust taxation policies of colonial Britain from 1764-1776. The pre-revolutionary opposition to unrepresentative taxation was America's 'call to adventure'. The second stage of America's journey was the independence struggle and the effort to create a united and stable American republic covering the years from 1776-1789. This was America's 'great remembering' since the seeds for the principles of liberty, democracy and rule of law could all be found in the Royal Charters permitting the establishment of English colonies in the New World. The 'great remembering' was an attempt by the American colonies to apply the underlying moral principles dating from their establishment to the political environment in which they now found themselves.

The years from 1789 - 1815 were America's 'return to international society'. Trade between the new American Republic and the European continent was vital to the growth and well being of America. This was threatened by the Napoleonic wars in Europe where belligerents and privateers would attack the merchant shipping of their rivals and of neutral nations. It was critical for America to ensure the safety of its citizens on the high seas and the right of neutral nations to trade freely. This was the basis of America's first 'grand synthesis'. Enforcing this 'grand synthesis' brought America into conflict first with France in an undeclared naval war (1798-1800); the Barbary Pirates in a joint naval and military campaign (1804); and then with Britain in the War of 1812-1814.

After the crushing defeat of Napoleon, Spain found it difficult to restore control over its restless colonies. Inspired by revolutionary ideals of liberty and democratic government, the colonies valiantly struggled for their independence. From 1815-1822 numerous republics were declared all over Latin America. Throughout this time, President Monroe refused to formally support the revolutionary forces or to extend recognition to America's sister republics. A recognition resolution introduced into the House of Representatives by supporters of the American republics in March 1818 failed due to the opposition of the Monroe administration. The lack of formal government support for principles at the center of American national identity from 1815-1822 was America's 'deep forgetting'.

The Second Hero's Journey (1823 - 1855 ) 'Rule of Law' and 'Manifest Destiny'

The declaration of the Monroe Doctrine in 1823 was the start of a new hero's journey for America. The bold announcement of the Doctrine by President Monroe was a belated assertion of the new national mood that America would promote principles of international law for the newly independent republics in the Western hemisphere. These new republics needed to be supported against possible foreign interference. This was vitally important to America since the republican form of government it embodied was being eliminated in Europe by interventions by the Holy Alliance in the early 1820's. America needed to ensure this would not be repeated in the Western hemisphere. Promoting international law was therefore a rejection of the Holy Alliance's policy of intervening to prevent the overthrow of monarchical governments by republican forces. America 'call to adventure' covered the years from 1823-31 and was the first stage of its second hero's journey.

During the years from 1831 - 1837, the issues that dominated public debate were how to deal with the America's indigenous peoples, slavery, and the annexation of Texas. In finding a response to these issues, America would establish a foundation for a more vigorous intervention in support of the moral vision and principles at the heart of its national identity. This was America's 'great remembering' as it laid the basis for what would be the next stage in America's hero's journey - the 'return to international society'.

America's example as a beacon of liberty, democracy and rule of law would mean that more territories in the Western hemisphere would either want to join the American Federation or incorporate these principles into their own countries. This meant that territorial expansion would be inevitable as territories rushed to join America. The national mood swung solidly behind the idea of 'manifest destiny' which reached its zenith during the years from 1837 - 1845. The territories of Texas and Oregon were annexed to the Republican government both with the support of the respective territory's population. America's second 'grand synthesis' was based on combining the liberty of a territory's population to choose its government and America's territorial expansion. This marked America's 'return to international society'.

'Manifest destiny' initially showed itself as an idea that synthesized power and morality. In the territories of Texas and Oregon, largely populated by American immigrants who overwhelmingly desired incorporation into the Union, 'manifest destiny' was a godsend. In other territories, where other peoples lived who did not desire incorporation into the Union, 'manifest destiny' became shorn of its moral dimension and became little more than imperialism. During the years 1846 - 1855, America began its 'deep forgetting'. It became an imperialistic power that expanded its territory irrespective of the will of the majority of the population in the annexed territories.

The Third Hero's Journey - Civil War & the Monroe Doctrine 1855 -1889

Throughout the years of America's rapid territorial expansion, the slavery issue was never far away in Congressional debates. Indeed, Northern anti-slavery forces were strongly against acquiring any further territory from a weak Mexico that might lead to more 'slave territory'. The movement away from schemes at further expansion of American territory reflected the growing opposition to slavery in the North. The years from 1855-1861 saw America withdrawing from its earlier foreign policies of manifest destiny and territorial expansion. America had responded to the 'call to adventure'.

During the Civil War, the principles of liberty, democracy and rule of law were interpreted by President Lincoln in a way that made ending the rebellion a fulfillment of the moral vision of the Founding Fathers. The civil war and mild reconstruction policies of Presidents Lincoln and Johnson were America's 'great remembering' and spanned the years 1861-67. America was now ready for its 'return to international society' through a more assertive and moral foreign policy program.

In the midst of the Civil War, a brazen challenge to the Monroe Doctrine had been posed by military intervention by France in Mexico. Here was as clear a challenge to the principle of noninterference by European powers in Latin America as could be imagined. A European autocrat, Napoleon III of France, was attempting to establish by force of arms a puppet state. The Mexican republican government was forcibly removed and it began a desperate guerrilla struggle against the French supported regime. The national mood had swung behind immediate enforcement of the Monroe Doctrine through military force if necessary. France subsequently withdrew from Mexico in 1868. America's 'return to international society' firmly established in the mind of European states that America was serious about excluding them from Latin America. America's third 'grand synthesis was to ensure the political independence of Latin American states.

The years beginning with the second Ulysses Grant administration and ending with the Grover Cleveland administration (1873 - 1889) saw America concentrate her energies on industrialization and Westward expansion. Westward expansion was having a devastating effect on the remaining lands left to the native American population. Initial concern over the fair treatment of emancipated slaves in the Southern states in the era of radical reconstruction (1866-72) gave way to disinterest. In effect, the principles of liberty and rule of law at the heart of America's 'great remembering' were largely ignored forgotten for Indians and African Americans. This was America's 'deep forgetting'.

Fourth Hero's Journey (1889 - 1913) - America becomes a Great Power

The seeds for America's journey to great power status lay in a renewed effort to promote the Monroe Doctrine. William Harrison was elected in 1888 and was determined to prevent possible European interference in the Western hemisphere. He wanted to legitimate the Monroe Doctrine, and hosted a Pan-American meeting in Washington in October 1889. Though the results were disappointing, the meeting signaled America's willingness to support the independence of Western hemisphere states through Pan-American cooperation. President Harrison's willingness to assert the Monroe Doctrine was America's 'call to adventure' for a new hero's journey.

The 'great remembering' in America's fourth hero's journey was its support for principles of self-determination and democracy in the remaining Spanish colonies. The national mood had swung behind strongly supporting Cuban insurgents in their independence struggle against Spanish rule. This culminated in America declaring war on Spain in 1898 and committing itself to the goal of Cuban independence.

America's defeat of Spain and acquisition of a colonial empire marked it as a new great power. In contrast to the other great powers, America's behavior as a colonial ruler would be benign since it would promote self-government in territories and prepare them for political independence. This was America's forth 'grand synthesis' of power and morality in responding to foreign policy challenges. As a signal of America's benevolent intentions, Cuba was granted its independence in 1902 after a short education in democratic governance. Other captured territories also began to be educated in democratic governance as a gesture to eventual independence. America's effort at a benign form of colonialism was a 'return to international society'.

Under President Roosevelt (1901-1909) America moved towards a revised version of manifest destiny based on 'social Darwinism'. This reflected a shift in national mood to the view that the Anglo-Saxon, with his political institutions and culture, was destined to dominate international affairs. The successful conclusion of the Spanish-American War confirmed America as a great power with an overseas Empire from which it could secure its national interests elsewhere. Contrary to earlier indications that the former Spanish territories would be prepared for independence, America gave no timetable for their eventual release. America's 'grand synthesis' in preparing overseas territories for independence began to unravel. 'Benign colonialism' resembled European imperialism. America had entered its 'deep forgetting'.

The fifth Hero's Journey - 1913 - 41 Democracy & Global Order

America's fifth hero's journey began with the election of Woodrow Wilson in 1913. Wilson was opposed to the 'imperialism' and 'dollar diplomacy' of the Roosevelt and Taft administrations. Wilson did not approve of intervention for the sake of American political or economic interests as a great power. Instead, he supported the creation of stable democracies in Western hemisphere states. When the democratically elected Mexican government was overthrown by reactionary forces in 1913, Wilson ordered military intervention that restored the overthrown government. This was an astonishing departure from the historic American policy of recognizing foreign governments no matter how they had come to power. America's 'call to adventure' had begun with Wilson's support for promoting democracy in the Western hemisphere.

American interventionism in the Western hemisphere was overshadowed by the beginning of the First World War in 1914. Efforts to promote democracy in the Western hemisphere was replaced by concern for supporting European democracies in the war against German imperialism. From 1914 - 1917, America's neutrality policy moved gradually towards outright support of the European democracies. The support for the principle and practice of democracy in Europe was America's 'great remembering'.

America finally entered the First World War in 1917 and Wilson justified it as a crusade to support the principles of democracy and self-determination. He believed that only shaping a new world order on these principles could justify the massive American commitment to the Allied war effort. Wilson was therefore instrumental in creating the League of Nations and supporting the freedom of new states from the empires of the defeated powers. Entering the war in support of democracy, establishing the League of nations and promoting self-determination were all part of America's fifth 'grand synthesis' of power and morality. This was America's 'return to international society'.

Unfortunately for Wilson, the Senate twice refused to ratify the Treaty of Versailles that contained the provisions for entry into the League of Nations. Despite the grandeur and depth of Wilson's vision, he badly managed the political process needed to ratify the treaty. Republicans in the Senate had rejected Wilson's synthesis of power and morality. The National mood gradually swung behind the Republican leadership. America withdraw from the international system and left Europe to manage its own affairs. The years from 1919 to 1931 were America's deep forgetting.

Sixth Hero's Journey (1931-71) - The Second World War & the Cold War

America's absence in the League of Nations meant it was not part of the League's formal efforts to present a credible international response to military aggression. However, in the international crisis that unfolded with Japan's invasion of Manchuria in 1931, America played an informal role in helping the League respond. With the election of Franklin Roosevelt in 1932, America once again moved decisively towards outright support for the principles of democracy, non-aggression and self-determination. While America would not respond militarily to the aggression of Fascist states in the 1930's, it would use its diplomatic leverage to support the League's effort to deter further expansion. America's 'call to adventure' had begun with its clear opposition to Japanese militarism in the Far East.

The main problems confronted by President Roosevelt with the beginning of the Second World war were similar to that faced by President Wilson in the First World War. Could American unity be maintained in the face of divided public opinion over the merits of staying out of or entering the war? How should European democracy be supported in a struggle against countries wanting to extinguish the candle of democracy and impose some form of authoritarianism on unwilling populations? America's 'great remembering' involved a gradual process of coming to terms with these two questions.

In his 1941 inaugural address, Roosevelt had clearly made up his made about the Nazi menace to democracy in Europe and ultimately to America. However, he was unable to get America to enter the war until Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, and Hitler's and Mussolini's declarations of war against America. After the eventual defeat of the Axis powers, Roosevelt avoided Woodrow Wilson's tragic errors and succeeded in gaining Senate ratification for the League's successor, the United Nations in 1945. With the new threat posed by the Soviet Union and the ineffectiveness of the UN, President Truman announced his doctrine of containing Soviet communism anywhere in the world. The establishment of NATO and the UN action in Korea were examples of the Truman Doctrine in practice. The period from 1940 to 1956 was a transition from fighting against Nazism to containing Soviet Communism. The national mood had swung from isolationism to supporting the principles of liberty, democracy and self-determination wherever they were practiced. This was America's sixth 'grand synthesis' of power and morality, and marked America's 'return to international society'.

The Truman doctrine had the seeds of what would become America's 'deep forgetting'. Communism in Europe was genuinely unpopular given the democratic heritage of European states, and the undemocratic way in which Central and Eastern European states had been turned into Soviet satellites. Self-determination had clearly been violated these cases. The same, however, could not be said for communism in Asia. Communist ideology was widely adopted by nationalists as a tool for liberating peoples from colonial control and exploitation from colonial elites. Attempts at encouraging democracy were dismissed as a means of former colonial powers maintaining a more indirect means of control through local elites - 'neo-colonialism'. To maintain or impose democratic governments on populations suspicious of neo-colonialism ultimately was to deny the principle of self-determination.

America's misguided attempt to roll back popular nationalist movements that used elements of communist ideology in their programs, forced these movements to rely more heavily on the Soviet Union and China for support. America's opposition to such movements led to it supporting corrupt and unpopular 'democratic' regimes. This began with the case of North Vietnam in 1956 and ended with the collapse of South Vietnam in 1974. The 'crusade against communism' irrespective of the wishes of the local population led to the unraveling of sixth 'grand synthesis'. America once more had entered into a 'deep forgetting'.

America's Seventh Hero's Journey - 1974 - Human Rights and Humanitarian Intervention

The Vietnam war saw a decisive shift in the national mood. Many Americans deplored the human rights violations by the corrupt and repressive South Vietnamese government. Congress began passing legislation supporting greater respect for human rights by American allies in the struggle to contain communism. The shift towards a more moral American foreign policy that emphasized human rights culminated in the election of Jimmy Carter in 1976. Carter elevated human rights to the center stage of American foreign policy. While the struggle against communism still continued, to get American support a regime would have to do more than rest on its anti-communist credentials. More respect had to be shown for human rights and for establishing democratic reforms based on free and fair elections in a multiparty system. Carter's human rights policy was a 'call to adventure'. America had begun its seventh hero's journey.

The American Congress and President Carter asserted that American foreign policy had to be based on a human rights principles without seriously compromising its strategic national interests. Despite the anti-communist emphasis of the Reagan administration, it essentially maintained Carter's elevation of human rights as an important part of the policy making process. Under the Bush and Clinton administrations, human rights was broadened to include humanitarian concerns and the rights of ethnic minorities. America's seventh 'great remembering' from 1981 to 1995, was a reinterpretation of the founding father's principles of liberty, democracy and rule of law through the contemporary lens of human rights and global humanitarianism. America was poised for its seventh 'grand synthesis' of power and morality that would launch it into a new foreign policy direction.

Bill Clinton won the 1992 Presidential elections and wanted to continue an interventionist foreign policy program which would focus on promoting democracy, protecting human rights and alleviating humanitarian catastrophes. Disaster struck in Somalia in 1993 with the death of 17 American soldiers in a firefight. This brought a halt to the early optimism that overwhelming military power could achieve desirable foreign policy outcomes in internal conflicts. This shift in the national mood was only brief. When American inaction contributed to the massive human rights atrocities in Rwanda (1994), the national mood swung around again to supporting decisive military action to prevent similar human rights violations. Clinton was then able to finally approve decisive military action to end the Bosnian civil war in 1995.

The Kosova crisis in 1998-99 marked an important watershed in American foreign policy. It signaled what would be a major preoccupation in the Second American century. The Kosova crisis unfolded in early 1998 when Yugoslav security forces began a scorched earth policy against the Kosova Liberation Army. In October, Richard Holbrooke brought about a settlement that would at least stop the conflict over the harsh Balkan winter. In February 1999, however, Serb forces began a systematic attempt to cleanse large portions of Kosova of its Albanian population. The Clinton administration was forced to take a fundamental decision. Due to Russian opposition, there was no explicit UN Security Council support for military intervention either by the UN or NATO. With strong support from Britain's Tony Blair, Clinton decided that the authority of NATO as a European security body of 19 nations that operated on consensus was sufficient legitimacy for military action to begin. NATO authorized military intervention over the months of March and April 1999. The air campaign succeeded in bringing Milosevic to accept peace on NATO's terms. Clinton had won a stunning victory that surprised his critics on both the right and left who argued respectively that an air campaign would not be enough to end the crisis or that he had been too quick to commence the air campaign.

Coming towards the end of the Clinton administration, the Kosova crisis has resulted in American foreign policy taking a decisive shift. Through the prestige and authority of NATO, America can play a much more proactive role in responding to international crises. With the prospect of UN Security Council support for similar Kosova like interventions unlikely, NATO has already taken preliminary steps to fill the breach. At NATO's 50th anniversary celebration in Washington, DC., a new strategic vision for NATO was agreed upon which would enable it to operate in future Kosova like crises. America through NATO is therefore ready to respond to international crises involving human rights violations and humanitarian concerns in the 21st century. America, for the seventh time in its history, has established a 'grand synthesis' of power and morality in its foreign policy.

Maintaining America's 'Grand Synthesis' of Power and Morality in the Second American Century.

The second American century promises to be one in which America casts a decisive influence. The most likely source of conflict will be internal conflicts involving minorities struggling against central governments for greater political and economic rights. The potential for massive human rights violations and humanitarian crises will loom large in the minds of policy makers. Maintaining America's seventh 'grand synthesis' far into the 21st century depends on how well political leaders can respond to the national mood to adequately intervene in internal conflicts.

A host of domestic and international factors can significantly impact on the national mood presently behind support for American leadership in responding to internal conflicts. Domestically, issues concerning minority rights, racial reconciliation, and poverty relief can all impact on the national mood. A robust national economy will be important in responding to domestic concerns over the costs of maintaining the military preparedness to intervene in internal conflicts.

The single most important factor in maintaining public support for America's seventh 'grand synthesis', will be to promote multilateralism in future interventions in internal conflicts. The most desirable multilateral forum is the United Nations. However, NATO needs to be maintained as a suitable alternative due to the real possibility of a veto of UN action by Russia or China. Similarly, regional bodies such as the Organization of American States or the Organization of African Unity will be desirable fora for launching multilateral interventions. Failure to promote multilateral interventions in internal conflicts may quickly lead to a shift in the national mood against intervention in internal conflicts. This would mark the transition into a new 'deep forgetting'.

Faithfully applying the moral principles of America's Founding Fathers to the contingencies posed by internal conflicts will be essential in maintaining America's seventh 'grand synthesis'. If policy makers heed this advice, the positive effects of America's seventh hero's journey can be extended far into the Second American Century

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Author's Note [October 25, 2007]

It has been almost eight years since the above article was written while I was a full time faculty member at American University. At the time, I supported a vigorous humanitarian intervention policy by the Clinton administration in conflicts where states systematically violated ethnic minorities. An important book written by Tedd Robert Gurr in 1993, Ethnic Minorities at Risk, highlighted the numerous ways in which ethnic-religious minorities were being systematically targeted by repressive states. It was my hope, and that of many others at the time, that the Bush administration would continue these policies. Unfortunately, that was not to be the case, and subsequent to September 11, 2001, the Bush administration embarked on a series of military interventions in Afghanistan and Iraq, and is currently attempting to do likewise with Iran. These wars have little to do with protecting ethnic minorities against repressive regimes, and appear to be part of a imperial agenda driving the Bush administration.

It has subsequently been established by authors such as David Ray Griffin in The New Pearl Harbor: Disturbing Questions about 911 and the Bush Administration, that 911 was a false flag operation to deceive the American public to support a series of wars that are part of a contrived global "war on terror". The "war on terror" has been used to significantlycut back on civil liberties to the extent that the Bush administration's designation of an individual as an "enemy combatant", can result in indefinite detention and the suspension of habeas corpus with minimal legal appeal.

Evidence has emerged to support the worst fears of many that the Bush administration has hijacked America's key institutions of power, and turned the U.S. into an imperial global power that uses military intervention for purposes very different to that envisaged by America's Founding Fathers. There has subsequently been much evidence emerging into the public realm to confirm that the Bush administration is committing international war crimes in Iraq and elsewhere. That international conflicts are being used as a cover for the CIA's involvement in the drugs trade to generate revenues for undisclosed purposes. That war profiteering is occurring through corporations that supply or service military contracts, and that covert efforts are being conducted to steal the national treasures and knowledge of ancient archeological sites in the Middle East. Finally, compelling evidence has emerged that military munitions containing depleted uranium (DU) cause irreparable harm to soldiers and civilians that ingest airborne DU particles, and that DU is being allowed to poison the environment by its widespread use and testing.

Having observed all these developments since authoring the above paper in 1999, it is now my opinion that there is a secret system of government in the U.S. that uses the 'visible' government' for its purposes. The secret government takes advantage of international conflicts and/or manufactures these, to generate a black budget that runs over a trillion dollars annually. I have concluded that the black budget funds a highly classified set of projects that I have called the Second Manhattan Project whose true purpose is yet to be disclosed to the American public. Consequently, it is clear that America has forgotten its democratic roots and a sham democracy exists. There is little government transparency and accountability in key institutions of American power that are unresponsive to the general public.

If the Hero's Journey is to have any relevance to the United States in the 21st Century, then it is clear that Bush administration's covert and imperial practices, and the secret government that sanctions these, must be exposed. America's needs to embark on a new hero's journey (it's eighth) where it restores the civil liberties historically enjoyed by its citizenry that have been maliciously eroded by the Bush administration. Most importantly, American's democratic heritage needs to be restored through a genuine form of democracy wherein there is transparency in key institutions of power, and the rule of law is established to ensure accountability for all office holders.

Michael E. Salla, M.A., Ph.D.
www.AmericasHeroJourney.com
Kona, Hawaii

 

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