Friends or Foes

There is major conflict going on in the Middle East which is affecting the US foreign policy. Libya and the United Nations which consist of Egypt, Arab Emirates, and Qatar are fighting with each other over religion and land. The United States are allies with the United Nations and want them to come up with a compromise and resolve their problems with Libya without fighting and causing bloodshed. However, the governments of America’s allies do not want to follow the United States actions and instead want to resolve things with only using force. Even though America has been requesting they take this action for months, Egypt, Arab Emirates, and Qatar all continue to encourage local factions to fight instead of compromise.

The Monroe Doctrine was written by James Monroe who was an American president to address congress. In the doctrine he states his position on American and European affairs. There were three main principles stated in the doctrine which were: separate spheres of influence, non-colonization, and non-intervention. If the United States were still following the rules of the Monroe Doctrine to address the Middle East affairs they would use the non-colonization principle. The United States is trying to tactfully convince the United Nations to follow their route of action without trying to over dominate them. The United Nations is the United States allies and the United States does not want to lose their allies in the Middle East by making it look like they are trying to rule their countries. The Monroe Doctrine is basically saying stay on their good side and don’t cross the line by being overpowering. Even though governments do not agree on the terms of action to be taken, the United States will peacefully push their position of action onto the United Nations to remain at peace with them.  Reuters, David. "Libya Peace Talks May Be Doomed by Meddling Powers: U.S." Vagazette.com. Web. 8 Dec. 2014. .

The Affects of Racism

The Mexican Revolution ended dictatorship in Mexico and started a constitutional republic. The revolution began when Napoleon’s occupation of Spain led to the outbreak of revolts all across America. A Catholic priest Miguel Hidalgo issued his “Cry of Delores” which called for the three hundred years of Spanish rule in Mexico, redistribution of land, and racial equality to end. Hidalgo ended up being captured and executed and another revolution by a peasant leader named Jose Maria Moreios was attempted but ended up being unsuccessful. Liberais took power in 1820 and the new government was promised reforms to appease the Mexican Revolutionaries. Soon after, the Treaty of Cordoba was signed and Mexico became a constitutional monarchy. However, plans of Iguala were negotiated and Mexicans of pure or Indian blood would have lesser rights. The revolution was aimed at ensuring a fairer way of life for the farming classes. Hidalgo and Francisco Madero were supported by the Mestizos, but could not get all of them to work together. The news laws they had put in discriminated against certain races and caused more problems for the people of Mexico.

The current event article I found was called “Where Do We Go after Ferguson” by Michael Eric Dyson. This article was about the controversial shooting of a black man by a white cop that happened this past summer. Both white and black races were greatly upset when the cop was not charged, but mostly the blacks. In my opinion race and identity is still a big problem in the United States. I don’t agree that the cop should have shot the man, but would the same thing have happened if it was a white cop and a white man? People still define who a person is based on the color of their skin or their ethnicity. As much as we try to deny racism is no longer a problem in our country it is. I believe that even though times have changed some people of different races are still against each other. For example, black and whites most of the time have different opinions of things and make it hard to solve problems in the world. The racial opinions and ideas is what makes it hard for people in the United States to have the same views on problems that we face. Even though the United States has changed race still continues to affect national identity and politics.   Dyson, Michael. "Where Do We Go After Ferguson?" The New York Times. The New York Times, 29 Nov. 2014. Web. 3 Dec. 2014. .