Saturday, October 30, 2004

Another Returned Peace Corps Volunteer for Bush

Nathan Hamm endorses the President:

"It often shocks the hell out of people when I tell them that my political realignment since 9/11 has almost everything to do with my service in the Peace Corps. Whether or not that service emphasized already latent biases and beliefs, I can’t say for certain, but it definitely did teach me that those in thrall to the international system as it exists now cause more problems than they solve.

"Even before 9/11, I became convinced that the UN did more to make governments feel good about themselves than they did for the people they purportedly help. I saw that too many Western NGOs were more concerned with what they could put in their annual reports than what they were actually doing to make a difference. I saw that what people really want and need in their lives is more capitalism and the guarantees from their government that they will be able to keep and reinvest what their work earns. I learned that there is absolutely no shame in materialism–it’s a much better provider than comforting progressive ideologies. I heard time and time again that America is admired for its strength, its culture, and its very evident and visible willingness to help without asking for anything in return.

"To sum it up, I saw that the people here who tell me they know how the world works and what the world needs because they spent a few weeks in Guatemala are insufferable fools.

"I tell people time and time again that my primary motivation for voting Bush is that I think we are but on the cusp of a long-term ideological and military battle against a murderous ideology. This fight, if it is to involve international institutions, requires leadership that understands that these same institutions are geared towards the challenges of the Cold War, not the modern world. It requires someone who doesn’t dick around with rhetorical niceties. It requires someone that understands that, as during the Cold War, vigilance and a strategic view of foreign policy are required to secure our safety. It requires someone who recognizes that spreading the gospel of democracy and free markets is not something to shy away from, but absolutely vital as we engage the world. These are all lessons that my life overseas either reinforced or taught me.

"Does Bush satisfy me 100% on all these counts? No, but he satisfies me enough, especially next to John Kerry, that another four years of Bush will push this country in the right foreign policy direction."