How the Rest of the World Views America

I am always curious to see what the people I meet think of America.  As a young lawyer in England in 2002 (i.e., before the start of the 2nd Iraq War), I was at a pub having drinks with some solicitors when one of them, quite inebriated, insisted on arguing with me about whether the US should have invaded Afghanistan.  I remember starting our discussion in the center of the room, but the guy kept getting in my face, so I kept taking half-steps backward to maintain some personal space.  After 20 minutes, without noticing it, my back was literally (but not figuratively) against the wall.  To this day, it was the only time in my life where I defended the policies of George W. Bush.

Travelling in Morocco in 2008, I was talking with a fellow in his 60s who owned a restaurant.  He blamed the U.K., and not the U.S., for whatever was happening around the world.  When I politely inquired as to his understanding of America's role, he assured me that the U.K. was pulling our strings.  I elected not to disabuse him of the notion.

Someone can only tell you they hate the American government, and not the American people, for so long before they figure out that ours is a government of the people and by the people.  After President Obama's election, I stopped meeting foreigners who would complain about America's government (while assuring me they liked individual Americans).  Granted, I'm not exactly travelling to the tribal regions of Pakistan to survey the local population, but in general, the feelings of the people I meet now are at least lukewarm, if not as positive as they were a couple of years ago.

The reaction I'll remember from this trip was from a young person in Shanghai who responded to my question of what he thought about America with three words: "the world's policeman."  There was a measure of respect in the way he said it -- as if somebody had to be the cop on the beat.  Of course, we've been chastened by recent events and more Americans now than at any time since WW2 don't want to be the world's policeman.

It seems as if we're blamed no matter what -- for doing nothing (e.g., Syria) or doing something (e.g., Pakistan).  In these cases in particular, both our inaction and our action may create enemies.  Perhaps the greatest challenge facing American foreign policy over the next decade or two is navigating between Americans' increasing isolationism and a world that still seems to need American leadership to solve problems.  I wish I had an easy answer.  I don't.  "Muddling through" doesn't sound like a strategy, but, honestly, all we can do is assess each situation as it comes along, act in accordance with our values, and only where we can make an obviously positive difference at a cost the American people are willing to pay.