America — The Only Game in Town

Many historians and foreign policy experts agree that American entry into the First World War, even if justified, sowed the seeds of the Second. Some argue that this is because of the “bad deal” at Versailles, others will point to Woodrow Wilson’s catastrophic decision to break up the Austro-Hungarian Empire as fatally weakening Central and Eastern Europe in the face of a resurgent Germany, Russia, or both.

But the truth is more fundamental than that: after WWI, the United States of America was the only Western superpower left standing. The “victors” of WWI — Britain and France — were both so utterly depleted and exhausted that they had neither the material nor the moral resources to defend and project the power of the West on the scale they had done in the 19th century. Not even close.

But America refused to heed the call and recognize reality. They thought that they could return to their “splendid isolation” when other Western Empires secured the peace on the seas and throughout the world. But that reality was gone, and the result was that two weakened, battered empires were the only thing standing between fascism or communism taking over Europe and perhaps the world.

By failing to adopt its new role not just as the world’s war creditor, but the guardian of the west, the United States left a strategic black hole waiting to be filled. And filled it was — by forces that looked at the tired and broken democracies and saw “the future” in their opposition. Had the United States been present and involved, showing that far from “dying” — democracy was alive and thriving — things might have turned out differently.

Ironically, it was America’s refusal to even prepare for war or deter threats that practically ensured a new cataclysm would take place. A war against Britain and France alone was already scary to many of Hitler’s generals. A war that would at once take place against those two AND the United States may not have stopped the war, but it certainly would have prevented the “divide and conquer” tactics Hitler used so successfully in the early years of WWII. Ahistorical? Maybe — but strategically correct.

I write all this because the post-WWI world is still with us today, perhaps even more so. There is no other country with anything resembling the will, capability and resources to defend democracy and the West throughout the world before forces that wish it gone.

We can and should debate how best to use that power and influence, as indeed the old empires did. Not every intervention is equal, and not every intervention means mass invasion. Even more importantly, America needs to serve as a beacon to all not just of consumerism, but the best Western civilization has to offer.

But like it nor not, nothing in the strategic landscape has changed since 1917. For better or worse, the United States is still the only game in town.