I believe globalism is good in some ways and not so good in other ways. One good thing about globalism is that businesses are able to have more customers. An example of this is an American business that sells its products all over the world and not just in the United States. An increase in customers means an increase in revenue. Another good thing about globalism is that it enables people all over the world to benefit from what economies all over the world produce. An example of this is certain types of foods. Certain fruits and vegetables that are not grown in the United States can be enjoyed by Americans because of globalism and trade A third good thing about globalism is that people can learn from their exposure to products from other parts of the world. This type of learning can help people to become more open minded and familiar with other cultures.
One not so good thing about globalism is that it can take away a country's incentive to create the products it needs for itself. An example of this is China and the United States. One reason why the United States does not make so many things as it should is because it has the luxury of buying whatever it needs from China. If the United States could no longer buy anything from China or any other country, it would be forced to create more things for itself.
Another not so good thing about globalism is that economies all over the world are too connected. Being too connected is bad because something devastating and disastrous that happens to one economy affects other economies. An example of this is the foreign companies that invested in the American economy. The foreign companies suffered as a result of the economic hardships in the United States.

There are several presidents of the United States that I admire and respect. One president is Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln is a great president because he was president during a difficult time in American history. I admire how he led the Union to victory against the Confederacy. I also admire his intelligence and opposition to slavery. Another U.S. president that I admire and respect is Theodore Roosevelt. Theodore Roosevelt achieved many interesting things during his presidency. One achievement that Roosevelt is known for the most is the creation of the American National Park system. The creation of the American National Park system is what I like most about Roosevelt's presidency. Another achievement that Roosevelt is known for is the construction of the Panama Canal. The consruction of the Panama Canal is a very smart idea. It made the journey of a ship traveling from the western side of the Americas to the eastern side of the Americas shorter. Ships no longer had to sail all the way around South America. I admire how Roosevelt confronted big businesses. Roosevelt not did allow big business to just do what they wanted. He put in place some restrictions.
A third president that I admire and respect is Harry S. Truman. I admire how Truman attempted to integrate the U.S. military. I also admire his leadership ability during World War II. The next American president that I admire and respect is John F. Kennedy. Kennedy played an important role when it came to civil rights in the United States. He and Lyndon B. Johnson are responsible for the Civil Rights Act. The last American president that I admire and respect is George H.W. Bush. I think the first George Bush had a good understanding of America's finances. His idea about raising the taxes was the best thing for America even though he lost the election in 1992 because of it.

It is important to govern in a moderate fashion. I believe in being liberal in regard to some issues and conservative in regard to others. One group of issues I would be liberal about is environmental issues. I support protecting America's forests, deserts, and other wilderness areas. I also support limiting offshore drilling. I think the development of alternative sources of energy is a great idea. Developing and using alternative sources of energy provides more options for Americans than just using and being dependent on oil. The development of alternative sources of energy is good for the environment because using oil and coal emits harmful fumes and air pollutants. I like the idea of having clean water. I support measures taken to prevent pollution from getting into lakes and waterways such as streams, rivers, and creeks. Another issue I tend to be liberal about is gay marriage. I believe don't ask and don't tell should go by the wayside. I also believe it is fine for gay people to get married or have some type of union. I support rights for gay people because I realize it would be an act of discrimination to deny people rights because of who they are. Gay people deserve the same rights that heterosexual people have.
One issue I would be conservative about is spending money. I believe the U.S. government is spending too much money. The U.S. government spends more money on its military than any other country in the world. The U.S. has spent a lot of money on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The amount of money spent is one reason why I oppose both wars. Another issue I would be conservative about is interventionism. Like Ron Paul, I consider myself to be a noninterventionist. I believe that it is important for the United States not to do nation building. Radically changing the cultural development of other countries can be disastrous in the long run. Star Trek is just a television show. However, the prime directive about not interfering in the development of other cultures is very true and holds water.

I believe there should be moderation between fearing the government and not fearing the government. Government must be feared to some extent. The fear is what prevents disorder and chaos in society. People think twice about stealing and killing because they realize that there are consequences for those actions. An example of this is the situation Iraq was in before the U.S. and its allies overthrew Saddam. The dictatorship of Saddam was very harsh. It was the harsh conditions of the dictatorship that kept the peace in Iraq and made the country stable. The different groups in Iraq never went to war with each other because Saddam's regime would not allow that to happen. Another example of the importance of fearing the government is the fear of capital punishment. Fearing capital punishment sometimes prevents people from committing capital offenses. A third example of the importance of fearing the government is getting a ticket for speeding. Fear of having to pay a fine to the county or state prevents deaths that are caused by speeding.
Government does not always have to be feared. People tend to love their governments when when their governments do things that are just, moral, and fair. I think it is important for government to not abuse its power. Government has a responsiblity and obligation to protect and improve the lives of the people it governs. A government that fails to live up to that is not a good government. An example of a government that has abused its power is the government in Iran. I think the Iranian government abused its power during the election in Iran that took place a while back. The Iranian government failed to listen to other Iranians who disagreed with the results of the election. The Iranian government even used force to get the Iranians who disagreed to settle and accept the outcome of the election. Another example of a government that has abused its power was the regime of Saddam. The regime aggressively went after and punished those who spoke out against Saddam and his dictatorship.

I agree with Huntington and Said that the dominating source of conflict will be cultural. However, I believe that the differences in the ideologies and economies of different civilizations do play a significant role in breeding conflict. The ideologies of Islamic countries and the ideologies of Western countries have clashed just like the different cultures of Islamic countries and the Western countries. Many times I find that ideology and culture sometimes overlap each other. An example of this is democracy and theocracy. Democracy is considered to be an ideology in Western countries. It can also be considered part of the culture. Theocracy can be considered to be an ideology of Islamic countries. It can also be considered to be part of Islamic culture. The source of conflict during the Cold War was ideological and economical. It was ideological because it involved democracy versus communism. It was economical because it involved capitalism versus communism or socialism.
I believe the best way to avoid conflict is to not degrade other people's cultures and ideologies. It is important to realize that it is fine to favor a certain culture or tradition unless that culture or tradition does things that are immoral. However, it is not fine for people to consider their culture and tradition to be superior to someone else's culture and tradition. This breeds conflict. I favor democracy and other Western ideologies. However, I would not degrade Islamic culture or other cultures. I realize that Islam preaches and teaches many good things. Certain Muslims have the wrong understanding about the teachings of Islam. They use the teachings of Islam to justify and support killing people. This not only goes on within the Islamic religion. It wen on within the Christian religion. People who lived in the 1600s would use the teachings of Christianity to justify not embracing science and killing those who did embrace science. People were killed during the witchcraft trials in New England because they embraced and understood science.

I think that there are advantages and disadvantages in regard to having either a governmental system dominated by two political parties or a governmental system dominated by more than two political parties. One advantage in regard to having a governmental system dominated by two political parties is that it is easier for voters to make decisions when they vote. The more choices you have the harder it is to make a decision. One disadvantage to having a governmental system dominated by two political parties is that voters only get two perspectives about an issue. I think having more than two political parties would offer ideas and perspectives that have not been considered. Just having two political parties that dominate the governmental system limits options for the voters.
I would choose having more than two political parties in the United States government over just having two political parties. I like and support the idea of having many options when I vote and think about political issues. Many Americans think that both the democratic party and republican party do things that are not good for the United States. Republicans claim to be the party that is financially responsible even though they really are not. Democrats claim to be good at certain things as well even though they really are not also. I think that this assessment of the two parties that many Americans have is the right assessment. Their assessment is the reason why America needs more than two political parties.
I realize that there is no perfect political party. I consider myself to be not a democratic and not a republican. It is important to take the best ideas from each party. Being attached to a political party can cause problems. It causes government officials to do what is in the best interest of the party instead of doing what is in the best interest of the United States.

I agree with the first amendment of the U.S. Constitution about freedom of religion in the United States. I think it is fine for people to wear crosses and other religious things in public. What people wear is not always the problem. The problem arises when people become too extreme about religion. There is no threat when it comes to wearing Christian or Islamic related items. There is a problem when people impose their religious views on others. People should not use violence to make others fall in line with their religious beliefs. What the Taliban in Afghanistan does to impose certain religious views on others is wrong.
I believe it is important for people to be exposed to other people of different faiths. I think this offers more advantages than disadvantages. People are not as prejudice and negative toward people of different faiths when they understand differences. This concept is similar to racial situations. White people now are not as prejudice toward black people as they were in the 1950s and 1960s because there has been integration. White people now are used to being around black people. Many white and black people are now friends.
I believe it is wrong to fight over religion. The function of religion should be to promote peace and influence people to live good and moral lives. People tend to see their religion as too much of a social identity and heritage rather than a philosophy that encourages people to live peacefully and morally. I see religion as something that would support being tolerant of people of different faiths. Others may see it as something that promotes violence against those who are considered to be disbelievers. I think that religion has helped and hurt mankind. Religion can be as much of a strength as it is a weakness.

I am not for the war in Afghanistan. The main reason I oppose the war is because the Russians invaded Afghanistan and eventually lost there. What the U.S. is doing in Afghanistan is slightly different. However, I think the odds will be against the United States just like they were against the Soviet Union. One reason I think the United States is at a disadvantage in Afghanistan is because American troops are fighting on enemy soil. It is very difficult if not impossible to defeat someone on their own turf. That belief has been a major principle of warfare for a long time. The Romans understood this principle well. This principle explains why the Romans would slaughter entire populations when they would invade an area. The Romans realized that there would be an insurgency if some people in an area were killed and others were not. Land and trees will not fight you. People will.
Another reason I am not for the war in Afghanistan is because I think it will cost too much in regard to money and lives. The U.S. has a huge deficit. Staying in Afghanistan will increase it and make it worse. I think that the money being spent in Afghanistan is greatly needed in the United States to improve the economic problems and other bad conditions facing America.
I think more American lives can be saved if the U.S. pulled out of Afghanistan. The best way to fight the war on terrorism is to strengthen security in the United States. Americans can prevent another September 11th by improving airport security and security elsewhere in the U.S. It is important to understand that terrorists operate all over the world. America should not just focus on Afghanistan because terrorists operate in the United States, Canada, and European countries. These countries have large Muslim populations. It is easy for the terrorists to blend in among Muslims who are innocent.

There are many lessons that the rest of the world can learn from the crisis in Haiti. One important lesson is that anyone in any country at anytime can be victims of natural disasters. The crisis in Haiti points out that it is important for all countries to further develop and improve how they handle the preparation and aftermath of natural disasters. This point was very evident when Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast states of Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. The response to the crisis in Haiti has been very good in my opinion. I am pleased with how the U.S. and other countries have contributed to the relief efforts. I think that the United States should be careful about contributing too much money because the United States has a huge deficit. It is hard for America to help other countries that are suffering when America is suffering in many ways itself.

The second lesson that the crisis in Haiti teaches is that there tends to be anarchy and disorder in society when people become desperate. The looting and violence that has broken out in Haiti reminds me of what happened after Hurricane Katrina hit. It seems that people show their true nature when times are hard. It is easy to be moral and rational when times are easy. The hard times tend to test people's ability to cope.

The third lesson that the crisis in Haiti teaches is that it is important to expect the unexpected. Earthquakes are unexpected occurrences in the Caribbean. It caught many people off guard when the earthquake occurred in Haiti. The Caribbean Sea is more known for its hurricanes than any other natural disaster. There have been small tremors here in Georgia. One tremor occurred early in the morning a few years ago. It pointed out to me that even the Southeastern region of the United States is at risk of having an earthquake.