With the Coming Presidential Election, US Must Reevaluate Stubborn Military Policy

With voting taking place in November, the American presidential election has entered its final stage. Both the Democratic and Republican parties have held their conventions and officially chosen their presidential and vice-presidential candidates. They have also voiced their promises to the public through their party’s official policies. In addition, both candidates used their acceptance speeches to talk about the principles and policies they intend to enact during their four-year term. It is important to observe closely the trends that are appearing in this election that will determine the leader of a major power that directly affects world affairs.

The Democratic Party wants to raise taxes on the rich and emphasized the necessity of policies to protect the middle class. They also criticized the Republican policies as a return to the failed and irresponsible policies of their past.

The Republican Party has opposed tax increases on the wealthy and has put forth policies to protect the free market through deregulation. They have also asserted their desire to repeal the Obama administration’s health insurance reform.

The differences in their positions were prominent throughout their acceptance speeches.

The Democratic candidate, Barack Obama, made clear his wish for a fair society while the Republican candidate, Mitt Romney, expressed his desire for a consistent free market. They provided voters with two clear alternatives that appealed to voters with two different futures.

The Republican Romney says that while Obama had called for hope and change, he only succeeded in disappointment and in dividing the nation. Romney also promised the creation of 12 million jobs.

These two candidates clash when it comes to the direction of their public policy but there is something they have in common: the military. The Democratic Party has announced its plan to include the reorganization of the U.S. armed forces in the Asia-Pacific region as a matter of the highest priority and says that America must strengthen relations with and protect their allies in the region. This of course includes Japan. Obama has declared that America must maintain the world’s strongest military. The Republican party has stated that America has strong economic, military and cultural ties with Japan and others in the region and stated their objection to large cuts to defense spending. Romney has stated that we must maintain a strong military that will not back down from challenges from foreign countries.

We in Okinawa are becoming uncomfortable with this unbending attitude toward the military from both candidates. This is because the result of this throwing their weight around and using the threat of military violence to maintain the balance of power is that 74 percent of U.S. armed forces in Japan are located in Okinawa Prefecture. The Japanese citizens who live here are suffering everyday because of the military bases.

In addition, Japanese and American governments still have not changed their policy towards the MV-22 Osprey deployment in Okinawa. We cannot approve of a faulty aircraft flying over the heads of our citizenry. Both candidates should change their military-first attitude and start thinking about the lives and rights of the citizens. America should cooperate with the international community, mitigate disputes through peaceful means and reconstruct its diplomatic policy to be more moderate and graceful.