Special Providence_ American Foreign Policy and How It Changed World - Walter Russell Mead

TheSerpentandtheDove 103

Aforeignpolicythatwasfundamentallycommercialchangedthe
natureoftheAmericanrelationshipwithotherpowers.Security policy
hashistoricallybeenplayedlikea zero-sumgame.IfAustriabecame
moresecurevis-a.-visFrance,Francewasthenlesssecurevis-a.-visAus-
tria.Theremightbeoccasionalhappyexceptionstothisdismalrule,but
ingenerala policyofmilitarycompetitioninevitablyinvolvesstatesin
conflict.Theirinterestscannotall beservedtothesamedegree,and
every politicalsettlementwillleavesomepowerOfgroupofpowers
unhappyandrestlesslyintriguingforchange.
The zero-sumgame ofmilitaryrivalry played an enormous role
inEuropeanpowerpolitics,andtheprospectsforcooperationamong
participantsinsucha gamearenotgood. Today's temporaryally is
tomorrow'smortalfoe.
Commercialrelationsdonotworkinthesameway. Incommercial
transactionsitispossibletohavebotha satisfiedbuyeranda satisfied
seller.Furthermore,economicprosperityis nota zero-sumgame.IfAus-
triabecomesricher,itcanbuymoregoodsfromFrance,andthiswill
makeFrancericher.Increases inhumanproductivityarebeneficialto
all.War,ontheotherhand,wouldhurttheeconomicinterestsofboth
nations,interruptingtheirtrade,divertingtheirresourcesfromproduc-
tivetomilitaryuses,andincreasingtaxationinbothcountries.
UnlikeLenin, whosaw capitalismas theleading cause ofinter-
nationalwarfare, Hamiltoniansseecommerceas, potentially,a cause
ofpeace.Theexpansionoftrade,andthesubstitutionofthewin-win
strategyofcommercefor the zero-sumgameofwar, wouldbecome
importantHamiltonianaimsinthetwentiethcentury.Thisintoxicating
visionofa win-winworldorderbasedoninternationallawoftenled
HamiltonianstosoundalmostWilsonianintheirhopesforthefuture
stateofmankind;butfromthebeginning,theopen-endedqualityofthe
HamiltonianworldviewmeantthatHamiltonianssawtheUnitedStates
asrespondingtoa differenthistoricallogicfromtheonethatdominated
Europe.
Hamiltonianswouldbemuchmorehospitabletotheinstrumentsof
warfare-aboveall,tonavies,butalsotoa professionalstandingarmy-
thanAmericanpoliticianswhoworriedaboutthepoliticalconsequences
ofprofessionalarmedforces, butthetraditionalforeignpolicyofthe
UnitedStatesassignedmilitarymattersa significantlysmallerrolethan
wascommoninEurope.IfAmericanrelationswithEuropeweretobe
primarilycommercial,then---eventakingthedarkestviewofhuman
selfishness-itseemed thatAmericanrelationswithEuropewerenot