Reference News Network, November 4 report: The American magazine "The Atlantic" published an article titled "The Beacon of Democracy Fades Gradually" in its November issue. The author is Anne Applebaum. The article argues that it was unrealistic from the beginning to expect Americans to practice the lofty ideals advocated in the 18th century. Today, American culture, which is equated with transactions and secret dealings, not only contradicts democratic and free spirit, but also its inherent democratic decline will become a negative asset, affecting the world in unpredictable ways. Excerpts are as follows:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal." This sentence spread around the world within a few weeks after its publication in July 1776. In August, a London newspaper reprinted the Declaration of Independence, followed by Edinburgh. Soon after, Madrid, Leiden, Vienna, and Copenhagen also reprinted it.

Constructing the "Myth of Democracy"

The Haitian Declaration of Independence in 1804 both drew on the American model and the French example, calling for the establishment of a "free empire" on "this land that gave us life." For the following decades, Greece, Liberia, and many emerging Latin American countries issued declarations of independence. In 1918, when Czechoslovakia's first president, Tomáš Masaryk, signed the "Common Goals Declaration for Central European Independent States" in Philadelphia's Independence Hall, he deliberately used the same ink bottle used by the founding fathers and rang a replica of the Liberty Bell - this was not a requirement of the President or officials, but rather because Masaryk was deeply inspired by the American founding story.

Since 1776, Americans have been promoting democratic development. Human rights and the rule of law were enshrined in the founding documents, and the dream of摆脱 colonial empires was deeply rooted. Even we ourselves have not practiced these ideals.

We often regard America's role in post-war Europe as a great act of goodwill, believing it was protecting allies from Soviet aggression. However, when we place democracy at the core of international identity and national identity, we are subtly reinforcing our own political system.

Considering the significant differences we have on many other issues, it is quite unusual that American foreign policy has achieved a high degree of consensus between the two parties for such a long time, and even established many vibrant bipartisan cooperation institutions to promote this policy.

Foreign Policy Shift

However, within just a few months, we experienced a major shift in position - from a foreign policy based on democratic faith to a more cynical, more authoritarian worldview, which has severely impacted these institutions.

The Trump administration's attempt to shut down all U.S. overseas broadcasting agencies is very telling. The rejection of these long-standing bipartisan-supported institutions, the abandonment of the idea that the United States should defend and promote democracy globally, and the abandonment of the belief in democracy itself, all reflect a larger shift. Our president frequently attacks judges and journalists, pressures CEOs to hand over company shares, forces university presidents to pay unwarranted fines, deploys the military into American cities, establishes a new internal police force, and openly incites further division between the red and blue camps in the United States. Abroad, his arbitrary punitive tariffs caused Lesotho, a small African country, to fall into economic recession; he proposed to acquire Greenland, causing a political crisis for Denmark, a long-time ally.

Since the vice president took office, the only speech that stood out was delivered at a gathering where everyone expected him to seriously discuss security issues. Instead, he scolded Europeans with a series of false or exaggerated statements, claiming that they violated freedom of speech. Now, the speed at which the Trump administration spreads the term "fake news" globally is much faster than the speed at which the phrase "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal" spread in the past. The false accusation of "fake news" is used to suppress legitimate journalists.

All these changes are part of a larger shift. The way Americans present themselves to the world has undergone a complete transformation, thereby changing how other countries perceive the United States. Nowadays, the most pervasive form of American culture is no longer jazz programs broadcast via shortwave radio across Eurasia, but rather social media platforms that transmit conspiracy theories, extremism, advertisements, pornography, and spam to every corner of the globe.

We no longer hold cultural freedom conferences; instead, we have conservative political action conferences. It's like a mobile event staffed by people to stir up trouble. Whether in Hungary, Poland, the UK, Mexico, or Brazil, local nationalist groups can pay fees to these conservative political action conference teams to hold events similar to "Make America Great Again" in their own countries. Steve Bannon or Kristi Noem would attend, delivering inflammatory speeches with local figures, helping them make the news. A Conservative Political Action Conference held near Rzeszów a few days before the second round of the Polish presidential election featured Noem, with a sponsor being a Polish cryptocurrency company hoping to obtain U.S. approval.

"The Beacon Image" Collapses

Today's American culture is no longer synonymous with the pursuit of freedom, but rather with transactionalism and secret dealings: mysterious algorithms determine what you see; anonymous billionaires accumulate wealth; deals made by the U.S. president with foreign countries benefit only himself, perhaps including some other unknown individuals. America has always been closely associated with capitalism, business, and markets, but now, people no longer pretend to invite others to share in the wealth. The U.S. Agency for International Development no longer exists, American humanitarian aid has been exhausted, and the foundation of the U.S. international medical system has been rapidly dismantled, resulting in countless deaths. The image of the "ugly American" has always coexisted with the "generous American" image. Now, the latter has disappeared, and what people see is only those who try to cheat you.

The impact of this change on the global stage will be profound, widespread, and enduring. Perhaps, the America under Trump may foster new authoritarian parties that attack their own democratic political systems, as the supporters of Jair Bolsonaro did in Brazil.

More difficult to predict is the impact of this change on Americans themselves. If we are no longer a country committed to making the world a better place, but a country that uses foreign policy to enrich the president or support the overseas allies of the ruling party, then there is less reason for us to cooperate domestically. If we advocate cynicism abroad, we will become more cynical at home.

Perhaps, expecting Americans to practice the lofty ideals advocated in the 18th century was unrealistic from the beginning, but those ideals ultimately shaped our self-perception. Now, we live in a America led by people who have completely abandoned these ideals, and this situation will change all of us in ways we may not yet foresee. (Translated by Tu Qi)

The cover of the November issue of The Atlantic magazine

Original text: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7568756434968625707/

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