American Hegemony and Global Security

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses the history of world hegemons and their role in the world. The paper the asserts that the United States is today's hegemon and that the United States, as a hegemon, provides greater security for the world. The paper then examines how there are those who contest the concept of a hegemon and explains the grounds for their dispute. The paper also examines past world hegemons as a parallel for comparison to the United States, today.

From the Paper:

"That predictability can be very comforting for other nations to have. With some hegemons, they know that they will be safe and that the hegemon might stand by their side. In some cases, the hegemon can directly give aide to them because they do not have the resources to provide that aide for themselves and their citizens. "The persistent and consistent actions taken by a single dominant state, in pursuit of its own national self-interest, that also provides public goods or externalities for the international system as a whole. ... Under a hegemonic system, one paramount state supposedly maintains a semblance of order and uses power and persuasion to impose flexibly enforced rules upon an otherwise anarchic system of international relations." The hegemon helps provide world order and puts other nations in their place when they need to have actions taken against them. Other nations are more unlikely to perform cruel acts, whether it is against their own people or against others, with fear of the repercussions that might be brought against them by the current hegemon and its allies."

Sample of Sources Used:

• CIA World Factbook. "The World Factbook". Central Intelligence Agency. October 16, 2009 <https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/index.html>.
• Fouskas, Vassilis K., and Bulent Gokay. The New American Imperialism: Bush's War on Terror and Blood for Oil. New York: Praeger Security International, 2005.
• Ikenberry, John G. "Strategic Reactions to American Preeminence: Great Power Politics in the Age of Unipolarity." National Intelligence Council. 2003. October 16, 2009. <http://www.cia.gov/nic/confreports_stratreact.html.>.
• Jervis, Robert. "The Compulsive Empire". Foreign Policy July-August 2003: pp 82-87.
• Krahmann, Elke. "American Hegemony or Global Governance? Competing Visions of International Security" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Studies Association, Le Centre Sheraton Hotel, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, Mar 17, 2004. October 14, 2009. <http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p73259_index.html>.

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