Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
I know this is wild, but imagine we changed our priorities and de-emphasized
our military might. Fantasize for a moment about the money and energy we could
save, and all the good we could do with those resources if they were compassion-
ately and wisely diverted to challenges like global warming or the plight of des-
perate people—in lands that have no oil or strategic importance—whose suffering
barely registers in the media. Imagine then the resulting American image abroad.
We'd be tougher for our terrorist enemies to demonize. And imagine the challenge
that would present to terrorist recruiters.
I fondly remember the confusion I felt when I first met someone who wouldn't trade pass-
ports with me. I thought, “I've got more wealth, more freedom, more opportunity than
you'll ever have—why wouldn't you want what I've got?” I assumed anyone with half
a brain would aspire to the American Dream. But the vast majority of non-Americans
don't. They have the Bulgarian Dream, or the Sri Lankan Dream, or the Moroccan Dream.
Thanks to travel, this no longer surprises me. In fact, I celebrate it.
