Regardless of our political viewpoints, I believe we can all agree that in the face of this more aggresive world we now live in that the expansion of our armed forces to defend ourselves and our allies should be a top prioity.
We do not desire conflict with Russia. But if Russia is set on war with the United States, we must resort to all possible measures to dissuade her from this course of action. I do not propose to set the United States as a shield before Poland, but to set Poland as a shield before the United States. The Polish Question, once raised, will consume Russian foreign policy and leave her helpless to intervene against us. By turning her vision inwards, we can prevent her from greedily gazing outwards. It is not enough to merely respond to Russian aggression when it arrives; we must pre-empt it and so save our nation from suffering another war. I propose this act not to bring about conflict, but to avoid it. It is the first strike for peace, not for war.
Indeed, war was never an option. The act itself explicitly states that the United States will undertake purely "economic and diplomatic" actions to uphold its commitments, and nothing more. The act does not even pledge the United States to the defence of the Polish Nation if independence is granted, should that even occur. The act is symbolic. It is merely a recognition of the Polish people, their suffering at Russian hands and their right to self-determination. These are the tenets upon which our Republic was built; if we deny them, then we deny our own existence. What distinguishes the Empire of Liberty from the Empire of Russia is our dedication to democratic principles. To abandon those same principles would expose our alliance as a sham and vindicate the cynical coalition arranged against us.
I am truly troubled that the further American influence expands, the more the minds of her statesmen contract. We still speak as if this was the America of 1783, and not the America of 1905. Then, we had to look to the continent to secure our existence and defend ourselves from the predatory European powers. Now, our existence is assured on the continent, but it is threatened overseas. We can no longer think purely in terms of regions – we are a world power, with all the concerns that entails. Isolationism was a satisfactory doctrine when the United States was a farflung backwater; it is archaic and outmoded when the United States is a preeminent power with global privileges and obligations. Our democratic republic cannot be guaranteed by inaction and stagnation. If we do nothing, we cede the initiative to our enemies. If we are idle, then the Triple Alliance will systematically destroy our allies, seize those nations friendly to us to and then turn their attention to the United States. If we do not act now to safeguard the United States from danger, then we will deliver the American people into the hands of the reactionary Russian monolith.
- Anton Maxim
Your act itself is a declaration of war on Russia, Germany and Austria. Do you really think Berlin, St. Petersburg and Vienna would interpret it any different? No, we'd have a war the minute it's signed. And while Poland indeed deserves it's own nation, it's ot the task of the United States of America to give them one.