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442 Annals Am. Acad. Pol. & Soc. Sci. vii (1979)

handle is hein.cow/anamacp0442 and id is 1 raw text is: PREFACE Traditionally, we Americans have infused notions of morality and idealism into our foreign policy. From Thomas Jefferson to Jimmy Carter, our leaders have manifested the fervent wish to do good abroad-expressed at times by the example we tried to set, at others by direct action; in a manner sometimes preaching and didactic, at other times compassionate. Our world view, like that of other peoples, is colored by an assumption of the superiority of our way of life. We take pride in our constitutional democracy, our open and pluralistic society, the productivity of our economy. We prefer not to dwell on our pervasive violence, urban despair, or material- istic values. But neither American idealism nor American ethnocentrism would be of much consequence to the world at large were it not for circumstances which have placed us at center-stage. Our continental resources both en- gendered and fueled a can-do spirit, and enabled us to become a great power. Two world wars made us a superpower. Preeminence in science and business enterprise, education, and the arts helped assure us a planetary audience. Our enormous impact on the world we live in-ecological as well as political, cultural as well as economic-requires a commensurate sense of responsibility. The articles in this volume suggest that it is this acceptance of the burdens of power and privelege which we are now beginning to develop. Exuberant self-righteousness had become an American characteristic, as we proceeded to develop seemingly unlimited resources in the apparent security of our single-language continental island. Now, according to the articles that follow, we view our increasingly interdependent relations with the rest of the world more systematically and more objectively. While recog- nizing that our self-interest is increasingly bound up with the self-interest of others, our traditional enthusiasm for uplift is tempered by awareness of growing complexity. It is ever more difficult to forsee the result of any action. Therefore, we are prudently beginning the painful process of self- examination, prerequisite to maturity in both individuals and nations. We are beginning to learn that healthy transnational and international relation- ships require empathy as well as effort. We are no longer so easily beguiled by simplistic versions of a world divided between good guys and bad guys, in which U.S. policy choices are debated in terms of protectionism/free trade, isolationism/internationalism, arms control/national defense, freedom/ communism. This volume of THE ANNALS presents American analyses and opinion on transnational and international relations beyond the traditional realm of diplomacy. In this it reflects the conviction of the editor that the freedom of action of governments everywhere is increasingly constrained by interest groups, popular movements, and communities of common concern, both vii

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