By Force or by Choice?

I think there was most certainly a time in our world's history where there was a sincere intrique in the spread of Western Culture. Western culture was inventive and progressive... "bettering the world one technological advance at a time." The Westerners were producing great works of literature, encouraging the formation of democratic societies, and finding success in wars. We were the elite, by many's standards, especially the United States, one day waking up to find ourselves looking down at the rest of the world's nations. Many nations wanted our support, our trade, our lifestyle. I think we eventually reached a point where we began to take this intrique, this choice of other nations to emulate us, for granted.

All of a sudden, it's as if somewhat of a cultural intolerance is forming...we actually began to believe that we were right and everyone else was wrong. Democracy was the only path to political and essentially economic success. English was the only scholarly, sophisticated language one could speak. And once this mentality sank in, I believe there was a change from choice to force in the spread of Westernization.

The truth is, China will never be a true, democratic country. Their roots are in Confucionism and Taoism, where concepts such as peace and harmony are highly stressed...two concepts one could say are pretty much nonexistent in democracy.

The Middle East will never see the end to fighting until the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is resolved.

So what can we actively do to solve world problems as a leading world power without forcibly trying to spread our Western ideas? The hippi response would be to somehow find a way to promote cultural tolerance on a global level. But while I'm a firm believer in such tolerance, I know that it is an unrealistic approach. Too many variations of people in the world. Too much bad blood. Too many conflicting opinions and ideas.

So I ask again, what can we actively do to solve world problems as a leading world power without foricbly trying to spread our Western ideas?

I have absolutely no idea.