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According to a recent poll sponsored by the BBC, the global opinion of the United States has drastically deteriorated over the last year. The poll states, "Across all 25 countries polled, one citizen in two (49%) now says the US is playing a mainly negative role in the world." The survey, conducted by GlobeScan, polled 26,381 people across 25 countries.

What makes this poll important is that it openly puts the Bush administration at odds with global opinion. The Bush administration continually insists that the war in Iraq will establish a stable democracy and promote freedom in a country that has lived under the iron grip of Saddam for decades. But the poll suggests-and the numbers are not surprisingly high in the Middle East-that the US may actually be inflaming the anti-western sentiments wherever it goes and subsequently furthering political instability.

How does the Bush Administration respond? They allocate another 20,000 US troops to Iraq in the hope that they can establish some sort of peaceful government. Will it work? Probably not. Historically, conquering powers have repeatedly failed to establish peace by force-just take a quick look at the problems the British Empire had in the Middle East after WWI. This poll is just another example of the Bush administration's continual disregard for public opinion.

The poll also shows that the Bush Administration is becoming increasingly at odds with the American people. " More broadly," the poll concludes "a majority of Americans (57%) say that the US is having a mainly positive influence in the world. This is down from 63 percent a year ago and 71 percent two years ago." It seems that the American people are losing their patience with the international policies of the Bush Administration. It's only a matter of time until the majority of the American public starts seeing its own elected government as a negative influence on world events.
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What happens when a country that prides itself on promoting the basic freedoms of every man and woman becomes the very same institution that takes these rights away from citizens of other countries? Do the American people have an obligation to mitigate the negative actions of its own leaders? I hope that this poll makes the American public more aware of its international reputation. There has never been a better time for the American people to start reassessing its role in the world.

Learn more about this author, Brady Yauch.
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