Current Events & Trends: Where is America headed?
Not so long ago liberal commentators in the United States spoke of the European economic success in glowing terms - indicating that social democracy works.
They praised the European dream of collective responsibility and worldwide consciousness—leading to a better tomorrow for mankind. They also intoned about the European guide to better capitalism—really as much socialism as the market could bear. One or two liberal observers were even asking Americans if they were born on the wrong continent.
Yet recent events have shown these views to be somewhat embarrassing. Gideon Rachman wrote in the Financial Times: "The normal processes of democracy in Italy and Greece had been unequal to the economic crisis. The European Union's repeated failure to find a solution to the debt crisis—and so secure the future of the euro—illustrated that pan-European politics were working no better than the national variety" ("Our Age of Mounting Indignation," Dec. 30, 2011).
Historically the Europeans who immigrated to the new world for a better life have since established their own methods in the political and economic fields. The American way of life has a brand all its own, including its take on capitalism. Though far from reaching the ideal, overall it has proved more economically successful than the more planned and regulated economies of other nations.
Yet there can be little doubt that the present American administration favors the European social model. So will the European model then become the dominant force in the United States?
Certainly President Obama has challenged traditional U.S. economic strategy and tactics—seeking to "spread the wealth" by taxing the rich, increasing government spending and initiating costly social programs such as his new, much more pervasive health-care legislation, and his recent rejection of the proposed oil pipeline between Canada and Texas (which would have added tens of thousands more jobs). A Wall Street Journal editorial stated: "Obama has done nearly everything he wanted. That's the problem" ("The State of His Policies," Jan. 26, 2012).
This November's national elections may decide just how much farther Americans are willing to travel down the road in quest of European-model socialism. Will the outcome of these U.S. elections turn out to be a referendum on whether or not the United States should become an honorary member of the European Union?
To fully understand America's role in the world from God's point of view, read our free Bible study aid booklet The United States and Britain in Bible Prophecy. It will give you the essential historical and biblical background to understanding the severe challenges facing America and the British Commonwealth of English-speaking nations. (Sources: Financial Times [London], The Wall Street Journal.)
An Article from:
Good News Magazine: March - April 2012
Course Content
Jerold Aust
Jerold Aust has served in the ministry for 52 years, as a public speaker for 58 years, a published writer for 38 years, and is employed by UCG’s Media and Communications Services. He is a Senior Writer, interviewer, and editor for Beyond Today Magazine and has taught Speech Communication for UCG’s ministerial online program and the Book of Revelation for ABC.
Jerold holds a BA in theology from Ambassador College, Pasadena (1968), an MA in Communication from California State University, Fullerton (1995), a distance-learning Ph.D (2006), and a Famous Writers School diploma in non-fiction writing (1973). Additionally, he studied post-grad communication at University of Southern California (1995), radio, TV, voice-overs, and Public Relations at Fullerton College (1995-1996), and graduate communication at Wichita State University (1978). Jerold has taught communication at the University of South Alabama (7 years) and ABC (17 years). His published works include, Ronald Reagan’s Rhetoric: Metaphor as Persuasion and EZSpeakers: Public Speaking Made Easy in 7 Steps. Jerold's overarching goal is to share with humankind its incredible destiny!
John Ross Schroeder
John died on March 8, 2014, in Oxford, England, four days after suffering cardiac arrest while returning home from a press event in London. John was 77 and still going strong.
Some of John's work for The Good News appeared under his byline, but much didn't. He wrote more than a thousand articles over the years, but also wrote the Questions and Answers section of the magazine, compiled our Letters From Our Readers, and wrote many of the items in the Current Events and Trends section. He also contributed greatly to a number of our study guides and Bible Study Course lessons. His writing has touched the lives of literally millions of people over the years.
John traveled widely over the years as an accredited journalist, especially in Europe. His knowledge of European and Middle East history added a great deal to his articles on history and Bible prophecy.
In his later years he also pastored congregations in Northern Ireland and East Sussex, and that experience added another dimension to his writing. He and his wife Jan were an effective team in our British Isles office near their home.
John was a humble servant who dedicated his life to sharing the gospel—the good news—of Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God to all the world, and his work was known to readers in nearly every country of the world.
