What do pickled, gold horned sheep and the Economic crisis have in common?

Seemingly nothing, but when you wake up on a Monday to read the NY Times Opinion Column by Roger Cohen you see that there can be some interesting nexus' between the seemingly worthless and that which is viewed  as valuable. Interestingly enough that nexus that Cohen  brings up is the juxtaposition and anomaly of the value of the two at the current time. 

I have been learning more these last two weeks about mortgage backed securities, investment banks v. commercial banks, interdependency of world markets and the like. There is a large world out there, linked to a place known as wall street, neither of which i fully comprehend or understand; but I'm trying. I have never felt too much need to understand the world market, as it has always seemed like with my compensation package and plight in my decision to work for the government, i would never have the kind of income that serious investment demands. But anymore things look like with or without any "investments" my savings rate, 401k and other necessary evils have been nosediving too. 

In Cohen's article he discusses the need for the United States to re-evaluate its role in the world. As the "hegemon" that many believe we still are, we continue to spout a sort of American exceptional ism, and as I am reading through Colin Dueck's book Reluctant Crusaders the liberal foreign policy principles have outstripped our realist contingent and moved us as not only a crusading by means of war, but by the means of sanctions and financial markets as well (none of this a new idea, but Cohen's article brings up good points). Our monetary crusades may have also come home to roost, as we have been outplayed in the world markets and overstretched at home (as evidenced by our "housing bubble", "credit bubble", all the way back to our "tech bubble"). We have held a false sense of domestic market security and overstretched our national abilities while selling ourselves down the river with negative provisions in NAFTA, bailouts in foreign countries, freedom come in the middle east, and more. 

It is important here to explain, it is not that i disagree with the idea of a liberal foreign policy centered around American style democracy, but it is that my realist jaunt is uneasy with the progress and the resulting exposure that we have subjected ourselves to; and may be now paying for. In being caught up in spreading our democracy in any way we know how, we have overlooked the progress of other countries while still believing ourselves to be the hegemon. Now we are being snapped back to reality. 

It is Cohen's contention that other countries continue to let us play the role, while playing a shorter hand than they have been given. China is the prime example of a world power that for all intensive economic purposes has take much of the United States wealth (through its status as the "factory floor" to the world). With hundreds of billions of dollars in cash assets there is no offer for assistance as the United States would be expected to make as the "hegemon". If and when we "bail out" wall street we will also be "bailing out"world markets and allowing other countries to profit as the American taxpayer buys the "bad" out of the market. 

Again it is not that I am against the extension of our ideals, but we need to re-evaluate our position and look internally at where we have left ourselves. 

TV On the Radio have a line: "I was a lover / before this war". By the time our financial world war is over, I am convinced I will stop being a believer too.