Pursuit of Education Worth While?

   For me, pursuing a bachelor's degree is not a very simple decision to make. In my case, my parents are covering the full cost of college while I attend NEIU, and that is estimated at around $10,000 per year, coming out to at least $40,000 for four years. For that money, I can by myself a new BMW, the problem is, riding around in a Beamer won't give me anything else except the satisfaction of cruising inside German engineering. That itself may win me a few dates and nights with a couple broads, but in the end I have nothing but a high school diploma to my name and a job as a Deli Clerk at Dominick's to show for it. With a bachelor's, I'm told that I can find me a good paying job and that I can live a life that is just above par, but this is not a solemn promise. Going to college, I also run the risk of watching my parents HARD earned money go up in flames and watching four years of my life go to hell. 

   I have big aspirations, but reaching the height I want to climb up to requires a level of dedication to education that few people have and a work ethic that even fewer people possess. I have to say, not to many fields interest me in life. I really enjoy music, but don't have any major talent in playing an instrument, singing, rapping/free-styling or even producing records. My first love is sports, preferably Basketball and Soccer, but I don't have the build nor the ability to make it in the NBA, if that was the case, I would have went to the University of Illinois or the University of Kentucky to pursue my career. For me, the next best thing would be to become the General Manager or CEO of a global business corporation, or to get at least be involved in a global business corporation so that I can travel to different parts of the world and experience new cultures foreign to the American and Montenegrin way of life. 

  To me, a bachelor's degree shows one's pursuit of the American Dream. I see it as perseverance against a long and rigorous road of obstacles that stand in your way of achieving your ultimate goal, but also serve as strength boosters that will get you by in order for you to accomplish your ultimate task. As for me, I've stated my ultimate task above, the problem is that the B.A. isn't the only obstacle standing in my way and keeping me from becoming that CEO or General Manager, it's the countless millions of other power and ego driven students in this country and all over the world that want that position just as bad as I do, many of whom are several steps ahead of me in terms of educational achievement, business connections and financial capability to pursue even higher levels of education. I may have "Bill Gate dreams," (Nas - Hate Me Now) but plenty of other people dream just as high as me and have failed, but gunning for a B.A. is a risk that I am willing to take because without it, I have no base to compete from in my career. 

  Nothing in life is ever handed to you, but every goal is obtainable. "The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" (Not rapped by Nas) and while the B.A. is only half of my journey, it is still a part of the process that I must overcome if I am to get anywhere, which is why the B.A. is worth pursuing in my eyes. 

My Disbelief.

The belief that I chose to focus on, and one that bothers me the most is our (America's) almost unquestionable belief that America should be the "global police" of the universe. People who argue this case believe that it is our duty to ensure that people all over the world can enjoy the same "freedoms" that we have in the States. Supporters of this idea suggest that we seek to eliminate political leaders that we deem as being "evil" (typically non-democratic leaders) for the sake of those that suffer under tyrannical rule. People who hold true to this idea typically have no problem with invading foreign countries and staging coups headed by rebel militia. Even though many lives will be lost, as long as the end result is democracy, which in turn leads to the "greater good" of all the people, that is all that matters. People tend to think that we should regulate the actions and military development of other countries if it means that our allies and other countries are at risk, such is the case with our strong opposition to Iran trying to develop nuclear arms and Palestine trying to gain full membership to the United Nations, which would mean that the border dispute between Israel and Palestine would be left to the remaining members of the United Nations, most of whom have been very critical of the United States and Israel in the past.

As ideal as it seems for us to be the regulators (Nate Dogg reference!) I don't feel that it is our job; we simply haven't earned that right. Taking such approach is almost hypocritical because we have a long history of coming to blows with nations that would meddle in our business (check American Revolution, World War II, etc.) We cannot expect for other nations to happy with us telling them how to go about their business when we don't let them intervene in ours. I cannot support this idea because to me it seems like any struggle that we have been involved in has been for our own self-interest. It's hard to argue otherwise, especially considering that we still have bases in almost every country that our troops have ever stepped foot on, which means that we are practically all over the world. Although major combat operations have ended, we still find ourselves in Iraq, after having captured the entire country within the same month that we have entered and having killed Saddam Hussein. To me it seems that the the entire motive was control over oil and closer support for Israel, and the longer that we stay in Iraq and Afghanistan, the more people will begin to feel the same way. Certain aspects are admirable; we are among the first "superpowers"to give aid in terms of money and supplies to countries in desperate need and the first to encourage and recognize provinces that aim to form their own county. Although I appreciate that, I think that this is as "involved" as this country should be in foreign affairs, always there to lend a hand, but never govern and regulate!