The article Come September by Arundhati Roy presents a perception of power as a tool to control an American way of life. It provides a number of examples of how the power was used to ruin the lives of peaceful citizens during armed conflicts, coups, and interventions initiated and supported by the United States. Yet the sources of power that are identified in the article are not directly associated with the government but with financial organizations, namely, The International Monetary Fund, the World Bank, and the World Trade Organization.
The power is problematic because it does not provide any sustaining long-term results. On the contrary, it creates chaos and disparity in the regions where it was applied. Violence and terror are immense and contribute to the growing gap between the rich and the poor, the impoverishment of local communities. Power is applied to compensate for the flaws of the system that applies it – the weaker the system, the more power it needs to sustain it and suppress resistance.
In my life, there were instances where power prevented me from shaping my individuality. In school, I was one of the members of the group that was subjected to bullying. After learning more about it in my adult life, I understood that violence and abuse of power by bullies are a way of compensating for their own weaknesses. Hence, they project their dissatisfaction on others who may seem different from them. It is hard to comprehend the full scope of harm that the bullying had on me. Yet, for many years after I escaped the stressful environment, I felt insecure about myself.
Hence, concentrated power is definitely not a thing that should be present in modern society. The conflict that it projects on helpless people is not fair or just in any way, and it can be seen on both the global and personal scope.