I love living in the only current world superpower, but I do feel the world needs another one, immediately.

We Americans have all the power in the world right now. We have already proved that no one, especially not the United Nations, can tell us what to do.

We will go here, go there, do that, do this and scoff at anyone who thinks we are wrong.

Realistically, why shouldn't we do that?

We have earned it, haven't we?

In our infamous rise to power, we outlasted the Russians, saved Europe (twice), and supported many countries in their respective times of peril. Anybody with individual ambition in the world wants to come to America; undisputedly, we are the country where the streets are paved with gold.

Yet, without another entity to counter or challenge us, we have stagnated and taken our power for granted.

Our good intentions have now declined into us being the schoolyard bully. We simply have no one to answer to.

That is why I long for the Cold War.

Yes, I was a young 8 year old when the Berlin Wall was dismantled, but I remember playing with G. I. Joe and having him fight the Ruskies.

I remember that the man with the Kalashnikov and Ushanka (your classic Russian fur hat) was evil, and it was the individual's goal in life to beat him with our superior way of life.

The propaganda alone can make the hairs on the back of my neck tingle.

The Cold War was a war but not a war. Allow me the pleasure to explain.

It had the benefits of war, and as long as it didn't get played out elsewhere (Vietnam), it lacked any of the major drawbacks of war.

Often there are many outside benefits for a country when it has to go to war.

The simple rallying cry of an us-versus-them dichotomy unites the collected people of the country (partial reason for Argentina's invasion of the Falklands in 1982).

Because it is likely that you know someone fighting in the war, how can you not support him or her? It is almost impossible not to have an increased feel of nationalism during a war.

Additionally, during war there are huge increases in technology. Using the war in Iraq as a single example, I have seen many documentaries and news features that highlight our increasing medical technology.

Apparently, doctors can now operate on patients from thousands of miles away with joysticks and a computer screen.

Advancement in medical technology isn't a bad thing, is it?

Even SONAR, while developed far earlier, was researched and expanded during the World War I.

I can make a list that goes on forever; our technology has been fueled by the struggle.

Obviously, these positives are grossly outweighed by the loss of life in war, especially if the reasons for the war are not commendable.

If you notice, both of those benefits are generated from the outside challenger.

Guaranteed, it is human nature to want to be the best (I thank animal instincts for this one), but how can one realize that goal without having a challenger?

I'm going to take a page from the playbook of my main man, William Blake.

He claimed that "without contraries is no progression."

Simply, it means that one needs an opposite to grow and progress.

Who can really doubt that?

Who can forget the kid in third grade who was better than you in your favorite subject?

Did you try to be better? Of course you did.

That extra gold star on the board was worth it, wasn't it?

And, that, is why we need an adversary.

Yes, yes, China is on the rise. But their current climb will take too long. There just isn't any substitute for our old Cold War rival.

It is easy to reminisce a decade-and-a-half later and talk about how I want another Cold War.

I remember my elders' tales about the nuclear bomb drills and their fear that, at any point, things would escalate.

I think that fear (especially the fear of losing) is somewhat healthy, especially when one comes out on top at the end of the struggle.

I'll use the space race for an example.

Ask anyone who was alive when we landed on the moon where they were when it happened?

They will tell you.

Right now, ask anyone where they were when they heard what happened the morning of Sept. 11, 2001 and I guarantee you that they can and will tell you.

Despite the fear they lived in, the great memory of my parents' generation is a conquest, a time when our country wanted to shine.

Ours is one of tragedy and of trying our best to protect the country and freedoms we hold so dear to our hearts.

What I mean is that we, as a generation, need something we can remember that isn't doused in heartache and disappointment.

Maybe a Cold War of our own will provide just that.