Sunday, February 24, 2002

The Historical Realist Doctrine [discussed in Beyond Jihad Vs. McWorld by Benjamin R. Barber, link below] The historical realist doctrine was firmly grounded in an international politics of sovereign states pursuing their interests in a setting of shifting alliances where principles could only obstruct the achievement of sovereign ends that interests alone defined and served. Its mantras--the clichés of Lord Acton, Henry Morgenthau, George Kennan or, for that matter, Henry Kissinger--had it that: nations have neither permanent friends nor permanent enemies but only permanent interests; that the enemies of our enemies are always our friends; that the pursuit of democratic ideals or human rights can often obfuscate our true interests; that coalitions and alliances in war or peace are tolerable only to the degree that we retain our sovereign independence in all critical decisions and policies; and that international institutions are to be embraced, ignored or discarded exclusively on the basis of how well they serve our sovereign national interests, which are entirely separable from the objectives of such institutions. ... [more] 3:27:04 PM    comment  []

Setting Right a Dangerous World By JOHN LEWIS GADDIS (January 11, 2002) "Few other nations have worried so little for so long about what is coming to be called 'homeland security.' ... define this lack of concern as a central feature of the American character. 'Free security' ... had done as much to shape Americans' view of themselves as had the availability of free, or almost free, land. ... in America, homeland security could be taken for granted ... [now] Americans have entered a new stage in their history, in which they can no longer take security for granted: It is no longer free -- anywhere, or at any time. ... Security, therefore, has a new meaning, for which little in our history and even less in our planning has prepared us." [author's italics] "our foreign policy since the cold war ended has insufficiently served our interests. [author's italics] ... deficiencies in the American approach to the world during the post-cold-war era that are clearer now than they were then. ... One ... was unilateralism, an occupational hazard of sole surviving superpowers. ... second ... We neglected the cultivation of great-power relationships. ... third ... a preference for justice at the expense of order. ... fourth ... the inconsistency with which we pursued regional justice. ... fifth ... our tendency to regard our economic system as a model to be applied throughout the world, without regard to differences in local conditions and with little sense of the effects it would have in generating inequality. ... Finally ... the United States emphasized the advantages, while neglecting the dangers, of globalization." "What connects these shortcomings is a failure of strategic vision: the ability to see how the parts of one's policy combine to form the whole, and to avoid the illusion that one can pursue particular policies in particular places without their interacting with one another. It means remembering that actions have consequences: that for every action there will be a reaction, the nature of which won't always be predictable. It means accepting the fact that there's not always a linear relationship between input and output: that vast efforts can produce minimal results in some situations, and that minimal efforts can produce vast consequences in others. It means thinking about the implications of such asymmetries for the relationship between ends and means, always the central problem of strategy. Leverage is important, and our adversaries have so far proved more successful than we in using it. Finally, it requires effective national leadership, a quality for which American foreign policy during the post-cold-war era is unlikely to be remembered." ... [more] 3:15:28 PM    comment  []

Why Europe Is Wary of War in Iraq " ... America's European allies would deplore a repetition of the Persian Gulf war. ...  Europe learned a lesson in World War I: slipping into a conflict, with no clear moral sense of one's mission or of the likely military outcome, became a basic fear. Europeans' great source of anxiety was the prospect of being caught in an uncontrollable military escalation. ... The trauma of World War II, and the experience of senseless and genocidal colonial wars before and after it ... explain European reluctance to intervene quickly in Bosnia — a deplorable reluctance, in hindsight — and the present refusal to join arms with the United States against Iraq. This time, however, the powder keg is not the Balkans but the highly armed, explosive Mideast. Too many guns are drawn, too many fingers are on the triggers, and some of them could be on nuclear bombs." " ... Washington's unilateralism, from here, looks like simply a form of America's longstanding isolationism, which is to say that the distance is created by America, not by Europe. ... the United States might benefit from recalling the late Senator J. William Fulbright's diatribes against 'arrogance of power.' ... the old conundrum of military history — what to do with the losers — remains unsolved. Who would govern Iraq after Saddam Hussein?" " ... general elections are looming in France (May) and Germany (September) — along with possible realignments that could draw Europe away from the United States. ... Ultimately, Washington should return to the fold of its once strong Atlantic partnership, even if it means wasting time and losing military momentum. A fragmented alliance in Europe is much more difficult to repair than a broken pipeline." ... [more] 1:15:48 PM    comment  []

International disquiet "Centre-left government leaders, meeting in Sweden, insisted on Saturday there was no rift between Western allies." "But at a dinner for the leaders on Friday, Canadian premier Jean Chretien, current chairman of the Group of Eight countries, French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin and Brazilian President Fernando Henrique Cardoso voiced concerns about the United States going it alone in foreign policy, officials said." ... [more] 10:11:21 AM    comment  []

Down with Oncle Sam! "France’s latest bout of anti-American paranoia." ... [more] 10:08:02 AM    comment  []

French economy contracts "France's economy contracted 0.1% in the fourth quarter last year compared with the third, bringing full-year growth to 2.0%, the national statistics institute INSEE reported on Friday. ... It was the first quarterly contraction in gross domestic product since the fourth quarter of 1996." ... [more] 10:05:12 AM    comment  []

Bush Uses Trip for Damage Control [Analysis of Bush Asian trip, February 2002] ... [more] 9:28:29 AM    comment  []