main page
"To follow knowledge like a sinking star,
|
click here for a bigger sunset
One small voice in the proud tradition of FreeBlogging*
Wednesday, January 29, 2003
posted by gbarto at 2:52 AM:
Den Beste here and here. He's not sure at all about Bush's speech (latter post) but is reassured that the French are unhappy (former post).I think Steve - and a lot of other people - are missing a fundamental point here. The greatest threat to us and our way of life is not Iraq. It is not Al-Qaeda. It is not North Korea. It is not Iran.
It is Western complacency in the face of an ir-real, postmodernist sentiment that our values of liberty and honest intellectual enquiry are merely quaint characteristics of one culture among many - and worse, less worthy of protection than the customs of other cultures -, when they are in fact the signal marks of human progress. Make no mistake: the greatest threats to us are the cynicism of the French, the spinelessness of the Germans, the UN's utter uselessness as an agent of peace and stability so long as it cannot exceed the failings of its most miserable members.
Iraq is just one country. An ugly and evil one to be sure. But there are limits to the damage it can do - if the world stands against it. The problem is that the world isn't standing against it. That a nation ever so proud of its Declaration of the Rights of Man has renounced the Enlightenment notion of universal principles and decided that Gallic pride trumps the rights of men whose oppressors cut good oil deals and get France back in the newspapers. That a country that provoked two world wars in the last century is incapable of seeing the need to contain another power that, having brought on a regional war, agreed to disarm as part of its surrender but didn't do so (should we be scared that Germans are so wary of taking action against a socialistic dictator?). That an organization created to secure world peace and justice is more attendant to the whims of its most miserable members than to the ideals upon which it was founded and the need for these to be taken seriously.
Saddam can be taken out tomorrow. If it becomes urgent, I trust we will do so. Mr. Bush's actions indicate he's playing a larger game. Den Beste complains:
So what is the payoff? What's the grand plan? What happens next?Yup. Because Iraq isn't the issue. Defending Western civilization is. And that means we need a) a solid coalition and b) to winnow those out who aren't serious about supporting us. The UN and member countries are being given a choice: stand for the resolutions you were so proud of when they served mainly to hamstring us from going all the way to Baghdad in '91 or give us what we need to tell the American people you aren't worth messing with - work with us or become irrelevant. When Powell says the UN will look like a fool if it doesn't enforce the resolutions, he is telling France - with its security council veto - that either it gets on board or an order will emerge where being on the UNSC just doesn't mean as much as it used to.
More fucking around with the UN. That's what. The grand plan is to try to pass yet another bozo Security Council resolution. The war in Iraq will be fought in New York....
That's it? Consultation with allies? More horseshit in the UN building? That's the grand plan?
Iraq can wait a little longer. Meanwhile, letting our "allies" know that either they're our allies or they can get lost will help us finalize our plans for Iraq and set a lot of priorities down the road.
* * *
French Elections, 1st round
Second round special page
Second Round Results Map
The TurkeyBlog main page contains only the 20 most recent entries.
To go further back, check the archive in the right hand bar.
