Category: World at Large

Red Skies and Bluegrass.

Hey y’all…busy weekend over here in these parts. Aside from a final orgy of TIME-reading to put an end to my summer research work, I also went to go check out the Creative Time fireworks show, where I spent most of the 4-and-some-odd minutes trying to prevent Berkeley from having a coronary (Lousy judgment on my part bringing him…I thought he might enjoy night in the Park, but he clearly thought he was back on Hill 243.) And I got to see St. Felix Station, my friend’s great bluegrass band over at Pete’s Candy Store in Williamsburg (and was delighted to find said candy store has a weekly trivia night…booyah.)

From Victim to Bully.

While Dubya tries in vain to muster international support for his “save the US” Iraq bailout plan, the NY Times portray the chilling consequences of his blunt unilateralism. For, in only two short years, the administration has completely squandered the considerable reservoirs of international goodwill that followed the wake of 9/11. It’s troubling to think what a President with some understanding of the art of diplomacy could’ve accomplished in this time. Instead we’ve had a rank amateur at the helm, poisoning the image of our nation in the eyes of the world. In so doing, the Bushies have done America — and American values — a great disservice.

Hat in Hand.

While he’s still abusing the terrorism angle to hoodwink us on Iraq (As Howard Dean noted yesterday, the only indisputable thing Iraq has to do with terrorism is that we’ve now chosen it as the place where terrorists can attack us), Dubya at least admitted on nationwide television that unilaterally, we’re in over our head, which I suppose amounts to what alcoholics refer to as a moment of clarity. Yet, with the necessary Iraq funds — even lowballed as they are — threatening to blow the deficit to $525 billion, I do hope that the Bushies realize that the responsibility and sacrifice they’re expecting from the American people, our somewhat skeptical allies, and everyone but themselves in prosecuting this war should preclude any more discussion of a tax cut in the coming year. After all, why shouldn’t America’s wealthiest citizens also have to pay the heavy price for Dubya’s blundering, incompetent, and hubris-ridden diplomacy on the road to war?

Leap of Faith.

In a decision that may prove costly for Congressional Dems in 2004, John Edwards cancels his Senate bid to focus full-time on running for President. (I’d say Erskine Bowles is a strong back-up candidate – still, Dems are rarely an easy sell in North Carolina). I presume Edwards is making this move to gather some momentum and try to stake out the “Son of the South” slot in the top tier before Clark shows up to steal his mojo. As I’ve noted before, Edwards plays the populism angle very well, but he’s going to have a seriously uphill battle should the General join the fight. And at the moment he’s got ground to make up in my mind for his defense of the Patriot Act.

Incoherent Preemption.

“As Paul Wolfowitz has all but admitted, the ‘bureaucratic’ reason for war — weapons of mass destruction — was not the main one. The real reason was to rebuild the pillars of American influence in the Middle East. Americans may have figured this out for themselves, but it was certainly not what they were told. Nor were they told that building this new pillar might take years and years. What they were told — misleadingly and simplistically — was that force was justified to fight ‘terrorism’ and to destroy arsenals of mass destruction targeted at America and at Israel.” In a wide-ranging article for the NYT Magazine, Michael Ignatieff offers an historical critique of our currently muddled intervention policy, and outlines his own best-case-scenario proposal for US-led UN reform. “Putting the United States at the head of a revitalized United Nations is a huge task. For the United States is as disillusioned with the United Nations as the world is disillusioned with the United States. Yet…Pax Americana must be multilateral, as Franklin Roosevelt realized, or it will not survive.“

Pretty Please with Sugar on Top?

Trapped in a quagmire of their own making, the Bushies beg the UN to help out in Iraq. Well, although he may not admit it now, I guess Sec. Powell deserves some cred for seeing the writing on the wall and trying to end a failed policy. But, let’s be serious — do we really expect the international community to snap to and take over the body count after the White House tried so hard to demean them and to undermine the UN as an institution along the road to war? Sheah. Although the GOP probably never expected it’d come to this, I’m afraid we will now reap the bitter rewards of Dubya’s amateurish diplomacy.

Werewolves of Baghdad.

Slate correspondent Daniel Benjamin pokes holes in Condi and Rummy’s recent spurious comparisons between postwar Iraq and Germany. Yep, it’s more revisionist history emanating from Team Dubya. In related news, Jack Beatty laments Dubya’s lack of postwar vision, which now seems ever more constrained to lining the coffers of Halliburton.

Candid Kauai.

Hello all…my intermittent cable woes continue over here, which is severely cutting back on GitM updates. (The Time Warner technician, having proclaimed that nothing is wrong on Friday, will be returning next Wednesday.) But, in the bright spot of connectivity this morning, I uploaded a sampling of the first wave of Hawaii pics, which you can see here: [1/
2/
3/
4]. As you can see, life there was good.