i'd rather have a safe America than a well respected America.
A well-respected America would be a safe America.
An extract of Bob Woodward's excellent new book is currently on the New Yorker website. Former commander of US forces in Iraq General Casey's solution to Iraq was to get out because the Iraqi government would become dependent on a US military presence and because Iraqi culture resents an occupying force. I have agreed with this in recent times. But then Casey was bumped up the Chief of Staff and General Petreaus took over. Petreaus's solution was the famous "surge" which was always going to calm Baghdad - you have 40000 disciplined troops in a city and the city is going to get safe. But it was not just the surge: it was also excellent intelligence, tolerance of the Sunnis, and an understanding of what Iraqis were complaining about. Petreaus has on the face of it done what Rumsfeld and Cheney should have planned for back when the invasion took place: a subtle and clever combination of hard power and soft power. US forces started to look tolerant and benign compared to al Qaeda, who were kidnapping and killing Iraqis.
This is an America I can respect. Its a smart, sophisticated America. Its the sort of America that sorted out Japan. Any Iraqi contemplating becoming an insurgent can see the whip but he can taste the carrot.
