Current Wisdom Revisited--Circa 1979

The American Spectator ^ | December 1979 | RE Tyrell

[hinckley buzzard]

A patriot speaks out for the Plains, Georgia Wonderboy:

To the editor:

I am disturbed--not about the events abroad so much as about the media's attitude toward them and about their disposition to run President Carter down.

We don't need a hard or hard-boiled president. We need one who can gain good will and dispel the image of the overbearing and hateful American. And President Carter is good at that. Notice how he inspired Sadat and Begin, and how he won over Lopez Portillo after a bad beginning? In the present troubled situation I like the way the president hasn't gone off half-cocked. I find his low key approach reassuring. he makes me feel safe.

Who are those who are uneasy about his performance? Reporters and commentators, I suspect, who seem to enjoy keeping things stirred up. I'm not worrying about being a "doormat." What right have we to dominate other nations? To be friendly and helpful, yes, but domineering, no. Why emulate the gunboat diplomacy of the past? Is our past record in dealing with other nations all that good? Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon--all branded with Vietnam.(April7, 1979.)

[hinckley buzzard]

A blast from the past, in the old TAS. Not much has changed in 26 years. (Note, this was written during the Iran hostage crisis, before Ronaldus Magnus was the GOP nominee for 1980.)