[RKBA Democrat]

“A larger view, which I think you probably share, is that Obama’s foreign policy has been a muddle for the last five years..”

I would agree that our foreign policy has been a muddle since January of 1989.

“...which has been extremely dangerous but because he is superficially nonconfrontational it has not appeared to be so. Where he should have been aggressive, with Iran when the people were on the streets and just about any other time to stop them getting the bomb, he has been pusillanimous.”

I’m no fan of our involvement in the middle east at all. We should have left years ago and let the shia and sunni kill each other off as they’ve been doing for the last 1,000 years. We have nothing to win there and plenty of American lives and treasure to lose. At best, our long term involvement will keep Israel going. But at what point does Israel have to more or less stand on it’s own? The biggest threat to Israel in the long term is not it’s neighbors, rather the threat is it’s own internal demographics. Jews are slowly becoming a minority in Israel. We can’t resolve that problem for Israel unless, of course, we’re going to make it our policy to send Americans there to live to help stave off Israel’s demographic suicide. I just see the whole area as a major cluster that a wise nation should avoid. And more to the point, we simply can’t afford it anymore.

To paraphrase Geo. Washington: honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none.

“Obama is a radical ideologue who sees foreign policy myopically through that filter.”

Of course he is. It’s unfortunate that there is no counterweight within Congress. But as I’ve pointed out countless times on this website, what we have is a one party system mimicking a two party system. The rhetoric differs somewhat, but the policies don’t. Until that dynamic changes, if it ever does, then we will be doomed to endure successive kakistocracies until the American experiment sees it’s official, and quite final, end.

[nathanbedford]

I would agree that our foreign policy has been a muddle since January of 1989.

I agree but I am ashamed to admit that I have come to that conclusion late as one who was in support of the Iraq war and now realize that it was strategically impossible to bring democracy to a culture which is not ready for it. Ditto Afghanistan.

I agree with your views about Israel and have posted to that effect for years. I am unaware of the demographic difficulties-do you mean that they are simply admitting to many Palestinians?

I share your overall pessimism but I also believe in white as well as black swans.

[Yosemitest]

I got to ask.

What does RKBA stand for?

[marktwain]

“what we have is a one party system mimicking a two party system. The rhetoric differs somewhat, but the policies don’t.”

Which is why not a single Republican voted for Obamacare.

I would contend that we have a “Progressive party” consisting of all Democrats, 98 percent of the MSM, and a significant number of Rinos that are either “progressive” at heart or deathly afraid of the MSM.

We have a “conservative party” consisting of a majority of Republicans with very little leadership and a chunk of new media.

[marktwain]

“what we have is a one party system mimicking a two party system. The rhetoric differs somewhat, but the policies don’t.”

Which is why not a single Republican voted for Obamacare.

I would contend that we have a “Progressive party” consisting of all Democrats, 98 percent of the MSM, and a significant number of Rinos that are either “progressive” at heart or deathly afraid of the MSM.

We have a “conservative party” consisting of a majority of Republicans with very little leadership and a chunk of new media.