Posted on 04/01/2003 11:56:51 AM PST by Asher
David Frum's Diary
APR. 1, 2003: MONSTERS
Peter Arnett
Bravo to NBC for sacking Peter Arnett. One footnote to this controversy: In his paean to Iraq’s “resistance” and “determination,” Arnett made a claim that you often hear even from uncompromised reporters – that the U.S. forces had been forced to change their plans. I have no idea whether this claim is true. Personally I doubt it. But even if it were true – so what?
There are doomsters and defeatists out there who keep insisting that the U.S. and its allies can only claim victory if they meet an ever-lengthening list of conditions:
“The allies win ONLY IF they (1) overthrow the Saddam Hussein regime and (2) find Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction and (3) do so with minimal casualties and (4) also with minimal Iraqi casualties while (5) being hailed and welcomed by the Iraqi population and (6) without upsetting Arab public opinion too much also (7) without irritating the European allies too much and now (8) without any alterations of their original plan.” In other words, allied success can be discounted if along the way the allies make any adjustment of their plans to circumstances.
If we accepted this remarkable principle, we would have to conclude that though the Allies appear to have defeated Germany and Japan reasonably decisively, they actually lost World War II on points.
Pro-American in Ottawa
A Washington, D.C. reader writes:
“I was visiting my cousin in Montreal this past weekend, and on what could best be described as a whim, we decided to drive to Ottawa to check out the capitol (or is it 'capital' in Canada?). To my delighted surprise, we were upon our arrival greeted in the streets with a substantial number of American flags, all heading toward Parliament. Wondering what was going on, we parked and decided to check out the proceedings.
“I could not believe the sight that unfolded before my eyes. There I was, standing on foreign soil, in front of the Canadian Parliament, and thousands (maybe two or three thousand) of Canadians were chanting 'USA...USA...USA.' The speeches were excellent, and the crowd was extremely motivated, despite the dreary weather.
“Up to that point, I had (perhaps ignorantly) maintained a rather negative view of the Canadians, but this rally truly inspired me. These people were ashamed of their government that turned its back on its best friend, and they wanted to let the world know it. The latest polling data show they are not alone.
“I've been to pro-American rallies in DC (including the rather disappointing one at the Lincoln Memorial a couple weeks ago) and Missouri, but I'd never felt the same kind of pride that I felt in Canada this past weekend. I'll now make sure I spread the word among my friends and colleagues that it's not Canada that opposes us ... it’s just her government.”
Land of the Free
Yesterday, in the midst of war and under the threat of terrorist attack, the Government of the United States released its annual report on the state of human rights around the world.
The report does not merely monitor human rights abroad. It is also a monitor of the integrity of the U.S. government itself – one question that readers always bring to the report is whether the State Department will bring itself to speak frankly about American allies and clients.
This year’s report does credit to its authors. It is candid about states like Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan, and, yes, Israel.
Human-rights concerns are seldom of course the sum and total of American interest in a foreign state. I don’t think too many Americans regret that Uzbekistan restricts the freedom of Islamic radicals to hold public meetings. Most of us are probably prepared to make allowances for Israel’s rough prison conditions too – as the state’s economy weakens under unremitting terrorist attack, funds for prison amenities are naturally going to be scarce.
Nor do we expect the U.S. government to conduct its foreign policy, as Jimmy Carter once dreamily suggested it might, solely on the basis of human rights. France, for example, is a full and liberal democracy – and also an often unfriendly state. Qatar is an authoritarian sheikdom – but nevertheless the United States still needs Qatar’s goodwill.
Still, facts are facts – and publicity lends power to facts. The reports on the Central Asian republics make clear that global scrutiny of their human-rights record has put pressure on those governments to curb their abuses. The report also underscores America’s own commitment to promote democracy and liberty worldwide, to the extent practical – to make America’s principles and beliefs a living creed, not something Americans store in a cupboard to salute only on special occasions.
Democracy, as critics of the president’s Iraq policy rightly say, is not something that can be imposed from outside. But it’s equally true that democracy often cannot establish itself without foreign concern and help. Tyranny can be simultaneously very unpopular – and very strong.
If American power had not been called to war to defeat, tyranny would have conquered the world in the 20th century – and would still rule it now. John Quincy Adams’ famous line that America is the “well-wisher to the freedom and independence of all,” but the “champion and vindicator only of her own” is simply false as a matter of fact. From Korea to Kuwait, American power has championed the freedom and independence of the whole planet; from Moscow to Montevideo, American influence has vindictated the human rights of individuals. I am glad to live in a world where liberty is supported by the strength of the strongest power of them all. Aren’t you?
MAR. 31, 2003: QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS
Monday Morning Wisdom
Must-reading column by William Safire this morning, 13 early conclusions, culminating in the most fascinating question of them all: What will happen to Iraq’s secret police files? Will they reveal connections between Iraq and Western political figures? If so, what?
I’d amplify Safire’s questions with one of my own. French politicians don’t get paid much better than their American counterparts do – and relatively few of them begin their careers by making an early success in business. Yet a surprisingly high number of them seem to live in very nice houses.
President Chirac, for example, owns a 16th century chateau on spacious grounds in a charming town in the southwest of France, in addition to an apartment in the pricey Sixth Arrondissement. It’s an imposing home for a person who has devoted his entire career to politics – even one whose wife inherited a modest fortune. I wonder how he manages it? As the Daily Telegraph reports, Chirac's income seems to be topped up in various mysterious ways by anonymous friends inside France.
I wonder though whether M. Chirac also has admirers in the Middle East? And whether we are shortly to learn more about those admirers? And whether M. Chirac’s desire to discourage such curiosity has in any way affected the foreign policy of the idealistic Republic he heads?
The Great Mark Steyn
If you are not in the habit of reading Mark Steyn – well, start. The man tosses off masterpieces like Michelangelo on speed. His latest on press coverage of the war is as usual indispensable:
“After a little more than a week, is this war coverage in trouble? Already questions are being raised about whether the media’s war plan was fatally flawed. Several analysts are surprised that despite overwhelming dominance of the air, television and radio divisions have so quickly repeated the mistakes of Afghanistan. Meanwhile, on the ground, rapidly advancing columns become stalled in Vietnam-style quagmires around the second paragraph.”
And don’t stop there .... Read also his amazing directory of quotations from the Afghan campaign, including this gem from Arthur Schlesinger Jr. “Our leaders gambled on the supposition that the unpopularity of the regime would bring about the Taleban’s rapid collapse. ...”
Up North
Another pro-US rally in Canada, this time in Calgary. There will be a big one in Toronto on April 4 as well.
Support for the Iraq war continues to rise in Canada, at least outside Quebec. A new poll finds that a majority, 51%, of Canadians in the nine English-speaking provinces condemn the Chretien government’s policies as “turning our back” on an ally in a time of need.
My friends out west report that American flags are suddenly flying over homes and cars – just as they did after 9/11.
The Paleos Are Heard
Much unhappiness in paleo land about Robert Novak's attempt to disassociate from the groupuscule. Here's the gist, from Thomas Fleming's March 30 "Hard Right" column:
"Alas, the days when Mr. Novak practiced the trade of a journalist are long gone, as is clear from his entirely self-serving reply to David Frum. He and Pat Buchanan are just fine, he says, but he entirely repudiates any implied association with the bigoted paleoconservatives whom he says he has never read. [But if] Pat Buchanan is not a bigot, why does he associate with “bigots” like Taki and Scott McConnell, with whom he has joined forces to publish the American Conservative, and why did he accept the help of Justin Raimondo and Lew Rockwell, if they are so evil, in his political campaigns? And, if the editors of Chronicles are bigots, then Pat Buchanan, long-time subscriber, writer, booster, and supporter must be a bigot also, and, since we are dealing with guilt by association, what exempts Mr. Novak?"
Tough questions all.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.