Witness the triumph of the therapeutic.
All of the talk about diplomacy and talk and consensus really is therapy for the left side of the aisle. They think Iraq and Vietnam show the west is bad for forcing its views on Marxists and fascists, so we need to get guilt off our chests and beg for forgiveness.
It serves no other purpose. It makes us look like George McFly to the most reactionary elements in modern times. People like Sheikh Nasrallah and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad are not Mikhail Gorbachev.
In addition, we strengthen the prestige of the bad guys by talking with the fundie leaderships. If we absolutely insist on talking, it should be with the students, the Christian opposition, business leaders-- anybody BUT the apocalyptic Death to America! wackos.
Brother Webb is already an embarassment, and he's not even sworn in yet. He's really drunk the liberal's Koolaid, that's for sure.
TC