[antidisestablishment]

Bush can do good in the Middle East if he watches his moral barometer.

I would love to see W govern by moral principle rather than short-sighted pragmatism, but I hold little hope for it. While he appears to be (and I believe he is) a moral individual, his policies are driven by sheer political pragmatism. Such policies may foster short-term political gain, but they cannot result in long-term moral good.

And are you honestly suggesting that Bush extend America (the empire) to the ME? While the pragmatic side of me argues for Patton's march, I think that a moral imperative could have been argued at the same time. The current war on terror is almost opposite, with the moral argument being stronger and the pragmatic reasons being lesser. Though our government dismisses the moral elements because of its own moral abdication, the real evil lies not in the weapons of mass destruction, but in the ideologies of those who control them. Unfortunately, these ideologies are shared by many whom we (pragmatically) call allies.

[annalex]

First, I don't think the topic of the day, the impending invasion of Iraq, is in our national interest unless a far more aggressive posture is adopted by Iraq. So, while I stand by the statment that Bush can do good in the Middle East, this broad statement is not an endorsement of his Axes of Evil policies of late.

An extension of the American Empire into the West Bank via establishment of a Palestinian puppet state, on the other hand, looks like a welcome solution that will decrease misery over there, and reconcile us with some Arabs mad at us because of Israeli policies.

The general principles of foreign affairs were proclaimed by Ayn Rand, and I agree with them. A foreign intervention is justified if it increases individual freedoms and is in the national interest of the intervent. American intervention in the Middle East is likely to improve the individual rights anywhere we invade, but the national interest compels us to stay out of Iraq, and engage as a force of reason in the Israeli-Arab disputes.