Friday, August 06, 2004
Secret diplomacy of John F Kerry
It's so secret that no one knows what it actually involves, and Kerry is not letting anyone in on the secret.
This is simply mind-boggling, but the headline says it all: "Kerry touts convention showing, hints at Iraq plan":
The wit and wisdom of John F Kerry continues:
And lastly, this from the Democratic nominee, in lieu of details of his Iraq plan:
Secret diplomacy has had its day, mostly before World War One, but at least its practitioners had the liberty of not being encumbered by democracy. Matternich never had to tell the plebs what their betters were up to, but neither did he ever want - and indeed never was - elected to anything. With any luck Kerry won't be either.
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This is simply mind-boggling, but the headline says it all: "Kerry touts convention showing, hints at Iraq plan":
"Asked about Bush's Iraq policy during an economic event here [in Iowa], Kerry bristled slightly in recalling news accounts that suggested he 'hasn't spelled out' his vision for rebuilding Iraq and bringing home US troops.We know that statesmanship means something and that leadership in building alliances means something also, but we still don't know what exactly these things mean in the Kerry-world. It's well beyond pathetic that after two years of crisis and controversy over Iraq, one of the main critics of Bush's policies (and at the same time their occasional Congressional supporter) can only be described as "hinting" at having his own alternative plan, which at this stage anyway seems to come down to "Foreigners hate Bush, they love me, please elect me so they will be nice again and we'll all live happily ever after." That's not a foreign policy; it's a domestic political opportunism masquerading as foreign policy.
" 'I have spelled it out, and let me make it very clear, ladies and gentleman, very clear,' Kerry told about 350 voters and business leaders gathered here. 'Statesmanship means something. Leadership in building alliances means something'."
The wit and wisdom of John F Kerry continues:
"The truth is, it is not just the United States of America that has an interest in not having a failed Iraq, in not having a base of terror now, in not having an instability in the Middle East. The world has a stake in that outcome, and the Arab countries above all have a stake in not having a civil war right in their neighborhood. The Europeans have a stake in not having a complete breakdown, and greater anger in the Muslim world, because they have Muslim populations. And yet none of them are at the table. Nothing could underscore more the failure of diplomacy of this administration."Kerry is right; just about everyone in the world has a stake in a peaceful Iraq and a peaceful Middle East. So if all the others have an interest in seeing such outcome, and yet they do nothing to make it happen, it's certainly not "the failure of diplomacy of this administration"; it's a testament to political cynicism of the countries involved. For goodness' sake, it's not the job of American diplomacy to make sure that other countries act in their own interest; they're not children, they know that veggies are good for them and should eat them. And if they persists with their "cut off my nose to spite my face" tantrums, they will one day reap what they have sown. That will be a failure and a tragedy, but it won't be one of American diplomacy.
And lastly, this from the Democratic nominee, in lieu of details of his Iraq plan:
"I will do the diplomacy necessary, and I have heavy cards to play -- I'm not going to lay 'em all out on the table, no future president, no president should negotiate this in public. But let me tell you, I've got big cards to play to bring people to understand the stakes here."Which roughly translates to "I'm not going to tell you what I'm going to do, and how I'm going to do it, but vote for anyway, suckers." In the world of "big cards" it's called a bluff.
Secret diplomacy has had its day, mostly before World War One, but at least its practitioners had the liberty of not being encumbered by democracy. Matternich never had to tell the plebs what their betters were up to, but neither did he ever want - and indeed never was - elected to anything. With any luck Kerry won't be either.
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