NEO-SOUL-CON:

Obama may have to keep neo-con ideals (Ian Buruma, December 13, 2008 , The Australian)

[The neo-cons] believed that aggressive promotion of democracy abroad was not only moral, and in the US tradition, but in the national interest as well.

There is a core of truth in this assertion. Liberals, too, can agree that Islamist terrorism, for instance, is linked to the lack of democracy in the Middle East. Realism, in the sense of balancing power by appeasing dictators, has its limits.

Democracy must be encouraged, wherever possible, by the most powerful democracy on earth. But revolutionary wars are not the most effective way to do this.

What is needed is to find a less belligerent, more liberal way to promote democracy, stressing international co-operation instead of blunt military force.

Obama is unlikely to repeat the mistakes of the neo-cons. But, to succeed, he will have to save some of their ideals from the ruins of their disastrous policies.

The cult of personality requires the belief that when the Unicorn Rider continues the historic American policy of liberalizing the world he'll do it without making mistakes--like JFK and the last gang of Brightests?--but democratization is inherently radical and nearly always messy.

Posted by Orrin Judd at December 13, 2008 9:16 AM