7:51AM
Asymmetry meets asymmetry, and never the twain shall meet
Thursday, August 9, 2007 at 7:51AM POLITICS & ECONOMICS: "Can Arab Arms Deal Deter Iran, Bolster Security? Critics Charge Lack of Focus on Terror, Political Change," by Jay Solomon, Wall Street Journal, 9 August 2007, p. A6.
We're already huge vis-a-vis Iran conventionally, so adding to that advantage regionally seems to accomplish little, except earn back some R&D money for the defense firms that benefit.
Meanwhile, does any of this challenge Iran's spreading of soft power in the region?
That's the point of the criticism, and it's fairly sensible.
Reader Comments (1)
"Today, there is no such unity among our international nonmilitary resources. There is no clear leadership and no clear line of authority. Too often, we struggle to integrate our nonmilitary instruments into coherent, timely, and effective operations. For instance, even as we face the need to strengthen the democratic underpinnings of a country such as Lebanon, our resources in education, health, banking, energy, commerce, law enforcement, and diplomacy are spread across separate bureaucracies and are under separate leadership. As a result, we have had to look on as Hezbollah has brought health care and schools to areas of Lebanon. And guess who the people followed when the conflict between Israel and Lebanon broke out last summer? Likewise, the popularity of Hamas in Gaza and the West Bank should be no surprise given that the group has provided Palestinians with the basic services that neither the international community nor the Palestinian government could deliver."
He took a lot of fire for such comments, but of course it was used out of context by his political adversaries, nevertheless, it is correct.
This article in Foreign Affairs by Governor Romney speaks very much toward what Tom advocates to begin assimilating the gap into the core. Seems like Mitt Romney should be your candidate based on his positons.