Differences
Mark Steyn on differences between the candidates:
It was, with hindsight, foolish to think that the differences between America and most of the rest of "the West" would somehow not also be manifest within America itself. For all those who complain with feigned ennui about the choice of candidates – the lesser of two evils, the evil of two lessers, yawn – the political system has contrived to throw up two men who are almost perfect embodiments of the choice facing the country.
John Kerry, with his pining for summits, his aspirational French, his boundless retrospective wisdom after some other fellow's taken the difficult decisions he ducked, his modish embrace of the Viet Cong and the Sandinistas and even Saddam in his Kuwaitswallowing days, is almost a parody Eurograndee.
But America cannot be a Greater Belgium or a Greater Canada or a Greater Spain. The only thing that enables Belgium to be Belgium and Canada to be Canada and Spain to be Spain is that America is America. If everyone in the civilised world's torpid and ineffectual and semi-non-aligned, it's not gonna work. Americans will not choose transnational complacency over national resolve.
A Western world that is wilfully mediocre and impotent is one that is asking for more 9/11's. There must be a bully on the block, or the West's enemies will take advantage of the situation. Yes, we are that bully. But a bully ceaselessly with good intentions. I'd prefer to be the bully that makes sure the lesser bullies give the nerds their lunch money back, than be one of the many nerds powerless to act at all in the face of intimidation.
(Hat tip Random Birkel.)
It was, with hindsight, foolish to think that the differences between America and most of the rest of "the West" would somehow not also be manifest within America itself. For all those who complain with feigned ennui about the choice of candidates – the lesser of two evils, the evil of two lessers, yawn – the political system has contrived to throw up two men who are almost perfect embodiments of the choice facing the country.
John Kerry, with his pining for summits, his aspirational French, his boundless retrospective wisdom after some other fellow's taken the difficult decisions he ducked, his modish embrace of the Viet Cong and the Sandinistas and even Saddam in his Kuwaitswallowing days, is almost a parody Eurograndee.
But America cannot be a Greater Belgium or a Greater Canada or a Greater Spain. The only thing that enables Belgium to be Belgium and Canada to be Canada and Spain to be Spain is that America is America. If everyone in the civilised world's torpid and ineffectual and semi-non-aligned, it's not gonna work. Americans will not choose transnational complacency over national resolve.
A Western world that is wilfully mediocre and impotent is one that is asking for more 9/11's. There must be a bully on the block, or the West's enemies will take advantage of the situation. Yes, we are that bully. But a bully ceaselessly with good intentions. I'd prefer to be the bully that makes sure the lesser bullies give the nerds their lunch money back, than be one of the many nerds powerless to act at all in the face of intimidation.
(Hat tip Random Birkel.)
posted by Mike C | 5:46 PM
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