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| The U.S. has always been a "dangerous nation" |
| 2006-10-17 |
| Robert Kagan shows in his brilliant and absorbing "Dangerous Nation," the U.S. has always been an empire and a "menace," not only to its ill-governed neighbors but also to tyrants and hegemons across the world. Americans broke with Britain not because it was an empire but because it was not imperialist enough. As Mr. Kagan notes, London gave mortal offense to the colonists through the Proclamation Line of 1763, which banned any further expansion that might come at the expense of the Indian tribes. It imposed this restriction some time before it seriously attempted to put British hands in American pockets. Conservative powers such as Austria, Prussia and Russia, who did not welcome the emergence of an ideological and strategic competitor in the West. John Quincy Adams remarked approvingly that "the universal feeling of Europe in witnessing the gigantic growth of our population is that we shall, if united, become a very dangerous member of the society of nations." Hence Mr. Kagan's ironically approving title. Mr. Kagan is much too subtle a writer to make direct comparisons with our own times, but they are ubiquitous in "Dangerous Nation"--hiding, as it were, in plain sight. Thus he speaks of Benjamin Franklin's plans for a "pre-emptive strike" against the French in the 1750s, by expelling them from Quebec before they could overrun the 13 colonies. There are clear echoes of Mr. Bush's Second Inaugural when Mr. Kagan writes that the Founding Fathers "believed their own fate was in some way tied to the cause of liberalism and republicanism both within and beyond their borders." The question of whether Latin America was "ready" for representative government, which so vexed 19th-century Americans, is surely intended to remind us of the debates today over whether the Middle East is suited to democracy. And Mr. Kagan's handling of the Spanish-American War of 1898 reads like an extended analogy to the NATO intervention in Kosovo a century later--great powers must sometimes intervene in nonvital zones, to lessen suffering and contain oppressive regimes. Interestingly, some of the most bitter opponents of this tradition have been Southerners. They had seen American moral crusading and "nation building" in action during the Civil War and Reconstruction, Mr. Kagan reminds us, and they did not like it one bit. It is no accident, surely, that Sen. William Fulbright, whose critique of the "arrogance" of American power in the 1960s was one of the shibboleths of the antiwar movement, should have come from Arkansas. No surprise either that Sen. Robert Byrd's fulminations against the Iraq war should come from a man who was once a proud citizen of the segregated South. But they may want to think before they strike. As it happens, Democrats have special reason to look forward to the 20th-century sequel, for Mr. Kagan's narrative of American power is, in many ways, the story of their own party. Soon enough, the torch will pass to Woodrow Wilson, FDR, Truman, Kennedy and, if we think of NATO's belated Balkan intervention, even Bill Clinton. There should be something in this project for almost everyone. Joel Kotkin also has an article, 400,000,000, on the WSJ editorial page today behind the subscriber curtain. In it he notes, I summarize and quote: The U. S. is the only leading industrial power with a growing population. Taken together, our greatest enemies of the 20th Century, Germany, Japan and Russia are projected to have 130 million fewer people than we do. If we continue to use our immigration policies to skim the cream from foreign countries through meritocratic immigration policies, it is interesting to contemplate what America's position in the world could be after it's second 200 years have elapsed. |
| Posted by:Nimble Spemble |
| #13 #3 - Just for the sake of quibbling, the most dangerous passage was originally written in Koine Greek (Κοινὴ Ἑλληνική), the other dominant language of the Roman Empire. It is one of the sources of the principle that each person is endowed with certain inalienable Rights. |
| Posted by: Anguper Hupomosing9418 2006-10-17 20:15 |
| #12 Stetsons! 'Nuff said... |
| Posted by: FOTSGreg 2006-10-17 18:30 |
| #11 Stensons! |
| Posted by: 3dc 2006-10-17 15:11 |
| #10 And Billy Jack hats. |
| Posted by: .com 2006-10-17 13:57 |
| #9 NS... I have always looked great in avaitor shades so your message is truely positive.... |
| Posted by: 3dc 2006-10-17 13:55 |
| #8 Thanks, again, NS. Nope. Not positin' nuttin'. Sometimes get a bit gloomy, and if you're in DC, look outside! (Dark and dreary, with steady rain) Your 'skimming the cream' is the way I've looked on earlier immigration; but the 'flood of illegals with periodic amnesty/citizenship offers' is not so encouraging. Many are willing and able to work hard and seek the American Dream, but it sure looks like some come in to be fed and cared for. Half-empty/half-full? Difficult time, what with the election coming up, and all. Still, we Americans seem to be a bit ahead of those suffering from immigration problems in Europe; I hope their example will help educate some of the locals. We shall get an inkling on November 7, when the polls (and pollsters!) close and the pundits begin 'calling' elections. |
| Posted by: Bobby 2006-10-17 11:44 |
| #7 The original rogue nation and I revel in it. We've always been acting out again "the man" "speaking truth to power." |
| Posted by: anonymous2u 2006-10-17 11:25 |
| #6 That's if we last another 200 years. What's with all the negative waves? For what reason should we not last another 200 years? Only one. The American People turn their back on their birthright. Do you really think that will happen? If we survived Civil War and the Great Depression to what internal rot will we now succumb? No nation has been so flexible and able to create, adapt and master change as is the U. S. No nation has ever been so attractive to all mankind. There is more reason to believe the U. S. will in 200 years still be around in substantially its current constitutional form than any other country in the world. That's why we have the world's oldest government in place now. And if we do not succumb to internal rot, what foreign power or combination thereof will be able to conquer us militarily in the next 50 years? Certainly we may choose to accept defeats as we did in Vietnam. But that does not amount to being conquered. And if past economic, demographic and technical trends continue, which is a very reasonable assumption, our military advantage over the rest of the world will also continue to grow. While the repulsive nature of those we choose to govern us may lead one to have doubts about our ability to survive, that doubt reflects a misunderstanding of where the true leadership of the nation lies. Politicians are not truly the strength or leadership of our nation. It was the genius of our founders to make that leadership all the people. And it is exactly that leadership that mkae the U. S. indefatigable. If you want to posit that we may not last, you'll have to explain why, how it will happen. And it is also this strength that makes us so dangerous to all the other nations that have the their strength and leadership resting on the narrow, precarious base of kings, dictators, and ayatollahs. Relax and get some sunglasses, Bobby. The point of these articles and all the other evidence you see when you look at history broadly is that while it won't be without problems, the future of America is so bright you're gonna need those shades. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-10-17 11:10 |
| #5 Did he have to consult much with Noam Chomsky to write this? |
| Posted by: bigjim-ky 2006-10-17 11:04 |
| #4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of Death, I shall fear no evil - for I am the biggest, baddest, meanest motherfucker in the valley. -- Special Forces Prayer, Vietnam |
| Posted by: mojo 2006-10-17 10:48 |
#3 The most dangerous words ever composed in the English language (and the second-most dangerous passage ever)--"dangerous" to the established order, that is--are found in the Declaration:We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. --That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. (The #1 most dangerous passage ever composed was originally written in Attic Greek.) |
| Posted by: Mike 2006-10-17 10:26 |
| #2 Unfortunately, educated high-value immigrants are not as likely to be balkanized in little victim-ghettos, therefore, less likely to vote Democrat. Ergo the efforts to support the flood of illegals with periodic amnesty/citizenship offers |
| Posted by: Frank G 2006-10-17 09:49 |
| #1 Good comments, NS. They give me hope. That's if we last another 200 years. |
| Posted by: Bobby 2006-10-17 09:34 |