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| "Dr. Sanity" analyzes foreign policy and domestic politics |
| 2006-02-27 |
| A posting by psychologist-blogger Pat Santy ("Dr. Sanity"); EFL'd to get to the good part. I think she's nailed it here. . . . From the beginning (was it only 5 years ago?) the Democrats and the left have been hysterically screaming about quagmires and civil wars with their usual generalized defeatism; and more recently we have heard the growing uneasiness on the part of Republicans and neocons that the Bush policies are moving too slowly. Both the excessive hysteria and the niggling uneasiness come from the same psychological source -- a need to have everything resolved by the 2006 elections; or at the latest by the 2008 elections. The Democrats would like Bush's policies to unambiguously fail; while the Republicans are hoping for unambiguous success. Too bad both desires will be frustrated. The kind of major shift in US foreign policy that Bush has initiated may actually take decades to play out; and the repercussions of what has happened in the last 5 years may ripple for half a century or more. That is to say, there will be no instant gratification and no instant and universal successful outcome or failure --i.e., the kind that can win votes and influence money flow in time for the 2006 elections; nor probably for the 2008 ones either. We are new parents who uneasily hold the tiny crying infant in our large bumbling hands. As we look at this small creature we have created, we have many thoughts and fears. We might anxiously wonder what the future will bring for him and for us? Will this child grow up to be a doctor? Or a mass murderer? We have no way of knowing at the moment, and can only commit ourselves to providing the nurture and care necessary for optimal personality development. Initially, the task is messy and rather smelly; but at some point, that small infant will be fully capable of making his own decisions and going forward on his own. For a human infant, that happy day generally occurs somewhere in the teen years. I have no idea how long it takes for a liberal democracy; but expecting it to mature in 3-5 years requires a excessive degree of fantasy and self-delusion. Personally, I think we have done all that it is possible to do for the last few years to give the Middle East a chance to grow in freedom and prosperity. We don't have to be perfect parents in this. Winnicutt's concept of the "good enough" parent is applicable here. We are only human, after all. It is simply not possible to sieze every opportunity and optimize every intervention. We have also done quite a bit to ensure the best possible hope for our own future and the continuation of values and freedoms we hold dear. And, we have done amazingly well no matter what the skeptics say. Life will certainly be interesting in the next 25 years as we watch what has been set into motion and as we deal with other more immediate treats and situations that arise. And, if we refrain from the reflex need for instant gratification and the demand that everything be exactly as we wish it right now, this very minute--many of us may live to see a positive transformation in a part of the world that now breeds an implaccable enemy of freedom, individuality and humanity. Does anyone out there have a better idea? |
| Posted by:Mike |
| #4 "Does anyone out there have a better idea?" Not that I've heard. Certainly nothing from the Dhimmidonks or Moonbats or LLL that serves the interests of the US or of freedom in general. This is, indeed, a whisper of sanity in a shitstorm of partisan whoring, Islamofascist spew and Shari'a misogyny, the gurgling cries of beheaded innocents, 10-faced Olde Europe dissembling and duplicity, Russkie and ChiCom pimpery and merc proxy misanthropy, MultiCulti Tranzi carping and scheming and thievery, UN bowing and scraping before tinpot dictators, Paleo Hate Machine™ diatribe, and that instant of total silence after a boomer detonates - before the screams... My last request: Hold a séance and let me know how it turns out. |
| Posted by: .com 2006-02-27 15:18 |
| #3 The Dr. Ruth of politics... |
| Posted by: Sneart Thravinter8624 2006-02-27 15:02 |
| #2 Faster, please. I'm only human. |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2006-02-27 14:59 |
| #1 This is a breath of true sanity. Humans are flawed creatures; all of their creations are also flawed. Conservatives seem to inherently know this much more so than leftists, but even they at times forget. W said that this would be a long haul with setbacks, and that it might outlast our lifetimes. He put our struggles against Islamofascism into terms that anyone who gets humanity's flawed nature should understand. |
| Posted by: no mo uro 2006-02-27 14:49 |