Thursday, June 18, 2009

Ipse Dixit — End of Story [Victor Davis Hanson]
It is quite amazing to see the various, sometimes conservative, explanations that most liberal (including some rather extreme leftist) pundits have suddenly advanced to support the president's mostly do-nothing, say-nothing policy on Iraq: Mousavi is no different really from Ahmadinejad; our distaste would only empower the government; the resistance does not want or need the American albatross; we should have learned our lesson from 1953, or from Iraq, or from (fill in the blanks); it is such a relief to have a calm president rather than a President Bush shouting about freedom in the hearts of everyone; we can't do anything anyway; "Bush did it" and tarnished the American brand anyway . . .
Two reactions: (1) I doubt such supportive arguments would be now advanced should a President McCain have urged similar realpolitik; (2) Should Obama have come out a few days ago with ringing endorsements for those who wish free and fair elections, and had he given a Reaganesque embrace of the dissidents' bravery and idealism, I doubt we would be reading any of what we read today.
In other words, we are in an age of ipse dixit. And that is all ye need to know.
06/18 05:55 PM
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