Obama's white flag policy

Michael B

E.g., much has been made of Obama's cultural sensitivity applied to his communications with Iran, but beneath that culturally sensitive gloss or facade is a certain appeasement, a certain tergiversating quality - a certain incoherence and, seemingly, a level of incomprehension.

Carl

Melanie, you forgot to mention that "The authoritative counter-terrorism expert Alex Alexiev" is employed by the Center for Security Policy, a US based NeoCon organisation.

Mike Woodman

The willful blindness of western leaders to radical islam and its relationship to core islamic teachings is utterly mind-boggling. So many people have, if you'll forgive the expression, an occidento-centric view of the world. That is, they see all events as caused by the west or as reactions to events caused by the west. They cannot seem to grasp that islam has a dynamic of its own; it creates hostility and aggression sui generis. It has global ambitions. It loves to blame the west for this, that and the other, but this merely serves to mask its underlying dynamic and which therefore serves this underlying dynamic. Radical islamists know full well that westerners are easily taken in by claims of victimhood and continually use this knowledge to block attempts to counter their agenda.

Our leaders need to study the beliefs and clearly stated aims of islamists and try putting themselves in their shoes. They should ask themselves, "what does the world look like from this perspective; given these basic assumptions, what are the rational objectives and methods of this mind-set; what is the likelihood of changing such an outlook for a more pluralistic, non-dominating, rational one?"

Careful reflection on such matters would give them a clear sense of what to do and what to plan for. But alas, they haven't even begun and show no signs of doing so.

Worried (More so now so)

At least the Americans have guns.

valdemar

So basically: 'I heartily recommend sending other people's sons and daughters out to die in foreign fields until Islam is...'

What, exactly? What are the victory conditions? A Starbucks in Kandahar? Richard Dawkins lecturing in Mecca? Chris Moyles on Radio Tehran?

A lot of people make a lot of noise, but there are no clear objectives, just a desire for more blood on foreign hillsides. No wonder we're losing. We have no idea what we're doing; the people who call themselves hard-headed hide their complete lack of any strategic vision behind attacks on the supposed cowardice and weakness of others.

Trumpeldor

Melanie,

Liberal Jews votes tilted the balance toward Obama
We will have to pass four long years of hostile US administration.
I am quite confident that the new labour -likud-Israel Beiteinu coalition will be able to rein in the grandiose "PIECEful"agenda cooked by the new messiah toward Israel.
The palestinian agenda being totally devoted to the gradual destruction of Israel,only the refusal of the Israeli government cede one inch of our forefather soil and the continuous growth of Jewish communities in Judea ansd Samaria will prevent the core cities of Israel from being destroyed by kassam and grrad volleys.
Anyway,the first strategic focus of Bibi and Barak will be to deal with Iranian nuclear ambitions
Israeli hardware,software specialists and highly skilled and famed aviators should be able to at least cripple Persian nuclear agenda for some years till a more able president be elected in our beloved USA

Rachel Miller

Carl, true to form, you have posted an ad hominem attack instead of a thoughtful comment. Who says the CSP is a 'neo-con organization'? On what grounds? With what plausibility?

One final question: do you have any concrete objections to Mr. Alexiev's statements, or are you basing your criticism solely on the fact that he might have different political views from you?

Augustus

It is indeed alarming that the same people who guided American foreign policy under Jimmy Carter are now guiding Obama. Simply to conclude that America has to live with radical Islam is utter foolishness. But doesn't Obama act anyway like a complete fool on national television? Doesn't he laugh when he should look serious about the problems faced by the entire world? Does he not make stupid mistake after stupid mistake with his appointments? You would be deranged if you thought that, and he wasn't doing those things. The problem is, he IS making those foolish mistakes. If you ever thought Bush was dumb for some of the things he said, well he never once made derogatary remarks about the disabled, either on national television or elsewhere. Anyone who defends Obama must be prepared to live with the consequences of defending a venal, self-regarding, misanthropic, obsequious liar. A man with no 'class' but laughs at the misfortunes of his 'inferiors'.
A man who steps over the metaphorical bodies of anyone who gets in the way of his quest for self-aggrandised power. To defend something so indefensible would be a sign of quite some derangement in itself.

David Lindsay

It's a pity, because she is very good on a lot of domestic policy, but today, Melanie Phillips is pleased to inform us that "Obama is surrendering the west to the forces of radical Islam" because some old neocon crazy whom one might reasonably have assumed to be dead says that there are "new efforts to appease Putin".

Putin, of course, is so well-known for his "radical Islam" that, while President, he restored the teaching of Christianity in Russian schools, and that, first as President and now as Prime Minister, he has tried to put down the neocon-backed Islamist secessionist terrorism in Chechnya.

If that is "radical Islam", then the more "appeasement" of it, the better.

Fivish

Thank you Melanie for exposing B Hussein O's agenda which is not conducive to 'peace in our time'!

Raymond in DC

Rachel, I think it's safe to assume Carl would have no problem with "experts" hailing from the Center for American Progress - a very liberal think tank from whose ranks Obama has drawn a number of senior personnel - because he agrees with *those* folks.

An American

Worried (more so now)

Yeah...we need our guns to protect us from our own government.

Ronnie

Can I just point out that the US made no missile defence committments to east Europeans.

The missile sites and their attendant radar installations in the Czech Republic and Poland were to protect the West from an Iranian or North Korean attack. They were not supposed to protect post Warsaw Pact countries from a resurgent Russia. Or so we were told.

We are seeing a realignment of US foreign policy, not unusual when a new adminstration takes office. It can't be said that the previous administration's foreign policy (sic) was a resounding success but, of course, you wouldn't expect a Neocon think tank to see it that way.

Furthermore, I realise that most of the people here, Mel included, think in a vacuum where the conduct of each element of policy is considered entirely independently, but the West is broke; its that simple. I also have to break it to you that Obama didn't do it. We can no longer afford the more aggressive foreign policy that the US had. Economics, as well as ideology, are driving this policy realignment.

I realise that might not get the juices going quite as much a the idea of appeasement by the IslamoMarxiFascistFar LeftLiberals but there we are.

TD

Everyone needs to calm down. OK so the Americans are engaging with morally reprehensible, dangerous people - so what's new about that? Please remember that the USA is by far and away the most powerful nation on earth, controls the oceans, skies and (increasingly) space and can do as it pleases.

Also can everyone please have a look at a map? Swat is in the centre of Pakistan, not on the Afghan border and the Taliban there are essentially surrounded. The Swat 'compromise' is nothing more than a short-term containment strategy to keep the savages in and the Yanks would have gained significant concessions themselves for permitting this to happen. Equating the savages of Swat with the Bin Ladin/ Taliban situation in Afghanistan is miles off the mark. Yes they are cowardly, pathetic creatures in Swat - gaining lots of MSM attention, as per usual - but we're not talking about a group that controls the nation-state or that can plan workable mass terror attacks.

The American message to Pakistan would be clear - keep them in their box; or we'll hit them with everything we have got. And there's absolutely nothing the Pakistanis can do about that.

Owen Morgan

Contrary to what Ronnie (March 25th, 8:28pm) said, Alex Alexiev never implied that the missile defence was a protection against Russia. Putin objected to Czech and Polish participation in the scheme, not because it was aimed at Russia, which it wasn't, even in a defensive way, but because it demonstrated that the formerly subjugated states of Central Europe were aligning themselves more closely with the USA and NATO. As for the other person's assertion that Chechen secessionists are islamists and terrorists, well, they certainly weren't anything of the sort, when the Chechen wars started. If islamist and terrorist attitudes have taken hold in Chechnya, we have Putin to thank for that. (Incidentally, how many of those who are so vocal about imagined "atrocities" in the course of the Israeli operations in Gaza ever made a sound during the genuinely brutal Russian destruction of Chechnya?)

Ronnie

If I understand you correctly, Owen Morgan, you are saying that Putin is indirectly responsible for the Beslan school massacre, instigated by Chechen jihadis.

Following that line of arguement consistantly, you would also 'say' that the Israeli government is indirectly responsible for the indiscriminate rocket attacks on Israeli towns.

I know that is not what you are saying but your need to have it both ways rather weakens your point.

As for the missile defence sites in Poland and the Czech Republic. I'm afraid that Russia no more wants U.S. missiles on its border than the U.S wants Russian missiles in Cuba.

Not an unreasonable position for the Russians to hold.

Donna Gardier

To Owen: 26/3 7.25am

Owen hasn’t Putin got a job on his hands stopping the Islamisation of Russia into separatist states let alone keeping the Balkan states on his borders at bay due to the same problem! Islam has been the main agitator in central Europe for 500 years. How naļve is it to say it is Putin’s fault that the Chechnyans have become Islamic terrorists? In February the U.S. and major European powers rewarded with a second state, separatists who used terrorism throughout the 1980s and 90s to wrest a chunk of land from the host society it belonged to. This was the Kosovo giveaway — executed at gunpoint (Albanians threaten the West and the West threatens the Serbs)--whose predicted repercussions the world is only starting to witness. It was not lost on the Czech Republic that its reluctant decision to recognize Kosovo "independence"--after succumbing to U.S. and EU pressure-took place on the territory of the former Sudetenland.

To add to the circus of it all Kosovo has become "narcotics central" Europe.

Surely the most anti Russian of us can recognize why it is rather ridiculous of us to expect Putin to respect the machinations of NATO.

Islam is the primary agitator in Central Europe. The Chechnyan Islamic agitators have been given wind beneath their wings because of the success of the Albanian Muslims seizing Kosovo.

It seems crazy that we are so wedded to promoting expansionist Islam in the Balkans that we have jeopardized a possible Russia-assisted path with Iran, maybe as an extreme perhaps quite possibly enabling an attack against Israel.

Original Tony

Jimmy Carter refused to recognize Bishop Abel Muzorewa when he was elected as Prime Minister of Zimbabwe-Rhodesia in 1979, despite a 66% win in free elections, because he favoured thugs under Mugabe getting into office.

In an ironic twist, Mugabe banned Carter from mediating in or entering Zimbabawe recently as a member of the council of elders! The crocodile finally caught up with the appeaser.

The very same thing will happen to Obama (a carter clone)both domestically and internationally; he will appease and appease until one day he too will go down the crocodile's gullet.

I just hope the lovely USA, with its brave and generous people do not go down with him

Wadi-Williams

Ms Phillips is clearly still the doyenne of the 'Political Flat Earth' school of thought. Her tendency to err on the side of intellectual hysteria would be comical if it werent so tragic....
Her central thesis, culled from some Dr Strangelove who has lived well beyond his sell by date, is that, we are guilty of 'appeasement of our enemies and indifference or worse toward our friends'... What does this drivel mean? Are we to understand that when our so called friends commit war crimes and crimes against humanity we must remain silient? When our 'erstwhile friends' using weopons we have provided, slaughter and incinerate children and civilians we muat remain silient? When our 'Friends defy over 60 UN resolutions and continue to illegally occupy a peoples land we must turn a blind eye?
And is it appeasement for the UK & USA to address the fact that they were instrumental in overthrowing the first democratically elected goverment of IRAN and imposing an autocratic popinjay in his place?
Ms Phillips is indubitably a left over from Bush's psychopathic political age.The question now is, 'How long it will take her and her acolytes to awaken to the fact that we have finally turned the 'pages of history'?
As Always Wadi'The Zima'

Wadi-Williams

Ms Phillips is clearly still the doyenne of the 'Political Flat Earth' school of thought. Her tendency to err on the side of intellectual hysteria would be comical if it werent so tragic....
Her central thesis, culled from some Dr Strangelove who has lived well beyond his sell by date, is that, we are guilty of 'appeasement of our enemies and indifference or worse toward our friends'... What does this drivel mean? Are we to understand that when our so called friends commit war crimes and crimes against humanity we must remain silient? When our 'erstwhile friends' using weopons we have provided, slaughter and incinerate children and civilians we muat remain silient? When our 'Friends defy over 60 UN resolutions and continue to illegally occupy a peoples land we must turn a blind eye?
And is it appeasement for the UK & USA to address the fact that they were instrumental in overthrowing the first democratically elected goverment of IRAN and imposing an autocratic popinjay in his place?
Ms Phillips is indubitably a left over from Bush's psychopathic political age.The question now is, 'How long it will take her and her acolytes to awaken to the fact that we have finally turned the 'pages of history'?
As Always Wadi'The Zima'