Everything… Almost
In last Sunday’s New York Times (March 23, 2008), Paul Berman wrote, “Extremist movements have been growing bigger and wilder for more than three decades [now. During] that period, America has tried pretty much everything from a policy point of view. Our presidents have been satanic (Richard Nixon), angelic (Jimmy Carter), a sleepy idiot savant (Ronald Reagan), a cagey realist (George H.W. Bush), wonderfully charming (Bill Clinton), and famously otherwise (George W. Bush). And each president’s Middle Eastern policy has conformed to his character” [emphasis added].
America has tried everything? Is he kidding? When was minding our own business — nonintervention — tried? Clearly, by “everything,” Berman means every style of imperialism. But why should we imagine that any form of imperialism will discredit violent radicals? Such thinking is typical of the U.S.-centric ideas voiced by most pundits and politicians.
