Ideas Matter

Ideas Matter

I think Kissinger is a smart and capable diplomat, who is pretty damn amoral in his pursuit of global stability and our national interest.

But he's not the kind of leader I'd follow.

I've seen a fair amount of commentary comparing Hillary to Bernie, praising her ability and experience, and downplaying Bernie's impractical ideas.

I think they're missing the point.

Ideas matter. Trump's success is based on ideas, as hateful and illogical as they may be. Ideas are powerful.

Hillary has experience, and ambition, but no ideas... and I think that will be her downfall.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2014/10/21/kissinger-the-constructivist/

http://abuaardvark.typepad.com/abuaardvark/2005/07/ir_constructivi.html


https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/monkey-cage/wp/2014/10/21/kissinger-the-constructivist/

Comments

  1. Rick Wayne (Author)March 14, 2016 at 7:16 PM

    Exactly. Experience is definitely important, but above a certain level, experience is not the primary criterion for choosing a leader (versus, say, a first lieutenant). A leader needs vision, an invigorating purpose.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Geo. TirebiterMarch 14, 2016 at 8:05 PM

    kissinger? he's doctor strangelove.

    ReplyDelete
  3. G.K. NelsonMarch 14, 2016 at 8:13 PM

    When I was around 20 years old I met a guy at our local record store (yes, there was such a thing) whose passion was South American music. He turned me on to people like Caetano Veloso, Tom Jobim and Elis Regina. One afternoon at his house we listened to an amazing folk singer whose album "La Población" was a mix of haunting lyrics and stunning, crystal clear guitar. His name was Victor Jara, my friend told me, and he'd never make another record, because he had been killed in the Santiago Stadium by soldiers loyal to Augusto Pinochet. Pinochet, my friend told me, made lots of people -- anyone who disagreed with him -- vanish.

    Analysts talk about this stuff like it's an abstraction, like there aren't consequences for the decisions people like Kissinger make. Ask the millions of people who were guilty of the crime of wearing glasses whether Pol Pot's regime was impersonal. Oh. You can't. They're dead.

    Kissinger sat back and let those things happen -- in some cases encouraged them and supported them. For me, it's personal. He's a rat bastard; and if only the good die young, he'll live forever, a soulless golem who exists only to satisfy his own draconian ambitions.  When Hillary Clinton identified him as one of her friends and advisers, she lost a lot of points in my book.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Drew McCarthyMarch 14, 2016 at 8:37 PM

    Pedro Barrientos, now living in Florida, is supposed to stand trial this summer.

    ReplyDelete
  5. G.K. NelsonMarch 14, 2016 at 8:45 PM

    If he's responsible, I hope they nail him. "The mills of the gods grind slowly...."

    ReplyDelete

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