Essential reading on conservative internationalism
If you haven't taken the time to read Henry Nau's essay on conservative internationalism, at Policy Review, you should. As one commenter, well, er. . .commented, like Norman Podhoretz's Commentary essay on World War IV, it helps to provide context for what is happening now in the world.
Spengler, at the Asian Times, provides more context here:
"His economic policies embodied "creative destruction", the chaotic emergence of new firms and methods to challenge the old. Conventional economics thinking restricted its attention to large corporations that depend on the debt markets. Under Reagan, employment at the 500 largest US corporations shrank, but the explosion of small businesses more than made up for it. After the first round of Reagan tax cuts, which nearly halved the top tax rate, the value of the American stock market doubled in 1984. Creative destruction transformed the landscape of the American economy. The microchip transformed domestic life as well as warfare, and America regained a dominant position in the global economy. Reagan's strategic policy stemmed from a similar kind of creative destruction. Under the old containment doctrine, the United States sought to maintain stability while the Soviets stirred the pot. As I wrote some years ago, "The elder Bush and advisers such as James Baker and Brent Scowcroft, schooled in the Cold War, flinched at the thought of instability. Any regime, no matter how corrupt and oppressive, merited American backing, as long it was 'our bastard', as Franklin Roosevelt qualified Nicaragua's strongman of the 1930s."
More:
"Reagan's predecessors in the Ford and Carter presidencies, as well as his successor, George H W Bush, fretted over the collapse of the security arrangements of the Cold War: the arms control agreements, the fine lines in the sand demarcating spheres of influence, the instabilities of the Middle East and Asia. In other words, they were fearful and timid commanders, unsuited for decisive action. Reagan's team marched into Washington in January 1981 with as much contrarian spirit as Fidel Castro's 1958 entry into Havana."
Read the rest here from 2004.
Thanks, David.
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