To: William F. Buckley Jr, National Review
Hi
I read your article It Didn’t Work with interest, and I agree with the general argument which you are making. I was, however, somewhat taken aback by your reference to US policies in the rest of the world:
“… our policies in Latin America, in Africa, and in much of Asia. The failure in Iraq does not force us to generalize that violence and antidemocratic movements always prevail.”
At first I thought you were being sarcastic, because I’m sure you are well informed. But then perhaps it’s a certain “blindness of looking away” which I’ve begun to think is a national disease. Let me put it plainly: the coup which deposed the elected government of Chile and installed the brutal dictator Pinochet was typical of the way the US brings democracy and freedom to the world. It was not an aberration, there are tens or hundreds of examples all over the world throughout the twentieth century. All the world except the citizens of the US understand this.
Strangely enough, most of the rest of the world also sees and admires the democratic ideals of the US. The world is well aware, however, that in practice US foreign policy involves vigorously “promoting” (by corruption, destabliization, assassination, and outright invasion) vicious militarist regimes which will impoverish their own citizens to the advantage of US commercial interests.
Perhaps you think I’m overstating the situation? Look through the history of Latin America, where the US has been the most active, with open eyes and see if I’m wrong. There are undemocratic cleptocratic regimes which were not installed or supported by the US, but they nearly all arose out of opposition movements which gained their momentum protesting the evil regimes which the US _did_ install.
So yes, the US is in trouble in Iraq. It has failed primarily to engage the cooperation of the Iraqi people, and has I think been genuinely surprised to find that this cooperation is essential to the establishment of democratic government and civil society. At some point the US will withdraw all troops except those necessary to protect oil and other corporate interests. Meanwhile another militarist client government, just like Hussein was at first, will be left behind to manage as best it can.
regards