[lbo-talk] neocon worry

Doug Henwood dhenwood at panix.com
Mon Sep 5 13:53:23 PDT 2005


[A friend sent me this, which was posted as the quote of the day on Andrew Sullivan's website.]

<http://theggnomeridesout.blogspot.com/2005/09/neoconservatisms-berlin-wall.html>

"Neoconservatism has always been an ideology dependent on the global projection of national power. What gave it its strength was that after 9/11, Americans were so angry at the assault that they wanted to go overseas and attack those responsible - thus was 'The War on Terror' born.

They were lied into thinking that the removal of Saddam Hussein would make the world a safer and more prosperous place. Clearly it hasn't; if anything, you're more at risk riding the Tube now than you were three years ago.

The lie has been shown not to stand up; and when that has not only failed but has been shown to have failed, what can an ideology based on the global projection of national power do when confronted with a crisis which shows it to be nationally powerless?

Nothing. The collapsed levees of New Orleans will have consequences for neoconservatism just as long and deep as the collapse of the Wall in East Berlin had on Soviet Communism; for when hacks and fulminators like John Podhoretz are openly criticizing the president, the Great Leader, the ideology is on the way out. And hopefully all of those who urged the ideology on, myself included, will have a long time to consider the error of our ways.' -Martin Kelly



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