Why I Don’t Read the Economist

Here’s an article in the Economist discussing America’s opinion of Obama’s foreign policy.  This is a great example of liberal media bias and why, in particular, I do not read/trust the Economist.

The article’s implied reasoning:

1. Conservatives don’t want to improve relations with the Middle East
2. Conservatives only want to blacklist enemies
3. Conservatives love nuclear weapons, presumably because they love to use them, and;
4. Hawks are scary, a lunatic fringe; whereas doves are normal (as they are nowhere mentioned)

First, political parties do not always disagree with the ends of foreign policy, it’s the means over which they fight.  The means of the Democratic Party are, generally, to kowtow, talk, encourage the UN and unilaterally disarm (and hope for a better world).  Conservatives simply disagree, not because they hate talking or are even mean-spirited, but because it’s ineffective at best and catastrophically dangerous at worst.

A more close-to-home example:  A gunman absolutely dedicated to running into a crowded mall and killing people cannot be “talked” out of doing that.  Armed guards must be posted at the entrances.  If the police discover beforehand that a person in their area is planning such actions, it will dedicate itself to identifying the criminal and stopping him beforehand, by force if necessary.  The same is true in foreign policy.  Committed gunmen - Hamas, Iran, etc. - cannot simply be “talked” out of achieving their ends.  To the point where talking is effective, it should be done knowing full-well that the mall is protected, should talks “break-down.”

Because the Economist gives no effort to exploring what conservatives want in foreign policy, here is a concise list.  Conservatives want:

1. Effective dialogue:  trust but verify – the purpose of signing agreements and negotiating is not for its own end, but so that U.S. national security objectives are furthered. 
2. Strong defense:  not because we are hawks and warmongers who want to blow up the world, but because we believe that there are people just like that running around out there whom we do not trust.  It’s the same concept as keeping a firearm in the home, another thing liberals do not understand.  You don’t keep the firearm because you want to hurt someone, but because you don’t want someone to hurt your loved ones.  A firearm in the hands of a responsible, able, trained citizen is as much to be feared by society as a rotary saw in the hands of a carpenter.
3. Effective use of all the instruments of power:  economy, public diplomacy, political warfare, etc.

The argument should not be between diplomacy alone or military force alone.  Both are necessary, but even those two alone are inadequate.  The effective use of the other instruments of power must also be pushed.