Almost 36 years later, the killing is open and unsolved.
The story of Ken McElroy came to mind s I read stories about President* Trump's budget:
“It is not a soft-power budget,” Mulvaney explained. “This is a hard-power budget, and that was done intentionally. The president very clearly wants to send a message to our allies and to our potential adversaries that this is a strong-power administration.”Hard power is the tactic of a bully. And it yields poor results.
Soft power wins friend and influence. The Marshall Plan was an example of soft power. The Soviets understood soft power. The Chinese understand it. China is making friends around the world by funding development projects in Asia, Africa and South America. China's friends will do things in return, such as allowing them to build port facilities for the Chinese Navy and airports for forward deployment of Chinese aircraft.
Soft power gives the country that uses it leverage in negotiations on other issues. Maybe a large power is having a problem half-way around the world; soft power gives that country a way to negotiate for support facilities. Soft power wins friends in other countries outside of the government. With soft power, you can influence generations, as the children who went to schools that America helped build and were educated by teachers funded by America, if not taught by Americans themselfs, will remember which nation gave them the tools they needed to prosper in life.
Hard power, by itself, gets a country little. Look, for example, at North Korea, which seems to rely only on hard power. Nobody gives a shit about North Korea. Even the Chinese are slowly running out of patience with North Korea.
What Trump and his team of neo-nazis are effectively attempting to do is turn this country into a large version of North Korea, a country that has no friends, only countries that are potential enemies and countries who will keep their distance. It is a foreign policy that is beyond stupid.
It is, in effect, if not actual fact, treason.
This was always the Chinese century
ReplyDeleteFor the past 8 years (actually longer) we haven't been using "soft power" we have been using Beta power.....rolling over everytime someone says so.
ReplyDeleteThere is a difference between soft and hard power. But soft power only works if the rest of the world knows you can and will use hard power as well.
Barry didn't have any balls in his interactions with the rest of the world. He knuckled under at every opportunity. Trump may well be going too far (not that I think so, but obviously you do), but the rest of the world knows he has balls.
they also know he (Trump) is flakier than a bowl of raisin bran.
ReplyDeleteDale
Everyone knows how to push Trump's buttons.
ReplyDeleteAnd he doesn't appear to know how to run the USA.
That's not a good thing.
Even if it were a good strategy (it isn't) Trump isn't going to do anything good with it, because he can't. He has no clue as to what to do about foreign policy, and he's surrounded himself with a gang of dangerously deluded ideologues who will cheerfully trick him into a major war if they get the chance.
ReplyDeleteThen there's the possibility that the gutting of the state department is a favor to Putin, who helped get him elected, and the even scarier possibility that Trump may not even realize that.
This isn't the forties or fifties any more. If you want to know how a policy of bullying and corruption shakes out on the big stage in the 21st century, just look at Russia. I have no shortage of complaints about my country in the age of Trump, but I sure as hell wouldn't trade it for Russia right now.
-Doug in Oakland
And let me guess, B, Obama's first example of knuckling under was Iraq and/or Afghanistan?
ReplyDeletethe rest of the world knows he has balls.
ReplyDeleteNo, they do not. What they do know is that Trump has a mouth and a Twitter account. But so far, that is all.
Hell, when a SEAL was killed in a special operations mission a bit ago, all Trump could do is point fingers at everyone else.
Trump is the Frank Burns of presidents: Everything bad that happens is either G-d's will or someone else's fault.
Cheetolini spoke words to the effect of "Make America Great Again", however his policies or lack of the same, have done exactly the opposite.
ReplyDeleteThis man is Not an American. We as a Country have lofty ideals of being a "shining light upon the hill", at the very least we our Proud of our Greatness and our Principals. We willingly give aid to the less fortunate.
This Cheetolini is not any of that. I can only conclude he is not an American, perhaps by birth but not in Heart.
This is why I say "I want my Country Back"!
America isn't a brand name that can be worn, it's a feeling of unity with all our differences included.
w3ski
IF you believe that, W3ski, then you must hate and oppose all of the 'Fundamental changes" that Barry did (and tried to do) as well.
ReplyDeleteWithout a robust "America" there can be none of the rest that you espouse. Someone has to pay the bill. And our economy can no longer do so.
I too want my country back. Sadly the changes wrought by the Liberals make that all but impossible.
'b', please don't add President Obama into what I have posted. You are trying to put "words in my mouth", and I tend to spit that crap out again rapidly.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
w3ski