Group items tagged

Obama the realist. Not the pragmatist. Certainly not the idealist. Realism as a doctrine: The principal purpose of U.S. foreign policy SHOULD be to manage relations between states, rather than to alter the nature of states. U.S. foreign policy shouldn't be in the business of nation-building.

Either/or thinking, especially when used with the force-of-reason thinking, which believes in using only coercion and raw power or forcing people to accept the truth which might in the end be untrue, are very dangerous doctrines. They can readily be viewed by observing the US-led pre-emptive wars and post-lengthy occupations in Iraq and Afghanistan that have caused mayhem, death and destruction for millions. They can also be seen by how the US is unwilling to work with Iran and continues to threaten the Islamic Republic with sanctions and war.