There seems to be a real power struggle among the Palestinians. The golden rule is that if Arafat opposes any change, it’s worth supporting the change. Without Bush’s firm stand, no change – and therefore no prospect for a real peace – would have happened. Ditto Syria, which seems to be getting the message of the Three Week War. There’s a dynamic here, and one that surely should challenge conventional views of what a “just war” is. Would a peaceful ouster of Saddam have been possible? I think we now know that war was the only way. Was the war fought with an attempt to minimize civilian casualties and damage to infrastructure? Yes, on an historic scale. Is the outcome in Iraq more just than what preceded it? Without a doubt. Will the war prod the rest of the region toward more positive change? It certainly looks possible. Yes, war is awful. But 21st century warfare has now demonstrated its capacity to flummox centuries of “just war” theologians and philosophers. We need a new debate – because the terms of the last one have just become extinct.
UNBOUND: What the war means for America’s future. Empire? Not in the DNA. But something much more promising beckons. My take – now a week old – posted opposite.
The Dish 