The Reality Situation, David Brooks, NYTimes, May 30, 2008
Brooks is edging towards the reality but doesn't quite get there. He details the futility but doesn't reach the right conclusion.
US foreign policy in the early 21st Century is all about a rear guard action for a retreat. A retreat? Yes, a retreat from the owner of a global monopoly to merely one of many players on a competitive global landscape.
It's only when we seek to contain enemies or enforce Pax Americana that we get into trouble. It consumes attention, resources, and connectivity we can't spare. Worse, its ultimately futile:
This is the problem with multipolarity. When everybody is responsible, nobody is responsible.
Foreign policy for every nation in a world of fierce economic competition and rapidly rising instability is all about gaining advantages and reducing exposures to the downside. Everything else is a vice.
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