July 4 weekend is a good time to think about great Americans. And if there's a great American thinker in 2009, I nominate Andrew Bacevich, a retired Army colonel who now teaches international relations at Boston University. Not only did Bacevich serve the nation in Vietnam and elsewhere around the globe, but his family made the ultimate sacrifice when his son -- also named Andrew Bacevich, a first lieutenant -- was killed in Iraq by an IED in 2007. By then, Bacevich, a self-described "Catholic conservative," had already been highly critical of the U.S. invasion, and the increasing role that militarism -- as opposed to diplomacy -- and a quest for American domination was playing in our national life.
I've kind of overdosed on Bacevich lately -- I was just finishing his outstanding book, "The Limits of Power: The End of American Exceptionalism," this week when I heard most of his hour-long interview on WHYY's "Radio Times" (which you can listen to here). His writing speaks truly to neither classical, locked-in liberalism or conservatism, but seeks to find a rational role for America in the 21st Century, as opposed to untenable policies based on cheap oil and long -- endless, in fact -- wars.
"The Limits of Power" was written at the very start of the 2008 campaign and was published last summer. In its conclusion, Bacevich wrote something strikingly prophetic for 2009, when President Obama has been disappointing in several key areas in delivering the change he promised, sometimes because of external forces and sometimes for reasons that are self-inflicted.
Here's what he wrote last year, with hyperlinks from 2009 to illustrate the power of his prophecy:
Have a great holiday weekend.
(Associated Press photo)
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SBVFT you have posted this before and what always strikes me about the graph is how the deficit numbers come down from today until 2012 and then seem to explode again after 2012. Is there something going on in 2012 where a lower deficit would be a benefit to Obama???— bird11- Comment removed.
- SBVFT, maybe Obama believe the world is going to end with the Mayan calendar on December 21, 2012 and he doesn't want to carry the bad karma of a huge deficit into the next plane of existence.— bird11
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This guy also says we shouldn't be trying to nation-build in Afghanistan. Interesting.— Talking point sleuth- What is it with you "conservatives?" Are you congenitally dishonest, or is it a learned trait? Take a look at the trend line established by the deficit growth under Bush and extend that line. You'll see that it would wind up being very close to reaching the exact same budget deficit as the projection for 2019. And indeed, nice way to ignore the reality that much of Obama's deficit is due to actions taken to clean up the mess left behind by the dope you voted for to be president. Twice.— Talking point sleuth
- Here's another picture for you fraudulent "deficit hawks." --snip-- In 1981 the gross national debt, as a percent of the nation's annual income, reached its lowest point since 1931, 32.5%. It could have been paid off then more easily than at any time in the previous 50 years. Despite his professed abhorrence for debt, Reagan instituted unprecedented peacetime deficit spending. (The current Administration's Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in its 2006 Budget, provides a remarkably candid explanation of what happened to the deficit during the Reagan and Bush I administrations). --snip-- http://911review.org/Media/National_Debt.html— Talking point sleuth
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- " nice way to ignore the reality that much of Obama's deficit is due to actions taken to clean up the mess left behind by the dope you voted for to be president. Twice." Two simple questions for you TPS: 1) If I accept your premiss that Obama is cleaning up Bush's mess (and don't instead point out that Bush's deficit was decreasing until the purse strings were taken over by Democrats in 2007) - why does Obama's deficit explode again after he seemingly cleans up Bush's mess by 2012?? 2) "by the dope you voted for to be president. Twice" - Bush was elected by the American people just like Obama - why do you hate Americans?? Do you recall your recent post complaining about "toadies" being elitest, etc?? I can find it for you if you'd like. Can you say hypocrit?? (OK more like 4 questions)— bird11
- Comrade, Will doesn't despise Reagan. He needs Reagan to sell his books. LOL.— SayHello2MyLittleFriend
- ---}}} why does Obama's deficit explode again after he seemingly cleans up Bush's mess by 2012?? {{{--- Obama's deficit would be continuing at more or less the same rate of increase as occurred under Bush for his four years. Personally, I'd rather have a deficit from spending on education and helping poor people than lining the pockets of the rich and powerful, but if you weren't complaining about budget deficits, front and center, during Reagan, Bush I, and Bush II, then it sure seems like faux outrage to be so upset about deficits under Obama.— Talking point sleuth
Will Bunch, a senior writer at the Philadelphia Daily News, blogs about his obsessions, including national and local politics and world affairs, the media, pop music, the Philadelphia Phillies, soccer and other sports, not necessarily in that order.
E-mail Will by clicking here.
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