Today’s carnage in Bali should, if nothing else, serve as another nail in the coffin of the whole WE ARE IN IRAQ TO FIGHT TERRORISM meme. Terrorism will never be stopped through military means. The only thing that brings an eventual end to terrorism are real and substantial changes in the economic and political conditions of the regions where violence flourishes. Unfortunately, that takes time and effective leadership on a global scale. I may be blindly optimistic, but I believe that someday things will get better. To believe otherwise is to give in to hopelessness and nihilism. In the meantime, we need to disabuse ourselves of the idea that the United States, through sheer brute force and the reckless expenditure of resources, can make the world a better place. It’s take a little more political deftness and sophistication, not too mention patience, to realize grand visions of peace and democracy. Too bad we’re stuck with an administration that has all the deftness of schoolyard bully.
