Posted 11:43 pm Wednesday, February 08, 2012
Foreign Policy Lessons From Unexpected Source
Know what’s wrong with the Obama administration’s foreign policy?
These guys didn’t watch enough 1980s movies.
Many of those films reinforced three basic principles the United States should be abiding by. We’re not. And our standing in the world is suffering for it.
First, there’s 1987’s “Can’t Buy Me Love” with Patrick Dempsey. A teen discovers that paying a cheerleader $1,000 to pretend to be his girlfriend doesn’t truly make him popular.
Now apply this principle to Egypt. We’ve promised the as-yet-undetermined new government $1 billion in aid. Egypt’s response? Officials have captured and imprisoned 19 American aid workers.
These guys didn’t watch enough 1980s movies.
Many of those films reinforced three basic principles the United States should be abiding by. We’re not. And our standing in the world is suffering for it.
First, there’s 1987’s “Can’t Buy Me Love” with Patrick Dempsey. A teen discovers that paying a cheerleader $1,000 to pretend to be his girlfriend doesn’t truly make him popular.
Now apply this principle to Egypt. We’ve promised the as-yet-undetermined new government $1 billion in aid. Egypt’s response? Officials have captured and imprisoned 19 American aid workers.
“A lawyer representing Americans facing trial over activities of their pro-democracy groups says they have been caught in a dispute between the U.S. and Egypt over aid,” the Associated Press reports. “The groups are accused of operating without licenses and receiving illegal foreign funding. Top U.S. officials have warned that U.S. foreign aid to Egypt, more than $1 billion a year, is in jeopardy over the case. Washington has insisted the 19 Americans facing trial did nothing wrong… Egypt’s military rulers have accused the groups of funding and promoting anti-government protests.”
And U.S. officials are shocked, shocked that Egypt’s military hasn’t learned to adore America, despite that $1 billion love-bomb.
Next, there’s the simple principle that you must stand with those who have always stood with you (the 1983 film “The Outsiders” comes to mind).
And U.S. officials are shocked, shocked that Egypt’s military hasn’t learned to adore America, despite that $1 billion love-bomb.
Next, there’s the simple principle that you must stand with those who have always stood with you (the 1983 film “The Outsiders” comes to mind).
Great Britain has been America’s staunchest ally since that little dust-up in 1812. Since then, the two countries have enjoyed a “special relationship” and a union of purpose and will through war and peace alike.
But now we’re siding against Britain’s interests in yet another attempt to make a third-world despot love us. Argentina is again making claims to the Falkland Islands, that rocky outcropping filled with tea-sipping Brits, just off the coast of Argentina.
In November, the Obama administration signaled its waning support for Britain over the issue, when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, “We would like to see Argentina and the United Kingdom sit down and resolve the issues between them across the table in a peaceful, productive way.”
Argentina has no legitimate claim to the islands. It invaded them in 1982, starting a 74-day war with Britain that restored U.K. sovereignty over the islands.
Britain has about 1,000 troops there, guarding the 3,000 residents who overwhelmingly wish to remain British.
The right thing to do, as any 1980s movie would attest, would be to stand by our old ally.
And third, there’s the Ducky Principle (1986’s “Pretty In Pink”). If the girl leaves the prom with a cuter guy, she wasn’t worth taking to the prom in the first place.
Iran was once a U.S. ally; it wasn’t a very good one. The Shah of Iran was one of the worst tyrants in the region, and that’s saying something. Yet the Shah was coddled and cultivated through a number of administrations, ending with the Carter administration.
But with the Shah overthrown (and American hostages taken), the Iranian people turned to the Soviet Union (now Russia) and more recently to China with its good will and its oil.
All in all, Iran was a pretty bad choice for a prom date. Presidential administrations must be more selective in choosing (and maintaining) allies — something we must bear in mind as the dust from the “Arab Spring” settles.
We believe that supporting Israel is critical, and maintaining our long-term alliance must not waiver.
Let’s just call it the (1987’s “Dirty Dancing”) Patrick Swayze Doctrine toward Israel: “Nobody puts Baby in the corner.”
But now we’re siding against Britain’s interests in yet another attempt to make a third-world despot love us. Argentina is again making claims to the Falkland Islands, that rocky outcropping filled with tea-sipping Brits, just off the coast of Argentina.
In November, the Obama administration signaled its waning support for Britain over the issue, when Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, “We would like to see Argentina and the United Kingdom sit down and resolve the issues between them across the table in a peaceful, productive way.”
Argentina has no legitimate claim to the islands. It invaded them in 1982, starting a 74-day war with Britain that restored U.K. sovereignty over the islands.
Britain has about 1,000 troops there, guarding the 3,000 residents who overwhelmingly wish to remain British.
The right thing to do, as any 1980s movie would attest, would be to stand by our old ally.
And third, there’s the Ducky Principle (1986’s “Pretty In Pink”). If the girl leaves the prom with a cuter guy, she wasn’t worth taking to the prom in the first place.
Iran was once a U.S. ally; it wasn’t a very good one. The Shah of Iran was one of the worst tyrants in the region, and that’s saying something. Yet the Shah was coddled and cultivated through a number of administrations, ending with the Carter administration.
But with the Shah overthrown (and American hostages taken), the Iranian people turned to the Soviet Union (now Russia) and more recently to China with its good will and its oil.
All in all, Iran was a pretty bad choice for a prom date. Presidential administrations must be more selective in choosing (and maintaining) allies — something we must bear in mind as the dust from the “Arab Spring” settles.
We believe that supporting Israel is critical, and maintaining our long-term alliance must not waiver.
Let’s just call it the (1987’s “Dirty Dancing”) Patrick Swayze Doctrine toward Israel: “Nobody puts Baby in the corner.”
