C/GC1G3Srn2S 9/eaf^of^(D/irofdc/e^rn= ^ ^rnAMERICAN EMPIRErnDeveloped nations should assist poorer states by doing no harm.rnWashington should end government-to-government assistance,rnwhich has so often buttressed regimes dedicated to little morernthan maintainiirg power aird has eased the economic pressurernfor needed reforms. The United States should stop meddling inrnforeign afl^airs which matter little to America; the result is usual-rn1′ to stir up conflict, raise expectations, and leave nations worsernthan before. At the same time, the United States should improvernthe access of poorer states to the international marketplacern—including its own. Most importantly, it should clearlyrnstate that foreign countries, not the West, ultimately controlrntheir own destinies.rn—from Doug Bandow, “Down the Rathole:rnWhere Foreign Aid Goes,” June 2000rnThe Confederates had never sought to cause the Governmentrnof the United States to “perish from the earth.” It was the Unionrnthat was seeking to cause the Confederacy and the governmentsrnof the 11 Southern states to “perish.” Had the South wanted therngovernment to “perish from the earth,” the Confederate armyrncould have marched into Lincoln’s capital after the First Battlernof Bull Run in June 1861, when the Union army had been sentrnup the road to Washington in wild retreat. The South did notrnwant this; the South only wanted to be free.rn—from Patrick /. Buchanan, “Mr. Lincohi’s War:rnAn Irrepressible Conflict?” October J 997rnSo we end up with all the key political words turned inside out,rnand once that happens, as Confucius wisely noted, no state isrngovernable since the people cannot understand their rulers andrnthe rulers cannot understand themselves, much less the people.rnMeanwhile, we must preserve the free world (actually unfree;rnwe have elections but no politics) from—let’s see, Kim II Sung’srnson and his atomic armada; and then there is Haiti, where wernmust restore order and justice and freedom as we did whenrnFranklin Roosevelt invaded the island (he was in the Navy Departmentrnat the time, and one of the bizarre lies that he liked torntell ever after was how he, personally, had written the excellentrnconstitution of Haiti). Perhaps Gulf War II might be useful, tornjustif}- the militarv’ budget and the taxes that now go almost entirelyrnfor “Defense” (Social Security income and outgo are separaternfrom the budget, a fact that is kept permanently secretrnfrom the taxpayers who are supposed to respond in a Pavlovianrnwa}’ to “wasteful people programs”).rn—from Gore Vidal, “Cleaning Our Stables,” June J995rnIs it too far-fetched to imagine a hme when intervention mightrnbe justified if a country fails to provide three branches of government,rnalong the American nrodel, with a Supreme Courtrnadministering a plastic Constitution aided by Harvard and Yalernprofessors? Could we justify armed intervention any timernwomen have second-class status, as is still true in many Islamicrnand African nations? . . .rnStatecraft has always required prudence, particularly wherernthere are no clear abstract principles for guidance. If sovereigntyrnis to be preserved, there will be a great need for such prudence,rnand a great need to resist the temptation to abuse ourrnmilitar)’ power in the pursuit of chimerical and dangerous ends.rnWe must learn that we cannot seek to overturn ever)’ injustice,rnthat there are at least two sides to even,’ argument, and that thernopportunities for disinformation and falsehood have multipliedrnexponentially in our “information age.” Accordingly, we oughtrnto proceed with extraordinary judgment, restraint, intcgrit)-, andrnan attention to our classic constitutional values, the most importantrnof which are the protection of propcrh- and self-goernment.rnThe risk of generating harmful precedents is liorrific,rnand the costs of inconsistency are dreadful.rn—from Stephen B. Presser, “The Living Constitutionrnand the Death of Sovereignty’,” July J 999rnSo it was on that most chaotic night of all nights of tiiosc years,rnAugust 4, 1964, when Washington decided to go to war officially.rnJust before midnight, I had been the eyewihress (wifti thernbest seat in the house) to an action that had been reported as anrnattack by North Vietnamese FF boats against ftie American destroyersrnMaddox and Joy. It was in fact a false alarm broughtrnabout by the destroyers’ phantom radar contacts and fault}- sonarrnoperation on a very dark, humid, and stormy night. Fhis was realizedrnduring the event by the boss of the destrovers at the scene,rnand by me, the boss of the airplanes overhead. Corrective messagesrnwere sent instantiy to Washington: “No PT boats.”rnA few hours later, I was awakened to organize, brief, and leadrnAnthony Harrigan (I) shares a drink with Adm. James BondrnStockdale.rnlULY 2001/51rnrnrn