National Priorities -- Revisited

What should be our national priorities for the next three years?

Here, below, are my ideas, lifted from a post I wrote for another journal more than nine months ago, on September 14, 2004, during the run-up to the last Presidential election. Though my list of priorities remains the same almost a year later, I have changed my views on how we ought to address two on that list, and have added some thoughts on another one.

After reading a friendly and thought-provoking comment from a visitor to TBV, I decided to re-post my original ideas and provide an update where my views have changed. I found the contrast remarkable. Have your thoughts on these subjects moved as far in the past year?

I'd be interested in your thoughts...

1. Preparedness for Terrorist Attacks in America: My policy in this area would call for investment in the necessary human and physical resources (police, fire, emergency services, antidotes/medicines, public health facilities) and the plans and drills necessary to ensure readiness when needed. It would also require legislative and regulatory action to toughen-up security around our chemical plants, nuclear reactors, sensitive bio-chem facilities, ports and other border security, cargo inspection, and transportation security. Finally, it would include coordination and cooperation in readiness drills for response to terrorist attacks between all state, local and federal agencies to ensure that these elements are truly prepared to work together quickly in the actual event. Implicit in this is that the Department of Homeland Security must actively lead and support all of this activity.

2. Elimination of Al Qaeda and Islamic Terrorism: My policy would require the massive allocation of our military and intelligence resources to flush-out and destroy Al Qaeda in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Indonesia, Yemen, Chechnya, The Philippines, and elsewhere (including, now that we have destroyed its own army, police and internal security structures, Iraq). This will require a larger military and increased intelligence resources, as well as alliances with Muslim governments to aid in the prosecution of this war on terror.

Update: Forget the above. The failure of our military adventure in Iraq leads me to the conclusion that we must reconsider our strategy. The war on terror has a political and public relations element that has been badly neglected and completely undermined by the occupation of Iraq and the abuse of Iraqi prisoners. We have proven to the world that we are incapable of occupying Iraq, and it is time to consider new methods for fighting Al Qaeda other than invasion and occupation of the Muslim world. It is still absolutely necessary for America to hunt down and destroy Al Qaeda, but we will have to be smarter, more nimble and much more effective than Rumsfeld and his pathetic band of kiss-up yes-men Generals have been in Iraq. We will need allies in the Muslim world and it is hard to imagine anyone helping us while we are floundering about in Iraq.

3. Reestablish American Global Leadership: Restore America's moral leadership around the world and draw people of goodwill to our side for the long struggle to discredit and destroy terrorist organizations. The limits of our own intelligence capabilities and the need to counteract the recruitment efforts of Al Qaeda combine to push us toward multilateralism and to seek allies among the leaders of nations with Muslim populations. This also implies that we will move away from the unilateralist impulses that led America to walk away from a long list of treaties and agreements that enjoyed the support of the vast majority of our allies and other friendly nations.

UPDATE: In addition to the above, we will also need to get serious about reforming and engaging with the United Nations, and we must lead the effort to address the problem of extreme poverty around the world. The linkage between our national interests and the interests of the world's poorest people is not well understood, but there is no peace without social justice. In short, we need to embrace the world and move it to work with us to build the foundations of peace and justice.

4. End the Occupation of Iraq: Move 100,000 troops to Iraq from around the globe and crush the resistance forces through the unrestrained application of all resources at our disposal. Get it done. Arm the Kurds to the teeth so that they can defend themselves after we leave. Then get the hell out of the place. Timeline: no more than 6 months.

UPDATE: Forget the above. I was against this war from the very beginning, but back in September it seemed to me that we might accomplish something if we doubled our forces and asserted real control over the situation (although it may well have required 400,000 Troops to do that, as per General Shinseki). I no longer believe we can do anything in Iraq except make things worse, and I believe the time has passed when we might have done some good by adding Troops and pressing the fight against the resistance. In short, it is time to bring the Troops home.

5. Strengthen America: Repeal the Bush tax giveaways and invest in basic access to healthcare, military and homeland security resources, and deficit reduction. Build non-partisan solutions to our priorities. End the extremism of the Bush domestic program and remove political leaders who don't get with the program -- on both sides of the aisle.

Over the next few weeks, these are the subjects I intend to write about.

So, what do you think?

Neil

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