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According to Kaplan, the neocons who have been at the forefront in advocating regime change in Iraq and in promoting democracy throughout the world, are idealists. They want the whole Globe to enjoy democracy. And Kaplan says:
"...either pressure for democracy in the Arab world will come from the U.S. or it will come from nowhere at all."
Kaplan quotes Bush, who said:
"...as long as the Middle East remains a place where freedom does not flourish, it will remain a place of stagnation, resentment, and violence ready to export."
Kaplan is unhappy that because of the miserable way the Iraq occupation has progressed, many in the foreign policy community are dropping idealism in favor of realism. He includes in this group former Senator Gary Hart, Charles Kupchan and former Reagan aide Doug Bandow. He thinks John Kerry is going down the realism path.
Realists don't believe in moral crusades. They want stability. They are in favor of military intervention only to protect "vital interests." They can work with dictators if necessary for the interests of the U.S.
What strikes me is that both the idealists and the realists emphasize the competitive nature of people. Not only do these people believe that they are right and others are wrong, they are eager to impose their views on others militarily.
The so-called idealists are not truly idealists. They want to impose democracy on others. They declared war in order to force change in Iraq. And, it seems, war is their primary weapon. How on earth can you call someone who advocates war in order to bring change - even if the change is benevolent - an idealist?
The realists are competitive people, too. They feel that each country must take care of its own interests. They think ideals should not interfere with the protection of "vital interests." In practice "vital interests" means big business, especial oil. And if we need to be nice to a dictator in order to get oil let's be nice to the dictator.
Both belligerent idealist and resigned realists, I believe, are on the wrong path. To the idealists I say that you cannot spread democracy with bombs. To the realists I say we must champion our ideals of freedom and democracy because these ideals - not military strength - keep us strong. The path to true national strength lies with people I would call demonstrationists.
Unlike idealists and realists a demonstrationist is cooperative. A demonstrationist believes you influence others not by cajoling, scaring or bullying them, but by setting a good example. A demonstrationist believes:
- You should not boast about yourself
- You should not denigrate others
- You should not tell others what to do
- You should set an example
An excellent example of a demonstrationist is the Dalai Lama. He does not criticize. He does not attack. He avoids disagreements. He sets a perfect example of how a person should treat other people, and how nations should treat other nations. He radiates harmony and peace.
Of course, few of us can be like the Dalai Lama. But he is a model of how the U.S. should try to influence the world.
In plain language, let's build the best democratic and free society that we can, one that people of all nations will strive to emulate because of the way it benefits all members. A few things to start on:
1 - RACIAL EQUALITY - Black and other minorities are still not treated as the equals of whites. We have made progress, but not enough. We will not have true equality of the races until minorities feel and appreciate the difference.
2 - RELIGIOUS EMPATHY - Much of the discussion about terrorism revolves around religion. We speak of tolerance. Tolerance - "I will not bother you if you will not bother me" - is not enough. People of one faith must have empathy toward those of another faith or of no faith at all. You don't need to agree with another's views but you must respect him as a fellow human being. We have a distance to go to achieve this goal.
3 - ECONOMIC OPORTUNITY FOR ALL - We don't like to admit that class differences permeate our society. At one end are billionaires whose economic opportunities are endless, and at the other end are the homeless for whom opportunities are unavailable. The worst aspect of our economic system is that millions of people have full time jobs and cannot support their families. These are the working poor. A class like this should not exist in a decent society.
4 - JUSTICE FOR ALL - If you are rich you hire a top notch lawyer and you get "justice." If you are poor, you are assigned a bottom-notch lawyer and you get "justice"? We need to provide true justice for all.
There is more. But this is enough to demonstrate what should be demonstrated. In addition to making the internal America an examplar to the world, a demonstrationist tries to apply the same American ideals in America's relationships with the world: the UN and foreign nations.
We have not been a good democratic member of the UN. Anything we don't like, we veto. Sometmes we do not pay our dues. We allow dictators to run the Human Rights Commission. On many big issues, we disregard the UN entirely.
If we want a good, effective, democratic UN, it is up to America to make it so. Supposedly, we are the only superpower. What kind of superpower allows the UN to go to the dogs? Why can't the U.S. and other democratic nations cooperate in order to change how things are done at the UN? U.S. working together with other democracies can make the UN a model world institution that gets rid of tyrants and promotes freedom. If we do this, all the nations of the world will praise to the skies the sole superpower.
A demonstrationist encourages democracy and freedom in America's relations with other states by using social, economic and political means. Our military should be truly our very last resort.
A demonstrationist does not do business with everyone. He prefers doing business with other democracies. A demonstrationist doesn't make deals with dictators. He avoids them wherever possible. A demonstrationist sets up a cooperative working relationship with other democracies in order to tilt power toward democracies and away from dictatorships.
We as a nation have been oscillating between idealism and realism for a long time. It's time to change from this highly competitive orientation into a more cooperative one. Let's try a little demonstrationism.
