"The fact is, throughout the Middle East we are operating from a position of ignorance. We cannot, with any precision, identify the truly democratic forces or even be certain they exist. Nor do we know if any of them are immune to terrorist penetration. We are at a loss as to which personalities or organizations we ought to back–or, indeed, if any are reliable. Hence, our best policy is to stay our hand–what Benjamin Disraeli called “masterly inactivity." Patience is key. If one thing is certain, it’s that the coming of democracy to the Muslim world is going to take a very long time. Eisenhower’s record of nonintervention is worth studying, as I’ve been doing in the course of writing a short biography of him. Ike recognized that getting involved in a military adventure was very easy, especially if you had the resources. But getting involved was quite another matter and entailed the very real risk of humiliation and defeat. He therefore concluded it was best to say no–and did so"
Posted on: Sun, 04 Aug 2013 21:44:50 +0000
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