Scholars for a Sensible Foreign Policy

[ODShowtime]

Security Scholars for a Sensible Foreign Policy

October 12, 2004
Newark, Delaware - Over 650 foreign affairs specialists in the United States and allied countries have signed an open letter opposing the Bush administration's foreign policy and calling urgently for a change of course.

The letter was released today by "Security Scholars for a Sensible Foreign Policy," a nonpartisan group of experts in the field of national security and international politics.

The letter asserts that current U.S. foreign policy harms the struggle against Islamist terrorists, pointing to a series of "blunders" by the Bush team in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere. "We're advising the administration, which is already in a deep hole, to stop digging," said Professor Richard Samuels of M.I.T.

The scholars who signed the letter are from over 150 colleges and universities in 40 states, from California to Florida, Texas to Maine. They include many of the nation's most prominent experts on world politics, including former staff members at the Pentagon, the State Department and the National Security Council, as well as six of the last seven Presidents of the American Political Science Association. "I think it is telling that so many specialists on international relations, who rarely agree on anything, are unified in their position on the high costs that the U.S. is incurring from this war," said Professor Robert Keohane of Duke University.

The text of the letter is available at http://www.sensibleforeignpolicy.net/letter.html. A list of signers and other information about Security Scholars for a Sensible Foreign Policy may be found elsewhere on this site.

For more information, please contact:

Stuart J. Kaufman
Professor of Political Science and International Relations
University of Delaware
Off: 302 831 1941
Cell: 302 528 7226
H: 302 392 0876
skaufman@udel.edu

Michael E. Brown
Director, Security Studies Program
Georgetown University
Off: :202-687-5727
brownme@georgetown.edu

Michael C. Desch
Robert M. Gates Chair in Intelligence and National Security Decision-making
Bush School of Government and Public Service
College Station, TX
Off. 979.458.1703
Cell: 859.396.6854
mdesch@bushschool.tamu.edu

Barry R. Posen
Ford International Professor of Political Science
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Off. 617 253 8088
Home 617 484 6269
Posen@mit.edu

Jessica Stern
Lecturer in Public Policy
Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University
Off. 617 496-3623
Jessica_Stern@harvard.edu

[ODShowtime]

An Open Letter to the American People:

We, a nonpartisan group of foreign affairs specialists, have joined together to call urgently for a change of course in American foreign and national security policy. We judge that the current American policy centered around the war in Iraq is the most misguided one since the Vietnam period, one which harms the cause of the struggle against extreme Islamist terrorists. One result has been a great distortion in the terms of public debate on foreign and national security policy—an emphasis on speculation instead of facts, on mythology instead of calculation, and on misplaced moralizing over considerations of national interest. [1] We write to challenge some of these distortions.

Although we applaud the Bush Administration for its initial focus on destroying al-Qaida bases in Afghanistan, its failure to engage sufficient U.S. troops to capture or kill the mass of al-Qaida fighters in the later stages of that war was a great blunder. It is a fact that the early shift of U.S. focus to Iraq diverted U.S. resources, including special operations forces and intelligence capabilities, away from direct pursuit of the fight against the terrorists. [2]

Many of the justifications offered by the Bush Administration for the war in Iraq have been proven untrue by credible studies, including by U.S. government agencies. There is no evidence that Iraq assisted al-Qaida, and its prewar involvement in international terrorism was negligible. [3] Iraq’s arsenal of chemical and biological weapons was negligible, and its nuclear weapons program virtually nonexistent. [4] In comparative terms, Iran is and was much the greater sponsor of terrorism, and North Korea and Pakistan pose much the greater risk of nuclear proliferation to terrorists. Even on moral grounds, the case for war was dubious: the war itself has killed over a thousand Americans and unknown thousands of Iraqis, and if the threat of civil war becomes reality, ordinary Iraqis could be even worse off than they were under Saddam Hussein. The Administration knew most of these facts and risks before the war, and could have discovered the others, but instead it played down, concealed or misrepresented them.

Policy errors during the occupation and reconstruction of Iraq have created a situation in Iraq worse than it needed to be. Spurning the advice of Army Chief of Staff General Shinseki, the Administration committed an inadequate number of troops to the occupation, leading to the continuing failure to establish security in Iraq. Ignoring prewar planning by the State Department and other US government agencies, it created a needless security vacuum by disbanding the Iraqi Army, and embarked on a poorly planned and ineffective reconstruction effort which to date has managed to spend only a fraction of the money earmarked for it. [5] As a result, Iraqi popular dismay at the lack of security, jobs or reliable electric power fuels much of the violent opposition to the U.S. military presence, while the war itself has drawn in terrorists from outside Iraq.

The results of this policy have been overwhelmingly negative for U.S. interests. [6] While the removal of Saddam Hussein’s regime was desirable, the benefit to the U.S. was small as prewar inspections had already proven the extreme weakness of his WMD programs, and therefore the small size of the threat he posed. On the negative side, the excessive U.S. focus on Iraq led to weak and inadequate responses to the greater challenges posed by North Korea’s and Iran’s nuclear programs, and diverted resources from the economic and diplomatic efforts needed to fight terrorism in its breeding grounds in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and elsewhere in the Middle East. Worse, American actions in Iraq, including but not limited to the scandal of Abu Ghraib, have harmed the reputation of the U.S. in most parts of the Middle East and, according to polls, made Osama Bin Laden more popular in some countries than is President Bush. This increased popularity makes it easier for al-Qaida to raise money, attract recruits, and carry out its terrorist operations than would otherwise be the case.

Recognizing these negative consequences of the Iraq war, in addition to the cost in lives and money, we believe that a fundamental reassessment is in order. Significant improvements are needed in our strategy in Iraq and the implementation of that strategy. We call urgently for an open debate on how to achieve these ends, one informed by attention to the facts on the ground in Iraq, the facts of al-Qaida’s methods and strategies, and sober attention to American interests and values.


Signed (All titles and affiliations listed for purposes of identification only),

http://www.sensibleforeignpolicy.net/signatories.html




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[1] On the mythology, see Jack Snyder, “Imperial Temptations,” The National Interest, Spring 2003.

[2] See, e.g., James Fallows, “Bush’s Lost Year,” The Atlantic, October 2004.

[3] National Commission on Terrorist Attacks, “The 9/11 Commission Report: Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States,” (W.W. Norton & Co., 2004).

[4] The Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, “WMD in Iraq: Evidence and Implications,” January 2004; Chaim Kaufmann, “Threat Inflation and the Failure of the Marketplace of Ideas: The Selling of the Iraq War,” International Security vol. 29, no. 1 (Summer 2004). Weapons inspector Charles Duelfer concluded Saddam's Iraq had no stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction in an interview on NPR’s “All Things Considered,” October 6, 2004.

[5] See, e.g., James Fallows, “Blind Into Baghdad,” The Atlantic, January/February 2004; Peter W. Galbraith, "Iraq: The Bungled Transition," New York Review of Books, September 23, 2004; David M. Edelstein, "Occupational Hazards: Why Military Occupations Succeed or Fail," International Security, Vol. 29, No. 1 (Summer 2004), Robin Wright and Thomas E. Rick, “Bremer Criticizes Troop Levels” Washington Post, October 5, 2004.

[6] On negative impacts on the war on terrorism, see Mia Bloom, Dying to Kill: The Allure of Suicide Terrorism (New York: Columbia University Press, forthcoming); Ivan Arreguin-Toft, “Tunnel at the End of the Light: A Critique of U.S. Counter-Terrorist Grand Strategy,” Cambridge Review of International Affairs, vol. 15, no. 3 (2002); Robert A. Pape, “The Strategic Logic of Suicide Terrorism,” American Political Science Review 97, no. 3 (August 2003), and “Dying to Kill Us,” New York Times, September 22, 2003, p. A17; Anonymous, Imperial Hubris (Washington, DC: Brassey’s, 2004). Regarding problems in Iraq itself, see Anthony H. Cordesman, “The Critical Role of Iraqi Military, Security, and Police Forces: Necessity, Problems, and Progress,” Center for Strategic and International Studies, Third Revised Draft: September 27, 2004 (3.1); David Rapoport, “The Fourth Wave: September 11 in the History of Terrorism,” Current History (December 2001); and Douglas Jehl, "US Intelligence Shows Pessimism On Iraq's Future," The New York Times, September 16, 2004, page A1.

[ODShowtime]

Go look at the list of names. I see plenty of big titles in there. Who do you want to believe? gw? or a bunch of people who study and think about this everyday?

WAKE THE FUCK UP!!!!!

[conmee]

Those who can, do.

Those who can't, teach.

Those who can't teach, write about foreign affairs.

I believe it's just so much easier to blather on about policy issues from the ivory tower, and have heated debates in the comfy confines of university digs with the luxury of time and research, than it is to actually meet up regularly with heads of state and allies, etc, and make real decisions based on real world information in hand. Not to say that there isn't merit and value in these types of open letters and groupthink opinions, but it's very different in the real world, whether it's Bush or Kerry in the White House.

All this coming from someone who has two graduate degrees (yes, I know how comfy the ivory tower is.. lol) and would prefer a different approach to Iraq.

Icon.





lol

Icon.

[FORD]

In case you haven't noticed, one of the traits of a fascist government has always been attacking the intellectuals, and this regime and their media whores have done it better than any regime since Adolf and the boys back in the 30's.

The stupid people have their stupid pResident and as long as they believe God talks to the Idiot, they aren't going to believe anything a scholar tells them :(

[conmee]

I think it's more a point that the administration ignores the scholars, rather than attacts them, wouldn't you say?

Icon.

[ODShowtime]

Both of you are correct. I just wanted this here so when I talk about all the other informed people who disagree with Bush, BAM here it will be.

It's not just a bunch of crazies and hippies who know Bush's Iraq policies are bullshit.

[ELVIS]

Originally posted by FORD
In case you haven't noticed, one of the traits of a fascist government has always been attacking the intellectuals, and this regime and their media whores have done it better than any regime since Adolf and the boys back in the 30's.

The stupid people have their stupid pResident and as long as they believe God talks to the Idiot, they aren't going to believe anything a scholar tells them :(

You're stupid...

[Sgt Schultz]

I'm sure most of us can agree that the professors who instructed us in college were intelligent, well meaning people.

We all realize though that well earned advancement and promotion in the abstract academic world does not necessarly equal a realistic and common sense perception of the concrete world. Intellectuals who choose to work in the acedemic field for the most part operate in a sheltered, incestuous, inbred environment of people who publish books mostly for the edification of themsleves and peers who are also engaged in the same endevour.

Something else to consider is the very real discrimination against 'other than left wing' intellectuals within the acedemic establishment over the last 30 years. There is a very real entrenched ideology in academia that is very hostile to any thoughts that go against the established left wing canon.

So we must all take these things into consideration when we read that another clique of left wing fashion conscious academics engage in another anti-Bush mutual weenie-rub.

[ODShowtime]

Originally posted by Sgt Schultz
So we must all take these things into consideration when we read that another clique of left wing fashion conscious academics engage in another anti-Bush mutual weenie-rub.

Yeah these guys sound like they joined the club just to get a cool sticker!

Gordon Adams
Director, Security Policy Studies, Elliott School of International Affairs
George Washington University

Jose E. Alvarez
Professor of Law and Executive Director, Center on Global Legal Problems
Columbia Law School

Lisa Anderson
Dean, School of International and Public Affairs and Professor, Political Science Department
Columbia University

Nancy Bermeo
Professor of Politics and Acting Chair, Politics Department
Princeton University

[ELVIS]

Oh, they have fancy titles...

We should all gather around and listen to them...


:rolleyes:

[ODShowtime]

Originally posted by ELVIS
Oh, they have fancy titles...

We should all gather around and listen to them...


:rolleyes:

"sho 'nuff! what do we need with all that thar book-learnin'? Everythang I needed to learn I don learned from my pappy. sheet."

[McCarrens]

Originally posted by Sgt Schultz
I'm sure most of us can agree that the professors who instructed us in college were intelligent, well meaning people.

We all realize though that well earned advancement and promotion in the abstract academic world does not necessarly equal a realistic and common sense perception of the concrete world. Intellectuals who choose to work in the acedemic field for the most part operate in a sheltered, incestuous, inbred environment of people who publish books mostly for the edification of themsleves and peers who are also engaged in the same endevour.

Something else to consider is the very real discrimination against 'other than left wing' intellectuals within the acedemic establishment over the last 30 years. There is a very real entrenched ideology in academia that is very hostile to any thoughts that go against the established left wing canon.

So we must all take these things into consideration when we read that another clique of left wing fashion conscious academics engage in another anti-Bush mutual weenie-rub.

Very thoughtful quote Schultz. These intellctuals all do live in a sheltered world of theory where common sense and the needs and desires of the common man do not exist.

Has anyone ever noticed that professors only congress among themselves, because, one, they only look down at the harder working, lesser educated because they neither know, or care to know, about their hackneyed theries, or two, many of their ideas eventually get around to insulting people who are not doctorate-level educated and no one, be you a rocket sceintist or a mill worker, wants to get in hit in the face for expressing an idea.

[ODShowtime]

Originally posted by McCarrens
Has anyone ever noticed that professors only congress among themselves

Probably because the bile rises in their throats everytime they see a moron like you open your mouth.

[ELVIS]

When George Bush is crowned King of the World, I mean re-elected president, It will be proof that conservative working class people (like myself) who believe in thinking and doing for ourselves, are the American majority, and the pathway for the future of a prosperous America...


:elvis:

[ELVIS]

Originally posted by ODShowtime
Probably because the bile rises in their throats everytime they see a moron like you open your mouth.


That's exactly the kind of thinking he's talking about...

Keep studying, punk...

Maybe one day you'll discover a new way to redistribute wealth, or legalize abortion...

[FORD]

Originally posted by ELVIS
When George Bush is crowned King of the World, I mean re-elected president, It will be proof that conservative working class people (like myself) who believe in thinking and doing for ourselves, are the American majority, and the pathway for the future of a prosperous America...


:elvis:

No, it will be proof that Diebold electro-frauding works and that there's no such fucking thing as a "liberal media".

[ODShowtime]

Originally posted by ELVIS
When George Bush is crowned King of the World, I mean re-elected president, It will be proof that conservative working class people (like myself) who believe in thinking and doing for ourselves, are the American majority, and the pathway for the future of a prosperous America...


:elvis:

Elvis, we need all kinds. One of the things gw said in the most recent debate is the problem with poverty and low-paying minimum wage jobs. He said we need more education funding so Americans wouldn't have to take those jobs. So he was basically saying that we need to import labor from other countries to do our shit work. So that's what he thinks about that.

I feel that education and intelligence are two different things. It's just an unfortunate fact that less-educated people are much easier to lie to.

[ELVIS]

Diebold electro-frauding ??

Prepare for four more years of crap like this, folks...

[ELVIS]

Originally posted by ODShowtime
One of the things gw said in the most recent debate is the problem with poverty and low-paying minimum wage jobs.

And he does support increasing the minimum wage, as do alot of conservatives, but not to the point where it discourages skill advancement and education...

He said we need more education funding so Americans wouldn't have to take those jobs. So he was basically saying that we need to import labor from other countries to do our shit work.

Could you please define "shit work" ??

He never said anything about not taking "those jobs"...

I feel that education and intelligence are two different things.

I agree, which one are you...;)

It's just an unfortunate fact that less-educated people are much easier to lie to.

This was true in the old days when the liberal media on the evening news was our only convenient source of information...

Today it's a new ballgame! Anyone who wants to inform themselves and has access to the internet can freely do so, and are doing so...





And yes FORD, the media is generally liberal, no matter what you say...

[McCarrens]

Originally posted by ODShowtime
Probably because the bile rises in their throats everytime they see a moron like you open your mouth.

Moron? I've got a graduate degree and seriously considered going on to get my doctorate but then realized that I wanted to do something with my life. SO I went out and got a job and actually work to make the world a better place, rather than spewing nonsensical theory to anyone that is forced to pay attention to it.

[ELVIS]

Too-shay...:D

[ODShowtime]

Originally posted by McCarrens
Moron? I've got a graduate gegree


Then why don't you use it to think instead of spouting bullshit party lines?

[McCarrens]

Well, me being a reporter and all, I work pretty hard to not spout party lines all the time. I come here to let off steam and bitch about the liberal media and what it is doing to this country.

[ODShowtime]

He said we need more education funding so Americans wouldn't have to take those jobs. So he was basically saying that we need to import labor from other countries to do our shit work.

Could you please define "shit work" ??

Why don't you ask gw to define shit work? Wasn't it him and his buddies in washington that decided to re-define "full employment" to make their employment reports look better?

[ELVIS]

It was your term, now please define it...

[JimmytheWurm]

Asking for a definition of "Shit Jobs?" I live near Kennett Square, "the mushroom capital of the world," and the only people I know of who have to shovel shit and work in the mushroom houses are Mexican. About %10 speak english and if it were up to Bush he would relocate our entire country to somewhere like Iraq where the American people can get a boost on the backs of hard working foreigners who have no other choice. Why doesn't he just reinstate slavery?

Furthermore..."It's just an unfortunate fact that less-educated people are much easier to lie to."

"This was true in the old days when the liberal media on the evening news was our only convenient source of information...

Today it's a new ballgame! Anyone who wants to inform themselves and has access to the internet can freely do so, and are doing so..."

If anyone can go online and educate themselves, why is our president an idiot?
Why do I meet stupid people who care only for themselves every day?
The internet disperses as much nonsensical bullshit as any politician that has ever lived. You need to be intelligent and educated to begin with if you want to seperate fact from fiction. Unless you are just online to join the cult that believes that Earth was populated by aliens.

[JimmytheWurm]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by conmee
[B] Those who can, do.

Those who can't, teach.

Those who can't teach, write about foreign affairs.

What are we talking about here? Are we saying that the intellectuals in this country are idiots? This statement is idiotic. And if you think that intellectuals talk down to you then you need to educate yourself so you can speak on their level, otherwise, shut up and listen! If you don't understand or are frustrated by what people say, then you are missing the point and need to keep quiet until you understand what is going on.

Are we comparing our scholars to the Bush Administration? There is no comparison. We have a two-party system that forces us to vote for one sleazy politician over another, if it were up to me, MENSA would be running our government.

[lucky wilbury]

so alleged mensa member sharon stone would be president then

[FORD]

Originally posted by lucky wilbury
so alleged mensa member sharon stone would be president then

Hey, she's an actress, so she's as qualified as Reagan was.

And if she crossed her legs in press conferences, it would be far more entertaining than anything Junior ever did.

[ODShowtime]

You could make bets as to her shaving preferences.

[BigBadBrian]

Originally posted by FORD

And if she crossed her legs in press conferences, it would be far more entertaining than anything Junior ever did.

But you wouldn't be interested. :gulp:

[Sgt Schultz]

I wonder if this Perfesser was on the list...................
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Physics Professor Goes on Rage in Class

LAFAYETTE, La. - A University of Louisiana at Lafayette physics professor was banned from the campus Wednesday and taken to the coroner's office for evaluation after threatening his class, university officials said.

Student Kacie Spears said professor Louis Houston lost control right after class began Wednesday morning and was yelling obscenities.

"Then he told us if we got out of our seats he's gonna kill us. He went on the black board and wrote "911 now", so we were really in fear for our lives," Spears told KATC-TV.

Spears said Houston slapped a student and then told his class he was God.

After class ended, students left the room in Broussard Hall and someone called campus security.

Houston was taken to campus police to answer questions. Officials then evacuated Broussard Hall and canceled all classes there while police searched the building. University police contacted the FBI (news - web sites), State Police, and the Lafayette Parish Sheriff's Department Intelligence Unit for assistance.

A bomb dog was also brought in to check for explosives, but nothing was found.

Spears said it wasn't the first time Houston had an outburst in class.

"He's always acted a little strange, he's yelled and cursed before, and this time we waited for it to stop, but it never did," Spears says.

Law enforcement officers transported Houston to the Lafayette Parish Coroner's Office to be evaluated for possible involuntary commitment to a mental health facility. In the meantime, Houston has been banned from the university's campus and his faculty duties have been suspended.

University officials said in a statement they would make a final decision about Houston's employment once a full investigation into the incident is complete.

[ODShowtime]

Sounds like Phil!

Above average minds think alike Shultz. I already posted this story in the Moore in Class thread.

The nutty professor.

My physics teacher was a little off his rocker too. I think most are...

[ELVIS]

From this you deduct that most physics professors are off their rocker ??

[FORD]

How many sisters does Titney Spears have anyway?

[ELVIS]

One, and her name is Britney...

[FORD]

Titney's sister is named Britney too? Is that like Darryl and my other brother Darryl from the old Bob Newhart show?

[ELVIS]

No, I said that wrong...

I was referring to your middle school like name calling...

[ODShowtime]

Not crazy like this guy. Crazy like Mezro crazy, you know?

Cool physics teachers have hovercrafts and lasers and shit. They're wild like that.

[JimmytheWurm]

Originally posted by lucky wilbury
so alleged mensa member sharon stone would be president then

Oh yeah, I am sure that Sharon Stone is among the top ranking members of MENSA. I think you are missing your favorite show on the Entertainment Channel..."The Fantastical Lives of movies stars" it is followed by "Stop learning useful things and fill your head with this fecal matter."

[ODShowtime]

jimmy

[DLR'sCock]

Originally posted by JimmytheWurm
Why do I meet stupid people who care only for themselves every day?




That quote right there says alot, but it's not only the stupid people that only care about thmeselves, but the very very intelligent people too.....


Ego, greed, self appointed entitlement, a narrow vision of the world, the belief that one self is more than others, these are the characteristics of the ones who throughout the history of mankind that have done what they can to oppress others and/or the masses for their sole and ultimate bidding.(whether it be on a small scale or grandscale) The opiate of the masses changes shape and form, but the ones who wish to weave the web of deception for their own gain are still the same kind of "human"....


Benevolence and wisdom are not inherent...