"Robert J. Chassell" wrote:
>
> I just read transcript of US President Bush's speech of 2003 Feb 26 on
> the future of Iraq. It provides an interesting insight into the
> public expression of US policy Middle East.
>
> The transcript came from the Sydney Morning Herald, Sydney, Australia:
>
> http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/02/27/1046064150688.html
>
> Clearly, many people distrust Bush. In the US, for example, some
> people say that Bush's untrustworthyness has cost the US vast amounts
> of money in its dealings with Turkey: apparently, the Turks want cash
> in return for help they provide the US, not promises that may be
> broken.
>
> However, regardless of what you think of Bush's honesty, in his
> speech, he made statements that can act as a guide to policy.
>
> Perhaps he holds to the truth or goodness of his statements, or
> perhaps, as Fron�ois, Duc de las Rochefoucauld said,
>
> Hypocrisy is the homage that vice pays to virtue.
>
> Either way, the statements can be evaluated on their own.
>
> Rather than ask you to read the speech, I have drawn up a list of
> `should' and `should not' statements based on stated US policy; I am
> curious whether and why you agree or disagree with one or the other.
>
> Obviously, `the devil is in the details', but the analysis here is
> based first on principles, as Soviet diplomats would say, rather than
> on details, which people in this list are unlikely to want to consider.
>
> Here are the `should' and `should not' statements, each accompanied by
> one alternative out of the several available.
<statements snipped, refer to original post>
At first reading, it looks to me like the statements all have a common goal
of stability in the region. This is best in the long run for the majority
of the population. However, there is a minority that would benefit from
instability, and those in that minority are more likely to already have more
power to help maintain the instability.
Julia
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