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May 23, 2012
Tony Pugh: More private colleges offering tuition discounts
Mary Beth Franklin: How to Choose the Right Annuity for You
Tina Susman: The wig wasn't enough: Man gets 13 years for posing as his dead mom
The Kosher Gourmet by Emma Christensen:A simple way to do fish right
May 22, 2012
Warren Richey: Can US group challenge overseas surveillance act? Supreme Court to decide
Thomas M. Anderson: Walking Away From a Mortgage
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: Enjoy a celebration of the most rich and layered flavors: Black bean, sweet potato and quinoa chili
May 21, 2012
Mark Clayton: Cybersecurity: How US utilities passed up chance to protect their networks
Howard LaFranchi: NATO summit: Who will foot the bill for long-term Afghanistan security?
Chris Farrell : Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Stephen Whiteside, Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: Social anxiety disorder --- or just shy?
Guy Jackson : Victim's father regrets death of Lockerbie bomber
The Kosher Gourmet by Mario Batali: Famed chef's veal shoulder farsumagru: A festive meat course for late spring
May 18, 2012
Rabbi Berel Wein: Striving: The People of the Book's Book for (All of) the People
Steven Goldberg: 5 Great Stock Picks and the Exchange-Traded Fund that Owns Them
Mary Pickett, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Don't be forced into gluten-free lifestyle based merely on a doctor's false-positive test
The Kosher Gourmet by Carolyn Malcoun: DIY healthy lunchbox treats: HOMEMADE FRUIT BARS for kids and brown-bagging adults alike
May 17, 2012
Warren Richey: Teacher fired for being unwed and pregnant can sue religious school, court rules
Josh Mitnick: Netanyahu's 'centrist' coalition is already proving it's anything but
Steven Goldberg: Earn Dividends in Emerging Markets with This WisdomTree ETF
Amina Khan: Research links coffee to lower death rates
The Kosher Gourmet by Faith Duran : Cheesy Potato Breakfast Casserole with Cheddar and Sun-Dried Tomatoes
May 16, 2012
Carmen Terzic, M.D., Ph.D. : Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: A variety of exercises can help improve balance
Melissa Healy: National strategy on Alzheimer's disease aims to halt it by 2025
The Kosher Gourmet by Joyce White : GOODNESS GRACIOUS: GREENS! 4 winning recipes that are no longer just for down-home folks (Includes expert tips & techniques)
May 15, 2012
Kristen Chick: Obama administration resumes arms sales to Bahrain despite serious unresolved human rights issues. Activists feel abandoned
Pat Mertz Esswein: Homes are now affordable again and mortgage rates are low. What you need to know before you buy
Kathy Kristof: Our Practical Investor Fights Inflation with These 6 Investments
Sue Hubbard, M.D.: The Kid's Doctor: Lactose intolerant young child? Check again
The Kosher Gourmet by Kathy Hunt: Spread a Little Excitement with EXOTIC CONDIMENTS (4 RECIPES)
May 14, 2012
Lisa Gerstner: How to Protect Your Identity, Finances If You Lose Your Phone
Harvard Health Letters: Heart disease and dementia
The Kosher Gourmet by Megan Gordon: MANGO COCONUT OAT MORNING MUFFINS are a bright but hearty delight
May 11, 2012
Jessica L. Anderson: Get the Best Deal on a Used Car
Jett Stone: Forget face-lifts and fake knees. Scientists have seen the fountain of youth --- and it's broccoli
The Kosher Gourmet by Chef Mario Batali: The famed chef's vegetable dish that tastes true to the season: FAVAS AND SUGAR SNAP PEAS WITH POTATOES AND TARRAGON
May 10, 2012
Sergei L. Loiko: Putin sends warning to U.S., NATO in Victory Day speech at Red Square
Mary Rourke: How being a 'mentch' got Vidal Sasoon his start and fighting in Israel's War of Independence provided him with confidence and a strong sense of his own identity
Jeff Bertolucci: Get Home Phone Service for Less Than $10 a Month
The Kosher Gourmet by Betty Rosbottom: Gleaming with its golden, crimson, and snowy white hues, this silken smooth and creamy STRAWBERRY ORANGE TRIFLE looks impressive, but is easy to prepare
May 9, 2012
Sharon Palmer, R.D. How you can reduce your risk -- or delay -- chronic diseases associated with aging
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Jewish World Review
June 8, 2004
/ 19 Sivan, 5764
The Gipper's legacy for our time
By
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.
http://www.jewishworldreview.com |
Three simple words comprise the motto of the Nation's newest and most powerful aircraft carrier, the U.S.S. Ronald Reagan: "Peace through Strength." The choice of this phrase could scarcely be more appropriate, given that it captures both the purpose of the vessel and the most important legacy of the President whose name she proudly bears.
What is more, the philosophy that guided Ronald Reagan throughout his life and whose practice made the 40th presidency one of this country's greatest - the proposition that the competent exercise of American power is essential to maintaining international security - remains a formula for guiding U.S. defense and foreign policy in our own time.
At a moment when the Nation is in the throes of mourning and nostalgia for our fallen leader, it is easy to forget that this core Reagan principle was once considered wildly controversial. In fact, it took great fortitude and robust leadership to overcome the virulent opposition of those who railed against the then-President's costly military build-up and "aggressive" policies in Europe, Afghanistan and Central America.
The history of strenuous opposition to Mr. Reagan's application of the philosophy of peace through strength for the purpose of ending the "Evil Empire" and liberating its oppressed subjects offers important perspective on the present controversy: George W. Bush's determination that, among other things, the liberation of Iraq was required to achieve success against yet another global threat - the use of terrorism to advance political agendas.
One of the most important insights from the previous experience, however, is the importance of being clear about precisely who and what we are up against. Ronald Reagan appreciated that it was necessary - but not sufficient - for America's military strength to be rebuilt. He also understood the need to wage a "war of ideas" against the Soviet Union. Specifically, Mr. Reagan explicitly and repeatedly addressed the odiousness and illegitimacy of Soviet communism, discrediting it in the world's eyes, demoralizing its proponents and emboldening those who longed to be free of that tyrannical ideology.
In today's conflict, clarity about our enemy is no less essential. Most of those wielding terror against us, our allies and interests adhere to an ideology every bit as dangerous as that of the Soviet Union. Some have described it as "Islamofascism"; others as communism with a god. While not all who threaten us are Islamists - the radical, intolerant and violently jihadist subsets (both Sunni and Shiite) of the Muslim faith - the latter tend to be the best organized, financed and disciplined. And the rest, like Saddam Hussein's regime, either actively cooperate with the Islamofascists (see Stephen Hayes excellent new book, "The Connection: How al Qaeda's Collaboration with Saddam Hussein Has Endangered America") or are, at the very least, supportive of their hostility towards us.
The need for a "war of ideas" has been much on the mind of the man charged with securing peace through strength through more obvious means, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. For months, he has been warning that the Islamist recruitment and training pipeline is capable of generating jihadist cannon-fodder faster than U.S. and allied forces can kill them. According to the Associated Press, in remarks to an international security conference in Singapore on Saturday, he
warned that "The United States and its allies are winning some battles in the war against terror but may be losing the broader struggle against Islamic extremism that is terrorism's source." The Pentagon chief observed, "What you have is a civil war in [Islam] where a small minority are trying to hijack it."
Complicating matters further is the fact that Saudi Arabia - ostensibly one of our most important allies in the war on terror - is a significant part of the problem. A featured article in last Sunday's New York Times, was entitled, "The Saudis fight terror, but not those who wage it." It reports that "...The attempt by some [Saudis] to expose and uproot the ideological and theocratic influences used to justify [terrorist] attacks was suppressed by the religious establishment....Instead, the official line became that the terrorists were infected with an alien ideology, imported by those who fought in Afghanistan or Chechnya, and that the religion espoused by Saudis is a peaceful one....'The official religious establishment does not admit there is a problem inside Wahhabism [the state-approved fundamentalist version of Islam] itself,' said...a former radical turned reformer."
If President Bush is to succeed in defeating Islamofascism as President Reagan defeated Soviet Communism, he must not only rebuild and employ effectively America's military strength. He must also bring to bear, as Ronald Reagan did, reinvigorated U.S. intelligence capabilities and the panoply of economic, financial and technological assets at our disposal. But arguably most importantly, he must emulate Mr. Reagan's war of ideas by countering the Islamist ideology that animates our enemy and powers its ambition to succeed in world domination where godless communism failed.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in Washington and in the media consider "must reading." Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Frank J. Gaffney, Jr. heads the Center for Security Policy. Comment by clicking here.
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