Zbigniew Brzezinski - How I Won The Cold War

Zbigniew Brzezinski has an Op Ed today arguing against any military action in Iran. And of course we should listen to him, his being so effective on all things Iran in the past.

It was he and his feckless boss President Carter who saw no cause for concern in a potential Iranian mullocracy, and hence no reason to back the Shah of Iran who stood in the mullahs way.

Brzezinski, still stuck in the Cold War which helped him earn his name, has never taken radical Islam seriously.

Q: When the Soviets justified their intervention by asserting that they intended to fight against a secret involvement of the United States in Afghanistan, people didn't believe them. However, there was a basis of truth. You don't regret anything today?

Brzezinski: Regret what? That secret operation was an excellent idea. It had the effect of drawing the Russians into the Afghan trap and you want me to regret it? The day that the Soviets officially crossed the border, I wrote to President Carter: We now have the opportunity of giving to the USSR its Vietnam war. Indeed, for almost 10 years, Moscow had to carry on a war unsupportable by the government, a conflict that brought about the demoralization and finally the breakup of the Soviet empire.

You see, despite having been out of power for years, one has to understand, it was Brzezinski and Carter who won the Cold War. Just forget that at the time they (Dems) were thrown out of office America was at an economic and political nadir at home and abroad. It's true because old Zeb thinks it is. And his concerns about radical Islam at the time?

Brzezinski: What is most important to the history of the world? The Taliban or the collapse of the Soviet empire? Some stirred-up Moslems or the liberation of Central Europe and the end of the cold war?

What's important is what is happening today in the world, not some misguided sense of what world history is, or should be. And just like things in Iran when Brzezinski actually had something to say about it, he'd prefer to sit back and do basically nothing, as in talking with a lying and nuclear-cheating regime, until someone more visionary and less self-obsessed than ol' Zeb can come along and actually do something about solving International problems more of his creation than perhaps anyone else.

Below is the kicker which shows what a demagogue ol' Zeb actually is:

The United States should not be guided by emotions or a sense of a religiously inspired mission

You see, it's those war mongering Christians the world must really fear. Lunatic Islamist regimes which support the destruction of Israel, no big deal. It's always the Christians fault in the end. It's easy to tell this guy had his start in academe.

Not to mention that he already discounts the Iraq War as lost, because, well, you know, those damned Americans, they just don't have what it takes anymore.

Although the United States is clearly dominant in the world at the moment, it has neither the power nor the domestic inclination to impose and then to sustain its will in the face of protracted and costly resistance. That certainly is the lesson taught by its experiences in Vietnam and Iraq.

Someone needs to give this tired old non-war horse another honorary degree so he has something to talk about besides world politics, which he hasn't been a significant player in for years. I'm sure Yale would fit the bill. They even have a member of that pesky little Taliban on campus to present the sheepskin. How fitting is that?

Comments

[The Observer]

"You see, it's those war mongering Christians the world must really fear."

I suspect many in the Muslim world actually do believe that. When was the last time a Muslim army invaded Christian soil? When was the last time a Christian army invaded Muslim soil? (Maybe better to ask over the last 150 years, when was the last time a Christian army wasn't on Muslim soil?)

"Lunatic Islamist regimes which support the destruction of Israel, no big deal."

Islamist goverments aren't/weren't the only ones pissed over the displacement of the Palestinians. The former goverment of Iraq (Saddam), Syria, the former government of Egypt (Nassar era, some Sadat era until he bailed on the Russians), Libya, Saudi Arabia, et cetera, all secular regimes I believe, aren't/weren't thrilled about the Palestinians getting the boot. The history and anger runs deeper than the recent rise of Islamist regimes.

"Although the United States is clearly dominant in the world at the moment, it has neither the power nor the domestic inclination to impose and then to sustain its will in the face of protracted and costly resistance. That certainly is the lesson taught by its experiences in Vietnam and Iraq."

ZB is right regarding that point. He could have also sited the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan as another example. Occupation isn't cheap in dollars or lives. The current administration knows that the American body count has to stay relatively low and a good chunk of the troops will have to come home soon or Americans are going to get mighty restless. I bet if the war continues for another year or two, the merit of American soldiers dying for another country and American tax dollars being spent for another country will much more intensly debated in the public forum.

[DennisAOK]

I was not a fan of Carter - in fact, I was on Reagan's campaign staff in 1980 - but Zbig's point that the invasion of Afghanistan weakened the Soviet Empire is valid. Empires tend to get overstretched. The Soviets did not recognize the limits of their power. And I believe his point about religiously inspired mission refers to Bush's belief that the US should be spreading democracy - to the point of invading another country. It is another example of overcommittment, and it has weakened, not strengthened, our security. Being bogged down in Iraq, we cannot now militarily confront Iran, which represents a much bigger threat than Iraq ever did.

[warrenb]

Since you believe in this war so much and "ridicule" any critics of it by mocking them, then why don't you go to Iraq Dan and stand in the middle of Fallujah with your American Flag unfurled.

[Russ]

Warren,

This chickenhawk argument is garbage. There is civilian control of the military, and it does not require military experience to suggest foreign policy, so please get off your high horse.

And in case you're wondering, I say this as an OIF veteran who saw action at Kifl, al-Hillah, and Karbala.

If you believe in us getting out so much, why don't you put your money where your mouth is and join the peace activists who go to Baghdad?
(See, I can do it too)

[warrenb]

Russ,

No "chickenhawk" argument...only a REALISTIC and INTELLIGENT one.

If all of your friends jumped off cliffs because they thought it was the "right thing to do" (pun intended), then would you also jump? Apparently, you would...Not very INTELLIGENT.

[Laertes]

Are you seriously suggesting that our problems with Iran stem from the fact that we didn't support the Shah ENOUGH?

[Russ]

Warren said:
"Since you believe in this war so much and "ridicule" any critics of it by mocking them, then why don't you go to Iraq Dan and stand in the middle of Fallujah with your American Flag unfurled."

Um, please explain how this isn't a chickenhawk argument.

[Sgt. York]

That Pahlavi guy [aka, "the Shaw of Iran"] was one seriously evil brutal dictator. The world is better off without him.

[Laertes]

To be more clear: The problem isn't that we failed to sufficiently support the Shah. The problem is that we installed him in the first place. The Mossadegh coup is the textbook example of "blowback."

[DennisAOK]

Laertes and Sgt. York,

I disagree. Compared to Communists and Muslim fanatics, the Shah doesn't look so bad. We don't always get to choose between George Washington and Thomas Jefferson.

[Jack H]

Zubignew Brazinsky? ZebagMcGoo Boreizonsckii? Cyborgknee Brazorgnine? Yes, I think I've heard of him, although a google search reveals nothing under these spellings. He had some part in the Court of the Toothed One, in the Dark Years of Our Fathers, as I recall. The Royal Jester, was it? The Red Dwarf who bit at the heels of visiting dignitaries? Well never mind.

But I have given Mr. Carter some thought, for anyone who's interested:

http://forgottenprophets.blogspot.com/2006/02/13-x-3-worst-president.html

Feel free.

J