December 5, 2008
by Jake, the Champion of the Constitution

Obama's choices so far for his advisors certainly should quell any libertarian optimism of any real "Change" from the past quarter century dominated by Bush-41-Clinton-42-Bush-43 rule. The most recent press conference announced that the Clintons will run, or have major influence over, foreign policy. The Clintons are well-known interventionists, so I do not suppose the following will change anything, but this article will be emailed to Senator Clinton anyways. Words of advice from July 4, 1821 for the POTUS candidate who this year (in a delusional lie, no less) claimed foreign policy experience as the First Lady bravely ducked enemy gunfire during a helicopter landing in Bosnia (fortunately she skipped Somalia, where her warmongering, draft-dodger husband launched another war):

"America does not go abroad in search of monsters to destroy.

She is the well-wisher to the freedom and independence of all.

She is the champion and vindicator only of her own.

She will recommend the general cause by the countenance of her voice, and the benignant sympathy of her own example.

She well knows that by once enlisting under the banners other than her own, were they even the banners of foreign independence, she would involve herself beyond the power of extrication, in all the wars of interest and intrigue, of individual avarice, envy, ambition, which assumed the colors and usurped the standards of freedom. The fundamental maxims of her policy would insensibly change from liberty to force...

She might become the dictatress of the world.

She would no longer be the ruler of her own spirit."

For some background, Secretary of State John Quincy Adams was by no means an "isolationist," which is a favorite label of the warmongering neoconservative Republicans and their Democrat cohorts. He fully understood the importance of international trade and effective diplomacy, and their effect on economic prosperity and national security.  Before being elected President, Adams served as the US ambassador to England, Russia, Prussia, and the Netherlands. 

For all their incessant contrasting this summer, both Obama and Clinton have served as ambassador to, well, zero nations.  Adams spoke four languages fluently; I would be fairly surprised to hear Clinton can speak a second.  [Before you think that's only because Clinton was studying law, Adams also passed the bar.]

And only a fool would call Secretary Adams a "pacifist"! Witnessing the start of the bloody Revolutionary War as a child of 7 years comes to mind, and also the War of 1812. Adams demonstrated his integrity with his opposition to President Polk's aggressive and unjust war on Mexico in 1846, vigorously voicing his dissent, this time as a Massachusetts congressman.

So, no, I am afraid that the tried-and-true labels of "pacifist" and "isolationist" do not apply to Adams, just as they do not apply to the present-day Congressman Ron Paul.

The United States IS "in search of monsters to destroy." Otherwise, my generation's silly war would be called the "War on Al-Qaeda" or the "War on the Islamic Insurgency." Instead, for over 7 years, the US government has termed it the "Global War on Terrorism," a term that is deliberately vague and indefinable. It is no wonder Americans still do not know when or how this war can definitively be won. Remember, Iraq's Saddam had absolutely no ties to Al-Qaeda, his secular rule left him disfavored in Osama bin Laden's eyes. The American people were lied to, there were no WMDs. Instead, we equipped one mostly theocratic state (Israel) with WMDs while creating fallacies around another semi-theocracy's (Iran) efforts to attain them. Oh, and we attack and destabilize another Muslim dictatorship (Pakistan) that already has nuclear weapons.

So, America, which monster shall we slay next?

A foreign policy of interventionalism with the likes of Al-Qaeda, the Taliban, Saddam, Musharraf, and all other Middle Eastern nations has given renewed meaning to the dangers of involving America in wars "beyond the power of extrication, in all the wars of interest and intrigue which assumed the colors and usurped the standards of freedom."

So Senator Clinton, President-elect Obama, shall America remain the "dictatress of the world"? I warn you to answer "No" of your own free will before the rest of the world, which grates its teeth under our oppressive heel of empire, decides to respond in your place.

For the Freedom of Iraq and Afghanistan to reject our Westernized, secular Democracy, force-fed to them under the barrels of America's guns, if their peoples so wish.

For the Immediate Withdrawal of all American warriors from Iraq, Afghanistan, Korea, Japan, Germany, and Italy! Today's wars are unjust and unconstitutional, and at last check, the Korean War and WWII ended over 50 years ago.

For the Republic, not Democracy Perverted! (Can anyone even find the word "democracy" in the Constitution?)

[This article owes the quotation and some thoughts to Chapter 6 of Michael Scheuer's Imperial Hubris (2004), but the opinions expressed herein are solely my own.]  (Clinton photo from Bbsrock) (Adams photo)

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