Anti-Climacus

WELL: My Foreign Correspondent has some pointed thoughts on my trusting Bush's foreign policy more than Kerry's. I think this probably deserves a fuller explanation:

"How can someone be trustworthy regarding foreign policy when they have lead an adminstration that, among other things, lied to the world about vital details regarding certain countries in the Middle East (whether the war was justified or not is irrelevant) and then once the truth was discovered, didn´t purge the admistration of the liars (no resignations, no attempts to improve)."

First of all, last point taken. People should've been fired.

As to the lying to the world, well, I'm punting on that one. It may be the case that he said things (say about WMD) that weren't true, but it seems pretty clear that everyone, for and against, was working on the not-unreasonable assumption that they were true.

Mostly, though, I disagree with the idea that whether or not the war being justified is irrelevant. I'm of the type of deontologist who believes fiat justitia et pereat mundus (let justice be done, though the earth perish). And one of those things I feel that way about is liberal democracy--every step forward is a good one, and practically any means of getting there are acceptable. If you're of the type of moral thinker that I am, it doesn't matter if Bush intentionally lied to everyone in the entire world and invaded Iraq just to make money for Halliburton, it doesn't matter to me so long as 1. the U.S. government doesn't fall apart and 2. Iraq ends up with a good government.

Of course, I don't actually believe in any of the arguments for Bush's cynical motivations. He seems to me to be pretty sincere in both his Christianity, and his loyalty to the American form of government, so I'm not going to impugn his motives at all (no more than I would want mine impugned, same as with any other Christian). But one of the things I noticed the most about the speeches Bush gave prior to the invasion of Iraq was his almost visceral dislike of Saddam Hussein--he avoided referring to him by name, and never referred to him, as other world leaders would do, as the "president" of Iraq. Insomuch as I can judge his instincts on this issue, they're in sync with mine.