Obama has fashioned himself as the harbinger of peace. So what will he do when those who do not seek peace impose their beliefs on his plans as Al Qaeda recently reaffirmed? Regardless of his actions, no matter what he does, no matter how well he speaks, no matter whom he allies himself with, there will always be an opposing force. Obama must decide what is best for the American people as a whole, not Washington, not Wall Street, not even Main Street. He must decide what is best for America as a nation, not America as individuals.
Incidentally, that decision, whatever it is, will cost American lives, whether directly or indirectly. If Obama chooses to continue the War on Terror, Americans will continue to lose their lives. If Obama chooses to withdraw from an unstable Iraq in order to focus on Afghanistan, Iran will invade Iraq and expand their boundaries under the revived slogan “The Road to Jerusalem goes through Baghdad” (an Iraninan slogan originally coined during the Iran-Iraq war, not an American slogan supporting Iraqi Freedom); eventually, we’ll be back in Iraq losing American lives, protecting Israel or some economic interest we deem necessary. Even if Obama were to withdraw out of the region completely as the extremists demand, the aggressiveness of Islam extremism would eventually attempt to proselytize America, by force if necessary (Spain and the Byzantine Empire are good historical examples of this). So regardless of his decisions, American lives will be lost.
The irony is that his supporters may not understand this as readily as his opponents. Those millions of starry-eyed, media-fed Americans that bought into his whole idea of change, thinking he could bring World Peace, are in for a huge surprise. Thankfully, Obama has repeatedly stated his intentions to target and destroy Al Qaeda targets. But he may have backed himself into a corner, as that could eventually cause him to go down the exact same road as George W. Bush. Seeking to “stamp out” Al Qaeda completely could lead to an invasion of Pakistan or Iran, a reoccupation of an abandoned Iraq, or an invasive policy of domestic-terror investigation. A pragmatist will realize that Obama has very tough decisions to make, much as President Bush did; one should hope Obama’s decisions do not invite further terror by making concessions to an unappeasable opponent.
Many have likened Obama to Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Allow me to conclude by quoting them both:
“I welcome the Muslim world’s accurate perception that I am interested in opening up dialogue and interested in moving away from the unilateral policies of George Bush.”
-Barack Obama
“No man can tame a tiger into a kitten by stroking it. There can be no appeasement with ruthlessness. There can be no reasoning with an incendiary bomb.”
-Franklin Delano Roosevelt
