General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Most of us here were against the invasion of Iraq, correct? [View all]Martin Eden
(12,863 posts)And, like it or not, we have not fully regained whatever moral authority we may have had -- in the eyes of the world.
I'm not saying we should keep quiet about Putin's intervention in Ukraine or any other breach of international law.
What I'm saying is the art of diplomacy and effective leadership (and we ARE in a position of leadership despite W's crimes) requires a thorough understanding of the perceptions of the people and nations you're trying to persuade and to lead.
When Kerry recently criticized Putin for invading a country under false pretext the irony was downright painful to my ears, so I can imagine how it sounded outside this country. We have little chance to provide effective leadership in any situation if our nation's chief diplomat uses language guaranteed to be perceived as outrageous hypocrisy (whether those perceptions are justified or not).
BTW, I protested the Iraq war in my hometown of Chicago in Feb 2013, and also travelled to our nation's capital for the protest on March 15 -- 4 days before Shock & Awe was launched.
I also travelled to Cuyahoga County, Ohio to help get out the vote for John Kerry in Nov 2004, even though I didn't support him in the Dem primary (I refuse to support anyone who voted for the IWR in Oct 2002).