The Guardian:
How America's right bears the longest grudgeAttitudes to old conflicts are a key issue in the presidential race
Martin Woollacott takes an important look at this:
The phrase ["axis of evil"] was used in a speech focused on dangers ahead, but in truth it was as much about the past as it was about pre-emption and the future. All three countries had imposed notable defeats on the United States. North Korea, with the help of China, sent American forces reeling back from the Yalu half a century ago. Iran threw out the Shah, who had retained power in that country with the assistance of Britain and the United States, and brought in a regime that added to America's humility by taking its diplomats hostage. Iraq defied the United States over Kuwait, and Saddam Hussein, against what appeared to be the odds, then recovered control of most of his country, resisted American pressure to disarm and made the United States look ineffective and foolish.This is a curious paragraph by the way, in that I disagree with Woollacott's portrayal of each of these conflicts. In Korea, Truman wanted North Korea to continue to exist as a buffer between us and China. In Vietnam, we simply can to the same conclusion as the French had when they pulled out after a 200-year occupation. And with Kuwait, there was simply a total communication breakdown that between us and Iraq that caused Saddam's (eventually) fatal mistake. But what makes this paragraph most curious is that this really is the Neocon views these conflicts; as elements of national shame.
Important reading, especially in light of Kerry's history of Vietnam protest following his service in that war. The Neocons will hate Kerry for this, and they will be very much itching to try to use this to portray Kerry as dishonorable. They will try to trot out this argument not so much because it will win (it probably won't), but because they must. It is simply too central to their belief system to remain silent on it.
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