Our BetterMost Community > The Polling Place

Talking With Our Enemies

(1/2) > >>

David In Indy:
(CNN) — The chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Joe Biden, D-Delaware, called President Bush’s comments accusing Sen. Barack Obama and other Democrats of wanting to appease terrorists "bullshit” and said if the president disagrees so strongly with the idea of talking to Iran then he needs to fire his secretaries of State and Defense, both of whom Biden said have pushed to sit down with the Iranians.

“This is bullshit. This is malarkey. This is outrageous. Outrageous for the president of the United States to go to a foreign country, sit in the Knesset…and make this kind of ridiculous statement,” Biden said angrily in a brief interview just off the Senate floor.

“He’s the guy who’s weakened us. He’s the guy that’s increased the number of terrorists in the world. His policies have produced this vulnerability the United States has. His intelligence community pointed that out not me. The NIE has pointed that out and what are you talking about, is he going to fire Condi Rice? Condi Rice has talked about the need to sit down. So his first two appeasers are Rice and Gates. I hope he comes home and does something.”

He quoted Gates saying Wednesday that we “need to figure out a way to develop some leverage and then sit down and talk with them.”


_________________________________________________________________________


Personally I think we should. Dialogue always helps. What do you think? Should the US and other nations engage in dialogue with unfriendly countries?

delalluvia:
Dialogue only works if both sides are willing to compromise.  I am afraid that there are some out there who do not believe in compromise due to whatever dogmatic belief, political system or culture that they have.

Monika:
the word "enemies" in this context give me the chills. Exactly who are the enemies?
And of course diplomacy is the only way to go. Isn´t this the 21 th century after all.

optom3:

--- Quote from: delalluvia on May 16, 2008, 09:02:41 pm ---Dialogue only works if both sides are willing to compromise.  I am afraid that there are some out there who do not believe in compromise due to whatever dogmatic belief, political system or culture that they have.

--- End quote ---

I agree, there is a difference between talk at and talk with.In the majority of cases we end up talking at our "enemies" who may appear to listen,but in effect are merely paying lip service.
I have long thought that there is little point in trying to argue with someone whose beliefs are an ideology,by their very nature,these people feel, as opposed to think.It is akin to a gut reaction.You could spend the next decade talking,all to no avail.

More years ago than I care to remember,(before all the present troubles began)I was seeing an Iranian man.On the surface he was quite reasonable.Charming,courteous, and very reasonable.Then  the Ayatollah Khomeini came to power and within days,this seemingly intelligent and logical man,was preparing to jettison his degree ,whole future everything and go home to fight and if necessary give up his life, at the age of 21.I thought he was insane, he was perfectly calm about it all.
I could not even vaguely begin to understand his feelings.There certainly was no logical reasoning with him.It just was, period.Even he could not explain it to me in a rational manner that I was able to comprehend.Ever since then I have thought there would never be any point in discourse, with what has now become the enemy.They are irrational when it come to their ideology.It would be as productive as trying to persuade someone out of their first true love.

Ideology is like love, very difficult to put into words,but every bit as powerful and of course destructive. Could Jack or Ennis have articulated what they were feeling,no.Poets and writers since time immemorial have tried to describe those feelings with varying degrees of success.So whether it is love or  an ideology,it is a gut,overwhelming feeling,which if you have not experienced, will probably never understand,no matter how many words are used.
The same applies to all strong emotions including hateand jealousy,I have experinced love,jealousy  and hate,therefore I understand them.I have no ideology and so cannot understand it,no matter how many words are used.I just do not "feel" it.
So talk at our enemies yes,talk with them and have a meaningful dialogue,no

Jeff Wrangler:

--- Quote from: delalluvia on May 16, 2008, 09:02:41 pm ---Dialogue only works if both sides are willing to compromise.  I am afraid that there are some out there who do not believe in compromise due to whatever dogmatic belief, political system or culture that they have.

--- End quote ---

Tell you what, while I agree with Del, I still think it's best to try to talk until all possibilities of compromise are exhausted, because I believe by doing so, you keep the moral high ground.

When I hear Team Failure accuse their opponents of being defeatist, or un-American, or appeasers, or whatever, I never fail to think of the words of the great Samuel Johnson:

"Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel."

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page