Chasing the Wind

Recently, I was at a big hob-nob in the nation’s capital where very smart people congregate to appreciate each other and to be appreciated. This was the annual meeting of the self-described “learned society” of my new industry, The Academy. I sat through many intellectual and theoretical paper presentations and panels. Many were interesting. Several were practical. A few were very good. The best were those that paid special attention to our home still reeling from Hurricane Katrina and one that explored the scriptural basis of moral thinking in socio-economics and amorality of economic legal theory. The one panel that mentioned scripture was in a ghetto, but I was glad it was there at all.

At a luncheon for clinical legal educators, the section devoted to that enterprise bestowed an annual award on a men deemed to be the clinical educator of the year. Clinical law teachers are typically liberal activists with a soft heart for social justice and unpopular causes on behalf of the poor. For that, I am glad to be in their ranks, because that seems a high calling of the variety of Matthew 5 or Isaiah 1:17. The man receiving the award is a Star on the First Tier, as I discovered, who innovates, publishes, works harder than anyone else, and carries the standard of clinical education with aplomb into The Academy and makes everyone else look bad by comparison.

The presiding officer introduced the Star’s introducers.

Four people introduced him, his former teachers, current Dean and colleagues. Count them; four people introduced the Star.

The Star stormed the stage and began his acceptance.

Ten minutes later, as he continued, the hotel conference staff proceeded to clean away dirty dishes from before the assembled Teachers. We had finished dessert, after this very staff had placed it before us, after they had cleaned away our entrée dishes which they had set before us after they had cleaned up our salad plates. As they worked without a word, the plates clinked. The glasses chimed. The silver clanked.

The Star interrupted himself, “Excuse me. Excuse me! Servers! Excuse me! I know that you have a job to do, but it’s very loud. I know it will inconvenience you, but could you please stop, just stop for five or ten minutes. Just be quiet a little bit. This is my Warholian moment, and I want to enjoy it.”

He accepted his award for 15 more minutes.

I don't remember his name.


(CLARIFICATION: Someone asked me if I were referring to the prominent dean of a certain western law school. I am not. I really don't remember the guy's name receiving the award, and this award would hardly be that dean's "Warholian moment.")

How 'Bout Them Dores?

Cat Killers.

Believe.

Monroe Doctrine

Castro may be dying, but Chavez is receiving his mandate. Castro was isolated on a pretty island. Chavez is isolated on a continent rich with natural resources and left-leaning poor people. Iraq may be distracting us from an honest-to-goodness socialist revolution across Central and South America.

Without Soviet influence, do we have a sound reason to contain communism in South America, especially if it is elected democratically? Teddy Roosevelt probably would think so, but do we have any more legitimacy to complain about an internal political movement instead of European meddling?

Even more, do we have the credibility and wherewithal to address and contain it? No. GWB's effective presidency is over, and he spent our capital in Iraq. Chavez has the power to "rule by decree" for 18 months, just in time for the 2008 presidential elections.

Liability

I have said that the Iraq War rises fundamentally from a lack of creativity and humility in addressing a dangerous proposition.

The BBC reports that Iran approached the Executive Branch years ago to offer essentially the same steps the White House now demands from them as concessions. When the White House demands it, the idea is part of the great "ideological struggle of our time." If the Iranians propose the same thing, "we don't talk to evil."

Trouble.

Seven Wicked Spirits

Jesus told a story about a poor guy possessed by a demon who made his life hell. Whereupon the demon was exorcized, the fellow enjoyed life more but failed to fill the spiritual void with righteousness. In its place, as the man’s apathy for his well being continued, the demons returned with seven friends who moved in opportunistically to lay claim to the newly vacant real estate. The moral of the story may be that the humanity abhors a vacuum, that the soul must be disciplined in righteousness or be subject to invasion by escalating wickedness. Spiritual neutrality is not an option.

James Wiser and Hermit Greg have very good posts up about Iraq and reflections on the “new” strategy hawked by the President. They, almost everyone else and I agree that the invasion and occupation in Iraq is and always has been a dire mistake with horrific consequences. I can think of no competent American who could trust yet that this war was justified factually or even could now recite the first blushes of war-marketing without embarrassment. The problem is well known: did we invade for weapons of mass destruction, to stop an imminent terrorist attack, to avenge the World Trade Center, to destroy terrorist networks? As it turns out, no, but we have decided that we will strip ourselves of pretext and get to the point: democracy. If we can plant democracy, everyone benefits, says the theoretical justification.

Now, do we not all agree that this experiment is failed?

If it is not failed, the consequences and price of our folly is steeper than we ever conceived. The consequences and price are so high that no one is willing to pay it. The President is first among those unwilling to accept the price. His new proposed strategy is a vapid half-measure, designed to mask failure and to set out the next moves to justify abandonment.

Greg argues well for immediate withdrawal. James balks at the impending cataclysm in the wake of withdrawal. Greg argues that withdrawal is the only moral policy, and James wonders if the bloodletting may be more immoral in wake of our penetration into this once nation-state.

I take guidance from our occupation of Japan after World War II. The Japanese surrender was complete and unconditional. Our military dominance ultimately was so overwhelming and violent, that opposition could not stand, even to conduct guerrilla exercises after surrender. McArthur ruled Japan under martial law for five years, as near absolute ruler. During those years, we forced our Constitution on them, trained them up in the ways of democracy, overcame a political culture of emperor worship, then set the island on its way to political and economic stardom.

Can we learn a lesson for Iraq from Japan and not end up again in Vietnam? Among all the options before us, I believe the only viable option for staving off genocide, religious civil war and a sucking parade of horrors in Babylon is to escalate. We should not escalate by 20,000 troops. We should escalate by 200,000 combat troops to dominate and flush the place of violence. We should impose a martial police state on Iraq for 10 years, during which we should force our Constitution on them, train them up in the ways of democracy, overcome a political culture of emperor worship, then set the country on its way to political and economic stardom. We may also have to impose new partitioning borders to set right the British blunder of creating Iraq in the first place. In ten years of peace and benevolent authoritarianism, we might just create democracy in Iraq. Of course, we would need conscription and some national privation, but we have somehow mustered such political will in the past.

Why would the Japan model fail? Japan was and is homogenous. Iraq is not. Japan is an island. Iraq is not. Why else? We demonstrated our military and political might to the point of nuclear war in Japan, and we have not, will not and cannot do it in Iraq, for the very simple reason that the Iraq War is unjust. The Pacific War was just and defensive, and the nation could appreciate the danger. The Iraq Was is unjustified and preemptive, so the nation will not respond with victory gardens, rations and war bonds.

If we do not have the will for the Japan model, if withdrawal will create a vacuous nightmare and if half-measures only prolong the inevitable half-state, half-peace, half-resolution and inevitable deterioration of our national credibility, what can we do?

We can be humble, Mr. President. Humility is the answer. We must seek guidance from the United Nations, the European Union, Syria, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and all of our other colleagues whom we have ignored or offended. We must asked for it, hear it, accept it and apply it wisely. The base sin of this disastrous war is blind pride. Confessional, repentant, practical, realistic, pragmatic humility is the antidote. We must invite others to invest their stake in the outcome and risk some of our power and control so that the neighbors have more incentive than to sit around and watch it burn. We must seek advice again from those who told us this was a bad idea and appreciate their perspective. We need to be creative and courageous enough to le the Iraqis sort it out.

Unless, of course, we have yet to hear from the Chief some other justification, then we still probably will need to nuke Tehran. If this is all about oil after all, we’ve done a poor job of that so far, too.

Was Saddam Hussein the first lonely demon in Iraq, and is this fiasco the seven hobo demons taking his place, or have we yet to meet the seven-fold horrors awaiting their turn after the exorcism? What can we possible install in the monster’s place that will not be magnitudes worse?

TWO!

Happy Birthday, B!

We love you.

Marble Ceiling

For several days I have been in Washington, D.C., hanging out with the “learned society” of law professors. I have jogged to the White House and the Mall, the National Zoo and Rock Creek Park to Georgetown. While in town, some history has been in the works: the first woman ascended to be Speaker of the House, Cindy Sheehan assaulted the Capitol, the current President cleans out his staff, a former President was eulogized, a new Congress assembled and started to work in the midst of one of our longest wars.

I haven’t heard a law professor address any of these things from a lectern at our conference.

I love the ivory tower.

Tonight, I’m having drinks with Ken Starr. High Cotton.