The Bush Disaster - From Benign Ideology to Dangerous Posturing

As a point of disclosure I voted for this President, Bush, # 43, twice. All things considered, until a week ago, I would do it again considering the alternatives and considering the world situation at each juncture.

No, I have not been comfortable with his performance. He has been over his head, he has been locked into simplistic, ideologically based behavior and though not lacking in brain power he has, by choice and habit, shown lack of intellectual depth or curiosity. Following his effort in Iraq, allowing that he may have thought he had ample reason to cause us to invade when we did, his approach on the international front as well as here at home, highlighted by his braggadocio about using his "political capital" after the 2004 re - election to reform Social Security, coupled with permissive, rampant government spending has left him bereft of positive contribution, much less a positive historical legacy.

All that he has failed to accomplish now takes a back seat to the fiasco he conceived for the Caucasus, culminating in unnecessary provocation of Russia. The Cold War, to our good fortune, ended in a whimper. In a sense the inefficient Communist Soviet model bankrupted itself based upon the challenges of keeping up with capitalism. The Iron Curtain turned out to be made of tissue. The USSR turned into the Kingdom of OZ with no Wizard.

And, as is normal in the course of human events the opportunistic side of human nature, mostly bad or worse, sought advantage. From roadside flea markets to large corporate skullduggery, everyone likes a bargain.

Quickly, egged on by the United States, many Soviet Republics, those on the borders of old Mother Russia, even if they had been part of Russia for over a hundred years before Communism took root, declared their independence. As Russia evolved, from early chaos, as it searched for a democratic format, they had neither the wherewithal or the cohesion to object and act.

That remained the case until Vladimir Putin came to power. He clearly has shaped Russia up. Not in a way that would be called liberal democracy but, in fairness, not in the way of the viscous totalitarian state of the past either. His anger, if you will his controlled rage, at the lack of respect that his nation was receiving from the West was palpable. The expansion of the European Union, the encroaching NATO, what he saw as disdainful treatment, as Kosovo was wrenched from Serbia, a long time Russian ally, more than irked.

The secession of Georgia was a lingering lesion. Strategically it left a way for oil and gas from other past Russian republics could pipe their riches straight through to the Mediterranean without having the product routed through Russian territory and thus being vulnerable to the turning of a valve.


More annoying to Putin was the pecking and constant chirping of Georgian President Mikhail Saaskashvili of Georgia who had cozzied up to President Bush, sent 2,000 troops to support our effort in Iraq and who was spending 15% of his country’s GDP on building a well equipped and outsized military for a country of Georgia’s size.

Saaskashvili was particularly intent on regaining Ossetia and Abkhazia, regions that were part of Georgia when Georgia was part of the USSR. When Georgia declared it’s independence from Russia those two regions declared their independence from Georgia. The West recognized Georgia but the two regions, though self governing, were self governing and aligned with Russia.
President Bush visited Georgia, urged their admission to NATO, called it "a special project" and Saaskahvili crowed that America stood behind him. As Bush and Putin chatted in Beijing Russian armor and troops massed on Ossetia’s doorstep waiting for the Georgians to attack . Noting that Russian intelligence is well wired in Georgia it is easily assumed that they knew exactely what was coming.

Georgia attacked Ossetia, the population fled, not to Georgia but to Russia, Russian armor rolled, the Georgians were crushed and president Bush is sending "humanitarian aid," and demanding that Russia respect Georgia’s as a sovereign nation and it’s geographic integrity.
President Bush who lacked any judgement or foresight as to what his policies were bringing about is talking bellicose but there is no lead in his pencil. All of Eastern Europe has to take notice. The Ukraine another key player of the independence game is also looking to join NATO and President Bush is pushing on with his plans to put a "missile defense" system," against terrorists" in Poland.

While Barack Obama has proposed talking with the Russians and mediating the issue. John McCain submits a shallow piece to the Wall Street Journal stating that, "We are all Georgians now." No Mr. McCain, I do not think so and no, Mr. Obama, Putin has all ready meditated and mediated. The issue is closed!

Let us evaluate where we stand:

1. We have failed to understand that Russia was a great power and by nature of geography, population and natural resources and that it always will be.

2. Our armed forces, at the level we have maintained them, are overstretched. Thank heavans!

3. Our armed forces, being heavily shifted to small war fighting and nation reconstruction, are no longer able to field the force required to handle open warfare on the European model.

4. The population of the United Sates lacks the nationalistic fervor that Russians have in abundance and want no part of a fight for Georgia the Ukraine or any of the other x - Republics of the USSR.

5. Our entire foreign policy establishment suffers from a lack of strong leadership and insight and the idealistic policy foundation of President Bush has gone past benign and ineffective to flat out dangerous.

Given enough time Bush could turn this embarassment into a very large disaster.