GWB: Strategic Thinker

[gipper]

Michael, sometimes you rave like a madman.

[BT]

Odds are greater than even at this point that the next president will be a democrat.

 I would also say the odds are greater than even that the "right decision" will be made by them as i don't see Bush drawing down troops significantly while he is still in office.

So what will the right decision look like at the hands of a dem admin and possibly a dem majority in both houses.

[gipper]

Arriving at that "answer" is no more a destination than a process, which is, and is about to, unfold.

[BT]

Arriving at that "answer" is no more a destination than a process, which is, and is about to, unfold.

It will be interesting to see whether the backbenchers evaluate these ideas from a strategic or political standpoint.

Which viewpoint would be more appropriate?

[Michael Tee]

<<Michael, sometimes you rave like a madman.>>

What was it this time, domer?

[gipper]

A good politicians job is always to fashion good policy into good politics, not vice versa.

[BT]

A good politicians job is always to fashion good policy into good politics, not vice versa.

Are we looking for a good politician or are we looking fro a great statesman?

Which would you prefer?

[Plane]

<<So the death of half the world is better than haveing landlords owning land?>>

It is not "landlords owning land."  It is billions of Third World people living lives of poverty due to capitalist exploitation of their resources.  It is an option - - which the Chinese people took - - of liberating themselves from debt and slavery to foreign interests and allowing their own talents to be put to work in their own interests.  It' the end of U.S. and European exploitation.

<<Reagan had them pegged they were an evil Empire .>>

Reagan was 180 degrees off.  The Evil Empire is the U.S.A.

China became overpoplated and poor because Chairman Mao was a fool who could not be contradicted.

Billions of third world people exist rather then being dead years ago because of the way the US and Europe "exploit" them. Western Civilisation has been good for the world , Communism was a threat to Human survival , what if Chairman Mao and Poll Pot had arisen in every land?  Would we have all gone broke and starved together?(while being forbidden to complain)

[Henny]

China became overpoplated and poor because Chairman Mao was a fool who could not be contradicted.

China was overpopulated and poor before Mao. There were some improvements in the earlier part of his rule.

[_JS]

China became overpoplated and poor because Chairman Mao was a fool who could not be contradicted.

Billions of third world people exist rather then being dead years ago because of the way the US and Europe "exploit" them. Western Civilisation has been good for the world , Communism was a threat to Human survival , what if Chairman Mao and Poll Pot had arisen in every land?  Would we have all gone broke and starved together?(while being forbidden to complain)

No offense, but that's a really poor analysis.

Mao and Pol Pot were hardly Marxists. As Henny states, China was extremely poor and had been exploited by colonialism before Mao ever came along.

Western Civilisation has been good for the world

How so? Care to give some specific examples? Let's focus on one country and perhaps we can discuss how it has been both positive and negative. Surely you don't mean to say that Western Civilization has been completely positive?

(By the way, communism and socialism are products of western civilization ).

[crocat]

First... strategic thinker.  Regardless of anyone's like or dislike for GWB... one cannot pretend that he alone does all the thinking.  That can be said about all of his predecessors...

But the point is... did we really lose the war against communism?  I don't think so.

Back in the days of the big RED scare we didn't travel in those countries.  They were mostly under lock and key regarding any information.

But look at the transition of Vietnam today.

Vietnam Government

Country name:
conventional long form: Socialist Republic of Vietnam
conventional short form: Vietnam
local long form: Cong Hoa Chu Nghia Viet Nam
local short form: Viet Nam
abbreviation: SRV

Data code: VM

Government type: Communist state

Capital: Hanoi

Administrative divisions: 58 provinces (tinh, singular and plural), 3 municipalities* (thu do, singular and plural); An Giang, Bac Giang, Bac Kan, Bac Lieu, Bac Ninh, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Ben Tre, Binh Dinh, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Binh Thuan, Ca Mau, Can Tho, Cao Bang, Dac Lac, Da Nang, Dong Nai, Dong Thap, Gia Lai, Ha Giang, Hai Duong, Hai Phong*, Ha Nam, Ha Noi*, Ha Tay, Ha Tinh, Hoa Binh, Ho Chi Minh*, Hung Yen, Khanh Hoa, Kien Giang, Kon Tum, Lai Chau, Lam Dong, Lang Son, Lao Cai, Long An, Nam Dinh, Nghe An, Ninh Binh, Ninh Thuan, Phu Tho, Phu Yen, Quang Binh, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Quang Ninh, Quang Tri, Soc Trang, Son La, Tay Ninh, Thai Binh, Thai Nguyen, Thanh Hoa, Thua Thien-Hue, Tien Giang, Tra Vinh, Tuyen Quang, Vinh Long, Vinh Phuc, Yen Bai

Independence: 2 September 1945 (from France)

National holiday: Independence Day, 2 September (1945)

Constitution: 15 April 1992

Legal system: based on communist legal theory and French civil law system

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Tran Duc LUONG (since 24 September 1997) and Vice President Nguyen Thi BINH (since NA October 1992)
head of government: Prime Minister Phan Van KHAI (since 25 September 1997); First Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Tan DUNG (since 29 September 1997); Deputy Prime Ministers Nguyen Cong TAN (since 29 September 1997), Ngo Xuan LOC (since 29 September 1997), Nguyen Manh CAM (since 29 September 1997), and Pham Gia KHIEM (since 29 September 1997)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president on the proposal of the prime minister and ratification of the National Assembly
elections: president elected by the National Assembly from among its members for a five-year term; election last held 25 September 1997 (next to be held when National Assembly meets following legislative elections in NA 2002); prime minister appointed by the president from among the members of the National Assembly; deputy prime ministers appointed by the prime minister
election results: Tran Duc LUONG elected president; percent of National Assembly vote?NA

Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly or Quoc-Hoi (450 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 20 July 1997 (next to be held NA 2002)
election results: percent of vote by party?CPV 92%, other 8% (the 8% are not CPV members but are approved by the CPV to stand for election); seats by party?CPV or CPV-approved 450

Judicial branch: Supreme People's Court, chief justice is elected for a five-year term by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the president

Political parties and leaders: only party?Communist Party of Vietnam or CPV [Le Kha PHIEU, general secretary]

International organization participation: ACCT, APEC, AsDB, ASEAN, CCC, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant)

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador LE VAN BANG
chancery: 1233 20th Street NW, Washington, DC 20036, Suite 400
telephone: [1] (202) 861-0737
FAX: [1] (202) 861-0917
consulate(s) general: San Francisco

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Douglas B. "Pete" Peterson
embassy: 7 Lang Ha Road, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi
mailing address: PSC 461, Box 400, FPO AP 96521-0002
telephone: [84] (4) 8431500
FAX: [84] (4) 8350484
consulate(s) general: Ho Chi Minh City
Flag description: red with a large yellow five-pointed star in the center

I would say that many of the Communist countries are moving to a more democratic way.

Cro