OTHERS ARE ASKING - AT 7:40 A.M. ET:  (Posted in transit on Metro North, heading for New York)  When Barack Obama took office, the very conventional wisdom was that he would be adored throughout the world and bring peace on Earth and good will toward men.  Well, not so fast, friends.  The president does indeed enjoy widespread international popularity, but we've noticed that knowledgeable people in other countries aren't necessarily caught up in the worship of the new American idol.  The British government is clearly skeptical, and one wonders whether Japan and South Korea really trust The One to take the necessary steps to return North Korea to its box.  Here, a former Indian intelligence officer, writing in Forbes, asks the whispered question:  Is Obama another Carter? 

During the U.S. Presidential primaries last year, I had expressed my misgivings that Barack Obama might turn out to be another Jimmy Carter, whose confused thinking and soft image paved the way for the success of the Islamic Revolution in Iran.

Let's not forget that little tidbit.

The defiant action of North Korea in testing a long-range missile with military applications last month, and its latest act of defiance in reportedly carrying out an underground nuclear test on May 25, can be attributed--at least partly, if not fully--to its conviction that it will have nothing to fear from the Obama administration for its acts of defiance.

Ouch!  And true.

A series of actions taken by the Obama administration have created an impression in Iran, the "Af-Pak" region, China and North Korea that Obama does not have the political will to retaliate decisively to acts that are detrimental to U.S. interests, and to international peace and security.

Among such actions, one could cite: the soft policy toward Iran: the reluctance to articulate strongly U.S. determination to support the security interests of Israel; the ambivalent attitude toward Pakistan despite its continued support to anti-India terrorist groups and its ineffective action against the sanctuaries of Al-Qaida and the Taliban in Pakistani territory...

More ouch, and more truth.

Jimmy Carter took a little over three years to create the image of the U.S. as a confused and soft power. Obama is bidding fair to create that image even in his first year in office. The North Korean defiance is the first result of this perceived soft image. There will be more surprises for the U.S. and the international community to follow if Obama and his aides do not embark on corrective actions before it is too late.

COMMENT:  Expect to see more of this from foreign sources.  Despite all the yapping about George Bush's "unilateralism," other nations depend on the U.S. for their security.  They may talk peace and love, but they value a strong and determined America.  We hope that the president and those around him value it just as much.

May 26, 2009