THE INDISPENSABLE NATION – AT 9:46 A.M. ET:  Europe saw American strength with George W. Bush.  There was much whining, and complaining, especially from the fashionable European left.  One German politician compared Bush to Hitler.  In Britain, Prime Minister Tony Blair was called "Bush's poodle."   With Obama's election, Europe felt vindicated.  Here was Barack, come to save us.  Peaceful, culturally appropriate Barack.

So now they've seen Barack in office, and the rethinking has begun.  The Europeans and Brits look around and wonder who has their back.  This is American weakness, and, y'know, a strong America doesn't look so bad after all.  From Dan Hodges, a loyalist of the Labour Party, in London's Telegraph.  He gets in the usual leftist stuff, but the overall message is clear:   

God bless America. Following the announcement last night by Barack Obama that the United States is about to resume military operations in Iraq, it appears the Yazidi will not now be killed with their families. There is also hope that Iraq’s other minorities may face some form of protection from their persecutors.

It’s an announcement that won’t be welcomed by everyone. The old charges of US adventurism and imperialism will be trotted out. And with some historic justification. Iraq is after all the scene of the United States most catastrophic foreign policy misjudgement.

“It’s not the job of the US to act as the world’s policeman,” some people will cry. Again, with some legitimacy. Chile, Cuba, Panama, Vietnam, Iraq. The post-war Pax Americana casts a long shadow.
But if events of the past few months have shown us anything, it’s surely this. There is only one thing worse than the United States acting as the world’s policeman. And that’s the United States not acting as the world’s policeman.   

COMMENT:  And that's a lefty point of view, believe it or not.  The saner voices on the right probably came to that overall conclusion a long time ago.  

And, you may be sure, the left will return to its usual America-bashing before the end of next week.  The party line is always preserved.

The results of a strong America were clear to see when the Berlin Wall came down.  We're seeing the results of a weak America right now.

August 8, 2014