Andrew Sullivan gets it exactly right:
[T]he critical question in this campaign is: do Americans want a neo-empire in the Middle East?
This is what this election is about more than anything else.
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Andrew Sullivan gets it exactly right:
[T]he critical question in this campaign is: do Americans want a neo-empire in the Middle East?
This is what this election is about more than anything else.
3 replies on “A Neo-Empire in the Middle East”
What do you mean by Neo-empire?
Briefly – I took the term from Andrew Sullivan here – but my understanding of his usage, and the way I would use the term, are as a differentiator from a colonial empire as have existed throughout history.
I’m in a hurry at the moment, but basically, my understanding of the term is derived mainly from Niall Ferguson, a supporter of and adviser to John McCain, who has written in defense of what he refers to as American empire.
I think what he’s talking about is what Bush asked for in Iraq as part of the proposed Status of Forces Agreement (and which so far Iraq has denied). Basically the U.S. is asking for 58 military bases (20 more than current) for an indefinite period (read permanent); control of Iraqi air space up to 30,000 feet; absolute immunity for American military and private contractors serving in Iraq; and granting the U.S. the right to determine if a hostile act from another country is aggression against Iraq. Sounds pretty imperialistic to me.