Even if I had a larger readership, it wouldn't much matter to post this-- American triumphalism draws its strength from American amnesia-- but I want to remind you that the game of politically pleasing intervention is short, while humanitarianism is long.
Update: Just to be as clear as I can-- everyone, with the exception of, like, Glenn Greenwald, Daniel Larison, and IOZ-- absolutely everybody will be out and about and crowing and celebrating for the foreseeable future. The political blogosphere is a vehicle for enforcing conformity through the appearance of difference, so it takes special moments like what's to come to see just the kind of corrosive unanimity that's about to come about. Very few will remind you of the brief peace following the fall of Baghdad, and very few will point out that the Libyan rebels are not opposed to assassinating undesirables. The next few days will be awash in an unseemly but profoundly American "party like Osama just got killed" revelry. The truth of life for your average Libyan won't settle for months or years.
You know I think if you wanted to keep a child in a state of permanent immaturity, the best thing to do would be to permanently hide the consequences of his or her actions.
Sunday, 21 August 2011
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