Why Obama's "Friends" Policy Doesn't Work

Cuba news ticker: let freedom (not) ring.

Democrats, Obama specifically when he was running for president, thought the U.S. should have more of a touchy-feeling policy towards what President G.W. Bush called the “axis of evil” a scary term for Liberals because it brought up that whole good and evil thing.  Obama was going to change this entire tone thing and, in the process, make new friends with people like the leaders of Iran, North Korea, and Cuba:

On his first trip overseas, Mr. Obama referred to Mr. Bush’s foreign policy and said the United States has “shown arrogance” and been “dismissive, even derisive.” He said decisions of the past had “lowered our standing in the world.”

So Obama has tried to be more open, friendly, kind, nice, etc.  He invited Iranain officials to embassies on July 4th to enjoy our Independence Day until they suppressed the election results and shot and jailed protestors.  Whoops.  Just the other day a news ticker on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Havana, Cuba was shut off because the messages it displayed (you know things like you live in a dictatorship, etc.) were too upsetting for the poor Cuban government.  Since we don’t want to upset dictators it’s better that we keep that whole “freedom thing” under wraps.

Obama’s overtures with North Korea haven’t gone so well, either.  They shot off a couple of missiles, said they were working on new nukes, and basically told Obama to pound sand.  Mr. Obama also tried to become pals with Venezulan strongman Huge Chavez but unfortunately a new study by the Government Accountability Office shows that Chavez’s government is corrupt and fueled by drug money.  Whoops!

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Now we have reports that the situation in Iran is much worse:

Some prisoners say they watched fellow detainees being beaten to death by guards in overcrowded, stinking holding pens. Others say they had their fingernails ripped off or were forced to lick filthy toilet bowls.

The accounts of prison abuse in Iran’s postelection crackdown — relayed by relatives and on opposition Web sites — have set off growing outrage among Iranians, including some prominent conservatives. More bruised corpses have been returned to families in recent days, and some hospital officials have told human rights workers that they have seen evidence that well over 100 protesters have died since the vote.

We shouldn’t be talking rocket science here (or even healthcare reform).  These are dictatorships run by corrupt strongmen who care only for furthering their agendas.  These people don’t care about the rule of law or what the people over whom they rule want… it’s about staying in power.  For President Obama to think about things any differently shows complete ignorance as to human nature and reality.

By criticizing the former administration and talking about his new tone Obama makes a big mistake… he hitches his success to what the dictators in other countries do…  If the dictators invite him for coffee and hamburgers he is vindicated… if they tell him to shove it and continue doing evil Obama looks foolish.  Now, which choice do you think a dictator who hates America will take?

The only way to stop a bully is to call him what he is to his face and not back down.  Making “friends” and playing nice hasn’t done anything positive for America.  Maybe it’s time for some of that “arrogance” Obama mocked?

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