January 24, 2007
I'M FLATTERED
I've enjoyed reading James Taranto's BEST OF THE WEB TODAY feature at the Dow Jones OpinionJournal site since it debuted about six years ago. Taranto's got a great eye for picking out news articles and dissecting them, usually with a tongue-in-cheek tone. He had a lot to say today, of course, about President Bush's State of the Union Address the prior evening, and threw in his thoughts on Virginia Democrat Sen. Jim Webb's rebuttal, beginning with the Senator's metaphor:
As I look at Iraq, I recall the words of former general and soon-to-be President Dwight Eisenhower during the dark days of the Korean War, which had fallen into a bloody stalemate. "When comes the end?" asked the general who had commanded our forces in Europe during World War II. And as soon as he became president, he brought the Korean War to an end.
Actually, it's not quite accurate to say Ike brought the Korean war to an end. The Koreas signed an armistice but never a peace treaty, and thus remain technically at war, with some 30,000 U.S. troops still in South Korea to protect against the North--though the current stalemate, for the moment at least, is bloody only for the people of North Korea. The inconclusive outcome of the Korean War can easily be interpreted as a warning of the dangers of leaving threats for future generations to deal with.
Jeez that sounds kinda familiar, as if I read that someplace before . . . [see WORST--BUT MOST APT--ANALOGY EVER, 1/23/07]:
As I look at Iraq, I recall the words of former general and soon-to-be President Dwight Eisenhower during the dark days of the Korean War, which had fallen into a bloody stalemate. “When comes the end?” asked the General who had commanded our forces in Europe during World War Two. And as soon as he became President, he brought the Korean War to an end.
That's a great story Senator, but unfortunately the Korean War is technically still in progress. North Korea never signed a treaty agreement with U.N. powers, but only agreed to a cease-fire and the establishment of a demilitarized zone between the North and the South. The U.S. still requires and maintains a significant military presence in South Korea, a country that developed into a nation with a First World economy and democratic institutions while under our constant protection. North Korea, on the other hand, we left in the hands of a megalomaniacal dictator who turned his nation into a prison camp where mass starvation is a fact of life and tool for quelling political dissent. Power was assumed by his son at the time Kim Il Sung's death; a son who by most observations appears quite insane. I'm sure the North Korean people (not discounting the millions who died under Kim Il Sung and then his son) really appreciate our quick exit from an unfinished conflict.
I think I prefer the second one better. It's less succinct, but kind of more my style so to speak. One can subscribe and have BEST OF THE WEB TODAY delivered via email daily by clicking here.
Tagged:Posted by Lexiphane at January 24, 2007 11:01 PM
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