Architect of neoconservatism now says it's a failed ideology

[quaoar]

http://news.scotsman.com/international.cfm?id=266122006

Neocon architect says: 'Pull it down'

NEOCONSERVATISM has failed the United States and needs to be replaced by a more realistic foreign policy agenda, according to one of its prime architects.

Francis Fukuyama, who wrote the best-selling book The End of History and was a member of the neoconservative project, now says that, both as a political symbol and a body of thought, it has "evolved into something I can no longer support". He says it should be discarded on to history's pile of discredited ideologies.

In an extract from his forthcoming book, America at the Crossroads, Mr Fukuyama declares that the doctrine "is now in shambles" and that its failure has demonstrated "the danger of good intentions carried to extremes".

< snip >

Going further, he says the movements' advocates are Leninists who "believed that history can be pushed along with the right application of power and will. Leninism was a tragedy in its Bolshevik version, and it has returned as farce when practised by the United States".

[Cassandra]

1. What took him so long?

Nice of him to admit that they are Leninists.

[MrBenchley]

2. Fukuyama's book is one of the stupidest tomes I've ever sat through....

It's an exercise in fatuity....

[rodeodance]

3. "a body of thought"---more like dead bodies.

[burythehatchet]

4. a day late and a couple trillion dollars short.

how do I join a think tank? I seem to be right five years or so before these turds.

[rodeodance]

5. To claim "The End of History"--is to claim the Rapture was here

[rodeodance]

8. He was on cspan recently--see this comment.

I found this while goggling.



....I saw Fukuyama on a C-Span panel recently, in which he stated that he had opposed the US intervention in Iraq, although he felt that now that we were there we had to see it through to the establishment of a democratic polity. The reason he gave for his opposition was, as I understood it, that since terrorism is a reaction to modernity, our forcing modernity on Islamic peoples will just exacerbate the problem. Not what I would have expected from the author of this book. Perhaps his ideas have changed - I haven't yet read any of his more recent works.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0380720027/002-9837654-2278461?v=glance&n=283155

[MrBenchley]

9. Wonder if there's any record of this bobo actually opposing the war?

You might recall that a few months ago Dog Sex Ricky Santorum claimed publicly he'd always opposed the war, although within a day that was shown to be a flat-out lie.

[Dhalgren]

6. That's a good label for these thugs, though...

"Leninists". I can see it now: "Leninist Majority Leader Frist today said that whatever the Great Leader Bush wanted was what was best for the country. The Leninists control both Houses of Congress and the White House..."

[quaoar]

7. I can't wait

for their next Five Year Plan.

[elduderino]

10. some questions....

there are two things about fukuyama that i am confused about that maybe someone can enlighten me on. i always thought that his own understanding of neoconservatism was hijacked by the 'peacocking neocons' (perle, kristol). is this true?

secondly - only in reading SOME of his work - one interesting thing he touched on (before the iraq war i think - my memory fails me) - was LEGITIMACY in the eyes of the ordinary Arab on the street. i.e. the path to bagdad was through jerusalem (and all these type of theories). did he belive this...?

If so - i feel that if there was enough effort made in 'LEGITIMACY' of the democratic effort - i.e. demonstrating to the average Arab that removing Saddam is for the greater cause - and the political will to solve the Likud and Palestinian issue was taken with a view to pleasing the Arabs - then the greater good would've surely benefited Israel aswell in time.

The bottom line for me is very simple now. Now that the geo-political power struggle between China, Russia is gaining momentum) - can the US afford to have one quarter of the worlds consumers hearts and minds (muslims) against them. esp if they have the cheapest energy resources.

i do believe the US needs definately needs to re-think its foreign policy. We (the US) need to think realistically. :shrug:

[Odin2005]

11. Tell the Reich-wingers that neo-cons are commies in disguise.

They'll be out of government faster than you can say Marx