(Cartoon by Carlos Latuff)
By Marwan Bishara
Al-Jazeera
"Since taking office, President Obama has been more of a manager than a leader. Mostly, he has managed expectations - but also the deteriorating foreign policy he inherited from his predecessor.
He made symbolic foreign policy gestures to please his progressive and liberal supporters, as well as enacting new policies to appease the establishment's military and political heavyweights.
President Obama signed on shutting down Guantanamo but then postponed its closure, extended a hand to the Muslim world, then at his generals' demand, escalated the war in Afghanistan.
He demanded a total Israeli settlement freeze then backed down, announced plans for a world free of nuclear weapons but went on to implement it selectively against Iran.
Obama's foreign policy sermons preached new foreign policy on the basis of "mutual respect and mutual interest" and extended "a hand to those who unclench their fists".
In less than a year, he's seeking to impose more sanctions on Tehran, and extend America's clenched fist to "extremists" in Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen......
And the Pentagon, like the banks, has proven too big to fail. They continue to be subsidised to the tune of $700bn annually, almost double its pre 2001 budget and no less than the combined military spending of all other nations.
Like all great empires, American superpower has been built on financial might and backed by the military. As its debt skyrockets, money dries up, and its military fails to achieve swift military victories against weak opponents, so will its status deteriorate and its might dwindle.
President Obama can hold the fort for only so long."
Al-Jazeera
"Since taking office, President Obama has been more of a manager than a leader. Mostly, he has managed expectations - but also the deteriorating foreign policy he inherited from his predecessor.
He made symbolic foreign policy gestures to please his progressive and liberal supporters, as well as enacting new policies to appease the establishment's military and political heavyweights.
President Obama signed on shutting down Guantanamo but then postponed its closure, extended a hand to the Muslim world, then at his generals' demand, escalated the war in Afghanistan.
He demanded a total Israeli settlement freeze then backed down, announced plans for a world free of nuclear weapons but went on to implement it selectively against Iran.
Obama's foreign policy sermons preached new foreign policy on the basis of "mutual respect and mutual interest" and extended "a hand to those who unclench their fists".
In less than a year, he's seeking to impose more sanctions on Tehran, and extend America's clenched fist to "extremists" in Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen......
And the Pentagon, like the banks, has proven too big to fail. They continue to be subsidised to the tune of $700bn annually, almost double its pre 2001 budget and no less than the combined military spending of all other nations.
Like all great empires, American superpower has been built on financial might and backed by the military. As its debt skyrockets, money dries up, and its military fails to achieve swift military victories against weak opponents, so will its status deteriorate and its might dwindle.
President Obama can hold the fort for only so long."
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