Read Liberty and Tyranny for Free Online

hatred to young children, our children are threatened as well.
    Whether it’s global terrorism or pandemic disease, dramatic climate change or the proliferation of weapons of mass annihilation, the threats we face at the dawn of the 21st century can no longer be contained by borders and boundaries….
    And America must lead by reaching out to all those living disconnected lives of despair in the world’s forgotten corners—because while there will always be those who succumb to hate and strap bombs to their bodies, there are millions more who want to take another path—who want our beacon of hope to shine its light their way….
    [ Another way ] America will lead again is to invest in our common humanity—to ensure that those who live in fear and want today can live with dignity and opportunity tomorrow.
    We have heard much over the last six years about how America’s larger purpose in the world is to promote the spread of freedom—that it is the yearning of all who live in the shadow of tyranny and despair.
    I agree. But this yearning is not satisfied by simply deposing a dictator and setting up a ballot box. The true desire of all mankind is not only to live free lives, but lives marked by dignity and opportunity; by security and simple justice.
    Delivering on these universal aspirations requires basic sustenance like food and clean water; medicine and shelter. It also requires a society that is supported by the pillars of a sustainable democracy—a strong legislature, an independent judiciary, the rule of law, a vibrant civil society, a free press, and an honest police force. It requires building the capacity of the world’s weakest states and providing them what they need to reduce poverty, build healthy and educated communities, develop markets, and generate wealth. And it requires states that have the capacity to fight terrorism, halt the proliferation of deadly weapons, and build the health care infrastructure needed to prevent and treat such deadly diseases as HIV/AIDS and malaria….
    But if the next President can restore the American people’s trust—if they know that he or she is acting with their best interests at heart, with prudence and wisdom and some measure of humility—then I believe the American people will be ready to see America lead again. 11

    Several elements of Obama’s global vision must be addressed. When he says, “The security of the American people is inextricably linked to the security of all people,” what is meant by “security of all people” of the world? How, in every case, is America’s security related to their security? It clearly is not. And if a regime refuses to secure for its people that which America believes it should, what then? Moreover, are there not times when the security of other people conflicts with the security of America?
     

    “And America must lead by reaching out to all those living disconnected lives of despair in the world’s forgotten corners.”
    What does it mean to live a disconnected life of despair? If included among the disconnected, for example, are the millions of starving people living under the iron fist of North Korean communism, how do Americans reach out to them? But “disconnected lives of despair” appears to mean much more than the denial of liberty to people in the forgotten corners of the world. It is a messianic attitude that has no basis in reality.
     

    “ [ Another way ] America will lead again is to invest in our common humanity—to ensure that those who live in fear and want today can live with dignity and opportunity tomorrow.”
    America will invest what and where? And how can America ensure that people in, say, Zimbabwe and scores of other places can live with dignity and opportunity? And does such a purpose and mission exclude Iraq, where Saddam Hussein was terrorizing and brutalizing large segments of the Iraqi population? And if not, why not?
     

    “Delivering on these universal aspirations requires basic