Going it alone

Next week the Bush Administration will try to state their case for Iran’s intervention in Iraq (NYT). Given the lack of credibility the Administration has lost since the beginning of the Iraq occupation, this ought to be interesting.

My first emotional reaction is to turn a deaf ear toward the evidence they present. The bogus presentation then Secretary of State Colin Powell gave to the UN as a prelude to the Iraq confrontation remains top of mind.

However, it is world politics and I am partially compelled to understand it in terms of naked and unashamed power relations. Practice often trumps theory and models. I will listen.

US/Iran relationships stand on a par with the Iraq civil/sectarian struggle. The evil demon is out of the bottle, and the Bush Administration will not easily put him back in it. In fact, those with the power to do so, have no desire for it.

Meanwhile, Pakistan says that Osama bin Laden is not inside Pakistan. They welcome any evidence to the contrary. Nobody has come forth with evidence. (Isn’t there still a $10 million bounty on Osama’s head? Those spoiling for a fight can still pick up some extra whip-out cash while indulging their proclivities.)

The US foreign policy of going it alone is working. Substantive assistance from world powers is difficult to find. The US is definitely going it alone on all fronts.