SPECIAL POST
With no fanfare and little mention, President Obama announced last week that he is unilaterally cutting the nation’s nuclear stockpile by 50%. This was a unilateral move; no other country gave anything back in return.
I believe that the international stability of a nation is directly proportional to its perceived vulnerability. That is to say that you are in a better position on the world stage if you deal from a position of strength. That is not to say that you must be a bully. However, no other country is likely to mess with your country if you have the ability to annihilate it.
The converse is true; the weaker you are, the more countries are willing to contemplate ill deeds against you. In daily life, the people who get mugged or physically attacked are women, children and the elderly and they are all perceived to be weak. Rarely does an attack occur against a strong and able-bodied man. Take health care, for another example. The President feels that he has enough political power to make Congress do whatever he wants of them, and he dismisses the American people as being dumb and having little or no power. But, when the American people band together and chase Congress and the President out, that will be a lesson remembered in the halls of Washington for many decades to come. That’s why Americans not only have guns on their nightstands, but they also don’t mind letting the rest of the neighborhood know it.
The unilateral reduction of nuclear weapons is a signal to other nations that we are vulnerable. This move is just as bad, if not much worse, as trying Khalid Sheik Mohamed in a civilian court. Obama may be willing to take the blame, but if we’re all dead, who’s going to be left to blame him?
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