Doug Bandow is Right On

In my recent article, "Human Beings Aren't Pawns," I pondered several questions:

If the neocons were genuine about their compassion concerning basic human rights and an open democracy, where are they now? Why are they not pressuring President Obama to extend support to the red shirts in Bangkok? Why did they limit their support to the Iranian Green Movement?

The basic gist of the article is that, while claiming to be interested in the basic human rights of the Iranian people, neoconservatives saw them as mere pawns in order to fulfill their desires for regime change. 

Doug Bandow, in his article at the National Interest, writes critically of US military intervention:

It’s time to reverse the presumption of U.S. policy. Rather than assume American involvement in other nations’ conflicts, Washington should plan to keep out. Rather than position U.S. military personnel to intervene promiscuously half a world away, America should redeploy its military to defend the United States.

Americans will long remain active in East Asia. But U.S. interests do not require military plans to intervene in local strife, whether within or among nations. Thailand demonstrates how the region’s most likely problems lie well beyond America’s control.

US policymakers should heed his advice.