Will Mr. Obama Fight the War?

Published in Mainichi Shinbun
(Japan) on 4 November 2010
by Hiroshi Fuse (link to originallink to original)
Translated from by Xiao Tian. Edited by Amy Wong.
While I was working in America, an acquaintance suggested that “it is easier to think of this country as militaristic democracy.” Of course, it’s not a “militaristic democracy”; however, military power can be thought of both as exactly the reason why America is the world’s number one power and as the method of obtaining this lofty ideal. That sense does not exist in Japan. Maybe it is a lie; I’ve also heard that the key to re-election is the president and his wife both gazing up at the stars and stripes at a war memorial and sobbing. As far as I know, the image of President and Nancy Reagan at the memorial in the ‘80s was deeply moving.

President Obama probably does not really like this production. Hot or cold — if we use a phrase from long ago — Mr. Obama is a cool president who represents the intellectual and rational class. Since the election, he has moved to end military involvement in Iraq and Afghanistan and increase his track record in economic policy. Despite this, why did the Democratic Party suffer such a crushing defeat in the midterm elections? Because it is not enough to be just cool.

It is the backlash of the American public. They were not satisfied with Mr. Obama’s “change”— or the disappointed people were swept up in the extremely hot “tea party” group — but, speaking overall, the hot conservatism is gradually demonstrating its fertility and gaining strength. The conservatism, which can also be called the bedrock of the American public, includes a religious climate, which can only be described by the strange phrase “militaristic democracy.”

Now, Mr. Obama’s next target is the presidential re-election in 2012. Counting the 30 years since Mr. Regan’s inauguration in 1981, four of the past presidents have engaged in military actions during their first term, which drew attention. President Obama, too, is continuing military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan; however, this is cleaning up after the previous administration and doing withdrawal work. Not using any additional military force is best; however, strengthening the cohesion of the administration seems difficult just on the topic of troop withdrawal. This area can be thought of as Mr. Obama’s dilemma.


発信箱:オバマ氏は戦争をするか=布施広(論説室)

 米国在勤時、知人から「この国は軍国主義的民主主義と考えると分かりやすい」と助言された。もちろん軍国主義とは違うのだが、軍事力こそ米国を世界一たらしめる源泉、崇高な理想を実現する手段、と考えているのは確かだろう。日本にはない感覚だ。ウソかまことか、戦没者追悼式典では大統領が夫人ともども星条旗を見上げて慟哭(どうこく)するのが再選のカギとも聞いた。知る限りでは80年代の式典での故レーガン大統領とナンシー夫人の姿が感動的だった。

 オバマ大統領はこうした演出があまり好きではあるまい。ホットかクールかという一昔前の言葉を使えば、オバマ氏は知的で理性的な層を代表するクールな大統領だ。就任以来、イラクやアフガニスタンで軍事行動の幕引きに動き、経済対策でもそれなりの実績を上げた。なのに中間選挙では支持基盤の民主党が大敗したのはなぜか--。クールなだけではダメなのだ。

 米国社会の揺り返しである。オバマ氏の「チェンジ」に飽き足りぬ、または失望した人々は、超ホットな「ティーパーティー(茶会)」派にも流れたが、大きな構図で言えば、ほどほどにホットな保守主義が地力を発揮して巻き返した。米国社会の岩盤ともいえる保守主義には、「軍国主義的民主主義」という妙な言葉で表現するしかない精神風土も含まれよう。

 さて、オバマ氏の次の目標は12年の大統領再選だ。81年就任のレーガン氏から数えて約30年、4人の前・元大統領は全員1期目に耳目を引く軍事行動を起こした。オバマ大統領もイラク、アフガンで軍事作戦を続けているが、こちらは前政権の後始末と撤収作業だ。新たな武力行使などない方がいいが、米軍の撤退だけで政権の求心力を強めるのも難しそうだ。この辺がオバマ氏のジレンマのように思える。
This post appeared on the front page as a direct link to the original article with the above link .

Hot this week

Germany: Absolute Arbitrariness

Austria: Musk, the Man of Scorched Earth

Russia: Political Analyst Reveals the Real Reason behind US Tariffs*

Israel: Trump’s National Security Adviser Forgot To Leave Personal Agenda at Home and Fell

Germany: Cynicism, Incompetence and Megalomania

Topics

Mexico: EU: Concern for the Press

Austria: Musk, the Man of Scorched Earth

Germany: Cynicism, Incompetence and Megalomania

Switzerland: Donald Trump: 100 Days Already, but How Many Years?

     

Austria: Donald Trump Revives the Liberals in Canada

Germany: Absolute Arbitrariness

Israel: Trump’s National Security Adviser Forgot To Leave Personal Agenda at Home and Fell

Mexico: The Trump Problem

Related Articles

Japan: US Administration Losing Credibility 3 Months into Policy of Threats

Japan: US-Japan Defense Minister Summit: US-Japan Defense Chief Talks Strengthen Concerns about Single-Minded Focus on Strength

Japan: Trump’s Tariffs Threaten To Repeat Historical Mistakes

Hong Kong: China, Japan, South Korea Pave Way for Summit Talks; Liu Teng-Chung: Responding to Trump

Japan: Partial Cease-fire: Avoid Putin’s Pace