http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/condoleezza-rice-syria-is-central-to-holding-together-the-middle-east/2012/11/23/200e583e-2ebf-11e2-89d4-040c9330702a_story.html

There are not too many people in diplomatic circles that are as widely respected and knowledgable as former Sec. of State Condoleeza Rice. The early seeds of the Arab spring were sown in the Bush Administration, and she has been watching the opportunity for guiding a stable, democratic, tolerant Middle East vanishing as a result of the current administration's failure to grasp the necessity of American leadership in the region.
She hinted at it during the RNC...but is stating it forcefully now.

When Condi speaks...we should listen.

HitsRus;1329700 wrote:When Condi speaks...we should listen.

C'mon. You just like her because she's a smart black woman.

The tolerance has been great in Libya. I guess the more children we burn the more tolerant they will be of our culture. I'm truly shocked Rice is calling for more wars. I guess the deficit isn't that big of a deal.

This all is really nothing new. It's been going on forever, and make no mistakes it was the driving factor behind regime change in Iraq.

Focus on making Iraq successful. You can't take on that whole region. Make sure Iraq works and then try to build on it.

I stay the F out of the Middle East. They have fought there for the past 500 years and will continue the next 500. They don't want peace, so leave them alone. Let them kill each other.

If the recent power grabs by Morsi in Egypt haven't taught us that there's really no such thing as an Arab Spring or Madisonian-style democracy around the corner, then nothing will.

"Democracy" and "elections" are one-way streets for radicals to gain power, and then totalitarianism is once again the norm. In order to have a flourishing, stable, true democracy, there has to be at the core a civil society and respect for the rule of law, along with a healthy regard for freedom of conscience (aka, religion, press, etc.). None of those appear to be present in Syria or any other potential uprising in the Middle East.

Well, we'd better get like lemmings and get our asses over that cliff. After all, what better authority is there but good old Condi? She knows more about rushing into wars without a good game plan than anyone I can think of, except perhaps Rumsfeld, Cheney and Bush.

stlouiedipalma;1330126 wrote:Well, we'd better get like lemmings and get our asses over that cliff. After all, what better authority is there but good old Condi? She knows more about rushing into wars without a good game plan than anyone I can think of, except perhaps Rumsfeld, Cheney and Bush.

Seems our current Commander-in-Chief is in good company then.

I don't think Dr. Rice is talking about going to war as much as avoiding it. It's about supporting the forces/people for free democratic society. People here don't seem to understand global politics and realities...when America leaves, others rush in to fill the vacuum.
Hopefully, you read her op-ed, even if you don't agree with it. Rice is not playing politics here. She is not a politician, although she realizes the role politics plays in policy. She is speaking from the heart.

Not a politician??? That's rich.

Dr Rice has never, and doesn't intend to run for political office. She has politely refused all appeals for her to consider office. Colin Powell is not a politician either. They can support politicians and be members of a political party just as you and I. That does not make them politicians.

jordo212000;1329848 wrote:I stay the F out of the Middle East. They have fought there for the past 500 years and will continue the next 500. They don't want peace, so leave them alone. Let them kill each other.

The past 500? Try the past 3000+ years.

HitsRus;1330214 wrote:I don't think Dr. Rice is talking about going to war as much as avoiding it. It's about supporting the forces/people for free democratic society. People here don't seem to understand global politics and realities...when America leaves, others rush in to fill the vacuum.
Hopefully, you read her op-ed, even if you don't agree with it. Rice is not playing politics here. She is not a politician, although she realizes the role politics plays in policy. She is speaking from the heart.

Actually agree. I read it more as the U.S. should lead more and support more the moderates and movers of democracy in the region. That means more support for the Syrian nationals (which we are slowly seeing).

Most of the Gulf states in the region still look at the U.S. for some guidance. The U.S. does not hold absolute say in the region, but is still a powerful voice to the region.
As the region goes through changes not seen since the late 1960s, the U.S. still needs to be deeply involved, and that does not mean just in military power but also diplomatic and regional alliances.

jordo212000;1329848 wrote:I stay the F out of the Middle East. They have fought there for the past 500 years and will continue the next 500. They don't want peace, so leave them alone. Let them kill each other.

It's not just them, anyone who's gone there hasn't wanted peace either.

HitsRus;1331038 wrote:Dr Rice has never, and doesn't intend to run for political office. She has politely refused all appeals for her to consider office. Colin Powell is not a politician either. They can support politicians and be members of a political party just as you and I. That does not make them politicians.

My feeling is that she knows she can never effectively run for office with that 500-lb. albatross named Bush hanging around her neck. That's something she'll never be able to overcome, so the prudent choice is to never run.

My feeling is if Condi Rice had run for and won the Repub nomination for POTUS she would have had enough cross-over support to have beaten Obama. She's brilliant, stand on her own merits, and would have made a far, far better POTUS than The Savior.

My feeling is that she knows she can never effectively run for office with that 500-lb. albatross named Bush hanging around her neck. That's something she'll never be able to overcome, so the prudent choice is to never run.

I think that if you look at what Condi Rice has done, and has done since leaving office. I don't think that what she would have to do to to 'run' for an office (lie, cheat and distort) is in her nature.

believer;1332393 wrote:My feeling is if Condi Rice had run for and won the Repub nomination for POTUS she would have had enough cross-over support to have beaten Obama. She's brilliant, stand on her own merits, and would have made a far, far better POTUS than The Savior.

Obama crushed the Republican economic dream team in an election that was all about the economy. So now suddenly all the minorities Republicans have been denigrating since the election wouldn't have voted for Santa Claus??

I agree generally with your nice words about Ms. Rice but a bush holdover who was the national security adviser during the worst terrorist attack on U.S. soil in history and acquiesced in the Iraq War invasion would've had no chance against the BHO election machine.

If she was a white man and the Republicans weren't desperately trying to show how diverse they can be she would be just as shunned as everybody else is from the Bush administration.

she is too socially moderate to ever make it through one of the republicans tea party primaries.