You’re in the car with your Dad and the trip that was supposed to
take 30 minutes just surpassed an hour and half. You suspect that
the turn you made 70 miles earlier took you way off track, but Dad
won’t stop and ask for directions.
Continuing driving is only getting you further off track, so far so
that you’re not even sure what state you’re in.
Ever happen to you? Let’s pretend Dad’s name is George
W. and you’ve been driving down the highway of foreign policy.
He won’t stop and ask for directions, and he sure as hell won’t turn
around. He’s headed towards an absolute dead-end. We offer him a detour.
Simple metaphors are the only way to understand foreign politics.
Unfortunately in real life, the stakes are higher than getting lost
on a dirt road. Today we fully anticipate the onset of war- or at
least some kind of military conflict. While Iraq’s situation continues
to play itself out on the nightly news, the clash between the US and
North Korea remains a side dish, not yet the main course.
There are currently seven countries in the world that possess nuclear
weapons. North Korea is not yet one of them, though for various reasons,
all signs point to an imminent possession. Why then, are we preoccupied
with a country that doesn’t even DEFINITELY have “weapons of mass
destruction?”
In 1994, Bill Clinton’s administration signed an agreement with North
Korea. The agreement stated that North Korea would terminate their
nuclear weapon’s program in exchange for US aid. All went according
to plan, in addition to an added bonus of beginning direct dialogues
between North and South Korea. So what went wrong?
The new millennium rolls around and North Korea finds itself lacking
electricity because its nuclear energy program is non-existent. The
country asks the United States for the agreed-upon assistance. Bush
takes office and immediately relations with North Korea become strained.
Instead of keeping the lines of diplomatic communication open, Bush
slams the door in North Korea’s face, lumping her with Iraq and Iran
in the infamous “axis of evil.”
Here’s where he makes the wrong turn.
By publicly berating the country and creating undeserving associations,
the US helps convince North Korea that it is, in fact, evil. We pushed
them to conform to the very label that we branded them with. Had we
continued holding up our end of the bargain, the only conflict in
North Korea today would have been what color jumpsuit Kim Jong Il
wears on Tuesdays.
Instead of playing nice and embracing our “puritan values,” Bush
calls names, starts rumors, and displaces pending-war anxiety onto
an undeserving party. Did he go to study hall next? Nope, back to
the White House.
As simply as we can create the metaphor that exemplifies the conflict,
we can also draw associations between Bush and middle school kids.
It’s just common courtesy to rise above the temptation to act like
children. But you know what? When you’re president of the “most powerful
nation on earth,” that’s your job. George W. needs to realize that
Dad’s not driving the car anymore, he is.
We understand that we cannot give ONE solution to the problem in
North Korea. But we have to say, when you offend someone, when you
make a mistake, own up to it. Mr. Holier-than-Bill needs to suck it
up, say he’s sorry, and move on. According to his own moral platform,
isn’t that what nice Texas Christian boys do?
If George W. apologizes for the indiscretion of North Korea, only
then can we avoid addition strain on an already frustrated United
States. A new fair agreement must be made if we want to avoid covert
nuclear trades with terrorists. Bush needs to stop pressuring North
Korea to raise the stakes on their end of the deal and focus on bringing
his end of the deal up to speed.
We’re still lost on a dirt road, now hundreds of miles past our exit.
But all hope is not lost. We can turn around, shift to reverse, or
even blaze a new trail towards our destination. It never hurts to
stop and ask for directions, even just to confirm that you’re on the
right track.
