Butler believes the Arab bloc would side with Iraq at a showdown in the Gulf corral. If there is a panacea for world security, it might be hard to achieve under the U.N. banner. Neither candidates Gore nor Bush are talking about a botched diplomacy that might imperil their constituents' lives. No one votes that ticket. When weapons of destruction are in the hands of hostile military forces, the crypto-isolationists should remember the folly of the Munich Pact in 1939.
Appeasement can be more deadly today.
John Patrick Ford is a freelance writer based in San Diego.