The democratic tide has swept Central and South America and Asia. The Philippines, Taiwan, and South Korea all have liberalized their societies to degrees that would have seemed incredible in the 1970s, and may not have been possible without the administration's finetuned support. Only Grenada has been liberated during the Reagan era. But no nation has fallen to Communism, and the Soviets have pulled out of Afghanistan. The jury is still out on the president's arms control initiatives.
Serious questions remain about verification and compliance.
In the long run, what will be more important than any arms control treaty or the strengthening of United States armed forces is the Strategic Defense Initiative. Technology offers the possibility of a system designed to defend ourselves from enemy attack instead of constantly building more weapons to insure that we can retaliate if attacked. SDI research is not a certain path to world peace any more than cancer research is a certain path to health, but the goals are no less worth the price. Mr. Reagan's initiative could be historic. It is easy to forget that one can't reverse the direction of the Washington elephant overnight or even in eight years.