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Bacevich on Reinhold Niebuhr

November 23, 2008 in Government by Greg | 1 comment

In The Limits of Power: The End of American Exceptionalism, Andrew J. Bacevich speaks very highly of Reinhold Niebuhr:

Andrew J. Bacevich The United States today finds itself threatened by three interlocking crises. The first of these crises is economic and cultural, the second political, and the third military. All three share this characteristic: They are of our own making. In assessing the predicament that results from these crises, The Limits of Power employs what might be called a Niebuhrean perspective. Writing decades ago, Reinhold Niebuhr anticipated that predicament with uncanny accuracy and astonishing prescience. As such, perhaps more than any other figure in our recent history, he may help us discern a way out.

As pastor, teacher, activist, theologian, and prolific author, Niebuhr was a towering presence in American intellectual life from the 1930s through the 1960s. Even today, he deserves recognition as the most clear-eyed of American prophets. Niebuhr speaks to us from the past, offering truths of enormous relevance to the present. As prophet, he warned that what he called “our dreams of managing history” - born of a peculiar combination of arrogance and narcissism - posed a potentially mortal threat to the United States. Today, we ignore that warning at our peril.1

A couple months ago, I noticed that Dr. Bacevich had written the introduction to the recently reissued The Irony of American History by Reinhold Niebuhr. He called the book, “The most important book ever written on US foreign policy.” So I immediately wondered who is this man - Reinhold Niebuhr - whom Dr. Bacevich called “the most clear-eyed of American prophets”?

Reinhold Niebuhr Background

The following is what I found:

Reinhold Niebuhr on Time Magazine Niebuhr was an American theologian. A Protestant, he is best known for his study of the task of relating the Christian faith to the realities of modern politics and diplomacy. He was an important contributor to modern “just war” thinking.2

Benedicta Cippola, writing for The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life, said this of Niebuhr:

Niebuhr is widely regarded as one of the most significant Christian intellectuals of the 20th century. Born in 1892 in Missouri to German parents, Niebuhr was ordained in the German Evangelical Church (later part of the United Church of Christ) and taught for more than three decades at Union Theological Seminary in New York. He was a founder of the liberal anticommunist lobbying group Americans for Democratic Action, and in 1948, he appeared on the cover of Time magazine.

Over the years, Niebuhr won the admiration of political figures on the left and the right, including the late historian and Kennedy aide Arthur Schlesinger Jr. and the late Jeane Kirkpatrick, who served as Ronald Reagan’s U.N. ambassador.3

Niebuhr’s Influence in the 21st Century

During this past election, Niebuhr apparently influenced the thinking of both McCain and Obama:

Reinhold Niebuhr Thirty-six years after his death, Protestant theologian Reinhold Niebuhr seems more alive than ever. Perhaps not since President Jimmy Carter acknowledged Niebuhr’s influence in his 1976 campaign has the name been on so many people’s lips.

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama told New York Times columnist David Brooks that Niebuhr is “one of my favorite philosophers.” Brooks himself quotes Niebuhr consistently, describing him as a thinker we could use today “to police our excesses” in foreign policy.

Washington Post columnist E.J. Dionne’s forthcoming book takes note of the current longing for a new Niebuhr to inspire religious liberals, while GOP hopeful John McCain, in his volume, “Hard Call,” wonders what the critic of pacifism during World War II would say today about Iraq. As political theorist William Galston put it recently: “After a period of neglect, Reinhold Niebuhr is the man of the hour.”4

Niebuhr as a Socialist and Communist

I also learned that Dr. Niebuhr was:

. . . a prominent leader of the militant faction of the Socialist Party of America [and] promoted adoption of the United front agenda of the Communist Party USA.5

Given this startling fact, I wondered why both major political party candidates admired Niebuhr. As I continued searching, I learned that Dr. Niebuhr founded the Union for Democratic Action in 19416, which later changed its name to Americans for Democratic Action (ADA), purportedly to position itself as an anti-communist group.

Americans for Democratic Action However, I soon learned that the Union for Democratic Action / Americans for Democratic Action were actually outgrowths of the American Fabian Society’s Intercollegiate Socialistic Society and its forerunner The League for Industrial Democracy. This was the group who successfully sought to bring socialized medicine to American laborers.7

All this made sense because Dr. Niebuhr was very critical of the plight of Detroit’s auto workers where he was the minister of Bethel Evangelical Church.8

Niebuhr and Mike Wallace Interview

If you have time (~25 mins.), you may be interested in this 1958 video clip The Mike Wallace Interview: Reinhold Neibuhr. A transcript of the interview can be found at Reinhold Neibuhr: The Mike Wallace Interview at the Harry Ransom Center of The University of Texas at Austin.

Conclusion

The Limits of Power by Andrew J. Bacevich After doing this research, I now wonder why Andrew J. Bacevich, John McCain and Barack Obama all admire Reinhold Niebuhr. And I am especially dismayed with the idea that anyone could refer to Dr. Niebuhr as “a prophet” regardless of their religious persuasion. Unfortunately, there are wolves in sheep’s clothing among men and women of many religious persuasions.9

Why do you think Bacevich, McCain and Obama all find inspiration in Reinhold Niebuhr in solving today’s problems?

Sources:

  1. Bacevich, Andrew J. The Limits of Power: The End of American Exceptionalism. New York: Metropolitan Books, 2008. 6-7.↩
  2. “Reinhold Niebuhr“. Wikipedia. 24 November 2008.↩
  3. Cippola, Benedicta. “Reinhold Niebuhr is Unseen Force in 2008 Election.” 27 September 2007. The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life. 24 November 2008.↩
  4. Ibid.↩
  5. “Reinhold Niebuhr“. Wikipedia. 24 November 2008.↩
  6. Niebuhr, Reinhold. Larry L. Rasmussen, ed. Reinhold Niebuhr: Theologian of Public Life. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1991. 11. See also Reinhold Niebuhr: Theologian of Public Life. Google Book Search 24 November 2008.↩
  7. Annis, Edward, M.D. “Towards Socialized Medicine: A Historic Chronology“. 2002. Hacienda Publishing. 24 November 2008. Dr. Annis is past president of the American Medical Association, an Association of American Physicians and Surgeons member, and the author of Code Blue: Health Care in Crisis (1993).↩
  8. “Reinhold Niebuhr“. Wikipedia. 24 November 2008. See also, Moon, Yun Jung. “Reinhold Niebuhr (1892-1971)“. 1999. Boston University People. 24 November 2008.↩
  9. For an example of the disparity between Christianity and communism/socialism see, Mason, Leslie. “The Conflict Between Communism and Religion: A Reply to Baldwin“. 1924. Marxists International. 24 November 2008.↩

Skull and Bones

November 19, 2008 in Government by Greg | No comments

Skull and Bones is an “elite secret society based at Yale University, in New Haven, Connecticut.”1 The society was formed in 1832, apparently as a result of a dispute over the Phi Beta Kappa awards among Yale’s debating societies.

Skull and Bones Bonesmen The Skull & Bones society is also the subject of Antony C. Sutton’s America’s Secret Establishment: An Introduction to the Order of the Skull & Bones.2

When I first became aware of this book, I was already familiar with Mr. Sutton’s work - specifically Western Technology and Soviet Economic Development: 1917 - 1930.3 So I immediately wondered, who was this seemingly enigmatic man who was by all accounts a staid economics professor and how did he go from researching western technology aid to Russia to writing about the Order of Skull and Bones? That seemed like quite a leap.

But after reading many interviews and excerpts on Sutton’s work, about the West’s technology transfer to communist Russia and what happened to him as a result of that research, I started to understand the progression of his research and his subsequent books.4 It seemed apparent he was looking for the group of people who destroyed his career while at Stanford’s Hoover Institution.

The following are a series of video interviews with Dr. Sutton in which he discusses the history of the Skull and Bones society and how he became aware of the group.

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In this second video, Dr. Sutton discusses how members of the society use Hegelian dialectic to incite conflict, “make [social] progress”, and to prepare society to “take orders from the State.”

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In this third video on the Skull and Bones society, Dr. Sutton discusses how members of the order mold U.S. foreign policy and created war and revolution - “managed conflict” - in countries such as Russia and Germany.

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In this fourth video on the Skull and Bones society, Dr. Sutton elaborates how Hegelian dialectic is used in foreign policy to create and manage conflict. One of the purposes of the order is to create political power that is used to bring about a new world order or “one world” using Hegelian techniques in the creation of conflict. In this scenario, individuals become cogs in the state with no individual rights - a principle espoused by the German idealist Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel.

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The following Fox News video on Skull and Bones with author Kris Milligan aired in June 2004.

For more information about Skull and Bones, see the transcript of Morley Safer’s review of Skull and Bones at 60 Minutes or Alexandra Robbins’ web site Skull & Bones Society.

Sources:

  1. “Skull and Bones“. Wikipedia. 7 November 2008.↩
  2. Sutton, Antony C. America’s Secret Establishment: An Introduction to the Order of the Skull & Bones. Walterville, Oregon: Trine Day, 2002. Lulu has a free PDF at America’s Secret Establishment - The Order of Skull and Bones. 7 November 2008. See also Scribd at America’s Secret Establishment: An Introduction to the Order of the Skull & Bones. 7 November 2008.↩
  3. Sutton, Antony C. Western Technology and Soviet Economic Development. Three volumes. Stanford: Stanford University - Hoover Institution Press, 1973.↩
  4. See “Antony C. Sutton - In Memoriam“. Antony Sutton. 19 November 2008; and “The Works of Antony C. Sutton“. Antony Sutton. 19 November 2008.↩

New World Order

November 11, 2008 in Government by Greg | No comments

A proposal to create a new world order reared its ugly head again yesterday.1 Using the current global financial crisis as pretext, U.K. Prime Minister Gordon Brown pushed for plans to create an “international order”. Here is an excerpt of the story that appeared on Reuters U.K.:

The New World Order by H. G. WellsThe financial crisis has given world leaders a unique opportunity to create a truly global society, Prime Minister Gordon Brown said on Monday.

Brown, who has spearheaded calls for the reform of international financial institutions, said that Britain, the United States and Europe are key to forging a new world order.

“The alliance between Britain and the U.S. — and more broadly between Europe and the U.S. — can and must provide leadership, not in order to make the rules ourselves, but to lead the global effort to build a stronger and more just international order,” Brown said in a speech in London.

Brown and other leaders meet in Washington next weekend to discuss long-term solutions for dealing with economic issues following a series of coordinated moves on interest rates and to recapitalise banks in a bid to fight the financial turmoil.

“Uniquely in this global age, it is now in our power to come together so that 2008 is remembered not just for the failure of a financial crash that engulfed the world but for the resilience and optimism with which we faced the storm, endured it and prevailed,” Brown told the lord mayor’s banquet.

“…And if we learn from our experience of turning unity of purpose into unity of action, we can together seize this moment of change in our world to create a truly global society.2

Gordon Brown Brown also showed his support of U.S. President Elect Barack H. Obama:

In his first foreign policy speech since Barack Obama won the U.S. presidential election, Brown said Britain’s “closest ally” had given new meaning to its founding creed that all are created equal and said America stood at a “dawn of hope.”3

Gordon Brown is a British Labour politician4 and a member of the Fabian Society. According to the Fabian Society web site:

All Labour Prime Ministers have been members of the Fabian Society, while the Young Fabians have been influential in creating debate and as an arena for young people with an interest in politics to both influence and learn from influential political figures.5

Given Obama’s socialistic leanings6 and the fact that China precipitated the financial crisis7, Brown’s call for a new world order raises serious questions about the future of the United States’ sovereignty.

Sources:

  1. Thanks to Jimmy Smith at Analytical Insights on Political and Social Issues for alerting me to this story.↩
  2. “Brown Says Time to Build Global Society“. Reuters U.K. 11 November 2008.↩
  3. Ibid. See Equality for a brief discussion of the difference between equality and equal rights.↩
  4. “Gordon Brown“. Wikipedia.org. 11 November 2008.↩
  5. “About the Fabian Society“. Fabian Society. 11 November 2008. See Proposition 8, Mormons, and the New Statesman for additional information about the Fabians.↩
  6. See Spread the Wealth.↩
  7. See China and the Bailout.↩

Bacevich on U.S. Foreign Policy After Iraq

November 7, 2008 in Government by Greg | 3 comments

In June of this year, Dr. Andrew J. Bacevich1 gave a talk entitled “U.S. Foreign Policy After Iraq” at the “Restoring the Republic 2008: Foreign Policy & Civil Liberties” conference sponsored by The Future of Freedom Foundation. Introduced as a “man of principle”, Dr. Bacevich discussed the effects of the Iraq war and how the United States should deal with the implications “in light of” that war.

In this series of six videos, Dr. Bacevich argued that over the last five years the U.S. became “strategically adrift . . . [with] no agreed upon principled approach to dealing with the world in which we live”. In light of current U.S. foreign relations, he suggested that this most recent presidential election should be a discussion about those principles.

Since it does not appear that any substantive debate took place between the two major political party candidates on these issues, what do you think those principles should be?

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See the remainder of the videos at The Future of Freedom Foundation YouTube channel.

Sources:

  1. Andrew J. Bacevich is Professor of International Relations and History at Boston University and a past fellow of the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.↩

Bacevich on the Crises Threatening Democracy Video

September 28, 2008 in Government by Greg | No comments

Retired Colonel and foreign affairs expert Andrew J. Bacevich on Bill Moyers recently spoke about the crises that are threatening democracy. Some excerpts of his interview appear in the video below.

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