Great Decisions Class 3. NATO Friday, 15Feb2013
Pre-Meeting Notes
To keep America in, the Russians out, and the Germans down.
Issues
With the demise of Russia and experience in Bosnia/Kosovo, NATO has gone further a field, but Afghanistan as tended to reduce the scope again. Witness the failure to address Syria.
US diminishing active roll,
to provide logistics and intelligence for ventures lead by others. France in Libya and England in Kosovo.
Afghanistan has provided broad experience in coalition activities.
Looking Ahead. 1. Constrained to European/Atlantic nations.
2. Not a United Nations, but security of members, tho global in scale. Ex. Piracy in Indian Ocean.
3. Constrained budget by individual members.
4. U.S. Forward bases.
5. U.S. is far advanced in technology and scope.
6. NATO is a toolbox of interoperable capabilities and military experience that is unrivaled.
Jim Comments
There has not a a war between NATO members in 68 years. (Bismarque's Pax Germana (1871-1914) was only 43 years)
We can be glad NATO exists with the resurrection of Putan's aspiration for Russia.
If European's take the lead for NATO, can the US budget be reduced.
(Have our UN contribution been reduced? Yes. 2010 22% down from 25% 1995. [193 member states, properly 0.5% each.] [Russia is 1.6%])
UN $2,412,000,000 plus "programs" and "agencies"
USA $570,000,000
Marsh'twn 30,000,000 budget
So Africa 9,000,000
Syria 590,000 less than a million
Liberia 23,000 Oil rich, yet half of a teacher's salary
Class Discussion
Should 911 be better treated as a crime rather than terrorism.
The NYPD is unable to deal internationally, neither does the FBI and the CIA is not noted for its legal.
An new international organization is required to work in this new area of un offical internantional public enemy. Is this not what the ISAf, International Security Assistance Force, is?
NATO members went to Afghanistan on the logic that attacks on serveral members were supported by
an evil goverment. Is this valid? (I agree.)
Contention often made that the problem of the world is poverty.
Could the problem be overpopulation? China controled population growth and had a great
increase of prosperity for the population. Not a religous country.
URL: http://www.manorweb.com/creative/2013/3nato.html
Jim's Summary Statement
NATO is an organization that accomplished its mission of containing the Soviets and
is seeking more to justify its existence and to keep funding for its original goal of maintaining
the peace in Europe. Most think it overreached and is retrenching and regretting the cost.
But, there has not a a war between NATO members in 68 years. Bismarque's Pax Germania (1871-1914) was only 43 years. Each was better than the once per generation of earlier ages when it just took 20-years to create a new army to march off in yet another European squabble. NATO has prevented war, a greater
cost and has saved a bunch of lives. Reasonable insurance.
URL: http://www.manorweb.com/creative/2013/3nato.html