North Korea and Iran Are Practicing Extortion

Bret Stephens: North Korea and Iran Are Practicing Extortion – WSJ.com.

Ceding to our enemies’ demands, or even negotiating with the likes of al Qaeda, the Taliban, Hamas, Iran, or N. Korea is, in and of itself, an act of appeasement.  This crew has made it clear, time-after-time, that their promises are empty; they have no intention of adhering to whatever they agree to.  With respect to al Qaeda, the Taliban, Hamas, and Iran, Taqiyya comes to mind–the idea that dishonesty toward the enemy is an admirable act.  To them, we are infidels and, as a result, it is perfectly okay to be untruthful to such as we.

 

Furthermore, again with respect to al Qaeda, the Taliban, Hamas, and the mullahs of Iran, death is not something that motivates concessions–it is welcome in fact.  They embrace death.  To them, death is “movin’ on up; finally got a piece of the pie” stuff; they become “self actualized” with death thanks to all the goodies that await them upon their arrival.

 

But at its basic core, we ought not to negotiate with such as they because in International Relations 101, we must, must, must negotiate from a position of strength as perceived by the enemy.  None of these characters believe for a moment that they are in a position of weakness or that we are in a position of strength.  On the contrary, it is THEY (such as the Taliban) who believe just the opposite.

 

Without negotiation from a position of strength, or without gains on the battlefield, we have no hope of creating an acceptable (verifiable) outcome.  They have very little incentive to negotiate and are the ones in the position of strength.  Until we change that reality, until they perceive themselves to be in the position of weakness (unlikely), then negotiation is a waste of time.  In fact, it can embolden them to even greater malfeasance, since their previous unacceptable behavior was rewarded.

 

Liberals don’t understand this basic concept, not one bit.

 

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