Looking back over the history of the last 10 years, through which I have been writing these columns, I’m now persuaded of a major misjudgment. While I supported the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq — still do, and “would do it again” without qualms — I see ever more clearly that the “Bush doctrine” of exporting “democracy” was an unnecessary mistake. (…)
I nevertheless conferred the benefit of the doubt on an American-led project, predicated on post-War successes in Germany and Japan.
In retrospect, the circumstances were so utterly different, and the times so utterly changed, that the mission was unachievable, and could only come to grief.
