Double Issue

• The Weapon of the Weak
The Fake War—and the Real War—in Iraq

by Robert Tracinski and Jack Wakeland

Excerpt:
"Terrorism is the weapon of those who are weak—weak materially, weak in numbers, weak in ideological support. And precisely for that reason, terrorism is a weak weapon, an ineffective tactic that does not actually empower its perpetrators to achieve any substantial military objective.

"If terrorism seems to achieve its objectives—indeed, if it seems to threaten us with defeat—it does not do so under its own power. Terrorism, with the images of carnage that it produces, is merely a front, an illusion that masks the power of a very different and more sinister force, which is the only adversary we have to fear in this war.

"The powerlessness of terrorism—and the real power that will determine American victory or defeat—is the lesson to be learned from the past eighteen months of warfare in Iraq.

"One recent pair of events provides a microcosm of the current state of the war, summing up everything that comes before it and setting the stage for what comes after it: the assault on the insurgent-controlled town of Tal Afar by combined US and Iraqi government forces, conducted in a series of engagements from September 2 through September 6 of last year—and the series of suicide bombings in Baghdad that followed on September 14 and 15….

• Americans Against the American Dream

by Robert Tracinski

Excerpt:
"The House Republicans who have promoted this anti-immigration campaign stand for a giant fraud. They claim to be patriots, acting out of a desire to protect America from an 'invasion' of illegal immigrants. In reality, they are promoting an agenda that is thoroughly un-American, both in its goal and in its methods.

"It has often been said that America is a nation of immigrants, but few people understand how deeply this is true. It is not just that America was settled and built almost entirely by people from somewhere else—from English settlers in the 17th and 18th centuries, to Irish, Italian, and Eastern European immigrants who came at the turn of the 20th century, on through immigrants from every other nation on earth. The deeper reason America is a nation of immigrants is that the motives and goals of immigrants—and the moral outlook they represent—are the essence of the American character…."

• The Virtue of Persistence

by Robert Tracinski

Excerpt:
"Recently, the left has been trying to make reality fit with their wishes by brazenly re-writing the history of the pre-Iraq-war political debate. But there is a subtler form of trying to impose your wishes on reality: the view that national defense, the advance of liberty, the destruction of terrorism—that all of these things are worth achieving, so long as it is easy, so long as it is quick and popular, so long as it meets a long list of subjective conditions.

"But a rational man does not say, 'These are my goals, and I will pursue them so long as the world makes a smooth path for me.' He says, 'These are my goals, and to achieve them, I will do whatever reality requires and overcome whatever obstacles the world puts in my way.' To say anything else is to have woozy aspirations—not real, solid goals.

"The virtue of persistence is a crucial application of the virtue of integrity. It is the acceptance of the fact that being true to your principles means accepting the full, concrete reality of their implementation. As with integrity, without the virtue of persistence, none of the other virtues is possible.

"Persistence is the virtue desperately needed to carry the War on Terrorism through to a successful conclusion…."

• Democracy v. Liberty

by Robert Tracinski

Excerpt:
"Since Roberts himself was carefully ideological bland, the most significant statements to emerge from his confirmation hearings are those of the senators who questioned him—because their views reveal the assumptions that set the context for the hearings. It is the senators' statements that reveal the conventional wisdom to which Roberts was expected to conform.

"Let us take a look just at the opening statements by the members of the Senate Judiciary Committee on the opening day of Roberts's testimony, September 13, 2005.

"The view of the Constitution expressed by one senator after another was not that the Constitution is a charter for a government of limited powers, subordinated to the principle of individual rights. Rather, their view is that the Constitution empowers the majority—through its representatives in Congress—to pass whatever laws and regulations are required for the 'public good.'…"

"Thus, senators on the left think that government should have unlimited power to impose the 'public good' in the material realm, while senators on the right think that government should have unlimited power to impose the 'public good' in the moral realm. Each side accepts the view that the collective 'public good' overrules the rights and liberty of the individual. They disagree only on where and how that power should be applied…."

• Sandra Shaw's Michelangelo

by Sherri Tracinski

Excerpt:
"In the last issue of TIA, I introduced The Tracinski Collection, my 'private adoption service for great works of art.' In 'The Stock Market of the Spirit: The Power of Art in Everyday Life,' I made reference to the psychological dividends that a work of art can pay.

Take, for example, a sculpture that portrays a creative genius in a moment of pride in his own work. Viewing such a piece for a moment at a gallery or in a museum provides a great deal of fuel, reminding you of the pride you seek in contemplating your own work and reviving a sense of joy in achievement that might have been dampened by a grinding work schedule. It is amazing that such a refueling can occur from just a brief moment’s viewing—but imagine what is possible if that same work sits next to you in your office, providing that same sense-of-life refueling every day, in every moment that you look up from your desk.

"This was not a hypothetical example. I was referring to Sandra Shaw’s 1994 bronze portrait bust of Michelangelo, a work that I am very proud to offer for sale as the newest addition to The Tracinski Collection.

"Let us carefully observe the details of this piece…."