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The Wall Street Journal March 3, 2005 BOOKS Term of Endearment, Term of Abuse By SOL SCHINDLER March 3, 2005; Page D8 People have used the term "neoconservative" so promiscuously of late that even those who utter it with confident contempt, meaning to vilify the ideas behind President Bush's foreign policy, may have no idea of its pedigree or true meaning. In "The Neocon Reader" (Grove, 328 pages, $15), Irwin Stelzer has assembled 23 essays that help to explain what the term means and what it doesn't. Irving Kristol, sometimes called the godfather of neoconservatism, calls it not a movement but a persuasion. His son, William, calls it not a school of thought but a strain of thought. Others call it an attitude. Whatever one calls it, it is clearly not a tightly engineered ideology. William Kristol strongly supported U.S. intervention in Kosovo; Charles Krauthammer was as strongly opposed. Both are neoconservatives. A few general themes emerge from this collection: a healthy confidence in America; a skepticism toward overreaching liberal programs (e.g., welfare); a concern for policing and neighborhood safety (e.g., the importance of punishing even minor infractions to avoid the "broken windows" effect); and a concentration on economic growth. What does 'neoconservative' mean, exactly? And why should we care? In one essay, Robert Bartley (the former editor of this newspaper's opinion pages) illustrates how misleading worries about deficits can be. Granted, excesses of any sort should be avoided, and a truly huge deficit can be dangerous. But the reinvigoration of our armed forces under President Reagan brought on large deficits that our economy had no trouble handling, while the efforts of the Soviets to keep pace with our expansion brought them to the point of implosion. What is important, Mr. Bartley shows, is not the existence of deficits but the dynamism and investment confidence that cause an economy to grow. It is in the field of foreign policy, however, that the neoconservatives have become both famous and infamous. Most look to Theodore Roosevelt as a model. He once wrote: "Chronic wrongdoing, or an impotence which results in a general loosening of the ties of civilized society, may...ultimately require intervention by some civilized nation...to the exercise of an international police power." Mr. Stelzer likens this statement to the speeches of George W. Bush and the writings of various neoconservative commentators. Neconservatives differ from Woodrow Wilson, many of whose views they share, because in the past half-century they have lost faith in the efficacy of international organizations. The United Nations appears to take frequent direction from its nondemocratic members, who view it as an easy source of funds and a good screen for questionable activities. One need only look at the U.N.'s oil-for-food scandal, its Commission on Human Rights (members have included Libya, China, Cuba, Syria and Saudi Arabia) and its inability to move forcefully against genocide. After Iraq violated 17 U.N. resolutions, it was natural for neoconservatives to opt for military action with or without the assistance of the organization whose resolutions had been spurned. How does all this square with the American people? When the media's pundits tried to analyze President Bush's recent election victory, they came up with the term "values." It is a rather vague term, but it certainly includes the concept of accountability. If a person commits a criminal act, he should be held accountable for it. If a country commits criminal acts in violation of international law, and then tells the world to go to hell 17 times, that country should be held accountable too. This fairly simple belief is as old as the U.S., as old as ancient Greece and Rome. It is a belief shared by New York City intellectuals and Iowa farmers. It will be with us for a long time. Call it what you will. Mr. Schindler is a retired foreign service officer. -- ----------------- R. A. Hettinga <mailto: [EMAIL PROTECTED]> The Internet Bearer Underwriting Corporation <http://www.ibuc.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire' ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> DonorsChoose. A simple way to provide underprivileged children resources often lacking in public schools. 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