Gorbachev's model for Obama-

[Ichingcarpenter]

Twenty years ago this month, Mikhail Gorbachev stood before the UN General Assembly and said, "The compelling necessity of freedom of choice is also clear to us. The failure to recognize this . . . is fraught with very dire consequences, consequences for world peace." At that time, as Soviet general secretary, Gorbachev was the ruler of hundreds of millions of people, both in the Soviet Union and in Central and Eastern Europe - a population that had no freedom of choice. The government over which Gorbachev presided had long made sure that was the case. Freedom of choice would get you killed. That is why his declaration stunned the world. "Freedom of choice is a universal principle to which there should be no exceptions."
To make sure his listeners understood that this was no mere flourish of rhetoric, the Soviet leader went on to announce the dismantling of the military occupation of Eastern Europe, the force that had prevented that freedom. "Today I can inform you of the following: The Soviet Union has made a decision on reducing its armed forces . . . by 500,000 persons, and the volume of conventional arms will also be cut considerably. These reductions will be made on a unilateral basis." Six tank divisions would be promptly withdrawn from East Germany, Czechoslovakia, and Hungary, he said, and the rest of the Soviet military presence would be reconfigured as purely defensive. Not only would the Soviet gun be removed from Warsaw Pact nations, it would no longer be pointed at the rest of Europe.

All of this, Gorbachev said, was "aimed at the demilitarization of international relations," the changing of the world economy "from an economy of armament to an economy of disarmament," and "the movement toward a nuclear-free and nonviolent world." He saluted Ronald Reagan, whose term was just ending, and with whom he had already agreed in principle to abolish nuclear weapons. He hoped to continue, and promised that the "newly elected President George Bush will find in us a partner . . . It seems to us we have the preconditions for making 1989 the decisive year."

Gorbachev was correct about that - from his side. In 1989, because of that UN speech, the satellite nations decisively claimed their freedom. The Soviet Union itself began to dissolve, a process that climaxed in 1991 - 17 years ago this week - when the red flag was lowered from the Kremlin, and when, with Gorbachev's resignation, the USSR ceased to exist. But from the side of the United States, 1989 had been decisive in an opposite way. Only weeks after the Berlin Wall was peacefully breached by Gorbachev-licensed dancers instead of tanks, the new American president ordered tens of thousands of US troops to invade Panama - Operation Just Cause. That wholly unjustified action amounted to America's answer to Gorbachev, a declaration that this nation was a long way from the "demilitarization of international relations." Other unnecessary American wars would follow, and so would Washington's refusal to dismantle its Cold War military economy.

The "decisive year" for which Gorbachev called two decades ago may now be here - for our side. Americans stand today, as the last Soviet dictator put it then, "on the threshold of a year from which all of us expect so much.>>>>>>>>snip

http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2008/12/29/gorbachevs_model_for_obama/

[Xipe Totec]

1. God, I hope not

Gorbachev was in the unenviable position of dismantling his own country.

[Diclotican]

3. Xipe Totec

Xipe Totec

US would not disintegrate the way the Soviet union was doing it... The Soviet Union had some issues who had been there for more than 200 year, at least since the 1820s the Romanov Empire had their share of ethnic problems.. Who was never really solved when the Russian Revolution was coming and then when Stalin was taking the power, and in many cases decided where the new borders in Soviet Union should be.. Stalin was a man who wanted, and was finding great pleasure of playing the one side against the other, and placed the union parts against each other, so they could not be a power against him and the Power he wanted to have.. And even that that the leaders after Stalin tried their best to dismantle the great power Stalin had had, the fact was that the shadow of Stalin still was there, and no one of the leaders wanted, or dared to step up to take on the real issues, to clean up the house so to speak.. And that include mr Gorbatsjev, who believed in changing some of the furniture, without changing the rules in the same way.. He wanted a better, more people minded industry, and a more open country - but he wanted not to ruin the house in the proses.. And in any way, in 1988-89 the progress was going to far, and to wide to be controlled by a party who lost more and more credibility both abroad and inside the country.. The same happened by the way in East Germany too, who since the late 1970s had not been able to provide good for their own, and who was lagging after West Germany more and more... And for the most part the east germans could very easily look into West German TV channels. The country political system was maybe different, but the language was the same... Specially in East Berlin, where the Berlin Wall was, the people on the east, routinely was looking at east berlin new channels, and in many cases was seeing the news there, after the official east german news broadcast had send their views about the world...

Hopefully US can make it somehow the next 10 year or so. And have enough decent, vice leaders to guide them over the rocky water they are in now.. But they have to make some hard decision how they want US to be in the future.. 10 billion dollar in debt, is no easy target to eliminate and it would take a gigantic man to say to the american public that the US need to work harder for far less than they are used to.. And more to the point, the american public have to demand that the crimes of the former administration - and all

What I fear more than everything is that mr Obama have not the courage to fight back, and take back some of the billions the kleptomaniac of the former Administration have stolen from the Treasury, and from the country as a whole... What I fear is that Obama want to play the game as everyone else president have played the game.. AKA do nothing to rock the boat nessesary... And in the end it goes as the old russian yoke, it stop short of rail road..

Diclotican

Sorry my bad english, not my native language

[Diclotican]

2. Ichingcarpenter

Ichingcarpenter

I was far to young to understand what happened, for more than two decades, and it is little foggy the whole thing, when Gorbatsjev was there to tell the world that Soviet wanted to reduce their level of armed forces in the eastern europe - In 1988-89 I was more concerted over the fact that I was leaving 5 grade for 6 grade.. And other more "important" stuff that happened that year.. But I do remember that the news was all over the case, and that the pictures of the red army leaving their eastern european friends was very compelling... But I have to say that my knowledge of this is little diffuse... But I do remember what happened that fall, when the Berlin Wall was falling apart, and the whole Eastern Germany experiment was falling apart.... And I do also remember when this happened I was called to the living room to se this.. And was told that I have to remember this, because this is history in the making.. I have from a young age always been interesting in history... And what happened in the fall of 1989 was something I will never forget, even that some details is little foggy here and there... But I was in one of the satellite states in 1989, and it was an atmosphere there that was never there before... It was far more "free" than before - and it was more open dissent than before.. The people was more willing to talk to us, strangers, forreigners... But some was afraid i could stop very fast also, so it was little "both ways" so to speak... But it was something there, under the rug, something that you could put your finger on... And then we all was seeing it, the cold war ended, not with a bang, but rather with a wimp... First the Satellite States of the East breaking off, and then the Soviet just disintegrate into 15 new country... I still very good remember when the last flag of the Soviet Union was been lowered, and the new pure Russian flag was raised... And I was not that old in 1991..

And yes, mr Obama as the next president have some tuff decisions to do.. How he want the US to go next.. And that is an herculean task in itself.. US have not that many option open anymore... And I fear that Obama would have to take some drastic, and difficult decision the next 4 or 8 year who in many cases would differ for what US have been doing for the last 60-90+ year or so... The American Empire, who the Neo-Cons was believing should rule the world for the next 100 year would probably not be something to do then... US have been wounded badly the last 8 year. Not terminal, but badly wounded and it will take a long time before the US would be repaired to the former. Every single segment of US are been harmed and it will take more than just a slogan of Change to do something with that. and many americans still that US have not been wounded.. In fact many american still believe that mr Bush are one of the greatest President of all time. Even that he sucked in almost every segment of what is possible.. Your once amazing Republic, are in danger, and every US citizen have to work overtime over the next 4-8-16 year to rebuild what is destroyed.. And to rebuild your country who have been more damaged than a nuclear bomb blast could have doing it..

Diclotican

Sorry my bad english, not my native language.

[calimary]

4. Kicking this!

Seems to me Mikhail Gorbachev is one of the most under-appreciated world leaders of the last century. None of the much-vaunted reagan initiatives toward world peace and disarmament could have been possible without a receptive partner on the other end. reagan couldn't have gone anywhere without Gorbachev on the other side, willing to play ball. It was a pitcher-catcher team. You needed them BOTH to get anything accomplished. In the rush, I suppose America-centered rush, to avalanche ALL the credit to st. ronnie, many have forgotten the key role Gorbachev played in moving this world forward. Progress of any sort couldn't have happened as long as we had the Old Guard like Brezhnev, Andropov, and Chernyenko and the rest of those old farts in power. You needed new blood and a new mindset.

Maybe the parallel here IS Gorbachev-Obama. We've certainly seen the "old guard" swept aside here now. Sometimes the only way to replace the old ways, the old ideas, the old mindset, is to end their era and their power by replacing them with the people who will bring new ways, new ideas, a new mindset - one that's not so grounded in the past.

Granted I'm generalizing rather ridiculously here, but still - symbols carry a lot of weight. And they have power. And influence. And they matter. Gorbachev struck the first blow. NOTHING would have moved anywhere if it hadn't been for him.