The time has come to tell Americans that
there is no escape from global responsibility, that they have to think beyond the protection of the homeland. They need to understand that the purpose of NATO and other alliances is to defend not against direct threats to U.S. interests but against a
breakdown of the order that best serves
those interests. They need to be told honestly that the task of maintaining a world order is unending and fraught with costs but preferable to the alternative.
So $1.7T today, $2.7T tomorrow, get used to it, there is no “escape from global responsibility” even if your citizens don’t have shelter, food, or healthcare. We can’t have the global order or the interest it serves breakdown.
legislative priority. brown along with a few other republicans voted for the senate s version of wall street reform earlier. but when the conference committee added in a $19 billion tax on the largest hedge funds and banks, he balked. now, keep in mind, this $19 billion fee was to make sure the reform bill didn t increase the deficit, take note deficit hawks and it also had the added benefit of providing a disincentive for financial institutions to grow too big. brown, however, said he wouldn t support it. so yesterday, the conference reconvened and they got rid of the tax replacing the money with some funds taken from remaining t.a.r.p. money and higher fdic bank fees. okay, let s be clear what just happened. the t.a.r.p. money is taxpayer money. it s not some magical golden lamp that spitz out doubloons. what brown has succeeded in doing is transferring the burden of paying for reform from the big banks and hedge funds to you, the citizen. writing for the atlantic david inv