Listen now | 0:00 A brief message from Bob 1:53 Why neocons like enemies 19:09 How to use power deftly 25:59 Is a nuclear Iran really all that scary? 31:31 Bob's arms-control dreams dashed again 41:18 China problem solved in under three minutes 44:03 Some cheerful thoughts about HamasRobert Wright (Nonzero, The Evolution of God, Why Buddhism Is True) and Francis Fukuyama (Stanford University, The End of History and the Last Man, Liberalism and Its Discontents). Recorded April 21, 2006.
This was a great conversation. Bob was at his best. Engaged, lively and jumping on each new point and topic. Bob really cared about this conversation and it shows in every reaction, in his body language and how quickly he responded to Frank F’s points. We haven’t seen this Bob in a long time. And this was the lively Bob that created his original following.
Fukuyama was as always sober minded, thoughtful and wise. Much of what he said here nearly 20 years ago turned out to be true. Sanctions didn’t work and Israel hated the Obama verification deal and was delighted when it fell apart. Israel always wanted a military solution and it got one.
By contrast, Bob’s extraordinarily naive and impracticable proposal for Israel to give up half its nuclear weapons and rely on UN weapons inspectors to control Iran’s nuclear program, sounds embarrassingly hare-brained today. Israel doesn’t have 90 plus nuclear weapons to defend against Iran. They have them to build a credible deterrent against Russia, Pakistan and yes even China to the extent that any of those nuclear powers develop a strategic alliance with any rogue actor in the Middle East whether art be Iran, a Saudi government that is taken over by Islamic extremists, a revitalized Libya, a terrorist failed state in Africa or anyone else who might be a threat.
The truth is, Bob just wants peace and no more wars. But his utopian proposals for getting there through global governance have always been a 1930s Socialist pipe dream. But at least he’s consistent.
Very best wishes for successful operation and speedy recovery Bob.
This was a great conversation. Bob was at his best. Engaged, lively and jumping on each new point and topic. Bob really cared about this conversation and it shows in every reaction, in his body language and how quickly he responded to Frank F’s points. We haven’t seen this Bob in a long time. And this was the lively Bob that created his original following.
Fukuyama was as always sober minded, thoughtful and wise. Much of what he said here nearly 20 years ago turned out to be true. Sanctions didn’t work and Israel hated the Obama verification deal and was delighted when it fell apart. Israel always wanted a military solution and it got one.
By contrast, Bob’s extraordinarily naive and impracticable proposal for Israel to give up half its nuclear weapons and rely on UN weapons inspectors to control Iran’s nuclear program, sounds embarrassingly hare-brained today. Israel doesn’t have 90 plus nuclear weapons to defend against Iran. They have them to build a credible deterrent against Russia, Pakistan and yes even China to the extent that any of those nuclear powers develop a strategic alliance with any rogue actor in the Middle East whether art be Iran, a Saudi government that is taken over by Islamic extremists, a revitalized Libya, a terrorist failed state in Africa or anyone else who might be a threat.
The truth is, Bob just wants peace and no more wars. But his utopian proposals for getting there through global governance have always been a 1930s Socialist pipe dream. But at least he’s consistent.
Get well soon, Bob!
Hope the surgery goes well and you're back to full strength soon
Peter Thiel says global governance with real teeth would cause overcentralization of power. How best to address this concern?