"Belfer Center Quotes of Interest"

Newsletter Article, Belfer Center Newsletter, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs and

Winter 2008-09

“The United States finds itself at one of those moments when the actions of one nation can shape the future of humankind. Drawing on our rich and varied traditions and putting aside our many differences, we can begin this day to lead the formation of an open, civilized world.”

—Ernest May, “An Open, Civilized World,” The American Interest Online (September-October 2008)

“We talk about leaders being more energetic, more risk-taking, more optimistic, more persuasive, and more empathetic than other people. These traits, however, are affected partly by a leader's genetic makeup and partly by the environments in which the traits were learned and developed.”

—Joseph Nye, “Follow the Leader,” Globe and Mail (July 11, 2008)

“Unfortunately, the CIA is now allowing the White House to withhold access to intelligence about the Israeli bombing of an alleged Syrian nuclear facility. Don't be surprised if this leads to another round of intelligence bashing on Capitol Hill.”

— Eric Rosenbach, “Real Intelligence Men Don't Cry,” WashingtonPost (May 28, 2008)

“It is a frequent refrain in Washington that the United States needs leverage before it can talk to Iran. In Iraq, Washington is getting leverage. America has the advantage while Iran is on its heels. Engaging Iran now could even influence who wins the Iraq debate in Tehran.”                  

—Vali Nasr , “Iran on Its Heels,” Washington Post ( June 19, 2008)

“Critics often argue that using modern biotechnology in African agriculture would harm farmers, wreck the environment and expose consumers to unknown risks. But by failing to adopt biotechnology, Africa puts its poor populations at greater risk of starvation.”

—Calestous Juma, “Get biotechnology on the agenda for Africa,” Japan Times (June 30, 2008)

“The counterterrorism effort of the games is a people's effort, and does not depend on the Chinese government only. This is special in China. The most important counterterrorism force may be the ‘Red Armbands’ who stand and watch outside the gates of Beijing's communities. These ‘Red Armbands’ are familiar with their communities and will question any strangers in them.”

—Wang Shacheng , “Beijing Says No to Terrorism at Olympic,” Korea Times (July 14, 2008)

“There is little doubt that Iran will respond to a direct attack, or a blockade, but its options, heated rhetoric notwithstanding, are actually limited. What can it truly do? Attack American ships, block the Gulf? Maybe a pinprick to make it look good at home, but beyond that, the risks of escalation and the costs to Iran's economy are too great.”

—Chuck Freilich, “A Disastrous Attack on Iran?” JerusalemPost (June 25, 2008)

“Unless Africa and the UN act courageously, Mugabe will get away with his brazen attempt to cling brutally to power and impoverish his own people despite broad global contempt.”

— Robert Rotberg, “Who Will Have the Courage to Save Zimbabwe?” BostonGlobe (June 25, 2008)

“If Americans want lower gasoline prices, they should first identify the true culprits: unsustainable rates of consumption growth and a world oil supply that is unlikely to meet the forecasted consumption levels.”

—Henry Lee, “Running on Empty and Spreading the Blame,” Boston Globe (July 16, 2008)

“In baseball, it's three strikes and you're out. After the undeniable failure of the third Security Council resolution imposing sanctions to slow Iran's nuclear program, Bush's Iran strategists should recognize that they have struck out.”

—Graham Allison, “Sitting Down at the Nuclear Table with Iran,” Boston Globe (June 7, 2008) 

“Democracy promotion has led to a regression in democratic freedoms in most Arab countries and Iran, causing most native democrats in the region to shun any involvement with the United States. To make democracy promotion with American assistance a dangerous endeavor for Middle Easterners is an astoundingly amateurish foreign policy.”

—Rami G. Khouri, “Washington's Grim Performance in the Middle East,” Agence Global (June 18, 2008)

“Cyber warfare units in the Chinese People's Liberation Army have penetrated - and could likely disable in the future - the Pentagon's unclassified network. Other experts have publicly stated that the Chinese army's cyber warfare units were responsible for the massive power blackout in 2003. Chinese cyber warriors almost certainly have the source code of popular office software, which allows them to steal invaluable intellectual property from private-sector firms around the world.”    

—Eric Rosenbach, “China’s Cyber Warriors,” Baltimore Sun (June 18, 2008)

“Journalists will play a key rolein shaping the information that opinion leaders and the public use to judge the urgency of climate change, what needs to be done about it, when and at what costs.”

— Cristine Russell,“Climate Change: A big beat grows more complex,” Columbia Journalism Review (July-August 2008)

“The extent of unfounded skepticism about the disruption of global climate by human-produced greenhouse gases is not just regrettable, it is dangerous. It has delayed - and continues to delay - the development of the political consensus that will be needed if society is to embrace remedies commensurate with the challenge. The science of climate change is telling us that we need to get going. Those who still think this is all a mistake or a hoax need to think again.”   

—John Holdren, “Convincing the climate change skeptics,” Boston Globe (August 4, 2008)

“To be sure, entrepreneurship, creativity, and innovation are necessary to stimulate growth in revenues, profits, and market value. But, so too, internal checks and balances are needed to constrain greed, avoid commercial and legal collapses, and ensure integrity and quality deep inside the corporation.”

—Ben Heineman, “Risk-Taking, Discipline—and Regulation,” Business Week (May 20, 2008) 

“As European businesses pull their investments out of Iran,in line with current EU sanctions, the Chinese and Russians have been happily stepping in to fill those lucrative vacancies. In essence, they are reaping the benefits of other governments' efforts to stave off the disaster that a nuclear Iran would be.”

— Joshua Gleis,“Chinese, Russian stall tactics on Iran,” Boston Globe (August 9, 2008)

“In 2002, President Bush issued a comprehensive National Strategy to Combat WMD. We found the guidance to be sound, but its implementation to be incomplete. While much progress has been made, performance has fallen short in all three pillars of the National Strategy: prevention, protection, and response.”

— Ashton B. Carter,“Strengthening our strategy against WMD,” Boston Globe (August 14, 2008)

“It has become a cliché to suggest that the world’s institutional approaches to economic co-operation need overhauling to take into account the rising economic clout of emerging markets and the decline in dominance of the group of seven leading industrialised nations (G7). This is correct.”

— LawrenceSummers, “The global consensus on trade is unraveling,” Financial Times (August 25, 2008)

“Western governments, primarily the United States and Britain,have shown far more patience with dictators than with elected leaders. Periods of military rule in Pakistan… lasted an average of 10 years, while democratic phases lasted an average of less than three years and were often declared to be unstable, corrupt and weak.”

— Hassan Abbas, “Apres Musharraf, Patience,” International Herald Tribune (August 28, 2008)

“Russia has… been busily cooking up South Ossetias and Abkhaziasin other parts of the former Soviet Union. Crimea in Ukraine and Transnistria in Moldova are just two of many possible future Russian targets. But building an empire is an expensive undertaking. Russia’s appetite for expansion might only weaken it further.”

— Monica Duffy Toft, “Russia’s Recipe for Empire,” Foreign Policy (September 2008 issue)

“ to whom should the next president turn for advice on foreign policy: realists or neoconservatives? Given the disastrous results that neoconservative policies have produced since 2001, the answer seems obvious. Yet…realists have become an endangered species inside the Beltway and a muted voice in contemporary policy debates.”

—Stephen Walt, “The Shattered Kristol Ball,” National Interest Online (September 2, 2008)

“For nuclear energy to make a major contribution to mitigating climate change, without creating undue risks, will require a reinvigorated IAEA and new approaches to cooperating for the safety and security of all.”

—Matthew Bunn and Martin B. Malin, “A nuclear revival needs new cooperation,” Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (September-October 2008)

To read opeds in full, see Publications on the Belfer Center website: www.belfercenter.org

-Compiled by Courtney Anderson, Communications Office

For more information about this publication please contact the Belfer Center Communications Office at 617-495-9858.

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