Twilight of the Idols
Mini Teaser: Nietzsche thought God was dead and used philosophy as a hammer to force others to recognize his unhappy insight. The Bush Administration has used public diplomacy as a hammer to force recognition of changes in the global security environment. But
Young men make wars, and the virtues of war are the virtues of young men: courage and hope for the future. Then old men make the peace, and the vices of peace are the vices of old men: mistrust and caution.
Whether they be U.S. policymakers and legislators, or America's "old" European allies who recall how the story of their empires ended, "old men" will be summoned in due course (and with all their "vices") to undertake what it is they do best. This is not entirely regrettable, for the United States will undoubtedly need help chewing what it has bitten off. After all, provocateurs are known more for their courage than for their prudence, and the young are defined more by their exuberance than by their judgment. Though the Bush Administration views courage in the service of liberty as no vice, one hopes it still understands moderation in the pursuit of justice to be a virtue. Nietzsche did not, and look where it got him.
1Bush vs. Nietzsche", The Weekly Standard, April 1, 2002.
2Philip Zelikow, "The Transformation of National Security", The National Interest (Spring 2003), p. 27.
Christian D. Brose is assistant editor of The National Interest.
Essay Types: Essay