Neil Richards: I would argue that a nation of cynics and a nation of fervent worshipers are equally undesirable, Mr. Block

In the article ALAN BOCK: NATION-BUILDING OR... reprinted in Pravda.Ru from AntiWar.com, Alan Block states:

(quote) The Bushlet might even have been sincere at the time although I tend to view all presidents with skepticism bordering on cynicism rather than respect verging on worship, which I would argue is the proper stance of any people that wants to remain free or become freer (unquote).

I would argue that a nation of cynics and a nation of fervent worshipers are equally undesirable, Mr. Block. How about combining the two extremes: the option of respect combined with a healthy skepticism? But then that would undermine the reason for your presence on a fringe-group website, so I guess not.

The rest of your article complains about nation-building applied to Afghanistan. And you close by stating that you (quote) suspect we're going to see yet another grandiose, expensive, ineffective exercise in failed nation-building that might just make Afghans and others in the region so much worse off that it will breed resentment and hostility in the future (unquote).

So the efforts by many nations, not just the US, to pour resources into Afghanistan to help rebuild its infrastructure after decades of war will make the Afghanis so much worse off than they were under the Taliban? I do believe you are a hopeless cynic, Mr. Block. Have a nice day.

Neil Richards USA