Caspar Weinberger, RIP
by David Franke

The Los Angeles Times obituary was the most interesting of those I have seen of Cap Weinberger.

It's all there in the title of the obit: "A Hawk Who Preferred Not to Fight." I think this is the difference between the Reaganites and the Bushies.

Think about it. Reagan believed in using the strength of the United States to maximum advantage, without actually involving us in a serious shooting war. Grenada: that was his war, a Hollywood pretend-war. Just as the Falkland Islands was Maggie Thatcher's war. Both were very important from a psychological standpoint--especially the Falklands war, which gave Thatcher the public support that then spilled over onto the domestic side. But neither Reagan nor Thatcher wanted a real war. They knew how devastating that would be for all involved.

Reagan won the Cold War peacefully by bankrupting the Soviet Union. Bush must be careful not to bankrupt the U.S. through an endless war in the Middle East.

In the obit, after all the obligatory testimonials, we learn that Weinberger was "a hawk who opposed excessive use of military force." He was pro-Grenada, anti-Lebanon involvement.

Pretty smart, I'd say.

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