Neoconservatism

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The neo-conservatism , even neo-conservatism (, Greek νέος Neos , German ', new and Latin conservare , receive, preserve' ) is a political current. The term refers primarily to parts of conservatism in the United States , where the neocons are used to distinguish them from other conservative currents .

definition

Neoconservatism has developed into its present form since the late 1960s. Fundamental characteristics of conservatism such as the primacy of family, homeland , state and nation as well as the emphasis on religion are also peculiar to neoconservatism. However, it differs from other forms of traditional conservatism (or conservatism) in central points, because neoconservative theorists weight the relationship between freedom and order or tradition and progress differently. Neoconservatism seeks active change rather than just clinging to the past, and is therefore sometimes referred to as the "New Conservative Revolution".

The world view of many neoconservatives is Francis Fukuyama's theorem marked the "end of history": the market economy organized democracy Western pattern had therefore to be quasi definitive social construct enforced historically worldwide. At the same time existed inherited or newly revived conflicts continue (see. U. A. Samuel P. Huntington and his theory of the "clash of civilizations", the " clash of civilizations "), which we had to face offensive, if necessary militarily. However, in the case of the “transition to democratic capitalism” postulated by representatives of neoconservatism , which is striven for worldwide, the question of dominance in the “western camp” has to be clarified because there are European-American differences. Fukuyama distances himself from the realpolitik of the neoconservatives. He criticized z. B. the Iraq war of the neo-conservative Bush administration and called it "Leninist".

In the person of leading politicians such as Paul Wolfowitz or Richard Perle , neoconservatism gained a formative influence on the basic features of American foreign policy under George W. Bush from 2001 to 2009. These politicians and intellectuals are often considered hardliners (“hawks”) and because of their support for military conflict regulation are seen as the architects of US interventionist unilateralism . In many cases, an “ imperial project ” of these circles is identified, which aims to secure US hegemony in the world and either replace or comprehensively transform international organizations as guarantors of world peace, so to speak under US “patronage”. Due to its far-reaching implications, this hegemonic vision is considered by some to be hardly enforceable, especially since - historically speaking - it represents the most far-reaching draft of a “ New World Order ” ( George Bush Sr. ) in terms of claim and extent .

Foreign policy

The political grouping of neoconservatives supports rigorous anti-communism and has made a name for itself over the past 25 years in particular by advocating an interventionist foreign policy and unilateral claims to hegemony. At the beginning of the Iraq war , Richard Perle published an article in the British Spectator on March 22, 2003 under the title United They Fall , in which the position of the neocons on international institutions and international law is expressed. Saddam Hussein's reign of terror, Perle said at the time, was about to end quickly. But he will not fall alone, but - in an ironic farewell - bring down the United Nations too. Not the entire UN, but the idea of ​​the UN as the foundation of the "New World Order" will die:

“[…] In a parting irony he will take the United Nations down with him. Well, not the whole United Nations. The 'good works' part will survive, the low-risk peace-keeping bureaucracies will remain, the looming chatterbox on the Hudson will continue to bleat. What will die in Iraq is the fantasy of the United Nations as the foundation of a new world order. "

- Richard Pearl

In the ruins of Iraq one can also see the intellectual ruins of the liberal imagination that there is security through international law administered by international organizations. It is a "dangerously wrong" idea that only the UN Security Council can legitimize the use of force.

Economic and social policy

Early neoconservatives relied on state interventionism in certain areas and, as late as the 1970s, represented almost “ social democratic ” welfare state positions by European standards . Today, however (especially recently) the elementary economic and social policy concepts of the neocons - at least those who actually have influence in current politics - often coincide with those of neoliberal theorists and sometimes go under (especially when they are implemented in political practice) far beyond that. Theorists like Frank Schulz speak of a “market-believing status quo conservatism”. Large-scale tax cuts - but above all for the upper income brackets according to the trickle-down theory  - far-reaching cuts in the area of ​​social security systems with the partial privatization of the pension system (introduction of old-age insurance funds) and cuts in health care and provision (the number of US According to the US Census Bureau , Americans without health insurance rose from 39.8 million in 2000 to 43.6 million in 2002 in the Bush administration's first term in office ) shape the concrete economic and social policy of the Bush administration. Former Clinton adviser and author of The Clinton Wars , Sidney Blumenthal , commented on Bush's policies on January 20, 2005 in the London Guardian :

"In his first term he promised compassionate conservatism '( compassionate conservatism ). In his second term in office he promises a casino conservatism, the restoration of the ' boom and bust ', which he calls the ' ownership society ' . He bet his presidency on it. "

- Sidney Blumenthal

Bush is taking a high risk with “his attack on the social contract ” ( Blumenthal ). Other critics also see the USA's horrendous indebtedness abroad as an increasing danger, also with regard to the far-reaching foreign policy goals. In this context, the term imperial overstretch is often used .

Origins and Backgrounds of Neoconservatism

The roots in the "Old Left" (Old Left)

The intellectual founders of neoconservatism, Daniel Bell , Nathan Glazer , Irving Howe and their " Spiritus rector " Irving Kristol , graduated from the City College of New York in the 1930s and 1940s , a cadre school that had no tuition fees because of its tough acceptance criteria was called " Harvard of the proletariat". Most of these intellectuals were the children of Jewish immigrants from East and East Central Europe, a population group that often suffered particularly from poverty. This origin made the intellectuals accessible to the new and revolutionary ideas of socialism and communism . The Great Depression radicalized the entire US society in the 1930s, including the student body at New York City College.

Due to the catastrophic economic situation and the associated social misery, a fundamental change in social policy was demanded and partially achieved in the so-called New Deal .

"Neo-hyphen-nothing": The tedious birth and development of an idea

From the circle of left-liberal and socialist supporters of the Second World War , a group of intellectuals was formed that combined conservative, socialist and liberal ideas. This group of critical intellectuals, often coming from the so-called working class themselves , forms the core of the so-called neoconservatives - even if this term was not yet in use at the time. On their divergent intellectual roots and their demonstrative will to change in a permanent manner (later in the “endless war” proclaimed by Dick Cheney after the attacks on New York and Washington) the occasional legend - probably more correct: the misunderstanding - of the dashing “ Trotskyist Typus ”( Robert Misik ) back.

The forefather of the movement makes fun of himself:

“For as long as I can remember, I've been a neo-something: a neo-Marxist, a neo-Trotskyist, a neo-liberal, a neo-conservative; Neo-Orthodox in terms of religion, even when I was a neo-Trotskyist and a neo-Marxist at the same time. I will end up as a neo, nothing else - as neo-hyphen-nothing. "

- Irving Kristol

theory and practice

Due to the novel combination of different positions, the boundaries of the political ideology of neoconservatism are sometimes blurred. However, it is possible to identify important attitudes and attitudes that connect the neoconservatives with one another. These originate predominantly from the Cold War era , when the neocons were often still close to the democrats (such as Jeane Kirkpatrick , who embodied the bridge from Reaganism to Neo-conservatism , so to speak - among others from this era ): State responsibility in the economy to maintain social peace (a demand which, however, remained largely rhetorical and tipped into the opposite since Reagan at the latest), value conservatism in the sense of maintaining a strong America at home, and a foreign policy based on uncontrollable military dominance. What is striking is the dichotomization of good and bad, which also determines the worldview of the neocons after the end of the Cold War .

The demarcation from traditional conservatives

The basic views and positions of the neoconservatives have been subject to multiple changes in the past three decades and, as will be shown, often turned out to be inconsistent in many aspects - not least because there are too many theoretical concepts that go beyond the proclamatory and declamatory.

"Is there any 'there' there?" , asks Irving Kristol himself in a 2003 article - what is special about neoconservatism? At that time it was still said:

"A properly understood welfare state can be an integral part of a conservative society."

- Irving Kristol

In every civilization, business ethics is rightly "defined by moral and religious tradition, and it is an admission of moral bankruptcy to claim that what the law does not expressly prohibit is therefore already morally permissible," writes Kristol in the 1980s. “People need religion. It is a binding agent of moral tradition. It plays a crucial role. Nothing can take their place, ”he emphasizes in Two Cheers for Capitalism .

On certain key issues, neoconservatism à la Irving Kristol meets with basic convictions of the religious right ( Theo-Cons ):

“I don't think morality can be decided on a private level. I think you need public leadership and public support for moral consensus. The average person instinctively has to know without thinking too much about how they are raising their children. [...] If you have standards, moral standards, then you have to want them to prevail, and in the end you have to stand up for them at least. "

- Irving Kristol : in an interview with Reason Magazine in 1983

On the other hand, in an interview in 1987 he also emphasizes the differences to the “old conservatives”: Neo-conservatives are different because they are “ utilitarians , not moralists”, “and because their goal is the welfare of post-industrial society , not the revival of one Golden Age . ”In his book Reflections of a NeoConservative (1983) Kristol sums it up in a striking way:

"Our revolutionary message [...] is that people with self-discipline can create a political community in which orderly freedom promotes both economic prosperity and political participation."

Neoconservatism in the USA also distinguishes itself from traditional right-wing conservatives (sometimes ridiculed as Paleo-Cons ) in that their (economic and foreign policy) concepts of protectionism and isolationism - as e.g. B. Represents ex-Republican Pat Buchanan - be discarded.

“Conservative Revolution”: Proclamation and Realization

The neoconservatives of the Cold War put themselves in sharp opposition to the New Left ( David Horowitz et al.), Which brought them closer to the traditional conservative wing. For example, Paul Wolfowitz, who as a doctoral student had spoken out against Israel's nuclear armament , is said to have developed into the “hawk” he is today in the 1970s. Yale professor Donald Kagan , later regarded as a pioneer of the neocons , also turned away from his originally left-wing liberal convictions. Although the neocons still advocated a welfare state policy internally in many fields, externally they appeared as strict opponents of any détente against the Soviet Union and as advocates of US supremacy. This combination of “conservative” and “progressive” elements is still the hallmark of the so-called neocons , who are therefore sometimes referred to as “conservative revolutionaries”, although this term can easily lead to misunderstandings for European observers, since this term is used for the anti-democratic Rights of the Weimar Republic is used. The neocons, on the other hand, claim that they advocate human rights, democracy and freedom. The justification of interventions and measures, for example, as compared to so-called " rogue states " ( Rogue States ), mostly based defending world and disseminate (on human rights arguments and the expressed will, democracy and freedom nation-building , democratization example, for the. Middle East).

Hegemony versus international law

The neocons were and still are said to be that such humanitarian arguments are merely pretexts for materially inspired imperial endeavors; they de facto had extended the Monroe Doctrine - with which North and South America were declared the exclusive sphere of interest of the USA in the early 19th century - to create their projected “New Rome” to the entire planet. Critics in particular accuse the actors in the United States that in political practice it is indifferent who is which "villain" - it is essential for the entry into force of any threatened sanctions that are underpinned or justified with "moral" arguments whether the " Rogue ”on the side of the USA or not, an interest-driven and opportunistic - some say: cynical - attitude that has been known as the“ Kirkpatrick Doctrine ” since the Reaganites .

Weapons of mass destruction have never been the main cause of war. Nor was it the appalling repression in Iraq. Or the danger Saddam posed to his neighbors. […] The campaign in Iraq is about keeping promises to the United States or bearing the consequences, ”said Daniel Pipes , founder of the Middle East Forum (MEF) in Philadelphia, a think tank that claims American interests in the The Middle East wants to "determine and promote". The Neocon Pipes, which also works closely with the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI) (he is a signatory of its Charter of Principles), is considered an uncompromising anti-Islamist . President Bush appointed the proven hardliner to the board of the US Institute of Peace in 2003, against open opposition from Congress , of which he was a member until January 2005.

The "absence of tyrannical traits" makes it according to Thomas Donnelly, formerly one of the leading figures of the AEI and currently u. a. worked for the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission , but the enemies of the Pax Americana find it difficult to argue and take action against them.

“The American world order is too benevolent, especially when compared to alternatives like Islamic theocracy or Chinese communism . American imperialism can bring new hopes for freedom, security and prosperity. "

- Thomas Donnelly

At the same time, its attraction could dampen fears of excessive military power:

"As in Afghanistan and perhaps (once again) Iraq, oppressed majorities ruled by despots tend to see American soldiers as liberators rather than conquerors."

- Thomas Donnelly

Since September 11, 2001 , President Bush has also learned that it is hard to be a “humble hegemon”. In his fight against terrorism, Bush is not depriving any nation of the “'true and immutable' American principles of freedom and justice.” ( Donnelly ) “[Bush] sees adherence to these principles as a 'non-negotiable demand' that ' is the overriding goal of the war, ”he states, alluding to Bush's apodictic statement (some critics reject it as an ultimatum ):“ Either you are with us or you are with the terrorists. ”( Thomas Donnelly )

On the other hand, the advocates of neoconservatism themselves emphasize that the foreign policy concepts are by no means based on doctrines (or principles) in the sense of a coherent ideology , but on their interpretation of historical experiences:

“There is no compilation of neoconservative beliefs about foreign policy, just a series of historical attitudes about it. (The neoconservative favorite text on foreign affairs is - thanks to Professor Leo Strauss from Chicago and Donald Kagan from Yale - that of Thucydides on the Peloponnesian War .) "

- Irving Kristol : 2003

And Donnelly also emphasizes:

"We do not know exactly what we are creating."

- Thomas Donnelly

The spiritual foundation

"There is a long tradition of debate in the conservative movement in the United States, and this has given rise to two schools of thought," said Thomas Donnelly, who also works for the US government, in a television interview in early 2003: "The first is the traditional Kissinger and Realpolitik- School that had Balance of Power as its maxim. Every state is the same and tries to maintain and expand its power. Stability comes from the balance of this competition ”. In contrast, there is the "neo-conservative Reagan school, which says: It is the quality of government that leads to wars and international competition". The Reagan School has had the upper hand since September 11th: “We regard our values ​​as universal values,” explains Donnelly. "And Americans have had great success in history exporting their values."

Thought leaders and spokesmen

The philosopher Leo Strauss is considered an important theorist for the neoconservatives . Strauss' influence is often blamed for the fact that neoconservatism has very distinctive features of Machiavellianism . In particular, the idea of ​​the “myth” goes back to Strauss (especially religion and nation). This concept is closely related to Strauss' approach that the people should be lied to by the elite. This results from Strauss' deep suspicion against or his dismay over the liberal society. The political myth is not true, but a "necessary illusion". This is necessary because individual freedom leads (ordinary) people to question "everything" that would then destroy society as a whole. The elite have to represent and live these lies publicly, of course they don't have to believe them privately. (Strauss liked to refer to the TV lawyer Perry Mason as a role model.)

Albert Wohlstetter - u. a. Paul Wolfowitz 'doctoral supervisor; Wohlstetter's daughter was a childhood friend of Richard Perle  - is associated with numerous protagonists of neoconservatism. The proven bellicist was already an advisor to John F. Kennedy during the Cuban Missile Crisis .

Josef Korbel from the Czech Republic (the father of the former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright ) had a lasting effect on both politicians and intellectuals - but not only of neoconservative origin .

In an open letter published in January 1977 on the occasion of his retirement from the board of directors of the Ford Foundation , Henry Ford II pointed out that it would be worthwhile to preserve the system that made the foundation possible and expressed the fear of many American business people that that they are about to lose the battle for ideas. As a result, on March 21, 1977, the “spiritus rector” of American neoconservatism Irving Kristol published the call “On Corporate Philanthropy” in the Wall Street Journal , which was addressed to like-minded intellectuals and business leaders. The intention was to enforce existing universities and other educational establishments and institutions as well as to establish think tanks to determine the intellectual climate in the USA.

This "corporate philanthropy" was fueled by the concern of many American businesspeople about losing the battle for ideas, and aimed at organizing and winning "the war of ideas and ideologies within the New Class" (by which Kristol meant the intellectuals) to achieve the intellectual dominance of neoliberal economic doctrine in favor of the preservation of capitalism by reshaping the “climate of public opinion”. To this end, the economy should finance the establishment of institutions at which those “dissidents” among the intellectuals “who really believe in the preservation of a strong private sector” should recruit an army for the intellectual battlefield and influence government policy with their projects.

The dispute over the national heritage

A real intellectual war between liberals (here in the sense of progressive , which is equated with "left-wing" in the USA) and conservatives is finally waged over the original US-American intellectual legacy, especially that of the founding fathers and great presidents like George Washington , Thomas Paine , Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln , the father of the Grand Old Party and the Union as a whole. It is not only on this occasion that the “left” and the “right” lament the “gutter level” (according to Norman Birnbaum , Professor at Georgetown University ), which often characterizes the political debate in the USA. Birnbaum, who considers himself more patriotic “than these people”, regards the success of the neocons as the flip side of the weakness of the left, which there has been “ degraded to a corporatist association”.

Think tanks and power apparatus

In the George W. Bush administration, a number of influential politicians were assigned to the neoconservative camp, including, in addition to Perle and Wolfowitz: Douglas J. Feith (Department of Defense), former Secretary of State at the State Department and United States Ambassador to the United States, John R. Bolton and Lewis Libby ( Chief of Staff under Vice President Dick Cheney ). The AEI , founded in 1943, is named as its “control center” , an expanding think tank in Washington's center (one of the main donors: the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation ). The Project for the New American Century (PNAC; 1997-2006), which was based in the same house as the AEI and which was dissolved in 2006, also had a considerable influence. It included numerous intellectuals and politicians close to the Bush administration; from 2009 Foreign Policy Initiative (FPI). There are also a number of other think tanks in which a different number of members are assigned to the neoconservative camp, such as the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR; the Wall Street Journal columnist Max Boot is active there) , the Foreign Policy Initiative, or the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research . At the time of Ronald Reagan's presidency , the Heritage Foundation (founded in 1973) was considered the most influential “right-wing” think tank. The Cato Institute was founded in 1977, the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) and The Heartland Institute in 1984, and in 1985 Americans for Tax Reform (ATR) and the bimonthly magazine The National Interest . It was not until the beginning of 2005 that the “ Committee on the Present Danger ” was brought back to life. a. the former CIA boss James Woolsey involved. And not only with Eliana Benador do the Neocons have an influential PR agency with a wide range of contacts to politics, business and the media, although Benador Associates brings together and represents almost all prominent Neocons .

Journalistic forums

Periodicals that are considered neoconservative or regularly publish articles by neoconservative thought leaders include

Articles by neoconservative authors also appear in papers such as the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal , which traditionally portray a broad spectrum of opinions on their pages. Especially after the Iraq war in 2003, some traditionally leftist publications were also accused of neoconservatism because they spoke out in favor of the US military, in particular The New Republic ; The journalist Christopher Hitchens had a similar experience .

See also

literature

  • Kubilay Yado Arin: The Role of Think Tanks in US Foreign Policy. From Clinton to Bush Jr. Springer VS, Wiesbaden 2013, ISBN 978-3-658-01043-0 (also: Munich, University, dissertation, 2012).
  • Tobias Bader: Neoconservatism. Think Tanks and New Imperialism. In: Journal of Marxist Renewal. Z. no. 61, March 2005, pp 85-100.
  • Helmut Dubiel : What is neoconservatism? (= Edition Suhrkamp. 1313). Suhrkamp, ​​Frankfurt am Main 1985, ISBN 3-518-11313-5 .
  • Murray Friedman: The Neoconservative Revolution. Jewish Intellectuals and the Shaping of Public Policy. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge u. a. 2005, ISBN 0-521-83656-5 .
  • Francis Fukuyama : Is America Failing? Superpower at the crossroads (= List-Taschenbuch. 60736). List, Berlin 2007, ISBN 3-548-60736-5 .
  • Klaus Henning: The rise of the “neocons”. Political intellectuals in the USA and the “New Imperialism” (= science and research. 23). Neuer ISP Verlag, Cologne 2006, ISBN 3-89900-023-4 (At the same time: Frankfurt am Main, Johann Wolfgang Goethe University, Master's thesis, 2004: From the rise of the neocons to the war against Iraq. ).
  • Donald Kagan : On the Origins of War and the Preservation of Peace. Anchor Books - Doubleday, New York NY u. a. 1996, ISBN 0-385-42375-6 .
  • Robert Kagan : Power and Powerlessness. America and Europe in the new world order. Siedler, Berlin 2003, ISBN 3-88680-794-0 .
  • Patrick Keller: Neoconservatism and American Foreign Policy. Ideas, war and strategy from Ronald Reagan to George W. Bush. Schöningh, Paderborn u. a. 2008, ISBN 978-3-506-76528-4 (also: Bonn, Universität, Dissertation, 2007).
  • Hans-Werner Klausen: Dossier - Neocons in the USA.
  • Irving Kristol : Neoconservatism. The Autobiography of an Idea (= Elephant Paperbacks 304 American History and American Studies ). 1st Elephant Paperback edition. Ivan R. Dee, Chicago IL 1999, ISBN 1-56663-228-5 .
  • Volker Lehmann, Max Böhnel (Eds.): American Empire - No Thank you! Voices from the other America (= Edition Zeitgeschichte. Vol. 10). Homilius, Berlin 2003, ISBN 3-89706-885-0 .
  • Michael Mann : The powerless superpower. Why the US can't rule the world. Campus-Verlag, Frankfurt am Main u. a. 2003, ISBN 3-593-37313-0 .
  • Sebastian Moll: America says goodbye, Neocons at the end. In: Die Tageszeitung , May 31, 2008.
  • Alexander Kenneth Nagel: Charitable Choice - Religious Institutionalization in Public Space. Religion and social policy in the USA (= religions in the plural world. Vol. 4). Lit, Hamburg a. a. 2006, ISBN 3-8258-8955-6 (also: Bremen, University, diploma thesis, 2005).
  • Alexander Reichwein: Ideology and Foreign Policy: The Neoconservatives and September 11th. In: Thomas Jäger (Ed.): The world after 9/11. Effects of terrorism on states and society (= journal for foreign and security policy. Special issue 2). VS - Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, Wiesbaden 2011, ISBN 978-3-531-18420-3 , pp. 53-80.
  • Alexander Reichwein: American neoconservatism and its origins, ideas and goals. A liberal and a realistic criticism (PDF) (= ZENAF working and research papers. No. 1/2009, ZDB -ID 1134164-6 ). Center for North America Research - Goethe University Frankfurt am Main, Frankfurt am Main 2009, (PDF; 304 kB).
  • Hans Rühle , Hans-Joachim Veen (ed.): Neo-conservatism in the United States and its effects on the Atlantic alliance (= research report of the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung . 16). Commissioned by the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, Knoth, Melle 1982, ISBN 3-88368-044-3 .
  • Ingar Solty : Crisis of Neoconservatism! Neoliberal Crisis? The US after the congressional elections. In: Socialism . Vol. 34, Issue 1, 2007, pp. 47-54.
  • Irwin Stelzer (Ed.): The Neocon Reader. Grove Press, New York NY 2005, ISBN 0-8021-4193-5 .
  • C. Bradley Thompson, Yaron Brook: Neoconservatism. An Obituary for an Idea. Paradigm Publishers, Boulder CO et al. a. 2010, ISBN 978-1-59451-831-7 .
  • Bernd Volkert: American neoconservatism. Origin - ideas - intentions (= political theory and culture. Vol. 3). Lit, Berlin a. a. 2006, ISBN 3-8258-9361-8 .

Individual evidence

  1. See Fukuyama's position on neoconservatism
  2. taz , June 18, 2003
  3. Bill Vann : The Historical Roots of Neoconservatism: Against a Defamation of Trotskyism . WSWS, May 30, 2003
  4. An objective that is also expressed in a quote from George W. Bush: “ A military second to none. "
  5. ^ Foreign Affairs , July / August 2002
  6. ^ AEI, National Security Outlook , April 1, 2003
  7. Neoconservatism Unmasked . Retrieved November 6, 2013.
  8. Barry F. Seidman and Neil J. Murphy (Eds.): Toward a new political humanism (2004), p. 197
  9. ^ Letter of Resignation by Henry Ford II , Foundation News , March / April 1977
  10. ^ Philanthropy Roundtable [1]
  11. Irving Kristol, On Corporate Philanthropy , The Wall Street Journal , March 21, 1977. [2]
  12. Chrystia Freeland : The super rich. Rise and rule of a new global money elite Westend Verlag, Frankfurt / Main 2013. pp. 295–302.
  13. taz, October 30, 2004
  14. ^ Paul Reynolds: End of the neo-con dream: The neo-conservative dream faded in 2006. In: BBC News. Status: December 21, 2006. URL: End of the neo-con dream (accessed on February 28, 2011)