Sharply critical of President Bush's foreign policy, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Richard Holbrooke '62 spoke to a half-full Salomon 101 Monday afternoon about the need for student involvement in politics to help change the way things are going in the United States.
Holbrooke, a former Herald editor-in-chief and currently a professor-at-large based in the Watson Institute for International Studies, laid out a sometimes grim, sometimes hopeful view of the future in global affairs.
Holbrooke spent most of the lecture focusing on global problems that have emerged since the end of the Cold War. He said the title of his lecture, "The World Crisis," was misleading, because instead there are two distinct crises - one, the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, is significant only for Americans, he said, while the "crisis for the planet as a whole" includes issues like the HIV/AIDS epidemic and global climate change.
"Our wars should be distinguished from other crises that affect the whole planet," Holbrooke said. "If you go somewhere else, you won't hear extensive debate on Iraq or Afghanistan. Let's not confuse them for a global crisis."
But Holbrooke, who is advising Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., in her 2008 presidential campaign said Bush's foreign policy has ensured that the next president of the United States will be faced with unprecedented difficult tasks.
"No president has inherited two wars ... one going pretty badly, in Afghanistan, and one going really badly, in Iraq," Holbrooke said. He added that the next president's job will be made more difficult by the increasing influence of a hostile - and potentially nuclear - Iran, the rising economic clout of China and India, an increasingly unyielding Vladimir Putin in Russia and the complexities of disease and war in Africa.
Holbrooke was relentless in his criticism of Bush, calling his remaining days in office "stumbling to a tragic conclusion" and - quoting former Texas Gov. Ann Richards on the first President Bush - saying, "he was born on third base and thinks he hit a triple."
He also discussed how U.S. policy might have been different if former Vice President Al Gore had won the 2000 presidential election, saying that Gore would have focused on Afghanistan, stayed out of Iraq and taken environmental issues more seriously than Bush has. Gore was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, along with a UN climate panel, last week for his efforts on global climate change.
Despite his pessimistic view of the current state of U.S. policy, Holbrooke warned students in the crowd, "You mustn't despair."
"There is one way to deal with this, and that is to express your views in elections," he said. "The people of this country are much better than the government ... We have the strength. We don't have the leadership."
Holbrooke reminisced about his time at Brown, when "students were more engaged in international affairs and domestic affairs."
"I hope you all get engaged," he said, speaking to the students in attendance. "I urge you to get involved, whoever your candidate is, because it really, truly matters."
Holbrooke was asked questions on a number of topics after his talk, including questions about America's responsibility to intervene in world affairs and the treatment of Kurds in Turkey.
When asked about potential solutions for post-war Iraq, Holbrooke recommended that the country be run under "loose federalism" with some Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish autonomy.
Referring to a question on positive steps the next president must take, Holbrooke said, "The long- term goal of the next president must be to restore America's leadership in the world. When we take the lead, we really can do good."
Holbrooke also called the current situation in Myanmar "an immense tragedy" that cannot be solved through military efforts. He said that economic sanctions, though controversial, were a good first step in resolving the crisis.
"There is very little we can do unless we can mobilize other countries," he said.
Barbara Stallings, director of the Watson Institute, said after the speech that Holbrooke "has had a tremendous amount of experience and influence in foreign affairs ... and is particularly interested in making students interested in public service."
"Brown is lucky to have him here to share his experience," she said.
