Clear Eyed

While browsing through Barnes and Noble yesterday I came upon today's entry for The You Must Be Joking Book of the Year. An interesting little tome (OK not that little) called A Moment of Crisis: Jimmy Carter, the Power of a Peacemaker, and North Korea's Nuclear Ambitions. At first thinking this must be some production of the Onion I picked it up for a laugh only to discover that the author Marion V. Creekmore (not a Faulkner character) has no ironic intention what so ever. He has written according to the publishers...

a gripping narrative of the former President on one of his most remarkable missions, a clear-eyed investigation into the controversies and successes of the mission and others like it, and an illuminating look at how to best handle North Korea and other "rogue regimes." This is essential reading for anyone interested in diplomacy of the highest order, how Jimmy Carter has accomplished the extraordinary achievements of his post-Presidency, the circumstances that can lead to war, and the resolve that it takes to avoid it.

Of course IMHO one of the most dangerous "circumstances that can lead to war" is to play kick the diplomatic can down the road when dealing with the "nuclear ambitions" of the crazed Fu Manchu of North Korea, Kim Il-Jung.