DALE: Public diplomacy expectations

Obama's shifting from a unilateral to a multilateral, dysfunctional multilateral at that (exception based and regionally enforced), agenda, had better have a plan for each and every one of the previous administration's dictates or the vulnerabilities offered by a consensus without compliance diplomatic environment will be exploited just like Carter's and Clinton's neglect. Carter's executive orders led to the Iran Hostage Crisis and Clinton's "compartmentalization" and discomfort with the military allowed the WTC bombing, the Khobar Towers bombing, the Embassy bombings and the USS Cole bombings to act as a reactive test bed for 911. Both China and Russia are moving into the western hemisphere and expanding their influence. A legal approach to "principled diplomacy" and president-elect Obama's obvious discomfort with his military is viewed by both as a weakness that can be easily exploited, legally, diplomatically and finally militarily to further displace global U.S. primacy.

It's very reassuring that Ms. Dale "knows" all of these things, especially how 4 billion people and 200 or so countries feel about Obama, and that it is both good and relevant to the United States.