Obama Signals a Shift From Military Might to Diplomacy
WASHINGTON — The weekend ended with the first tangible sign of a nuclear deal with Iran, after more than three decades of hostility. Then on Monday came the announcement that a conference will convene in January to try to broker an end to the civil war in Syria.
The success of either negotiation, both long sought by President Obama, is hardly assured — in fact the odds may be against them. But the two nearly simultaneous developments were vivid statements that diplomacy, the venerable but often-unsatisfying art of compromise, has once again become the centerpiece of American foreign policy.
Snip
“We’re testing diplomacy; we’re not resorting immediately to military conflict,” Mr. Obama said, defending the Iran deal on Monday in San Francisco. “Tough talk and bluster may be the easy thing to do politically,” he said earlier that day, “but it’s not the right thing for our security.”
Snip
White House officials suggest that the president always planned to arrive at this moment, and that everything that came before it — from the troop surge in Afghanistan to the commando raid that killed Osama bin Laden — was cleaning up after his predecessor.
“In 2009, we had 180,000 troops in two wars and a ton of legacy issues surrounding terrorism,” said Benjamin J. Rhodes, a deputy national security adviser. “So much that was done out of the box was winding down those wars. We’ve shifted from a very military face on our foreign policy to a very diplomatic face on our foreign policy.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/26/world/middleeast/longer-term-deal-with-iran.html?hp&_r=1&
= new reply since forum marked as read
diplomacy is PBO's style, she. And, then on to his Inaugural Address in 2009.. his famous quote about extending a hand..
"In his inaugural address President Obama reached out to the Muslim World by saying that he seeks "a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect." He also said he would be willing to "extend a hand" to those "who cling to power through corruption and deceit" if they "are willing to unclench" their fists. Obama attempted to reach out to Arab leaders by granting his first interview to an Arab cable TV network, Al Arabiya. On 19 March 2009, Obama continued his outreach to the Muslim world, releasing a New Year's video message to the people and government of Iran. This attempt at outreach was rebuffed by the Iranian leadership. President Obama's first trip to a Muslim majority country occurred on 6–7 April 2009 when he visited Turkey and spoke to the Grand National Assembly. The speech was well received by many Arab governments."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_New_Beginning
I'm very thankful how all this is playing out since the then Senator Obama came on the scene.
The Nobel Peace Prize Committee knew what they were doing. And, President Obama knew what he was doing when he chose John Kerry to be his SOS this year 
PEACE
Mahalo for the NYT's piece, she~
Thanks sweets, I am behind in my answers...Thanksgiving was #1 and it was awesome. Right down to the vegan stuffing. I had my doubts, yet it was wonderful~
Cha~
Last edited Fri Nov 29, 2013, 06:47 AM - Edit history (1)
It can taste great and be vegan, too! 
I'm a little behind too.. Tim had to work to get finished with this job by Monday so he could start on the next one he's committed to. But, my friend Linda came over from the other side of the Island after she had her festivities and we went for a walk with my camera. She showed me a lot of things I didn't know and now we're working on getting them transfered.. that may take awhile. 
Going to fix supper for her and she may even stay the night. 
she
treestar