Please tell me how this is a change from the past....

[BlackVelvet04]

Our starting point must always be a clear and strong commitment to the security of Israel, our strongest ally in the region and its only established democracy.

Tough-minded diplomacy, backed by the whole range of instruments of American power -- political, economic, and military .....

To renew American leadership in the world, we must immediately begin working to revitalize our military.

But we must also become better prepared to put boots on the ground in order to take on foes that fight asymmetrical and highly adaptive campaigns on a global scale.

I will not hesitate to use force, unilaterally if necessary, to protect the American people or our vital interests whenever we are attacked or imminently threatened. We must also consider using military force in circumstances beyond self-defense in order to provide for the common security that underpins global stability

We need to invest in building capable, democratic states that can establish healthy and educated communities, develop markets, and generate wealth.

Renewing American Leadership
Barack Obama / Foreign Affairs, July-August 2007
http://www.pierretristam.com/Bobst/07/wf070607a.htm

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

1. From which past? Bush?

Let's go through this statement...

I will not hesitate to use force, unilaterally if necessary, to protect the American people or our vital interests whenever we are attacked or imminently threatened.

It's pretty difficult to argue with the idea that self-defense is OK.

We must also consider using military force in circumstances beyond self-defense in order to provide for the common security that underpins global stability

This is, I think, a debatable point, and a lot of it rests on whether or not you think actions like Kosovo are OK or not. But it's hard to argue that this is supportive of the sorts of policies Bush has enacted - namely threatening and in some cases actually militarily intervening in countries that pose no threat to global stability.

We need to invest in building capable, democratic states that can establish healthy and educated communities, develop markets, and generate wealth.

And the example he uses earlier in the article is the Marshall Plan. It's pretty hard to argue with the idea that we should support the spread of democracy. He isn't suggesting it be done at the point of a gun. In fact he very clearly makes the statement that that's the WRONG way of doing it.