Bush would do well to understand the Speak Softly part. TR mediated disputes, even winning the Nobel Peace prize, from a position of strength. Everyone knew TR's honest brokering and intellectual honesty. Haven't heard those things about Bush.

What if someone is deaf or hard of hearing ? What if someone had no limbs then what? What is it we are to do with this stick Mr Roosevelt?

Appproach me with that stick and I'll shove it up your ass!

Words to live by......

T.R.'s advice on devising foreign policy is timeless. In fact, it should be very good advice to President Bush, who in my view hasn't really followed TR's advice. The best diplomatic strategy is negotiating from a position of strength. A strong military is very important, but at the same time, your words need to have value too. Bush and his neo-conservative friends have changed the meaning of the saying. Now it's speak loudly and carry a big stick. I'm sorry, but even a superpower needs allies. Most of all we have to show the world that we are a power to be reckoned with, but at the same time, we cannot stuff this power down people's throats. Other nations now feel threatened by American power. This will only cause animosity and in the long run, it will cause nations to build up their defenses vis-a-vis our own. A multi-polar world is very dangerous indeed. This is especially the case in a world with nuclear weapons. Right now, the US has some ability to enforce nuclear proliferation treaties. If US power becomes discredited, who will make sure that these weapons don't get into the wrong hands. We are already seeing this in North Korea. In the short term, Bush's diplomatic strategy has reaped success, specifically in Iraq. But what about later when we need allies to take up the slack in policing the world? Theodore Roosevelt's advice was intended to warn future American leaders that using diplomacy from a powerful position is the best way to go. America is not an island unto itself. There are many trouble spots throughout the world that are concerns for the world community at large. America needs to maintain good relations with other countries, for that is the only way that we can marshal our power when circumstances demand it.