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18 January 2008

That Gerson column today

Your correspondent woke up this morning and checked the Washington Post's website and found this column by Michael Gerson. I probably should have written a reply to it almost immediately, but I wasn't sure if anyone else noticed it.

Now, some time later (it's evening here in Brno), I see that the Corner at National Review Online has commented on it as well. See here and here.

Nevertheless, because talk is not just cheap on the Internet, it's free, I can't help but add a few comments.  First, Gerson argues that Thompson is not "morally serious," (in addition to being lazy and tired).  Moreover, in Gerson's view, Thompson is voicing "isolationist" sentiments, and apparently, some sort of jingoistic "let's spend money on domestic cancer rather than foreign AIDS" message.  Instead, President Bush's Global AIDS Initiative is such a wise policy that any question containing the words "Africa" and "AIDS" should be answered with "Yes, Sir, absolutely, let's do it for American security, Jesus, humanitarian reasons, and public health." Any derivation is "novel and obscene."

Let's get the story straight.  To understand the answer, Gerson would do well to first look at the question.  The woman who posed the question asked if he "' as a Christian, as a conservative' would continue President Bush's programs to combat global AIDS."  It seems to me that the question was framed as a Huckabee-style "let's spend the money, but in a Christian way" question.  Thompson is clearly fighting against the Huckabee current, and his answer reflected that. He is right to be wary of the impulse to spend government money on every ill, irrespective of whether or not it makes sense in the long term.  In this respect, Thompson simply notes that government is no substitute for an engaged civil society.  Indeed, it is very easy to be generous with other people's money, as politicians often are. 

However, Thompson undoubtedly would have been better to focus on "Africa" in his answer, rather than "The Role of Government." He could have said, "Well, we have a limited budget. I believe while that the Global AIDS Initiative is.... (good? bad? we don't know -- he should have been more specific about the program), we should focus on the multiple interrelated problems facing African societies.  In this way, we can bring down the number of new HIV infections, as well as assist African nations in building strong institutions that will make them more able to combat HIV, as well as malaria and tuberculosis, on their own.  This will take a long time, but it will be better overall, for American security, humanitarian values, and public health. And I believe Jesus Christ would be ok with that."

For what it's worth, Thompson has posted a follow-up video on one of his blogs. You can watch it here. Turns out he's not just looking to cruelly abandon Africa after all.  Gerson makes a mountain out of a molehill, and his hit piece on Thompson is so obnoxious that it's unbelievable.


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