Author's Keywords: Faith-based, missionary spirit, american exceptionalism, manicheanism, geopolitics, Iraq War	Convention All Academic Convention is the premier solution for your association's abstract management solutions needs. Submission - Custom fields, multiple submission types, tracks, audio visual, multiple upload formats, automatic conversion to pdf. Review - Peer Review, Bulk reviewer assignment, bulk emails, ranking, z-score statistics, and multiple worksheets! Reports - Many standard and custom reports generated while you wait. Print programs with participant indexes, event grids, and more! Scheduling - Flexible and convenient grid scheduling within rooms and buildings. Conflict checking and advanced filtering. Communication - Bulk email tools to help your administrators send reminders and responses. Use form letters, a message center, and much more! Management - Search tools, duplicate people management, editing tools, submission transfers, many tools to manage a variety of conference management headaches! Click here for more information.
Association: Name: American Political Science Association URL: http://www.apsanet.org
Citation: URL: http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p152224_index.html Direct Link: HTML Code:

McNaught, Mark. "Faith-Based Geopolitics" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association, Marriott, Loews Philadelphia, and the Pennsylvania Convention Center, Philadelphia, PA, Aug 31, 2006 <Not Available>. 2011-03-13 <http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p152224_index.html>

McNaught, M. B. , 2006-08-31 "Faith-Based Geopolitics" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association, Marriott, Loews Philadelphia, and the Pennsylvania Convention Center, Philadelphia, PA Online <PDF>. 2011-03-13 from http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p152224_index.html

Publication Type: Proceeding Abstract: As of November 2005 the American public is becoming increasingly preoccupied with an important reason for going to war in Iraq : the existence of weapons of mass destruction (W.M.D.’s). The failure to find them, and evidence that intelligence was « cherry picked » by the Bush administration, has cast doubt on the principal legal justification for intervention. It can be argued, however, that W.M.D.’s had little to do with the « real reasons » for going to war. When one looks as Bush’s rhetoric, he cites a higher calling for going to war, purportedly on instruction from God himself. It has become almost a cliché to say that Bush’s policies seem « faith based ». The intervention in Iraq, however, seems to give new meaning to “faith-based” for several reasons. First, the Bush administration stated that weapons of mass destruction would be found, despite the paucity of fresh evidence to support this. It seems increasingly obvious that there was a leap of faith that the weapons were being developed, and this was used to convince congressmen to adopt the resolution giving Bush the authority to wage war. The second would be the notion that the Iraqis would endure sanctions, bombings, and military occupation, and then willingly accept an American blueprint for redesigning the Iraqi polity. The Bush administration seemed to think that American magnanimity would compensate for a nation ravaged, and seemingly dismissed or did not consider the possibility of a long-term insurgency. Third, a Democratic Iraq would inspire other Middle Eastern nations to democratize. If one applies the democratic peace theory, which holds that democratic states do not wage war on each other, such a Middle East would eventually reduce the need for American intervention and lessen the threat to Israel. This notion is central to the neo-conservative movement. Finally, Bush suggests that God supports American policy in the Middle East. Looking through Bush’s speeches, notably his inaugural speech of 2005, one cannot escape the perception that he believes that he is doing God’s work in trying to spread freedom and eradicate tyranny. This paper will further explore the role of faith of these four founding assumptions of the war in Iraq. It will seek to show that during the decision-making process, this quasi-religious logic has taken precedence over a realistic assessment of the threats posed by a long-term occupation of Iraq and its implications throughout the broader Middle East. The paper will finish by considering the implications of basing foreign policy on such grounds.

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