DAVID GELERNTER: “Once upon a time we thought of appeasement as a particular approach to Hitler. We have long since come to see that it is a Weltanschauung, an entire philosophical worldview that teaches the blood-guilt of Western man, the moral bankruptcy of the West, and the outrageousness of Western civilization’s attempting to impose its values on anyone else. World War II and its aftermath clouded the issue, but self-hatred has long since reestablished itself as a dominant force in Europe and (less often and not yet decisively) the United States.”

Our ruling class is self-loathing, which makes sense because it is loathsome. Alas, it transfers that feeling to the countries it rules. Few countries thrive when ruled by those who despise them.