The Case for Pragmatism

M A ast year should have been a time to reflect on the profound changes brought by the end of the Cold War. Instead it turned out to be the year of America's first war since Vietnam. No sooner had the country begun to absorb that amazing victory than events in the Soviet Union turned 1991 into the year that witnessed the end of the personal reign of Mikhail Gorbachev and, indeed, the end of the U.S.S.R. itself. Finally, the nation paused to pay its respects at Pearl Harbor, on the 50th anniversary of the day that would live in infamy. December 7, 1941, was the opening battle of the Second World War for the United States. But Pearl Harbor also