Liberal War Plans

Here's a point from the on-going debate about liberals over at Andrew Sullivan's place:

"A reader writes:

The first response to your complaint that liberal bloggers don't offer alternatives is to quote your hero Sir Winston: "The opposition is not responsible for proposing integrated and complicated measures of policy. Sometimes they do, but it is not their obligation."

Beyond that I'd say a perfectly responsible liberal take on the war is this:  The best weapon we have against the Islamic extremists in the long haul is the soft power of modern culture - its comforts, its freedoms and, well, it's enlightenment.  Modernization is appealing, and will win, if given half chance.  But if by our clumsy, aggressive behavior we cause moderate, ordinary Muslims to confuse modernization with American aggression, with torture, with greed for oil, and with uncritical support for Greater Israel, then by that behavior we deprive ourselves of our greatest strategic advantage. . ."