Dershowitz Backs Doctrine of Preemption

A column by the Washington Times' Tony Blankley suggests that none other than Alan Dershowitz is moving towards a position of support for the Bush Doctrine of preemptive war. Read Blankley's quote of Dershowitz:

The classic theory of deterrence postulates a calculating evildoer who can evaluate the cost-benefits of proposed actions and will act — and forbear from acting — on the basis of these calculations. It also presupposes society's ability (and willingness) to withstand the blows we seek to deter and to use the visible punishment of those blows as threats capable of deterring future harms. These assumptions are now being widely questioned as the threat of weapons of mass destruction in the hands of suicide terrorists becomes more realistic and as our ability to deter such harms by classic rational cost-benefit threats and promises becomes less realistic.

Now, despite Dershowitz's use of the term "preventive", it's not clear from the quote whether Dershowitz is supporting actual preventive war, but I suspect he's not. Still, it's a sign of progress when an icon and idealogue of the Left takes such an obvious step in the direction of realism.