What power?

Fred Hiatt at the Washington Post has sparked quite an exchange today in Post Global, with his piece arguing that the U.S. should let China know it has a choice: a friendly regime in Burma, or a successful Olympics next year. This precipitated a detailed response in opposition from James Fallows, The Atlantic’s correspondent in China.

Both men provide compelling arguments, but this discussion raises a broader question about American foreign policy since the end of the Cold War: if we are unwilling to speak with our adversaries, and we are unwilling to coerce our friends, what power does the United States have left?