A policy of "peace through strength" means doing what is necessary to instill fear in our enemies, to convince them that we have both the capability and the will to cause them serious harm. If that deters them, armed conflicts are avoided. If not, "peace through strength" also means we have the power to decisively defeat them.

If that's not our policy, if our enemies think we are eager to placate and appease, incapable of using force effectively or reluctant to do so, they'll conclude we are weak. And, for tyrants, weakness is blood in the water.

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TEL AVIV, ISRAEL – How many simultaneous conflicts can a small country handle? Israel – whose land area is smaller than that of Djibouti, and whose population is smaller than that of Cairo – may soon find out.

The most serious threat is posed by Iran's rulers. They continue to progress toward the development of nuclear weapons that would give them the means to achieve their openly stated goal: the extermination of Israel and Israelis.

On a visit to Germany last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that "Israel will do what Israel needs to do" to defend itself as it has for the past 75 years.

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On November 1, 1936, Italian dictator Benito Mussolini gave a speech celebrating the treaty he had signed with German dictator Adolf Hitler. "This Berlin-Rome protocol is not a barrier, it is rather an axis around which all European States animated by a desire for peace may collaborate on troubles," he told a cheering crowd. A term was born and, a few years later, the Axis was at war with the Allies.

On January 29, 2002, President George W. Bush revived the term – with a twist. He called Ali Khamenei's Islamist regime in Iran, Saddam Hussein's Baathist Iraq, and Kim Jong-il's Communist North Korea – three regimes collaborating against the U.S. and other free nations – the Axis of Evil.

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Code Pink, among the looniest groups on the far left, last week attempted to disrupt a hearing of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Protestors held up signs and wore t-shirts reading: "China is not our enemy."

I'm pretty sure committee members don't disagree. The problem, which Code Pinkies can't see through their rose-colored glasses, is not that Americans regard China as our enemy but that China's Communist rulers regard America as their enemy.

The protestors also held up a sign – upside down as Rep. Mike Gallagher helpfully pointed out – reading: "Stop Asian Hate."

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Dear Mr. President,

First, kudos to you for going to Kyiv. Not many sitting American presidents have visited active war zones. I'm told Vladimir Putin was informed you'd be there. Though he'd have been crazy to take a shot, you took a risk.

Second, the speech you gave in Warsaw was powerful. One might even call it Reaganesque. (I hope that doesn't trigger you!) You made a pledge: "Our support for Ukraine will not waver, NATO will not be divided, and we will not tire."

An important point: If you will the ends, you must will the means. Or to put it in the vernacular: If you're going to talk the talk, you've got to walk the walk.

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