Posted on 10/22/2001 3:29:25 AM PDT by Ada Coddington
Why Do They Want to Kill Us?
by Jacob G. Hornberger, October 2001
Ever since the September 11 attacks, it has almost been taboo, within both the U.S. government and the mainstream press, to openly examine and analyze the three specific reasons that Osama bin Laden has given for his holy war against the U.S. government and the American people.
Suppose someone has told me that he intends to kill me. Even though I intend to defend myself by meeting force with force, I'm going to ask him an important question: "Why do you want to kill me?"
Suppose the answer is, "Because I hate you for believing that Jesus Christ is Lord." My response will be to defend myself because I'm not about to give up that belief even if it might cost me my life.
But suppose my enemy says, "I want to kill you because you are having an affair with my wife." The affair would not justify his murder of me, either legally or morally, but it certainly might explain why he's so angry and why he wants to kill me. It would behoove me to have this information because I might decide that continuing the affair is no longer worth it and because altering my conduct might cause my enemy to alter his.
But the only way I can get to that point is by asking, "Why do you want to kill me?"
Osama bin Laden and his coterie of terrorists have given three reasons for their terrorist acts:
(1) The stationing of U.S. military personnel in Saudi Arabia, which they say encompasses the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina;
(2) The 10-year embargo against Iraq, which, it is reported, has caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi children; and
(3) U.S. economic and military aid to Israel.
One response might be: "We shouldn't care about their motives for killing -- all that matters is that our government officials kill them before they kill us." But that position is problematic for two big reasons:
(1) Even if current terrorists are killed first, wouldn't new ones, driven by the same motives, surface to take their place? and
(2) Isn't it possible that the terrorists might kill many of us before our government officials find and kill all of them?
A second possible response is: "The terrorists hate us so much that it doesn't matter what our government's foreign policy is and therefore there's no sense in reexamining it." Even if it is true that the terrorists are motivated by blind hatred, however, is it not always a good idea to periodically reexamine government policies, especially with the thought of terminating those that are not achieving their goals and that are actually producing perverse consequences?
What would be wrong with a reevaluation of the U.S. government's Middle East policy, even while efforts are being made to bring the people who committed the September 11 attacks to justice? Couldn't this result in a better direction for our country -- one that might also alter the mindset and behavior of people who want to kill us? The following questions could be asked in such an inquiry:
(1) Why are U.S. troops still stationed in Saudi Arabia, especially given that the Persian Gulf War ended some 10 years ago? Are the troops really based on Islamic holy lands, and is that really an important religious issue for Muslims? What would be the downside to immediately pulling U.S. troops out of Saudi Arabia?
(2) Has the embargo against Iraq succeeded in altering Saddam Hussein's cruel and brutal treatment of Iraqi citizens? Has it prevented him from producing weapons of mass destruction, and might there be a better way to address that problem? Has the embargo really caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi children, as UN officials contend and, if so, why doesn't that alone dictate its immediate termination? What would be the downside to immediately ending the embargo against Iraq?
(3) Why should the U.S. government continue giving economic and military aid to Israel? Why shouldn't all foreign aid be privatized, which would mean that American citizens would no longer be taxed for the purpose of providing foreign aid to anyone but would be free to privately donate their own money to anyone they wish, including Israel? What would be the downside to depoliticizing foreign aid?
Some might suggest that a reevaluation of our government's Middle East policy would be "appeasing" the terrorists. But wouldn't that be a short-sighted excuse for continuing what is possibly a failed or bankrupt policy and for not trying to find what might be a better course of action for the future?
Some might say that it's not patriotic to question the policies of one's own government during wartime. I say that genuine patriotism involves not a blind allegiance to one's government even in war but rather a love of country that sometimes entails trying to move one's government in a more positive, constructive direction.
I believe it is important to listen to garbage bin. Listen carefully. For the first time, and only after the attack, he pronounces that the PA is now a big deal for him. He is also bothered by the fact that we dropped two atom bombs 55 years ago to end WW II. So Neville the author isn't really paraphrasing Binny's gripes accurately. The truth is there isn't any amount of appeasement we could offer that would do anything other than encourage these thugs. And they are thugs, not reasoning civilized human beings. Civilized human beings don't fly planes in to other people and hope to kill tens of thousands and settle for over 13,000 casualties.
So the article doesn't just ask "why". It also asks "Why not appease?" "Why didn't Guiliani take the money?" "Why don't we apologize to not Bin Ladelately?"
You sniveling wuss. Why not drop dead?
Last but not least, Bin Laden wants to kill "me" because I am letting him kill "me" through "my" peace processes, leftist psychobables of hatred and finding out why while under attack, and appeasement movements.
It doesn't really matter why.
They've already killed close to 10,000 of us. What matters now is that we kill enough of them that there won't be enough left to kill any more of us.
PS: Can you imagine a Patton or MacArthur or Schwartzkopf or Nimitz asking such an idiotic question?
Because we are alive and free. They want us to submit or die. Submission is the way of Islam. Americans prefer their liberty.
I sincerely doubt that. Besides we are not particularly free.
Izzat so?
What? Surrender?
Here's some more intellectual fodder for the author:
1) What if, no matter what we do, they continue with their behavior?
2) What if the real culprit is an angry Saddam?
3) What if we kill them all and take over their governments?
Anyone who tries to kill me or mine will be met with relentless and merciless force.
End of discussion.
Anyone who doesn't know the answer to these two questions really shouldn't be writing about the Middle East. All of Saudi Arabia -- the birthplace of Islam -- is holy to Muslims. It also contains their two holiest cities, Mecca and Medina.
That's where I stopped and knowing this place (FR that is) I doubt I'll need to explain why.
God bless
Let's kick all Muslims out of Israel. It is holy to Christians and Jews.
Let's kick all Muslims out of the USA, it is holy to me.
Duh!
(1) The stationing of U.S. military personnel in Saudi Arabia, which they say encompasses the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina;
In other words, bin Laden believes Americans are so unclean that our very presence in his country is a sacrilege. Should we give ten seconds' consideration to such an ignorant bigot?
(2) The 10-year embargo against Iraq, which, it is reported, has caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi children;
Iraqi children are dying because the West won't feed them? Can they not feed themselves? Why not? Has their leader built any new palaces, bought any new weapons in the last ten years?
(3) U.S. economic and military aid to Israel.
Let's be clear about this: time and again, Arabic spokesman have said that creating a Palestinian state is not enough. The very existence of Israel is not to be tolerated. Everybody okay with that?
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