Spain PM to withdraw Iraq troops

BBC ^ | 3/15/04

[kitkat]

***Europeans paid tribute to the Barbary pirates, because it was cheaper than confronting them. Jefferson was unable to create an international coalition to rid the world of that problem, so, Guess what? He acted "unilaterally". One result is in the first line of the Marine Corps hymn.***

Great post.

[CatoRenasci]

Because people like Kerry don't care about the War against Terror or the protection of Western civilization, all they care about is getting power. They will be the end of the West.

[oh8eleven]

Either the Marines attract a certain type or it converts enlisters to a higher form of manhood.
The former is probably more true than the latter. I was USMC mid to late 60s and still miss them.
I'd go back in a heartbeat. Semper Fi ...

[OMalley]

Yep, I agree.

Why do ppl think this is the answer? AQ isnt going to stop blowing things up over there just cuz they pull out.

i think itll be the opposite. once they show an ounce of weakness AQ will be all over them. Its what they live for.

When are ppl going to wake up and realize singing kumbaya isnt the answer. Yeesh, what a way to wake up in the morning...need more coffee!!

[Burkeman1]

Franco's Spain was neutral during WWII and an espionage hot spot for Axis and Allies alike. Hitler attempted again and again to get Franco to join the Axis and was each time rebuffed. Franco was one of the few men who was unaffected by his personal charm and "magnetism". He infuriated Hitler. But despite this official neutrality of Spain- He didn't stop ideiological anti Communists who had fought for him during the Civil War against the Communists- to travel to Germany in which they formed their own Waffen SS division that fought on the Eastern Front. Some of whom may have been still fighting at the battle of Berlin in the final days.

[evad]

on one day, the Spanish are out in the streets in record numbers, shouting their defiance to terrorists... On the next they are capitulating to them at the ballot box.

I stated in an earlier thread that Spain has two options..
capitulate now to terrorism and become a muslim country in 10 years like France..
OR
fight terrorism now with all they've got.

Looks like they've chosen to become another muslim country.

viva la allah

[Physicist]

This does note bode well for the U.S.

I disagree. I think the Islamokazis have learned some valuable lessons.

1) Push the U.S., and they push back, a hundred times as hard.

2) Push the Europeans, and they fold like origami paper.

Now, if you're a terrorist, whom do you push?

[Poohbah]

And what did exactly Spain do in WW II to fight Hitler?

Nothing.

They even sent a volunteer division to fight on the Eastern Front.

[zook]

CNN News morning show is asking for e-mail response to the following: Was Spain's election result a victory for terrorism?

am@cnn.com

[samtheman]

Investigations are continuing into who was behind the bombings.

Until the transfer of power. The new government has no interest in finding out who was behind the bombings. Whoever it was, the new government owes them a big debt of gratitude. Which it will promptly repay by promptly releasing anyone taken into custody by the old government.

When do the rats take over?

[evad]

Is their a backbone in Europe anywhere?

Yeah..but it's sole purpose is to support the head.

And the color is apparently yellow.

[Redleg Duke]

Spain still hasn't gotten over the Armada and 1898, I see.

Once a quitter, always a quitter.

And they did so well against ignorant, backwards savages, too!

[samtheman]

The beginning of the end of Western civilization?

Remember. Things looked just as dark in 1939. And just as dark in 1979.

We beat Hitler.

We beat Communism.

We one both wars basically on our own.

We'll win this one too.

[A. Pole]

Hate to see this...on one day, the Spanish are out in the streets in record numbers, shouting their defiance to terrorists... On the next they are capitulating to them at the ballot box.

The same millions were protesting the war in Iraq. Spanish government sent troops against clear will of the people (more than 80% was against).

[FreedomPoster]

Agreed on the latter, beg to differ on the former. The Soviets and the Germans bled each other white. Soviets had an enormous amount of economic assistance from us, but we *far* from did it "basically on our own".

[sonsofliberty2000]

If this was al Qaeda that attacked the trains then they have won their first victory. Without even a shot being fired from Spain. Is this a view of things to come? al Qaeda now has been taught terror works.

---

Patriot Paradox

[wildandcrazyrussian]

The problem in Spain is that (since the Socialists got 42% to the current ruling party's 38%) a swing of a mere 2-3% could have made it go either way. The Socialists did NOT get a majority in Parliament, either, and it is not like a one-on-one match.

I believe that a serious error was made by the Spanish government in immediately blaming the Basque separatists group WITHOUT ANY EVIDENCE, instead of blaming the true perpetrators, the al-Qaeda terrorists. I assume they did this for tactical reasons. Therefore, they did not rally the nation against Islamic terrorism, and I don't see the election (narrowly won by the Socialists 164 seats to 148 seats + other parties, out of 450) as a referendum on the terrorism issue which it could have been.

[TheBattman]

Our correspondent says the late swing to the Socialists raises one disturbing thought - if al-Qaeda was responsible for Thursday's attacks, it appears to have had significant influence in changing the government of a leading Western democracy.

Actually, what this means is that any terrorist that wants to change the government just needs to pull a bombing like this within days of an election. It really doesn't matter who was responsible - it still got the desired result.

I wonder if the DemocRATs here in the US would stoop low enough to arrange a bombing or other sort of "terrorist" event here just before our election in December to try outs GW? After all, the example has been set and prooven to work. Kerry has already indicated (unintentionally) that he will be soft on terrorists. What's to stop this from happening here?

[BlessedBeGod]

Can someone do a Photoshop version of the Spanish Surrender Monkeys?

[CatoRenasci]

Yes, this does call to mind all of the negative Anglo-Saxon stereotypes about the Spanish. After all, they haven't won a real war since before the Thirty Years War, that's over 350 years. The Spanish have been long on pride and arrogance (from Aragon, a region in Spain) and very, very short on accomplishment since the sixteenth century. Their proudest moments have been the rape of the Netherlands, the Inquisition, and their misrule in Hispanic America -- all of which is still a mess resulting largely from the values absorbed by the populations over 300 years of Spanish colonialism.