This may turn out to be a pyrrhic victory (gag)

The Independent (U.K.) ^ | 11/14/2001 | Kaizer Nyatsumba

[Always Right]

From the very beginning of "Operation Enduring Freedom" it was always a cinch that an Allied victory was assured. After all, the Taliban's aged military equipment with the scarce resources of one of the world's poorest countries...

That's almost word for word how I predicted a few days ago the media would spin this after over a month of telling us how unwinnable this war was.

[rogers21774]

Stupid Idiot. The war is far from over. Even in Afghanistan. There's still Iraq to deal with and at this point who knows who else.

[Publius6961]

However, truly civilised people do not respond to barbarity with barbarity of their own. Instead, they reveal, by their choice of action, that they are better human beings and that they will not allow their enemies to push them to stoop to such depraved levels.

This is the heart of the message, skillfully woven into a fabric of phony moral concern.
A certain recipe for cultural extinction.
And of course, an expected propaganda tool from the enemy or its supporters.

I see this from our own here at home. Those with no sense of history or the way the world outside their little insulated universes.
Those living with their mothers; those never having been faced with not knowing if they would survive the week; those who take their rights for granted and never having to even remotely consider that there are obligations inseparably attached.

Dealing with mindless violence with anything other than mindless violence is an option only for individuals.
For entire societies who must order their own to die in order to maintain the "others" safe, there is something ugly about the tendency to think that "making nice" with animals for the sake of "feeling good" is an option.

[XJarhead]

You know, the idea that collateral damage inevitably earns more hatred is just factually incorrect.

Look at WWII. The war against the Nazis certainly resulted in a great many French, Belgian, Dutch, and German citizens being killed by the dumb iron bombs we used back then. Yet, there is no residue of hate against the U.S. The people were intelligent enough to realize that some wars need to be fought, and that it is impossible to fight a war and guarantee that there will be no civilian casualties.

Even if we assume the initial point is correct, we must also assume that the entire population of Afghanistan hates the Taliban because of civilian deaths during the civil war. Thus, we should be extrememly popular for forcing the hated Taliban out of power. Right?

[Publius6961]

The author of this article is correct: Our bombs have merely exascerbated anti-American hatred in the Muslim world. Bombs blowing up things (including innocent families) may satisfy our collective lust for revenge, but they do little to address the root causes of terrorism.

The weakness, as well as the strength of our system of government is that some are forced to risk life and limb to uphold the right of idiots to spout whatever comes into their minds no matter how absurd.
There has never been a war in history where innocent families have not suffered deprivation, injury and death.

As for addressing the root causes of terrorism being the proper purpose of war, it is so numbingly mindless that I am at a loss for words.
Some would obligate us to reason with carjackers and muggers?
What kind of immature mind would operate on such a naive level? It is frustratingly impossible to participate in a discussion with a mind so disassociated from reality.

[wingnuts'nbolts]

Makes me want to slap him silly! Such dripple.

[ohioman]

It must be hard for you to think with your head firmly up your Hate-America-First ARSE!

[hattend]

Through its actions in the past five weeks it has created even more Muslim enemies for itself, some of whom might feel strongly enough to want to try something foolish.

Bring 'em on, we'll defeat them too. I see Khadaffy's kid is rattling sabers now... Libya hasn't had a good bombing in a while.

[aculeus]

A relative of Kaiser Bengali perhaps?

[SerpentDove]

>>So one-sided was this war that it was very much like an elephant stamping on an ant.<<

I guess we were being unfair to those helpless terrorists.

Please copy, email, print, send to any and every American you care to. Never forget.

[SerpentDove]

Kaizer Nyatsumba,

GO STRAIGHT TO HELL

[Crawdad]

Not much of a writer, but he makes a good roll.