Posted on 01/22/2002 2:52:18 PM PST by enrg
At a risk of making this another full-time job, I decided to comment nonetheless but promise to keep it on a short leash.
War has been good for America. Let's face it, America is what it is today because of a long, almost unbroken, streak of wars it has waged -- in aggression as well as in self-defense. The United States profitted handily between 1914 and 1917, by trading with both sides of the European conflict.
President Dwight D. Eisenhauer warned incoming President John F. Kennedy of the "military-industrial" complex running amock. Unfortunately, the "complex" has done very well -- except in the initial years of Pax Americana and the new Clinton Administration. But Wag-the-Dog scenario was re-established very soon thereafter with Madelein Albright's (in)famous (at leats one of many) pearls, to paraphrase her -- if you have an army, use it!
Of course, profits from wars are not our aim and our goals. We are the good guys, remember, we conquer because it's our "Manifest Destiny," we have no war criminals and we have no war profeteers...all we want is to spread democracy...
END OF THE INNOCENCE: The 1954 CIA Coup in Guatemala
When Arbenz was elected in 1950, the State Dept. saw him as an "opportunist"; in other words, someone they thought they could deal with.(Immerman, pg. 107) UFCO continued pressing the State Dept. and the CIA for action. Neither organization seemed much inclined initially to take action, but the CIA quickly came around based on the views of the OPC. The OPC viewpoint quickly became the official one of the CIA, which pressured those in the State Dept. to come around in its views on Guatemala.
The propaganda campaign against Guatemala had an unintended consequence. Instead of intimidating Arbenz, it simply strengthened his coalition and allowed him to face down the demands that the US had made to purge his government of elements they didn’t approve of.
UFCO was pushing hard for action, perhaps unaware that powerful forces were already at work behind the scenes. The first fruits of the situation actually fell into its lap quickly. The US Justice Department had been investigating the company since 1919 (the wheels of justice turn slowly) for antitrust violations related to its Latin American operations. Ironically, these violations, relating to its ownership of all shipping and railroads in several countries in addition to Guatemala, dovetailed with the criticisms that the Guatemalans themselves had made. This legal action was put on hold because the National Security Council worried that it might weaken efforts to contain Communism. The case was pursued after the coup, suggesting that the US government clearly wanted to use UFCO as part of it strategy in the short term and that the benefit to UFCO was mostly coincidental. (CIAPBS, pg. 19)
VRN P.S. I came across a report in AFM that a BoSerb Galeb was hit (but not downed) by a Stinger SAM in mid-'94. Now where did those come from and what happened to the remainder (one hopes that it will not be the same as the 80s Afghanistan fiasco where the CIA tried to buy back the Stingers at reportedly $1 million a piece)?
No, you got it completely wrong. I was talking about the few people who on one hand are rabidly anti-Serbian and pro-Albanian, while at the same time being pro-Israel, without realising the irony. I am referring to the history of the treatment of Jews by Albanians, while Serbians helped many Jewish people who were fleeing through Yugoslavia (including M. Albright & family).
Imagine yourself trying to talk a modern day Sudanese slave merchant out of his line of business and all he does is point out America's history and declare that you are in no position to judge him, regardless of any laws, whether international or local, proscribing his business.
I reject the defence, whether in the context of this example, of the Balkans, or of anywhere else.
We were speaking of Macedonia, in 2001, and the lack of any real evidence to support your contention regarding the NLA and NATO.
So provide said evidence and spare me the tangential forays into irrelevant material.
Yeah, good enough for you, I know.
Caveat Emptor.
Not only are the MPRI instructors only present in second hand recountings of the Aracinovo evacuation, the American weapons and "3rd gen" NVG's have never been found anwhere save in the Macedonian Government's version of events.
Go figure, Destro.
The "aircraft "on the pictur is not a plane but a well known German UAV!.
VJ had shot approximately 25 of NATO reconisance UAVs over Kosovo,according to the official NATO data.Add at least 30% on that number,and we will have a true figure.
You want to argue with Hackworth,no problem!Join the army, go to battle and when you come back,share the expiriance with all of us!
Maybe,you`ll be less bloodthirsty.
And,Your Honor (self proclaimed),Kosta didn`t submit any defence to you to judge and approve?!He is only,corresponding with you because he has a good family upbringing,and he is an intellectual and scolar,and has a good manners.
He,just,is not able to be impolite.Unlike you.
And,why don`t you use,as an example Albanian/KLA drug dealer instead a Sudaneze slave merchant?Slave merchants do not damage your country, drug dealers do?
Oh,sorry,I forgot,they (KLA) "share your values!"
In your case,very true.
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