Evil's Advantage Over Conscience - Why the West gives Yasser Arafat endless second chances

Jewish World Review ^ | 4/10/02 | Norman Doidge

[Paradox]

A long read - but VERY important points made. One statement I keep hearing is that former Pres. Bush allowed Suddam to go free. If I recall, it was the EU that had made Bush promise BEFORE the Gulf War not to kill Suddam. Does anyone else recall this?

Excellent post, even if it is a repost. Pretty much explains, to a certain extent, some of the questions I have been asking about "world reaction".

As for why Bush Sr. let "Sad-dumb" off the hook, one of the reasons was that the other Arab leaders ASSURED Bush that there was NO WAY Saddam would remain in power, that his power was on the brink of crumbling. Blame Bush for believing his "Allies" in the region. My guess is that the Arabs were so stunned with the ferocity and the efficiency of the US Military, they were anxious about having the US decimate a fellow Arab ruler..

[Diamond]

Wow.

"Anne, although she knows Richard is evil, cannot see that he has no conscience....Eventually, she marries him, and he murders her."

"What makes Arafat's career in terror so remarkable is that when he has had limited access to violence, he has been able to use the very means Richard did to convince his enemies not to run him through."

I see a paradox that is it the instrument of conscience that makes victims unwilling or afraid to "run him through", in order to avoid being evil as he is. That raises the question of how to combat the fear that, "if we run him through we will be just as bad as he is."

This "spell" is part of a dynamic that operates when the evil being confronted is brazen and relentless...

This reminded me of the eight-year reign of terror of Bill Kwrintong.

Cordially,

[Delbert]

This was a long read, but on eof the most informative I have seen yet. Arrafat must die, Israel could call it an accident or just do it and take credit for it....either way ...it's easier to ask for forgiveness than to ask for permission.

[Travis McGee]

Great article!

[colorado tanker]

Outstanding post.

I fear, however, that the problem is much deeper and wider than Arafat and his Pali terrorists. Since the end of Turkish rule and Western colonialism in the muslim world we have seen the rise of muslim authoritarianism, religious fundamentalism and militarism. Turkey and Indonesia are the only democratic muslim states. Muslims publicly celebrate the grisly deaths of "martyrs" who kill civilians, women and children and are themselves often children. Sharia continues to spread. Women are caned, stoned and shot publicly. Children are deprived of a modern education and instead are indoctrinated in muslim fundamentalism, anti-Semitism and hatred of the West. "Collaberators" are tortured and killed, their bodies displayed in the streets as a warning against any dissent. Backward economics and corrupt government exacerbate the gap in wealth between the West and muslim countries. Government controlled media spews virulent anti-Semitic and anti-Western propaganda and lies. The tyrants view any concession or offer of peace as a weakness to be exploited.

The West is paralyzed in responding to this by a combination of economic need for Middle East oil, the leftist hatred of the West and willingness to supportt any anti-Western regime, latent anti-Semistism and outright refusal to believe that 50 years after WWII in an era of "globalization" we could again witness the rise of fascism.

Is there any means of resolution of this other than war?

[MarMema]

This is about psychopathology. Having adopted a child psychopath, I can relate to this discussion. Psychopaths, outside of the movies, are excellent con artists and seek to portray themselves as victims, and are usually successful.

To better illustrate this, we were parenting a 7 year old who spit at us, set fires and bit us. We took her out to a public gathering and within an hour we were mean and hostile parents, despised by most of the adults attending, and our daughter was a sweet, pathetic, mistreated child. It was like the air itself sent the message out to everyone as our daughter breathed. Although we were the real victims, in nearly any given public situation, we became the persecutors and our daughter became the victim. The magic of a true psychopath is something to witness.

I have long found the muslim terrorist viewpoint to be of disturbing similarity to our daughter's first years in our home. Arafat is a brilliant manipulator, as was our daughter.

And for anyone who cares, after 6 long, hard years and a small fortune spent in counseling and therapeutic parenting-training, our daughter is no longer a pyschopath. Her child psychiatrist released us from therapy just less than a year ago.

[Victoria Delsoul]

The terrorist therefore must persuade his victims that they are "doing the right thing" by submitting to fear. To do so, the terrorist needs to recruit or take over each victim's conscience and change it. This happens in stages.

Bump.

[maica]

Time for a bump!

[Jaidyn]

What a good read. I was reminded about when I was a child. I had a conscience instilled in my behind when it came to wrong-doing but too many children 'can do no wrong' in the eyes of their parents and don't develop a conscience until too late or never at all. Arafat reminds me of a remorseless kid who wants just to be powerful, who can kill as easily as we swat flies. He doesn't want land but wants to kill Jews, not for any particular reason except that they are easy prey since it is acceptable to do so by admission of the Arab nations. Like another poster stated, Arafat is similar to Bill Clinton, a man/child who attracts like-minded people or people weak but in masses to adulate him. None of us can imagine wrapping our children's tiny bodies with bombs and setting them out on a mission to kill other children but Arafat finds it tasteful because they are, in effect doing it for him, not for some state they will abandon or ruin even if Israel gave them everything on a silver platter. Arafat doesn't want the land; he wants to kill Jews just as surely as the rest of the Muslim world wants to annihilate everyone that isn't Islam.

[Biblebelter]

No comments or criticisms from me. It is a great read which requires little comment. I will bookmark it. Read it a few more times. I bet that my appreciation of the piece grows with every reading.

[maica]

I have been thinking about this description of the difficulty that people WITH a conscience have when dealing with people WITHOUT a conscience. It makes so much sense about the handicap the people with a conscience inherently have going into any contest.

Remember Newt and the government 'shutdown.' He never dreamed that Clinton would not concede like every president had done before him. Clinton did not blink and the Republican congress was blindsided.

We all must remember this kind of enemy that uses our compassion against us.

[SKempis]

bump!

[Jaidyn]

We all must remember this kind of enemy that uses our compassion against us.
Clinton looked us straight in the eye and pointed his bony finger at us and said he never had sex with that woman, Monica Lewinsky. He didn't have the decency to even look a little sheepish, never, about anything! And these Arabs are no better with their moaning and groaning because we are finally fighting back as though we were the aggressor. Just like my kids who hollers that one of them hit them back. They are sick kids who need to be wiped off the face of the earth and not too long ago, I never, in my wildest dreams, thought I could ever think, much less say that about a group of people.

[maica]

Just like my kids who hollers that one of them hit them back

This is so true. The smaller child irritates the larger child because the smaller child knows the full force of 'mother' will come to his aid and punish the larger child.

President Bush tried what perceptive parents try: - leave the kids alone to face the consequences of their pestering behavior. Normal siblings usually come to the conclusion that a sort of 'detente' is the best policy.

For the media to blame President Bush for the hostilities over there is like blaming the mother when the bigger child finally hauls off and hits the younger brother/sister pest.

[Freee-dame]

God bless you for keeping her. Many children are just "thrown away" when they are so incorrigible.

[Travis McGee]

Did you see the film of the explosive belt under the boy on the gurney on the Red Crescent ambulance, stopped while being smuggled into Israel the day before Passover?

I am still waiting for ABCNNBCBS to show that one.

[flaglady47]

Actually, OswegoDeee posted this article earlier today, and it was a great read then, and it's a great read now. I told OswegoDeee to make sure to send it to the Prez and VP and she did. Hope more people innundate the Prez and VP with this article. They really need to read it!

[timestax]

bump

[MinuteGal]

An article that begs for big-time bumping.

Leni

[Biblebelter]

Bump