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Folks, I don't do politics or religion on the BB, but I do patriotism. And in that vein, and with the love of my country and the love of the people of the world in my heart, I'm posting this for you all. I think it's pretty important.
An Anonymous Writer's comments: I've been hearing a lot of talk about "bombing Afghanistan back to the Stone Age." Ron Owens, on KGO Talk Radio today, allowed that this would mean killing innocent people, people who had nothing to do with this atrocity, but "we're at war, we have to accept collateral damage. What else can we do?" Minutes later I heard some TV pundit discussing whether we "have the belly to do what must be done." And I thought about the issues being raised especially hard because I am from Afghanistan, and even though I've lived here for 35 years I've never lost track of what's going on there. So I want to tell anyone who will listen how it all looks from where I'm standing.
I speak as one who deeply hates the Taliban and Osama Bin Laden. My hatred comes from first hand experience. There is no doubt in my mind that these people were responsible for the atrocity in New York. I agree that something must be done about those monsters. But the Taliban and Ben Laden are not Afghanistan. They're not even the government of Afghanistan. The Taliban are a cult of ignorant psychotics who took over Afghanistan in 1997. Bin Laden is a political criminal with a plan. When you think Taliban, think Nazis. When you think Bin Laden,think Hitler. And when you think "the people of Afghanistan" think "the Jews in the concentration camps." It's not only that the Afghan people had nothing to do with this atrocity. They were the first victims of the perpetrators. They would exult if someone would come in there, take out the Taliban and clear out the rats nest of international thugs holed up in their country.
Some say, why don't the Afghans rise up and overthrow the Taliban? The answer is, they're starved, exhausted, hurt, incapacitated, suffering. A few years ago, the United Nations estimated that there are 500,000 disabled orphans in Afghanistan--a country with no economy, no food. There are millions of widows. And the Taliban has been burying these widows alive in mass graves. The soil is littered with land mines, the farms were all destroyed by the Soviets. These are a few of the reasons why the Afghan people have not overthrown the Taliban. We come now to the question of "bombing Afghanistan back to the Stone Age". Trouble is, that's been done. The Soviets took care of it already. Make the Afghans suffer? They're already suffering. Level their houses? Done. Turn their schools into piles of rubble? Done. Eradicate their hospitals? Done. Destroy their infrastructure? Cut them off from medicine and health care? Too late. Someone already did all that. New bombs would only stir the rubble of earlier bombs. Would they at least get the Taliban? Not likely. In today's Afghanistan, only the Taliban eat, only they have the means to move around. They'd slip away and hide. Maybe the bombs would get some of those disabled orphans, they don't move too fast, they don't even have wheelchairs. But flying over Kabul and dropping bombs would not really be a strike against the criminals who did this horrific thing. Actually it would only be making common cause with the Taliban--by raping once again the people they've been raping all this time. So what else is there? What can be done, then?
Let me now speak with true fear and trembling. The only way to get Bin Laden is to go in there with ground troops. When people speak of "having the belly to do what needs to be done" they're thinking in terms of having the belly to kill as many as needed. Having the belly to overcome any moral qualms about killing innocent people. Let's pull our heads out of the sand. What's actually on the table is Americans dying. And not just because some Americans would die fighting their way through Afghanistan to Bin Laden's hideout. It's much bigger than that folks. Because to get any troops to Afghanistan, we'd have to go through Pakistan. Would they let us? Not likely. The conquest of Pakistan would have to be first. Will other Muslim nations just stand by? You see where I'm going. We're flirting with a world war between Islam and the West. And guess what: that's Bin Laden's program. That's exactly what he wants. That's why he did this. Read his speeches and statements. It's all right there. He really believes Islam would beat the west. It might seem ridiculous, but he figures if he can polarize the world into Islam and the West, he's got a billion soldiers. If the west wreaks a holocaust in those lands, that's a billion people with nothing left to lose, that's even better from Bin Laden's point of view. He's probably wrong, in the end the West would win, whatever that would mean, but the war would last for years and millions would die, not just theirs but ours. Who has the belly for that? Unfortunately, Bin Laden does. Anyone else?
In Peace,
[ somebody ]
-------------------- Best Regards, Mark Smith EstiMate Sign Pricing Software It's Not Luck. It's EstiMate.™ http://www.EstiMateSoftware.com 1-888-304-3300
Posts: 724 | From: Asheville, NC, USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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posted
Thanks Mark;There is ALWAYS something deeper going on that what we see on the surface. We of all people should know that,just by the way our own goverment(non-polictical)keeps things hush,hush from it's own citizens. A case in point is:the FFA's handeling of untrained,low paid,"SECURITY"at the airports.This promblem has existed since the 90s (remember Air Marshalls?)
-------------------- PKing is Pat King The Professor of SIGNOLOGY Posts: 3113 | From: Pompano Beach, FL. USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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Right on guys.......!! Just about the very last people I will believe about "Anything", is our own gov. and our news agencys........All ya have to do is check either one of their track records.....BS, and more BS !!
-------------------- CJ Allan CJs Engraving 982 English Dr. Hazel, KY 42049
-------------------- LazyEdna in RL known as Sara Straw from southern Utah 5 National Parks within 3 hours drive Red Rock Heaven Posts: 776 | From: Aurora, Utah, USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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-------------------- joe pribish-A SIGN MINT 2811 longleaf Dr. pensacola, fl 32526 850-637-1519 BEWARE THE TRUTH.....YOU MAY NOT LIKE WHAT YOU FIND Posts: 11582 | From: pensacola, fl. usa | Registered: Nov 1998
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Great post, exactly my feelings.......Si the main difference between WW11 and now is that there was a country and a leader of that country to focus on. In this instance there is not, otherwise you (the USA ) would have started a campaign in Afghanistan already....but its not that easy. This is not a war against Islam, its a world that is united in its disgust, against terrorism. That's a much harder nut to crack.
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Kinda Simple Really...!! Make up yer Xmas list, find out "Who's Naughty, or Nice......Then "Wack theBastards.....!!
Lez see....... Bin Laden......... Saddam......... Whatever they are calling the a**hole running Iran now........ And let's not forget........"BOTH" houses of Congress.....!!
No "Bad Guys" left..........."Utopia"
Seems right ta me.....!!
-------------------- CJ Allan CJs Engraving 982 English Dr. Hazel, KY 42049
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Thanks for the info, Mark. It's good to hear the view of the situation from another point of view, other than our own
-------------------- From Kat Johnston (previously Katie Wright, for those who can remember that far back) Posts: 530 | From: Brisbane, Australia | Registered: Feb 1999
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Sorry Si....I wasnt meaning that you were inferring a war against Islam.
I saw your reference to Hitler and WW2, and was just trying to make the point that there we had a man and his country to focus on, here we have a man and an organisation that is scattered all over the place.A much harder target. My reference to an Islamic uprising was after hereing that if Afghanistan was attacked it would spark a muslim uprising "Holywar" all over the place. I agree with your sentiments, just wonder how on earth it is going to be achieved.
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Well Ken, here's an idea introduced by Michael Medved, radio talkshow host and movie critic. The next terrorist attack anywhere means we turn Mecca into a parking lot.
Posts: 797 | From: Olympia, WA | Registered: Nov 1998
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