Make that "good posts". Mike Geary On Sun, Aug 29, 2010 at 8:49 AM, Mike Geary <jejunejesuit.geary2@xxxxxxxxx>wrote: > Good post, Phil. I wish I could be so logical. > > Mike Geary > > > > > On Sat, Aug 28, 2010 at 8:25 PM, Phil Enns <phil.enns@xxxxxxxxx> wrote: > >> I had written: >> >> "Groups like al Qaeda and the Muslim Brotherhood are dangerous, and >> people who support these groups must be challenged. However, these >> groups are not existential threats to countries like the U.S. or even >> Israel." >> >> >> to which Eric replied: >> >> "Scenario: al-Qaeda style attack. Five small nuclear weapons detonated >> simultaneously in five major US cities. Decapitation of government. >> Assistant Secretary of Agriculture put in charge. He orders >> retaliatory nuclear strikes against Mecca, Tehran, Damascus, >> Pyongyang, and in his madness, Islamabad. >> >> China reacts by launching first strike of one hundred nukes at US. US >> reacts by sending 500 nukes at China. Russia reacts, and either in >> preemption or response, the US sends 700 nukes at Russia as it sends >> 100 nukes at what's left of the US. India sees a chance to attack >> what's left of Pakistan but not before Pakistan lobs a few nukes at >> India. >> >> The rest is described in _The Road_." >> >> >> >> If we follow Eric's scenario, the existential threat is not an al >> Qaeda style attack, which may have devastating effects but would not >> mean the end of the U.S. Rather, the existential threat would lie in >> how the U.S. responds to such an attack and the blowback that would >> necessarily follow. This is similar to what happened on 9/11. The >> attacks on New York City and the Pentagon were not even remotely a >> threat to the country and its existence. However, the U.S. response >> has proved far more costly, in terms of human beings and resources, >> and more devastating to the politics of the U.S. >> >> Al Qaeda and similar groups are very dangerous, but the threat they >> pose to countries like the U.S. is quite limited. And, to quote from >> a movie, 'Every search for a hero must begin with something which >> every hero requires, a villain.' For those who need a villain, and >> such a need is not limited to individuals of a particular political >> stripe, these groups are not sufficient. But Islam could easily be >> portrayed as a monster worthy of Bellerophon. >> >> >> Sincerely, >> >> Phil Enns >> Indonesia >> ------------------------------------------------------------------ >> To change your Lit-Ideas settings (subscribe/unsub, vacation on/off, >> digest on/off), visit www.andreas.com/faq-lit-ideas.html >> > >