[lit-ideas] Re: Text of bin Laden Tape
- From: "Lawrence Helm" <lawrencehelm@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 21 Jan 2006 09:37:19 -0800
Irene. I don't think Fromkin is considered an "interpreter." He's a highly
respected historian as far as I know. As to McNamara, he and Johnson are
interesting psychological studies. I didn't read his book, but I watched
his documentary. He's a pitiful fellow - as was Johnson. They both meant
well but that is another subject.
A difference between the Vietnam War and the War against Islamism is that
the former was part of a grand strategy developed during the Truman
administration: containment, opposing Communist takeovers wherever they
occurred in the world. This was a good strategy developed by George Kennan
whom I have considerable respect for. There is a strong argument that
Kennan's strategy was responsible for our victory over the USSR during the
Cold War. (See James Chace's Acheson, the Secretary of State who created
the American World)
The War against the Islamists is a different matter. The nature of weaponry
is such that small paramilitary groups can do enormous damage. The strategy
devised by the Bush administration was to oppose go after the paramilitary
forces wherever possible, but also to go after their bases of operation.
You'll notice from Saddam's last speech that he noted Bush's strategy of
fighting Islamists in the Middle East so we wouldn't need to fight them on
American soil. He has resolved to mount a force and attack America on its
own soil once again. It remains to be seen whether he'll be successful.
Huge numbers of Islamists have been killed in Iraq and we have been
successful in tracking down others elsewhere. We have also undermined
support for Al Quaeda throughout the world. There is evidence that Al
Quaeda is finding it difficult and perhaps not cost effective to mount an
attack against America. It is much easier to attack European cities and he
may settle for that, but he may not. He may mount an attack against the
U.S. just to make the point that he still can.
There were several Islamist attacks against America before 9/11. There is
no evidence that ignoring Al Quaeda has a benign effect on them. They are
marching to the ideology developed by Sayyid Qutb which has the ultimate
goal of world rule.
Iraq under Saddam Hussein was a hostile force in the midst of a hostile
force of Islamists. Part of the time they criticized him, but they admired
his defiance of the U.S. He made jokes of the U.N. resolutions and his
forces shot at British and American planes regularly as we overflew Iraq to
make sure he wasn't sending his army against the Kurds or the Shiites in the
South. It was a necessary step in our war against Islamism to remove the
Saddam's Baathist regime. The Islamists cannot afford to allow Iraq to
become democratic. It is a sizeable Arab nation in the midst of the Middle
East, and if it does become a successful democracy it will have a
devastating effect on Islamist goals.
The Islamists have mounted potent propaganda attacks against the U.S. and
its efforts in Iraq. It is being abetted by the Leftists who have not
become reconciled to Liberal-Democracy after the fall of the USSR. An
excellent analysis of this strange marriage is David Horowitz' Unholy
Alliance, Radical Islam and the American Left.
Lawrence
_____
From: lit-ideas-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:lit-ideas-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]
On Behalf Of Andy Amago
Sent: Saturday, January 21, 2006 8:58 AM
To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [lit-ideas] Re: Text of bin Laden Tape
Interpretations are interesting but they don't address the issue that we're
burying ourselves in debt in exchange for the opportunity to prove, again,
that we're not invincible. The Soviet Union did what we're doing. Do you
remember that Robert MacNamara was against invading Iraq? Why do you think
he was against it? It's good to know history, but it's also good to learn
from it. As is typical for the human race, we've learned nothing except an
interesting, albeit completely useless, bunch of facts.
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