… and I say Crusade, you say heathen, I say evil zealot, you say weapons of mass destruction, I say ruthless terrorism… let’s call the whole thing off!”
I’ll start by stating the obvious: it’s not for some limey to pretend he can influence the election results of a sovereign State, let alone what is currently the world’s only superpower. On the other hand, perhaps by entering the debate, I can have some influence on the world that results from today (03/11/2004).
Napoleon was not the first world leader to spot that by going to war, he could extend his tenure, the Vikings were excellent at it, as were the Turks, Greeks, Romans, Celts and every other pretender to the crown of world dominance, including the ten or twelve tribes (depending what you read) from whence it is claimed that we came. Chinese dynasties were expert at it, as were the Mongols… I could go on, but I suspect you get the drift!
Where am I going with this? Well, my undergraduate degree is in Comparative Politics (thanks to the UK system, it is also in French and Spanish) and I have read a fair amount of history books and international relations text books. I have a hunch that what is happening in the world today is the coming together of a dangerous mix of essentially unconnected phenomena. If not handled with extreme care, this particular Molotov Cocktail is liable to blow up and take all of us with it to whatever it is that awaits us once we have fallen off this mortal coil – and that has nothing to do with dead parrots or any other Monty Python sketch (http://www.fact-index.com/d/de/dead_parrot.html).
Most (all?) of the European Powers (Old World) have gone to war for reasons other than to defend themselves. The United States (and the rest of the New World) is basically a product of European Imperialism; it is perhaps not surprising, then, that she find herself today fighting war on several fronts. What’s more, many (all?) people seem to believe that their personal way of doing things/beliefs/world view [DELETE AS APPROPRIATE] is the ‘only’ way of doing things. Further, we all belong to the NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) camp, so it is understandable that the biggest kid on the block is refusing to allow the Head Teacher to see what is in his pockets… after all, he’s big enough to inflict some serious damage on that nasty big bully… and if we’re honest, nobody seriously believes all that fluff about turning the other cheek in the New Testament, do they? I mean, look at the way governments around the world rule; it is human nature to defend oneself and most of us seem to enjoy getting revenge, or should I say defending one’s honour. I subscribe to the latter, hence my previous entry on this blog.
Unfortunately I am not describing the latest antics of a comic book character; I am describing the actions of the United States of America.
The US justifies its invasion of Iraq on the grounds that Saddam Hussein did not obey UN Resolutions that gave it no choice but to allow its Weapons Inspectors in. But the US itself is guilty of precisely the same crime (http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2004/08/06/1091732084195.html?from=storylhs&oneclick=true). Moreover, Saddam did not have WMD, which means that in the eyes of many people, the war in Iraq. I was in New York and watched the second debate between Bush and Kerry. Mr Bush used the fact that Tony Blair was on his side to counter accusations that he had isolated the US. Well, I do not yet reached any conclusion on Iraq, but I can tell Mr Bush that Tony Blair is under siege over here, largely because so many Brits consider he lied to them regarding why we went to war.
In the past Prime Ministers and Presidents would be expected to get away with such trivial matters. What is different today is that communications technologies and excellent, inexpensive transport make us all superpowers. You hit me and I do have the means and the wherewithal to hit you back.
The US is continuing its tried and trusted foreign policy of posturing and “eye for an eye” military attacks. This is precisely what the British government used in the past. It is an outdated policy and while it is employed by major Powers, it is making the world a very dangerous place.
Furthermore, there is an extremely dangerous attempt to lump together Iran, Iraq and North Korea as an "axis of evil" (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/1796034.stm). Iran and Iraq are sworn enemies for heaven’s sakes! At worst, this is an example of ‘spin’; an attempt to justify a perpetual “War on Terror” that cannot be won. At best, it shows a frighteningly naïve understanding of the world.
Technology now exists that allows us to engage in dialogue with our ‘enemies’ and try to understand what it is that they do not like about our behaviour. It is only respectful to listen to other peoples’ opinions… this is the basis of democracy. It is also correct to respect other peoples’ ways of doing things. What works for you may or may not work for me; if you impose it on my, I will not like it. I will probably break it. I am a big kid.
Whoever wins the US Presidential Election today, I pray that they begin to show some common sense and start listening to other people.
/Dom
PS I wonder how I can insert hyperlinks…
Congratulations on a stunning victory, Mr Bush. Now that you have so much power and you have stated that you will not stand again, I trust you will be in a position to build bridges with people around the world and help to make the world (both within and without the USA) a safer place.
Clearly I do not seriously expect the President to read this.
;-)
/Dom
Posted by: Dom Pannell at November 4, 2004 11:25 AMMy brief:
Born in the USA, I am of English, Dutch and Cherokee Indian heritage. I live in the great state of Texas, as you know the only state to have ever fought and won their independence from another country. Yes, I am a Bush supporter. Why?
Because he won't back down. I am also a Vietnam
veteran and spent 31 days in an Army hospital at the same place that Mr. Kerry was stationed, Cam Rahn Bay. This was the most secure area in the country, hence the location for the hospital. So secure infact that we did not carry weapons there.
This is where Mr (so called war hero)Kerry won his medals. I was there when he was there and we(my fellow hospital inmates)joking referred to these Swift boat officer as the "base camp heros"
since all they seemed to do was hang out with and chase after the USO and Red Cross girls, booze it up every nite then go home after 6 months.
Enough! No need to convince anybody why less than 1/2 of 1% of military past or present supported Scary Kerry.
Fundamentalist Islam taken to the extreme is the enemy of the free world. There can be no dialouge, no reason, no diplomacy with these groups. This is proven over and over by their teachings and that is to destroy and kill any and all who are not muslim and not of the same lineage. These people kill for pleasure. They kill for money. They kill for some twisted belief that they will inherit paradise and a whole room full of young virgins if they are killed trying to kill one of (us) non believers in this rubish.
This has become a world of survival. Like in the animal kingdom, it is the survival of the fittest.
Be strong and be pre-emptive or be dead because these radicals respect no rule of law of the normal common sense man.
More about me: My forefathers came here in 1536, settled in the colony of Virgina. About that same time, some darker side of the family members were either sent or left for other parts of the globe and somehow made it to the big down under and New Zealand.
My 5th great grandfather, Capt Drury S. Adkins, (mothers side)fought in the Spanish American war. Took a company of volunteers from Tennessee down to Cuba. The Adkins family also arrived here in the year 1536 from, I believe the northern part of England.
Over the generations during the "taming of the west" our family has spread to the southern states and into Texas where there now seems to be a good many of os still propogating the lineage. I am 58 years old and have just gotten my 38 year old girlfriend pregnant for the 3rd time. Long live the Pannell's :) I have 4 grand children, and 2 grown children, Bryan and Tracy. I ride a Harley motorcycle, own a horse who is 23 yrs old, a mule and 2 labradors and used to compete in Rodeo's. Enough of this rambling disertation!
You may see me here: http://profiles.yahoo.com/blkmtrckl
and here: http://profiles.yahoo.com/sedynag
Your American cousin,
Steve Pannell
Kill em all - let god sort it out.
Posted by: Steve McQueen at December 9, 2004 10:07 AMI find it interesting when people are so cowardly they can't even give their real email address when they post. Steve McQueen, which may or may not be his/her genuine name, hasn't even left an email address. Consequently I can't congratulate him/her on his/her incredibly well thought out and beautifully delivered argument. Oh well, I guess some people can't give as good as they get.
Steve Pannell, on the other hand has balls enough to post where he comes from. I'm not sure if we're cousins Steve, but we may well be related.
Whether or not we do share the same lineage, nothing says that we have to agree and, obviously, I don't agree with you when it comes to beating terrorism. You say "There can be no dialouge, no reason, no diplomacy with these groups" but that is inviting a never-ending stream of suicide bombers, etc. to attack soft targets in the West. It's worth noting that the US is arguably less of an easy target than European countries, nearly all of which favour diplomacy over war...
Moreover, lumping the various 'anti-American' (or 'anti-Western' if you prefer) interests together as "Fundamentalist Islam" is very simplistic and highly dangerous, although I can see that it makes it easier to give 'the enemy' a single face to hate.
I have nothing against 'fundamentalists' be they Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist, Christian, or whatever else. That doesn't mean that I agree with their religious views. This is just as well, given that I enjoy visiting the US, as there appear to be plenty of fundamentalists over there.
Being fundamentalist has nothing to do with blowing up innocent people, nor has being religious per se. The troubles in Northern Ireland are essentially between Roman Catholics on the one hand and Protestants on the other, both sides claim to be Christian, so presumably both believe that 'turning the other cheek' is fundamental to their beliefs... yet the tit-for-tat fighting still continues.
Moreover, from what I have read, the vast majority of Muslims are peace-loving people who do not back Al Quaeda or any other terrorist organisations. Many of them are, nevertheless, deeply opposed to US foreign policy supported, as it is, by the UK. If our governments engaged in discussion with these people before imposing Western values on them by force (and without, it seems, thinking about the consequences of removing the incumbent rulers), they might find they can identify and deal with the causes of disquiet that allow extremist groups to thrive.
But hey, I'm just one of those lily-livered Brits that thinks civilised people talk before hitting each other. For the record, I don't always subscribe to cheek-turning, but then I don't claim to be a Christian... or a Muslim... or...
I just don't want to be killed by a violent extremist.
Posted by: Dom Pannell at December 19, 2004 9:46 PM